There have been a couple of disturbing references to women’s breasts recently. Last night, I was watching Bill Maher’s show, and he was talking about Sheryl Sandberg’s book “Lean In” (here’s the organization that accompanies the book).
Arianna Huffington was on the panel, and Bill said something to the effect of, “I thought ‘Lean In’ meant, you know, lean in so I can show you my t*ts.” Not cool, Bill. Crude.
Then today, over at, ironically enough, The Huffington Post, there’s a story about Terrence Howard doing a love scene with Oprah for Lee Daniels’ upcoming film “The Butler.”
Ok, first of all, the idea of anyone doing a love scene with Oprah just seems wrong. Sacrilege somehow. Not that she’s a god, but, well, she’s kind of a goddess in her own way. Don’t mess with Oprah. Even in a movie.
And second, if you’re going to do a love scene with Oprah and then talk about it to the press, don’t call her breasts an offensive name. Here’s Howard’s exact quote:
“To be able to make out with Oprah, to have love scenes with her and those tig ol’ bitties — she’s such a lovely and voluptuous woman. … She’s very, very, very beautiful, and that was wonderful.”
When TMZ approached Howard on the street Friday, Howard said of the love scenes, “She’s just a beautiful woman, and to be able to get near her like that and to, you know, to be able to touch the queen, and to be able to love the queen and be loved by the queen — there’s nothing better than that.”
His handler nudged him to keep walking. Um, yeah, Terrence, just keep on walking. Do NOT say anything else.
Does any of that seem wrong or odd to you? Maybe it’s just me.
“The Butler” doesn’t have a release date yet, but it’s expected to hit theaters sometime this year. It tells the story of Eugene Allen, the African-American butler who served eight different American presidents during their tenure in the White House.
The all-star cast also includes Forest Whitaker, Robin Williams, Alan Rickman, Cuba Gooding Jr., Melissa Leo, Jane Fonda, Vanessa Redgrave, John Cusack and more.
