When this here Blog is not deciphering the latest smoke signals from this site’s ombudsman, or waging a one-man war against bicyclists, we like to play tight end on "Team Kate." That's the term coined by Charlie Rose yesterday when Sports Illustrated left the beach volleyball courts and rolled out its editorial team for a retrospective on the swimsmoke magazine's fiftieth anniversary.
Fast forward to minute 11 to get to the good stuff. Namely: What makes Kate Upton different?
Lemme help you out there, Charlie.
SI Swimsuit editor MJ Day is a little more eloquent:
She's different because she is a woman with curves. And we haven't seen curves like that since the 1990's. I mean the industry didn't really support that body type. Every year I would call the agents up and say send me a girl with body, and I would get like five. It's like the most frustrating thing in the world, to Jule's point, you want a girl that can fill out a bathing suit. It's like searching a needle in the haystack.
Need evidence of Kate making the transition from swimsmoke to legitimate fashion icon? See below.
The editors’ interview is fascinating is that even they appear exasperated by the ultra-thin standard in modeling today. More success is good for Kate. And what is good for Kate is good for America.
Former SI model Carol Alt is a vociferous defender of Kate.
CHARLIE ROSE: What's the state of the modeling industry today?
CAROL ALT: I think you've heard some complaints. I think the girls are really, really, really, super super thin. I do a health show, so of course I want girls who are healthy inside and out. I think it's just way too thin and it's the wrong image to be showing these young girls. So for me, it's tough to watch it. And i've defended Kate on more shows than not. Is she fat? Thats what girls should look like. That's normal.
We're with the King. Team Kate forever.
