Something happened in this week's America's Next Top Model which thrilled, and then annoyed me. They sent two of the contestants to get dental work: Joanie to fix a snaggle tooth, and Danielle, to fix a gap in her front teeth. Joanie's snaggle tooth (by which I mean a tooth that was in front of and above her other teeth) was so bad that I had wondered why they had cast her in the first place. I mean come on, no one is going to hire a model with a tooth like that. So Joanie suffered through 18 hours of painful dental work in which they yanked out a bunch of teeth (on camera, no less -- eww!), ground all her teeth down and then glued on new teeth. Now she has a perfectly even, perfectly phony set of choppers. I don't know if it will make Joanie a better model, but she seemed really happy about it. So it was nice for the show to pay for all that dental work.
But Danielle was the one who interested me more. When she sat down in the dentist's chair, he asked if there was anything about her teeth she was concerned about. In all sincerity she said "Yes, my gums are receding." He shot back "What about the gap?" She brushed him off, insisting that "I love my gap; the gap is staying!"
That whole exchange made me laugh, and cheer for Danielle. She knew they sent her there to get rid of the gap in her teeth, because we saw Tyra telling her so. And the dentist obviously knew why she was there too. But she acted as though the show had sent her for no reason but basic periodontal health. In a confessional interview she said the gap was part of who she was. I thought that was great.
Not so great was the dressing down Tyra gave Danielle in front of everyone later on. Tyra said that she could never be a cover girl looking like that, and that if she wanted to stay in the competition she'd better go back to the dentist and do what she was told.
That really pissed me off. First of all, most of those girls are never going to be top models, no matter what Tyra says. I don't see Tyra telling Jade she has to magically lose 8 years from her age or she's out of the competition. And I think that's more of an obstacle than Danielle's gap-tooth. Look at Eva, the 5' 6.5" winner from two seasons ago. They not only cast her but gave her the prize, knowing she's four inches too short to be a working model much less a top model.
I also thought it was odd that Tyra usually brings up successful models to defend contestants with physical drawbacks -- Kate Moss if they're talking about a short contestant, Queen Latifah or Emme if it's a larger girl, Cindy Crawford for a girl with a big mole -- but she never mentioned Lauren Hutton. Granted, Danielle is no Lauren Hutton. But then Eva Pigford is sure as hell no Kate Moss.
I think it's wrong of Tyra to single out Danielle, and force her to make a permanent, unwanted change to her appearance, in pursuit of a goal she probably won't ever reach anyway. I guess I could see it if Danielle was the absolute lead in the contest, and the gap in her teeth was the only thing holding her back from super-stardom. But this is just wrong.
The preview for next week shows Danielle going back to the dentist, with some narration about her difficult decision. Don't do it, Danielle! Love your gap!
9 Comments
the lauren hutton gap story is so famous, i can't believe tyra could ever get away with a statement like that.
i wonder if tyra insisted on the gap-filling because she's in some way pulling for danielle to win? that's probably irrelevant to your post, but i still wonder.
though none of these girls will ever be "top models" in the true sense of the word, i wonder how many potential future modelling opportunities (catalog, etc.) danielle would get turned down for with the gap?
or, conversely, does the gap somehow make her have *more* potential for super-stardom?
all of these girls on the show swear up and down that modelling is THE THING they want to do with their lives. if tyra is really giving danielle honest advice that will help her in her career, perhaps it is in her best interest to follow that advice.
and not to ramble on too long, but i'm enjoying playing devil's advocate (on the whole i largely agree with your post)... how does the gap-filling differ from the makeovers? a lot of those girls complain about hair cuts and such because their old hairstyles were indicators of who they are, but they took the plunge anyway because tyra said it would be good for their chances on the show (and ergo a future modelling career).
i am proud of danielle for having stood up for herself (her strength is just one of the things that makes her my favorite contestant on the show) but it does seem like she'd have more career opportunities if she filled the gap.
There's a big difference between dental work and a haircut -- the haircut will grow out. Making Danielle have her gap fixed would be more like making one of the girls remove (or get) a tattoo.
that would make sense, if Tyra pushed so hard for this because she wants Danielle to win. It just seemed weird, after Tyra told previous girls "Don't let anyone ever tell you to have your mole removed, that's what makes you special" and then to express basically the opposite with Danielle.
i believe hutton filled her gap in the early years, using mortician's wax. that would be good enough for catalog work.
I too was completely horrified about that whole situation. I want Danielle to walk off the show rather than compromise her awesome gap!
so, how did you like the outcome?
ehh ... I was okay with it, mostly because Danielle seemed like she was. I would have been really upset if she had felt personally compromised over it.
I did think it was funny that Danielle's mother brought up that beauty pageant girl from last season who wouldn't cut her hair.
I felt kind of ambivalent about the elimination too. In terms of raw looks I think Nnenna has it all over Furonda, but Furonda seemed to take direction a lot better in the photo shoots. Then again, Nnenna kept winning challenges. So who knows why they chose the way they did. I was mainly surprised it wasn't Sarah.
"Look at Eva, the 5' 6.5" winner from two seasons ago. They not only cast her but gave her the prize, knowing she's four inches too short to be a working model much less a top model. "
Wow you must have not gone to fashion week in ny or LA. or Picked up a vouge mag, how about elle. Donna karen anyone. Looks like she is working to me
Hi Malcolm, are you related to Eva? I'm really glad to hear she's getting modeling work. I thought she was great on Taye Diggs' show & was thinking she might move into acting. Either way, that's great that she's doing so well!