Hold the Presses! Or, the New York Times on How Nikki Blonsky Dares to Eat (Gasp) Ribs!

Something like 80 percent of Americans are overweight. In films, something like ZERO percent of Americans are overweight. If you were an alien who learned of our society by watching movies, you would probably die of shock upon seeing us in person.
We look around and see overweight people around us every day, all day. Why don't filmmakers think we could handle seeing them in films? I never understood that.

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you might want to actually READ the nyc piece instead of just a quote from it.

nikki "has yet to develop starlet tendencies. She doesn’t twirl her hair or carry a lap dog. When plates of ribs and roast chicken arrived, she dug in with gusto. And she didn’t fuss when she asked for extra ice in her Diet Coke and received not a single cube"

in other words, what a great person to hang out with: an actress who doesn't mind being a real kid, too, and a decent human being. you can point out the word 'gusto' and spin it into something it is not, or you can read the whole thing and see it for what it's supposed to be saying.

wells made the same mistake, but do you have to, too?

you kinda suck at this journalist thing.

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northholly,

I did actually read the whole piece, which is why I found it so disturbing. The piece starts out all nicey-nice, like Corcoran is going to be flattering, like she maybe kind of likes Blonsky -- and then she switches tone completely. Read between the lines of the article. Would you find it flattering if you agreed to let a writer write up a profile on you, and then the writer made reference to your "broad backside" and flapping arms? I sure wouldn't, and that is precisely what irked me about Corcoran's piece -- that she had the opportunity to focus on Blonsky as a person, not a clothing size, and she chose not to. And for a paper like the NYT, that's just sad.

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Your last paragraph pretty much sums up my sentiments. That seems to be the Gameplan in Hollywood. An actress gets praised for being a "real sized" woman, then next thing you know she's being praised for losing a ton of weight. I can distinctly remember Kathy Najimy going through that after her initial success in "Sister Act".

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kevjohn,

Exactly. Same thing with Queen Latifah; she's a great actress, full of sass and talent, but she gets a boob reduction and drops some weight and suddenly it's all about that and not her as a person or an actress. I mean, on the one hand, I'm sure that actresses appreciate people noticing when they get in better shape, just like the rest of us to.

What I take issue with is -- especially as the mom of three daughters -- is how much focus the media puts on women's bodies. I swear to god, if I hear Ryan Seacrest or his ilk blather one more time about Jessica Biel's workout routine while she stands there sucking in her abdomen and thrusting her boobs out, I might have to hurt someone.

K.

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i just don't think saying she flapped her arms is a criticism. she flaps her arms. she's cute, and it was fun to watch her dance, but that fun and energy comes from her size and shape. that's what makes it a joy in hairspray. to come up with a descriptive that quickly hits that note was something i appreciated. a "botero come to life"? botero's paintings were of large people who were not portrayed as grotesque. broad backside? it is, but no one's saying 'fat ass' ...

we'll disagree. i just found this piece to be a rarity: descriptive without being condescending (i.e. "it's wonderful to see someone so comfortable in their own body!") or just rude.

apologies for assuming you didn't read the piece. your comments made it seem like you didn't, but we're just reading it completely differently.

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One thing that always seems to get lost in these debates is the actual health aspect of it. People point out that someone looks better after having lost weight, or that we should care what someones weight is, and yet nobody ever points out that being significantly overweight is a huge problem for a lot of people, and its a growing problem every year. lets stop caring what people look like and start caring about what should be important...their health. If this girl is overweight then you or I shouldn't chastise her for it. Being big CAN be beautiful. But if she decides to lose weight in a healthy way then we also SHOULD praise her for it, not because she looks better but because she's done a great thing for herself. To me, thats the only thing that should be discussed.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT:
Morgit Management
Elmont, New York
morgitmanagement@morgitmanagement.com
http://morgitmanagement.com/

SAGA OF THE CINDERELLA STORIES


Elmont, New York, July 2nd, 2007. In a recent New York Magazine interview, Hairspray star Nikki Blonsky finally gave credit to the firm that helped land her a coveted role, her first professional role ever: Morgit Management. However, she was essentially forced to do so by an article in the New York Post that exposed a pattern of half-truths about how she got the part. With the film scheduled for release in July, it was no doubt good public relations to clear the air on this lest a scandal derail the film. Alas, there is much, much more to the story.

