tv Larry King Live CNN January 3, 2010 9:00pm-10:00pm EST
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wyoming, for next sunday. check out cnn.com/stateoftheunion where you can see what we learned when we traveled to your state. john will be back next sunday and every sunday at 9:00 a.m. eastern for the first last word in sunday talk. until then, i'm gloria borger in washington. thank you for joining us. >>. ♪ there's something that i want to tell you ♪ >> larry: tonight, tyra banks, from top model. >> the reason why they paid me what they paid me was because i moved the product. >> larry: to media mogul. >> i finally figured out that my brand is beauty inside and out. >> larry: she dares to bear her real self to the world. >> yeah, it's kinky, exactly.
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>> larry: tyra banks shows and tells. >> i'm over my last name. >> larry: so what are you now? >> just tyra, just call me tyra. >> larry: next on "larry king live." >> larry: good evening, what a pleasure to welcome her back. tyra banks -- since this show she's become major. she appears here in january, 2007, look what's happened to her since. host of the tyra show. creator and executive producer of "america's top model" and recently launched an online magazine called "tyra beauty inside and out." >> larry: are you looking to be oprah, is that it? >> if i tried, i would fail. >> larry: you're approaching it?
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>> she's like the god mama, there never has been and there never will be another. but looking to be her, no. i started as a model, so the path is quite different. >> larry: okay, you got it. >> but i mean, i bow down to her. >> larry: last time you were on, you were dealing with the f word, fat, unflattering tabloid photo of you and remember in the swimsuit? you have lost weight since then. do you think like a fat person? >> i don't, actually. you know, when i told the world to kiss my fat -- i can say ass, right? >> larry: yeah, you can. >> when i told people to kiss my fat ass, i remained that size for two years, i maintained it with my ice cream, and salad, ranch dressing, croutons, bacon bits. i didn't look at myself, even on television and think that i was too big, or it didn't connect. but since i have lost a lot of weight and it started with a weight loss challenge actually at top of this year. so i'm two years after kiss my fat ass.
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>> larry: as you describe, croutons, ranch dressing, you sounded like you missed it. >> i love it. i love food. >> larry: do you make substitutes? >> yes, i still have my caesar salad. i just do it with balsamic vinaigrette. and extra parmesan cheese. but i did this with my friends. we were sitting around the table and kind of trash talking and decided to do this challenge because we all love food. i trash talked so much where i had to win and i did. >> larry: when you look in the mirror, are you happy with the way you look? >> okay, i'm doing a little bit of tmi, you know what tmi is? too much information. i always feel great when i don't
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have clothes on, at home, by myself. that's too much information. but i always feel good that way. >> larry: so you don't look at yourself nude and say "i don't like this." >> unless the lighting is bad in the dressing room. i always feel good. but sometimes, certain clothe z when i put them on and they don't fit the way that i would like them to, that's when i tend to get self-conscious. >> larry: would you say that you're a particular person? >> yes, but not with my physical image. particular with my work. >> larry: you kicked off season five of your talk show by revealing your real hair. let's watch this. let's watch. >> let's talk about my hair right now, i know it's been a big mystery. and it was like it was an unsolved mystery and i felt like i needed to solve this mystery, like, i have worn weaves and wigs and pieces and clip-ones and clip outs, and clip downs and arounds, since i was 17, 18 years old. i wanted to show the real me, i wanted to show the raw me. i just got out of the shower,
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beat the face, first, y'all, of course, and just came out on the stage and this me, y'all, this is me. >> larry: how did that feel? >> oh, my god, it felt so liberating. it felt so liberating. i have worn fake hair since i was 17 years old. >> larry: extensions and all. >> extensions, weaves, wigs, i mean, just, everything, so just to be able to be myself, it felt liberating and free. but i also did it because i feel like i have a responsibility because there's young girls that come up and say, tyra, i want to look just like you. and i don't look like me. >> larry: this is real? >> you want to feel my scalp. it's real kinky, it's like real black girl hair. go in there. >> larry: it's kind of kinky. kingy. it's kinky, my natural hair texture is kinky. >> larry: is bad hair day worse for black women than white women? because the hair is different, right? >> the netexture.
