Why I Love Kelly Cutrone

I first saw Kelly Cutrone on The Hills. Yes, I admit to watching occasional drivel, maybe quite a bit of drivel these days. But the show became interesting to me when Whitney Port went to work at People's Revolution, and for founder Kelly Cutrone. After four seasons of The Hills, Whitney left the show to star in The City that featured Whitney's career at People's Revolution.

I found Whitney's boss, Kelly Cutrone to be a great role model for Whitney and for the other young people that she mentors. Her demanding presence seems to intimidate her staff; she has high expectations of everyone around her. But I notice that she's a real softie once she sees someone making an effort to learn their job. Cutrone gets angry when a staff member does something foolish, but her bark is often worse than her bite--often, but not always.

People's Revolution is a branding public relations firm that produces fashion shows all over the world and gets press for their clients. They take the clothes out of the show room and get them onto the pages of magazines and onto the backs of clients. People's Revolution represents 46 clients; they have produced fashion shows for: Nicky Hilton, Vivienne Westwood, Marisa Ribisi, and many others. People's Revolution produced 10 different shows during the last Fashion week at Bryant Park. Kelli Cutrone and Jeremy Kost below:

Why I Love Paula Deen

There was a time when I thought cooking was a job for the unliberated woman. As I've said before, I once let my views on feminism stifle my freedom. At this great time in my life I love to cook, and I'm crazy about the Food Network.

I had thought that the Food Network only chose trained chefs to host their shows. I enjoy fancy cooking, but thanks to Paula Deen, I see that unpretentious foods that are a part of American culture, especially Southern culture, can be deeply satisfying to prepare and to eat. Paula calls dishes like fried chicken and potato salad "comfort foods."

I just finished reading Paula Deen: It Ain't All About the Cookin'. What an inspiring story. What an inspiring woman. Paula married before she was twenty. Shortly afterwards, each of her parents died of illness. What surprises me the most about Paula is that she suffered from agoraphobia and panic attacks. For many years, she was housebound.

During this time, her husband rarely maintained a long-term job. Her family--including her two sons--struggled to keep a roof over their heads. Eventually, with the help of her sons, Paula sold home-cooked lunches to nearby businesses.

Paula Deen comes across as down to earth, funny, bawdy, sensible, and very brave. After spending hours in the kitchen with her mother, aunt and grandmothers, Paula learned to cherish her family recipes and traditions. She eventually made a career for herself--and her sons--working long hours in her Savannah, Georgia restaurant.



I can't help but feel I know Paula after reading this page-turner. I read all 304 pages in a couple of days. Paula left me feeling that I can age gracefully without pretense. She found true love and got married the second time in her fifties. After years of living in near poverty, she now has a successful restaurant, two popular shows on the Food Network (Paula's Home Cooking and Paula's Party), and she has sold thousands of cookbooks.

Several great recipes are included in this memoir, such as pan-fried corn and split-pea soup. I am inspired to cook, to try, and to maybe even love again.

Here's why I love Paula Deen: She is a nurturing woman who considers food a sensual experience. As we baby boomers age, we need to redefine how we view ourselves as sexual/sensual beings. I have come to realize that cooking is not only an art, but it is a gift to give and receive. Cooking can be an intimate experience shared between two people.

Cooking is also an activity to do with the grandbabies. Beautiful aromas wafting from the kitchen create memories for the little ones.

Paula Deen is not your typical television host. To a Californian (me), she has a strong Southern accent. She says "you all" or "y'all" a lot. She is a robust, white haired woman who finds much to laugh about. She is a late bloomer who pulled herself up again and again, and she reaps the rewards of her efforts.

Why I Love Amy Sedaris

Strangers with Candy began its run on Comedy Central in 1999. My recent viewing of the insane 2006 movie, based on the series, prompted me to buy the three-season DVD . The movie and series have a preposterous premise about Jerri Blank, an ex-con, ex-drug addict, ex-prostitute “runaway.” At age 46, she returns to high school as a freshman to turn her life around. The humor is tacky, wacky and politically incorrect.

Although “Jerri,” played by Amy Sedaris, stands out as a nerd and a loser, the kids and teachers don’t seem to notice her age. The writers
--Paul Dinello, Stephen Colbert, and Amy Sedaris--may have started with the show After School Special and thought, How can we take each episode and seriously scr*w with it? In a story with a lesson, each shallow character learns something. We're not sure what.

