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Janeane Garofalo joins Weight WatchersIn 1996, Janeane Garofalo played Uma Thurman's "chubbier, uglier" friend in The Truth About Cats and Dogs. While her character, Abby, was an intelligent, funny, successful and attractive woman, she had image issues. She didn't think she was beautiful enough and couldn't believe a man would be attracted to her, especially with women like Uma Thurman in existence. And while Garofalo herself was the short brunette who wasn't a size zero, she always seemed OK with that, and we loved her for it.
We loved her for her humor, of course, but also for her unapologetic take on body image, her "this is me, take it or leave it" attitude. It was sexy. She was different. And then she started to shrink, and even went blonde for a while. Now, I'm all for women getting into shape, don't get me wrong. But only if it's for themselves, and not to fit into a mold, especially a mold they've long been publicly against. Then recently there have been rumors speculating about her involvement with some new Weight Watchers commercials. "Is it her voice telling me not to eat when hunger calls?" "No, it couldn't be." Maybe it's the woman who voiced Daria? After all, there was a persistent rumor that Garofalo was behind the most popular morose cartoon teenager of the '90s.
This Weight Watchers commercial with the fuzzy orange creature (the hunger monster; it's supposed to be cute?) just didn't seem like Garofalo's can of Red Bull. But neither did playing Special Agent Janis Gold on 24, and she's doing that well. But, to her credit, work is work, right? As she told Gothamist in October, "I'm just sort of grateful anytime someone wants to hire me. And TV seems to be one of the only places where older women can seek employment." Understood. Perhaps we shouldn't be so surprised, then, that Janeane confirmed it's her voice on Air America's Breakroom Live with Maron and Seder. "I do it for the money," she told them. "I don't do it for the love of dieting."
For someone who's always been so unabashedly outspoken, I can see how it seems strange that she'd lend herself to something like this anonymously (at least in the beginning). Why not show her face and tell people, "Hey, don't just eat because you're bored. That's what worked for me," or whatever. Of course, the job was probably just for voice over work and she didn't have a choice not to show herself, or maybe, she remembered saying, "I absolutely realize that a celebrity spokesperson is not ideal." What do you think about Janeane Garofalo doing voiceover ads for Weight Watchers? Does it bother you? Submitted by on February 3, 2009 - 3:00pm. |
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I'm Jill and this is my new comment.
Regina King doesn't announce, "Hey, this is Regina King and I want you to use Always with wings, even though she is the voice of the product.
I mean, do we want the Queen of Snark to announce herself before trying to advertise for Weight Watchers? Especially since she doesn't use their program or products?
Diets aren't a bad thing, and neither is a job these days.
Why would it bother me?
I don't see the big deal. There's nothing wrong with either doing voice overs or Weight Watchers.
Not sure if she'll be doing any others though, if she keeps proclaiming she doesn't actually believe in the product she's selling.
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Who doesn't blog these days?
eurOut for all your European queer needsI'm Allison and this is MY comment
It's not like she's the new Anna for TrimSpa or anything...
I was too distracted by the little monster thing to pay attention to the voiceover, anyhow.
Inkblots
i think it's fine
Jobs a Job. and she
Jobs a Job.
and she probably wasn't as comfortable with her image as she made herself out to be.
Janeane Garofalo joins Weight Watchers
Christa K. O'malley, RN, BSN, ACLSoh janeane. such a babe. & i
It's all good.
I don't find it that odd at all. She's usually cool not matter what she does. Plus I'd rather hear her voice on a WW advert than Paris Hilton or Kiera Knigtley ect.
Twiglet "watch you don't fall through the crack in the floor" females won't ever need WW.
Nope. I don't like it.
I don't like that she has sold out.
She has always been OUR girl! The one to give the finger to the man and say "Fuck you! Who are you fit me in your mold?!"
I think that on a certain level, she's validating the beauty business, and the advertising techniques they use to target a potential buyer's insecurities. Did you see the women in the commercial? Was anyone else wondering why these perfectly fine looking women were examining their weight watchers options? What message is that sending the public?!