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hair for black women, we spend $9 billion a year on hair products each year, black women do. so growing up in the media, where they're saying a certain type of hair is beautiful and yours isn't. it's very difficult for black women, black women. and it is a long political thing that we can do a whole show about. but i felt it was my responsibility to show as much of my real hair as possible. now my natural texture is a lot kinkier but it is chemically straightened. >> larry: black men too? black men used to change their hair? >> 40s and 50s, black men are pretty natural now. the jerry-curl. >> larry: does it feel better to be natural? >> it feels better to be natural. but i have to admit, it is hard to upkeep it. like when i workout when i wear wigs and weaves, i work out, you just wash it really fast and you keep -- you go because you're putting fake on top of real.
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with my real hair, for years, i forgot why black women are running from the rain. like "why y'all running, i don't understand?" i had wigs and weaves. now when it rains, i run. >> larry: with all that's happened to you, do you kind of pinch yourself? >> i'm starting to learn to celebrate success. like for -- >> larry: you should. >> i'm learning that. because i'm very driven, like, you know, whenever i see a young girl that has an issue or an insecurity, so i'm like i got to tackle that. now i have got to do that. so i'm always pushing, pushing, pushing, but i have to stop and take a vacation, go to dinner, go to the movies, like enjoy my success. >> larry: do you like celebrity? do you like being celebrity? >> the one thing i like about being a celebrity more than anything is being able to get into any restaurant i want. that is the best. >> larry: that is the best. >> larry: and the table ain't by the kitchen. >> it ain't by the kitchen. what i don't like about
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celebrity is people quote us higher, larry. if this cup doesn't really have a price tag on it, they see larry king or tyra banks coming it is $10 when it's really worth $2.50. >> larry: yes, every day. tyra banks is our guest. we will be right back. plus an additional 8 hours of relief after you take it off! thermacare® delivers heat that penetrates deep, to relax, soothe and unlock tight muscles. after the heat gets really deep, my muscles do feel loose. even after i took thermacare® off, my back stayed loose for the next day. go to trythermacare.com and get up to 16 hours of pain relief... ...with thermacare®
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♪ tyra ♪ tyra ♪ tyra >> larry: we're back with tyra banks who's everywhere, doing everything. in july, "forbes" magazine rank ed you as the fifth most influential woman in the media behind oprah, diane sawyer, barbara walters and ellen degeneres. >> my mama sent me that article. >> larry: do you want to be number one? >> oh, gosh, i don't think it's possible. >> larry: did it flatter you? >> heck yeah, it does. my mom sent this to me and i said, oh, my god, look at this. i still find it a little odd though. but it's very flattering but odd. >> larry: how does mom feel? >> my mama is so proud. >> larry: yeah. >> yeah, i can always tell when she's tearing up and when she sent that to me, i could tell she was tearing up. >> larry: "the new york times" magazine branded you as the big next female branded self. have you become -- you don't need your last name anymore. right? >> i'm over my last name.
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>> larry: that's when you made it. all you say is tyra. >> you know, as a model, i was tyra banks, my given name that my parented -- parents named me. and for a while we decided as a model to drop the banks. iman, all the big models had the one name. then i decided to use my last name again and now i'm over it. >> larry: so what are you now? >> just tyra, just call me tyra. >> larry: what is your brand do you think? when you ushg m mermerge into s things, what are you? >> when i really had time to go into what my core values are, my passion is really dealing with women, young women and women in general. and i finally figured out that my brand is beauty inside and out. it is inside and outside. to just say, we're only going to focus on the inside is not realistic, when it comes to young girls because their physical self is so important to them. so, so important.