This movie trailer shows a taste of what I attempt to convey:

Trailer to 2006 Movie

Amy Sedaris’s transition to Jerri Blank requires her to freeze a pathetic expression on her face, like Billy Bob Thornton did when he played Karl Childers in Sling Blade.



The real Amy is adorable. She appears as the cat lady on My Name is Earl tonight (May 31). Below she attends the Bewitched premier (2005).



This is what fascinates me about Amy: She has figured out how to combine her talents in a unique way. Not only does she act, write, and perform demented comedy, but she has expertise and creativity as a homemaker. She has created a beautiful, but kooky book about entertaining. Someone (maybe Amy) coined her as “Martha Stewart on crack.” I Like You: Hospitality under the Influence features photos of prepared foods and completed crafts, shot in Amy’s funky apartment. The book has a campy look to it with Amy wearing vintage clothing. She also runs a business out of her kitchen called Dusty Food Cupcakes.

I Like You includes several Greek recipes, like Koulouraki and Kourambiethes (cookies) that are part of my family tradition (my family name is Tahtaras). Besides delicious food, the book gives advice about having guests. My favorite tip is: "Try filling your medicine cabinet with marbles. Nothing announces a nosy part-goer more successfully than an avalanche of marbles striking a porcelain sink." This sample page shows the flavor of the book:



Amy Sedaris should have her own show on HGTV, the Food Network, or Comedy Central. I Like You is something that has never been done. In plain words, it is awfully darn funny, and would make a great gift.

I only write reviews about things I buy. If you find SNL funny (Amy is from Second City), you will like Strangers with Candy, available as a TV series and movie. I Like You doubles as a useful cookbook and pretty coffee table book--it is large with 304 pages of color photos, drawings and recipes.

Why I Love Elisabeth Hasselbeck

Where did the feminist movement go? When I was a young woman, the movement emphasized who we were on the inside. Our intelligence and determination took precedence over beauty, at least in the workplace. Showing some cleavage to get promoted was nothing I’d ever consider.

Have women made progress since then? Yes and no.

The tacky adventures of blonde celebrities infiltrates not only entertainment news, but network news as well. Attending parties. Driving drunk. Checking into rehab. Leaving rehab early. Serving jail time. Spending money. Dating someone new. Spending more money. Making a sex video. What?

I want some better role models for our nation’s young girls.

Enter Elisabeth Hasselbeck who turned 30 today. Happy Birthday, Elisabeth. Thank you for being a strong woman.

Before co-hosting The View, Elisabeth made it to the final four on Survivor: The Australian Outback. She completed the Boston Marathon in 1999, the same year she graduated from Boston College. She has worked with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Habitat for Humanity, and several other charity foundations. You can read more about her accomplishments at Wikipedia and at The Views Bios.

On a more personal note, Elisabeth is a wife, mother, and she is expecting a baby. She has Celiac Disease and can eat no wheat or gluten. Have you tried omitting wheat from your diet?

Before writing about last week’s unraveling at The View, I wanted to approach the subject without putting emphasis where it doesn’t belong. I enjoy the show. A half hour of Hot Topics rescues me from writer’s block. Since Barbara hasn’t asked me to co-host yet, I will put my two cents here.

Elisabeth is one smart, tough cookie. Anyone who speaks otherwise is a fool. She has held her ground all season, stating her conservative views, while the other women talked over her. Note: Women often talk over each other; it’s a cultural thing, but it doesn’t make for good TV. Barbara says she cringes when she watches the program from home.

One day on The View, the ladies discussed Christy Brinkley’s pending divorce. The conversation evolved--or digressed--to the subject of cheating. To my chagrin, Barbara, Rosie, and Joy took a lax position on adultery. All three of them thought cheating husbands (or wives) could still be good parents, while I yelled at the TV, waiting for someone to expect more from their partner. If children learn from example, how can cheating be tolerated?

Would you like to see a young woman with COURAGE step forward, when everyone else is jumping down her throat?

You can see the clip here.

This is why I love Elisabeth.

I often disagree with her conservative politics, and I do not share her position on abortion or the war, for that matter. What I do share--I would hope--is respect for myself and determination to stick to my convictions.

I have admired Rosie for years, and the fight between her and Elisabeth saddens me. No, I’m not posting the clip here. I would like to see Rosie take a step back and ask herself why people are criticizing her. She has perhaps let her passion turn into anger. Whether she means to or not, she is putting negative energy out there, and negative energy is like a boomerang that always comes back.

I am on a campaign to honor women who honor themselves. We need better role models for our young girls (and boys). I nominate Elisabeth.