The Book of Sheen: A Memoir

Martin Sheen is Charlie’s father and a veteran actor whose presence in The Book of Sheen is steady and corrective. Martin is a disciplined professional actor with a long career and a forceful moral framework, and he serves as an aspirational model for Charlie: In many ways, Martin sets the standard for Charlie to measure up to. Growing up, Charlie watches his father star alongside many of his heroes. He meets Dennis Hopper, Marlon Brando, and others on the sets of Martin’s films, particularly the filming of Apocalypse Now, which Charlie describes as “the greatest motion picture ever made” (41). This is the level of professional success against which Charlie judges himself. He sets out to follow in his father’s footsteps but struggles to measure up to Martin’s legacy. Martin is such a significant figure in both Charlie’s life and the history of American cinema that he sets an unattainable standard for his son. This is particularly evident in Charlie’s references to his older brother, Emilio Estevez. Both Charlie and Emilio become actors, and they both follow in their father’s footsteps. Whereas Emilio is able to match his father’s professionalism with his moral dedication to raising a family, Charlie is not able to match either. Emilio is the alternative model for the life Charlie might have lived if he had tried and succeeded in following in his father’s footsteps.

Seen through Charlie’s eyes, Martin is a model of success. Yet, as the narrative occasionally reveals, Martin has his own struggles. He changes his name to improve his career prospects, but when his father sees his “fancy new American name” (15), he makes his disappointment clear, seeing it as a betrayal. Charlie only alludes to the disappointment and responsibility that his father must have felt, especially when contrasted with Charlie’s own decision to use the Sheen family name rather than Estevez (as his brother did). However, Martin shows how he has integrated his experience with his father into his own life; Charlie’s experience of discussing the name change with his father is “much smoother,” an example of Martin trying to shield his children from the problems he suffered. In this way, Charlie’s stories about Martin bring fatherhood to the forefront of the memoir’s concerns, which will tie into his eventual realization that his children are the focus of his recentered life.

Martin’s experiences also serve to highlight the pressures of an acting career, making him both a model and, at times, a cautionary tale. Martin’s experiences on the set of Apocalypse Now show the danger posed to actors as they get lost in a role. As well as suffering from a heart attack on the set, Martin injures himself while drunkenly performing a scene. Charlie admires his father’s work on this film so much that he aspires to replicate his father’s success in his own Vietnam film, Platoon. Martin again tries to shield Charlie, warning him not to take the role. But Charlie learns the wrong lessons from his father’s career. Whereas Martin changed after Apocalypse Now, reforming into a teetotal family man, Charlie spends his career aspiring to a memory of his father that no longer reflects reality. Martin is a model for professional and moral success, but Charlie spends much of his life trying to mimic a different version of his father. As such, Martin is unable to shield his son from making the same mistakes.

Martin Sheen is also a religious man. Charlie relates this sardonically, referring to his father as “the Pope of Malibu” (273), but the narrative looks beyond his jokes to see how Martin’s religion gives him support and strength. Martin reforms into a successful family man; he is able to put himself in a position where he can shield his children from making his mistakes; he is able to grow due to his religious beliefs and the way in which they guide him. Charlie resents the imposition of such religion. Throughout his book, he rarely touches upon religion unless he is describing his discomfort at certain religious-themed rehabilitation techniques. For Charlie, his father’s religion remains something of a joke. He is unwilling to explore the significance of the religion in his father’s life, not only as a guiding moral force but also as a support during darker moments. During the darker moments of his addiction, Charlie describes how he hides his drug use and drinking from his religious father. With his focus on religion, Martin once again serves as a model for how to confront and overcome addiction and personal challenges, but Charlie doesn’t find the same answers in religion; he is forced to find his own way to recenter his life.

Zip is Charlie Sheen’s long-time bodyguard, driver, and fixer. In The Book of Sheen, he is presented as calm under pressure, physically imposing, and reflexively protective. He fields emergency calls, coordinates transport, and mediates between Sheen and law enforcement or medical staff. He also handles delicate personal situations without escalation. Zip’s role in crisis scenes throughout the memoir is pivotal. He intervenes during a cocaine overdose, dials emergency services, and manages the situation with paramedics. He extracts Sheen from buildings, slips past federal agents in a parking loop, and shuttles him between residences or safe houses. At rehabs, he relays contraband mishaps and becomes part of improvised plans, including a notorious supply toss over a wall.

Loyalty, from Sheen’s perspective, is Zip’s defining trait. For Sheen—so often caught up in substance use and self-destruction—Zip’s presence is a reliable constant, a fixed point of reference that mimics friendship. Though they are close, their relationship is fundamentally one of employment. Zip may occupy the role of a steadfast and constant presence in Sheen’s life, but he is paid to do so. He may have genuine affection for his employer, but he has a financial interest in remaining steadfast during the self-destruction. Whereas others come and go, Zip stays with Sheen, but his loyalty is dictated by the financial arrangement that underpins their friendship.

At the same time, Zip plays a significant role in Sheen’s addiction. While he saves Sheen’s life on at least one occasion, he also enables Sheen’s addiction on many levels. As well as fetching him drugs, he helps Sheen evade law enforcement and resolve situations that Sheen has manufactured, such as a mistaken proposal. Zip’s presence allows Sheen to be even more self-destructive and still avoid accountability. This is particularly evident when Zip brings drugs to the rehabilitation center where Sheen is being treated. Not only does he undermine Sheen’s latest attempt to get healthy, but he also ensures that Sheen’s fellow patient, FJ, also breaks the rules of the rehab center. Zip’s actions allow Sheen to avoid repercussions and undermine any attempt to overcome his addictions. He represents all the people in Sheen’s life who are invested in his celebrity and commercial success more than in his health and safety. He is paid to enable Sheen’s worst habits, suggesting that he is more invested in the financial arrangement than Sheen’s health and safety. Zip represents the way in which Sheen’s wealth allows him to indulge his addictions and avoid consequences.