The REAL Barbie Doll.

I just found this floating around Facebook and HAD to repost...

"This was an ad made by bodyshop. But Barbie INC. found out about it and now it’s banned. Repost if you think this ad deserves to be seen."

Can I get an "Amen?"

Take a long look at the kinds of toys we SHOULD be advertising to little girls -- instead of fake, silicone-injected aphid-looking dolls -- so they won't look in the mirror and hate themselves...



xoxo,
Rebel Deb

At CBS, Sexism is Alive and Well

The privilege afforded wealthy white men may not be a particularly new point, but it’s an important one nonetheless. Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears are endlessly derided for their extracurricular meltdowns. Their careers have all suffered, and understandably so. Meanwhile, Charlie Sheen's behavior has been repeatedly and affectionately dismissed as the antics of a “bad boy." - Anna Holmes, Jezebel.com

The Disposable Woman
By ANNA HOLMES
Published: March 3, 2011

FORTY-THREE minutes into his “special live edition” with Charlie Sheen on Monday night, Piers Morgan finally got around to asking his guest a real question. Before that, Mr. Morgan and Mr. Sheen had mostly traded chuckles and anecdotes about multiday benders, inflated network salaries and meet-ups in Aspen, Colo. But then, after three commercial breaks, Mr. Morgan inquired, “Have you ever hit a woman?”

Two minutes later, with Mr. Morgan apparently satisfied with the actor’s answer that no, women should be “hugged and caressed,” that line of questioning was over.

That Mr. Morgan didn’t press the issue of domestic violence shouldn’t have come as any surprise. CBS executives, not to mention the millions of viewers of his “family” sitcom “Two and a Half Men,” have consistently turned a blind eye toward Mr. Sheen’s history of abusing women. Part of this, of course, is about money. The actor’s F-18 of an id — to borrow a metaphor from Mr. Sheen himself — had long provided the show a steady stream of free publicity. It also helped make Mr. Sheen the highest-paid actor on television, at $1.2 million an episode.

But it’s also about apathy. Even now — after Mr. Sheen began carpet-bombing his bosses in radio rants, prompting CBS to shut down production on the show — observers still seem more entertained than outraged, tuning in to see him appear on every talk show on the planet and coming up with creative Internet memes based on his most colorful statements. And while his self-abuses are endlessly discussed, his abuse of women is barely broached.

Our inertia is not for lack of evidence. In 1990, he accidentally shot his fiancée at the time, the actress Kelly Preston, in the arm. (The engagement ended soon after.) In 1994 he was sued by a college student who alleged that he struck her in the head after she declined to have sex with him. (The case was settled out of court.) Two years later, a sex film actress, Brittany Ashland, said she had been thrown to the floor of Mr. Sheen’s Los Angeles house during a fight. (He pleaded no contest and paid a fine.)

In 2006, his wife at the time, the actress Denise Richards, filed a restraining order against him, saying Mr. Sheen had shoved and threatened to kill her. In December 2009, Mr. Sheen’s third wife, Brooke Mueller, a real-estate executive, called 911 after Mr. Sheen held a knife to her throat. (He pleaded guilty and was placed on probation.) Last October, another actress in sex films, Capri Anderson, locked herself in a Plaza Hotel bathroom after Mr. Sheen went on a rampage. (Ms. Anderson filed a criminal complaint but no arrest was made.) And on Tuesday, Ms. Mueller requested a temporary restraining orderagainst her former husband, alleging that he had threatened to cut her head off, “put it in a box and send it to your mom.” (The order was granted, and the couple’s twin sons were quickly removed from his home.) “Lies,” Mr. Sheen told People magazine.

The privilege afforded wealthy white [Julian's note: his ethnic heritage is also Latino] men like Charlie Sheen may not be a particularly new point, but it’s an important one nonetheless. Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears are endlessly derided for their extracurricular meltdowns and lack of professionalism on set; the R&B star Chris Brown was made a veritable pariah after beating up his equally, if not more, famous girlfriend, the singer Rihanna. Their careers have all suffered, and understandably so.

This hasn’t been the case with Mr. Sheen, whose behavior has been repeatedly and affectionately dismissed as the antics of a “bad boy” (see: any news article in the past 20 years), a “rock star” (see: Piers Morgan, again) and a “rebel” (see: Andrea Canning’s “20/20” interview on Tuesday). He has in essence, achieved a sort of folk-hero status; on Wednesday, his just-created Twitter account hit a million followers, setting a Guinness World Record.

But there’s something else at work here: the seeming imperfection of Mr. Sheen’s numerous accusers. The women are of a type, which is to say, highly unsympathetic. Some are sex workers — pornographic film stars and escorts — whose compliance with churlish conduct is assumed to be part of the deal. (For the record: It is not.)
Others, namely Ms. Richards and Ms. Mueller, are less-famous starlets or former “nobodies” whose relationships with Mr. Sheen have been disparaged as purely sexual and transactional. The women reside on a continuum in which injuries are assumed and insults are expected.

