Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Handicapping the 2011 Cover Girl Candidates, Part Six: My Prediction
When Julie Henderson made her debut in 2007, she began a yearlong stint as my favorite SI model.
Maybe it was the tousled hair, the smirk, the squint, the somewhat elongated nose, or simply the fact that she was posing on a college football practice field:
…but she struck me as very girl-next-door. (Well, next door to Russell Simmons.)
That led to a stellar 2008:
…a very pretty 2009:
…and a gorgeous 2010:
She also markets herself well. She has a very active Twitter account, interacting regularly with MJ Day, and they tweet and retweet each other constantly. And a couple quotes from this video sound like she’s on a job interview.“What would you say are your driving goals, Miss Henderson?”
A goal of mine wasn’t ever to be, like, on the cover of Vogue or anything. Mine was Sports Illustrated, like, I was like, ‘I have to be in that issue.’
“Where do you see yourself in three years, Miss Henderson?”
My goal is to get into the 50th anniversary issue. That’s like three more years. That would be a good run, seven years. But, who knows?
She also acted as a gofer to MJ Day last year “This job requires a lot of flexibility, Miss Henderson. Give me an example of a situation where you've stepped up and taken initiative.”
I assured her I was very much willing to be her slave for the day—no funny business.
And even this year, the only identifiable pics I can recall that MJ Day has tweeted from the 2011 shoot (so far) have been of Julie. Will February’s cover bring us Miss Henderson hooking her thumbs into this red-n-white polka-dotted bikini bottom?
Anyway, my point is, Julie is not only drop-dead gorgeous, but she also expresses a lot of passion for the magazine. I think she’s the safest bet.Somebody put this girl on a cover.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Handicapping the 2011 Cover Girl Candidates, Part Five
I have already sung the praises of Brooklyn Decker. But what the heck, how about one more shot of her hips?
Anyway, the point is: does she have what it takes to repeat? Here’s a roster of the girls who have made the cover two or more consecutive years in my lifetime:
What do those names have in common? They all belong in the Oxford English Dictionary under the definition of “supermodel.” They’re all celebrities in their own right, above and beyond the cover. They have their own movie appearances, their own blogging gigs on the Huffington Post, their own lingerie lines, their own modeling-based TV shows.
There’s a bit of a chicken-and-egg thing going on. Did their stardom net them consecutive covers, or did the consecutive covers launch them into stardom? But the point is, are there SI models today who have that kid of pull?
Frankly, I think Brooklyn does. Or at least, she’s come closest since 1997, when the last repeat cover girl* donned her bikini (the first time).
I almost predicted Brooklyn as the 2011 cover girl, but I have a hunch SI is going to opt for variety instead of repetition.
*I feel the need to mention Carolyn Murphy, who technically graced the cover in 2005 and 2006. The caveat, of course, is that 2006 featured eight previous cover girls, and it’s almost a given that they’d invite the girl from just 365 days earlier to reveal herself again. For my money, Carolyn has the least star power of the 2006 girls.
But I like her. Down-to-earth, all-American, catlike. Plus, I’m a sucker for a blonde in a red bikini, so let’s take a look at her solo cover.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Handicapping the 2011 Cover Girl Candidates, Part Four
It’s prediction time. Coming in at third place is the lovely Jessica Gomes.
I may be blinded by personal preferences; I love Jessica Gomes. She’s my current favorite SI model. I thought I saw something special about her in her 2008 debut:
Those hypnotic curves and gentle, piercing gaze. 2009 confirmed it:
She’s magnificent. Her placid, luxurious sexiness lifts her above even the surrounding sea of scantily clad beauties.
I am not alone in this opinion. At some point last year, M.J. Day tweeted about some kid who wrote a song about her, which resulted in some notoriety around the SI swimsuit community. Some sample lyrics:
One day
In my room
I watched videos on YouTube
This girl came in the first page
It startled me how cute she is
Oh, woah, woah
I was wondering
Who is she?
And then I tried to Google her
Right away
Oh I found it
What a cute girl
Oh, woah, woah
Jessica Gomes
Okay, so it’s not Beatrice and Dante. But until Jessica starts posting comments on this blog, the kid has one up on me.
When I began reading M.J. Day’s Twitter feed back in late 2009, and she related tantalizing 140-character missives from behind the scenes of what would be the 2010 issue, I panicked a little, because she never mentioned Jessica. Would they withhold her just as she became the girl I most looked forward to?
The 2010 issue arrived, and to my relief, it contained Jessica:
But the fact that she wasn’t mentioned (I believe Brooklyn Decker, Julie Henderson, Daniella Sarahyba, and/or Irina Shayk all were) made me wonder how hard she cultivates her public image. Her Twitter feed, sadly, is private. I worry that her relative lack of fame might be an obstacle between her and the cover.
