Jamie Lee Curtis is Beautiful

I just finished reading a somewhat combative message thread about Jamie Lee Curtis and whether she was hot or not. The opinions ranged from good, bad to worse. Several women bragged about being older than her and looking better because they, at least, colored their hair. Some men were just as rude, and all I could think was that they should all calm their superiority driven egos and move on to the next thread if they had nothing nice to say.

Jamie Lee Curtis may not be beautiful by conventional standards but she's beautiful nonetheless, classy too. She, like the rest of us, is a genetic combination of her parents. Is that something she had control over? If not, why blame her for looking the way she does? I find her inspirational and although we are on opposite sides of the political spectrum, I would like to focus on what we do have in common, or what she can teach me or inspire in me.

I also wish that the preoccupation with appearance would diminish and sometimes I believe that we would be kinder to one another if the eyes couldn't see.

1. Jamie Lee Curtis bares the truth was an August 2002 article in USA TODAY in which Jamie Lee posed for More magazine with no makeup and without the benefits of professional stylizing, air brushing, good lighting or flattering clothes. She stated, "I don't want the unsuspecting 40-year-old women of the world to think that I've got it going on. It's such a fraud. And I'm the one perpetuating it."

Bravo to her. Not many women, and even fewer celebrities, would be willing to be photographed in their most natural, genuine state. I have known so many women, myself included, that thought we could never measure up to the "perfect" models in magazines or the illusion of flawless actresses. At least Jamie Lee Curtis was candid and did a helpful thing for women, despite the sneers and judgments she would receive for doing so.

2. Her striptease scene in True Lies is inspiring to this day and one of my husband's favorite scenes. There is something remarkably sexy about the unexpected!

3. In the May/June issue of AARP The Magazine, Jamie Lee Curtis posed topless to show that even older women can be beautiful. In the photo her gray hair is visible and Jamie Lee states to AARP, "I actually think there's an incredible amount of self-knowledge that comes with getting older. I feel way better now than I did when I was 20."

I applaud her for embracing aging and living gracefully. Many don't understand why she won't color her hair but she reminds me of a beautiful African American model who was on a talk show in the 1990's. She had started to gray and was asked to color her hair to give her a more youthful look. I remember what she said, "I've been asked to color the gray, but I won't...I've earned every one of them." And she smiled.

While I don't think there is anything wrong with dyeing ones hair, I also don't think that women who choose not to should be judged for it or thought unattractive because they don't conform.

4. Jamie Lee Curtis has been married since 1984, has two adopted children and has written seven children's books. I remember an interview she did some years ago in which she said she was more focused on her family and parenting than making movies.

I believe that aside from her appearance, it's what Jamie Lee Curtis is as a whole that is so impressive to me. Perhaps her detractors should learn to set aside their hang-ups with appearance like Jamie Lee Curtis has and learn to focus on what really matters and, quite frankly, looks isn't one of them.