Thursday, February 5, 2009

The Skinny in Hollywood!


I'm SOOOOO sick and tired of seeing pictures like the ones below. I'm speaking out today against the stupid Hollywood stars who are killing themselves to be thin. This makes me so mad! As far as I'm concerned when you take on a job like these ladies have you have a responsibility to the public! You're what our DAUGHTERS look up to! You're what they see on TV and in the movies. You're what they want to be like! When they see their boyfriends drooling over the so-called sexy starlets it leaves an impression on them. It says to them that 'skinny is hot'. I'm fed up with Hollywood pushing this image on the general public.


Starving yourself is NOT sexy.

Going from a pretty, curvy woman to a stink figure is NOT hot!

Throwing up your lunch and downing the laxatives is NOT cool!

Looking like roadkill with a sparkly dress and a tan is NOT beauty!

How can it possibly be exciting to hug or kiss or even make love to a skeleton? This is getting gross people. When are the ladies of Hollywood going to wake up and eat a damn donut already?!

We stand in line at the grocery store and we see these images all over the magazines. Thank God my daughters are smart enough and secure enough in themselves to look at these anorexic stars and realize it's not pretty or healthy. But there are a lot of girls who see these women and want to be like them. I remember wanting to be thin. Going without lunch to keep the weight down. And when I was a teen we didn't see images like these all over the magazines. Hell, if I had seen them I would have probably felt fat or inadequate. Esp. if my boyfriend thought Keira Knightley was a babe.

Am I the only one sick of seeing these lollipops? That's what they remind me of! A stick with a round ball on the end. Every time I see them I just want to buy them a dozen Krispy Kremes!

Guys, is this what you consider hot? Ladies, are you as tired of seeing these unnaturally thin women as I am?

I have an urge to bring her to my mom's house for a plate of lasagna and homemade rolls!


Cover the ribcage at least! And having a tan doesn't make you healthy!

She looks like she's been put in a room and kept there for a month with no food. What does she eat anyway? A third of a carrot and a bottle of water?
Black is supposed to be thinning...I'm thinking they need to wear some damn color!

44 comments:

Sophia Danu said...

Yikes! Those pics are really something! I totally agree Anne!

Molly Daniels said...

Yeah, they are waaaaay too thin!

Jodi Lynn Copeland said...

Here, here. So many of those girls were pretty when they had a little meat on their bones, and now they look like the vulture already picked them away to nothing! And just think--the camera adds 10 lbs! :(

Pat said...

I think the saddest part of all is they're smiling. As though looking like a walking skeleton is something to be happy about. They don't look healthy to me! Scary, yes!

Regina Carlysle said...

Great post,Anne. I'm with you all the way on this. The standards of beauty were so different a long time ago. The most stunningly beautiful women, years ago, were curvy and gorgeous...Marilyn, Ava, and Sophia. When did we let Hollywood and the fashion mags change it all. A friend of mine talked about this the other day and asked the question...who decided THIS was the standard and she suspected it WASN'T as MAN. Women do this to themselves. I honestly don't think men think this is pretty and if women were honest, they don't either. They starve themselves to look good in their clothes. We got a Victoria's Secret catalog the other day and the most of the women were slender but they DIDN'T look like these women.

I was more than happy when the newest Americas Next Top Model was a plus sized model. She is a beautiful young woman.

Anne Rainey said...

Sophia--And this is after they've applied the makeup. Imagine them without it!

Molly--The thing that bothers me is that these ladies weren't just born skinny. My daughter has a friend who is naturally thin. The kid eats us all under the damn table, but doesn't gain a pound. These stars are purposely starving themselves and presenting an image to our youth and THAT makes me angry!

Anne Rainey said...

Jodi--Exactly! At one time they looked normal, but not anymore! And I hadn't thought about the camera adding weight. Yikes!

Pat--I swear I don't know what's keeping them alive.

Amy Ruttan said...

My husband doesn't want a stick figure for a wife.

I was losing weight after my second child, I lost 40lbs and got down to a size where I could buy regular clothes again, he was happy but he didn't want me killing myself to get to a size 2. He was happy with my 12-14 figure.

I'm tall. I've had children, I could never get that skinny. So I'm not going to worry myself. I'm happily married, who do I have to impress other than him?

Anne Rainey said...

Regina--I don't know, I think it's men and women both really. I remember reading an article written by a supermodel. She had said she didn't start on laxatives and throwing up until she over heard a camera man once say 'what I'm supposed to do with that pig?' He was referring to her. Imagine a model being referred to as a 'pig'...

Mona Risk said...