“Gold diggers,” “prostitutes” and “sluts” are just some of the epithets lobbed at the women Mr. Sheen has chosen to spend his time with. Andy Cohen, a senior executive at Bravo and a TV star in his own right, referred to the actor’s current companions, Natalie Kenly and Bree Olson, as “whores” on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” program on Tuesday. Arianna Huffington sarcastically tweeted that Mr. Sheen’s girlfriends “symbolize modesty, loyalty and good taste.” Mr. Sheen’s own nickname for Ms. Kenly and Ms. Olson — “the goddesses” — is in its own way indicative of their perceived interchangeability and disposability.

It’s these sorts of explicit and implicit value judgments that underscore our contempt for women who are assumed to be trading on their sexuality. [Julian's note: Let's be clear. Charlie is doing little else other than trading on his sexuality and his fame, which is largely currently due to him trading on his sexuality.] A woman’s active embrace of the fame monster or participation in the sex industry, we seem to say, means that she compromises her right not to be assaulted, let alone humiliated, insulted or degraded; it’s part of the deal. The promise of a modern Cinderella ending — attention, fame, the love and savings account of a rich man — is always the assumed goal.

Objectification and abuse, it follows, is not only an accepted occupational hazard for certain women, but something that men like Mr. Sheen have earned the right to indulge in. (Mr. Sheen reportedly once said that he didn’t pay prostitutes for the sex; he paid them “to leave.”) One can’t help but think that his handlers might have moved more quickly to rein in their prized sitcom stallion if his victims’ motivations weren’t assumed to be purely mercenary. (Or if they enjoyed parity and respect with regards to their age, influence and earning power.)

These assumptions — about women, about powerful men, about bad behavior — have roots that go way back but find endorsement in today’s unscripted TV culture. Indeed, it’s difficult for many to discern any difference between Mr. Sheen’s real-life, round-the-clock, recorded outbursts and the sexist narratives devised by reality television producers, in which women are routinely portrayed as backstabbing floozies, and dreadful behavior by males is explained away as a side effect of unbridled passion or too much pilsner.

As Jennifer Pozner points out in her recent book “Reality Bites Back: The Troubling Truth About Guilty-Pleasure TV,” misogyny is embedded within the DNA of the reality genre. One of the very first millennial shows, in fact, “Who Wants to Marry a Multimillionaire,” was notable in that it auctioned off what producers called the “biggest prize of all”: a supposedly wealthy B-movie writer named Rick Rockwell — who was later revealed to have had a restraining order filed against him by a woman he’d threatened to kill. According to Ms. Pozner, the reaction of one of the producers of “Multimillionaire” was, “Great! More publicity!”

On reality television, gratuitous violence and explicit sexuality are not only entertainment but a means to an end. These enthusiastically documented humiliations are positioned as necessities in the service of some final prize or larger benefit — a marriage proposal, a modeling contract, $1 million. But they also make assault and abasement seem commonplace, acceptable behavior, tolerated by women and encouraged in men.

Which brings us back to Mr. Morgan, who, like many of Mr. Sheen’s past and present press enablers, showed little to no urgency in addressing the question of violence against women. “You’re entitled to behave however the hell you like as long as you don’t scare the horses and the children,” Mr. Morgan said at one point. Scaring women, it seems, was just fine.
During the interview, a series of images played on a continuous loop. One of them was a defiant and confident-looking Charlie Sheen, in a mug shot taken after his 2009 domestic violence arrest.
Anna Holmes is a writer and the creator of the Web site Jezebel.

Win a FREE Copy of "CRD" at TheDiviningWand.com!

Click here to be routed directly to The Divining Wand and enter for a chance to win a free copy of yours truly's book! Or just keep reading for deets... :)

February 28, 2011
By: larramiefg

Successful playwright, television writer, and comedienne, Anna Fields dishes out a Southern-fried memoir about growing up too smart and rebellious for her North Carolina small town in Confessions of a Rebel Debutante.

During childhood the author claimed the “tomboy” label, only then to describe her adolescent self as being “outspoken” and “bookish” rebelling against the strict rules at her private all-girls finishing school. Anna tried to be a proper Deb, even making it through the first Cotillion. Yet, when viewed as too “liberal” and “uppity,” she didn’t make the cut for the ultimate Debutante Ball.

That’s the backstory and this is the synopsis of Confessions of a Rebel Debutante:

A strict regimen of Southern-belle grooming should have prepared Anna Fields for a lifetime of ladylike behavior.

But it didn’t.

As it turned out, Anna—a smart, outspoken, bookish girl—was a dud at debbing. After being kicked out of cotillion classes, the “Rebel Deb” left North Carolina to seek her fortune. Her first stop was Brown University —right in the heart of Yankee-land—and then the crazy world of Hollywood talent agencies and celebrity-packed restaurants. After a disastrous stint as Diana Ross’s personal assistant, Anna headed off to the Big Apple, where she worked for one of Bravo’s Real Housewives. It’s a rollicking, unlikely success story from a natural-born storyteller.

Sharp, sweet, and sassy, Confessions of a Rebel Debutante proves you can take the girl out of the South, but you can’t take the South out of the girl!

Please take a look at the glowing Press.

