New Radio Show Featuring Sharon Quinn - The ORIGINAL RUNWAY DIVA!!!

Greetings All of My Fellow Plus Sized Divas & Our Admirers & Supporters!

It's me! The ORIGINAL Runway Diva....Miss Sharon Quinn
and I am in the process of launching a new online radio show called “Fashion Plus On The Rush” in the next few weeks and I am looking for the movers & shakers in the plus sized industry to interview.

Please know that I am not looking to interview just plus sized models but in addition, I am also interested in interviewing:

Singers
Actors & Actresses
Comedians
Poets & Spoken Word Performance Artists
Writers
Bloggers
Doctors, Nurses & Health Care Professionals
Make Up Artists
Hairstylists
Stylists
Lawyers
Dancers
Athletes
Producers
Designers
Film Makers
Politicians
Activists
Etc…

Feel me on this one family?

I want to talk to Anyone who is actually MAKING MOVES and BREAKING GROUND in their prospective industries….If you are blazing a new trail for a plus sized man/woman or child to follow - WANT TO TALK TO YOU!!!!

FYI – Being Plus Sized is NOT a prerequisite (it helps though!) but you (or the person you refer) should have a “plus sized” slant in whatever it is that you are doing.

If you think that you (or someone you know) would make a great interview subject, please email your (or their) contact information (email & phone number), A Bio & Photo, Website Links (if any) and/or any press clippings that you have to: ORIGRUNWAYDIVA@AOL.COM and feel free to spread the word!

For More Info on Sharon Quinn: www.sharonquinn.com

Thanks!

TiVo Alert!!!! Plus Models on The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency Tonight!!!!

Tonight on Oxygen's The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency debuts their new plus sized modeling division. The episode showcases my home girl Mia Amber Davis

and I heard about this segment MONTHS ago and have been eagerly awaiting its airing. I received an email blast sent to all of "Mo'Nique's F.A.T. Chance" fans and it read something like this:

F.A.T. Girls Rock The Catwalk Tonight!

Hi Mo’Nique Fans!

Long time no speak. It's been a crazy past few months, but we wanted to give everyone a heads-up about something that we all can appreciate. Plus-size women taking over the catwalk.

Tonight’s episode of “The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency” is going to be fierce. For the first time EVER plus-size models are a part of the agency.

Rejoice! There’s finally enough room on the runway for women of all shapes and sizes. “The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency” is on tonight at 10/9C.

Watch a preview http://www.oxygen.com/tvshows/janice/affiliate=MFC_OCT072008_JDMA_landing

PHOTOS

Meet Alana Chandler! Alana is one of the new plus-size beauties in the JDMA. Get to know all about this voluptuous new model.

View photos of Alana:

http://www.oxygen.com/tvshows/janice/gallery/modelpics_alana.aspx?affiliate=MFC_OCT072008_JDMA_photos_plusSize

BLOGS

New plus-size model Amber Kenian blogs about her experience in the agency: “Janice is definitely set in her ways. It's not going to be easy to convince her otherwise. I'm sure there's a gorgeous plus size model out there somewhere that can make it happen!”

Read the rest of her inspirational blog:

http://www.oxygen.com/tvshows/janice/blogs/amber.aspx?affiliate=MFC_OCT072008_JDMA_blogs_amber

Now my girl Mia has been VERY apprehensive about what will be shown and how she'll be portrayed on camera. I saw the promos for this episode and the moment I heard Janice make the "Whale" comment....I understood immediately the reasoning for her apprehension. I get the feeling that these plus sized models will be a part of the agency for this episode and maybe one more before she decides it isn't going to work out. I mean, after all this IS the chick who said"

"I don't want to represent plus sizes, but we gave it a shot. I love fat people; I just don't want anything to do with them. Is that bad?"

- Janice Dickinson, On bringing plus-size models into her agency for the first time.

I will be watching this episode closely, as I am tired of us being the butt of everyone's damn jokes. With over 2/3 of the population being a size 14 & larger and with our spending upwards of 50 BILLION in retail fashion - Surely someone sees the profitablility in utilizing plus sized models in fashion and is interested in doing it the RIGHT way?

I am so tired of waiting for the straight sized segment of the population to invite us into their little club. I am tired of them deciding for US who OUR icons and heros should be. If you don't want us under your tents for fashion week, perhaps it is time for us to come together and create our OWN. If you don't want to write and create decent programming in television & film for us that DOESN'T degrade us or make us look like buffoons - perhaps it is time for us to come together and create out OWN. But we cannot do this until we stop fighting amongst ourselves and wasting time arguing over who is fat enough to be in the "fat girl club".