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just to focus on outside wouldn't be like dealing with whom i am in my core. i think it is really beauty inside. >> larry: is there a down side to being beautiful? >> is there a down side? are you calling me beautiful? >> larry: you're single. >> larry: some men feel like they can't approach you. >> yeah. >> larry: i can't ask tyra out on a date. >> that happens. but the ones that do, either they are very cocky or very confident. >> larry: so you're not alone on saturday nights? >> am i alone on saturday nights? i don't know. >> larry: i don't think so. >> you don't think so. you were cast as the first lady in the layout in "harper's bazaar." what do you think about michelle obama? >> when she delivered her speech, i salt there and teared up. i called my mom, i said no offense, oprah winfrey is my role model, and you are my role model and i have a new one. i find her to be the epitome of
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elegance, and class. >> larry: she sat in that chair three times, every time she makes an impression. >> she's an amazing mother. she protects her children like -- they didn't ask for this. they just so happened to beep the first children of our country. i just find her absolutely amazing. >> larry: i learned a few weeks ago, she only work twos days a week. the other five are the kids' days. she is a mother first. >> she is a mama. i love that about her, and her hair is fantastic. >> larry: and she has real hair? >> she has real hair, but if she wants to wear a weave, that's okay. >> larry: what about the way she dresses? >> i love it. i think she pushes the box on what a first lady should look like. that's what i am about, redefining beauty, breaking stereotypes, being your own unique individual. >> larry: what did you make of jimmy carter's recent remarks that part of the reason for the anger at the president is racist? >> yeah, i -- honestly i have
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not seen it. but i have read a lot of what has been going on recently. and i have to kind of go with what our president says, you know, he says in terms of health care, there's, you know, it's very volatile, certain people believe this, certain people believe that, and it's a lot of things maybe can get misconstrued or -- i don't know, i have to really defer to him on that. >> larry: based on her, did you ever feel in your life looked down upon because of your color? >> most definitely. that's just the state of where we are right now. most definitely, but it makes me stronger, and it makes me open up my arms with love as opposed to feeling angry about it. >> larry: you faced it in modeling? didn't you? >> most definitely, every single day of my modeling career i was told that i couldn't get a job or do certain things because of the color of my skin. >> larry: you were on "sports illustrated's" cover, right? >> yes and others.
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>> larry: you're the jackie robinson of female modeling. >> am i. >> larry: i hereby declare it. lots to talk about. still america's next top model, we'll talk about that too in 60 seconds. >> the next thing we have -- >> oh. >> a crystal ball. >> oh, that's nice. let me take a look at that. >> what do you see in your future, senator. >> it says -- i see the white house right there. [ announcer ] if you think about it, this is a lot like most job search sites. - they let everyone in, - [ crowd groans ] so the best people can't stand out. join theladders.com. the premium job site for only $100k+ jobs... and only $100k+ talent.
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>> larry: we're back with the terrifically talented tyra banks. "the tyra show" is now in its fifth season. it's won two daytime emmys for outstanding and informative talk show. here are some of tyra's more memorable moments. watch. >> looks like me. i can't really feel it. >> my name is tyra banks. >> this is -- >> say that again? >> my name is tyra banks. can we have some change? excuse me, sir, can we have some change?
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>> in this cape right now, going to unveil it. this one you might not want to spet, because it's spiky. >> oh, my god. oh, my god. ah! >> you almost got a little bit of a will smith thing. >> don't be jealous, will. do you want to give me a kiss. >> no. >> no? >> uh-uh. yeah. >> so i have something to say, to all of you who have something nasty to say about me or other women that are built like me, kiss my fat ass! >> larry: by the way, do you like being on the cw better than syndicated? >> i love -- well the talk shows now move to the cw, "america's top model." i love it because it's all one
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big happy family -- >> larry: demographically young people. >> our ratings are huge right now with the talk show. like we're number two 18 to 34, demographic for the talk show, women that are younger and older watch the show. of course. advertised as a very happy. >> larry: congratulations. >> larry: tyra interviewed chris brown along before the famous incident with rhianna. ahead we'll get thoughts on chris and rhianna. stay with us. get all your insurance from one allstate agent, and you can get multiple discounts... on your multiple policies. simpler is smarter. that's allstate's stand. are you in good hands? this is a honda pilot.