OMG look at these pictures. The yellow dress is about to slide to the floor. The two girls look exactly like two little girls with grownup heads and the brown dress covers a skeleton. Yuck. Where are Marilyn Monroe, Goldie Hawn and Sophia Loren. Even Audrey Hepburn had more flesh.

Anne Rainey said...

Amy--Good for you! And I agree! My hsuband thinks I'm sexy, that's all I care about. He doesn't want me skin and bones either (he likes something to play with, lol)

But, there are young impressionable girls out there who see these images and it affects how they view themselves and that's why I get so angry.

Anne Rainey said...

Mona--Oh man, I miss the Sophia days! I can't figure out why the stars are doing this to themselves. Who actually LIKES the way they look anyway?!

Jody W. and Meankitty said...

They're not smiling, their faces have lost so much weight that the flesh is retracting from their teeth.

Emma Lai said...

I'm a petite Asian woman and all my life it's been expected that I would be tiny. Size 0 tiny. I've never been a 0...well maybe when I was 11. The tiniest I've ever been was a 2, and I was sick all the time. My body could not handle being that tiny. I'm a happy size 8 now and healthy as a horse as the saying goes. And my favorite paintings feature Rubenesque women. To me that's what a real woman is supposed to look like. Curves, curves, and more curves!

Susan Macatee said...

I agree! They look absolutely horrible. But I think a lot of the blame lies with the media. When an actress or celebrity gains an ounce of weight, they pounce all over them. It's no wonder they starve themselves to avoid unwarranted criticism. When will the media finally learn to cease and desist!

Barb said...

Anne, this is what Hollywood and the press preaches to these women...you have to be scary skinny to make it. Just look at the Jessica Simpson pictures they've been showing lately. She's not fat by any means but that's all the press has to talk about. Why can't they just leave them alone? My own stepdaughter is a size zero and weighs about a hundred pounds. I'm constantly on her about eating more but she doesn't listen. At one point about a year and a half ago she weighed 120 and looked healthy but now she looks like a skeleton with skin. What can you do?

Anonymous said...

Hey, Anne, I've blogged about this in the past! Especially Kiera Knightley. Or however it's spelled. I see pics of her and just get really squicked out. And Jodi, you're right about the camera adding ten pounds. I remember hearing some radio/tv broadcaster talking about going to hollywood and originally thinking these chicks were hot, then seeing them and thinking they all looking surreal and weird (way to thin) Like aliens or something.

K J Gillenwater said...

One thing I will say is that Keira Knightley's mother defended her size...saying that she is built like her father. Some people are naturally stick thin. I've never seen Keira as anything but a stick. And she gets upset when the movie posters make her appear with more boobage than she really has.

However, the rest of these? When I can see the ribs ON YOUR BACK you are NOT healthy. This is what people looked like in prison camps.

I don't believe men do find this kind of woman attractive, but as we all know, women are the worst at the critiques. We tear each other down. Men generally don't see any of the 'flaws' we see in ourselves. In fact, they seem to like the flaws.

I like actresses like Kate Winslet who looks absolutely WONDERFUL with a 'normal' figure. And she loves her body.

Men don't want to have sex with a bag of bones or a woman who looks like a BOY. I just wish these women would stand up to the tabloids, the agents/directors who tell them what they should look like. UGH.

Anne Rainey said...

I'm a happy size 8 now and healthy as a horse as the saying goes. Emma--Good for you!

Susan--You're so right! They pounce on an actress when she gains any weight at all, even if they're pregnant! It's horrible the way they go for the jugular!

Anne Sorgeson said...

I agree too, those pictures are horrible!!

Anne Rainey said...

Barb--be careful not to harp on her. She's only going to resent you for it and become even more stubborn. I did the same thing when I was young. I had a boyfriend who told me I needed to lose weight, so I did. My mom wanted me to gain it back, but it only made me more stubborn about it. If I were you, I'd just try to monitor her eating habits and let her know you're there if she wants to talk about it. That's about all you can do. If things don't improve you might consider taking her to see a doctor.

Anne Rainey said...

Shelli--I can't imagine seeing them in person. Wow, I hadn't even thought what they might look like face to face.

K J--I agree to some extent. The majority of men don't find a bag of bones hot. But, there are some men who do like women to be ultra thin. Like I was just saying to Barb. I was a healthy 125lbs when I was a teen, but my boyfriend thought I was fat and needed to lose a few pounds.

Barb said...

Anne, she's 26 years old, not a whole lot I can do about it. I don't harp but if she mentions her weight I do tell her she needs to eat more than what she does.