The South is known for its storytellers and Anna Fields is another talented one as she writes her “rags-to-riches,” almost Cinderella-like story. Of course there isn’t a wicked step-mother or even step-sisters in this tale, but all of Anna’s quirky relatives are much more entertaining and — more importantly — they’re real!

Written in a chronological format, this memoir has a distinct stream-of-conscious feel as the rebel deb’s voice delights with humorous details or becomes serious in relating past problems. For this book applies to every girl — living below or above the Mason-Dixon line — who didn’t quite fit in and was proud of it.

As Anna shares her sweet, bittersweet, and deeply poignant tales, she often refers to her role model of Scarlett O’Hara and frequently asks herself, “what would Scarlett do?” The answer is usually anything that will maintain the rebel deb’s strong confidence in herself. Because, when interviewed by BUST Magazine in May 2010, the author defined a rebel debutante as:

“She’s a woman who will bake a cake, clean a rifle, and drive a stick shift with a smile. She’s a mix of masculine and feminine, strong and soft—like all real women.”

However one strong tenet, revealed in the memoir, is that a rebel deb will not be content to simply stay home and birth babies. Oh no, she’s first destined to be true to herself. And where does that energy and determination come from? Within that same BUST Magazine article, Anna admits:

“I keep my eye on the ball. I stop worrying about what bad things can happen and start taking risks. I consider these to be investments in myself and in my happiness, instead of in fear. I stop competing with others, wondering what others are thinking about me, or what they’re doing. My self-love, my self-confidence, does not depend on others—it comes from God, and it lives within me. With that in mind, I know that I can overcome anything.”

Indeed she can and does, proving herself time after time by coming out on top. And, for the most part, the author accomplishes it all with her polite southern charm intact. For as the book’s description explains:

You can take the girl out of the South, but you can’t take the South out of the girl!

With her homespun tales and smart, experienced wisdom, Anna Fields’ story, though rooted in North Carolina, can resonate with any reader, anywhere. Every region of our country has its own distinct identity passed down by generations of ethnic family traditions. Unique, eccentric, and larger-than-life lovable relatives can be found at almost any holiday gathering. Embarrassing secrets are shared and scorned as younger generations seek to rebel against their past if only to say they can succeed on their own.

Confessions of a Rebel Debutante takes readers on the author’s journey, while nudging out our own personal, growing-up memories along the way. So travel down south with Anna who never took that final deb curtsy but realized that “You can’t bend the rules without learning them first.”

This Week's Celeb Rebel Deb: Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA)

Just listen to Representative Speier responding in opposition to the Pence Amendment. Makes you want to shout, "Go, Jackie, go!"



‎"... the American people at home are wondering, 'What does this have to do with getting me a job?' It doesn't. It has nothing to do with that at all. Last time I checked, abortion - whether you like it or not - is legal in this country. But then again, so is Haliburton. They're guilty of fraud, embezzlement and 10 other felonies. But are we up here trying to pass amendments making them illegal? No."

Thank you, Congresswoman Speier, for reminding us why Feminism is still relevant today and will be necessary to protect women's reproductive choices forevermore.

And in case anyone is wondering "Why is this even an issue? Isn't Roe v. Wade on the books already? Why isn't this dead on the Hill? Isn't freedom of choice here to stay?" A little info to answer and, I hope, to enlighten:

The central holding of Roe established that, before a fetus becomes viable, a woman's right to abort was considered "fundamental." After Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1993), however, women's rights to abortion via the viability standard were reclassified as "liberty interests." Which means that any statutes to restrict access to abortion can be upheld as constitutional under a slightly less rigorous standard called "Rational Basis" review. Casey held that states can require 24-hour waiting periods, parental consent forms, and can make access to abortion much more difficult and expensive -- so long as that access isn't cut off completely, and it's not considered an "undue burden" on the woman seeking one.

So, yeah. Nothing is here to stay. I agree that it would be difficult to reverse Roe in one fell swoop, but that's not what the Republicans are trying to do. The Pence Act need not reverse Roe v. Wade directly in order to take away women's rights to abortion. They can simply regulate it to death, little by little. Like ancient warriors used to say of their enemies, "Why fight something you hate when you can simply starve it to death?"

xoxo,
Rebel Deb

The Diving Wand's Interview with the Rebel Deb!

The Revealing of Anna Fields
February 16, 2011
By: larramiefg

According to Anna Fields’ momma: “Every one of us starts off a debutante, then becomes a rebel, but when we finally grow into our own…we’re a little bit of both.” And this is what the author proves in her debut memoir, Confessions of a Rebel Debutante recently released in Trade paperback.

Here is a one sentence description: A fond, funny Southern-fried memoir about growing up a proper young lady…or not.

