5-9-11 - Miami, Mother's Day and an Interview with Jillian Michaels!

In case you missed it....

DISCUSSING JILLIAN, MIAMI, MOTHER'S DAY AND GAGA
Rosie started today's broadcast saying the day she thought would never happen is about to happen.  Jillian Michaels would be on later in the show to "yell at her about being fat!"  lol  Rosie said it was a big day for Jeannie too who has been a fan of Biggest Loser for years.  Jeannie said she hasn't seen one episode of Glee because she is dedicated to watching every episode of Biggest Loser.  Rosie said she really respects Jillian, she just thought she would make her cry.  Rosie wanted to know if Jillian has ever been fat herself and Pete said she was 170 pounds at 5 feet tall at the age of 12.  Rosie said she'd give her "fatty points" for once being chubby then.   Jeannie wanted to beg Jillian to have her and Rosie on the show!  Jeannie said she'd bare it all in spandex if she felt like she would be able to wear a thong in the end.  Rosie wasn't so sure.  Jeannie asked Rosie if she'd do it if she knew the end result would mean they'd be hot?!  Rosie said she never wanted to be hot and even when she was thin she never knew it or appreciated it.  Jillian actually posted a picture of Rosie in her Exit To Eden outfit on her Facebook page before she came on the air and Rosie said when she took that picture (where she was so thin) she still felt horribly fat then too.  She said she's always felt fat.  

Rosie said she and some friends went to Miami this weekend for a child-free mother's day.  Jeannie said that sounded heavenly!  I agree!!!!  Rosie said she had been obsessing over Russell Brand lately and just happened to bump into him coming back from LA last week.  She said it felt like a case of the law of attraction like in the book The Secret.   Anyway, Rosie invited Russell to her Miami home and he stopped by!  He brought her a teddy bear, a plant and a huge balloon for Mother's Day too!  OMG, that's so cute.  I love when people honor Rosie in the way I think she deserves.  Rosie said Russell is very tall and handsome and she gave him a tour of her home and they had a lovely conversation.  Rosie wanted to ask him for a picture and Tracy took a couple candid shots with her iPhone but none of them were good enough to post because she hated the way she looked in the photos.

While in Miami, Rosie also went to see Sharon Gless in Celebrity Autobiographies.  After the performance, Rosie had the cast over to her house and they hung out by the pool. Rosie said it was like looking back at the pictures of the Rock Hudson parties and she said it was her first Hollywood bash she's ever hosted!  They also went out on the boat and saw dolphins.  Rosie said having no kids on Mother's Day was kind of weird but it was okay too.  She and her kids are celebrating Mother's Day today.  Rosie told them to write her a letter about how much they love her.  lol! 

On the plane flying home, they were delayed on the runway for an hour so Rosie looked at her Twitter and noticed someone else Tweeted that they were sitting three rows behind her!  She got up and turned around and she waved to the person!  She said it was very weird - the virtual world meets real world in real time.  

Jeannie had a nice Mother's Day too!  She said her mom was finally discharged after 3 months in rehab for an ankle injury.  And she went to her Mother-In-Law's house where she had a nice relaxing time while the kids played.

And Bobby watched Gaga on HBO and he thought she gave a great concert!  Rosie said it too!  Rosie asked Bobby about the comparisons to Madonna and what he thought about that.  Bobby said he definitely sees she's been inspired by Madonna but does think she does her own thing.  Rosie said her ex girlfriend, who had come down to Miami with them for the weekend, kept pointing out the similarities between Madonna and Gaga.  Overall Rosie said she thought it was a "looser performance" than Madonna's precision performances.  Bobby saw that.  He said Gaga is more of a performance artist and her shows probably differ from night to night depending on how the props fall.  But Bobby loved Gaga's message to the people in the audience and how she spoke to them about how she used to dream about performing at the Garden.  Rosie said she likes Gaga and said she thinks she's very talented.

a clip from Gaga's HBO Special

LAST NIGHT'S TELEVISION WRAPUP
Rosie said she didn't get home until late last night and was sad she missed everything on TV.  She did catch the Season finale of The Judds on tivo and the new Shania Twain show on OWN.  Rosie said Shania is nothing like she imagined she would be.  She found her show very good and said it was both touching and heartbreaking to hear her tell her story. 