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>> on the count, of one, two, three -- >> tomorrow night, a special guest, our special guest now is tyra banks. when singer chris brown was accused of beating up his girlfriend rhianna, earlier this year, many people recalled an interview that he did with you. we played a clip from that interview and asked him about it. watch and we'll get your reaction, watch. >> larry: chris, the february 8th episode shocked a lot of people for a lot of reasons, including the fact that chris had spoken out about his mother having been a victim of domestic violence. here's some of what you told tyra banks before the incident. watch. >> it affected me, especially toward women, i treat them differently, because i don't want to go through the same thing or put a woman through the same thing that that person put my mom through. >> larry: what happened? >> i made a mistake. i made a mistake and it's just
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something that i have to live up to and own and just know that i can change and be a better person. but i definitely made a mistake. >> larry: what is your read on that whole story? >> yeah. first it was very shock ing when i first heard that it happened, you know, there's so many rumors in the entertainment industry and was like oh, that's just a rumor and more and more police evidence comes out and photos and i was just like in shock. for a moment i was in shock and then i went back to the interview that i had with chris brown and he told me that he experienced this abuse of not his father, but i think it was a father figure, but not his biological father on his mother and that he was so scared, you know, hearing his mother scream and in so much pain -- >> larry: he heard things. >> he heard it. he didn't see it. he would always hear it. he was so terrified that he said he would wet his bed and became a bed wetter for an embarrassingly long time.
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and he admitted that to me. and when i heard that, i said, wow, the cycle is repeating. that's the first thing i thought. >> larry: so do you feel sorry for him, angry at him? >> yeah. >> larry: what? >> both. i feel sorry for him because we all know i have covered domestic violence, especially with teens on my talk show and we do know that it is a cycle. you know, when you experience something, there's a large chance that you are going to become the perpetrator. so that is where the sympathy goes out because he is a victim. but at the same time, your reasoning for being -- for doing something does not execute the fate of somebody else. >> larry: were you shocked that a lot of his female fans blamed her? >> uh-huh. there's a -- right now in society, especially with the internet and there's a lot of negativity that goes on. >> larry: of course. >> and there's such a safe place to just say craziness. a lot of it can be them maybe rhianna's so beautiful and she's
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so fantastic and she's so lovely and she's got this great voice and this great career, you know, so maybe it's easy to just go, you know, it's your fault. but i don't necessarily think that a lot of those girls really, truly believe that behind their computers. >> larry: have you ever been physically abused? >> no, not physically. >> larry: psychologically? >> most definitely. >> larry: verbally? >> most definitely. >> larry: how did you handle it? some would think a beautiful girl like you would take abuse, you took abuse? >> most definitely for years. >> larry: was it a boyfriend. >> there's four different types of abuse. there's sexual, there's verbal, there's emotional and there's physical. and i was emotionally abused. a little verbal. but a lot of emotional. and what -- you know, i didn't necessarily think it was my fault, even though he would constantly tell me i treat you this way because you make me treat you this way. i didn't think it was my fault, but at the same time, i wanted to prove to him that i was lovable enough because my self-esteem was lower at that time in my life.
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and i stayed for such a long time until one day i looked in the mirror and out loud in his house, i said to myself, tyra, what is wrong with you, who are you? get away from him. i said something like that to myself. it still took me months to get out but i finally did. and now i have young girls from the -- from the girls that are not famous to girls that are in the entertainment industry that come to me because i have told this story and many other stories about insecurities and things. >> larry: you have been stalked too, right? >> you didn't let me finish. a lot of these girls, they call me and i become kind of like a big sister to these girls to help them with a lot of these different things that they're going through in the entertainment industry and not in the entertainment industry. but now what were you saying? >> larry: do you ever have a fear it will ever happen again? >> it will never happen again. >> larry: never? >> never. thank god it did happen because i know what it feels like, and i know the signs of me feeling like less of a person and i can be susceptible to it. an abuser, they're like a heat
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seeking missile, they can scan a room and know, it's like boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, like they know who the abuser is and they know who to go after. the missile would go like this to me, it would never come back. >> larry: our good friend dr. drew has written a brilliant commentary for us on civil rights and gay marriage. take a minute and read dr. drew's insights by going to our blog -- go to cnn.com/larryking. back with more of tyra right after the break.