And the following praise:

“…Fields takes what should be an oxymoronic state of mind and makes it work for her like some crazy hybrid confection: soft on the outside, hard in the center…. Fields shows how a rebellious southern belle can survive almost anywhere.” – Carol Haggas Booklist

“…all about empowering the hearts and minds and spirits of young women…” – Jennifer Brett The Atlanta Journal-Constitution


“…This is by far the best memoir I have ever read. Anna is my kind of chick! This hilariously true tale is better than any reality TV show. I think that this is the type of book that would interest any reader. Four stars!” – Bridget McNeill Barnes & Noble

The Divining Wand has scheduled a presentation/review of Confessions of a Rebel Debutante: A Memoir for Monday, February 28, 2011 but, for now, let’s meet the author through her “official” bio:

Anna Fields was born in Burlington, North Carolina, and attended Brown University. A former scriptwriter for As the World Turns, Guiding Light, and One Life to Live, she is also a successful playwright, screenwriter, and performance artist. Anna lives in New York City.

Now for even more revealing confessions from the “Rebel Deb:”

Q: How would you describe your life in 8 words?
A: From debutante to rebel and back, my dear.

Q: What is your motto or maxim
A: Eat well, sleep well, dream well, play hard and get along.

Q: How would you describe perfect happiness?
A: I’m religious, so I tend to think of happiness as closeness with God. The lack of want. Looking inward for happiness instead of outward for ambition. Being kind, for we are all fighting our own, silent battles. Practicing forgiveness in all its forms. Letting go of the past — something I never seem to be able to do, but I know leads to happiness, if not perfection.

Q: What’s your greatest fear?
A: Not realizing my potential. Running out of time before I write the eight or nine books that are stuck inside my head. Dying without letting my family and friends know how much I love, need and yet hate them at the same time — a three-part emotion that I often explore in my work.

Q: If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you choose to be?
A: Right where I am.

Q: With whom in history do you most identify?
A: Eleanor of Aquitaine

Q: Which living person do you most admire?
A: My mother… and possibly either Erica John or Anne Rice

Q: What are your most overused words or phrases?
A: “Right?”
“like”
“indeed”

Q: If you could acquire any talent, what would it be?
A: To write children’s stories. I have so many ideas for them, and yet whenever I try to write for younger people I end up writing for older people.

Q: What is your greatest achievement?
A: Surviving.

Q: What’s your greatest flaw?
A: Taking life too seriously — and sweating the small stuff, which I believe no one should ever do.

Q: What’s your best quality?
A: Generosity — I want to adopt every animal I see, and help everyone who needs it. I end up being a guidance counselor to almost everyone I know.

Q: What do you regret most?
A: Putting my career over my friendships, back in my early twenties. Then again, where would I be today without my writing?

Q: If you could be any person or thing, who or what would it be?
A: I’m pretty happy being myself, but it might be nice to go back and be myself at 17 again. If not that, I’d love to be a man, just for a week or two. Just to see what it felt like on the other side of the glass ceiling.

Q: What trait is most noticeable about you?
A: My extremely blond hair and pale skin.

Q: Who is your favorite fictional hero?
A: Tough question! In the literary world, probably Lestat or Lady Chatterly… but mostly, my favorite fictional heroes come from television shows I adore. Dexter, anyone from Absolutely Fabulous or Six Feet Under. And Joan from Mad Men, for sure.

Q: Who is your favorite fictional villain?
A: Probably Richard III — then again, he was a real person… but Shakespeare makes him sound so much worse that I imagine he really was.

Q: If you could meet any athlete, who would it be and what would you say to him or her?
A: “Hi, Michael Vick. Or do you prefer, ‘Heartless, arrogant, self-righteous animal-hater?’”

Q: What is your biggest pet peeve?
A: Entitlement. Enough said.

Q: What is your favorite occupation, when you’re not writing?
A Running, drinking coffee or playing with my boyfriend and our dog, Jax.

Q: What’s your fantasy profession?
A: Hmmm. I’m pretty sure I’m living it.

Q: What 3 personal qualities are most important to you?
A: Generosity, kindness and loyalty.

Q: If you could eat only one thing for the rest of your days, what would it be?
A: Chocolate!

Q: What are your 5 favorite songs?
A: Anything from Mozart’s “Requiem for the Dead’
“All I Want is You” by U2
“Pictures of You” by The Cure
“Heart and Soul” by some 80’s band I loved in high school but now can’t remember its name
“Norwegian Wood” by The Beatles

Q: What are your 5 favorite books of all time?
A: “The Queen of the Damned”
“Confessions of a Shopaholic”
“The Vampire Lestat”
“Silas Marner”
“The Great Gatsby”

Multi-talented, honest, and most thought-provoking, Anna Fields — as a Rebel Deb — will entertain and enlighten if you follow her on Twitter, become a friend on Facebook and visit her blog, Rebel Debutante.

Why is Feminism Awesome? Because It Lets You Be a PERSON, Not a Random List of "Womanly Job Qualities"

OMG! Whatever will we do? Women have been so busy educating ourselves and becoming productive members of society that we've neglected to do our "real" jobs, like cooking and cleaning! Boo-effing-hoo. Australia? YOU SUCK, MATE.

According to theFrisky.com...

"Whatever will the menfolk do?! Us modern hussies not only paint our lips and wear britches, but we’re losing our valuable lady skills too. There’s a study out of the Courier-Mail newspaper in Australia about how women under 30 are losing “female” skills, like cooking, cleaning and sewing. Only 20 percent of women under 30 surveyed said they could bake a cake and only 51 percent could cook a roast. Women of the Baby Boomer generation, however, said 85 percent could cook a roast and 45 percent could bake a cake.

