The latter half of the ‘80s belonged to the Designing Women, a CBS sitcom led by Dixie Carter, Delta Burke, Annie Potts, and Jean Smart. The show lasted an admirable seven seasons but while filming the hit series and Filthy Rich, Burke faced intense pressure concerning her appearance, to the point that she turned to crystal meth to try and lose weight.
From 1986 to ‘91, Burke starred as Suzanne Sugarbaker, the silent partner of Sugarbaker & Associates, and the ex-beauty queen sister of the company’s president, Julia Sugarbaker. The show’s plot sees Burke’s character Suzanne gain weight and navigate body image issues for women all while making Burke feel negatively about her appearance. It was a topic she had become too familiar with just years before Filthy Rich.
Delta Burke recalls using crystal meth to lose weight
During an appearance on the Glamorous Trash podcast, Burke, today 67, reflected on the criticism she’s faced due to her weight, even at the height of her career. Filthy Rich ran for two seasons, from 1982 to ‘83, and during her time on the set, Burke was introduced to new ways of losing weight—and of being scrutinized for the number on the scale.
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Burke was familiar with some methods, having been prescribed weight loss pills back in London, only to learn the drug was actually illegal in the states. So, she found someone who got her a comparable drug that she nicknamed her Black Beauties. The user could “take them in the morning so you won’t eat,” recalled Burke, adding that “They were like medicine to me.”
However, she developed a tolerance to these pills. That’s when another individual suggested Burke try crystal meth to lose weight.
Delta Burke has both explored the topic of body shaming and been the target of it, driving her to crystal meth
Crystal meth was uncharted territory for Burke, and to an extent it was for everyone else. “Nobody knew about crystal meth at the time,” explained Burke. “[They told me,] ‘You chop it up. You snort.’ I said, ‘I don’t want to snort it.’ So I put it in cranberry juice and [drank] it… and wouldn’t eat for five days.”
“They were still saying, ‘Your butt’s too big. Your legs are too big,’” Burke added. “And I now look back at those pictures and go, ‘I was a freaking goddess.’”
Throughout her career, Burke dedicated her efforts to forging her own image while also combatting “ugly narratives.”
“I thought I was stronger,” she shared. “I tried very hard to defend myself against lies and all the ugliness that was there and I wasn’t gonna win. I’m just an actress, you know. I don’t have any power.” When things got bad, “on the set, when it got to be really bad, and I wasn’t handling it well with a smiling face, my whole body language changed. I would kind of hunch over. I just tried to disappear.” She went on, “Hollywood will mess your head up. And I had always thought, ‘I want to be a famous actress. I thought that meant that you would be a famous and well-respected actress, but that’s not what it meant. And the moment I became famous, it was like, ‘Oh no, no, no. This is not what I had in mind at all. I don’t think I want to be this anymore.’ But then it’s too late.”