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through the wrong side of the checkpoint without even being screened. travelers who had already passed through security check points they're being rescreened causing huge congestion and a whole lot of delays and a whole lot of frayed nerves and tempers. alina cho joins us. talk to us about what happened? >> don, i am one of the lucky ones. i was inbound to newark. my flight came in from florida 1 1/2 ago. i got down to baggage claim, happily, able to report i was able to claim my luggage. so that is very, very good news for the people who are incoming to newark. however, for the people who are hoping to fly out of newark, this evening, there is not a lot of movement. at the security checkpoint, no one was moving through. there were only people coming out to go to baggage claim. so, what i can tell you is that i spoke with several people who were on their plane, or at least
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an hour, if not more, and were eventually told by the pilot who came on the intercom, made an announcement saying there had ben a security breach. everyone had to get off the plane and go through the screening process again. as you can imagine, you talked about this, don. this is a very busy tomb of year to travel. people are already frustrated, patience is wearing thin, and it is just utter mayhem really and confusion here at newark airport. not a lot of people know what is going on. they know that there is some sort of security breach. i, myself have tried to talk to some gate agents, some police officers, and nobody is talking about specifics, don. >> alina cho. alina took the pictures you are seeing there with her cell phone, e-mailed them to cnn. she is a lucky one on an inbound flight. we are also being told authorities are looking at security video, reviewing video from the airport cameras to try to identify the man to see how
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he got through security and who exactly he is. so details to come in this. causing a whole lot of trouble on a very, very busy travel day. our own ali velshi flew in to newark and is sitting on an airplane. he is told it will be an hour, hour and a half before he can get off the airplane. in 30 minutes we'll update you top of the hour. 10:00 p.m. eastern, cnn, on this story as well as other developing news here on cnn. i am don lemon. and "larry king live" continues right now. >> larry: she is everywhere. tyra banks, producer and host of "america's top model" on cw, she recently launched a magazine "tyra beauty inside and out" her own show, tyra show and a show
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with ashton kucher. >> a show "true beauty" we are executive producers. contestants think they're competing to be the externally beautiful person, but really on internally beautiful. >> larry: is it on? >> abc renewed it. >> larry: not cw? >> no, on abc. >> larry: in a recent interview you said you wish you were more of a diva. define diva. >> i didn't say that, somebody asked me was i one and i said no, i wish i was more of one, but i would never just say that quote. >> larry: what is a diva to you? >> different things. i mean a diva can be a recording artist that just you know can sing her butt off and does not need any auto tuning or any computerized vocal help that commands a crowd that brings people to their knees and then there's the negative connotation of it. >> larry: like serena williams, was that a diva attitude? >> my gosh, no that was a
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-- an athlete, a competitor. and when serena does that she's a diva, and when a male athlete does that he's just being competitive and emotional. so that's sad. >> larry: you were asked some of the negative stuff said about you might stem from jealousy and you said you side stepped the question, is that true? >> no, i was asked that question -- that there was some negativity that was said about me from some people that i have hired in the past from one of my shows and i asked the person that was interviewing me, similar to an interview like this, i asked them why they think these people were saying these things about me and i pushed the person because i interview people for a living and sometimes, when you ask a question, you have a thought, you know, you have an opinion, so i was asking the interviewer's opinion, the interviewer said it was jealousy. i didn't say that. >> larry: do you listen to answers? >> i do. larry when i first started i would not listen to answers, i would be thinking about the next question. thinking about the next question. now i listen. sometimes i just throw away my prep.
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>> larry: do you think you intimidate people, do you? >> yeah, i think so. >> larry: what can you do about that? >> be myself. and most definitely try to pull away from as much of the image that they think that i am. i think the intimidation probably cups from my past career, you know, because i used to be a model. and model stands for so many different things especially the type of modeling i used to do, supermodel, sexy. like a character i used to play. it is not me at all. >> larry: when a model is a supermold, sports ill stralted bathing suit, tyra banks, does it sell the suit rather than sell yourself? >> as a model, you are selling the outfit. and i do think that supermodels, the reason why they're paid so much is because they move the product more. so when -- >> larry: they actually check that, they know that? >> i know that because when i was a contract victoria secret model for ten years that the reason why they paid me what they paid me, because i moved the product.
