Jezebel
living dolls
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happily ever after?
Japanese "Princess Girls" Live Life Like A Fairy Tale
Today's Wall Street Journal story about Japanese hime gyaru, or princess girls, brings up lots of different emotions, some of them similar to the ones dredged up by the Gothic Lolita trend. Instead of dressing like storybook children, hime girls draw inspiration from Marie Antoinette and Paris Hilton. All of the clothes are pink and floral, their hair is worn in ringlets and there are pearls and flowers on everything. It's "femininity" overdose, and the WSJ claims it's maybe "a bit of escapism from workaday stress and economic uncertainty." Except: More » -
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pageant scenes
Pageant Parents: Living Vicariously Through Children Makes You Look Insane
A lot of people think that parents who enter their little girls into child beauty pageants are crazy. This video, made with love by Pot Psychologist Rich, kinda proves it. It's a montage of footage, clipped from several documentaries and TV shows about child pageants, of parents trying to coach from the sidelines while their children are on stage. Lots of funny faces, stern looks, and even rolling around on the floor ensues.
A Case For Vicarious Living [FourFour]
Earlier: Swan Brooner: Child Beauty Queen, Not-So-Merry "Holiday Barbie"
The Best Child Beauty Pageant Coaches Are Queens -
living dolls
Tickle Me Elmo Less Interesting To Little Girls Than Camera Time
A new, souped-up version of Tickle Me Elmo was released today (for the bargain price of $65). He was debuted on Good Morning America today to a bunch of little kids, and the kids were way more entertaining than the doll. But some of them weren't interested in Elmo at all, particularly one little girl who couldn't stop taunting the cameras with her twirling tongue. She finally gave up pretending to give a shit at all about the talking doll, and just looked straight into the camera, all catatonic, like she was going to possess our souls. Clip above. -
living dolls
Creepy Fake Baby Trend Arrives On American Shores
Some of you may recall that, back in January, we wrote about that British documentary My Fake Baby, the "reborn" baby dolls that are so lifelike that childless women treat them as their own. Well, it's set to air on BBC America tonight, and to promote it, a bunch of American women who "collect" these dolls were on the Today show. Matt Lauer was freaked out, and said as much. Clip above.
Earlier: Lifelike Baby Dolls: The New Trend For Childless British Women -
git it gurl
Gay Men Are The Kings Of Beauty Queens
If you've ever seen the HBO documentary Living Dolls: The Making of a Child Beauty Queen, then you're well aware of how integral gay men are to child beauty pageants in the South, from emceeing, to judging, to coaching, to hair and makeup. They practically run the whole show. But I've always wondered how these guys deal with old Southern values and bigotry, and whether the parents who enter their little girls into these competitions are accepting of homosexuality, or if it's just a case of cognitive dissonance. Today, Radar has a piece about the prominent gay men in the world of Southern pageantry that's eye-opening, but also left me asking more questions. For example, the writer, Lee Bailey, sort of hypothesizes that the glitzy dresses, big hair, and heavy makeup these kids are subjected to aren't so much about the hyper-sexualization of little girls, but rather are an extension of the drag queen culture some of these men have been influenced by. More » -
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maghag
The Gothic & Lolita Bible: Japanese Girls Are Living Dolls
In Japan, the Gothic Lolita trend is pretty huge. In fact, they have a magazine dedicated to the darkly cute (or is it cutely dark?) fashion fad, called Gothic & Lolita. This special issue, the Gothic & Lolita Bible, has everything you need to perfect your look — freaky contact lenses, skirts with stiff crinolines, babydoll shoes and parasols. Step into a world where dark meets light and women are playthings, after the jump. More » -
Plastic & Fantastic
Did you celebrate yesterday? It was Barbie's birthday! Launched in 1959, Barbie was controversial from the beginning: She was one of the first dolls for little girls with breasts, and her proportions (36 inch bust, 18 inch waist) were rather unrealistic. (Her waist was widened in 1992.) Author Peggy Orenstein, who's written extensively about issues affecting girls, tells NPR, "You either see her as the embodiment of oppressive, Teutonic standards of beauty, or you see her as all that is good and sweet and innocent about your childhood. But you can't not have a relationship with Barbie." (Like many, we like to torture her.) Still, with Bratz and Strutz and whatnot, Barbie seems downright pretty and old-fashioned these days. And homegirl looks good for 49. [NPR, Babble]
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living dolls
Barbies (And Barbies On Booze) Are Big Business
The Barbie 2-in-1 party Plane & Ship, marketed for girls ages 3 to 8, comes with martini glasses, bar stools and a disco scene, notes the Packaging Girlhood blog. The blog makes the argument that unlike the Bratz, who also have a party plane, Barbies are adults; they may drink and go clubbing, but little girls understand that these activities are for grown-ups, not children. But is pushing drinks to 3-year-olds going a step too far? Meanwhile, despite its massive recalls last year, Barbie parent company Mattel is reporting that fourth-quarter profits are up 15%, according to The New York Times. The company has huge tax benefits to thank, but people continue to buy this stuff, especially internationally. (Barbie sales are down in the United States by 12%, but up 4% globally.) And guess what? Profits in the wholesome American Girl division are down 2%! More » -
clips
The Best Child Beauty Pageant Coaches Are Queens
When we posted a clip on Christmas Eve of Swan Brooner from Living Dolls: The Making of a Child Beauty Queen, we were psyched to see you guys were as enthusiastic about this documentary as we are. We love it — like, psychotically. We figured we'd give you another taste, this time, a clip of Shane King and Michael Butler, "business" partners who run a pageant coaching service providing choreography, hair, makeup, and glamour shots. Or, as they put it, they take "an ugly girl and make her look beautiful." It's kinda hard to choose which is more awesome: Shane's dance routine or when the mother, who looks like she got her hair cut by Edward Scissorhands, describes her relationship with her 5-year-old son as "wearing him like wet underwear," and then ponders the financial decision of keeping her boy in beauty pageants or getting him Human Growth Hormone. More »
