# The Decline of Eames

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-decline-of-eames/566284>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [January 3, 2011, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-decline-of-eames/566284 "2011-01-03T23:34:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\
**Post date:** [January 3, 2011, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-decline-of-eames/566284/1 "2011-01-03T23:34:32Z")

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I never started watching _Law & Order: Criminal Intent_ until this past year, so I’ve gotten to know the show through reruns. Hated to see Goren and Eames go! I loved Bobby… even after he put on a few pounds.

But what I’m wondering about is in the early reruns, say, around 2002-2003, Alex Eames looks really good. Nice hairstyle, wears makeup, a little jewelry. But in the later episodes, she looks very worn out and bedraggled. Stringy hair, no makeup, dark circles under her eyes… what’s up with that? Was it something to do with her character, or was something going on with the actress?

When I see a 2007 episode and then right after it an episode from 2003 or so, the contrast in her appearance is quite startling.

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**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:** [January 4, 2011, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-decline-of-eames/566284/2 "2011-01-04T00:08:44Z")

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Hadn’t noticed anything about her appearance, but then I don’t think I was looking (and probably watch all those episodes out of order). The actress who plays Eames, Kathryn Erbe, had a baby in 2003. If she was shooting while pregnant, that might explain a healthy glow and some usually-forbidden extra pounds. She also got divorced (from her old \*Oz \*co-star) after the baby was born, not sure how long after, which might explain the weight loss and other physical changes. Add to that the normal, human effects of aging 10 years plus a notoriously demanding _Law & Order_ work schedule and voila: not a great beauty regimen.

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**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\
**Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-decline-of-eames/566284/3 "2011-01-04T01:06:42Z")

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It wasn’t just normal aging. In the later shows, her hair was stringy and she stopped wearing makeup. They did work her pregnancy into the show- Eames was a surrogate for her sister.

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**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\
**Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-decline-of-eames/566284/4 "2011-01-04T17:16:42Z")

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No one else ever noticed?

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**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\
**Post date:** [January 4, 2011, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-decline-of-eames/566284/5 "2011-01-04T18:29:02Z")

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> [@ThelmaLou](#):
>
> No one else ever noticed?

I noticed that she got much frumpier. I don’t have any hypothesis, though.