# I Miss Ugly People on TV **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 6, 2009, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561 "2009-05-06T17:37:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/1 "2009-05-06T17:37:38Z")
Okay, maybe by Ugly I mean “Normal Looking” I grew up on shows like “All in the Family” “The Odd Couple” “Barney Miller” “Carol Burnett” “Sanford & Son” “Columbo” “Cannon” “Quincy, ME”. And I’ll tell you one thing, I could stand to look at them way more than I can shows nowadays. If I see another main character that looks like they just stepped out of Vogue or GQ, I will puke. I see these sorts on television, and I automatically think boring and shallow. I don’t even give shows a chance anymore. Just looking at them makes me want to turn the channel. Now I stick to cartoons and documentaries. Everyone says how much better television is written these days, and I guess I will never find out because I can’t relate to anyone on the screen. I look normal. I want to see normal people. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/2 "2009-05-06T17:41:10Z")
I hear what you’re saying. I saw an episode of Acording to Jim once (yes, I know, According to Jim has been banned by the Geneva Convention as a cruel and unusual form of torture) and Courtney Thorne Smith was wiggling her butt and talking about how fat she was. Courtney Thorne Smith is not fat. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/3 "2009-05-06T17:52:15Z")
Check out “My Name is Earl.” Except for Joy and Catalina, everybody is kinda funny looking. That show’s a riot! ---
**Author:** ![h.sapiens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e0b2c6/32.png) [@h.sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/h.sapiens)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/4 "2009-05-06T17:58:44Z")
Most of the people on “The Office” are very ordinary-looking, and some (Dwight) are downright funny-looking. ---
**Author:** ![Neverending\_Elbow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e274bd/32.png) [@Neverending\_Elbow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neverending_Elbow)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/5 "2009-05-06T18:08:51Z")
Is ‘funny-looking’ a euphemism for ‘ugly’? Or is it more nuanced? I’m not really tired of looking at pretty or beautiful people, but I am tired of all the fakeness and near-uniformity. I sometimes have trouble telling actors apart, because, apparently, when you appear on TV you’re supposed to fit the mould as well as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/6 "2009-05-06T18:22:34Z")
> [@Neverending\_Elbow](#): > > Is ‘funny-looking’ a euphemism for ‘ugly’? Or is it more nuanced? I think it just means that they have unusual features but aren’t repulsive or anything. [Gum-Chewing Prostitute from _Fargo_]You know… “Funny looking”.[/GCPFF] ---
**Author:** ![filling\_pages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9bd4f/32.png) [@filling\_pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filling_pages)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/7 "2009-05-06T18:26:19Z")
Most of the crew on 30 Rock range from funny looking to eh, average. (Not counting the adorable Tina Fey). Someone already mentioned My Name is Earl. The funniest show on tv, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, doesn’t field many lookers. The Office, for sure. Now that I think about it, it seems that the more average-looking the cast, the funnier the show. ---
**Author:** ![Neverending\_Elbow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e274bd/32.png) [@Neverending\_Elbow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neverending_Elbow)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/8 "2009-05-06T18:35:47Z")
> [@filling\_pages](#): > > Now that I think about it, it seems that the more average-looking the cast, the funnier the show. Which would explain why people on drama shows have to be beautiful. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/9 "2009-05-06T18:37:12Z")
> [@h.sapiens](#): > > Most of the people on “The Office” are very ordinary-looking, and some (Dwight) are downright funny-looking. I don’t know. Jim and Pam are both downright attractive, and any character introduced to be a love interest to a not-unattractive character is always quite attractive (Jan, Holly, Karen). Charles Miner isn’t unattractive, and Kelly (the new receptionist) is very attractive. Kelly Kapoor and Angela aren’t unattractive either. The Office is better than many shows, I guess, but there’s still a blatant bias towards attractive people. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/10 "2009-05-06T18:52:08Z")
> [@filling\_pages](#): > > It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, doesn’t field many lookers. Are you kidding? Every woman I know who watches would hit it, and not just Dennis. For the OP: get BBC America. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/11 "2009-05-06T19:03:31Z")
