Dirty Rocker Boys is a warts and all memoir by the former model, Bobbie Brown. It tells the story of Bobbie’s life, beginning with her birth in 1969 until about 2013. Bobby Jean’s foray into the world of show business began with her winning the Miss Louisiana Teen USA pageant in 1987. She would go on to represent Louisiana in the Miss Teen USA pageant that same year. Her appearance in that pageant would open the door to getting work as a commercial model (she was not the high fashion type). Bobbie’s California girl good looks would soon lead to appearances in rock videos and bit parts in the popular television show, Married with Children. Bobbie also won the spokesmodel competition on the show Star Search a record thirteen times.
At first, modeling came easily for Bobbie. She didn’t have to try too hard. Her beauty was her foot in the door. But life happens. Human beings aren’t perfect. She had some dysfunctional relationships with various men. Then she started dating the musician, Jani Lane, from the 1980s rock band, Warrant. After dating for just a few months, Bobbie discovers she’s pregnant (after being told that she may never be able to have children), and she and Lane marry a few months later. Their marriage only lasted about two years.
Sometime after her divorce, Bobbie then began dating Tommy Lee from Motley Crue. That relationship was also a tumultuous one. After their breakup in 1995, Tommy married the actress Pamela Anderson, and Bobbie’s life would begin to spiral out of control. She was already using drugs (she admitted to using them to stay slim for modeling work), and her habit worsened after her breakup with Tommy. Her addiction lasted for about a decade, with Bobbie finally sobering up in the 2000s. I don't believe Bobbie has ever gotten over Tommy dumping her for Pam. It's quite clear from listening to her audiobook that Bobbie knew that she was very pretty and she was used to being pursued by many wealthy and desirable men. Tommy's mistreatment and rejection of her was huge blow to her huge ego.
I listened to Bobbie’s book on Audible and enjoyed it overall. The only things that I didn’t care for at times were her use of profanity and her graphic descriptions of sex, but that’s just me. I can tell that she and I have very different personalities. Bobbie is very confident. It seems as if she was a woman who loved to socialize and PARTY. I have always been very shy and introverted. I didn't know who Bobbie was until her book came out, and I only remember her from the Cherry Pie video (which I probably only saw twice in my life). I never watched the show Star Search. If I had known about her, I probably would have envied the life she led back then, but years later and after having listened to her audiobooks, I can tell you that I do NOT envy her at all. She is narcissistic and a bit shallow. She is in love with her younger self. I don't envy the drugs and all of the sexual encounters she's had with various male celebrities. I truly believe that very few male celebrities (rock stars and movie stars) are ever faithful to one woman for life. They can have their pick of any women they want, and there's just far too much temptation out there. I can see now on looking back that the kind of life that Bobbie chose to pursue is full of a lot of highs and lows...but mostly lows (heartache). She gave up her child to her mother so that she could pursue a career in modeling and/or show business and possibly marriage to a wealthy man. I think she missed out on raising her daughter, and she can't get those precious years back.
I do appreciate Bobbie sharing her life story with us. Many of us who aren’t in show business and who see people like Bobbie Brown and Pamela Anderson assume that everyone loves them and that they have perfect lives. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. I’m not going to get into their personal lives, but let’s just say that they are human beings, and they’ve had their share of problems—just like everyone else. I will say that despite both women looking very similar, it seems that Bobbie and Pamela have different personalities and a different work ethic. But I am sure that both have always had their own insecurities. The same goes for the men in their lives.
As Bobbie Brown once said, she is the epitome of the small-town girl who made it big in Hollywood cliche. Initially, success came very fast for her, but her potential was squandered by bad decisions, bad relationships, and drug use. I would think that the shelf-life for most models is a relatively short one. By her own admission, Bobbie’s main ambition was to be a model and actress, and she had nothing else to fall back on—except the expectation that one day she would marry a wealthy man who would take care of her for the rest of her life. Sadly, I think many women have the same ambitions that Bobbie once had.
In Bobbie’s book, she talks about how she had a crush on Tommy Lee since her teen years, and how she would find out years later that both Tommy Lee and Jani Lane had seen her on Star Search (before she ever met them) and talked about who would get to have sex with her first. It was sad to hear about Bobbie’s failed relationship with Jani, his depression, and his tragic demise. The baby daughter that they shared was/is truly a gift. It was also disheartening to learn about Bobbie’s dysfunctional relationship with Tommy and his Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde personality. It sounds like he was love bombing her in the beginning, but I personally believe that he had his sights set on Pamela for some time.
But the saddest thing by far is the fact that Bobbie and Jani’s daughter had to be exposed to all of this dysfunction.
Bobbie described herself in one of her two books as being the "hottest girl on the Sunset Strip" (for about minute as she said). I would agree with that. She was definitely a good-looking woman who stood out, but there's an abundance of physical beauty in the world, and newer, younger women are always coming along. There's an endless supply of them. The kind of attention that she experienced from men is a fleeting thing. It seems to happen when young women are in their mid teens to mid twenties, and after that the attention seems to fade (quickly for some women and gradually for others). I think that's just life. It happens. No one stays young forever. Even men who were once considered desirable get older and experience rejection.
Bedding down beautiful, young models seems to be a competition between male celebrities. Remember that first Austin Powers movie in which Austin describes Allota Fagina as "the village bicycle" and that "everyone has had a turn"? That's how women like Bobbie are treated by these men. They go from one male celebrity to the next and then the next and so on—with none of these men ever committing to them (as in marriage). The men just see these women as playthings...another notch in their belt buckles. This is something that I definitely do not envy and I would not want my own daughter to lead this kind of lifestyle. My advice is to find a real career, make your own money, find a good man, and hold on to that good man. THAT is the way to true happiness.
At least Bobbie was able to tell her story in a book and make some money from doing that. I guess one could say that she paid her dues big time.