I have never in my life needed to bake a cake or cook a roast. You know what? I don’t care to learn. But here is a list of more modern “womanly” skills the women of The Frisky do possess, which are a helluva lot more important:

I can pay my bills on time.
I can find a job.
I can multi-task.
I can keep my cool in stressful situations."

And most importantly, I'M NOT STUCK IN SOME STEREOTYPICAL IMAGE THAT SHOULD'VE DIED IN THE 1950's.

So there, Australian Courier-Mail Newspaper. Suck on THAT, you sexist freaks.

xoxo,
Rebel Deb

Yay for Tuscon :)

Hey, ya'll! Just got another review in from Tuscon, AZ:

Read the whole article here... or just keep scrolling down for the juicy bits. :)

Confessions of a Rebel Debutante: A Memoir by Anna Fields

I haven’t found much amusing about debutants since the days of Brenda Frazier. (Brenda who? Google it.)
Anna Fields is as Southern as corn bread and grits and probably would have made a terrific debutante if she hadn’t been such a rebel. She grew up in North Carolina but was more at home hanging upside down from a dogwood tree than learning to curtsy and the finer points of Southern high society.
While trying to learn the basics by wearing talcum powder in her hair to “keep the curl,” wearing kid gloves, and dancing with middle school boys in their big brothers’ tuxes, she realized quite quickly that becoming a deb simply wasn’t in her DNA. After rebelling at her private all-girls finishing school, she enrolled at Brown University which was followed by a disastrous short-lived acting career in L.A.
This is a laugh-out-loud memoir that is as comforting and refreshing as a frosty glass of sweet tea — the table wine of the South — consumed on a shady porch during a hot summer day.

Time You Ran for the Border, Taco "Grade 'D' Worm Meat Still Counts... Right?" Bell!

Remember the section of my book where I talk about the worm-farmer's daughter? Well, according to her father, his best customer was.... you guessed it! Taco "We use Grade D Beef" Bell!

According to articles all over the web (and this one below from Socialife.com), Worm-Meat Bell is now being sued. And they're claiming the allegations are false and they use 100% ground beef. Riiiiiight. Like a worm-farmer would lie!

An Alabama law firm has filed a class action lawsuit against Taco Bell that claims the chain is falsely calling its taco filling “seasoned beef” and “seasoned ground beef” when allegedly the mixture, which would be more properly called “Taco Meat Filling,” only contains 36% beef. Um, WTF!?

Hmmm…so what the hell is in this filling? Hopefully not soylent green. Interestingly enough (or disgustingly enough) it includes…

Water
Wheat oats
Soy lecithin
Maltrodrextrin
Anti-dusting agent (?)
Autolyzed yeast extract
Modified corn starch
Sodium phosphate
Isolated oat product
The USDA defines “Taco Meat Filling” as 40% meat, so if the lawsuit is correct, it seems like Taco Bell would have to up their beef levels to even qualify for that. Anyway, please feel free to continue eating our gordita while I munch on my nacho bell grande. Because you know what, that shit still hits the spot.

It's About that Time, Folks!

Hey, ya'll. :)

Sorry to have been so MIA lately, but I've been getting ready for the paperback release of "Confessions of a Rebel Debutante!"

Fresh new purdy pb's will hit stores on February 1, 2011. In the meantime, my friend "Girl from the Ghetto" is giving away two free copies on her blog. Check out her site to enter or keep reading a bit of what she has to say...


Confessions of a Rebel Debutante Book Giveaway

I’m thrilled to announce that I have 2 copies of Confessions of a Rebel Debutante by Anna Fields to giveaway!

Anna Fields, you had me at "You can take the girl out of the South, but you can’t take the South out of the girl!" I love nothing more than reading a story set in the south, or devouring a good memoir. Anna deliciously describes her childhood and what life was like going through (and eventually getting kicked out of) cotillion was like, beginning at age eleven, all the while making fun of everything about debbing including herself down to her big butt. After seeing her photo on the back of my book, I had a hard time believing she was ever fat, because she reminds me a little bit of Reese Witherspoon. But she forces me to believe it with tales of being a tall girl who wore glasses and had bad skin and a white girl ‘fro after reading her hilarious cheerleading tryout story to the tune of Too Legit to Quit.

Who would have thought a Winston-Salem girl could escape society by getting an Ivy League education, move to New York and LA and work for major celebrities such as Diana Ross and Jill Zarin, let alone act alongside the best of young hollywood in a major motion picture called Mona Lisa Smile, and eventually become a successful playwright, standup comedian and writer for As the World Turns? I can, after reading this book. I cracked up when Ms. Fields starts her memoir off with this line – I’ve only got one good story: How I became a Rebel Debutante. She’s got more than a hundred good stories in this book alone and I can not begin to cover most of them.

