Nov18
Gwyneth Paltrow Explains Fur Faux Pas
Posted at 05:28 PM | Permalink
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Comments (28)
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This weekend in Miami, with friends from Ocean Drive magazine (which runs PETA ads free of charge), I attended the grand reopening of the swanky Fontainebleau Hotel. I was able to chat with vegan mogul Russell Simmons and had a word with fur offender P. Diddy, but the nicest surprise was hearing Gwyneth Paltrow explain that she regrets having posed in a fur stole in an ad for Tod's, which has appeared in magazines everywhere this fall.
After I told her how out of character it seemed for an eco-friendly, pro-vegetarian friend of Stella McCartney to so publicly promote fur, gracious Gwyneth replied, without a hint of defensiveness:
"That was awkward, and I'm glad you asked, because I do not wear fur at all. It was a daylong photo shoot on a boat near Capri, and there were all sorts of poses with all kinds of clothes—none with fur. During one set-up, a stylist came up from behind and draped a stole around my shoulders. I didn't pay much attention to it, and when I noticed it was fur I assumed it was fake fur but did not ask, so it's my fault. I was very surprised when they ended up using that one shot out of hundreds for the centerpiece of the Tod's ads. I know it's not a great excuse, but I hope you and your members understand."
I explained that something similar had just happened to Kate Winslet who was led to believe that the fur rug she posed on for Vanity Fair was fake, and the magazine publicly apologized when the issue became public. It seems that the fur trade is so desperate to push pelts into magazines that they have resorted to doing it on the sly.
At the end of our conversation, Gwyneth said that although she understands why fur gets so much attention, she thinks vegetarianism is something people should focus on more. She said that both she and her husband Chris Martin are pretty much vegetarian, saying, "We know it's the best diet for us and our kids, and of course for animals and the environment." I'm sending her a link to GoVeg.com. Who knows—maybe one day she'll use her lovely voice to speak up for PETA's "Meat's Not Green" campaign.
Posted by Dan Mathews
TAGGED:
Fur gwyneth paltrow
Comments
it's a real shame 'Tod's' chose that picture out of ALLLL the others.. but then again.. they would wouldn't they in their eagerness to try and make real fur look more acceptable.. in anycase and I wouldn't or didnt' imagine GP to support cruelty to animals.. well. not intentionally anyway..
Posted by: yvonne | November 19, 2008 02:54 PM
did she say her and her husband "...are pretty much vegetarian..."? wasn't this guy sexiest veg of the year?
Posted by: dave | November 19, 2008 03:45 PM
I'm glad she regrets it.
Posted by: Kelly | November 19, 2008 04:36 PM
Sorry Gwyneth, I just don't buy it. Not paying attention when someone drapes dead animal remains around you? At the very least alarm bells should have went off and a true animal advocate would have asked if it was real or faux. You just didn't want to know because you suspected what that answer would be.
Now you have a permanent black mark on your reputation. I know when I look at my Ironman dvd it's not beautiful Gwyneth I see anymore, it's Gwyneth the shallow fur hag who should have inquired about whether the fur was real then said an absolute NO, I WILL NOT WEAR FUR.
Posted by: Gina | November 19, 2008 05:02 PM
Also Gwyneth if you read this, there is no such thing as a 'pretty much vegetarian' you either are or aren't. So which is it? Sounds like you & hubby Chris 'pretty much' eat meat. At least be honest about what you are & are not, stop making excuses.
Posted by: Gina | November 19, 2008 05:05 PM
"At the end of our conversation, Gwyneth said that although she understands why fur gets so much attention, she thinks vegetarianism is something people should focus on more."
******************************
Is that a joke? Both involve a massive amount of animals being tortured & killed for our exploitation, selfish & unnecessary desires. You & Chris need to take a Michael Vick type course on empathy. Though I suspect you are either born with it or not. But it wouldn't hurt you to contact Peta & try to learn to be compassionate to animals killed for both fur & food.
Posted by: Jazmin | November 19, 2008 05:12 PM
I really hope that Gwyneth decides to go completely veg with her husband and kids!! I love her, she's one of my favorite actresses, and if she goes veg, she would be a wonderful spokesperson for peta and supporting veg lifestyles!
Posted by: Hollie | November 19, 2008 05:44 PM
Wait... recently sprig.com did a feature on vegan celebs and Chris Martin was featured, although he did receive a B- (http://www.sprig.com/Top_Vegan_Celebrities/page/9).