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if it was on me, it would sell more than if it was on somebody else. >> larry: therefore the woman, a man looking at it would look at you and the face and down to the suit. >> 90% of the victoria secret buyers are female. 90% female. >> larry: and they look at what you're wearing? >> they look at what i'm wearing. >> larry: what makes a good model? >> larry, a good modelle, i think she needs to know how to to "sm-eyes." >> larry: how to? to "sm-eyes." you have to smile with your eyes. you have how to be able to -- sell a magazine cover or sell that perfume or sell those clothes and it all starts with the eyes. i actually did an interview with lynn hirschberg from "the new york times" magazine. and she said, tyra, i hear, you know how to smile with your eyes so many different types of ways. she quoted i can do it 275. i'm not sure that i can do that many. >> larry: are you smiling with
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your eyes? this is not "sm-eyes'ing", this is dead eyes. and this is smiling with your ey eyes. >> larry: do all the good models do that? >> yes. all the good models do that. >> larry: you cannot trademark that? >> i wish i could trademark that. >> larry: what is it about the -- why do the eyes sell the product? >> it is about the window to the soul. if you're just like dead, like this, you're not going few sell that makeup. but if you're -- you are -- can get a date by "sm-eyesing, you can get a job by "sm-eyes?" >> larry: yes, you can, too intense, soften it, soften it. novocain mouth, dead mouth. squint a little bit. not with the lips. dead lips, eyes, nice, works, work, works, yes, you did it. you're doing it.
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>> larry: jeez i'm falling in love with myself. we'll be right back. >> be afraid, because i'm going to defeat you with my "sm-eyes." otherwise known as smile with my eyes. >> this is what i'm talking about. this is the "sm-eyes." i'm going to take a picture. oh, my god! >> go! >> i have never seen that color in my life. >> and you never will unless you learn the power to "sm-eyes." you can be more powerful than any model. including those glamazon tall -- out here.
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guys. >> larry: we have a tweet question for tyra. do you tweet? >> oh, my god, i love it. i follow you. >> larry: it's a sickness, isn't it? >> yes, you have to like control yourself or else it will consume your life. i have done shows on tweeting on the talk show and had people that were addicts on, i was like oh, my god, just put it down. i don't understand it. i get it now. i love it. i love being able to connect to people. it's hard for me to walk down the street. >> larry: we need a tweet hospital to get people off of it. >> a twaspital. >> larry: a twaspital. >> larry: ask tyra what she misses most about her life as a model. >> oh, my gosh, i miss absolutely nothing about my life as a model. i have a show that i can mentor girls and teach them every
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single thing they know. so i don't miss it at all. at all. >> isn't a lot of it boring? >> larry: it didn't push me creatively as much as i would like. toward the end of my modeling career, i remember, some of the clients, in between shots they would look at me and go, i know, i know you're done. >> larry: it's over. >> i know you're ready to go. but i like producing and creating and i'm in the business now of creating stars, i'm more interested in that than building my own. >> larry: you pretty much kept the same male modelles, judges right? a few female judges you have gone through, right? >> there are five judging spots on "america's next top model" right now there's myself, miss jay and there's nigel. but the -- that's three. i'm sorry, there are four. there are four permanent or semipermanent spots. the spot of the female
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established almost retired legendary supermodel is something that's cycled so every couple of seasons we cycle that position. we've had twiggy. >> larry: why is that show so successful? >> i think it's successful because it pulls back the curtain on a world that seems so intimidating. a world that people thought was vapid. a job that people thought took absolutely no skill. and we showed the world that it is -- it is a skill. i think it's also popular because i have made sure that i do not have just stereotypical beauty on the show. it's my passion in life, it is -- one of the reasons why i feel like i was put here is to redefine beauty to open up the doors, so i feel like i have struck gold and i have reached my goal when young girls are looking at top model going, she can model? because if she can model, i can model. because it's saying it's not the cookie cutter of beauty.
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. >> oh, my god, breaking down and crying. tyra -- she looks so like a complete barbie doll. >> i am the -- ghost. >> i am looking for someone to light my chariot of fire. i am looking for america's next top model! most girls on "top model" this season are 5'7" and below. our shortest, 5'3." >> larry: would a show on top male models work? >> no, i don't think so. >> larry: no? >> because you can't name five male supermodels in the history of models. you can if you're a fashion person. but if you're just a person that is not obsessed with the fashion industry, you can't. which means that the public does not really want few see that. i don't think. >> larry: are you big in the gay community? >> am i big in the gay community? >> larry: a lot of gay people
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follow. >> got it. yes. yes. >> larry: are you big? >> i thought you meant is, like my butt juicy? what are you talking about? i feel an affinity with the gay community. you know why? it's because being a black woman, a black woman, i tend to connect with different areas of disenfranchised people. >> larry: not kidding? >> i got a glaad award for that in the representation of the gay community in the representation of top model and the gay community. >> larry: i was proved that. we got one too. they're an oppressed minority. >> i agree. i feel like it's a minority that all other races collect together to hate against. >> larry: more with tyra after this. she said plaque buildup in arteries is a real reason to lower cholesterol. and that along with diet, crestor does more than lower bad cholesterol, it raises good. crestor is also proven to slow
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the buildup of plaque in arteries. crestor isn't for everyone, like people with liver disease, or women who are nursing, pregnant, or may become pregnant. simple blood tests will check for liver problems. you should tell your doctor about other medicines you are taking, or if you have muscle pain or weakness. that could be a sign of serious side effects. while you've been building your life, plaque may have been building in your arteries. find out more about slowing the buildup of plaque at crestor.com. then ask your doctor if it's time for crestor. announcer: if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. >> larry: we're back with the one and only tyra bank. back in the early days of cnn, there was a feature called "style with elsa clinch."
