'Shameless': So It Is for a Lotta (White) Folks

Jimmy aka Steve (Justin Chatwin) and Fiona (Emmy Rossum) have a complicated relationship in "Shameless." Photo courtesy of Showtime.

YOURS Truly was in high heaven one week ago, thinking Sunday would be a banner night. You see, it would bring with it the Season 3 premiere of two of my favorite shows: “Downton Abbey” on PBS’ "Masterpiece Theatre” and “Shameless” on Showtime.

I found out soon enough that I was wrong and contented myself making a few comments about the Crawleys of “Downton Abbey” (Episode 2 airs tonight at 9 http://www.bit.ly/XcStLG) and the splendor in which they lived. Both the Crawleys and the Gallaghers of “Shameless” are straight out of Dickens – “A Tale of Two Cities” of sorts.

Where “Downton Abbey” is a sight for sore eyes, “Shameless” is just a sight! The Gallaghers is a poor family that lives in chaos and squalor near an elevated train track line in Chicago. These people will do just about anything for money. They have no shame. None.

The overarching question in “Shameless” is whether Frank Gallagher (William H. Macy in a brilliantly over-the-top role) can straighten up and fly right in an attempt to save his massively at-risk family. Essentially, take some damn responsibility for the first time in his sorry life. The answer is not likely – at least not without rigorous, relentless intervention.

Last anyone heard, Frank was trying to spring his ex-wife Monica (Chloe Webb) out of a psychiatric facility. All of his trouble somehow turns him up in Mexico without I.D. as viewers will see in the season premiere tonight. This seems to be a pattern with Frank. In season 1, he wound up in Toronto similarly paperless.

The Bundys of "Married With Children." Archive photo.

Meanwhile, it continues to be up to Frank’s oldest, Fiona (Emmy Rossum), to hold the family together, including a two-year-old mulatto or black brother, Liam (Brennan Kane Johnson and Blake Alexander Johnson) – the offspring of estranged mother Monica and Frank no less.

“Shameless” has not elevated low-class living to an artform, but it sure makes poverty look almost palatable and kinda cool. Here, it is stylized and romanticized. The Gallagher clan is white trash – ghetto; just as ill-mannered, immoral poor black folk are ghetto or black trash. The same applies to all other ethnic groups when one gets right down to it.

This is a show that puts a spotlight on a segment of America that is barely visible in popular entertainment: poor, white folk – and there are plenty of them. It is rare indeed that white Americans are depicted thusly on American TV aside from those “Judge” shows. And “Shameless” does come with an asterisk. Frankly, it is refreshing.

The Gallagher living room is often in need of a little tidying up. Photo courtesy of Showtime.

Of course, no one is suggesting that all or most poor whites are up to the kind of shenanigans that the Gallaghers are, but this stuff is not all made up, albeit it is satirized. As close as commercial TV could seemingly get was Fox’s “Married With Children” back in the day when that network was truly cutting edge. Interestingly enough, the Bundys lived in suburban Chicago, though clearly not an Evanston or Wilmette.

It should be noted for those not in the know or those who’ve forgotten that “Shameless” is a remake of the British series of the same name. This is the asterisk. The original is set in fictional Chatsworth Estate in suburban Manchester and surrounding areas.

“Shameless” is an import from the UK where poor whites are very visible in popular entertainment. For those who don’t know the lingo, in “English” estate means projects. Many whites in the United States know that they don’t live nearly as large as they are depicted on TV and in films, just as many blacks know they don’t live nearly as low on the hog as depicted in the same mediums.

The Gallagher clan of Chicago. Photo courtesy of Showtime.

In the U.S. version of “Shameless,” the Gallaghers reside in the poor/working class South Side neighborhood of Canaryville near train tracks – get it, tracks? For the U.S. audience, “Shameless” represents a bit of social engineering. It allows nonwhites living in this country – namely those who live in places like New York City who are newer to this country and associate being white with economic prosperity – to see that there are whites who struggle like those of any other U.S. ethnic group, who may have a few too many moral lapses.

It’s also cool that “Shameless” does it with such zest, making “crappily ever after” look downright virtuous.

Visit http://www.sho.com/sho/shameless/home to learn more about “Shameless.”

