Dec. 05, 2005
Copyright ©
Las Vegas Review-Journal
Supermodel hits runway, launches second season of reality series
You can expect to see a lot of supermodel Heidi Klum this week, and not just because she'll be parading about in her underpants during "The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show."
She'll be more visible as the host of "Project Runway," which returns for its second season Wednesday with back-to-back episodes (10 p.m., Bravo).
And, as is often the case with TV success, someone else is trying to cash in. A writer named Joel Lamontagne sued the show's producers and even its sponsors Nov. 22, claiming his idea for a series, the cleverly named "America's Fashion Designer Search," was stolen.
Without casting doubt on Lamontagne's claims, this is a fairly common practice. The producers of "Lost," "Six Feet Under," "Extreme Makeover" and "The Apprentice," among many others, have faced similar allegations. "American Idol's" Simon Cowell has been sued twice this year for allegedly ripping off show ideas. It even could be argued that "Project Runway" was a victim: Tommy Hilfiger hosted "The Cut," a similar, yet far less successful show on CBS.
In a conference call with reporters before the lawsuit was filed, Klum said Miramax co-founder Harvey Weinstein approached her with the idea for the show and sought her help. "He does not have much clue about the fashion world," the German beauty said in her endearingly fractured syntax, and if you've never seen the man, she's not lying.
Klum went on to say that she and her manager, Desiree Gruber, with whom she shares an executive producer credit, "came up with a lot of the challenges and put the show together and sold the show to Bravo."
And really, how can you not trust a woman whose chirpy elimination catchphrase, "auf Wiedersehen," is often accompanied by a hug and kiss?
As for Klum's other TV project, "The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show" (10 p.m. Tuesday, KLAS-TV, Channel 8) is being touted as the last for her fellow "Angel" Tyra Banks. "I don't know," Klum said, "for some reason (I think) I've heard her say that before."
The special also features runway appearances by Gisele Bundchen, Adriana Lima and Karolina Kurkova, as well as musical performances by Ricky Martin, Chris Botti and Klum's husband, Seal. But for many people, the real draw will be seeing how Klum looks in skimpy lingerie less than two months after giving birth to her second child.
"I can only do as much as I can, and, you know, if I still have a little bit of weight here and there, then that's what it's gonna be," she said shortly before the special was taped. "... Then we'd have to make those wings a little bigger, and they'd have to, like, wrap around me somehow."
That wasn't necessary. Either despite or because of a lighted bra and panties set that makes her look like the Electric Horseman's naughty sidekick, Klum looks amazing. And that's news that's sure to make millions of women say auf Wiedersehen to a little bit of their self-esteem.
