Dee Dee Blanchard was born Clauddine Pitre in Chackbay, Louisiana, near the Gulf Coast in 1967, and grew up with her family in nearby Golden Meadow. “Bad as it sounds, she [Gypsy’s mom] asked for what she got.”. He really did try to call his daughter on her real 18th birthday. Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. Gypsy Rose Blanchard grew up with her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard, making claims about her health that resulted in a series of dire diagnoses and medical interventions. He also told People that Gypsy will always have a home with him and Kristy. “I think she asked for what she got.”. According to Buzzfeed's feature on the Blanchards, Rod Blanchard, Gypsy’s father, met Dee Dee back when he was still in high school; he was 17 and she was 24. They dated for a while before discovering that Dee Dee was expect He shared his story on a … You can stream The Act on Hulu right now. Gypsy Rose Blanchard, who gained infamy after helping plan the murder of her abusive mother, Claudine "Dee Dee" Blanchard, has broken things off with her fiancé, Ken. Unfortunately, something was planned by her mother for Gypsy Rose. He lived far away, hadn’t seen his child in years, and just assumed that Dee Dee was telling the truth about Gypsy's medical needs. Rod married Dee Dee when he was 17 and she was 23. And the two plan to "put her on the right path" once she's released. He lived far away, hadn’t seen his child in years, and just assumed that Dee Dee was telling the truth about Gypsy's medical needs. But on the days leading up to their trips, Dee Dee would not respond to their calls or texts. We may earn commission from the links on this page. According to the Springfield News Leader, Kristy recalls several occasions where she and Rod had planned visits to Missouri. Rod felt isolated from Gypsy, and felt like her mother controlled and limited the father-daughter relationship, according to Newsweek. read See the First Photos of Gypsy Rose Blanchard With Her New Fiancé The Gypsy Rose Blanchard story has been widely referred to as a possible case of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy. Then, weeks later, Dee Dee would explain that Gypsy had been in the hospital. Marie Claire participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites. “She told me every time she had a seizure, it would set her back.". She had five siblings: Claude Jr., Claudia, Evans, Dorla, and Todd. He appears to support his daughter now though, despite her part in her mother's killing. For more than a decade, Gypsy Rose Blanchard lived in a wheelchair and suffered unnecessary medical procedures as her seemingly devoted mother, Dee Dee, received praise from doctors and family. Gypsy Rose Blanchard in a booking photo provided by the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department in Waukesha Wisconsin. But in Gypsy's teens, she discovered her mother has been lying to her—she didn't have leukemia, epilepsy, muscular dystrophy, or any illness at all. Rod may feel guilty about the past relationship he had with Gypsy, but he's clearly proud of the relationship now and has high hopes for the future. Personal Life, Dating, Boyfriend The looking charming Gypsy Rose Blanchard had been dating her boyfriend Nicholas Godejohn. “It’s a hundred times better, honestly,” he told Fox News about his and Gypsy's relationship. Throughout the 20-something years of abuse that Gypsy endured, Dee Dee managed to have everyone around her fooled, including Gypsy's father Rod, a man she reportedly always kept at an arm's length. Gypsy Rose Blanchard is the subject a series on Hulu called The Act. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io, Patrick Dempsey's Interview Worries 'Grey's' Fans. The two married shortly afterwards. “We were very intimidated about her medical conditions," Rod told the News-Leader. When Gypsy Rose was an infant, Dee Dee brought her to the hospital, convinced she was suffering from sleep apnea. And don't miss our own podcast, Martinis & Murder! The severity of the abuse can range from a caretaker lying about illnesses to forcing a victim to undergo medical procedures. Gypsy Rose Blanchard was born on July 27, 1991, in Golden Meadow, Louisiana, the United States to parents Rod Blanchard and Dee Dee Blanchard. “She doesn’t know it’s her birthday,” Dee Dee tells him. Her father, Rod Blanchard, divorced her mother, Dee Dee, before she was born. Dee Dee Portrayed Herself as Doting Caretaker. That’s how Dee Dee got away with that over the years. According to a 2016 BuzzFeed article, Dee Dee told doctors and friends that Rod was a deadbeat drug addict who abandoned his daughter, which wasn't true. There was a fine line I had to walk with her,” Rod said. I can’t wait for her to get out so we can build on that foundation that we started here.”. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. On Gypsy’s birthday, the mother and daughter celebrate. "Dee Dee was explicit that she had to be by her side 24-7. A little background: For most of her life, Gypsy was under the impression that she was terminally ill and living with physical and mental deficits, thanks to her mother Dee Dee, who is thought to have had Munchausen syndrome by proxy. Rod is the IRL father of Gypsy Rose Blanchard, the woman whose real-life story is the inspiration behind the The Act. The series premiered March 20, and depicts the toxic mother-daughter relationship between Gypsy Rose Blanchard (Joey King) and her mother Dee Dee Blanchard (Patricia Arquette). Here's what is, according to Rod: He began dating Dee Dee when he was in high school. It’s wonderful. All the while, Gypsy’s stepmother Kristy Blanchard — who appeared on-camera in Mommy Dead and Dearest alongside her husband Rod and was interviewed for … Clauddine "Dee Dee" Blanchard convinced the world her daughter, Gypsy Rose, was sickly, subjecting the girl to numerous unnecessary surgeries and procedures. I’m keeping tabs on all of her accomplishments in school. Gypsy Rose Blanchard was born in July 1991 and is the only daughter that Rod Blanchard and Claudine “Dee Dee” Pitre shared together following a short lived relationship and marriage. I too was led [sic] to believe Gypsy was sick her … These kinds of impromptu hospitalizations worried both Rod and Kristy. Despite the crime committed, both Rod and Kristy have said they will support Gypsy once she's released on parole, which could happen as early as 2024. Not long after, her dad calls and asks to speak to Gypsy. Blanchard was the daughter of Claude Anthony Pitre, Sr. and Emma Lois Gisclair. “I wasn't in love with her, really. Gypsy Rose Blanchard has written a letter (from prison!) The first season of "The Act" is based on the events leading up to the murder of Clauddine “Dee Dee” Blanchard, a woman who pretended her daughter Gypsy had various medical conditions — everything from leukemia to muscular dystrophy — up until the day Gypsy and her online boyfriend murdered her in an alleged bid to gain freedom. With Jim Arnott, David Blanchard, Dee Dee Blanchard, Gypsy Rose Blanchard. The show portrays their relationship as estranged, but the true story is different. I thought you said she had been doing all right, lately. Gypsy was born in Golden Meadow, Louisiana on July 27, 1991. ... For more on Gypsy Rose Blanchard, watch Gypsy's Revenge Tuesday, November 6 at 9/8c on Investigation Discovery! She planned the murder of her mother along with her boyfriend, Nicholas Godejohn, with whom she met online. “I don’t want to get her hopes up, give her anxiety about how many years she’s got left. “But I was always hoping that Gypsy would get old enough that one day we could bond. Gypsy Rose Blanchard's pen pal fiance has been pictured for the first time since the couple announced their engagement in April. He provided Gypsy with gifts, like a television set and a Nintendo Wii. News later obtained the first photos of Gypsy with Ken, as well as her father, Rod Blanchard, and stepmother, Kristy Blanchard. In The Act 's season finale, viewers finally get to meet Gypsy Rose Blanchard's dad, Rod Blanchard. Gypsy didn’t even know her own age until after she was arrested for her role in killing her mom. She required a wheelchair, oxygen tanks, and a feeding … Gypsy Rose and Dee Dee Blanchard // Missouri // 35 - Drinking The Cool Aid (podcast) | Listen Notes Rod Blanchard—does the name ring a bell? It has been a busy season for the Blanchards in Louisiana, Kristy told the News-Leader. March 26, 2019 Thanks to documentaries like HBO's Mommy Dead and Dearest and shows like Hulu's The Act, most people know who Gypsy Rose and her mother Dee Dee Blanchard are. Gypsy, 27, announced that she is engaged to a pen pal that she’s been communicating with while she serves her 10-year prison sentence at Missouri’s Chillicothe Correctional Center for the second-degree murder charge of her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard. Rod and his now-wife Kristy reportedly visited Gypsy often in the first ten years of her life. It bothered him, he said. According to Kristy, she and Gypsy’s dad, Rod Blanchard, were the ones that bought the laptop for Gypsy and Dee Dee. Gypsy's online boyfriend, Nick Godejohn, who carried out the stabbing, is serving out a sentence for first-degree murder. Rod Blanchard says he feels guilty that he wasn’t around for his daughter, Gypsy Rose, when she was growing up. Since the murder and Gypsy's prison sentence, it seems like Rod is determined to make up for lost time. How can I let this happen? "It was very weird that she wouldn't let me celebrate her 18th birthday or let her know she was 18,” he said. Is there something I should know?”