This sort of mentality will kill us before we even get out of the gate.

Feel me fam?

But I digress...make sure you tune into tonight for the premiere airing of the "Livin' Large" episode of the "Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency" on Oxygen.

10pm/9c “The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency” - Episode 7: Living Large - SO NEW! 11pm/10c “The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency” - Episode 7: Living Large - Encore

“The worst sin toward our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them; that's the essence of inhumanity."

Ebony Fashion Fair 2009 - The Runway Report

What's happening family!!

Yesterday my baby sis and I attended the 51st annual Ebony Fashion Fair Showcase at The Apollo Theater. This year's show was called "The Runway Report: What's Hip. What's Hot. What's Now!" and I can say honestly that we both enjoyed this year's show a lot more than we did last year.

The show was scheduled to begin at 3pm and my sister was running a few minutes late, so I decided to await her arrival outside of the Apollo theater. She got to me at about 3:15pm and we hurriedly went inside to check out the show, which was already in progress.

We wound up getting great seats down front, the ushers gave us 2 copies of the Ebony Fashion Fair Magazine and we quickly got comfortable.

The show was a dazzling mix of vibrant hues, ornate fabrics and fabulous furs. I always get excited at the prospect of seeing a plus sized model in ANY show, so I was amped up everytime plus sized model Phonicial Washington took the stage. I always enjoy seeing her but I still have problems with most of the clothing they decide to put her in. It's usually black, grey or plum with no style, no fierceness...no nothing. It was a little better this year though, they gave her a little more color AND a bathing suit to boot! They also sent out a brother in a jacket with multi colored tights and SHOES...What the hell??? You could hear the titters of laughter in the audience as I whispered to my sister "Who in the hell is wearing THAT???"

I KNOW it's supposed to be about high fashion people but I swear I don't know ANY men who would be wearing THAT anywhere and not asking for a righteous beat down...No disrespect to the designer but I swear he looked like a court jester to me in that outfit. I did however enjoy the collections of Marc Bouwer, Laura Biagiotti & Christian LaCroix. Commentator Jada Collins kept the show flow moving nicely. Before the show went into intermission they had a raffle for a trip to anywhere in the domestic US that sponsor American Airlines donated and to my (and hers..lol) surprise - the winner was none other than Audrey Smaltz, former commentator of EFF. Lol...I thought it was a joke and so did she...congrats Audrey! Then they raffled off a goody basket of Luster hair care products. I cringed inwardly and whispered to my sister - "If my name is called for that damn basket...I WILL SCREAM!!!!" (lol...Er...what am I supposed to do with THAT????), fortunately for me - somebody else won.

During the intermission, my sister decided to opt out on the bar and said she wanted a cup of coffee, so we went outside for the break. As I was waiting for her to return, I stood outside chatting with some folks who had come outside for a smoke during the intermission. I decided to ask how they were enjoying the show and the subject of the plus sized model came up.....

The general consensus with this group was that "She wasn't plus sized, she's no bigger than I am". They pegged her at about a size 12-14 and in their minds that ain't plus sized. While I had less of a problem with her size...I did have a problem with that Ebony Fashion Fair Magazine - Plus sized model Phonicial Washington was not in it - not even on the "Meet The Models" page! What's up with that?? I also read the story called "Fade to Black" about the disappearance of the black model and the plus sized models were not mentioned in that story either (lol...no surprise there at all). Actually there was NO mention of plus sizes anywhere in that magazine - yet over 50% of that audience was a size 14 and up!

Newsflash ya'll:

What's Hip. What's Hot. & What's NOW is most definitely the plus sized woman in America...Recognize!

Anyway, my sister came back from Blimpie's with what had to be the best cup of coffee I have had in a very long time...lol...for real! I ran in to some fans who recognized The Runway Diva and

I happily posed for pictures and chatted with Miss Jada & Miss Marceles for a few moments before we made our way back inside to our seats and the show resumed.

The show wrapped with a luxurious display of furs, evening dresses and of course the classic wedding gown....(would have LOVED to see the bride as a plus sized woman....just a thought!) and we began to make our way to the exits. On the way out I greeted my friend and superior makeup artist, B'Nard Giles and the ever fabulous Audrey Smaltz! And I ran into an old friend from my BB King's days named Clarissa, she's always been a supporter of my career and it was a pleasure seeing her again.

