The newest place to be seen? Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty Images
Last Saturday, the New York Times issued what amounted to an apology for a previous article that took a caustic look at JCPenney, which had dared to open an outpost in Manhattan. In the original story, the Times critic lampooned it as "a dowdy middle American entity" with "obese mannequins."
"It's like a headless wax museum devoted entirely to the cast of 'Roseanne,'" wrote the journalist, who quickly landed in hot water. It turns out the mother of Times executive editor Bill Keller enjoys shopping at Penney's and, he says, would have found the article "snotty." Oops!
The lesson for those who write about fashion is to remember that it's the airbrushed models on the billboards who are fake, but the people who shop for clothes are real.
Enter PeopleOfWalmart.com, a new Website that launched this month devoted to the customers of "America's favorite superstore."
It is a brutally funny photo collection of mullets, muffin tops and those weird sleeveless T-shirts some guys wear that have the sides cut out from the shoulder to the waist (what are those called, anyway?).
"It's not everywhere that you can shop for milk at 10 a.m. next to a 400lb mother of 6 wearing a pink tube top, leopard tights, and hooker heels," explain the founders of the site. It was created, they write, "in August of 2009 by three friends and roommates after an inspirational trip to WalMart."
Don't expect any hand-wringing apologies such as The Times published from these guys. They're even encouraging submissions by offering a prize of a Walmart gift card for $100. (I suspect they might even pay more if you get a picture of Bill Keller's mother.)Just think -- if you win the gift card, you could load up on Miley Cyrus' new line!