Author, Tina Alexis Allen, Learned Her Strict Catholic Father Hid Many Secrets | Megyn Kelly TODAY

untold secrets but for our next guest she says her family secrets involve drugs sex deception and double lives watch this horse test oh I'm sure he's not Tina Alexis Allen an actress playwright and author is known for roles in The Outsiders and moving mountains I wrote this story fightin the DEP as well as her one-woman show secrets of a holy father stations which was inspired by her own father a devout Catholic who she says was very tough as a kid I can't tell you that I liked him very much because he wasn't very nice to my mom it was complicated because the guy who wanted us to kneel and say rosary every night wasn't the same guy who was treating my mother poorly and I couldn't consolidate that Tina grew up the youngest of 13 children in Chevy Chase Maryland you know there was a lot of love in the house there was a lot of teasing there was also a lot of pain definitely there was a pressure that existed in the house to be you know on one's toes particularly when Dad was home her father John now deceased ran a successful travel agency that organized trips to the Vatican he was even knighted by the Pope but he also had a dark side fueled by alcohol he probably drank most every day he'd come home having drank and raised hell you know that's where it was it got ugly was usually post drinking and then he'd bring that rage home and it would be very scary as Tina navigated her teenage years she harbored a deep secret she preferred dating women but to her surprise her dad knew we had dinner and I was with the woman I was seeing at the time and he to my shock and amazement knew that we were together and I literally was shaking inside no one in my family knew of all people I thought my dad would be the scariest person to tell and I can feel right now how I felt then which was what's going to happen like what are the repercussions of this going to be and I was really amazed that it didn't go the way I thought it was going to go joining me now Tina Alexis Allen author of hiding out a memoir of drugs deception and double lives which I can fully recommend to you I read it cover-to-cover was completely engrossed the writing was excellent the story was incredibly compelling although I'm sure painful at times to write so let's just talk about a number of things you start the book by saying I want you to know I'm okay I am well today yeah despite overcoming so much including not not feeling that you could come out with the fact that you were a lesbian yeah and the fact that your dad too was leaving this double life and the fact that you were a victim of incest you say yes so let's pick what which one of those would you say you struggled the most to overcome I think the the sexualizing is a young woman as a young girl actually it started when I was nine I think being sexualized at such a young age is so complicated when it involves adults particularly and then that you know sort of went on from you know brothers to my middle school teacher so I sort of had both adult male adult female abuse as a young girl and my two of your brothers you say sexually abused you yes and then a teacher who was 27 and you were 11 yes began a three-year quote relationship with you yeah that you read about in the book as it was consensual on your part but now you see of course absolutely cannot be no of course not no when I became 26 27 I started looking at 11 year olds and I just was like I can't even imagine this situation like I I think that's when it hit me when I became her age I really got it but look I shut down I was running fast away from my pain there was a lot of it I played basketball you know and that was a great lifesaver but the truth is I was really shut down and it took me into my probably early to mid-20s to start peeling the onion figuring it up yeah one of 13 children yeah the youngest of 13 children and a very very very Catholic family dad your dad is you know the one of if not the main character in the book after you yes very Catholic and he too was harboring this secret you know the fact that you were gay wasn't it wasn't something to overcome but for the fact that it was drilled into you that you know Catholicism is one thing and this is what's expected of you and other things are wrong absolutely and then you find out your dad has also is also leading this double life yeah well I was at dinner with him at 18 with my girlfriend my secret girlfriend of course I didn't want him to know anything and he basically said you know he outed us he said he knew and then he proceeded to say and I buried my lover in the war he was referring to world war two before he met my mother and it said his name was Omar so he made clear he made it very clear and then he went on to say my godfather was his lover my godfather obviously was in his life when I was born and that he had a relationship with him and also clergy and it was very specific with people specific names so my father was not only obviously bisexual I assumed because he had 13 kids they had sex right but but clearly he in my opinion might have been a gay man had he not been born the time he was born regardless he was living that life and it really shocked me to be exposed to my family and then - then Harbor this secret with him was big the relationship with him was complicated he was verbally abusive you allege in the book it could be physically abusive to some in the family at