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09-20-2005, 12:38 PM
'Makeover' sued over woman's suicide
Tuesday, September 20, 2005; Posted: 10:55 a.m. EDT (14:55 GMT)
LOS ANGELES, California (Reuters) -- A Texas woman has sued ABC's popular reality show "Extreme Makeover" for more than $1 million claiming among other things that an abrupt cancellation of her appearance on the program led to her sister's death.
Deleese Williams of Conroe, Texas, claims she came to Los Angeles to be a contestant on the show after undergoing a series of medical exams to determine if her crooked teeth and droopy eyes could be fixed and her small breasts enhanced, according the suit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.
The suit starts with the blunt description: "Deleese Williams is considered ugly" and says one doctor promised her "a Hollywood smile like Cindy Crawford."
To prepare for the show, the producers sent a crew to Texas in January 2004 to interview Williams and her family.
The suit claims the "Extreme Makeover" crew manipulated Williams' sister, Kellie, into making cruel statements about Williams' looks.
The night before Williams was to begin her makeover, the show's producers told her it would take too long for work on her jaw to heal. They canceled her appearance and sent Williams home where Kellie, distraught over what she had said about her sister, eventually killed herself, according to the suit.
"Sometimes Deleese blames herself for Kellie's death," the suit said.
An ABC spokeswoman was not immediately available to comment.
This isn't the first time a TV show has been linked to a death. In 1995, the "Jenny Jones Show" syndicated talk program became the center of controversy after one guest murdered another who revealed his homosexual "secret crush" on TV.
Copyright ©2005 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CNN.com-September 20, 2005
Tuesday, September 20, 2005; Posted: 10:55 a.m. EDT (14:55 GMT)
LOS ANGELES, California (Reuters) -- A Texas woman has sued ABC's popular reality show "Extreme Makeover" for more than $1 million claiming among other things that an abrupt cancellation of her appearance on the program led to her sister's death.
Deleese Williams of Conroe, Texas, claims she came to Los Angeles to be a contestant on the show after undergoing a series of medical exams to determine if her crooked teeth and droopy eyes could be fixed and her small breasts enhanced, according the suit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.
The suit starts with the blunt description: "Deleese Williams is considered ugly" and says one doctor promised her "a Hollywood smile like Cindy Crawford."
To prepare for the show, the producers sent a crew to Texas in January 2004 to interview Williams and her family.
The suit claims the "Extreme Makeover" crew manipulated Williams' sister, Kellie, into making cruel statements about Williams' looks.
The night before Williams was to begin her makeover, the show's producers told her it would take too long for work on her jaw to heal. They canceled her appearance and sent Williams home where Kellie, distraught over what she had said about her sister, eventually killed herself, according to the suit.
"Sometimes Deleese blames herself for Kellie's death," the suit said.
An ABC spokeswoman was not immediately available to comment.
This isn't the first time a TV show has been linked to a death. In 1995, the "Jenny Jones Show" syndicated talk program became the center of controversy after one guest murdered another who revealed his homosexual "secret crush" on TV.
Copyright ©2005 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CNN.com-September 20, 2005