Anna Nicole Smith Subject Of New Netflix Documentary

Anna Nicole Smith's Complicated Life And Death Are Subject Of New Netflix Documentary.

Netflix’s new documentary, Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me, examines the rise and fall of the late Playboy model. The documentary includes never-before seen footage, home videos and interviews with key figures — including Smith’s oldest friend, Melissa Byrum.

Born Vickie Lynn Hogan, Anna Nicole Smith shot to fame after her first Playboy appearance in 1992. She became a popular model, actor and reality star. Smith died tragically from a drug overdose in 2007, at age 39,  after a series of sad events, including the death of her husband, billionaire J. Howard Marshall, and her son.

In the trailer for the new Netflix documentary, interviews focus on Smith’s personal life and marriage to Marshall, which happened when she was 26 years old and he was 89 years old. One says, “What impressed me was how much they loved each other.” When Marshall died in 1995, he left no money to Smith, resulting in a very contentious, and public court case.

Director Ursula Macfarlane says she wants audiences to understand that Anna Nicole was a complex woman. She was someone who, above all else, wanted to be a good mother and a free-spirited, vivacious woman who wanted to live life on her own terms. But her story is also a cautionary tale about how the desire for the American dream can chew you up and spit you out, and make you lose sight of  who you really are.

Macfarlane says ""I feel like many previous books and films about Anna Nicole twisted her narrative, so I felt fortunate to have access to a wealth of audio and TV interviews including personal phone calls that involved Anna Nicole. I really feel like she is telling her own story in her own words."

The trailer includes video of Smith talking to the media after Marshall’s death, saying, “I was being all sweet to you guys and y’all screwed me over.” Other accounts say Smith was “devastated” by the way the media covered her life, the court case, and her struggle with addiction.

Anna Nicole Smith: You Don’t Know Me premieres May 16 on Netflix. Watch the trailer below.

Billy Gardell said it was about time. So he dropped 150 pounds!

Gardell says, it doesn't matter how old you are. If you are willing to do something one day at a time, you can change anything.

At 53, Billy Gardell is feeling a lot healthier these days. In an interview the Mike & Molly alum talked to Entertainment Tonight about losing 150 pounds - he now "floats between 205 and 210."

"I think you got to find peace with yourself and at some point, look in the mirror and go you know, it's probably time to take care of you. Gardell, said. "So I'm a big believer that when you get it, you get it. It doesn't matter when. As long as you get it."

Gardell joked about the "little things" - one advantage is "the ability to shop at more clothing stores.  It's been a real gift, on top of all the health stuff." Gardell had  type 2 diabetes, he says it is now gone. "No diabetes, resting heartbeat went from 113 to 68. Walking around pretty healthy these days."

Gardell said he receives criticism no matter his weight: "...there's always people online that when I was heavy, they're like, 'You're too heavy.' And now it's like, 'Are you sick?' Can I just walk through the Earth please?"

Gardell told ET, "Self care is important, and I think I finally got there. My last vice I got left is I'm still smoking cigarettes, but I'm working on that one. I have a child, and as you hit 50, you start doing that dad math, like, 'If I can live 25 more years, then he'll be 40. So I want to be here for him," he noted.

Gardell revealed that he underwent a gastric bypass operation two years ago, after backing out twice before, because he "just coudn't wrap his head around it" at the time. "The only thing I would say is understand that the operation is not the end, it's the beginning."

He said asking for help is the thing people are most afraid of, but that's where strength is born. When you're strong enough to say, 'I can't do this on my own,' then the troops come up over the hill."

Congratulations to Mike and Carla Morning Show friend, Billy Gardell!

-Carla Rea