Reality Tv Auditions
A happy loser: when I walked into a restaurant and discovered an audition for a weight-loss reality show, I said, "Sign me up"Matthew Kamont During a trip to Memphis, Tenn., last year with some friends from our home city of Allentown, Pa., I encountered the casting directors for the NBC show The Biggest Loser. I discovered them conducting auditions in a restaurant, and when I realized it was for a weight-loss reality show I said, "Sign me up." I immediately told them I was gay and they didn't really care, so I auditioned and they called me back to offer me a spot on the show.
I'm 25, and I have been ready to lose weight since I was 13. But my experience as a contestant on The Biggest Loser involved more than losing 70 pounds; it changed my entire life. I quit smoking. It improved my whole outlook. For me, it was not just about being overweight. It was about not liking myself because of it. I have a great personality, but it wasn't really doing me any good. If you're not happy with yourself, how can anybody else like you?
It sucks being overweight and gay. It often means being lonely. In the gay clubs people would give me dirty looks. And after I was rejected a few times it got hard to talk to people, so I would just stand there.
But some of the same people who used to look at me in disgust are now looking at me differently. A lot more people talk to me now. Maybe it's because I'm more attractive, or maybe it's because of my self-confidence. If I can be a role model, I would love it. One person told me that they came out of the closet the show motivated them to want to change. Some people have written letters and said it's inspiring to see a gay person who's overweight on TV and having the same issues as them.
I'm not out to tell all overweight gay men to get thinner. I wish I could have been happy with myself when I was overweight, but I wasn't. If somebody who's overweight can look in a mirror and feel good about themselves, that's great. But that's not me.
Now I'm pursuing a dream of working in the entertainment industry. I put myself out there on The Biggest Loser, not only as a gay man but also by standing on that scale. And now I love myself for me.
COPYRIGHT 2005 Liberation Publications, Inc.
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