But if I ran the place, she’d be the 2011 cover girl. I mean, tell me this girl wouldn’t sell some magazines:
Monday, July 26, 2010
Handicapping the 2011 Cover Girl Candidates, Part Three
I’m really starting to like Brooklyn Decker.She’s a magnificent curvy blonde. She’s got a distinctly all-American look and attitude to her pictures. She also seems like a smart, nice, well spoken, funny person. (Check out her Twitter feed—she seems to have something going on besides her rockin’ body.)
And it is a rockin’ body, make no mistake. I like this cover quite a bit. It might be a classic. I love the colors, I love the straight-on smiley-ness of it. Brooklyn was quoted in one of the preview videos from 2010, “We’re kind of channeling, like I said, that whole 70s, 80s sort of really happy, sunny feeling. And it’s very different for SI, you know, usually it’s very full-on sexy, and this year it’s a lot more subtle, and I think that’s really nice.” (Said the girl in the topless bikini on the cover.)
Is she speaking from experience of the 70s and 80s?
She is not. Brooklyn was born in April of 1987.
You know what else I love? Her hips. Brooklyn has magnificent hips. Especially when they’re photographed head-on like this. Shall we indulge in a gallery of Brooklyn Decker’s hips?
There’s a wonderful flat expanse between those hips. This is a curvy blonde.2010 is Brooklyn’s fifth year in the magazine, and I have to admit, she took a while to grow on me. In her early pictures, I found her face a little pinched, a little petulant.
But she’s developed nicely, and I think she’s stunning.
She was becoming something of a household name, partly from being Andy Roddick’s bride, but also with plenty of star power of her own. It may have been my brilliant insight, or it may just have been SI’s blatant positioning of her, but I had a feeling they were banking on her. She was a pretty easy pick for the cover. Much more warmth and approachability than either of her predecessors, Bar or Marisa.
If I have a complaint about the cover, it’s that there’s not enough swimsuit in it. Her top is visible, but draped over her shoulder like an afterthought.* Her bottom is partially submerged. There aren’t many square inches in a bikini to begin with, and that is cut down further for this cover.
Like I said, I like this cover. But what other 2010 Brooklyn shots might have done well?
Beautiful, sunshiny, and cleavage to spare, Could use more smile.
Another excellent candidate. I definitely get a sugary sunshine, Captain and Tennille vibe. Good hip action as well, though the hips are always emphasized more when the legs are together.
This would have been unique, in that it’s subdued, almost candid. The harsh angle of the light would make it a very interesting choice. And those million-dollar hips!Soon I’ll register my prediction for the 2011 cover girl. There’s no real rush, but the sooner I set it in writing, the more of a fool I will look like come February.
*TRIVIA: Did you know that there have only been only 5 topless covers, and they were all since the year 2000? Daniela Pestova (2000), Veronica Varekova (2004), All-Star Cover Models (2006), Marisa Miller (2008), and Brooklyn in 2010. Meaning Daniela and Veronica have done it twice. Thank you, ladies.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Handicapping the 2011 Cover Girl Candidates, Part Two
I heard an interesting rumor that Bar Refaeli was supposed to be on the 2008 cover, but she bragged about it too soon, before it was to be made public. So to send her a message, SI bumped her and used Marisa Miller instead.
If true, this would have blown my 2008 prediction away. Plus, it would have robbed the world of ever seeing Marisa on the cover.
I have no idea if it’s true. But by the time 2009 was rolling along, I figured Bar was an excellent candidate. She’d graced the pages with her otherworldly beauty for two years, in ’07 and ’08.
Look at her. Fresh face, turned-up nose, a sprinkling of freckles, but sardonic eyes and perpetually parted lips. She looks like the girl you couldn’t bring yourself to talk to in college.
Those two promising issues, plus the fact that she was gaining notoriety as Leonardo DiCaprio’s girlfriend, so name recognition was growing.When the cover arrived, it was a disappointment. There’s something accidental about it, not in an alluring or candid way, but in a way that suggests she was between poses. It’s as if he hadn’t decided whether she wanted to level her gaze at the camera or look away demurely, whether to pull her legs femininely together or stand with them defiantly apart.
Is she flirtatiously threatening to remove her bikini bottom, or just adjusting it, unaware that the camera’s going to click?
I feel like I’m being a little harsh. But I think Bar Refaeli is capable of looking exquisite, and I would have expected a cover shot of hers to take its place in the pantheon of great covers. Were there other 2009 shots of Bar that might have been more alluring for the cover? I thought you’d never ask.
Much better body shot of the same suit, but a lot is lost in the face. It almost doesn’t look like her.
