In ancient Autostraddle times, July 2010, we put a moratorium on discussing gossipy destructive stuff about Lindsay Lohan even though she’s often relevant to the perceptions of queer women in American media and also a mega-hotty. It’s nice to try to send people positive vibes and also I know I wouldn’t want anyone documenting any of the less-than-awesome moments of my life.
Of course, when it was revealed this past October that LiLo was definitely posing for Playboy we got on board. I mean, it was a 48 hour shoot at the Playboy Mansion and, if you’re not into shaming women for posing nude/making their own choices about their bodies, this is clearly a big moment in Lohan’s career. How am I not supposed to be excited about that? Now that Lohan’s debut, the January issue of Playboy, is growing near, the rumble of rumors below the ground is finally bubbling up in to actual information relevant to my interests.
HEY GIRL
Though it was initially rumored that LiLo had accepted a $1 million offer to pose fully nude, it is now unclear if the actress will be Totally Completely Absolutely Nude or only Maybe Partially Mostly Nude. It’s a pretty big discussion for about two square inches of skin. Either way, Hugh Hefner told The Insider, “It’s a classic tribute, inspired by the original Tom Kelley nude pictorial of Marilyn Monroe.”
This will not be the first time that Lohan channels Monroe, Lohan posed for New York Magazine when Bert Stern reincarnated his series of Monroe photographs, since dubbed, “The Last Sitting.” It’s no shock that Lohan might feel a kinship with Monroe, she too was a beautiful, talented woman who the tabloids couldn’t get enough of. “Here is a woman who is giving herself to the public,” Lohan said, at the time of the NY Magazine shoot, “She’s saying, ‘Look, you’ve taken a lot from me, so why don’t I give it to you myself.’ She’s taking control back.”
YO. LOOK HOW HOT THIS NY MAGAZINE PHOTOSHOOT WAS.
In many ways it seems clear that Lohan is trying to take back that same sort of control. As tabloids continue to stalk her legal battles and, even now, link her to the late Heath Ledger, Lohan is displaying the precise level of press she actually wants by only agreeing to do one interview during the on-sale period of her Playboy magazine cover, and she’s chosen to do it on The Ellen Show.
Lohan is training the media like Pavlov’s dog, if you replace “ringing of bells/external stimuli” with “withdrawal of public appearances/negative reinforcement.” Late Night hosts want to use Lohan for laughs? Well she won’t be appearing on Late Night talk shows to promote her shoot. A shoot which Hefner said has, “a tremendous amount of worldwide interest.” Everyone who isn’t getting an interview on Lohan’s Playboy cover is basically losing out.
When Lohan appeared on Ellen in 2010, Ellen DeGeneres was compassionate, understanding and really let Lohan speak for herself, clear up rumors and say her piece. Plus, of course, because it’s Ellen, Lohan was able to discuss her relationship with Sam Ronson without the usual OMG There’s A Bisexual Here nonsense. It seems that Ellen is being rewarded for basically being a decent human who doesn’t twister other people’s words. I think The Ellen Show was a genius choice for the exclusive reveal of Lohan’s cover shoot and I believe/hope/think/keep dreamin’ that this will be just the kick-start Lohan’s acting career needs. I hope there’s one of those behind the scenes videos involved.
It’s also interesting as Ellen has become a bit of a Mama Bear figure for LGBT celebrities — it’s incredibly touching to see guests like Chely Wright, Chris Colfer, Jane Lynch and Lady Gaga thank Ellen for being a trailblazer and profess their undying love for her. Ellen gets a bit maternal with baby gays like Lindsay, and we like that. Girlfriend could use some positive parental figures in her life, even if only for an hour.
You can watch clips of the last time Lindsay was on Ellen below:
I used to like Lindsay when I was younger (the Mean Girls days) and then I thought it was cool when she came out. But…to be honest…when I think of this interview I just feel sorry for the actors out there who have film and tv projects to promote and I feel like Lindsay is sort of taking their spot in a way. Magazine covers don’t mean as much as they did a few years ago but she’s been on so many magazine covers like Vanity Fair, Bazaar in the past few years with no real legitimate promotional reason behind it…
I wish her all the best though, and I hope that she can get it together sometime. Oh, if every lesbian could get a post break-up counseling session with Ellen… :)
i can’t even tell you how excited i am about this
because it would be embarrassing for me
Samesies. It’ll be the best thing since Rachel Maddow was on Ellen.
ellen is our fairy gaymother.