As we headed up 125th street for the short walk back to my apartment, we reminisced about last year's gala at the Alhambra and how much fun we had.

Thanks EFF and thanks Mary for always looking out!

Interested in becoming a model with Ebony Fashion Fair? To apply online and to check out the requirements and casting information at: www.ebonyfashionfair.com

Good Luck!

"Style is knowing who you are, what to say, and not giving a
damn."

Punked by a Squirrel

Yo fam!!

I got up early this morning to walk over to Fairway (near the Hudson River) and decided to cut through Manhattanville Projects. The ground was still damp from the early morning rain and the smell of the earth, grass and flowers after the rain was heavenly to me. As I neared the exit of the grounds of Manhattanville, I spied a squirrel heading my way....now I have seen many a squirrel in New York City (I think they're cute in cartoons & pictures but in real life they are literally rats with fluffy tails to me) and this one was no different (or so I thought) until he got maybe 4-5 feet from me and decided to stop.....

He stopped in his tracks,

I stopped in mine.

And then he sat up on his hind legs and I bent down a little and...

We proceeded to stare each other down....

Now this was funny to me until this damn squirrel started walking towards me, little paws flexing with absolutely NO FEAR AT ALL!!!!

None. Zip. Zero. Zilch!

And that's when I started to back up (with all sorts of rabid squirrel craziness running through my head) a few steps and prepare to run (I swear) back the way I came.

I looked up and saw a man coming out of the adjacent apartment building and I screamed "DO YOU SEE THIS FRIGGIN' SQUIRREL????"

And he looked and just burst out laughing. It was then that the squirrel decided to run off to the right and disappear.

As I walked past the man I said "I have never in my life had a squirrel back me up like that."

I made a mental note to head back home a different way.

Lol...Only in New York ya'll!

"Nothing is to be feared but fear."

I am LOVING Jennifer Hudson right now.....

You know what family?

I just finished checking out the first part of Jawn Murray's interview of Jennifer Hudson on AOL's BV Buzz Column and I absolutely LOVED some of the things that this lady said during this interview. I simply hate it when a big gal makes a name for herself on the worldwide stage and then tries to distance herself from the community. (i.e. you know...celebs who are not willing to readily identify themselves as plus sized women when it is usually GLARINGLY OBVIOUS that that's what they are...lol).

I loved this interview so much that I just HAD to reprint portions of it here...enjoy!



The big girls love that you represent them well. How does it feel to be a poster-child for full-figured women?

I always wanted to be that person. It's like, wait a minute...every time I would look at the TV and the big girl never 'makes it' I don't think it was that nobody wanted to receive them, but they weren't backed up the right way or maybe they didn't even believe in themselves the right way. I was like, somebody needs to come out and represent them the right way. I don't mind being that person at all! I love it!


Both Queen Latifah and Jill Scott have clothing lines geared towards the plus-sized woman. Is that something you've considered?

I am about to launch my own fashion line and we're in the early, early stages of it. It was just presented to me so we're definitely going to come out with that because I want the skinny girl trying to be the big girl.

You really haven't changed Jennifer! Are people surprised by how normal and how friendly you are when they meet you?

People are very surprised at how normal I am. Every time I get on the plane and the flight attendant is like, 'You're so nice. You're not like any of the other celebrities.' I wonder what do they do and how you are supposed to be. To me, this is my job just like anyone else's job is their job. I like being normal and I've been normal for so long that it's hard to be anything else and I don't want to.

I know you have to have an Oprah Winfrey story. Everyone who has met her or been on her show does. Tell me yours.

I've been on her show about three times now and she was always like, 'you can come anytime that you want.' Nobody takes people up on those offers unless they want something. I saw her recently because her show is not too far from my house in Chicago . I wanted to see Oprah and say hello. It's not too many people in the industry who do that. She thought it was something wrong with me so she asked me if I was okay and if I needed any money. I told her I just wanted to come say hello and see how she was doing. I forgot when that was, but it wasn't that long ago. I just wanted to stop in and see how she was doing. She's definitely a huge supporter and somebody that I clearly admire.

"I want the skinny girl trying to be the big girl".... I LOVE IT!!!! I have been on this chick's bandwagon for a long minute now (although I still have some issues with the way she dresses...but it IS getting better) but if she keeps up like this...I MAY NEVER GET OFF OF IT!!! You GO Miss J. Hud!!! Keep on loving yourself and repping us well mama!!!

"Isn't it time for some unity in the plus community?"