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in 1993, elsa profiled tyra. watch. >> my god, you are pulling them out. >> 19-year-old tyra banks uses her chameleon-like ability to -- change her attitude as often as she changes her clothes. one minute she's shy and demure, the next sultry and sexy. >> you're moving up fast to be a supermodel? >> some people say. >> how do you feel about it? >> it doesn't go to my head. i always stay it grounded. and i take it as a profession because it is a business and it's very temporary for me and i always keep that in mind. >> how many years do you hope to have as a model? >> i would look to reach my peak around 23, 24. five years from now and move on to something else. i'm going to leave before they tell me to leave. i am not going to hang around and going lower. i've will be up there, get out. and go on about my business. >> larry: okay, you haven't seen that in 16 years. >> i wonder how long that has been. >> i'm laughing because i said i was going to retire from modeling when i was 23, 24, i
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retired when i was like 30, so i was laughing at that. but i still stuck by the thing that i'm going to leave before they kick me out. that's very important. >> do you remember elsa? >> i loved elsa clinch. i learned to walk watching her show. my mom and i would wake up at 6:00 in the morning because she would come on at 6:00 in the morning and she would come on at 10:00 in the morning, and we would watch both. this was before vhs was popular. we would watch both. i would put on my mom's heels. when i was profiled by her, i was freaking out. >> larry: thrill of a lifetime. >> freaking out. she is a legend. >> larry: feel great watching that now, do you? >> that was interesting watching that. a little one. >> larry: tyra's going to be on gossip girl" who will she play? stay with us and find out.
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familiar with. what is it? >> "gossip girl" is a very popular show on the cw, and it takes place on the upper east side of new york city. and it's based around these very wealthy, superwealthy families and the teens in their lives. it's one of my favorite shows. >> larry: and what are you going to be on it? >> i play an actress by the name of ursula neyquist who's a little eccentric. she's a little -- and serena, played by bliek lively, comes to my aid and helps me out. >> larry: do you like acting? >> i only like acting when i get to act crazy. i don't like -- like i have some scenes where i'm like over the top and like aah on this "gossip girl," and i'm much more comfortable with that than the scenes i have with blake lively where i'm just like hey, how are you doing? yeah, it's so great so, good to meet you. i'm like nervous and freaking out when i have to be normal. >> larry: so therefore, you wouldn't do a romantic comedy unless the character was nuts? >> yes. unless she was out of her mind. it has to be like physical comedy.