I love Ellen with all my heart. It’s like she’s the cool aunt I never had.
She is showing a real lack of class. It is obvious she is leaking the Ledger story as both a heterosexual reclamation project and because the guy is….dead. He can’t say anything. He can’t go I never met her or we had a one night stand. She messed with 3 dudes, all photographed, a few weeks before Ledger’s death and was messing with other people. Ledger died in his then girlfriend’s apt (one of the Olsen sisters).
Now she leaks her own diary to talk about a possible fantasy in her head. When did she write the secret diary. On the way to have the Playboy pictures taken? Were they ever photographed together? He broke up with Michelle Williams in 2007. She went from Callum Best to rehab to Riley Giles to the 3 dudes. There were 2 or 3 days open somewhere for this great romance.
This is about one thing. The guy can’t say anything because he is dead. Period. In one fell swoop she makes it sound like she was desired by Oscar Winning actor Heath Ledger and she kills off the reality – that her butt was clinging to Samanatha Ronson and then, when dumped, chasing Samantha Ronson everywhere. They say Lindsay lies about everything.
I think you are missing the point of this article. And probably this website. And what Lindsay was saying during that clip on Ellen. Just a thought.
Totally off topic but Chris H.D. I wrote this in the comments for the Glee recap for the ‘I Kissed A Girl’ episode: Where is Chris H.D.? Chris H.D., if you are here…I totally get it now. When you used to talk about how Murphy was a misogynist who really can’t write lesbian storylines, I was willing to give him a go…but what you said is so so true. This episode, with another gay male writer, was another example of this.
Riese then agreed, writing: i know! i almost gave chris HD a shoutout in the recap
Just wanted to let you know personally. You were absolutely right.
There was a report once of her getting so possessive that she literally crawled under the DJ booth and held onto Samantha’s waist the way a 3 year old clings to a parent’s leg to try and persuade them not to leave them. She really seems to bring a whole new meaning to ‘head over heals’. It’s kind of heartbreaking.
Excuse the double post. heels*
I bet that report came from a reliable source close to the couple, right?
I can’t imagine living my life being hounded by people who think I’m a headline rather than a person, who wouldn’t have some serious issues after that?
really!!? is there some ultimate “truth” about lindsay lohan that we seek to uncover by piecing together various accounts of her romantic liaisons and activities? who cares? when she’s on television or in a movie or performing music or doing a photoshoot or you know, on ELLEN talking about a sexy photo shoot — then i think it’s nice to pay attention to those things. but the rest of it just seems like so much noise. i feel like it’s all just rumors and stories and things people say.
and what’s the point, even, if determining exactly who this random human slept with? what then? then we can decide whether or not we want to invite this woman to our birthday party?
Lindsay is a washed up child star who mainly makes headlines for being in and out of jail and rehab these days. She hasnt made a movie in 2-3 years. Are we supposed to be interested in her only because she is in Playboy or because she had a same sex rs? Do you guys cover playboy pictorials normally? I dont think so…. So this is obviously based on the assumption that she belongs to the LGBT community? But thing is Lindsay doesnt think so, she doesnt wanna be seen as bi let alone gay. She has said unless its ronson she will only date boys. And since ronson got a new girlfriend that isnt happening and Lindsay goes around in interviews saying she wants a boyfriend.
I can read these kind of fawning articles about a playboy pictorial all over the internet. I would have hoped that if autostraddle want to cover this “event” you’d at least do a write up that comes from a perspective of some depth and clarity.
wow i almost forgot how pretty lindsay lohan was/is.
and ellen…. where do i even begin??? love her!!
