Courtney Love, USMC? It sounds like a premise even funnier than when Gomer Pyle was drafted.
When singer, actress and all-around agent provocateur Courtney Love told Howard Stern she wanted to join the United States Marine Corps to defend the country during its current battle against terrorist forces, the shock jock’s listeners may have thought it was, at best, an attempt to lighten the national mood up with a little levity or, at worst, a stunt to snare a little limelight.
But according to the rock diva’s reps, Love was 100% serious. She was ready to trade in her gauzy Versace gowns for a khaki and camouflage fashion statement.
Sources at the high-powered publicity firm PMK confirm that the former Hole front-woman did indeed contact top-level government officials at the Pentagon in the wake of attacks there and at New York’s World Trade Center. Her question: Would it really be possible for someone like me to join the military?
“She approached people, including people at the Pentagon, to see if it is viable for her [to enlist],” said a representative for the Oscar-nominated actress (The People vs. Larry Flynt), who is currently waging a different sort of war in court, trying to free herself from her contract with Geffen Records (and possibly redefining artists’ rights in the recording industry in the process).
Although Love, the widow of Nirvana front-man Kurt Cobain and star of films like Man on the Moon and 200 Cigarettes, was told that she might not be the best candidate for military service–Stern listeners called in suggesting her lack of a high school diploma and checkered history with substance abuse might be two strikes against her–her rep said the officials promised to let her know if she can contribute to the cause in some substantial way.
The rep said Love wants to do more than just write a check to relief efforts. “She wants to be more hands-on than that, she wants to do something more,” he told me.
That doesn’t mean the rowdy riot grrl isn’t opening her pocketbook. According to my source, Love has invested heavily in the stock market over the last two days, hoping to help keep America’s economy churning–even though she might face huge losses in the short run.
One thing’s certain–we know from her history that the girl is definitely a fighter. And I’m glad that this time she’s on our side.