Posted by: Beau | November 19, 2008 07:09 PM
I really hope GP was genuine about her conversation with you. I have my doubts because I just saw a show on the food network a few weeks ago where she was in Spain with this famous bald headed chef enjoying the heck out of a bowl of steamed clams. She looked pretty happy and went on and on about how good it was,etc... Anywho, I hope she means what she says.
Posted by: mlo | November 19, 2008 07:15 PM
As someone who has done modeling, I can sympathize with her. I know what it's like to be in front of the camera and you have to be careful not to put a single hair out of place or smudge your makeup, and people are giving you items to hold, they put accessories on you and you're so distracted that you barely pay attention to the stuff they put on you sometimes. I can see how she didn't notice it was fur until afterward. All of you who are still yelling at her need to ease up. She did say she regrets it, didn't she? When people admit that they're wrong you don't keep yelling at them. That's just rude, and you're making this movement look bad.
Posted by: Maria | November 20, 2008 03:23 AM
the fur-industry stops from nothing to impose their bloody products - now they try to play their dirty play with actors and models because they refuse to wear it! so by surprising them in that ugly way they arrive in an unfair unhonest way to make them wear it!!!!!!!!
Posted by: SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION | November 20, 2008 09:52 AM
According to this blog, she did notice it was fur. She just didn't take the time to ask whether it was real or fake. Her excuse seems very convenient on the heels of the public flack she got for wearing fur. Plus, I can't see how it excuses the real suede and leather she also sports in their ads.
Posted by: John | November 20, 2008 10:24 AM
Uh, Gwyneth just "released" her Thanksgiving menu and it's about as far from animal-friendly as you can get: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/20/gwyneth-paltrows-thanksgi_n_145143.html
Posted by: Nathan | November 20, 2008 11:45 AM
Ummm. In her new little self centered email/website GOOP...she tells how to make A TURKEY!@!@! That is a MUST in her house and the "centerpiece" of the day.
SHE IS A TOTAL LIAR AND HYPOCRITE!@!@!@!@
Someone needs to call her out BIG TIME.....
Posted by: Stephanie | November 20, 2008 03:34 PM
Ok so it seems that Gwyneth Paltrow is a fake hollywood actress! wow, what are the odds? ;-)
Although she is obviously a liar and a hypocrite, I do agree with what she said about focussing on vegetarianism.
Vegan Outreach is the most important form of activism, because chances are vegans won't wear fur or promote animal tests, or animal torture of any kind.
But that is EXACTLY what PETA has been doing...while PETA does focus on fur, animal tests, leather and all other forms of animal cruelty (they are the People for the Ethical Treatment of ALL Animals after all) they always try to direct people to Goveg.com as well.
So while it is disingenous feedback it is at least good feedback.
personally I would much rather do a "meet your meat" on the street demo than an anti-fur demo any day. Vegan outreach is where its at! :-)
Posted by: Antoine | November 20, 2008 08:26 PM
A few weeks ago, she was on Oprah and clearly said in front of millions of people around the world:" I don't eat four-legged animals" which obviously means chickens, turkeys, ducks and two-legged cows are out of luck.
She also said she eats wild birds. THAT my friend, is NOT a vegetarian. She should just admit it and move on.
Posted by: NT | November 20, 2008 09:05 PM
PETA needs to come after you Gwyneth BIG time!
Don't let us down Peta! You need to go after this hypocrite loser big time!
As someone over on Ecorazzi board said; what? Did she not realize the TURKEY was real too? Thought it was a fake?
You know who the fake is Gwyneth Paltrow YOU are!
Posted by: erin | November 21, 2008 12:15 AM
I can understand that as model you can't move around and you have to watch that you 'don't move a hair out of place.' And Gwyneth Paltrow may very well be sorry that she had a fur stole draped around her. But I find it hard to believe that she's sorry for this when on the other hand she's advocating that a 'turkey is a must for thanksgiving especially in my house anyway!' You either are or aren't for fur and being a vegetarian...which one is it Gwyneth?
She may very well be sorry, but if you realised what was being draped around you, but you choose not to ask, then you aren't really for it are you? But in any case, if that happened, I think I would be more inclined to just stop the photo shoot and say, I don't care if this fur stole is real or fake, I will NOT have a photo taken with any type of fur (full stop!).
With all the ways that these people will try and get their fur in papers and magazines, why even give them any sort of publicity even if the fur is fake - it still gives them publicity! That I would rather not do!