And on Tuesday at 10:30pm EST, Rosie will be hosting the Doc Series following the premiere of Becoming Chaz on OWN.  The OWN Doc Club has both a Facebook and a Twitter page for the latest updates!  The staff also watched Tina Fey on SNL though Rosie missed it.  And they briefly discussed how the Celebrity Apprentice was on last night and Nene quit the show.  Rosie said she hopes Marlee Matlin wins but said she doesn't really care because she no longer watches the show.  Rosie asked how bad it looks for Trump that he was demanding Obama show his birth certificate all while Obama was going after Osama bin Laden.   

Rosie also took two callers who saw her on OWN's Extraordinary Moms this weekend.  Both callers loved Rosie in the special and called in to tell her so.

OBL OPINIONS AND HAVING THE RIGHT TO DISAGREE
Rosie was surprised to read that Rashard Mendenhall has lost his Champion endorsement deal because of his Tweets about the killing of OBL.  Shoshana and Pete understood it from a marketing standpoint.  They said Rashard became controversial all of the sudden and since he's representing the company they no longer want him as a spokesperson because what he said was so controversial.  Rosie asked if he's not allowed to have his own opinion.  Pete said he is allowed and the company is allowed to get rid of him if they disagree with it too.  Rosie was just surprised. 

Rosie and the staff discussed Obama's interview last night on 60 Minutes where he ended the interview saying, "As nervous as I was, one thing I didn't lose sleep over was the possibility of taking Bin Laden out. Justice was done and I think that anyone who would question that the perpetrator of mass murder on American soil didn't deserve what he got, needs to have their head examined."  Rosie was startled by that statement as was Jeannie.  Jeannie said the statement surprised her and not as she remembered Obama during the 2008 campaign.  Rosie asked if you're simply questioning our government and whether what we did was moral and legal, if that automatically deems you as unpatriotic or mentally ill.  She wondered where is the line of what you can and cannot say.  She said if we merely say the ends justifies the means, aren't we becoming what we loathed so much about the Bush Administration?   



The Full 60 Minutes Interview with President Obama

Rosie took several calls on the topic with varying opinions.  One caller was also taken aback by the President's final statement in the interview and said it seemed very "Bush-like" to her.  The caller prefaced her statement by saying she didn't lose anyone personally in 9/11 and wasn't there.  Rosie said she's opposed to the theory if you lost someone in 9/11 that means you're allowed to comment more about this case than the other citizens of this country.  She said 9/11 affected everyone and this is not a pain contest.  The caller said she was thrown off by the statement.  Rosie agreed.  She said it  reminded her when Bush said, "If you're not with us, you're with the enemy." 

Rosie then took a caller who disagreed with her and said OBL needed to be taken out.  She said you can call it revenge or justice, but it had to happen.  The caller loves Obama and thinks he needed to do this and this was what has been lacking in his Presidency.  She said it shows he's a serious President who does what he says he will do.  Rosie pointed out that if she had avenged someone's death she would go to jail for doing so.  She mentioned a case of a mother who killed her son's molester and then went to jail for doing so.  Bobby said it's different because this was done over an act of war.  Bobby said OBL was planning on revenge attacks and was continuing to vow to kill as many American's as he could.  And Bobby feels a little safer now that OBL is gone. Bobby said if they would have captured him it might have mobilized the terrorists but because they took him down it actually disrupts their organization.    But Bobby admitted it's a complex issue and said he even feels at odds with himself.

Rosie's point was if you believe justice wasn't served, that OBL deserved his day in court, does that mean you're mentally ill?  Shoshana hopes the government weighed both options of whether to capture OBL or kill him.  She said they had to come to the realization that killing him would be better than capturing him for a reason.  And Rosie said she has a point but we'll never really know.  And Shoshana didn't like the attitude of Obama's original speech saying we got OBL.  She thought he showed too much bravado and too much of a "we got him!" attitude. 

