'Makeover' sued over woman's suicide - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

bossradio93 · 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 All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.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

Couch Potato 05 · 09-26-2005, 11:43 PM

People are lawsuit crazy. I heard about this crazy lawsuit on the radio because the sister is so weak that she committed suicde they're ready to blame someone else for that! This case needs to be thrown out!

Ireneparalegal · 09-26-2005, 11:53 PM

What this suicide proves is that the woman didn't need plastic surgery, she needed therapy for her "real issues". The people who get plastic surgery always say it will help their self-esteem, etc. Excuse me, but fixing the outside doesn't fix what may be a potential problem on the inside. There are some people for which plasic surgery will do what they want and they can move on, but someone like this lady who killed herself, obviously there was already some sort of mental instability that she related to her looks. Not to say she wasn't entitled to fix her "looks" but to kill herself over that tells me there is something that was really wrong with her.

sara · 09-27-2005, 02:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ireneparalegal

What this suicide proves is that the woman didn't need plastic surgery, she needed therapy for her "real issues". The people who get plastic surgery always say it will help their self-esteem, etc. Excuse me, but fixing the outside doesn't fix what may be a potential problem on the inside. There are some people for which plasic surgery will do what they want and they can move on, but someone like this lady who killed herself, obviously there was already some sort of mental instability that she related to her looks. Not to say she wasn't entitled to fix her "looks" but to kill herself over that tells me there is something that was really wrong with her.

The person who was going to have the plastic surgery didn't kill herself, it was her sister that commited suicide.

09-20-2005, 12:38 PM	#1
bossradio93 Game Show Fanatic! Senior Member Join Date: Nov 01, 2004 Location: Bellflower, California Posts: 2,392	'Makeover' sued over woman's suicide '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
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09-26-2005, 11:53 PM	#3
Ireneparalegal LEGAL SPICE ;) Forum Legend Join Date: Jul 25, 2005 Location: OXNARD, CA - WHERE THE DALLAS COWBOYS TRAIN & PRACTICE Posts: 38,691	What this suicide proves is that the woman didn't need plastic surgery, she needed therapy for her "real issues". The people who get plastic surgery always say it will help their self-esteem, etc. Excuse me, but fixing the outside doesn't fix what may be a potential problem on the inside. There are some people for which plasic surgery will do what they want and they can move on, but someone like this lady who killed herself, obviously there was already some sort of mental instability that she related to her looks. Not to say she wasn't entitled to fix her "looks" but to kill herself over that tells me there is something that was really wrong with her.
	__________________ DALLAS COWBOYS ARE HERE AT TRAINING CAMP!!!

09-26-2005, 11:43 PM	#2
Couch Potato 05 Night Owl! Frequent Poster Join Date: Jul 31, 2005 Location: California Posts: 392	People are lawsuit crazy. I heard about this crazy lawsuit on the radio because the sister is so weak that she committed suicde they're ready to blame someone else for that! This case needs to be thrown out!