. She had to be hooked up to machines at night, so couldn’t even spend one night over. Dee Dee had full custody and could cut me off completely from any kind of relationship we already had. As it turns out, in real life, Gypsy’s father, Rod Blanchard, felt just as in the dark about his daughter's conditions. Despite no sign of the disease, Dee Dee remained convinced, eventually determining herself that Gypsy Rose had an unspecified chromosomal disorder. “It was a shared laptop with her mom,” Fancy said. What the Woman Behind 'The Act' Is Doing Now, Your Complete Guide to Treating Dark Spots, The 9 Fashion Trends to Know for Spring 2019, This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. In “The Act,” Hulu's new anthology series, viewers are exposed to one of the most horrifying fictional mothers in history — except she's not so fictional, after all. They're working to rebuild their relationship. One of the things that drove me crazy about The Act, was how Gypsy Rose’s father, Rod Blanchard, was wiped from the narrative of the season until the last episode in a shock twist reveal. Gypsy Rose, 28, met Ken through her prison pen pal program about two years ago. “That was part of the whole scam, I guess.”. Her parents (Dee Dee Blanchard – Mother & Rod Blanchard – Father) got divorced before her birth. According to the petition's description, which Rod wrote, Gypsy calls him 3-5 times a week and has developed a great relationship with her stepmother, Kristy. Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, sweepstakes, and more! Editors handpick every product that we feature. He started an online petition—one that more than 18,000 people have signed—in an effort to reduce Gypsy's 10-year sentence. So who was Gypsy's father, and how did he overlook this alleged abuse? “We email each other. 00:50:20 - Gypsy Rose was suffering from leukemia and muscular dystrophy when she was just 8-years-old. “I am Gypsy’s father, Rod Blanchard. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison, whereas her boyfriend was sentenced to life in prison. In fact, he appears to believe that Dee Dee got what she deserved. Rod Blanchard, Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s Father Rod Blanchard, Gypsy Rose’s father, said that Dee Dee tricked him into believing that Gypsy Rose was sick too. She can call me anytime and she does. Similar to a normal child, she born with all healthy, and the same was confirmed by her father. She also repeatedly lies to Gypsy about her own age. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. If you've seen Hulu's new anthology crime series The Act, that'll be why. “Dee Dee, I really wish you would tell me what’s going on,” he says before she hangs up on him. Gypsy couldn’t go to Rod’s house, because she was on all these machines. “There was never a question whether or not I was going to stop paying,” Rod said. But eventually Dee Dee began to limit their time together. Gypsy Rose Blanchard As A Child YouTube Gypsy Rose and Dee Dee when Gypsy was a child. However, he said he put up with it so that he could have at least some sort of relationship with his child. Rod admitted he didn’t suspect there was abuse and that he had no inkling that the medical conditions were made up. Rod is the IRL father of Gypsy Rose Blanchard, the woman whose real-life story is the inspiration behind the The Act. The 'TATB: Always and Forever' Cast Plays Trivia, Hate Crimes Against Asian Americans Are Rising, Small Business Spotlight: Bephies Beauty Supply, It's Time to Invest In a Cell Phone Carrying Case. As it turns out, in real life, Gypsy’s father, Rod Blanchard, felt just as in the dark about his daughter's conditions. Now, Gypsy Rose is serving a 10-year sentence for second degree murder of her mother, who was stabbed to death in their Missouri home. This content is imported from {embed-name}. Dee Dee and Gypsy Rose arrived in Springfield, … Rod Blanchard is standing by his daughter Gypsy Rose Blanchard, the young Missouri woman who is serving 10 years in prison for second-degree murder in her mother’s death. She’s getting her GED. But when Rod turned 18, he came to a realization. In an interview with Fox News, Rod said that Dee Dee was always scared