Sure, I understand the need for money, but I would be way more impressed if she stuck to her guns, flipped weight watchers the finger, and told everyone that they're beautiful. She could at least endorse an ad targeted towards people who really need it.
beauty is not the issue
if you know anything about weight watchers you would know that it is one of the healthiest guides to living a healthy lifestyle out there, and that the VAST majority of women who go to the meetings and are interested in them genuinely have problems, both with their health and with any other emotional or psychological problems which inhibit them from dealing with food in a healthy way. weight watchers representatives stress a healthy way of life, not a thin equals beautiful one.
i think it's ridiculous to say that just because someone is promoting healthy living that they are in any way demeaning or flying in the face of anyone who doesn't fit into the mold of beauty presented to women by the true culprits of just that crime. it's just as wrong, if not more so to justify and defend an equally unhealthy view of women (as obese) as it is to promote and justify borderline anorexics as a standard of beauty.
obviously i'm not saying that all (or in that case, any) obese women are unattractive--- that is completely both untrue and irrelevant--- i'm just saying that the tendency for people to simply accept, turn a blind eye to, and even justify the declining health not of only women, but of society as a whole for the sake of human rights, diversity, equality, or really any reason, is wrong. obesity is real problem that should be addressed, not for the sake of conformity, but for the sake of good health.
anyway, kudos to janeane garofalo to lending her voice to a worthy cause, whatever her reasons for doing it.
Oh yeah...
this is Rad's comment
I think she looks really hot in that 2nd pic, and in retrospect she was probably the reason I paid to see Mystery Men in theatres. As well as the reason I watch any film I've ever seen her in. She's like grown up ellen page. Drooling now.http://radisthenewblack.blogspot.com/
stoogle?:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0QxB3z2qgU
I love Janeane, and I'm
I love Janeane, and I'm definitely not a fan of her doing the VO for Weight Watchers. However, as an actor, work is work. I'm not saying you have to take everything that comes along, but national commercials pay pretty well and because JG doesn't fit the mainstream mold and is so outspoken, it's a lot harder for her to get work.
Also, as diet ads go, that one isn't the worst.
i actually don't get it
I actually don't get it
I actually don't really get it. I would love it if Janeane decided hey I want to lose all this weight and be sexy and all that. But for years and years she always has been saying she is happy with herself, and we love her for that. I can't help but think, that her weight loss isn't for herself. The voiceovers is cool, but it seems more like she's hiding behind the weight loss by doing a voiceover instead of being an on camera spokesperson. If the point she was making is that she is doing the voiceover because she doesn't care what people think and did it for herself, that would make sense. But that doesn't seem to be the case here.
I do feel like she's done this for the wrong reasons. Which is okay, but in the long run she either needs to be cool with the new bod and a bit prouder of what she has accomplished. It also sounds like she did it for the money. Which, lets be honest, we would all do that. But now I just think she either needs to stop hiding the new bod or at least let her fans know why she did it.
There's no shame in losing weight for the wrong reasons. But to continue to hide behind what you did because the weight loss was for the wrong reasons is just as bad. Nothing like telling a teenager that weight loss is a good thing if it's for the wrong reasons. Ya know? Better now to say I did it for the wrong reasons, but now that I have a kick ass body now I want to keep it. Nothing wrong with joining the free radical movement and skin regime from time to time. I know she's probably struggling with this. Janeane has always gone her way, and done her own thing. Partly because she doesn't care what other people think, but she is also a political activist. I get that. I think now that she did something she wasn't for, for selfish reasons she is probably feeling a bit ackward about how to handle the situation. Internally, and for the media. Also now that she has more of a body that says I actually care what other people think, I think she's probably a bit torn about it. If I looked like an after pic rather than a before pic, I would probably love the change, regardless of the why I did it in the first place. So I get that.
Janeane, if you are reading this, just be happy with the new you! Just because you did it for the wrong reasons, or reasons you might have objected with as your former self, don't hide the new you. We love you no matter what. Just be cool with that. If you want the old you back, we get that. If you are loving the new you, let the world know! Just be you.