The wow factor: Caitlyn Jenner’s stunning Vanity Fair debut.
And Godspeed. Reaction to Bruce Jenner’s metamorphosis into Caitlyn Jenner on the cover of Vanity Fair has been predictably all over the place and, just as predictably, says more about the commenters than it does about Caitlyn.
There’s no point in dwelling on those who think she’s sick or out for publicity. They just don’t get it.
More interesting are those comments that criticize the pinup aspect of the Annie Leibovitz cover. Let’s face it, if you’re going to transform yourself physically into the sex you believe you always were, well, then you and we want to see that transformation. As for the poster on The New York Times’ site who said that the way to be a smokin’-hot woman at 60 is to live the previous 59 years as a man, well, he – I’m sure it was a he – has a point. I’ve often said on this blog and elsewhere that men are the more beautiful, sexier and thrilling of the two traditional sexes. It’s part of the reason I write about beautiful, sexy, thrilling men in my novel series “The Games Men Play.”
I’m, of course, talking from an art historical perspective. I’m not talking about the guy with butt cleavage or the woman who’s immaculately turned out. But the best-looking guy may be more beautiful than the best-looking woman. Certainly, these men have aspects – lush eyelashes, long, lean thighs – that men like to see in women and that women desire. The cover photo proves it.
Other random thoughts:
Never underestimate what makeup, lighting and wardrobe (along with hours of painful plastic surgery and hormone therapy) can do.
Gender is a complex, fluid subject.
It takes courage for all of us to be our true selves.