Beverley Mitchell in 7th Heaven.Jodie Sweetin in Full House.Scoo
For viewers of TV in
the 1990s, it was
hard to miss Jodie
Sweetin, Beverley
Mitchell or Christine
Lakin starring in one of their
family-friendly shows—a shared
experience that bonded the girls
more than 20 years ago. “We
grew up in this crazy sorority,”
says Sweetin, now 35, who
landed the role of Stephanie
Tanner onFull Housewhen she
was only 5. Now they’ve
reunited for Pop TV’s comedy
seriesHollywood Darlings—and
opened up toPeopleabout the
joys and pitfalls of early star-
dom. “It was a simpler time,”
reminisces Lakin, 38, who
played feisty tomboy Alicia on
Step by Step.Adds Mitchell, 36,who played middle
child Lucy Camden
on7th Heaven: “Now you’re
constantly judged by what you
put out there.” Still working as
actresses, the trio admit it can
be difficult to shake their old TV
personas. “In Hollywood it’s very
difficult to change how people
see you,” Mitchell says.
Sweetin—who’s in the midst
of a nasty breakup with ex-fiancé
Justin Hodak—knows how big
the gap between squeaky-clean
image and real life can be. In
2006 she revealed she’d been
addicted to crystal meth. Now
six years sober, she says, “IfCameron have
daughter Kenzie, 4,
and son Hutton, 2;
Sweetin has two
daughters, Zoie, 9,
and Beatrix, 6, with
exes Cody Herpin
and Morty Coyle. “It’s nice to
share the bond of being working
moms,” says Lakin.
And while working in Holly-
wood as children may have left a
few scars, it’s also granted them
an enduring friendship. “We have
a wonderful sisterhood,” Mitchell
says. “We’re always there for
each other.”—CHISTINA DUGAN
AND AILI NAHASBEVERLEY MITCHELL,
JODIE SWEETIN AND
CHRISTINE LAKINLIFE AFTER
CHILDHOOD
STARDOM
opppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
people hear my story
and relate because
I’m famous, that’s an
opportunity.” She
recently broke off her
engagement with
Hodak and has a
restraining order against him.
On March 30 the actress posted
to Instagram, “It’s definitely
been a roller coaster, but with
amazing family, friends and fans,
I’ll be just fine!”
The friends now also have
another bond in common: par-
enthood. Lakin has daughter
Georgia, 1, with Brandon Breault;
Mitchell and husband Michael‘THERE IS
NOTHING THAT
DIFFERENT
ABOUT MY LIFE,
EXCEPT PEOPLE
WATCHED MY
CHILDHOOD’
—JODIE SWEETIN“The
blessing and
the curse of this
industry is that
people want to know
both the goodandthe
bad about you,”
says Sweetin of
growing up in the
spotlight.Christine Lakin in Step by Step.30 Photograph by ROBERT TRACHTENBERG
BEIGES/ART DEPARTMENT; (SWEETIN) MAKEUP: TERI GROVES; (LAKIN & MITCHELL) STYLIST: ASHLEY AVIVIGNONE/THE WALL GROUP; (SWEETIN) S(LAKIN & MITCHELL) HAIR: KRISTIN HEITKOTTER/TMG-LA; (SWEETIN) HAIR: MARIA ORZANO; (LAKIN & MITCHELL) MAKEUP: SIMON RIHANA/CHANETYLIST:L LES
SHANNON MCCLURE (MITCHELL) SHIRT: THE BLUE SHIRT SHOP; (SWEETIN) BLOUSE: AMANDA WAKELEY; JEANS: LEVIS; (LAKIN) SWEATER: ALC; INCLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: THE WB; ABC PHOTO ARCHIVES/GETTY IMAGES(3); PAUL MCCALLUM/THE WB; ABC PHOTO ARCHIVES/GETTY IMAGESSETS,