VH1 Teams Up With Dr. Drew For 'Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew,' A Series Depicting The Process Of Overcoming Addiction

Courtesy of VH1:

VH1 and Dr. Drew Pinsky Will Open Up The Inner World Of Rehab As They Help Nine Celebrities Through The Process Of Getting Clean And Sober

The Series Will Premiere on VH1 on January 10, 2008 at 10pm With Eight One-Hour Episodes

NEW YORK, Nov. 27 -- VH1 has partnered with Dr. Drew for the reality series "Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew." The project, consisting of eight one-hour episodes, is slated to premiere on January 10, 2008 at 10pm*.

This series will follow the real-life experiences of Brigitte Nielsen, Chyna, Daniel Baldwin, Jeff Conaway, Jessica Sierra, Jaimee Foxworth, Seth "Shifty" Binzer, Mary Carey, and Ricco Rodriguez as they undergo detoxification and treatment at a center in the Los Angeles area. While these celebrity patients may be accustomed to receiving special treatment in their everyday lives, they were in for a major surprise when they entered this no- frills treatment facility. Dr. Drew was aided in the process by his experienced and trusted staff of counselors, including registered nurses and other addiction experts.

In a television first, the highly respected Dr. Drew, a practicing MD and assistant clinical professor at KECK USC School of Medicine, will give viewers an unflinching look at exactly how the rehab process works and what it feels like for participants. Dr. Drew hopes to use his celebrity patients to humanize the process and show viewers that treatment is a viable way to break the cycle of addiction. "The road to sobriety is not easy and rehabilitation and the recovery process are not to be taken lightly," said Dr. Drew Pinsky. "My goal is to lift the veil and help my patients, as well as viewers, understand that if not taken seriously, addiction is a disease that will kill you."

"This project will reveal that true rehabilitation is grueling work and takes an ongoing commitment. At the same time, we hope to demystify the process and encourage people with substance issues to explore rehab as a viable option," said Michael Hirschorn, Executive Vice President, Original Programming and Production, VH1. "There is no one better than Dr. Drew to deal with this topic honestly while assisting people who truly need his expertise and guidance."

All but one of the patients completed an intensive 21-day round-the-clock program with both group and one-on-one therapies. After they completed the program, the patients were given the opportunity to continue their treatment in a sober living facility or treatment center for at least three months at VH1's expense.

While most people know Dr. Drew as the host of the syndicated radio show Loveline and the MTV show of the same name, Dr. Drew is a medical doctor on staff at Huntington Hospital, a board certified addictionologist and medical director of the chemical dependency unit at Las Encinas Hospital in Pasadena, where he has been treating addicts for over 20 years. Although he is an associate professor of clinical psychiatry at the KECK USC School of Medicine, he is not a psychologist or psychiatrist. His book, Cracked: Putting Broken Lives Together Again (Harper-Collins,) is all about what treating addicts is like from a caretaker's perspective. Dr. Drew co-authored the first academic study on celebrities and narcissism. The study was published in the Journal of Research in Personality (Elsevier) in September 2006, and is the first systematic, empirical scholarly study of celebrity personality.

"Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew" is executive produced by John Irwin and Damian Sullivan for Irwin Entertainment. Dr. Drew Pinsky and Howard Lapides are also executive producing. Michael Hirschorn, Jeff Olde, Jill Holmes, and Noah Pollack are executive producers for VH1.

VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with TV series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in 90 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital channels and services including VH1Classic, VH1 Soul, VH1 Mobile, VH1Games and extensive broadband video on VH1.com. Connect with VH1 at VH1.com.

*All times ET/PT

CONTACT: Scott Acord, +1-310-752-8075, Scott.Acord@VH1staff.com, or Lori
Bogin, +1-212-846-7131, Lori.Bogin@vh1staff.com, both of VH1

Note from Ric: I am sooooo watching this!