Super-rich Dr. Phil McGraw shot to fame and fortune appearing on the Oprah Winfrey Show in the late 1990s. Big-hearted Oprah Winfreythen helped him launch his own show, Dr. Phil, in 2002. It's basically a talk show where people with issues or problems come on and "supposedly" get help and advice from the genial Dr. Phil.
The guy has a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and spent part of his career hiring himself out as a trial consultant and, for a time, worked as a psychologist in his own private practice.
He stopped renewing his license to practice some 15 or so years ago. But he is still entitled to call himself "Dr. Phil".
The show has an air of being there to help people, but it really and truly is merely a form of entertainment. And that's fine. But for years troubling stories and rumors about what goes on behind the scenes have leaked out, with some former employees calling the work environment "toxic".
Others have said that, far from being kindly and genial, Dr. Phil can be a bit of a monster to work for.
So, let's take a look at what it's like to work with good old Dr. Phil. He appears to be a charming, genial, caring man. Or is he?
A Toxic Work Environment
Leah Rothman worked on the Dr. Phil show as a director. She claimed that the atmosphere was so toxic that it caused her hair to fall out! So in 2015, she sued him for emotional distress and false imprisonment, claiming he had locked 300 employees in a room and yelled and swore at them because stories had been leaked to the press.
She claimed that McGraw regularly yelled, swore at staff, and literally brought people to tears. And she had proof in the form of a video clip. What did good old Dr. Phil do? He sued her, not for libel or slander, but for copyright infringement, saying she had illegally obtained the tape without the appropriate consents.
What did that mean? Well, it meant that she couldn't use the tape as proof of her accusations. The judge ruled that because she had obtained the tape illegally, it was not admissible. There went her case out the window.
And, according to Indeed.com another former employee back up the toxicity of the place, saying it was a "horrible place to work [full of] angry people - no perks." Others have commented on the fact that they felt expendable because the show tended to lay off people and cut benefits without any notice.
Faking It
Another complaint by employees is that, while the show pretends to "help" people with their problems, it sometimes only makes them worse. Todd Herzog, who was a recovering alcoholic and the winner of Survivor: China, allegedly found a bottle of Vodka in his dressing room. Obviously, someone from the show had put it there. He fell off the wagon big time and drank it. The effect? He came onto the show a stumbling, incoherent mess. The effect was nothing if not dramatic.
RELATED: 20 Rules Dr. Phil Makes His Audience Follow
Or take guest, Jordan Smith. He claimed that he came on the show to get help with his heroin addiction and that staff from the show actually escorted him to the seedy side of Los Angeles to buy drugs.
Of course, no surprise, Dr. Phil and the show angrily denied the stories.
Anything For Good Ratings: Exploitation Of Britney Spears
The world well remembers that in 2007 the "Pop Princess" Britney Spears suffered a very public meltdown, shaving her head, saying outrageous and scary things, and actually attacking a photographer with an umbrella.
RELATED: Friends Say Britney Spears' Boyfriend Sam Asghari Is Very Good For Her, And Here's Why
She landed in the hospital and her desperate (and obviously not very savvy) family turned to Dr. Phil for help. Oh, he helped all right. He helped himself, showing up at the hospital with cameras and blabbing freely to the press about Britney's health and his "concern".
Did Britney get any help? Are you kidding? But Dr. Phil boosted those all-important ratings. Some staff members were outraged but said nothing, afraid of being fired. And her family? They say he betrayed their trust.
Exploitation Of Shelley Duvall
Some employees were appalled when actress Shelley Duvall came on the show in 2016. Why? Well, the actress made famous appearing alongside Jack Nicolson in Stanley Kubrick's iconic horror film The Shining was suffering from some pretty severe mental issues.
RELATED: This Is What "The Shining" Actress Shelley Duvall Looks Like Now
Good old Dr. Phil wanted to help. Himself again. The interview was a nasty and cruel affair. It was so bad that Kubrick's daughter called it "lurid and exploitive entertainment" and "appalling cruel". Vivian Kubrick even started a GoFundMe page for Shelley so she could get "real" help and not exploitation.
So, what's it like to work for or with Dr. Phil? Well, it depends. If you like yelling and screaming, you'll love it there. If you like giving alcohol to an alcoholic or helping a druggie buy drugs, well, it's probably a good fit. And if you don't mind exploiting down and outs, it's the place for you. And if you are somebody with a real problem? Stay away.
