America The Beautiful

The other night, in a rare moment of childlessness and free time, I watched a bit of the Golden Globes on television.  I have to confess a love for these glitzy, star-studded, red-carpet events when I see the photos in magazines at the supermarket.  But what struck me about seeing it on television was just how unglamorous it really was.  The temperatures had dipped pretty low that night in California but, despite the cold, the women of Hollywood braved it and preened through the pain.  However, the effect was kind of lost as heater lamps and onlookers in parkas filled the background.  Maybe it's the tight dresses and uncomfortable shoes, but glamour tends to lose its affect when you know that it is causing severe pain. Another unglamorous thing about the Golden Globes was, well, the breasts: despite all the ridiculously expensive dresses and personal trainers, they were neither golden nor globular. I'm not trying to be mean (for I should be the last to cast stones in this area), but someone needs to tell these women that after 40, modesty isn't just a virtue: it's a necessity. Showcasing sagging features in order to appear beautiful rather dramatically defeats the purpose.

So you can imagine my delight when America Ferrara, the 22-year old star of Ugly Betty, was awarded Best Actress in Comedy.  Her tearful acceptance speech was so touching and real that it caused quite a few in the audience to shed tears of their own.  About the role she plays America said, "It is such a beautiful message about beauty that lies deeper than what we see." "It is such an honor to play [this] role," she continued. "I hear from young girls, on a daily basis, that it makes them feel worthy and lovable -- and that they have more to offer the world than they thought." Did she crib that from modestyzone? ;)

It was such a striking juxtaposition of false and true beauty.  The women of Hollywood may have spent hours on hair and makeup (and no doubt America did too) but it was the virtue and humility of this little star that outshone them all.  So maybe there was a little gold there after all. 

Comments

[wendy]

America is one cool woman! Has anyone else noticed that she's not exactly ugly though?

[Joi]

Yeah, but that's the nature of Hollywood. She's a little unusual looking though, and she's certainly not dressed as her best on Ugly Betty (I've only seen one episode so far, but I really liked it.)

[emily]

She has a really friendly-looking smiley face and comes across as really lovely in interviews.

And def not ugly. I think the show she's on basically shows up that while in the very superficially appearance-oriented world of fashion mags, Betty is considered ugly. The fact that she's NOT ugly shows up the very narrow (and frankly dumb)definition of beauty adhered to in that industry.

[Alexandra Foley]

I read that it takes about 3 hours of hair, make up and wardrobe to get into the Betty "costume." I think if I were playing Ugly Betty that fact would make me feel pretty good. Better than, "Okay, America. We won't need to do anything to get you into costume today!"