If you ever need proof of that, go and see where Dawson lives. Even when she could afford to buy a townhouse on the Upper East Side, she chose to live in an apartment one flight up from her mother, in the same building where she grew up. Her father, a construction worker who illegally connected to the electrical grid in the ’70s, lives in a separate apartment with her 17-year-old brother Clay, across the hall. So, even though her parents are recently divorced, her family has managed to stick together.
Such close ties have helped keep Dawson grounded, even as she moves in and out of a social world where Jay-Z, Q-Tip, Ed Burns and Leonardo DiCaprio are dinner dates. “She still has childhood friends, the neighborhood kids who have no concept of what she’s doing with her life,” says Goodman. “They see her movies but they’re not going into acting as career choices. They knew her when she was a scruffy kid going to school who never combed her hair.”
When you’re dying, the only thing that matters is how well you lived, and how much you loved. No one cares about your car or how big your ass was.
“Sometimes Rosario will be on a movie set where people will be offering her four different kinds of bottled water,” her mother expounds. “And then she’ll come back home and be scrubbing her own toilet, and she’ll tell her brother, ‘Give me a glass of water,’ and he’ll say, ‘Get it your damn self and get me a glass while you’re at it!’”
Which is probably why children are the last thing on her mind. Even though Dawson’s mother was 16 when she got pregnant with her, and her grandmother was also a teen mother, Dawson is the one who’s breaking the cycle. Fittingly, she’s now a spokesperson for Planned Parenthood. “My mom was always very forthright about being young, female and hormonal,” she says. “I was definitely an accidental baby, so I’m not going to put that down, but education makes a huge difference. And if you actually see choices, you feel more powerful in your life. That’s my shout-out to the whole world. There’s no need for compromise, there’s no need for settling. You’re just as much that homeless person on the street, as you are that prostitute, as you are that nun, as you are that Wall Street guy. I mean, when you’re dying, the only thing that matters is how well you lived, and how much you loved. No one cares about your car or how big your ass was, you know? It’s amazing the things we put importance on, and I know that the only way I can make a difference is by being different.” Dawson is dating someone now, and while she says she has never been in love, she’s feeling pretty optimistic: “I definitely feel like I’m the happiest person in the world right now.”
Having begun her career with a disturbing portrayal of youth gone wrong, it was far from a safe bet that Dawson would be able to parlay her indie credibility into mainstream success. But now that she’s established herself as a bankable female lead, the appeal of the underground is beckoning once again. “I want to get back to something raw like Kids,” she says. “I want to get back to something that makes a difference.”
ADDITIONAL CREDITS: (STYLING) Leslie Lessin. (HAIR) Renato Campora. (MAKEUP) Yasuo Yoshikawa. COVER AND FIRST IMAGES: Shirt by Fake London at Denise Williamson Showroom / Skirt by Chan Paul by Paul Chan / Socks by Sockman, NYC / Shoes by Marc Jacobs / Earrings by Agatha / Necklaces by Mimi So / Bracelet by Agatha / Glasses by Morgenthal Fredericks. SECOND IMAGE: Shirt by Damask New York / Skirt by Zaldy / Gloves by LA Crasia / Wrist cuff, chocker, and spike rings by Sarasamioloff / Crop by Religious Sex / Belt by Fausto Puglisi / Boots by Charles Jourdan. THIRD AND FIFTH IMAGES: Shirt by Vivenne Tam / Shawl by Adrienne Landau / Skirt by Anand Jon / Belt by Versace, second belt by Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane / Earrings by David Saity / Bangles by Mimi So / Rings by Mimi So / Necklace with coins by Kenneth Jay Lane / Diamond and gold necklace by Mimi So / Accompaniment by Johnny from Burlap To Cashmere, Jameson, and Sean. FOURTH IMAGE: Headwrap by Kenneth Jay Lane / Dress by Anand Jon / Shoes by Christian Louboutin / Diamond earring by Mimi So / Rings by Kenneth Jay Lane.
Krystal January 26th, 2012 at 04:54 PM
"What transpired was Dawson’s searing performance in ’95’s Kids as Ruby, a doe-eyed innocent who contracts AIDS from a reckless teen lothario." She wasn't the one who contracted AIDS it was her friend, also she wasn't innocent in the movie she was quite promiscuous. You are mistaking her with the character played by Chloë Sevigny.