Ever since tabloid magazines proved that publishers could make a fortune covering celebrity drama, there has been a push to scandalize every star. In fact, some publishers are so desperate to get the latest scoop that they publish stories about major stars that prove to be false and get hit with high-profile defamation lawsuits as a result.

Throughout Tina Fey’s time in the spotlight, she has almost entirely been able to avoid controversy. On top of that, when Fey was the subject of backlash due to blackface scenes that took place in her show 30 Rock, she took full accountability and apologized unreservedly.

Since Tina Fey is the furthest thing from a mainstay of the tabloids, a lot of people know very little about her personal life. For example, most people who love her work have no idea how Fey met her longtime husband, Jeff Richmond. While that is surprising enough, it truly is mind-boggling that so few people know how Fey got her facial scar. After all, the story behind her scar is deeply disturbing and truly unique.

Related: 15 Fun Facts About Tina Fey's Time On 30 Rock

A Disturbing Attack

When Tina Fey appears on camera, it often is near impossible for viewers to see a scar on her face. However, when Fey is shot from a certain angle, it quickly becomes visible. When viewers of Fey’s work catch a glimpse of her scar on camera, they are likely to wonder how she got the mark to begin with. However, a lot of Fey’s fans are too distracted by her comedic talents to look up the origins of her scar.

In 2008, Tina Fey and her husband Jeff Richmond talked to Vanity Fair. During that interview, Richmond relayed the stunning story behind Fey’s facial scar. “It was in, like, the front yard of her house, and somebody who just came up, and she just thought somebody marked her with a pen.”

Since Jeff Richmond’s quote about Tina Fey’s facial scar reads rather nonchalant, some people may write it off as no big deal. In reality, what happened to Fey was horrific. When Fey was still in kindergarten, she was playing outside her Upper Darby Pennsylvania home. Even though Fey was only 5-years-old at the time, a random stranger attacked the child and slashed her face, leaving behind a mark that will always be there. While it is bad enough when an adult is attacked out of the blue, it is revolting that anyone could hurt a young child like that.

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Fey’s Unique Perspective

Over the years, Fey hasn’t addressed her facial scar very often. During the aforementioned interview that Fey took part in with her husband, she explained why that is. “It’s impossible to talk about it without somehow seemingly exploiting it and glorifying it.”

On the rare occasion in which Fey has addressed how her scar affected her life, she has proven to have an incredible take on the situation. For example, as a part of Fey’s memoir “Bossypants”, Tina almost made it seem like getting a scar after a childhood attack was a net positive for her life. For example, Fey wrote that she learns a lot about people based on how they react to her scar.

"I've always been able to tell a lot about people by whether they ask me about my scar. Most people never ask, but if it comes up naturally somehow and I offer up the story, they are quite interested. Some people are just dumb: 'Did a cat scratch you?' God bless."

Related: Here’s The One Thing Tina Fey Won’t Do In A Movie

From there, Tina Fey explained how her facial scar gave her an inflated sense of self-confidence. "But I will tell you this: My scar was a miniature form of celebrity. Kids knew who I was because of it. Lots of people liked to claim they were there when it happened. 'I was there.' 'I saw it.' 'Crazy Mike did it!' Adults were kind to me because of it. Aunts and family friends gave me Easter candy and oversize Hershey's Kisses long after I was too old for presents. I was made to feel special."

"What should have shut me down and made me feel 'less than' ended up giving me an inflated sense of self. It wasn't until years later, maybe not until I was writing this book, that I realized people weren't making a fuss over me because I was some incredible beauty or genius; they were making a fuss over me to compensate for my being slashed." While it seems clear that being attacked as a child must have traumatized her, it is remarkable that Fey has tried to make the absolute best out of the situation.

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