Rosie took a call from a listener who understands why Rashard was dropped from a marketing perspective.  And she compared Obama's decision to kill OBL to Roosevelt trying to convey a message of strength to the world.  She said capturing OBL would have been like hanging a carrot for the terrorists to come and get him but she did agree that the President saying "get your head examined" was a poor choice of words.  

Rosie took a call from a listener who believes President Obama did this to help in his reelection.  She said the 2008 Obama doesn't exist anymore and his followers are dwindling and becoming more disillusioned. Because of that, Obama is trying to appeal to a greater audience and about reaching out to the other voters.  

Rosie then read from an article where they completely twisted her words and made it sound like she was saying we're the "monsters."  When people should really read MY blog for a truthful and accurate description of what Rosie says!  :)  Rosie sounded frustrated that they took her words and twisted them into the way that they did.  

Rosie took a call from a listener who loves Marianne Williamson and agrees with her that we're coming from love we cannot come from a place of violence.   Rosie mentioned how Marianne Williamson spoke out against the celebrations over his death and then took it back!  Marianne said, "Tonight is a night for sober and mature reflection, not glee. Mindless celebration is both spiritually inappropriate and politically naive."  Not that bad, right?  But she felt she had to take it down because of the outcry.  Rosie said it's interesting to be almost 50 and have seen all the progress they've lived through as a country and then see how still today if you voice your opinion and it's unpopular you are told you have to get your head examined. 

We've been over and over with this on the blog so I'm not going to rewrite how I feel on this topic but in my head this is how my conversation with Rosie goes (and yes, I frequently have conversations with Rosie in my head.  Whose head should be examined?).  Anyway, here's how it goes....

Me: But what about all those families?
Her: But we don't kill people, killing people is wrong.
Me: But what about all those firefighters who fell in those towers?
Her: But we are better than celebrating death.
Me: But all the sadness he caused! 
Her: But that means we will have become what we loathe.
Me: Shit.  I know you're right.

Personally, I'm exhausted by the debate in my head.  I surrender.

JILLIAN MICHAELS
Before Jillian walked in, Rosie and Jeannie discussed The Biggest Loser and the temptation episodes.  Rosie thought since they would never walk a recovering alcoholic into a room full of alcoholic drinks they shouldn't walk a food addict into a room full of donuts while they're recovering!  That was always one part about the show that she didn't like or understand.  And she doesn't like how they make the contestants work out until they cry.  She said it looks like boot camp and it gives her PTSD when Jillian screams at "the fatties."  

Rosie took a call from a listener who hired a personal trainer and lost 160 pounds! She said she feels awesome and is running her first half marathon on Sunday!  The caller remembered how the trainers were just as upset at the temptation episodes as Rosie was.  The caller said Jillian was always upset when the Producers would do that to the people she was training.  

Rosie said Jillian has a new book out called Unlimited: How to Build an Exceptional Life.  Rosie said in the book Jillian discusses how we have no one but ourselves to blame for holding ourselves back.  Rosie said she's right and Rosie hates that!

Just before Jillian walked in to the studio Jeannie told Rosie to "wipe the Oreo off her mouth."  lol

As Jillian walked in, Rosie told her that she seemed much smaller in person.  Rosie asked Jillian if the show The Biggest Loser was actually meaner in the beginning like Rosie remembered and Jillian said it was.  But in the beginning Jillian and Bob made a decision that they would focus of helping the contestants actually lose weight and not about humiliation.  She said the show took a turn and became an inspirational show as they actually got the contestants to drop tons of weight!  Jillian said she wasn't on Season 3 of The Biggest Loser because she would get in screaming matches with the Producers over the show!  

Jillian got certified to be a trainer when she was in her early 20s and did that for years while she bartended at night in Los Angeles.  She said she was always a little chubby as a kid and it was how she and her dad bonded while her mom was in school getting her degree.  She said food was a way they would relate to each other.   It was how her father loved her.  Jeannie said she does that with food too.  Jillian said she had poor eating habits as a child and she would be bullied horribly in school.  Jillian's mom was in the studio too and she said she realized Jillian needed to be empowered so she put her in karate class.  Jillian loved it!  Learning karate not only taught her to fight but it changed her spirit and her body!   

