Jessica Simpson explores the 'Price of Beauty'

PASADENA — Singer/actress Jessica Simpson got a new and inspiring perspective on beauty while traveling the world for her VH1 documentary series, "Jessica Simpson’s The Price of Beauty."

"Outwardly, beauty is a very easy thing to become obsessed with in our society," Simpson says. "The pressures that are put on women today — shape, sizes. It changed me completely because I haven't always had an inner confidence. I haven't always looked at my reflection and loved it. There’s always something that I’ve wanted to fix because there’s always somebody that looks better."

It hasn't been just mirrors that have made Simpson question her appearance. Her looks — particularly her weight — have been a favorite target of magazines, TV entertainment shows and bloggers. She was treated like the town ogre last year when a pair of jeans she wore to a chili cookoff didn’t give her the most flattering of looks. Even President Barack Obama made an offhand comment about Simpson’s weight battle in a television interview just after the chili incident.

Some of the attention is of her own making. She has established herself as a player in the fashion industry with her own product lines. But now, Simpson is putting less pressure on herself. "I think the journey really was finding what was beautiful inside of me and knowing that I own it and it’s unique and rare. I feel like I walk around with so much more pride in who I am as a woman, as a person," Simpson says.

Simpson traveled with best friends CaCee Cobb and Ken Paves to Thailand, France, India, Uganda, Morocco, Japan and Brazil to discover what constitutes beauty around the globe. Her father, Joe Simpson, is the executive producer.

Of all the women she talked to, Simpson found Moroccan women the most beautiful.

"They’re speaking to you through their eyes. Their souls were just so intense and so beautiful. It was all about their peace within and not what they look like on the outside," she says.

Any talk of beauty these days includes plastic surgery. The stop in Brazil shows butt implants are popular there. Simpson has no problem with women going under the knife if it’s to get more self-confidence.

The documentary offers some very different views on beauty. In Uganda, Simpson was told she would need to add a few pounds before the men there would consider her for marriage.

Doing the series became a time of discovery for Simpson.

"I definitely carry myself differently after experiencing this because there is something about myself that is so unique that I found that I’m proud of," Simpson says. "And any man I find, they’re going to be darn lucky."

TV and movie critic Rick Bentley can be reached at rbentley@fresnobee.com or (559) 441-6355. Read his blog at fresnobeehive.com.

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