Marissa Jaret Winokur snubbed on Rodeo Drive — Page 3

Okay Tea - here's my take - I'm 5'0" and overweight. It is near to impossible to find plus size clothes for short people - the fashion industry has made real strides toward making plus-size clothing available, unfortunately it's only for people medium-height and up. But if I had $10,000 to spend - I'd have something made and not go complaining about the treatment I received when I went into a store that didn't have my size. I will be the first to admit that being overweight is my fault and my fault only. I have to live with the consequences, and so does she. She just has a LOT more resources with which to handle the issue.

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I'm taller than average and have always had difficulty finding clothing that is long enough or proportioned correctly. So I have learned which stores are more likely to meet my needs, and that's where I head when I go shopping.

I'm never in favor of people being judged on physical attributes, especially those over which one has no control. But really... MJW has made it big *because * of her physical features. I'm sure she's savvy enough to know where to head when she needs to be dressed for a special occasion. My vote goes to the publicity stunt catagory.

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Ah, someone who feels my petite plus-sized pain! Pleased to meetcha! And thanks so much for the info on Curves New York, I'll definitely check that out...where do I find it?

And the reason there is a stigma attached to weight, at least these days, is because it's unhealthy. Simple as that! I'm lazy and love food, sorry to be a stereotype, but there it is...

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Why am I NOT surprised that shops on Rodeo Drive would stoop to this level? You can never be too young or too thin in L.A.

(as opposed to NYC where we allow all shapes, ages, sizes, creeds and colors, right?)

Well, all cities have our fashionistas, right? I hope she shows up looking great and letting it all hang out.

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Rathnait.... I don't think Curves has a website, but if you google "petite plus", a bunch of other sites will appear. They're not couture, but still, it might help. For info on Curves, New York, check out Catherine Schuller's website www.uniquelyme.com, I believe. She's FANTASTIC... The country's premire plus-sized model, organized the first major plus-sized fashion show during fashion week in NYC.

I wish I could take responsibility for my size. I run 6 miles a day and I lift weights. I eat right (although I do have to admit that I LOVE french fries) and I monitor my weight carefully. Right now I make alot of money modeling, so my "look" is important. I've NEVER in my adult life weighed less than 150 lbs. And when I was that light, I felt sick and tired. Some of us are just made this way, and it makes it alot harder to break into the entertainment or fashion industry. But it CAN be done.... So keep your chin up. And don't take any crap from snooty clerks. But I do aggree, the way things are now, I know I have no business going into Gucci.... I'll stick to Curves. :) But if I had $10,000 to spend, I think I ought to be able to AT LEAST get some service, even if I couldn't find something I wanted.

-Tea

Putting sarcasm, clever retorts, and arguments of whether this event was "all about publicity" aside for a moment, it still smacks of a deeper issue of discrimination against "plus sized" individuals. In our society, this is a commonly accepted practice, widely condoned by many in the "thin is in" crowd. There are some who feel that overweight folks deserve the treatment they get because they eat too much of the wrong foods, don't exercise properly, and are just plain lazy. Are there any amongst us who made fun of the "fat" kid on the playground or actually "were" that kid? I am guilty myself of a recent "all in good fun" quip referencing Mama Cass on the Off Topic board.

Perhaps Marissa should have purchased a dress from some "Hefty Hideaway" type store or planned in advance to have some custom couture made for her. I will not suggest what merchandise mix Neiman Marcus or Gucci should have on hand for their "target" customer, but I would expect that poor customer service is not to be tolerated by store management.

Several years ago, I was a Buyer/Merchandise Manager for a well known nationwide department store. I quickly learned that the demand for larger size clothing sizes was increasing and the demand for smaller sized clothing was decreasing. For good or ill, this trend continues today. Customer service was paramount in my business and we tried our best to help all patrons who chose to do business with us.

Today, I am a business owner in another industry. However, providing courteous customer service is still an integral part of my overall business philosophy. I am very familiar with federal law that is supposed to prevent discrimination on the basis of national origin, race, color, religion, sex, and physical disability. We have several state and local laws (and corporation guidelines) that are supposed to prevent discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. However, there are no regulations against the blatant or covert discrimination of "plus size" individuals. I will suggest that this high profile incident involving Ms. Winokur should prompt all of us to examine our own attitudes towards the treatment of plus sized folks in our society.

However, we don't know what the truth of this incident is and if it even happened. She could be using it for publicity, in which case people to whom it really HAS happened are being insulted.

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Most likely Nicole Kidman or Mary J. Blige...you know, REAL Broadway stars...

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Girl in Store: It's Selena!
Sales Lady: Who's Selena?
GIS: She's here for the Grammys.
Selena: Excuse me Miss, Miss...We don't need the dress.

MUWAHAHAHA I love that scene in the movie.

Why would Marissa go into Gucci to begin with? They don't even cater to people her size, and she had to have known that. Just because you win a Tony, doesn't mean you will all-of-a-sudden be able to shop at every designer store. If the clothes didn't fit before, they're not gonna fit now. And I'm not trying to be sinical. I feel bad for her to a degree, but I'm being practical.

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Updated On: 6/4/04 at 01:45 PM

I saw this story on TV as well and I must say, I really felt for Marissa. People are soo rude and snooty sometimes!

When I was on Rodeo Drive, the salesperson kept getting into the dressing room with me while I was trying on pants and a shirt. I was like, my mother taught me how to pull my pants up. This actually happened in several shops, they were VERY friendly. I even had someone try to rub Shea Butter on my chest at L'Occitane. True story!

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When I have been in Europe the sizes there utterly shocked me. I am 5 ft @ in 140 lbs. ( most of it in my bust!) NOTHING in any of the shops I went to would fit. They stop @ size 46 (in Europe about a 10) anything else is a specially shop like Maria Rinaldi which is the fuller figure line to Max Mara. Why would she even try Gucci( famous for their rudeness i might add) Frankly i smell a PR persons not so fine Italian Hand...