Based on all the shows **2MC** mentioned being from the 70s, I’m going to guess _ugly_ means middle-aged, funny-shaped, white “ethnic types” with New York accents dressed in tasteless doubleknit clothing. ---
**Author:** ![DaphneBlack](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daphneblack/32/5389_2.png) [@DaphneBlack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaphneBlack)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/12 "2009-05-06T19:15:28Z")
I gotta say, I really don’t mind that people on TV are good-looking. It’s nice to look at pretty people, and lots of the pretty people on TV are good actors. I don’t enjoy bad acting, but there’s no reason to assume that because someone is pretty they are a bad actor. It’s just as much of a bias to see ‘pretty’ and think shallow and stupid. Especially since the writing on a show (which is the most important thing for how enjoyable a show is, IMHO) has little to do with the appearance of the actors. What I’m sick of is ‘teenagers’ who are thirty. That’s just stupid, and prevents me from watching Gossip Girl (I know, how horrible). ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/13 "2009-05-06T19:18:02Z")
Sanford and Son had white people? ---
**Author:** ![Tenebras](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@Tenebras](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tenebras)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/14 "2009-05-06T19:23:47Z")
The whole thing was done in blackface. Check the production notes. [Link](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanford_and_Son). ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/15 "2009-05-06T19:30:05Z")
Frankly, I’m sick of all the ugly people on television. If I wanted to see ugly people I’d look out my window.\* It seems like, except for a handful of dramas that I don’t watch, “Reality” television has purged just about all the attractive people from TV. It is so much cheaper to hire some random slob or fat ex-celebrity off the street that nobody wants to hire real actors anymore. It’s a good thing all I ever watched was baseball and cartoons anyway. \*or in the mirror. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/16 "2009-05-06T19:38:42Z")
I see the general public all day. The general public, generally, is not terribly attractive. Television and movies are a form of escapism. If the characters on the shows (comedies and dramas) I watch are more attractive than the general population, that’s fine with me. Watch some reality TV. **The Biggest Loser** , **Hell’s Kitchen** , **Top Chef** , even **American Idol** - there are as many homely/average/unattractive contestants as there are hotties. More, probably. (written before I saw **DrCube** ’s post.) ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/17 "2009-05-06T19:39:16Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > I don’t know. Jim and Pam are both downright attractive, and any character introduced to be a love interest to a not-unattractive character is always quite attractive (Jan, Holly, Karen). Charles Miner isn’t unattractive, and Kelly (the new receptionist) is very attractive. Kelly Kapoor and Angela aren’t unattractive either. > > The Office is better than many shows, I guess, but there’s still a blatant bias towards attractive people. In my opinion, every woman you mentioned (with the poss. exception of Kelly Kapoor) is more attractive than Pam, and Jan, Karen and Kelly the new character are light years beyond Pam, who while cute, seems to have a lot of men claiming she is a paper goods Goddess of some sort… I dont see it, especially with the others I mentioned above in the same cast. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/18 "2009-05-06T19:39:36Z")
Fortunately they discovered only beautiful women can read the news. Before that they had ugly people like Walter Conkrite . They finally got it right. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/19 "2009-05-06T19:56:27Z")
What pisses me off, in addition to the OP’s stuff, is how the guys are so much uglier than the girls. Girls want eye candy, too! ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2009, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561/20 "2009-05-06T20:02:15Z")
> [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](#): > > I hear what you’re saying. I saw an episode of Acording to Jim once (yes, I know, According to Jim has been banned by the Geneva Convention as a cruel and unusual form of torture) and Courtney Thorne Smith was wiggling her butt and talking about how fat she was. > > Courtney Thorne Smith is not fat. The big difference is that in the old days, Jim would not have been married to someone like Courtney Thorne-Smith. He would have been married to someone like Roseanne. And putting someone like Brad Garrett with Joely Fisher in [Til Death](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0759475/)? There’s no way I ever bought her as a slobby housewife who had been married to him for 25 years – particularly since she was 41 when the show started. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-miss-ugly-people-on-tv/495561.md?page=2)