This one is very cute and sunny, and a characteristic Bar face. And it would have been one of the few truly butt-centric cover shots in swimsuit issue history. But the top looks like she was attacked with silly string during a child’s birthday party, and is probably too risqué.
Awesome body shot. But the face is a little zombie-fied. And the indoor setting doesn’t look like an SI cover.
Gracious. Yes. This should have been the cover. (Though the dogtag-like necklace is a little ironic. ) I may need to go restart my heart.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Handicapping the 2011 Cover Girl Candidates, Part One
I mentioned in my first post how I’d successfully predicted the last three cover girls. Perhaps it’s time I put my money where my mouth is. I’m going to try to guess who 2011 will bring us.
First, the last three years.
2008: Miller Time
This was a bit of a no-brainer. Marisa doesn’t do much for me personally (she’s hot, sure, but a bit of a cookie-cutter blonde). However, she’s insanely popular. It’s kind of surprising that she didn’t get the cover sooner, although the stunt covers of 2006 and 2007 may have pushed her back.
I predicted her in 2008 because I figured they couldn’t let a bona fide SI star fade before they put her on the cover, and I was right. Not only about the cover, but about the fade; it was (to date) her last swimsuit appearance.
It’s not an iconic cover, in my opinion. The facial expression is kind of bland and straightforward. The pose feels awkward, like she’s a little self-conscious and green, instead of a seven-year swimsuit issue veteran. The hip is thrust out, but kind of lazily. The arm is on the head, but somehow I don’t believe her. And she’s got that thumb-in-the-bikini-bottom thing that I kind of like but kind of wish SI wouldn’t rely on so often.
And the suit itself looks like it was knit for Etsy.
It is not, as this site claims, the same pose as 2000’s cover.
Eerily similar outfits and settings, yes, but very different poses. I prefer Daniela’s pose (that, ladies, is how you thrust out a hip), though not her facial expression, which is even more lifeless than Marisa’s.
I flipped through some other Marisa pics from 2008, to see if there are any other shots that I felt would have made better covers.
This one is hot, but it seems wrong for a cover, somehow. Maybe it’s the hat. It makes her look like she’s role-playing or something. (This is the only hat ever to appear on a swimsuit issue cover.)
This one is gorgeous, but maybe a little too overtly sexual for a cover.
This would have made an excellent cover, I think. It’s a much more dynamic pose and facial expression. And you still get to be risqué with the breasts, but a loosened top feels less gratuitous than a couple of delicately perched strands of beads.
This would have been my second choice. The previous one might be a bit lascivious, and this one is more wholesome. She’s still leveling her gaze at the camera, but the effect is warmer.
So there you have it, SI. I await your call as a cover consultant.
First, the last three years.
This was a bit of a no-brainer. Marisa doesn’t do much for me personally (she’s hot, sure, but a bit of a cookie-cutter blonde). However, she’s insanely popular. It’s kind of surprising that she didn’t get the cover sooner, although the stunt covers of 2006 and 2007 may have pushed her back.
I predicted her in 2008 because I figured they couldn’t let a bona fide SI star fade before they put her on the cover, and I was right. Not only about the cover, but about the fade; it was (to date) her last swimsuit appearance.
It’s not an iconic cover, in my opinion. The facial expression is kind of bland and straightforward. The pose feels awkward, like she’s a little self-conscious and green, instead of a seven-year swimsuit issue veteran. The hip is thrust out, but kind of lazily. The arm is on the head, but somehow I don’t believe her. And she’s got that thumb-in-the-bikini-bottom thing that I kind of like but kind of wish SI wouldn’t rely on so often.
And the suit itself looks like it was knit for Etsy.
It is not, as this site claims, the same pose as 2000’s cover.
Eerily similar outfits and settings, yes, but very different poses. I prefer Daniela’s pose (that, ladies, is how you thrust out a hip), though not her facial expression, which is even more lifeless than Marisa’s.I flipped through some other Marisa pics from 2008, to see if there are any other shots that I felt would have made better covers.
This one is hot, but it seems wrong for a cover, somehow. Maybe it’s the hat. It makes her look like she’s role-playing or something. (This is the only hat ever to appear on a swimsuit issue cover.)
This one is gorgeous, but maybe a little too overtly sexual for a cover.
This would have made an excellent cover, I think. It’s a much more dynamic pose and facial expression. And you still get to be risqué with the breasts, but a loosened top feels less gratuitous than a couple of delicately perched strands of beads.
This would have been my second choice. The previous one might be a bit lascivious, and this one is more wholesome. She’s still leveling her gaze at the camera, but the effect is warmer.So there you have it, SI. I await your call as a cover consultant.
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