A June 2006 press release from Morgit Management stated, “Cinderella stories do happen in real life”. They proved it by landing one of their clients, Nikki Blonsky, a lead role, with no professional credits, in the feature film “Hairspray”. Margaret Karaszek owner of Morgit Management and partner Michael Ostrowski stated: “June 6th, 2006 was a great day for Miss Blonsky, her family and for us as well. We were all on needles and pins waiting for that one important call that would say Nikki will be the one playing the role of Tracy Turnblad.”

That call did in fact come, from the casting director, David Rubin. Mr. Rubin left a long voice message on Morgit Management’s phone. His first words were “If you guys haven’t heard yet or you are not already at Cold Stone Creamery, then I want to be the first to congratulate both of you on a job well done. You both deserve it”. Margaret Karaszek called David Rubin back just to confirm it. Michael immediately called Nikki on her cell phone at Cold Stone Creamery, and after a few minutes of waiting, she answered and said, “We did it Mike”.

That was the last time Ostrowski talked to Ms. Blonsky. Six days later Morgit was notified by the Blonsky’s attorney that they were terminated. That, according to Morgit is when the SAGA OF THE CINDERELLA STORIES started. With each interview being more and more bizarre as to how Ms. Blonsky landed the role of Tracy, all on her own, and various other versions, none mentioning Morgit.

Morgit received endless phone calls from friends as well as clients. The question was always the same, “Why don’t you do something to set the record straight? The truth has to be told.”

Morgit knew it was time to speak up. Being terminated without being paid a nickel is one thing; not being given credit for the all hard work that Morgit did raised the stakes. The Hairspray casting process was a long and hard one—unlike the scenario described by Ms. Blonsky in her recent interview in New York Magazine: “it all happened super-super-super-fast”. The truth is it took six grueling months from the time that Ostrowski’s nephew and recent Dartmouth grad Michael Amico informed Morgit in December of 2005 that a film version of Hairspray was in the works by New Line Cinema.

Morgit immediately got in touch with New Line and spoke to Tyler Gillett and told Mr. Gillett “We have your Tracy”! Morgit also called the Blonskys and advised them that a picture and resume will not cut it. They have to hear Nikki’s voice in order to seal the deal. So the now famous tape was created by Morgit along with the help and expertise of Michael Meehan. Mr. Meehan had in the past worked with Morgit and Ms. Blonsky, putting together videos for projects that Morgit thought Ms. Blonsky was right for. The bottom line is, Nikki never went to an open call for Hairspray. The only open call Ms. Blonsky ever attended, happened a few months after meeting with Morgit back in 2002, and that was for a show called “Most Talented Kids”.

The final outrage came after the cast of Hairspray appeared on the Oprah show along with the casting director, David Rubin. Mr. Rubin’s recollection as to how Nikki was discovered through an “open call process” was amazing to say the least. Ms. Karaszek noted, what was really disturbing was that this was the same casting director she dealt with over a 5 and ½ month period with numerous e-mails and phone calls back and forth throughout the Hairspray casting process.

The fact is that Nikki Blonsky was seen via Morgit Management’s tape by New Line and the director at least two and a half weeks before the second girl auditioned in Atlanta at an open call. This second girl in Atlanta was the start of the so-called “world wide search.”

