‘The Hills’ star Lauren Conrad: How much is too much?
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Dumb question? Maybe, maybe not.
But it certainly feels like LC’s camp has been logging overtime as the show gets read to roll toward Season 4.
While her neighbors kick up a fuss over the presence of ‘The Hills’ production crew and accompanying paparazzi, Lauren’s been making headlines all her own. There’s this week’s EW cover story (which I’ll get to in a sec), but even more recently I’ve learned:
- Lauren will be making a cameo as herself in the ABC Family comedy ‘Greek.’ Gee, I wonder if that will make it onto some future episode of ‘The Hills.’
- She’s not only designing a gown for the Emmy trophy girls to wear during this year’s TV awards show, she may also be presenting. (And this after L.A. powerhouse fashion boutique Kitson dropped The Lauren Conrad Collection after ‘lackluster sales.’)
- On Monday, she picked up her third Teen Choice Award in a row for Choice TV Female Reality/Variety Star. What? You want to know who else would even be in such a category? Well, I’ll tell you: Heidi Montag (naturally), Kim Kardashian, Kristi Yamaguchi and Whitney Thompson.
- She’s also on the cover of CosmoGirl!, where she was quoted saying: ‘I know I look tortured, but it’s a TV show and you don’t see all sides of people. ‘The Hills’ is meant to be a dramatic show about relationships.’
I guess I prefer to concentrate on her costars. Like Stephanie and Audrina. And I do like to pick on LC. But can you blame me?
Take this Entertainment Weekly story and what MTV executive Tony DiSanto has to say about the people who watch ‘The Hills’:
‘’With Lauren Conrad, a whole generation of women see themselves in her. It’s almost becoming like a novel at this point, like this generation’s ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ or ‘Oliver Twist.’’’
For now, I’m going to ignore the comparison of ‘The Hills’ to Charles Dickens’ classics. (Dickens?!) Who here agrees this is the case? This is like when people ask the stars of ‘Gossip Girl’ if they feel bad that they’re not setting a better example for teens. Isn’t it safe to say we don’t look up to Lauren so much as pick on her privileged reality TV existence? Aren’t we just hooked on the soap opera that she’s agreed to make of her life?
Lauren doesn’t think so:
‘’It’s about empowering girls,’’ Lauren says when asked to describe what she represents as a brand. ‘’You’re gonna have bad boyfriends and best friends-turned-enemies. You need to be yourself, you need to work hard, and you’ll get there.’’
Thankfully, the feature’s writer Tim Stack added: And if you can get someone to give you a reality show along the way, it can’t hurt.
And the clincher ... Lauren taking issue with her ‘actor’-costars:
Lauren says she understands why fans cry foul about scenes that reek of ‘’take 2’’ awkwardness. ‘’I get that there are certain scenes where someone’s like, ‘Sooo, last night was weird....’ And then there are people on the show who really don’t help, because they are very fake. We know who we’re talking about — like, you need to stop rehearsing your breakfast.’’
Come now, those crocodile tears and drippy mascara for Audrina during last season’s finale looked like they had been in the works for ages.
-- Denise Martin