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you know, the kind where the girl is like crawling under the table because the boy she loves just came in the room and she doesn't want him to know she's there and she's like oh, my god. anything physical and comedy i'm very comfortable with that. normal girl next door like hi, oh, gosh. >> larry: what's with the snngz. >> my online magazine? i have been asked to did a traditional magazine for five, six years, from all the top publishing houses but i felt the generation that i really, truly connect to is really on the internet. and i said i'm going to do an online magazine. it's at tyrabanks.com. and it's all about beauty, inside and out. we have fun, though. it's not like -- it's like "top model" where there definitely is medicine in there but there's so much candy going on it's just a fun experience. and every month the theme changes. october theme is actually going to be about modeling. >> larry: we have a twitter question. via kingsthings. when is tyra going to get married? >> when am i going to get married? i don't know when i'm going to get married. >> larry: do you want to get
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married? >> marriage is not the most important thing in the world to me. i didn't grow up as a young girl saying oh, the white horse is going to come rescue me. >> larry: sno. >> no. -l there's so much divorce. i want to make sure that if i get married i'm going to stay married. so that's probably why i'm not married. >> larry: how do the tabloids treat you? >> they say i'm married all the time. engaged. >> larry: you're married to someone? >> oh, yeah, they've got me engaged. this is my class ring right here. they're saying this is a ring. >> larry: what class is that? >> '91. high school. immaculate heart high school. >> larry: where? >> los angeles, california. >> larry: all the high school rings are alike. black and a little gold. >> yeah. how did they think this was a -- this ring cost $200. i don't get it. >> larry: what about that other ring? that very small ring. >> this cost $10. i got this for $10 at nova ice here in new york city. >> larry: $10. >> $10. i have them in every color. i have a whitish one. i have a brown one. i was just shopping yesterday on the street, i got a bunch of like cheap jewelry on the street. >> larry: we're not sure about
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marriage. what about kids? >> oh, gosh. definitely children. >> larry: would you adopt without being married? >> i remember a quote that angelina jolie said, and i connected to her. she said that she has an uncanny connection to children that are not necessarily from her. so i'm open to adoption. i'm open to having my own children. and i'm not against marriage. i just haven't been married yet. because i don't glamorize it how a lot of young girls do and feel like someday my prince will come. >> larry: there's a definition for that. it's called smart. we're going to get before she leaves us tyra's reaction to kanye west and taylor swift when we come back. let me take this. wait, there's no such thing as a projector phone. no, it's the lg phone and projector. there's no such thing as an lg phone and projector. ta-da. what ? the man said "ta-da" ! introducing the lg expo smartphone and lg projector.
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>> larry: tyra has so many things going on. she has a challenge on her website. i'll ask her about that before she leaves us. but before she does, what did you make of the whole kanye west thing? >> oh. you know, i didn't actually see the vmas because i was in a place that did not have television trying to enjoy myself and relax. but then the texting started coming. oh, my gosh, you have to see this, you have to see this. so when i got back to new york city, i went on youtube and saw it. and you know, it was not the most positive situation. and later i saw kanye on jay leno. and i found it interesting that he was so honest and said that he has some issues and he needs to figure out something to do with what this life is all about for him. so that just lets you know that there's somebody hurting and crying inside and trying to figure it out by doing huge public things. i was really proud of taylor, though. you know, she's a baby. she's a kid. and she was kind of speechless for a while, and then beyonce
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graciously gave her that stage. and she was -- i was just really proud of her. because she's so young and i do feel like that -- she grew up, you know, and became an adult in a matter of like an hour. >> larry: what's the website challenge? >> i have a challenge on tyrabanks.com. on the first week of "america's next top model" we did a photo shoot that i've been wanting to do for a while, where we took pictures of all of the models as babies and then we had them recreate that photo high fashion. and i love all young girls, you know, and i wanted everybody to be able to participate in this, not just models. so i have a challenge on tyrabanks.com where you send in a baby picture and a photo of you recreating it. i'd be interested to see you recreate some of your baby pictures. did you wear suspenders? >> larry: as a baby? >> yeah. as a kid. >> larry: no. >> you didn't? >> larry: no. >> and i want to ask you something else. the suspenders, are they for fashion or do they really hold your pants up? >> larry: fashion.
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>> really? so you have a belt on? >> larry: no. i don't have a belt on. >> so you have the pants you tighten on the sides? >> larry: no. they just have buttons. >> but the pants are tight enough where they don't need a belt or suspenders? >> larry: correct. why don't you wear braces? >> should i wear -- >> larry: yeah. >> red ones? >> larry: yeah. >> i'll do a larry king shoutout. i swear i'm going to wear suspenders or braces. >> larry: what do you think of ellen coming on the "american idol" show? >> oh, my gosh. >> larry: good choice? >> i am going to watch her, actually. i cannot wait to see what she's going to say. she's like she's not a singer. she doesn't know about singing. but she -- you know, she can dance. and i think she's going to entertain the hell out of everybody. i really do. i really do. >> larry: what haven't you done you want to do? >> what haven't i done? i want to do so much. >> larry: i know. >> yeah. i want to be able to bring the modeling experience to young girls everywhere. that you don't have to look like a model to play a model.
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