Meredith Baxter's Ex Disputes Her Abuse Claims

By Christine Fenno Posted Mar 5th 2011 09:34AM

'Family Ties' star Meredith Baxter (known in her heyday as Meredith Baxter-Birney) visited Oprah Winfrey's show this week to plug her new memoir and talk about coming out of the closet. The actress, 63, publicly confirmed she was gay in 2009.

In 'Untied,' which went on sale March 1, Baxter opens up about another surprising side of her private life, writing that she suffered physical and psychological abuse at the hands of actor David Birney during their 1974-'89 marriage. The two first met as co-stars on TV's 'Bridget Loves Bernie.'

"It was so sudden and unexpected, I couldn't tell you which hand hit me, or even how hard," she writes in her new book. "I do recall thinking, 'I'd better not get up because he's going to hit me again."

In reaction, Birney, 71, is vehemently denying his ex-wife's allegations, calling her book "an appalling abuse of the truth."

Divorced two decades ago, the couple had three children together, welcoming a daughter early in their marriage, and twins ten years later. After their split, the actress reclaimed the name "Meredith Baxter," and took another crack at matrimony from 1995-2000 with screenwriter Michael Blodgett. Today, Baxter's partner (since 2005) is building contractor Nancy Locke.

In an outraged statement to PEOPLE, issued Friday, Birney calls it "immensely sad and truly absurd" that Baxter the memoirist "is unable to reclaim a single instance of joy or pleasure in all that time, not one occasion of love or delight or accomplishment in our entire life together as we built a family. Not one....Nothing from our first meeting to divorce. Nothing, in sixteen years. Really?"

"This blanket omission, this unrelieved denial of even a single instance of joy or pleasure in the creation of a family, the substance and amazing joy of raising children together, of simply being together with them during that time, is incomprehensible," says Birney. "And sad."

Birney also implies a link between the claims of abuse in 'Untied,' which he slams as "a kind of fairy tale," and the heated custody issues that once strained their own family ties.

For years, Birney says his ex "conducted a relentless and brutal assault" against him in order "to destroy [the custody] arrangement and replace it with herself as sole custodian."

"During that time," he recalls, "She arrived in court repeatedly with various lawyers and several therapists, 'recovered memories,' accusations of abuse -- a common charge in custody disputes -- and tales of our life together that bore little resemblance to truth -- a mean-spirited process that battered us all, especially the children....The court denied her suit on every occasion."

The ex-spouses shared custody until the kids left for college, claims Birney, who adds, "This current recycled version of our family story is no more credible now than it was then."

Birney writes off his ex's memory by concluding, "Meredith's own account of these years is its own rebuke to her credibility."

Tags: david birney, family ties, meredith baxter, Meredith Baxter-Birney

Comments

(51)

Saturday 05 March

By Lynn

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Was there any evidence? Any witness? Picture? Friend who recalls her talking about this back then?

When she went to court years ago on the custody issues, did she show any proof in any form of the abuse?

By jeff

how about a 9-1-1 call to police?

By BTDT

Hell hath no fury .............

By Karen

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His children were the witnesses. They were in the audience and said that he abused them too. Good enough??? As far as court is concerned, you can't imagine what people can do and still maintain custody!!! I've seen it with my own eyes. I've seen a police report that says they went on a high-speed chase with a woman who had her children in the car with her and she maintained custody. And, that was just one of many abuses that occured.

By SquirdlockeanMenendozavich

I like both of these people . Especially her gay or not . Ihave strong doubts . Why wait until you are selling a book to make these claims ? This was light years ago

Sunday 06 March

By RIPSTER

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Obviously you didnt see not only her but her three grown children detail out the life of abuse not only she but they endured. Even friends of the family who didnt know about the abuse noticed a change in attitude toward lightheartiness in her and the kids when the husband was away and the change back to withdrawal and sullen upon his return. Michael Gross, her husband on the show, was there and he validated everything she said including her mental breakdown when her husband was returning. I hated to hear it because I remember Brigett Loves Birney and I really believed they were a happy couple but lies will unravel and the truth be known in its own time

By stu

Birney beat Bridget the spin off!
he's talking in circles. he doesn't say "i never touched her in a threatening way." though, y didn't she use the abuse allegations in the custody/divorce fight?
she was quite the "actress" on oprah.

By Ted

She is nuts

By Marie

Makes you wonder, when she kept silent about it UNTIL the release of her book. Sounds like "A Convenient Truth" to me ;)

By mommom

I find that she is living in a world known as "gay excuse". Her announcing that she is now "gay"; she has to find an excuse for her doing so. I wonder what her children have to say about all this. If they had seen all this, where are they to back her up and when they went to court at many many different times, why were they not called or spoken to, to seek the truth., The proablem I find in all this is that there is no proof, either from pictures, or witnesses.

By Pat

I think she needed a reason to admit being gay, he abused her so she became gay - that thinking. Just be gay, who cares? This sense of self importance is insanity.

By Jennifer

She was recently on Oprah with her two children from another marriage, and also with one of the three children she had with Birney. The three children seemed to be in agreement of her side of things. So I believe her. Birney never had anywhere near the success as she did. I think there is resentment on his part against her for that. (My opinion.)

By Alice

No, of course not. However, just because someone SAYS something (possibly just to sell books), doesn't AUTOMATICALLY make it true.

By Megan

Who cares!!!!!!

By AD

I AM KIND OF INCLINED TO SIDE WITH THE GENTELMAN THIS TIME..

NO WITNESS,HE WON EVERY COURT CASE.....HOPE I AM NOT WRONG..
BUT I KNOW A LADY THAT MADE THESE KIND OF ACCUSATIONS...AND TRULEY BELIEVED THEM TO BE TRUE...FOUND OUT LATER AFTER HER HUSBAND ALMOST LOST HIS JOB,,DID LOSE FRIENDS AND HIS DIGNITY, SHE MADE IT ALL UP...WAS TRUE IN HER MIND...BUT THAT WA ALL.

Friday 03 June

By Frida

You are an imbicile.

He beat her and she stayed, it wasn't 1955 when there no services available for women . She could have walked out, she had the resources and by then women had choices. Why is she obsessed with airing laundry at her age, to sell a fantasy?

By Amy

Did you all watch the interview? I did-his OWN children were in the audience wee backing up her claims of abuse-and that he was abusive to them too. He's not going to admit he was a beater-deny-deny thats what they do.

By Nancy

Some people will say anything to sell a book! She was obviously confused about a lot in her life, I mean, she suddenly decided she was gay? These Hollywood types are unbelievable! They have way too much money and way too high of an opinion of themselves.

By bigD

I doubt you watched the interview. She looked like it had happened just yesterday. Crying real tears and looking visibley frightened. And to all those questioning the proof, again, she had 3 of her kids in the audience backing her story. They seemed very bitter toward their father and she seems very damaged. You can tell it's not made up if you watch the interview.

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