Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Mr. Skin is a Thriving Website; Mrs. Skin is a Barely-There Wordpress Blog. What’s Up With That?

Last week, I asked the same question that someone else posed two years ago on yahoo answers. “Is there a female version of Mr. Skin?”

If you don’t know, Mr. Skin (the original and male-audience-focused supersite) is the self-acclaimed “world’s foremost authority on celebrity nudity.” The site’s main purpose is to let you know at exactly what moment female celebrities are nude in movies and television shows. Helping men fast-forwarding to the good parts is their forte. The website was made even more famous after being referenced in the blockbuster comedy “Knocked Up.”

Witness the female’s answer: Mrs. Skin: A Celebration of the Female Gaze. This wordpress blog has existed since April 2008 (but not updated since September 2009) and features about 35 photos of some male celebrities, most shirtless, others just partially suggestive. (No offense intended to the blog owner, but there aren’t many). It’s the only near-equivalent to Mr. Skin that I could find.

It makes me wonder: why is it that Mr. Skin is a thriving website and Mrs. Skin is a barely-there wordpress blog?

Is it that women are unmotivated and incapable of creating such a resource? Uh, no!

Is it that there aren’t enough examples of male celebrities showing their goodies in film? Possibly. I can only think of a handful. Even Mrs. Skin couldn’t find many photos.

Perhaps it’s reasonable to assume that a female version of Mr. Skin that focuses only on providing the moments a man provides a full frontal or an ass shot would not be lucrative enough for a primarily female audience.

My guess is it’s because women aren’t as motivated as men are by full frontals. The popularity of daytime soap operas (which have significant limits on what they can show and allude to) suggest that it isn’t just about the skin for women. Get our minds involved to get the juices flowing!

Well maybe such a resource does exist and I can’t seem to find it. (After all, a “Mrs. Skin” reference may be copyright infringement…)

If someone does create a female-oriented Mr. Skin equivalent, let me know. And how about a shout out to V Moore!