Morgit had arranged several auditions for Nikki over the years and numerous efforts were made to get a representative from the William Morris Agency to go to Miss Blonsky’s plays. Only after she landed the role of Tracy, did William Morris pay attention and sign her on. We did more than any agent would ever do. In fact we were so hands-on that Ms. Blonsky was driven to nearly every audition by Ostrowski, who picked her up at her home in Great Neck, LI, accompanied by Nikki’s mother Karen, Margaret Karaszek and sometimes Nikki’s younger brother Joey. They were never paid a cent for any of the work they did on Ms. Blonsky’s behalf. They never received an apology from Miss Blonsky or anyone involved with Hairspray who knew the truth. They have, however, received many nasty letters from attorneys for Blonsky and New Line threatening them with all sorts of lawsuits including for defamation of all things. But which side suffered through the embarrassment of a New York Time's correction? As ET used to say—Ouch!

Ms. Karaszek said, “When I was 9, my grandmother sat me down and said: ‘listen carefully to a few words of wisdom: try to do the right thing throughout your life, keep in mind that everybody has karma, the more good one does the better the karma and vice- versa.’”

Here’s the great irony. Hairspray is a movie about the underdog making it big against long odds and it’s about justice. There has been an obvious attempt to mirror Nikki Blonksy’s path to stardom with her Hairspray character Tracy Turnblad’s similar rise in the movie. The unfortunate victim of this brilliant public relations feat is the real underdog, the under-underdog, Morgit Management.

Now that’s BAD KARMA!


Links:

http://nymag.com/guides/summer/2007/33976/
http://www.topix.net/forum/food/ice-cream/T4FVCDBBE2G9P7MOT
http://www.nypost.com/seven/06172007/business/honing_the_knives_business_.htm?page=0
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/20/arts/20alscorr-003.html?ex=1183176000&en=67bf0a7eac02252b&ei=5070
http://www.wnymradio.com/?p=40


-END-


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT:
Morgit Management
Elmont, New York
(646) 472-7946
morgitmanagement@morgitmanagement.com
http://morgitmanagement.com/

SAGA OF THE CINDERELLA STORIES


Elmont, New York, July 2nd, 2007. In a recent New York Magazine interview, Hairspray star Nikki Blonsky finally gave credit to the firm that helped land her a coveted role, her first professional role ever: Morgit Management. However, she was essentially forced to do so by an article in the New York Post that exposed a pattern of half-truths about how she got the part. With the film scheduled for release in July, it was no doubt good public relations to clear the air on this lest a scandal derail the film. Alas, there is much, much more to the story.

A June 2006 press release from Morgit Management stated, “Cinderella stories do happen in real life”. They proved it by landing one of their clients, Nikki Blonsky, a lead role, with no professional credits, in the feature film “Hairspray”. Margaret Karaszek owner of Morgit Management and partner Michael Ostrowski stated: “June 6th, 2006 was a great day for Miss Blonsky, her family and for us as well. We were all on needles and pins waiting for that one important call that would say Nikki will be the one playing the role of Tracy Turnblad.”

That call did in fact come, from the casting director, David Rubin. Mr. Rubin left a long voice message on Morgit Management’s phone. His first words were “If you guys haven’t heard yet or you are not already at Cold Stone Creamery, then I want to be the first to congratulate both of you on a job well done. You both deserve it”. Margaret Karaszek called David Rubin back just to confirm it. Michael immediately called Nikki on her cell phone at Cold Stone Creamery, and after a few minutes of waiting, she answered and said, “We did it Mike”.

That was the last time Ostrowski talked to Ms. Blonsky. Six days later Morgit was notified by the Blonsky’s attorney that they were terminated. That, according to Morgit is when the SAGA OF THE CINDERELLA STORIES started. With each interview being more and more bizarre as to how Ms. Blonsky landed the role of Tracy, all on her own, and various other versions, none mentioning Morgit.

Morgit received endless phone calls from friends as well as clients. The question was always the same, “Why don’t you do something to set the record straight? The truth has to be told.”

