Here's an interesting project. It's a cover illustration for the weekly periodical The Chicago Reader. The feature story was on phone sex operators written by an ex-phone sex operator, and arteest Les Toil was subsenquently called in for duty.

Having read an early version of the article emailed to me by the editor, I felt the strongest message the author had to give was that phone sex operators are far from the buxom, lean, blonde seductresses in satin panties that most men imagine (fantasize) they would be. The author stated an overwhelming number of the operators were full-figured women who were more likely handling soiled Pampers than their "pert, young breasts".

My original concept sketch was intended to break the Pam Anderson stereotype wide open. The sketch showed a large but attractive cigarette-sucking woman in curlers, a frumpy bathrobe and slippers with diet cola cans, pretzels, Pampers, kiddie toys and crossword puzzles as the tools of her trade. But The Chicago Reader's editor pleasantly surprised me and said she really didn't want to entertain any negative stereotypes towards BBWs, so out go the snacks, frumpy attire and cigs.

The second sketch I sent depicted a comfy and domesticated female who still at least looked the antithesis of the skinny, vibrator-licking bimbette name Bambi that's advertised in the back of Hustler Magazine. Again, the editor felt it still may be construed as a commentary that big girls are slovenly, and decided our girl should be an ambitious, brainy and fashionable college student. So on go the hip boots, mini skirt, short bob cut and sexy geek glasses, with a stack of textbooks replacing the Huggies.

As hyper-sensitive as I am about the negative fat stereotypes that our society still warmly embraces, I think this might be a case of PC overload. The article draws us into a world of crying babies, cans of Coke, bedroom slippers, bags of pretzels and generally the opposite of Xavier Hollander's boudoir, and not of fastidious, fashionable, brainy psych majors. I'm afraid many might wonder if the editor or artist even read the article. But in defense of The Reader, if they were accused by individuals or groups in the past of perpetuating negative stereotypes (and what local weekly paper with any backbone hasn't treaded on dangerous ice?), I guess I can completely understand their cautiousness with this particular illustration.

Regardless of how she got there, it's just nice to see a hot fat girl on the cover of anything. Hurray to The Chicago Reader! And hurray to Reader staffer AND friend Liz Tamny (who wrote a rock-solid commentary of the film Shallow Hal for the Reader) for pointing them in my direction.

Date of entry: 10/02.
f entry 07/0