Drop Dead Divas: Top 10 Divas On TV
Susan Young July 7, 2010
If Drop Dead Diva proves anything, it’s that you can die a gorgeous leggy blonde and come back as a chubby brunette and never lose your diva gene.
The addictive series (9 p.m. Sunday on Lifetime) jumped double digits in its second season premiere and viewers quickly are climbing on board to see a former sleek chick cope with a plus size body. Jane/Deb still has her signature hair toss and prissy ways, but she’s quickly discovering she has to work a little harder to grab a man’s eye. Now, she’s a diva with just a smidge of self-awareness.
Divas have been a TV staple ever since Eva Gabor donned some designer overalls back in the 1960s to star in Green Acres. Television’s fascination for divas hasn’t abated as you can tell from our current list of real-life and fictional TV divas.
Rachel Berry (Glee): Even getting slapped in the face with a slushy can’t dampen Rachel’s notion that she’s better than anyone else at the high school. She signs her name with a gold star at the end. “My gold star’s a metaphor for me being a star.” This year she quit show choir when she didn’t get a lead role, but eventually came back to the flock. Rachel’s a diva, but she’s not soulless.
Blair Waldorf (Gossip Girl): She’s the Queen B, and we’re not talking a honey gatherer. Blair rules, making sure those around her are aware of their place in her social sphere. She’s got feelings, and can be a good pal in a pinch. But she never lets anyone forget who keep the hive humming.
Tyra Banks (America’s Next Top Model): Oh baby, has there ever been a more blatant diva than the divine Miss T? It’s all about Tyra, whether she’s foaming at the mouth and declaring herself a victim of rabies or dressing up in some odd costume for a cheesy Model segment. As an interviewer on her now defunct talk show, it was all “Enough of about you, let’s talk about me….”
Kate Gosselin(Kate Plus 8): So now we know that Jon’s a douche, but be honest. Who didn’t think that living with uber diva Kate wouldn’t make even a saint go insane? The fussy mom-inator has a sharp edge that cuts deep. Even her Dancing with the Stars partner Tony Dovolani couldn’t take the ‘tude, storming off during rehearsal after a Kate confrontation. Now, she’s apparently the victim of botched Botox, but that shouldn’t slow down this hard-drivin’ diva.
Gabrielle Solis (Desperate Housewives):She tried to be a down to earth mom, but it just didn’t work. In one episode, life was bliss when she ditched the husband and sick kids and hung out with the gay neighbors and their fabulous parties. She’s a pampered wife wallowing in the good life, often trespassing into questionable moral territory. When she confesses her sins to a priest, but doesn’t want to repent until after she’s too old to enjoy herself, the priest calls her a selfish child. Gaby doesn’t deny it. She takes ownership of her diva-ness.
Paula Abdul (formerAmerican Idol judge): The former pop princess used to wow the crowd with her fancy footwork. Now she’s known as being one loon short of a gaggle. In her short-lived reality show Hey Paula she had a complete meltdown when an assistant didn’t download her cell phone contacts. She whines that “I’m tried of people not treating me like the gift that I am.” And, by the way, she’s miffed that God isn’t putting the concentration on really important issues. After the reality show recorded her reaction to being e-mailed fired from a choreography gig on the Bratz movie, she said it wasn’t fair that she get screwed over so much when she works so hard. “Where’s God when you need him? Because this does not make sense.” Neither does Paula.
Jenna Maroney (30 Rock): She preens, she broods and she never quite gets the idea of do unto others. Like the time the whole staff was out with the flu, and she decides to give them soup. But she wants flu-ravaged gopher Kenneth to do it for her. When he suggests she do it herself, she says “I don’t understand.” In one episode, the diva was downgraded by head writer Pete from sociopath to extreme narcissist after Jenna showed a slight bit of remorse for poisoning Kenneth with strawberries just so she could date a hot paramedic who kept coming to Kenneth’s rescue.
Heidi Montag (The Hills): There was no doubt that Heidi came across with major diva potential right from the start when she crashed a Teen Vogue party in the first episode — and almost crushed then-pal’s Lauren’s changes of an internship. She tips off the paps so that they can record every moment of her so-called real life. And who can forget her bad behavior during her short stint on I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here. Boo-hoo, someone took the labels off her hair products. Yes, here’s a woman who gets up in the middle of the night to open the refrigerator just so the spotlight’s shining on her.
Teresa Giudice
(The Real Housewives of New Jersey): Teresa puts the capital D in Diva with her flamboyant lifestyle. No wonder she’s spend her way into bankruptcy with over-the-top birthday parties for her divas-in-training daughters and other cash-burning endeavors. But we knew she was a true diva when Teresa packed her bag to go to the hospital to deliver daughter No. 4 and priority was given to her make-up case and jewelry. “You know,” she says, “last minute things if you’re going to the hospital.” She’s also obsessed with making sure her “chucky” looks good for the camera. And if you don’t know what she’s talking about, we’re not going to sear that imagine into your brain by telling you.
Cristina Yang (Grey’s Anatomy): Surgeons are the divas of the doc world, and no one is more high maintenance than Dr. Yang. While she’s become slightly less self-absorbed over the years, she’ll still dump a patient with just a routine life-threatening condition if she can sit in on a truly extraordinary surgery. She’s the distaff Dr. House, a man diva of the highest order.
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