Morgit knew it was time to speak up. Being terminated without being paid a nickel is one thing; not being given credit for the all hard work that Morgit did raised the stakes. The Hairspray casting process was a long and hard one—unlike the scenario described by Ms. Blonsky in her recent interview in New York Magazine: “it all happened super-super-super-fast”. The truth is it took six grueling months from the time that Ostrowski’s nephew and recent Dartmouth grad Michael Amico informed Morgit in December of 2005 that a film version of Hairspray was in the works by New Line Cinema.

Morgit immediately got in touch with New Line and spoke to Tyler Gillett and told Mr. Gillett “We have your Tracy”! Morgit also called the Blonskys and advised them that a picture and resume will not cut it. They have to hear Nikki’s voice in order to seal the deal. So the now famous tape was created by Morgit along with the help and expertise of Michael Meehan. Mr. Meehan had in the past worked with Morgit and Ms. Blonsky, putting together videos for projects that Morgit thought Ms. Blonsky was right for. The bottom line is, Nikki never went to an open call for Hairspray. The only open call Ms. Blonsky ever attended, happened a few months after meeting with Morgit back in 2002, and that was for a show called “Most Talented Kids”.

The final outrage came after the cast of Hairspray appeared on the Oprah show along with the casting director, David Rubin. Mr. Rubin’s recollection as to how Nikki was discovered through an “open call process” was amazing to say the least. Ms. Karaszek noted, what was really disturbing was that this was the same casting director she dealt with over a 5 and ½ month period with numerous e-mails and phone calls back and forth throughout the Hairspray casting process.

The fact is that Nikki Blonsky was seen via Morgit Management’s tape by New Line and the director at least two and a half weeks before the second girl auditioned in Atlanta at an open call. This second girl in Atlanta was the start of the so-called “world wide search.”

Morgit had arranged several auditions for Nikki over the years and numerous efforts were made to get a representative from the William Morris Agency to go to Miss Blonsky’s plays. Only after she landed the role of Tracy, did William Morris pay attention and sign her on. We did more than any agent would ever do. In fact we were so hands-on that Ms. Blonsky was driven to nearly every audition by Ostrowski, who picked her up at her home in Great Neck, LI, accompanied by Nikki’s mother Karen, Margaret Karaszek and sometimes Nikki’s younger brother Joey. They were never paid a cent for any of the work they did on Ms. Blonsky’s behalf. They never received an apology from Miss Blonsky or anyone involved with Hairspray who knew the truth. They have, however, received many nasty letters from attorneys for Blonsky and New Line threatening them with all sorts of lawsuits including for defamation of all things. But which side suffered through the embarrassment of a New York Time's correction? As ET used to say—Ouch!

Ms. Karaszek said, “When I was 9, my grandmother sat me down and said: ‘listen carefully to a few words of wisdom: try to do the right thing throughout your life, keep in mind that everybody has karma, the more good one does the better the karma and vice- versa.’”

Here’s the great irony. Hairspray is a movie about the underdog making it big against long odds and it’s about justice. There has been an obvious attempt to mirror Nikki Blonksy’s path to stardom with her Hairspray character Tracy Turnblad’s similar rise in the movie. The unfortunate victim of this brilliant public relations feat is the real underdog, the under-underdog, Morgit Management.

Now that’s BAD KARMA!


Links:

http://nymag.com/guides/summer/2007/33976/
http://www.topix.net/forum/food/ice-cream/T4FVCDBBE2G9P7MOT
http://www.nypost.com/seven/06172007/business/honing_the_knives_business_.htm?page=0
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/20/arts/20alscorr-003.html?ex=1183176000&en=67bf0a7eac02252b&ei=5070
http://www.wnymradio.com/?p=40


-END-

Reply

I think people place to much on the whole weight thing. And this of course is coming from someone who is overweight. Bottom line Nikki did a wonderful job acting! I could not believe this was her first film.She can sing,act,dance and she is really a cute young women. If Nikki gains and or looses another pound she still will be a very talented young ladie.

Reply