As much as I enjoyed hearing what life was like behind the scenes of debbing, I found the heart of Anna’s story in her own personal story, and not the story of the other rich and often drunk debutantes. Things really get rolling in the book when she began writing about her life at boarding school, the prestigious Wellington Academy run by a woman named Miss Freeze. Anna never fit in to begin with, but once she became best friends with her wild roommate Alma who was a fan of public ladyscaping, known as the campus queer for her unladylike and non-deb ways, and who told outrageous tall tales that even involved the Playboy Mansion, well, fun and adventures began that were even better than attending cotillion-related events. Alma, needless to say, was a bad influence on a Anna to begin with, but the two of them together had them both on some crazy adventures. They got caught drinking at a college fraternity party, and once stumbled across a girl from school who had just been raped, but they still were the ones who got in trouble because they were caught vacationing on the wrong side of town in Myrtle Beach, let alone their biggest adventure that included a tragedy I’ll let you discover on your own.

Who would have thought a Winston-Salem girl could escape society by getting an Ivy League education, move to New York and LA and work for major celebrities such as Diana Ross and Jill Zarin, let alone act alongside the best of young hollywood in a major motion picture called Mona Lisa Smile, and eventually become a successful playwright, standup comedian and writer for As the World Turns? I can, after reading this book. I cracked up when Ms. Fields starts her memoir off with this line – I’ve only got one good story: How I became a Rebel Debutante. She’s got more than a hundred good stories in this book alone and I can not begin to cover most of them.

You would be absolutely bonkers not to read this book, because not only would you not get to learn all about her very interesting and entertaining life, but you would miss out reading all of the celebrity dirt she has collected through the years. My god, the things she has written in this book and didn’t even hint at on the cover or in the press! An unnamed female Grey’s Anatomy star telling her they loved anal and want to make out with her, her interview with Dr. Ruth that had the famous sex counselor personally offended, and her time spent working a private waiting gig at Calabasas home for three sisters (who, to me, had to have been Kim, Kourtney and Khloe Kardashian) which ended in a FBI drug bust.

Visit Indiebound to purchase a copy of Confessions of a Rebel Debutante for yourself.

Contest ends Saturday, February 5, 2011 at midnight. Good luck to you all!

This Week's Celeb Rebel Deb: Elizabeth Edwards

"The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered," she wrote. "We know that. And yes, there are certainly times when we aren't able to muster as much strength and patience as we would like. It's called being human. But I have found that in the simple act of living with hope, and in the daily effort to have a positive impact in the world, the days I do have are made all the more meaningful and precious. And for that I am grateful."

RIP, sweet lady.

xoxo,
Rebel Deb

This Week's Celeb Rebel Deb: Susie the Dog

RALEIGH – Among the new state laws taking effect this week is one called Susie's Law. It creates stiffer penalties in animal cruelty cases.

Beginning Wednesday, it will be a felony to starve, torture, mutilate or disfigure an animal. Offenders could be sentenced to 8 months in prison.

The law is named after Susie, a Greensboro dog who was set on fire and left to die. She put her paw of approval on the bill in June when Gov. Bev Perdue signed it into law.

Lashawn Whitehead was convicted and sentenced to probation for hurting her.

Susie is now happy and healthy with her new adopted family.

Simply fyi: Rep. Nick Mackey, a Charlotte Democrat, attempted to water down the measure and voted against passage. An organization that has fought regulations on puppy breeders also spoke out against the bill.

“I’m asking you not to spend money on something that’s not needed,” said Henri McClees, speaking on behalf of the N.C. Sporting Dog Association. “North Carolina already has strong laws.”

So, for all you folks who live in Charlotte, if you ever get a chance to vote against Nick Mackey, go for it! And kudos to anyone who eggs Henri McClees' house. :)

xoxo,
Rebel Deb

National Novel Writing Month - Winner!

I just finished the first 50,253 words of my next book, ya'll. It's called "Thin." Fingers crossed for the next 50,000! I expect this baby will top out around 300 pages. Wish me luck!

xoxo
Rebel Deb

This Week's Celeb Rebel Deb: Norris Church Mailer

Sorry I've been a bit MIA lately, ya'll. I've been devastated by the loss of my good friend and proclaimed "surrogate mother," Norris. The last time I saw her, we ate tempura and sushi and talked about how much we had in common. She was an only child who grew up in the South. I was an only child who grew up in the South. She's been exposed to big cities and big celebrities and all the nonsense and hoopla that goes with both at a young age. Guess what? So had I. She loved powerfully; so have I. She worshipped the written word. So do I.

And now, the woman who got up in from of 950 people at a conference we were both invited to this past summer in Indianapolis and called me her "would-be daughter," who wanted me to meet her son, John Buffalo, because I "would love him and want to marry him," who told me all the secrets and stories she'd left out of her memoir about Norman, "A Ticket to the Circus"... is gone. She's gone and I'll never see her high-cheekboned, beautiful face again.

The least I can do is make her an official Celeb Rebel Debutante and pray with all my heart that wherever you are, Norris, you've got all the happiness life owed you. I love you and always will. You are remembered, sweet lady. With or without the circus surrounding you.

xoxo,
Rebel Deb



NEW YORK (AP) — She was half the age of Norman Mailer when they met and their bond was as fast and fateful as a mortal's coupling with a god.

Norris Church Mailer, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author's sixth and final wife, would enjoy and endure the ride of her life.