that he would get close to Gypsy. For more stories like this, including celebrity news, beauty and fashion advice, savvy political commentary, and fascinating features, sign up for the Marie Claire newsletter. But there's a missing piece: Where was Gypsy's dad Rod Blanchard during all of this, you might wonder, and what does he think about everything that's happened? This content is imported from YouTube. And the birthday call in the show happened. Ya know? “I feel guilty. Gypsy Rose Blanchard, the subject of Hulu’s new true crime series “The Act,” is engaged. But in a 2017 interview with Dr. Phil, Rod admited that he wish he’d done more to fight for a relationship with his daughter. Of course, it's easy to wonder how in the world family, friends, and medical professionals all missed the obvious truth: Gypsy wasn't truly sick or physically or mentally disabled. Rod and Dee Dee met when he was 17 and she was 24. He paid $1,200 a month in child support, even after Gypsy turned 18. Gypsy Rose Blanchard is serving a … Gypsy Rose Blanchard's father: Mom Dee Dee 'asked for what she got' Rod Blanchard is standing by his daughter Gypsy Rose Blanchard, convicted of … Tragic and Disturbing Cases of Child Abuse, Five Things Parents Should Know To Prevent Child Sex Abuse, Body of Missing Illinois Child AJ Freund Found, Parents Charged, 5 Kidnapped Teens Who Escaped Their Abductors, Disturbing Details Around the 13 Allegedly Tortured California Siblings, Disturbing Details Of A Father, His Daughter And Their Alleged Baby, Facts About Infant Abandonment and Safe Havens, Tragic End for a Father, His Daughter and Their Alleged Baby, 7 Facts About Incest and Family Sex Abuse, 7 Facts About Missing and Abducted Children. Why wasn’t I there for Gypsy more,” Rod said. It got hard, it really did. Dee Dee gives Gypsy a sugar-free cake (she pretends Gypsy is allergic to sugar) and two guinea pigs. “If you think you can manipulate someone all their lives and for them not to bite back at one point when they had enough, then you’re completely mistaken,” the father told Fox News. In this documentary, the murder of Deedee Blanchard by her daughter Gypsey Rose is explored, as well as the circumstances leading up to the event. The True Story of 'Judas and the Black Messiah', The True Crime Podcasts We've Been Hooked On, The Cast of 'Fate: The Winx Saga' Plays Trivia. So we never did get to build that bond.". Gypsy Rose, Blanchard family life in 2019. Coverage of the latest true crime stories and famous cases explained, as well as the best TV shows, movies and podcasts in the genre. “If I coulda built that relationship with her, she wouldn’t have hesistated to call and say ‘Daddy, ’ you know, ‘this ain’t right.’”. But I didn’t want to push it too far. "I talked to … “Did something new happen? He was 17 and Dee Dee was 24 when she became pregnant with Gypsy. Gypsy Rose Blanchard's Story Is Getting A Podcast, The Act's Gypsy Rose Blanchard is Engaged, Gypsy Rose Doesn't Benefit From 'The Act', This 'The Act' Character Is Based on Gypsy's BFF, Why Gypsy Rose Blanchard Didn't Know Her Real Age. The series delves deep into the disturbing real-life story of Dee Dee Blanchard, a … However, Gypsy … to her supporters asking for a “favor.” Gypsy, who is newly engaged, hopes to get an early … In the show, Dee Dee is depicted as lying to Gypsy’s father, who lives out of state, about her condition. All the doctors say it’s the best thing to do in her condition.”, "What’s her condition?” he asks. Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s father, Rod, says his ex-wife, Dee Dee, kept him from his daughter for years. Gypsy Rose Blanchard is an American convicted murderer who killed her own mother Dee Dee Blanchard in July 2015. I knew I got married for the wrong reasons,” he said. Will There Be a Fourth 'To All the Boys' Movie? Prosecutors charged Blanchard and Nicholas Godejohn June 16, 2015, with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in connection with last week's killing of Clauddinnea "Dee Dee" Blanchard, 48. Directed by Erin Lee Carr. But Rod didn't abandon Gypsy, like Dee Dee had insisted. News exclusively revealed that Gypsy Rose Blanchard had split from fiancé Ken, it appears the couple has had a change of heart. Gypsy Rose Blanchard was born in Louisiana (Golden Meadow) on 1 st July 1991. “Yeah, it’s wrong, and there were other options that Gypsy had — which she tried some of those avenues and they didn’t work out,” Rod told People. "Dee Dee always told me (Gypsy's) mental capacity was behind four or five years, which was understandable,” he told local outlet Springfield News-Leader in 2017.