They say critics are just failed actors/writers/artists. Well, when the New York Observer's film critic Rex Reed decried Mike & Molly actor Melissa McCarthy's weight, he really punched below the belt.
Fair play that he doesn't enjoy McCarthy's brand of humour or have a taste for her latest Hollywood offering, Identity Thief. Did he then have to go and describe the Emmy Award winner star as "cacophonous," "tractor-sized," a "humongous creep" and a "hippo" in the reviewing process? Methinks it lacks imagination and intelligence to criticize the person instead of the art, no?
"Melissa McCarthy is a gimmick comedian who has devoted her short career to being obese and obnoxious with equal success," Reed wrote. "Poor Jason Bateman. How did an actor so charming, talented, attractive and versatile get stuck in so much dreck."
"Though the actress often uses her plus size as a punch line in the movie, it serves even better for her character's emotional arc," wrote L.A. Times' reviewer, Betsy Sharkey, who called the movie a gem. "Like John Candy in 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles,' [her character is] the outsider looking with envy at everyone else's happily ever afters, and McCarthy is masterful at telegraphing that pain."
I guess bullies exist in every playground and skyscraper. Fortunately for McCarthy, she has a lot of friends in the business. Albeit it is a business that has yet to treat size as irrelevant when it comes to acting ability. Without a doubt, it is she who will have the last laugh.
For more about how McCarthy's weight woes aren't a laughing matter.
Back in the world of food bills gone viral comes a compliment for once, instead of creative excuses for stinginess. Along with a tally of kid meals, mom Laura King was pleasantly surprised to find a few bucks shaved off the bill for "well-behaved" children.
The Italian restaurant bestowed the compliment on the well mannered King family, which includes three children under the age of eight.
Wondering just what this mom's secret is for keeping her kids civilized in public? Afraid there isn't really one.
“They were just being their normal selves,” she said in an article on Today Moms. “Our server came to our table and just really thanked us for having exceptionally behaved children.”
The server threw in a free bowl of ice cream for the kids to share, with the treat listed as the “well-behaved kids” discount. It's not the first time Sogno di Vino doles out a complimentary dessert, said owner Rob Scott, but it's the first time the discount was actually printed on the bill.
A proud parent moment, for sure. But what actually constitutes good behaviour? Well, staying seated for one, and not forgetting your "please" and "thank you." Sounds easy enough, so are the Kings really the exception to the rule?
Apparently so. Scott says kids in his eatery are often left to freely run and shout without regard to other patrons.
If staff heave an audible sigh of relief when you stand to leave, King has some pointers:
My son has been both an angel and a demon at restaurants. It's not always obvious which way it's going to go, or at least it wasn't when he was younger. Our motto: when in doubt, take out.
Is it realistic to expect kids to sit and quietly eat at a restaurant and not disturb other diners? Would your little cherubs warrant such a discount?
In all likelihood the 9-year-old who made headlines after giving birth in Mexico recently was raped. But we don't know for a fact. Known as only "Dafne," the girl delivered a baby by cesarean section. She was just eight years old when she "fell pregnant" at the hands of a 17-year-old boy who is reportedly on the run.
“Due to her young age, we don’t know if she is being entirely truthful,” said Lino Ginzalez Corona, spokesperson at Jalisco State Prosecutor’s Office, according to an article in ABC News. But fortunately the state prosecution is now considering whether this pregnancy was in fact a result of child abuse or rape, as Dafne is below the age of consent as stated by Mexican law.
An article on Mommyish claims that Dafne, from impoverished Ixtlahuacan de los Membrillos, is now "receiving psychological counseling and medical care and will be monitored closely."
One of 11 children, her working parents weren't around to supervise her. She is one of the youngest 'children' to become a mother in recent years, and not the first in Mexico where the consensual age is just 12.
Let that sink in a little. Twelve. I don't know many 12 year olds who are physically or emotionally ready to have sex, do you? (Hell, I had only the vaguest inkling of what sex was at 12, much less menstruation!) And I would hazard a guess these girls don't, either.
My heart weeps for this little girl and what she has been through. Unimaginable. I can't fathom a 9-year-old child 'dating,' much less having sex, carrying a baby, then having her tiny uterus sliced open.
Is a 9 year old truly capable of having consensual intercourse?
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