Welcome to celebrehab

Our clip 'n' save guide to the latest in star makeovers, where the first step is to admit you have a problem and the second step is to get back to partying.

By Scott Lamb

Read more: Britney Spears, Arts & Entertainment, Celebrities, Arts & Entertainment Features

Jan. 27, 2007 | Isaiah Washington announced this week that he was entering a treatment facility to help him wrestle with whatever dark personal demons caused him to repeatedly pepper his conversations with the word "faggot." Of course he did. Rehab is now an essential part of the P.R. makeover in Hollywood. Just saying you're sorry is for B-list actors only. That goes for politicians too. Blaming it on the booze is so Wilbur Mills. Florida congressmen who fall for teenage pages now promise to enter rehab the moment they depart Capitol Hill.

In the past few months alone, we've seen professional party-girl Lindsay Lohan check herself into the Wonderland Center in Los Angeles, happy-go-lusty Miss USA Tara Conner clock a few weeks at the Caron Foundation in Pennsylvania, and fallen preacher Ted Haggard promise to clean the meth and male lust from his system for three years in a Colorado program. Somehow, though, we can't picture Lindsay or Tara sitting around in folding chairs, pouring out their hearts to strangers and desperately searching for the emotional trigger to unleash their demons and conquer their addictions. As Nicole Richie, who clocked a few days at the $80,000-a-month Beau Monde treatment center, could tell them, Rodeo Drive is waiting!

In the interest of keeping you up to date on where you too can go for special star "treatment," we present celebrehab.

Isaiah Washington, slur-tossing, P.R.-averse "Grey's Anatomy" actor
Sin: First referring to his "Grey's" co-star T.R. Knight as a "faggot" during an on-set spat with Patrick Dempsey last October -- which resulted in Knight publicly coming out in People the next week -- and then denying he ever used the word when asked about it at a post-Golden Globes celebration in January.
Apology: There have been several apologies, so it's easy to lose track. Here's his first mea culpa: "I sincerely regret my actions and the unfortunate use of words during the recent incident on-set. Both are beneath my own personal standards. I have nothing but respect for my coworkers -- and have apologized personally to everyone involved." And here's the statement he gave just before heading to rehab: "I have begun counseling. I regard this as a necessary step toward understanding why I did what I did and making sure it never happens again."
Treatment: Checking into an unnamed "center for psychological evaluation."
Results: Too early to tell if it will take, though it looks as though he's held on to his job. He's supposed to return to the set of "Grey's" in time for filming next week.

Lindsay Lohan, perennial party girl, serial dater, occasional actress
Sin: Years of bad behavior culminated at Prince's Golden Globes party, where witnesses said the wee starlet stayed out until 6 a.m. and was later found in a hotel hallway somewhere, passed out. The next day, she entered rehab.
Apology: Not exactly an apology, Lohan deigned to release this statement through her rep: "I have made a proactive decision to take care of my personal health. I appreciate your well wishes and ask that you please respect my privacy at this time."
Treatment: Lohan entered the Wonderland Center, which describes itself as a "residential treatment and detoxification facility providing services for alcohol, substance abuse and relapse-prevention programs."
Results: Her treatment is ongoing, but she has been spotted taking several vacations from the safe walls of rehab, including a shopping trip this week to buy a new Mercedes.

Britney Spears, pop star, mom, P.R. nightmare
Sin: A monthlong parade of drunken table dancing and panty-less crotch-flashing incidents that culminated in Spears' collapse (though her rep claimed she was just napping) at Caesars Palace's PURE nightclub in Las Vegas, shortly after midnight on New Year's Eve.
Apology: No official apology was issued, though on her Web site late last year, Britney did admit that in the wake of her split from K-Fed, she may have taken her "newfound freedom a little too far."
Treatment: On Jan. 1, Britney checked into Sanctuary, a tony Arizona spa, citing "exhaustion": industry shorthand for rehab.
Result: Her "exhaustion" must have been cured quickly because on Jan. 2, Spears was sighted with new beau Isaac Cohen, off the coast of Marina del Rey, Calif. After a few weeks frolicking in front of the cameras, the couple has now reportedly split -- but Brit has been busy repairing her less-than-maternal image by adopting a new dog and handing out money to homeless guys. (Bravo)

Mel Gibson, Road Warrior, Jesus director, fond user of the phrase "Sugar Tits"
Sin:Tanking up on a few extra margaritas, speeding through Malibu and then subjecting the officer who finally pulled him over to a hate-filled, anti-Semitic, misogynist rant.
Apology: A few days after his arrest, Gibson issued this statement: "I have begun an ongoing program of recovery and what I am now realizing is that I cannot do it alone. I am in the process of understanding where those vicious words came from during that drunken display, and I am asking the Jewish community, whom I have personally offended, to help me on my journey through recovery."
Treatment: The full alcohol rehab -- at the fancy Passages center in Malibu -- and apology tour regimen, complete with a "self-revealing" interview with Diane Sawyer.
Results: His Mayan jungle thriller "Apocalypto" opened at No. 1, but it got slim pickings when the Oscar noms were announced, getting a nod for best makeup, sound and sound editing.

Tara Conner, hard-drinkin', girl-kissin' Miss USA
Sin: Angering Donald Trump with her love of the New York nightlife, Conner delighted the gossip pages with drunken, lusty antics, including lesbian makeout scenes with Miss Teen USA and reportedly testing positive for cocaine.
Apology: When the time came to put on her public apology face, Conner showed her finely honed pageantry chops, turning on the waterworks and thanking a higher power for her deliverance: "In no way did I think it would be possible for a second chance to be given to me. You will never know how much I appreciate Mr. Trump for saving me on this one," said Conner. "I'm so happy I've been given this opportunity ... I plan on walking out of this the best Miss USA you've ever seen."
Treatment: A few soul-searching weeks at the Caron Foundation in Wernersville, Penn.
Results: Conner got out of rehab on Monday, and there were immediate rumors of a big welcome back bash for her at NYC nightspot Stereo, which her rep denied.

Next page: After 72 hours, she checked out ... to go shopping