An actress, Wilhemina model, author and painter, Mailer died at her home in Brooklyn on Sunday. She was 61. Her passing was announced on the website of the Norman Mailer Society, which in a statement said she passed away "after a long and valiant struggle with cancer." A longtime family friend and assistant, Dwayne Raymond, said he and her two children and some close friends were at her home when she died.

As Norris Mailer wrote in her 2010 memoir, "A Ticket to the Circus," she was a single mother in her mid-20s when she met the then-52-year-old Norman Mailer at a 1975 cocktail party in his honor in Russellville, Ark. Their attraction was immediate, even if he was breaking up with his fourth wife and seeing the woman who would become his fifth. Norris Church became No. 6 in 1980. A son, John Buffalo, had been born two years earlier.

The new Mrs. Mailer discovered the consequences of fame. The macho Norman Mailer was charming, callous, wise and infuriating. Through her husband, Norris met Jacqueline Kennedy and Imelda Marcos, Woody Allen and Fidel Castro. Norman Mailer could talk about anything; she likened their banter to the rapport between Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. A sign of destiny: The Mailers both were born on Jan. 31.

But even as the author publicly rhapsodized over her auburn-haired beauty, he discouraged his wife's work, avoided her when he learned she had cancer and had affairs with several women, some of whom were referenced in his books and even showed up at social functions, at his invitation.

The tension became public by the early 1990s through gossip columns and in an ABC television interview when she told newsman Sam Donaldson that "one day Norman is a lion, the next day he's a monkey. Occasionally he's a lamb, and a large part of the time he's a jackass."

They drifted. She threatened to leave. He resisted. She stayed.

"I knew I was going to be with him for the rest of my life, and I think he felt the same way," she wrote. When the author died, in 2007, she was at his side and remembered his final moments: "His mouth spread in a huge smile, and his eyes were alive with excitement, as if he were seeing something amazing. Then he was gone."

A road worker's daughter raised in Little Rock and Atkins, Ark., she was born Barbara Jean Davis (a name not unlike Norma Jean Baker, the real name of Marilyn Monroe, subject of the only Norman Mailer book she had read when they met), and by age 3 had won a contest as Miss Little Rock. Popular in high school ("I was at the center of everything"), she attended Arkansas Polytechnic College and dated a childhood acquaintance, Larry Norris.

They married in 1969, and had a son, Matthew, two years later. But, as she recalled, they were too different — he preferring solitude, she preferring company. They divorced in 1974. As she began a modeling career, she changed her name to Norris Church, the last name suggested by Mailer because she attended church often as a child.

Tall and long-legged, the newly single Church enjoyed "a string of boyfriends," including Bill Clinton, then a candidate for Congress. He had a well-stocked staff of female admirers, she wrote, but clearly favored a plainly dressed blonde named Hillary Rodham who "had an intelligence none of the prettier girls in the room had."

"I would have so liked to be able to talk to him about world affairs and politics, or art or literature, or anything, frankly," Mailer wrote. "But we frankly never talked much."

Norris Mailer never considered herself in Norman Mailer's class as an author, but she did have a broad interest in the arts. Her paintings were featured in several one-woman shows. She was a member of the Actors Studio, appeared in the television adaptation of Mailer's classic "The Executioner's Song" and had a brief part, with her husband, in the film version of "Ragtime." She also wrote two novels, "Windchill Summer" and "Cheap Diamonds."

"I'd had a career. Family. I once had ambitions and dreams that had nothing to do with Norman Mailer," she wrote. "Norman changed my life and the ripples from that first meeting in Arkansas have spread through many others. I wouldn't trade with anybody in the world. And who knows what he's doing on the other side? I'm curious to catch up with him and find out."

The Rebel Debutante Shop - Now on Etsy!

Click HERE to check it out, y'all. :)

xoxo,
Rebel Deb

So... You Want to Get a PhD in the Humanities, Eh?

Click on the picture BELOW to view this hilarious short film, y'all!

This Week's Celeb Rebel Deb: Jimmy "The Rent is Too Damn High!" McMillian

Crazy "Rent Is Too Damn High" Candidate Steals the Show at NY Gov. Debate
by Matt Cherette

We told you that tonight's New York gubernatorial debate—with seven participants!—would be crazy, but we could have never anticipated this level of it: watch as Jimmy McMillan, of the "Rent Is Too Damn High" party, uh... introduces himself.

"Confessions of a Rebel Debutante," Now Available FOR PRE-ORDER in PAPERBACK!

Yep, that's right: We're. All. Doomed. And Here's Why...

Why We're Doomed

— By Kate Sheppard

| Tue Oct. 5, 2010 10:00 AM PDT

— Flickr/bastardo! (Creative Commons).

I don't typically weigh in on green consumer products or environmental marketing. But I'm making an exception given today's troubling news that Frito-Lay is ditching the biodegradable SunChips bag it unveiled 18 months ago because consumers have complained it was "too noisy." Seriously? The company is bagging the bag because American couch potatoes can't hear their TVs over the sound of their chip sack?