Rosie said when she was in 8th grade a girl used to pick on her sister who was in 7th grade.  Rosie was supposed to fight this girl after school one day and the gym teacher found out about it.  The gym teacher had the class arm wrestle each other and purposefully paired Rosie and this bully together.  After Rosie beat the bully 10 times in a row at arm wrestling, she asked the bully if they were now done with the talk of fighting.  There never was a fight after school that day. 

Jeannie and Rosie, who were both athletic in school, wanted to know how they can get motivated to want to work out.  Jillian said motivation has to come from inside.  She said you first have to know what the reason is you want to be motivated.  She asked Rosie how being healthy would optimize her life.  Rosie said it would make her life better in every way.  She said she'd play with her kids more, have more energy, be more fun.  She said there's not one benefit to being heavy yet she continues to be so.  Jillian said Rosie needs to find out why she's so sedentary.  She said she will most likely come up with some painful answers too.   She told Rosie to write all those answers down and form an emotional attachment to wanting to be motivated.  Jillian said when someone is heavy or self- destructive, the coping mechanism is serving a purpose like they're trying to avoid something that's painful.  Rosie said when she has lost weight, she never felt thin and when men have found her attractive, in a way that they didn't when she's heavy, she doesn't know what to do with the feelings. Jillian's mom, who is a therapist, said recognition is terrifying for Rosie and she needs to stay in that place of terror with her therapist so she can move through that emotion.  She said if Rosie learns to live through the pain she could overcome it.  Rosie said at 49 years old you think if not now, when?  Jillian said Rosie has to get to a place where her desire for transformation outweighs the pain of facing her fears.  And in the end, it is more painful to carry it around then ignore it. 

Rosie said with the new television show on OWN coming up, she often worries about what she can wear and not look fat.  Rosie said whenever she watches anything from her career it's always about how fat she looks in it.  Jillian asked Rosie what made her decide to go back to TV.  Rosie said because her mother died at 39 when she turned 39 she thought she'd retire because she was going to die too.  Then she realized she's going to live and she needed to make a plan for Act II.

Rosie asked Jillian about why she yells at the contestants on The Biggest Loser.  Jillian said when she yells she does it for a reason.  She said people often run a narrative of what they can and what they cannot do.  Jillian said she tries many different paths to try to break people out of these narratives but when she can't get through to them she sometimes yells.  She said this causes the person to tap into a survival mechanism and when they tap into that fear the narrative in their head is short circuited.  Then Jillian points it out to them, that they've mastered the thing they thought they could never do.  This plants the seed and that reality shatters what they thought they were capable of.  Jillian said that's what her book is about!   

Jillian said 65% of the contestants on the Biggest Loser keep their weight off compared to 5% which is the average.  Jillian said that's because most people aren't getting the skill set they need to keep the weight off and they're not doing the deeper work by resolving their pain.  

Rosie asked Jillian if the contestants see therapists when on the Biggest Loser ranch and she said they do not but she recommends they do once they leave the show.  Jillian said she's not a therapist but she believes in therapy.   

Jeannie asked Jillian about Rulan who left the show and whether or not that had to do with the fact that he lost the car challenge.  Jillian said that was not the reason Rulan left the show.  Rosie said Rulan's father projected his own issues of worthlessness and rejection onto his son.  Rulan lived his life trying to win over his father but at the end of the day he still felt worthless.  Jillian said she tried to work with him to recognize that and all the feelings he had taken on were not really about him but were about his father's thoughts of himself.   

Jillian said she still keeps in touch with thousands of people she has trained over the years.  Rosie asked Jillian how it's felt to become famous so quickly and if she feels pressure from it.  Jillian said it was a gradual rise to fame over the past 7 years.  She said their friend Suze Orman sat her down and instructed her that when she became famous she should sign every book, take every picture with her fans and be very gracious to her fans because it is the people who were the key to her success.  Rosie said she loves Suze, too.  

Rosie closed the show asking Jillian to stick around so they could record Part 2 for Friday's show!

and that's what you missed - kw
17 more to go....