times verbally to your mother certainly yes and you took me right about the anger you felt anger at all he withheld from me and all that he didn't and that part of the story becoming her father's quote partner-in-crime is one of the most riveting parts of the book we're going to get into that next as as well as the moment Tina's mother finally discovered the truth about her daughter and husband so you and your dad become partners in crime describe what that means well he drank a lot I drank a lot so there was that and we did yeah and it pushed it on you know he wanted you to be as drinking yeah absolutely but we started going to gay clubs underground clubs he would come and meet me in Europe he as a travel agent you know he would send me on a lot of trips I'd go with one of my girlfriends and he'd come meet us in Athens and Rome I went to Jordan with him saw a lot of you know things that obviously my other siblings weren't part of but it got it got kind of crazy I even did drugs with him and drugs yeah poppers kind of crazy I know I didn't have a dad before that and it was kind of shocking because really what happened is I went from one day not having what I felt was a father who loved me to all of a sudden someone who adored me and it was complicated because I wanted a dad it's like that Carly Simon's song sometimes I wish that I never ever knew although some of those secrets of yours exactly you were let in on the inner circle but then there's a question about whether you what really want to be there and meantime your mother who by all accounts was a saint yes is living oblivious to this yes is that what you believe yeah I mean I can't imagine living with a human being that you're involved with for that long and not having a clue but look her hands were full she had two hands and 13 kids so god bless her she did absolutely the best she could and I'm sure you know things probably crossed her path I can't imagine but I think when you're that busy it's like maybe just push it aside we are Catholics we deny we live in denial and guilt so that's part of that's part of the deal it's part of the doctor taught from a very young age yes shame and guilt and you know those are not the best things about our religion no but that's the thing because your dad was very close to the Vatican and I I don't want to give away the secrets of the book but there's a big reveal at the end about just how close he was that's the Catholic try connections at the Vatican and so the you know of course there was a hypocrisy that wound up eating away at you too when she ultimately found out about his double life and yeah and yours really I mean yeah I lied I was living secrets and lies to I've been lying to my mom since I was 11 how did she handle it you know she was she was pretty devastated she ended up leaving him to her credit she needed time they ended up back together which is a pretty amazing thing that they worked through something but she needed time and then the beautiful thing would happen for my mom is she actually went to therapy she got you know clear about a lot of things took time for herself which she had never had with 13 kids so I admire her for that but she was very devastated she didn't necessarily approve of my lifestyle I'm sure not his but definitely that was hard and you you got therapy and worked a lot you're clean and sober you have a lifelong partner who is your soothing balm you said to a lot of the wounded your sisters here as well yeah thank you for coming and thank you for telling the story I want to tell the audience we did get we reached out to Tina's siblings one of them one sibling gave us this statement on behalf of the overwhelming majority of Tina Alexis Allen's siblings we wish to state the contrary to statements Tina's made we do not support the book she's written hiding out we find that much of what Tina writes conflicts with the reality of our own growing up experiences as a family we are saddened and disappointed about the inaccurate statements and misrepresentations we do not wish to validate the book by discussing its content instead we'll continue to live our lives based on the values our parents lovingly instilled in us faith love compassion honesty and respect for each other we have no further comment in addition to the statement that we received from Tina's sibling NBC News reached out directly to the two brothers and to the teacher that Tina accused of abuse in her book we received no response from any of the parties involved thank you for sharing this story and I want to tell the audience that everyone here is going home with a copy of the box hello today fans thanks for checking out our YouTube channel subscribe by clicking that button down there and click on any of the videos over here to watch the latest interviews show highlights and digital exclusives

Channel: TODAY

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Keywords: The TODAY Show, TODAY Show, TODAY, NBC, NBC News, Celebrity Interviews, TODAY Show Recipes, Fitness, Lifestyle, TODAY Show Interview, Ambush Makeover, Kathie Lee and Hoda, KLG and Hoda, Tina Alexis Allen, Tina Alexis Allen memoir hiding out, catholic father secrets, secrets of a holy father, deception, hiding out a memoir of drugs, memoir, hiding out, secrets drugs, Catholic family, megyn kelly, megyn kelly today, catholic church, vatican secrets, children of catholic priests

Id: 188Jkf9TMlM

Length: 11min 3sec (663 seconds)

Published: Mon Mar 05 2018