Red carpet? Nah, let's talk carpet tape and skimpy ice-skating outfits
My friend George spotted Jillian Barberie in the bar of Seattle's W Hotel Saturday night. After an intense 10-minute debate about whether that was really her — "It's totally her. Look at those girls, they're so L.A." — I approached Jillian and her posse with my friend Christina acting as wingwoman.
You may know Jillian Barberie from the now-defunct "Good Day Live," VH1's "I Love the '70s" or Maxim magazine. My friend Kevin saw her at the Seahawks game on Sunday and sent me a text message: "Sitting near the Fox set. Jill is nails." I didn't get it, but he later explained that it was a slang term for "hot" or "cute." Um, OK Kev.
So Jillian was in town to cover the game for "Fox NFL Sunday," but I was more interested in her appearance on "Skating with Celebrities" (8 p.m. Mondays, KCPQ), which might actually be more addictive than "Dancing with the Stars." I had just watched last week's premiere episode — in which Jillian and her partner became an early favorite — so I asked the first thing that came to mind.
"How did your boobs not fly out of that top when you were doing spins on the ice?"
This is a valid question, considering the plunging J.Lo-style neckline of her skating outfit. Turns out Nancy Kerrigan gave her carpet tape, which is apparently more effective than toupee tape when it comes to cleavage control. Jillian, who has an advantage over the other celebs because she figure-skated as a child, said the first show was "boring" — really? — but that there is high drama ahead.
"I went to the hospital twice. My ribs separated," she said.
I tried to stay on topic, but ice skating was much less interesting than talking about boys ("Try being single in L.A."), In-and-Out Burger ("I get the 'double double protein style monkey' "), and our mutual obsession with "Laguna Beach" ("Kristin came to some of the tapings [of 'Skating'] with her boyfriend Brody Jenner"). By the end of the night, we were sitting outside in a brass luggage cart smoking cigarettes. I'm officially Jillian Barberie's new biggest fan.
Later, I met Christina at the bar to settle our tab. "You just missed the lesbian girl [Kim] from 'America's Next Top Model,' " she said. "She's hot!"
"Oh my God," I replied, "it's like a vortex of B-list celebrities in here!" Then we left.
Recaps!
"Project Runway"
The designers speculate on what their next challenge will be. Santino: "I want [to design] like, a bird, or like a chicken suit. I would love that." Apparently he went ahead and did that anyway, which can be the only explanation for all those feathers he attached to poor little Sasha Cohen's figure-skating outfit. (10 p.m. Wednesdays, Bravo)
"The Bachelor"
The Bachelor keeps thanking the girls for being so wonderful and making his trip to Paris worth it, but after "Rotting Eggs" Allie and "Orange Rind Teeth" Kristen ... really? Meantime, Sarah from Canada is fast morphing into Sarah W. from the Charlie O'Connell season, which is promising to say the least. (10 p.m. Mondays, KOMO)
"Beauty and the Geek"
Subtitle: Everybody Hates Chris. Chris: "Some girls are just big-time criers. You can't take them to Disney movies or anything, because they're just going to cry." OK, but that scene in "The Little Mermaid" when she says goodbye to King Triton is really sad. Later, the girls are challenged to give speeches on issues like the environment, politics and the economy. Danielle: "I felt really good about coming here in this, like, really cute outfit with my pink shoes and my pink top, but it's really not giving me much brainpower. ... I'm wearing hoops like J.Lo." Which is all well and good, not to mention informative, but the speech was supposed to be about taxes. (9 p.m. Thursdays, KTWB)
"Dancing with the Stars"
I think I have to boycott this show until Master P gets kicked off. The only thing that keeps me coming back is Lisa Rinna's outfits. (8 p.m. Thursdays, KOMO)
"Skating with Celebrities"
I get really tense watching these routines. When Bruce Jenner was on the ice, I seriously thought he was going to fall down and break a hip. Nancy Kerrigan and Dave Coulier wore matching "Blues Brothers" get-ups so it looked like two boys were skating together, in which case it would've been funnier if they were wearing cowboy hats. (8 p.m. Mondays, KCPQ)
"The Gauntlet 2"
Montana: "I don't want to fight with you. We're grown women in our 30s." Beth: "I don't want to fight with you, either." Um, yeah, shouldn't you guys be fighting over on VH1? (10 p.m. Mondays, MTV)
Pamela Sitt: 206-464-2376 or psitt@seattletimes.com