I don't necessarily blame Frito-Lay. It's a corporation and its job is to keep customers happy (and make money), so I can forgive them a little timidity on the issue, given that SunChips sales were apparently plummeting. What miffs me is that a little noise was apparently too much for Americans to handle. SunChips sales have reportedly declined more than 11 percent in the past 52 weeks because of the bags. The bags are made from plant-based materials and are 100 percent compostable, which was a pretty big deal—that means you can keep your chip habit without producing a ton of landfill waste. But due to the noise complaints, the company is pulling them immediately, USA Today reports:

The company is returning them to their former bags that can't be recycled — but won't wake the neighbors — while it works frantically to come up with a new, quieter eco-friendly bag.

The noise of the bag — due to an unusual molecular structure that makes the bag more rigid — has been compared to everything from lawnmowers to jet engines.

The article notes that there's a Facebook group with more than 44,000 members called "Sorry But I Can't Hear You Over This SunChips Bag," further evidence that the bags aren't all that popular. Actually, there are at least 153 different SunChip-themed Facebook groups, for whatever that's worth. For now at least, the company still has up its website touting the wonders of the bag, which notes: "Although our compostable bag is a bit louder, we hope you'll appreciate its environmental benefit." There's also a video showing how the bags break down in 14 weeks that concludes with the tag line "Change is irresistable" (which, um, apparently isn't the case).

I'll admit that the bags are certainly a lot louder than your regular non-biodegradable type. The noise is certainly enough to alert your living companions to your snack problem. (Maybe Frito-Lay should re-market it as a diet product if the noise is enough to discourage constant munching.) But is that really impacting Americans' ability to enjoy their chips? Is this what it comes down to—we want our chips crunchy but our bags have to remain silent?

I can't think of a more absurd example of how resistant to change Americans really are. It's not unlike the never-ending debate over compact fluorescent light bulbs; now that all of the other dumb arguments against the more efficient bulbs have been refuted repeatedly, the only one opponents have left is that they simply don't care for the way they look.

Of course everyone is entitled to have opinions about the relative aesthetics of consumer products, but should those really trump the environmental benefits? In the grand scheme of things, this is the absolute, bare-minimum level of sacrifice Americans are asked to make. They still get to eat the same chips, they just come from a different bag; they still light their homes, but with a slightly different bulb. But apparently that's still too much. Even worse is the fact that Americans can't muster the support to pass a climate bill, but a bunch of angry couch potatoes can successfully mobilize to force Frito-Lay to drop their innovative packaging. If the sound of a crinkly eco-chip bag is too much to handle, then the human species really is screwed.

This Week's Celeb Rebel Deb: Tony Curtis

"At 17, I dreamed of seeing the world. At 19, I had been around the world and back."

- Tony Curtis

RIP, Spartacus.

xoxo,

Rebel Deb

The Rebel Deb on "Reading with Robin" - WHJJ 920

I was up in Providence, RI, last Saturday, being interviewed by the lovely, adorable Robin Ringer (and her cutie daughter, Emmie!) at WHJJ 920. Her live show, "Reading with Robin," promotes all things books, and she regularly interviews some of the heaviest hitting authors of our age. I felt privileged to become one of them.

Click HERE to listen to my interview. And HERE to check out Robin on the web!

xoxo,

Rebel Deb

Happy Roald Dahl Day, Everyone!

I, for one, will be celebrating by reading "The BFG," followed by "The Vicar of Nibbleswick," all while devouring a sugar-sprinkled peach. :)

xoxo,

Rebel Deb

a HA! "I knew those Thin Mints tasted ungodly!"

The Girl Scouts are selling you lesbian, baby-killing feminist militia cookies

By VANESSA | Published: SEPTEMBER 8, 2010

Seriously, just look at that logo. SO gay.

"We’re a wee late getting to this, but it’s just too good not to mention. And no, this is not an Onion headline.

When the Girl Scouts aren’t helping young girls become confident and productive members of society, they’re apparently serving as a feminist training ground for godless, man-hating, pro-abortion lesbianism — at least according to Hans Zeiger, Republican candidate for Washington’s House of Representatives.

That’s right, this GOP candidate thinks that the nearly century-old organization has been brainwashing your children by feeding them lesbian abortion cookies, according to a statement that was found from earlier this decade:

One might wonder why the Girl Scouts have been spared the painful attacks that have been launched upon the Boy Scouts by the Left in recent years. The reasons are simple: the Girl Scouts allow homosexuals and atheists to join their ranks, and they have become a pro-abortion, feminist training corps.… If the Girl Scouts of America can’t get back to teaching real character, perhaps it will be time to look for our cookies elsewhere.”

I knew those Thin Mints tasted ungodly! While Zeiger has tried to cover his tracks by having the statement removed (along with a number of other problematic remarks found), the media beat him to the punch. So what was his response? That he removed them because the statements don’t represent his values anymore, adding that they would be a “distraction” from the campaign. Yeah, no shit — well, at least a distraction from the campaign he’s trying to put forth. Because I’d consider this pretty eye-opening information regarding the campaign, not a distraction, if you ask me."

By | Published: SEPTEMBER 8, 2hed: SEPTEMBER 8, 20