Cheryl McCollum

I mean, that is an extraordinary amount of people who watch something the very first time that it was on.

I mean, it captivated the entire country.

You've now seen this Mary Jo Buttafuoco story that we're going to be talking about today.

What is your takeaway or what surprised you in watching this dramatization and sort of documentary version the others maybe misled us with?

Well, I think first and foremost, I was struck by just how raw and open she was about her own mistakes in the midst of something that no one could... I mean, she is...

was utterly dropped into this.

This is not her fault, right?

Any of this.

And she really chose to be self-reflective over the years and learning about how she developed a pill addiction from her injuries, but then also as sort of a coping mechanism to deal with what was happening, which is entirely understandable.

And I think I really...

I really understood how her real goal in life was to be a wife and a mother, like a very pure goal she had.

And it was decimated by this man, really, by her husband.

And I think this is the first time where you really see that

She is accountable for, you know, her own decisions, but you really see how she is finally, I think, making him accountable.

It's been 30 years and it's still a story that captivates us and obviously is important.

The driving force of her life.

Yes.

Yeah.

I mean, it's her... I was also struck by how kind of sweet she seems, like a very tender person.

And I don't think she was ever portrayed as that somehow.