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Hayley Hasselhoff's famous dad gave her a start in show business -- but is David Hasselhoff now getting in the way of her career? Hayley, 17, leapt in the spotlight this summer with her starring role on the ABC Family drama Huge. The talented teen, who was a successful plus-size model before being cast on Huge, has a promising future ahead of her. But she's been using a lot of her Huge press to defend her father -- and promote the family's new reality show, which is meant to "prove the tabloids wrong."
What, exactly, are the tabloids saying that Hayley wants so badly to disprove? She diplomatically says, "The biggest misconception is that we're not a close family." But the real story that's been fueling the gossip mill is David's alleged substance abuse. Hasselhoff has called himself a recovering alcoholic, and when his older daughter Taylor, 21, released an embarrassing drunken home video of him in 2007, he chalked it up to a relapse. But three times in the past year, Hasselhoff as been rushed to the hospital for mysterious reasons, invariably reported by gossip columns as alcohol poisoning. The most recent incident occurred in May, and although David officially denied it, RadarOnline reported that Hayley had to drive her father to the hospital because he had allegedly "been drinking for three days."
Whether or not her father has fallen off the wagon, Hayley seems to be making it her personal mission to restore his reputation. Clearly, she's a good daughter (as is Taylor, whose desperate attempt to shame her dad into rehab with that home video was pretty darn brave). But David is 57, and his image shouldn't be his teenage daughter's responsibility. We worry that she's spending her energy taking care of her dad when she should be taking care of herself. It would be a shame for Hayley to fall into the Lindsay Lohan trap, where her dysfunctional family makes it impossible for her to move forward in her life. But Hayley claims that she, her dad and her sister are "all best friends." So maybe David will prove himself to be a good dad after all -- by not letting his own demons stop Hayley from being the woman she wants to be.
The new Hasselhoff reality show will premiere on A&E later this year.
Do you think David Hasselhoff is holding his daughter back? Chime in below!
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