Even More Shameless Behavior in ‘House of Lies’

The cast of "House of Lies." Photo courtesy of Showtime.

DIRECTLY following the conclusion of “Shameless,” comes more shameless behavior in “House of Lies.” It is a perfect bookend.

Don Cheadle plays Marty Kaan (surname is pronounced con), head of a management consultant team that uses every con in the grifter guide to make corporate deals and break CEOs. Last season, I was eager to add this new show to my viewing schedule solely because DC is tied to this project. He is also executive producer.

What first struck me is how much it reminded me of the BBC series “Hustle” about a ring of con artists. Then I noticed how far it fell short of “Hustle.” Where the latter is smooth and suave, the former is coarse and vulgar.

This material is so far beneath DC. How disappointing, for DC is such a fine human being and actor. Clearly, not everyone shares my humble and steadfast view. Last year, DC was nominated for both an Emmy and Golden Globe for his performance.

Perhaps a season makes all the difference, and maybe I’ll take a gander or watch it later on Showtime OnDemand. Tonight, MK&Co. do their usual, as suggested by the season premiere guide: “mischief, mayhem, and mergers.” (See video above.)

Visit http://www.sho.com/sho/house-of-lies/home to learn more about “House of Lies.”

Brad Pitt Photo, Placement Is Genius on Part of Chanel

Print ad of Brad Pitt for Chanel No 5 as seen at Chanel booth at Bloomingdale's, New York (59th St.). Photo by Yours Truly.

COMING down the escalator yesterday from the Bloomingdale’s second-floor women’s shoe department where I did not find the all-weather, waterproof boots that I am in search of, Yours Truly is struck by a huge image of a blond white man.

Initially, I believe it to be William H. Macy as he looks in "Shameless" (http://www.sho.com/sho/shameless/home). Almost instantly, I dismis the notion – the man in the photo is too handsome, too young. Looking again, I wonder. Could it be? ... Brad Pitt staring back from the gigantic photo that is an advertisement for Chanel No 5 Parfum for women, not for men?

Safely off the escalator in the men’s department at the 59th street store in New York, I study the photo (pictured at top). It is an arresting sight. The man in the photo exhibits a combination of earnestness, virility, self-confidence and authenticity. It is an aspirational image, but its subject is approachable. He is quite handsome but not in a threatening way. It is a photo that stops one in one’s tracks as it does me in mine.

It looks like BP at the same time that it looks like a BP lookalike. Intensely curious, I step into the Chanel booth to seek answers to this gnawing question. Just then, a Chanel representative approaches and offers assistance.

I get right to the point of my visit. It is indeed BP in this stunning photograph. Chanel rep D. Harry also gives me to know that BP is the first man to be the face of Chanel No 5. This distinction puts him in league with Audrey Tautou, Nicole Kidman, Ali MacGraw, and Catherine Deneuve. (See video of CD's Chanel No 5 commercial below.)

How is it possible that this escaped my notice? Is not fashion and beauty part of my business? Put it down to busyness, too: I was engrossed in both the 50th New York Film Festival and the 2012 Food Network New York City Wine & Food Festival around the time that the buzz started around this event. Alas, one cannot know everything and one clearly does not.

A bit of research last night does confirm the BP-Chanel connection. It also reveals that BP has been widely ridiculed, including in a “Saturday Night Live” parody, because the corresponding Chanel No 5 television commercial is deemed by many the worst sort of drivel. Perhaps because I saw the photo before I even knew of the existence of the commercial directed by Joe Wright (“Anna Karenina”), I do not judge it so harshly. (See bottom video). One would be hard-pressed to make the same claim about the print ads, one in particular when it is increased many fold its size.

Chanel rep DH and I are now on the other side of escalator in front of the Chanel booth peering at a smaller, yet still-large version of the same photo. To our left is another smaller, yet large photo of BP – chin in hand (channeling “The Thinker,” perhaps?) – looking pensive. Both draw in the viewer. The largest photo, however, is the coup de grace.

I share with DH my earlier thoughts about the photo, taken by Sam Taylor-Wood. He concurs. We are now observing the photo together. On closer inspection, it reveals much more than a handsome face. Who knows how much makeup was used because BP is made up to look like he’s wearing very little or nothing at all. The latter may be the case. What is remarkable, though, is that it appears that he did not wish to be doctored too much. The lines under his eyes are clearly visible. And beautiful. He's keeping it real, as if he has lived some life and the lines testify to that.

