Tara Reid and the Ills of Being a Full-Time Party Girl

Whether they know it or not, it’s every female child’s dream to be a full-time party girl. Not to be confused with a socialite, this form of existence doesn’t involve needing to be concerned with preserving one’s reputation or family name. And when it comes to representing the highs and extremely low lows of this particular “profession,” no one has better encapsulated the aftermath of fulfilling the party girl job description better than Tara Reid.

Like Lindsay Lohan after her, Reid got her foothold into the world of extreme partying by starting out as a shill for commercials. Peddling brands like Jell-O, Crayola and McDonald’s, Reid then segued into “acting.” Reid’s ability to hit her mark while on a set paid off for B-rate shows like Saved by the Bell: The New Class and trash TV like Days of Our Lives (which was admittedly brilliant during the Lisa Rinna era). Reid’s move to Los Angeles in 1997 led to more credible films like The Big Lebowski and Cruel Intentions. But, as a born and bred Jersey girl, her knack for attracting more low-brow roles was unavoidable, ultimately leading to Urban Legend, also co-starring Jared Leto, among others.

Reid’s comfortableness with being the slutty and/or dumb girl was fine when she was in her 20s and even, um, mid-30s, but, after awhile, her shtick was as stale as the alcoholic stench emanating from her pores. The pinnacle of her heyday was, sadly, dating Carson Daly from 2000 to 2001. Now, she’s traded down to Erez Eisen of Infected Mushroom. Her personal downslide has, of course, mirrored her career collapse. Among other shameless decisions, Reid has reverted back to the early phase of her acting life by appearing in commercials–only this time, for far more obscure brands such as Dodo, an Australian phone and internet provider for those on a budget.

As for Reid’s partying, it’s difficult to tell if it’s a chicken or egg situation–whether the drug/alcohol intake is a product of her failure or the cause of it. Either way, the important thing is that we’ll always have Josie and the Pussycats.