Cindy K. Green said...

Scary! They are just scary. All I can say is that I'm glad I don't have daughters. Teaching middle schoolers,I know how much they look up to these young stars and want to emulate them.

Anne Rainey said...

Barb--26?! Dang, she's certainly old enough to know better! In that case, smack her upside the head!

Kelley Nyrae said...

Totally 100% agree. It's sick and very sad. I've been so angry lately about everyone giving Jessica Simpson a hard time because she has a little...and I do mean a little...she is NOT fat, meat on her bones. They expect everyone to look like those pictures? No thank you. We're women. Women have curves, breasts, hips. Even if you're petite but these girls don't even have that.

Desirée Lee said...

Unfortunately, it's going to continue as long as we watch movies with these actresses in it. Fashion models will continue to be rail thin as long as we keep buying the designers' clothes. Vicious cycle and not one that will be broken soon, I fear.

I've loved this company for years now. Fat Guy Shirts. They don't pull any punches with flaunting the BHM and BBW body type.

Carpe Noctem,
Des


Desirée Lee
Putting the Romance Back in Necromancy
http://www.desireelee.com
des@desireelee.com

Desirée Lee said...

Oh, and it doesn't help that the "fat" characters in movies and TV are used for comic relief. That sends just as bad of message as the skin & bones characters being portrayed as the sexy, popular ones.

Plus, I think we romance authors are guilty of some of it too. The amount of BHM and BBW books are far fewer than the books with the slender/handsome/beautiful/etc hero/heroines.

Carpe Noctem,
Des



Desirée Lee
Putting the Romance Back in Necromancy
http://www.desireelee.com
des@desireelee.com

Teresa Reasor said...

Marilyn Monroe was a size 14 and she was thought to be a real sex symbol back in the fifties. And twenty years later my generation thought Twiggy was where it was at. I'm ashamed that it was my generation that started this psychological brainwashing that has caused such pain. As a very young teenage, I had problems with weight and went through an anerexic phase where I lost 46 pounds in 3 and a half months. I went from a size 14 to a size 5. I had bald spots where my hair fell out, and I developed a vitamen deficiency that could have had long term effects on my health. And the thing is, loosing all that weight, and the attention it got me, didn't improve my self-esteem one bit, it just cause me more problems.
We need to concentrate on making our daughters feel loved and accepted no matter what their body shape or size. And we need to send a message to Hollywood that we're sick of seeing these stick thin actresses who look like Q-tips.If we stop going to the movies to see their movies it will hit them in the pocketbook and send a message. That's the only one they'll understand.
Teresa r.

Dragonlady said...

Makes me want to break through the tape, hold them down and force twinkies in their mouths with a side of chocolate. Eeww. Thank goodness my daughter is smart enough to recognize unhealthy when she sees it and my son, bless him, sees this and says he'd be afraid to touch her.

Mia Varano said...

I've also heard Keira defend herself as being "naturally" skinny. I can relate because I'm skinny too, and I eat and exercise normally! I think the media are to blame - they constantly shove these images down our throats and hold these girls up as people to emulate (until they want to turn on these girls as being too skinny!). Look what they're doing to Jessica Simpson - she wears an unfortunate outfit that adds a few pounds and she's on the cover of every tabloid - yikes! Happily, it seems as if a lot of girls today have other role models like Mia Hamm and Serena and Venus and other athletes. I don't see a lot of "stick thin" girls at my son's middle school and they all seem to be into playing soccer, basketball, or softball.

Anne Rainey said...

Des said: Oh, and it doesn't help that the "fat" characters in movies and TV are used for comic relief. --Amen, Des!! I've always felt the same way. They're always portrayed as the ugly girl, or the sister no one wants to date. Ugh!

Teresa--I agree! And you know, I don't even have a set of scales in my house. There's no reason. My daughters and I know if we're gaining by the way our clothes fit and so we cut back on some junk food. I don't need to see a number to make me feel complete!

Dragonlady--You have very smart kids!! Give them both a hug for me!

Anne Rainey said...

Mia--Yeah, I feel for Jessica. They're tearing her to shreds and she's not even fat! I've heard this about Kiera a few times, but I could swear she was more filled out when she did the first Pirate movie. *shrugs* Maybe not.

K J Gillenwater said...

Actually, I would say to any mother...NEVER criticize your daughter's weight at all. Whether she be overweight or underweight. Just love her as she is. If your child wants to be healthy, she will take it upon herself to do so. But to criticize her for her appearance is the worst form of parental judgment I think. It's saying 'you are not loveable or good enough unless you are the right size.'