I haven’t felt bad about the paparrazi hounding lindsay since i read this: http://www.imnotobsessed.com/2009/09/11/lindsay-lohan-wanted-to-be-in-tabloids-since-middle-school/
she literally said she WANTED to be famous and a celebrity with tabloid coverage, as opposed to just being an accomplished and professional actress. she welcomed tabloid coverage with open arms, and then when she fucked up and it turned against her,all of the sudden she was “ready to act”. i think she should’ve taken ellen’s advice and gotten the hell out of hollywood and spent some time regrouping and reinventing herself, because constantly being on the party scene with all resulting the tabloid coverage she PURPOSELY courted at one point, is not doing anything to rehabilitate her image.
and i wish like hell she’d stop harassing marilyn monroe memory. she’s not in the same universe as that woman.
We all did stupid things in middle school, let’s be honest.
I mean, hell, I was sure I’d be an astronaut by now when I was 13.
she said she wanted to be in the tabloids SINCE middle school. she accomplished that goal as an adult and all that tabloid coverage she courted turned against her because of her illegal and ridiculous antics. i think the only way to get the runaway train to stop is to take a break from being on the Hollywood scene and stop publicizing herself as a party girl. it makes her look unprofessional. i think she should get out of the public eye for a while and reinvent herself, just as ellen said.
i think when you grow up in a broken home with selfish battling parents (much like britney spears, honestly), you seek affirmation/love/support from any readily available source. maybe she just wanted people to pay attention to her.
i think we both agree that she wanted attention. the difference is you are speculating why she wanted that attention and i think you feel more sympathetic then i do that tabloid coverage she sought turned against her. i’m just being real when i say i don’t feel sorry for her. i don’t. she had a lot of great opportunities and squandered them by being unprofessional and seeking to be a tabloid celebrity more then an accomplished actress. at some point when you are an adult you make your own decisions and choices for your life and all our decisions have consequences, good or bad. she made a choice to live her life in the tabloids, publications that are notorious for seeking salacious and negative details about celebrities personal lives. the only thing she can do now is try to rectify the mistakes of her past and seek new opportunities to show that she can be a professional. i’ll say it for a third time: i personally think she should take a break from the party scene, regroup, and remake her public and professional image.
Girl sure has good taste when it comes to who she thinks is “pretty” in HW. KStew and Ellen Page. I approve, Lohan. I approve.
The Lindsay Lohan the world sees is nothing but a construct. And whatever she says in interviews is usually taken out of context, scripted by some PR person and possibly influenced by either drugs or the lack of them. Let the women get naked for us, people, I’m a sucker for freckles!
PS: She can also sleep with whoever she wants, I demand the same right for myself.
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It’s Pavlov, not Pavolov. And he didn’t train his dogs in the way you suggest. You are talking about modifying behaviour through positive reinforcement, Pavlov’s experiment was something quite different. He trained the reflex actions of dogs through external stimuli. It was about involuntary responses.
Oops that was a typo. It’s fixed now.
This is one of the most mature articles i have read about Lindsay. Thank you for writing this awesome and fantastic. Thank you and i cant wait for both the interview and magazine. She is gay in my opinion and when she finds someone who will make her feel safe and love her like she loves, she is going to be as open as she can be. She is so passionate and so beautiful and so vulnerable and so hurt, and so feminine and hot that i cant wait. Men cant handle and our society cant handle someone who atracts so much attention and millions are interested in her life to be gay. Awesome article.You dont know how many people relate to Lindsay and she is very popular no matter what haters say.
I am happy for her.
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I’ve loved that she’s disappeared from the public eye for the last couple of months. Proves she CAN do it. I wish she’d stay away longer. I like her, I like her talent, and the more she learns how to be private and responsible and not need the public’s attention, the better. Talent always wins out.
I heart Ellen.
My cousin Jimmy and I used to watch her 90’s TV show (before she was out) and thought of her as our own personal hero.
Then, a few years later I told my family that I was bi-sexual, and a few months after that, my cousin Jimmy introduced us to his boyfriend.
Ellen makes my heart smile, she looks damn hot in a suit, and she loves to dance. PERFECTION!