by Linda Bell
For many reasons, Lifetime’s Wendy Williams documentary was hard for me to watch.
I will begin this story in the 90s and 2000s. That's when I heard Wendy dishing out hot topics on New York radio stations Hot 97 and later on 107.5 WBLS. Love her or hate her, she always had the streets talking. I’m not one for celebrity gossip, but Wendy had a way of making listeners feel like they were her longtime friends.
When The Wendy Williams Show debuted in 2008, I was not surprised. It was like seeing a local celebrity of sorts moving onto greater heights. The controversial media personality that reigned in New York’s Tri-State area was now unleashed on the world. Daytime television would never be the same.
How I Met Wendy Williams
In 2010, I had the pleasure of interviewing Wendy to discuss her successful talk show, her radio career and being the second Black woman inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame. We met at the NASDAQ Marketsite, where she celebrated the second year of her show by ringing the opening bell.
We memorialized the meeting with the picture above. Wendy joked that we should stand because of “the hilarity of it all.” For context, I am 5 ft 2 and a little over 100 lbs on a good day.🙂 Wendy giggled at how she towered above me in her six-inch heels. (This was before she stopped wearing heels due to lymphedema, a blockage in the lymphatic system that causes swelling in the feet.)
Outspoken, witty, and personable are three words I would choose to describe Wendy. As a writer, I am seldom at a loss for words, yet I only have one word to describe the Where is Wendy Williams? documentary. Disturbing. It never should have seen the light of day.
Wendy’s Struggles Documented
Lifetime’s four-part documentary gave us a bird’s eye view into Wendy's challenges with alcohol, health issues, and declining cognitive functions.
I was shocked to hear that four years ago, Wendy had to be rushed to the hospital after she was found unresponsive at her home. Her nephew said she had to receive three lifesaving blood transfusions. Despite this near brush with death, Wendy professes her love for vodka early in the documentary. She later curses her manager when he confronts her about finding an empty vodka bottle in her room.
It was tough to see how Graves Disease, hyperthyroidism, and lymphedema have affected Wendy’s appearance. In one scene, Wendy says she can only feel 2% of her feet, which are swollen and discolored. “This is lymphedema...Do you see what this looks like?” she said tearfully.
The documentary is riddled with even more unfortunate scenes, including one where Wendy’s publicist asks her if she wants to attend the Oscars. Wendy, who is synonymous with all-things-celebrity, uttered two simple words that spoke volumes. She paused and asked, “What’s Oscar’s?” with a strained and confused look on her face.
How is Wendy doin’? Clearly, she is not well.
Wendy’s Diagnosis Revealed
Days before the premiere of the documentary, we learned that Wendy suffers from primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia (FTD).
Aphasia is a condition affecting language and communication abilities, while FTD is a progressive disorder impacting behavior and cognitive functions. Wendy’s son revealed in the documentary that her dementia is caused by excessive alcohol use.
Wendy has always been open and honest about her struggles with drugs and alcohol. Several unfortunate events in recent years have likely added to her challenges.
In 2019, her 20-year marriage ended in divorce after her husband fathered a child with his mistress. The same year, the outspoken talk show host tearfully revealed on her show that she was living in a sober house. In 2020, the COVID pandemic brought the world to a standstill, coupled with the death of her mother, Shirley Williams. Two years later, the Wendy Williams Show was canceled after 14 years on the air. Because of health issues, Wendy would not host the final year of her show.
The purpose of the Lifetime documentary was to chronicle Wendy’s return to the airwaves as a podcast host. What we got was anything but.
Producers say if they had known about Wendy’s diagnosis, they would not have taped the documentary. How could the producers not see that something was wrong and stop filming?
Wendy has been under court-appointed guardianship since 2022 after Wells Fargo said she was a victim of financial exploitation. While her legal guardian tried to block the documentary from airing, the move was denied in court. Where was the guardian while the documentary was being filmed?
I was also surprised to see that Wendy and her family are listed as executive producers of the documentary. Why did her family sign off on this unfortunate project?
As I searched for answers to my questions, even more questions arose. I soon found myself falling deep into the rabbit hole that is the guardianship system. What I found out was not pretty.
The Failed Guardianship System
Guardianship is a legal arrangement when the court appoints someone to make decisions for an incapacitated individual like the disabled or elderly. An estimated 1.3 million adults are under guardianship in the United States, encompassing about $50 billion in assets.
If there is any redeeming value in the Wendy Williams documentary, it’s that it shows the system designed to protect vulnerable Americans is broken.
Lack of Transparency
Guardianship cases are often shrouded in secrecy. Not only is there a lack of available data, but states are governed by different laws. In New York, adult guardianships are filed under Article 81 of the Mental Hygiene Law.
Léonie Rosenstiel, author of Protecting Mama: Surviving the Legal Guardianship Swamp, has spent two decades researching problems in the system. Rosenstiel’s mother was placed under court-appointed guardianship after she became incapacitated.
“One of the things that's really painful for families, is they're very often not given any explanation for what happened,” she says. “It just happens. They’re in the dark and they can't find out why because all the documents are sealed and secret.”
Rubber Stamping Petitions
In most states, anyone can petition the court to appoint a guardian for a person alleged to be incapacitated. That includes government agencies, families, and health care providers.