You can be secretly disappointed that your daughter doesn't look the way you want her to, but please don't let that come out in words or looks.

Unless your child is on the verge of something that would jeopardize her health (like honest to goodness anorexia), lay off.

And why is it that British tv and film will choose less than perfect women (and men)? I think many of their most popular actors and actresses are not rail thin nor do they look 'perfect.' The men have crooked teeth or weak chins, the women have a big of junk in the trunk. Wish we'd follow suit here.

Genella deGrey said...

If I had an historical drama to cast I'd get all the servant roles filled from those photos!!

I've never seen such a perfect staff of kitchen maids and field hands! LOL!

Thank God I don't have the body of a 17 year-old boy!!

G.
Blessed with a woman's curves.

Kate Douglas said...

I happened to look at a People magazine the other day with some celebrity photos--I'm so out of the loop that I didn't realize women were still starving themselves. You'd think they'd be smarter than that. There's nothing sexy about someone who looks like they're ready to pass out from starvation or dying of a terminal illness. I'm thin by nature and my husband is as well--due to some health issues I've lost more weight than usual and it's become a running joke that Mom needs to fatten up because we give each other bruises! We need to learn to be happy with who we are--as long as we're healthy we need to learn to be happy with our bodies.

Anne Rainey said...

Genella--I have curves, just not in the right places. I'm flat where I should be curvy and curvy where i should be flat. Thank God my husband loves me just the way I am though! :)

Kate--My daughters are both thin by nature as well. My oldest gets asked if she's anorexic. Truly she's not! You should see that kid eat ice cream! LOL

Jude Mason said...

Hi Anne. This has been one of my bugaboos for years. Twiggy started it decades ago and it's gotten worse since her day. Yes, it's good to eat a healthy diet and keep fit, but when you're ribs are showing and your legs look like two bent straws with a knot in the middle, there's a problem. They can't be healthy. I would bet you many of these 'women' don't have periods and that's so sad.

It's not sexy, it's not healthy and I honestly can't understand how anyone can think it is.

There was a program here not too long ago about the unreasonable pressure of the fans forced Hollywood's new moms to crash diet so they can get that figure back. Where normally it might take six months, or more, to get back into some kind of decent shape after childbirth, they were talking weeks. That's ludicrous. It definitely isn't healthy.

Grrrrrrrr!

Going to go write now.

Hugs

Mary Ricksen said...

I always thought a woman with curves and a bit of flesh much more beautiful than skin and bones. Yeah, Jodi, just imagine them in person.

Unknown said...

Complete and total agreement! There are naturally small people but the unnaturally skinny people are not only killing themselves, pray they never get pregnant, the poor baby suffers too.

All we can do is point this out to daughters, make sure they know they're beautiful the way they are and teach son's that this is not pretty or healthy.

I do think they have a responsibility but they don't seem to care.

Leigh M. Lane said...

Unfortunately, when one is in the midst of an eating disorder, one is not able to see the truth in the mirror. I would be willing to bet that many of these disgustingly thin women believe, in some way, shape, or form, that they are unacceptably overweight -- or fear that may happen to them, soon, if they don't "keep on top of their weight." In anorexic terms, that means creating a buffer of even more lost weight, in case one accidentally gains a few pounds.

As a recovered anorexic/bulimic (on the wagon for sixteen years, now), I feel for these women. They know not what they're doing to themselves ... and all of those young, impressionable teens who follow their lead.... They all need help.

Anne Rainey said...

cerebralwriter--Thanks for sharing your story. I know that couldn't be easy! I truly apprciate your comment.

As a note: I was on that road too. The year I graduated from high school I started to diet. My boyfriend thought I was fat. So, I started to watch my eating habits. That progressed to me skipping meals. Then I found myself weighing myself daily. It wasn't long before I weighed 109 at 5 foot 5. I look thin and my ribs show at 130, it's just the way I'm built. I've always looked thinner than what I reall am. So, you can imagine how horrid I looked at 109.

However, the biggest issue I have is that these women DO have a responsibility to the public. The media has a responsibility to our teens. With each photo shoot, with each perfume ad, with each movie they make, they leave an impression of what a woman should look like.

The fact is, and this is easily something we can all agree on, it's a frustrating situation and the more people who TALK about it, the more people who REFUSE to tolerate it, the FASTER this type of stupid behavior will change.

Dee Shore said...

Amen sister! Eat some french fries! lol Awesome pos!

Anne Rainey said...

Dee--Don't you have the urge to drive through McDonalds and supersize a meal for them?! LOL They'd just throw it up though, which would be a damn shame.