Like the larger pores on sections of his face, the lines give him character that would have otherwise been lacking. Visible on his neck and chest are small goose bumps. They do not age the 49-year-old nor would anyone think him old, as they may his partner, Angelina Jolie, if she were to be so bold.

BP has a semi-scruffy moustache and goatee. His shoulder-length hair is coiffed, but minimally so – or at least it looks to be. “A lot of people who have seen the photo say he has extensions,” DH says, though it is not obvious to me. In any case, the extensions look good and they look natural. Many a woman can take a page from this book.

“They’ve been up about two months,” DH says of the photos. “A lot of people have noticed it. We did really well in December.” This last bit he says with a gleam in his eyes.

What in the world is Brad Pitt thinking about? Dinner? How he is going to spend some $7 million after taxes? Photos by Sam Taylor-Wood.

For obvious reasons, it is not surprising that Chanel No 5 would have experienced a significant bump in sales in December. The photo, however, is a powerful selling tool, working on numerous subliminal levels, as it does. There is much at work here to unite the fragrance and consumer. Consider the various messages:

1 Buy this perfume and you will attract BP or a BP type;
2. Buy this perfume and you will attract handsome men;
3. Wear this perfume. BP and men like him will like it;
4. Buy this perfume for the special woman in your life and she will see you as BP or a BP type;
5. Buy this perfume for your woman as BP does for his;
6. Buy this perfume and it gets you closer to Angelina Jolie, considered one of the most beautiful women in the world and so on.

At work here is the same sort of subliminal messaging that automakers employ in using attractive women to sell cars, especially red ones.

And is it not as common sensical as it is brilliant to place this advertorial photo for a women’s fragrance in the men’s fragrance department? It makes it easier for men to purchase the perfume for numerous reasons, including avoiding the discomfort and intimidation of venturing into the women’s fragrance department to do so. It’s simply more convenient and no doubt will increase sales to men, as has been the case at Bloomingdale’s, DH confirmed. The placement also suggests to a man, possibly a clueless one, that he is on the right track in buying this fragrance for his woman if BP is endorsing it. After all, BP is the type of guy that men – particularly American men – can trust to tell it like it is, preferably over a beer.

This last brings up another point. The beauty of the photo, notwithstanding, it is more surprising that BP is the face of Chanel No 5, than the fact that the campaign marks the first time that a man has been selected to be the face of the fragrance.

Why Brad and why did Brad do it? As for the actor, it couldn’t be for the money – though reportedly his payday is around $7 million – because his net worth is believed to be nearly $200 million. According to some wags, he’s having a mid-life crisis. If so, better a 91-year-old scent than a 19-year-old girl.

As for Chanel, the label may have chosen BP simply because he is relatable to so many demographics across age, ethnicity, geography and gender. Indeed, as Chanel CEO Maureen Chiquet has said, “No 5 is the most iconic fragrance of our time, and Brad Pitt is the most iconic actor of our time. Women in every culture love No 5. No matter where you are, No 5 is there.”

Translation: Relatable. The same cannot be said of Douglas Booth, for instance. The young British actor (and model), whom I recently saw in an adaptation of Dickens’ “Great Expectations” on “Masterpiece Theater,” is simply too beautiful in an intimidating sort of way. A body like Daniel Craig is too rugged-looking.

Is this the body language of a man having a mid-life crisis?

Though George Clooney is only one year older than BP, he looks about a decade his senior – the younger demographic won’t go for him. Plus, he can look rather severe at times. The mind cannot conjure up a nonwhite actor who would be a potential face except for Will Smith. He looks a little too boyish and comedic. And, of course, there is the added disadvantage that an actor of color might be perceived as not having international appeal. That written, Barack Obama would be an exception, but the president of the United States does not do this sort of thing.

In that case, why not Brad (who doesn’t normally do this sort of thing either), he seems to pass muster.

Forger the TV commercial, cast the eyes on the photo at a Chanel booth near you, possibly in the men's department.

Visit http://www.chanel.com to learn more about Chanel No 5.