I recently discovered Aimee Lou Wood is bravely confronting bullies. I wasn’t aware of Aimee Lou’s celebrity or interested in her story until the phrase American Teeth caught my attention. She’s an English actor currently starring as a goofy American in White Lotus.
Aimee Lou apparently has unacceptable teeth for an American, goofy or not. Several of her pictures reveal slightly protruding front teeth with a tiny gap. In interviews she mentioned being exposed as non-American because her front teeth didn’t look like American Teeth.
I’d like to publicly assure Aimee Lou that I feel her pain, if that describes what she’s feeling. Her White Lotus love interest is Walton Goggins, a southern boy like me, so she should appreciate my point of view. I’m pretty sure Walton was born in Birmingham, Alabama, not England, so I’m sure he has relatives with imperfect teeth.
I’ve been hearing dental hygiene jokes aimed at our British friends since I was sporting baby teeth. I found that confusing, especially when encountering any friends or relatives who weren’t aware that tooth decay was a thing—or regular dentist visits.
I have also experienced the trauma of having a gap between my larger incisors. My dentist believed the outside incisors would eventually appear and close the gap. That never happened, and by the time I realized braces were the answer I also realized it wasn’t as important as some believed. So I still look like that—except much older.
I wasn’t bullied by the space in my teeth. My generation grew up seeing pictures of Lauren Hutton, which normalized gapped teeth. I did get a nickname though. Groove is still with me after six decades and I’m okay with that. I do have other nicknames that embarrass me much more, although none of them can be printed in a family newspaper.
One of the things that initially got my attention was Aimee Lou’s contention that all Americans have perfect teeth. I don’t mean to be critical here, but using “all” to describe any group of people is unwise and can be considered bigoted under certain circumstances.
There are no groups of people anywhere involving more than two people where you will find identical behavior—but all of us still say it.
I would suggest Aimee Lou focus on her more obvious and positive attributes and not let social media idiots ruin her day. I did see that she’s received inspirational comments from many fans but have to wonder how sincere they are. Social media turns personal interaction into a game. No one seems genuine. Everyone gives the appearance of self-promotion. Sincerity isn’t a thing.
Speaking of insincere, my favorite magazine, The Week, summarizes happenings around the world. The articles combine Newsweek’s expansiveness with the brevity of Readers Digest. Each edition includes celebrity happenings.
At least one story highlights a currently popular star, usually focused on trauma as being beneficial to this star’s success. Several of the traumas described seem a bit exaggerated. Tom, a writer friend, believes all good writers are traumatized—maybe all famous people are—or maybe some are melodramatic. Fighting injustice does seem more admirable than just whining.
Especially on social media.
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