Help stop this hidious and disgusting trade - simply say no all together! Think of these poor innocent animals and the torture they go through. It breaks my heart to pieces.
Posted by: Lorri | November 21, 2008 04:16 AM
This is in response to Gina's comment quoted below:
"Also Gwyneth if you read this, there is no such thing as a 'pretty much vegetarian' you either are or aren't. So which is it? Sounds like you & hubby Chris 'pretty much' eat meat. At least be honest about what you are & are not, stop making excuses."
The fact is, when people make comments like the one posted above, it does nothing but push people away from vegetarianism and other animal rights platforms. What SHOULD be encouraged is that people consume LESS meat than they currently do; people should not be trashed for taking steps in the right direction, and that point is missed by people displaying comments such as that listed above. Personally, for the last year, I have not consumed any beef or pork; I would consider this a step in the right direction towards becoming a vegetarian, although I do not consider myself to be a vegetarian at this point in time. Things like this should be encouraged, because more people eating less meat results in a decrease in the number of animals slaughtered for human consumption. Please try to think of things in this context as opposed to being so critical of people TRYING to do the right thing.
Posted by: Steve | November 21, 2008 10:59 AM
It was only a few years ago that Gwyneth said that she would NOT wear fur in the USA because of the crazy people who might "lynch" her for it. Other places than the USA she could go without being threatened she added.
Posted by: Gerry | November 21, 2008 11:01 AM
Give me a break. If you can't tell a fake fur from a real fur stole you need to go see a neurologist or eye doctor. There is no plausible way that a person of average intelligence could not tell the difference between real and fake fur.
Furthermore, if you truly want to end the fur trade refuse to wear anything with fur...including fake fur. You're just perpetuating the whole 'fur is glamorous' nonsense.
Posted by: doodles | November 21, 2008 01:23 PM
I have seen pictures of her wearing that fur and in fact 'promoting fur' for todds. nothing in the whole set really supports her appologies at all, besides if she in the first place assumed the fur were fake, why promoting fake fur for todds (!) or why stating or even suposing todds manufactures fake furs !!??
C'mon!
Posted by: tricia | November 22, 2008 01:03 PM
I agree with steve I am new to Peta and for the past two years I have given up all meat accept Chicken and Tuna and still consume dairy products. This is only my second time visiting this site and the murder/bloody talk makes me feel cultish not educated. I want to feel inspired to do the right thing by others. As for Gwyneth I think if she noticed a hair out of place she might have noticed animal hair on her shoulders:) I hope everyone supports her to make better choices. I read her website and she does have a very long turkey recipe Maybe we can flood her with a kinder Thanksgiving Dinner choice:)
Christine
Posted by: christine | November 23, 2008 08:01 AM
I find it very suspect that she didn't know what picture Tod's was going to end up using as the centre piece of their campaign. She is the face and the "star power". I have no doubt that she and her people have final approval of what she wears and her image. It's a crock and a pathetic excuse.
And I completely agree... there is no such thing as "pretty much vegetarian" just like she is "pretty much" ethical.
Come on PETA!!
Posted by: happy | November 23, 2008 01:26 PM
You can e-mail complaints to Tod's here:
http://www.tods.com/My-Tods/Contact,mkt,en-eu.html
Posted by: Jen | November 23, 2008 10:01 PM
To Steve,
Why am I not surprised to see a person who is trying to cut down on meat profess moderation. You are trying to defend your own personal choice to be selective about the types of dismembered flesh you choose to consume. Just becasue you choose to indulge your morbid addiction, don't try to preach 'tolerance' to people who really care about animals.
Posted by: Alan | November 25, 2008 08:17 PM
I have been one of Gwyneth's biggest fans for pretty much her whole career. BUT, I am a Vegan 100%, and this latest info has me very disturbed. I do care about my non veg friends, and we are in a constant banter about my lifestyle, but none of them will profess to go veg as a pretense to make me happy. They eat how they eat, and live how they live and all I can do is influence them with my choices. I hope that Gwyneth will give up the hollywood hypocrite hoopla and just be real!!
Posted by: Pamela Hills | November 26, 2008 11:48 AM
Dan, did Gwyneth send you a link to her "pretty much" vegetarian "Turkey" recipes? Seriously, it's not hard to see through this shallow hypocrite's lies. Please do not use in her your "Meat's Not Green" ads. There are plenty of real vegetarian celebrities who do practice what they preach that would make better role models for this campaign.
Posted by: Chris | November 27, 2008 11:37 AM