Being Kendra_ Cribs, Cocktails, and Getting My Sexy Back - Kendra Wilkinson [66]
That’s the way I deal with my life. Then think of that moment after the wedding and imagine everyone there is like, “Oh, your hair looks good, but that’s a shame it didn’t stay up.” That’s not what you want to hear; you want to hear people say, “Oh, you’re beautiful.” Imagine something so little, so minor, something so small that went wrong and didn’t even matter, but people pointed it out on your wedding day. You just want to move on and forget about it, but everybody in the whole wedding wants to come up to you and talk about it. So you cry because it happened, but you’re not asking for sympathy. Crying is an expression of emotion. I cry a lot. I’m a perfectionist. If one little thing doesn’t go my way I’m going to be pissed about it. I don’t care what anybody has to say, that’s just the way I am.
It’s almost like I’m walking down the aisle in a wedding gown and I just have people staring at me all my life. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been in magazine features about “stars without makeup!” News flash—I look like a mess when I wake up; sorry to disappoint! Or every time I have a little bloat the whole world thinks I’m pregnant. I know I’m not perfect and being a celebrity reminds me of that every day.
When DWTS originally asked me to go meet with them, I was like, “Okay, sure, why not?” People around me had always asked if I’d be interested if the opportunity came up. But I always said, “No, that’s not my style.” I equated Dancing with the Stars with something you do when you want more fame or a reentry back into fame. But then you look at all of the pro athletes and dancing is certainly not something they are used to dominating, but they give it a shot. So that’s what I decided to do. The opportunity did come my way and it was the perfect time for me to grab it.
It was a quiet time in my schedule (aside from writing a book, filming a show, and taking care of my family), and Hank was in the off-season, so he could technically take care of the baby. So I went in and met with the casting director of DWTS, Deena Katz, and two other producers for the show. I dragged Eddie with me because I wanted him to hear the pitch from ABC and to be another ear for me.
Casting for a show like this seems like the celebrity version of a job interview, as if it’s no different from when you walk into Papa John’s and you have an interview with the manager and they tell you about the restaurant and you tell them about your job experience. Most people would go in and say, “Hi, I’m Kendra and I want to be on DWTS.” They want to hear what you have to say; they want to see your personality. Believe me, there’s no dancing involved in these interviews. But I knew better than to go in with that same plan. This was Hollywood, not Papa John’s. I walked in and I stated the facts they wanted to hear: “Let’s get down to business. My demographic rating is a 1.5 in the eighteen-to-thirty-four age bracket.” Yup, the first thing that came out of my mouth was my ratings, because that’s my knowledge of this business. If this was Papa John’s, I’d tell them how many pizzas I can make in an hour.
Then one of the producers asked, “Do you have any dance experience?” and I said, “Well, I know this isn’t ABC appropriate, but I did adult dancing, a.k.a. stripping, and I lived at the Playboy Mansion for five years, where I danced at a lot of parties! I’ve probably danced more than all the people on this show combined.” That summed everything up right there. I’m married, I have a son, I’m happy in life, I have a show already, so things are working out pretty good. Take me or leave me.
Too cocky? Well, this is Hollywood