Meghan Markle Remembers Being Asked to Pad Her Bra and "Suck It In" on 'Deal or No Deal'
She spoke to Paris Hilton about the "bimbo" label.
![Actress Meghan Markle attends USA Networks a "Suits" Story Fashion Show on June 12, 2012 in New York, United States.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/r93zurw5LwQnr26pHHs2HD-415-80.jpg)
Meghan Markle's Archetypes podcast is back, and it's another fascinating one.
In this new episode, the Duchess of Sussex invites Paris Hilton to help her dissect the term "bimbo" and the way it's used against women in popular culture.
To illustrate this phenomenon, Markle uses her experience on the game show Deal or No Deal, and remembers how "objectified" she felt while filming it, because of how closely her appearance was monitored, and how little anything else matters to the producers.
"The other night, I was flipping through the channels on TV. This by the way is a rarity when you have two children under the age of four, but I saw an episode of a game show called Deal or No Deal," the duchess says to introduce the episode.
"This brought back a lot of memories.
"Back in 2006, I had a short stint as a briefcase girl on the U.S. version of the game show.
"Now, my experience on the show—which included holding said briefcase on stage alongside 25 other women doing the same—it was, for me, fascinating. I had studied acting in college at Northwestern University, and like a lot of the other women standing on stage with me, acting was what I was pursuing.
Stay In The Know
Marie Claire email subscribers get intel on fashion and beauty trends, hot-off-the-press celebrity news, and more. Sign up here.
"So while Deal or No Deal wasn't about acting, I was still really grateful as an auditioning actress to have a job that could pay my bills.
"I had income, I was part of the union, I had health insurance, it was great!"
But the duchess couldn't help but compare this experience with her time interning at the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires, and notice how she was valued for her mind while she was there.
"[At Deal or No Deal], I was being valued for something quite the opposite," she explains.
"I mean, you have to imagine just to paint the picture for you that before the tapings of the show, all the girls, we would line up, and there were different stations for having your lashes put on, or your extensions put in, or the padding in your bra. We were even given spray-tan vouchers each week, because there was a very cookie-cutter idea of precisely what we should look like.
"It was solely about beauty. And not necessarily about brains."
There was one part of it all that she found particularly jarring, and with good reason.
"When I look back at that time, I will never forget this one detail, because moments before we'd get on stage, there was a woman who ran the show, and she would be there backstage, and I can still hear her," the duchess says.
"She couldn't properly pronounce my last name at the time, and I knew who she was talking to because she would go, 'Markell, suck it in! Markell! Suck it in!'
"I ended up quitting the show." Seriously, good for her.
She adds, "Like I said, I was thankful for the job, but not for how it made me feel, which was not smart.
"And by the way, I was surrounded by smart women on that stage with me, but that wasn't the focus of why we were there, and I would end up leaving with this pit in my stomach, knowing that I was so much more than what was being objectified on the stage.
"I didn't like feeling forced to be all looks, and little substance. And that's how it felt for me at the time, being reduced to this specific archetype." This archetype? The bimbo—a label which of course has been thrown at Paris Hilton just about a million times, when she is of course a multifaceted person like everybody else.
Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.
-
Zendaya Delivers a Podium-Worthy Pre-Olympics Gown
She's shining brighter than the City of Lights.
By Halie LeSavage Published
-
'Love Island USA' Star Kenny Rodriguez Is Not "Playing Around" with His and JaNa Craig's Romance Outside of the Villa
The prince and princess of season 6 have remained the cutest couple since filming wrapped.
By Quinci LeGardye Published
-
So Many Celebrity Beauty Favorites Are in Nordstrom's Anniversary Sale
Shop Jennifer Lopez, Meghan Markle, and Kaia Gerber's beloved picks.
By Julia Marzovilla Published
-
Critics Claim Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Tried to "Upstage" Prince George
"He wants to steal the thunder with his Invictus Games announcement."
By Amy Mackelden Published
-
Meghan Markle Put “Her Own Neck On the Line” to Support Embattled Prince Harry at the ESPYs Earlier This Month
“She chose to be there for her husband.”
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Meghan Markle “Really Enjoyed Being Back In Front of the Camera” While Filming Her Forthcoming Netflix Cookery Show
“She was totally in her element.”
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
It’s Not In King Charles’ Nature to Upstage Daughter-in-Law Meghan Markle and Her Lifestyle Brand American Riviera Orchard with Competing Retail Products, Royal Commentator Says
Lest we forget the so-called “royal jam rivalries” earlier this year…
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Meghan Markle “Feels Very Much Under Siege” As She Prepares to Launch Her Lifestyle Brand American Riviera Orchard, Royal Author Says
“She thinks that anything and everything she does will be unfairly criticized.”
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Are “Drowning Out the Outside Noise” Surrounding Harry’s ESPY Award Backlash
The Sussexes are “very used to the criticism, given everything that’s gone on over the last few years.”
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Meghan Markle Is Reportedly "Very Pleased" With American Riviera Orchard's "Strong Start"
The brand is already thriving, says a source.
By Iris Goldsztajn Published
-
Meghan Markle Is Apparently Planning a Summer of “Relaxation and Enjoyment” with Her Family Before a “Busy Autumn Coming Up”
The agenda sounds fantastic, actually.
By Rachel Burchfield Published