Diane Dimond, an investigative journalist and author of We’re Here to Help: When Guardianship Goes Wrong, has conducted an eight-year investigation into guardianships. She says one of the flaws in the system is how petitions are sometimes approved without proper consideration.
“For a guardianship to start, someone has to initiate it, go to a lawyer and the lawyer draws up a petition for guardianship. And in that petition, they explain to the court why the targeted person needs protection,” says Dimond. “Judges keenly just rubber stamp those. Okay, good, fine, guardianship. Next case, please.”
Flawed Appointment Process
Additionally, Dimond cites failings with how guardians are appointed.
Dimond, who has communicated with Wendy’s sister, Wanda Finnie, says that Wanda was asked if she wanted to act as Wendy’s guardian. Wanda said yes and was willing to take the required day-long class in New York. Ultimately, Wanda was not chosen. The court has the discretion to appoint a non-family member, such as a professional guardian or agency for incapacitated individuals.
“That’s what judges across the country are doing, they’re not picking the family member because then the money stays in the family,” says Dimond. “They want to spread it around amongst their cronies.”
Potential Abuse of Power
A 2023 hearing from the Senate Aging Committee highlighted how exploitation, abuse, neglect, and financial impropriety are unfortunate realities in some guardianship cases. While some well-intentioned, honest guardians exist, their power can open the door to malfeasance.
“The guardian is not just in charge of the money, the guardian is in charge of all medical decisions,” says Dimond. “The guardian can order medications to be given to the person. The guardian can take the person out of their abode and put them in a facility…They can keep the family away. They can take the ward and put them in another state. If a female ward is pregnant, they can order an abortion. These people have complete judicial authority.”
Wendy’s family has complained that they don't have a say in her treatment or know where she is.
“Guardianship is a system designed to protect the most vulnerable, at-risk people,” says Dimond. “How does it help protect them if you keep them from people who love them? Why is that allowed?
Never-Ending Oversight
If it's no longer required, courts may terminate the guardianship while the person is still alive, as the Britney Spears conservatorship case demonstrates. However, guardianships typically end when the person dies. Unfortunately, that means Wendy’s rights and the rights of other incapacitated individuals are potentially lost forever.
“Wendy Williams is now a ward of the court,” says Dimond. “She loses all of her civil rights. She can't vote. She can't spend her own money. She can decide where to live. She can't decide who gets to see her. She can't travel. She can't do anything. And all of her money is put into the name of the guardian. All of her assets or property, her money, her investment, everything.”
The Guardianship Bill of Rights Act was legislation introduced in 2023 to reform the repressive system. The law aims to create a national council advocating for less restrictive alternatives for individuals in or being considered for guardianship. Bills in Florida and Michigan have also been introduced to improve protections for vulnerable adults.
Fighting Court-Ordered Guardianships
So where exactly is Wendy Williams a year after filming the documentary?
She is currently at an undisclosed medical facility receiving care. Dimond was told by Wanda that Wendy is flourishing and showing signs of improvement. Unfortunately, Wendy’s family still doesn’t know where she is. While Wendy can contact them, they can’t contact her. How can this be in her best interests?
“The mechanism would be to hire a lawyer, hire an expensive lawyer to fight it,” says Dimond. “It’s really hard for these families and any families across the country I've spoken to, to find a lawyer that will take on other lawyers.”
Dimond notes that as an inheritor of Wendy’s estate, her son could hire a lawyer. However, going that route can be a costly and lengthy endeavor.
“The guardian now has the right to hire their own lawyer to protect them,” says Dimond. “Wendy Williams pays for that. Wendy Williams will pay for every aspect. Wendy Williams’ estate will pay to fight her own son. As he fights, I don't know where he would get money to hire a lawyer to fight this. He's also diminishing his inheritance. The attorneys and the guardian on Mom's side are draining the money that he would otherwise inherit. There are cases where I've seen millions of dollars spent in fights and then the person dies and there's no money left. It’s all gone.”
Preparing for Incapacity
As I wrote this article, the personal finance journalist in me was determined to glean financial learnings from Wendy’s situation.
Rosenstiel notes that while Wendy is only 59 years old, it’s important to discuss incapacity with loved ones well before they become incapacitated. Families can explore implementing advance directives like living wills and healthcare proxies, or powers of attorney and trusts. Signing a power of attorney or other legal document after someone’s cognitive functions have declined can raise red flags, as reportedly happened with Wendy’s son.
“There are people like Bruce Willis or other people who are getting dementia younger and younger and younger. So you need to have this in place,” says Rosenstiel. “It's not a question of when I get to be 70 I have to sit down and do this. You don't know. You could be in an accident anytime. People are incapacitated, either for a period of time or forevermore. You never know when something is going to happen. You need to have a mechanism in place. And you need to have people use trust.”
When I think about Wendy’s situation, I can’t help but think about my mother and her declining mental capacity near the end of her life. I often wonder what would have happened to her if I wasn’t there.
I managed my mother’s medical care and finances as her power of attorney, health care proxy, and Social Security representative payee. I made sure those systems were in place well before her mental and physical health declined.
By taking those critical steps, I was able to tend to all of my mother’s needs. I made sure she remained in her home where she was comfortable. I visited her as many times as I wanted to. I was able to hug her, hold her hand, and see her smile every time I saw her.
Make sure you can do the same for your loved ones.
Full Article & Source:
The Wendy Williams Documentary Raises Critical Questions About Guardianship and Incapacity
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Wendy Williams
