Drew Barrymore Is Screaming, Then Speechless as “The Facts of Life” Stars Reunite for Her Birthday
Barrymore shared that she learned to be "a strong, independent female" from watching 'The Facts of Life' while growing up
Drew Barrymore is having a 49th birthday to remember.
On Thursday’s edition of The Drew Barrymore Show, the television host was surprised by The Facts of Life cast in honor of the special occasion. As soon as she heard the iconic sitcom’s theme song, she began to shout the lyrics before becoming speechless.
Then, Lisa Whelchel, Nancy McKeon and Mindy Cohn joined Barrymore and Ross Mathews on stage, and the 50 First Dates star excitedly shared, "Oh, my God, do you know what a gift this is for everyone? I mean, you are our life!"
Drew Barrymore/Youtube
"The Facts of Life" cast reunite in honor of Drew Barrymore's 49th birthdayRelated: 'The Facts of Life' Cast: Where Are They Now?
If the reunion wasn’t enough, the former costars presented Barrymore with a monogrammed The Facts of Life bag — which was only given to the cast and crew. It was filled with baked goods in honor of the late Charlotte Rae, who played Edna Garrett on the sitcom which ran for nine seasons from 1979 to 1988.
Barrymore went on to tell the trio the impact the NBC series had on her life, saying, “I think for those of us who also didn’t grow up in a traditional mother-father or two-parent household — and I love my mom and my dad; I love our dynamic, wouldn't change a thing — but I saw myself with you guys because you were raising yourselves, you were raising each other, and Mrs. Garrett was, like, at the helm of that.”
"It made more sense to the life I was living than any other environment," she added. "Television (was) a lot on heavy family and I didn’t relate and I didn’t identify, didn’t see myself there.”
Frank Carroll/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty
Nancy McKeon as Joanna 'Jo' Marie Polniaczek Bonner, Mindy Cohn as Natalie Letisha Sage Green, Charlotte Rae as Mrs. Edna Ann Garrett, Lisa Whelchel as Blair Warner, Kim Fields as Dorothy 'Tootie' Ramsey on "The Facts of Life"Related: Drew Barrymore Gets Hair Makeover by Chris Appleton on Her Show: 'I Like Big Hair and I Cannot Lie'
The Diff'rent Strokes spin-off introduced audiences to housemother Edna Garrett and four young women at an all-girls boarding school in New York.
"What I was learning was to be a strong, independent female who could take care of themselves and value female friendship and know that there was someone there who was watching out for them, Mrs. Garrett," Barrymore shared.
"You gave me a blueprint that made my life feel better to me in every sense of the word," she continued.
During Thursday's episode, the Scream star was also blindfolded and taken outside to fulfill one of her childhood dreams: to take a spin in the Wienermobile.
After a suspenseful countdown, she removed her blindfold and shrieked with glee upon seeing the iconic 27-foot hot dog-shaped vehicle. Barrymore couldn’t hide her shock but said she had an inkling about the surprise.
“This is so crazy! I was like, ‘Don’t tell me it’s the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile!’” she said, dropping to her knees and crawling (unsuccessfully) towards the vehicle.
“I tried to crawl, but it’s not working in this dress at all,” she laughed, gathering her colorful gown in her hands and standing up to hug the Oscar Mayer employees, also known as “Hot Doggers.”
“Are you ready to go inside the Wienermobile?” asked Matthews.
“My whole life I’ve been waiting for this,” Barrymore confidently replied.
The actress gave fans on Instagram a look at her getting ready for the show and spilled details on her look which included Jenny Packham rainbow gown, Irene Neuwirth jewelry and Marc Jacobs boots.
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Barrymore’s birthday celebration didn’t stop there. She also posted a behind the scenes montage of her celebrating her birthday with the crew of her talk show on Instagram.
“There’s no other way I’d want to spend my 49th birthday than here with my @thedrewbarrymoreshow family. I’m so grateful,” she shared along the clip, which included her receiving hugs from crew members and her decorated dressing room.
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