THE DOLL HOSPITAL

A corny but pleasurable romantic soaper about a private hospital where the elite meet to detox. Run by handsome Dr. Roger Cooper, the Tanglewood Clinic in beautiful central Connecticut is the in place for the rich and famous to shed whatever habit is troubling them, be it booze, dope, diet pills, etc. The place is as luxurious as the QE II, the guests are pampered (here, unlike at the Betty Ford Clinic, you won't find Liz Taylor scrubbing the floor), and the success rate is high. But, of course, Dr. Cooper has troubles of his own. Jealous of Cooper's fame, business partner Adrian Lyell is scheming to take over and build condominiums (!) on the grounds. And famous actress Cat Powers has returned for the third time, having become addicted to the Valium/Demerol injections prescribed by her own personal Dr. Feelgood--Dr. Gene Stone--who just happens to be an old and rabid enemy of Cooper's. Not to mention the fact that the family of another patient, black boxer Peabo Washington, has been discriminated against by a local motel owner. And a third patient, knockout fashion model Lavender Gilbert, is trying to wean herself from cocaine--much to the dismay of the very nasty designer who is counting on her to star in his new perfume campaign. Put it all together (along with some titillating cameo appearances by an oversexed Park Avenue matron and an alcoholic British M.P.) and you have a kind of literary version of the TV series Hotel, with Cooper as the harried M.D. racing from crisis to crisis. Although not likely to inspire a weekly series (Detox!), the plot provides juicy entertainment--and tells plenty of dark secrets.