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I used to think that people of past generations were not as good looking
as we are today. That was until I worked as an extra on the set of
The Public Eye.
Like 250 other extras, I was given a haircut and made up to look
like someone from the early 40s. After I was transformed, I walked in to a holding area.
It could have been a train station from 50 years ago. These aren't 90s people made up to
look like 40s people, I thought. These are 40s people—scoop-weary news reporters, tired
mothers, young doctors, nurses who actually wore their caps, forlorn soldiers, and
hard-jawed policemen.
So much for my idea that people look any better today. It's clothes and hairstyles that
make the man and woman.
And then I noticed something else about our costumes. These people, from so many 90s walks of life, congregated around cafeteria tables in a pattern that
was unsettling to someone who studies the creative behavior of individuals.
The nurses sat with nurses, the soldiers confined themselves to
another corner, the cops confiscated a table.
No, I'm afraid we not only looked no different than people of half a century ago. We
didn't act a whole lot differently. The artificial demands of our uniforms prevailed. Even
when they were artificial uniforms.
Were we just getting into our roles? Or is there something about a uniform that overcomes
reason? I don't know, but the next time I tie a tie
around my neck, I'm going to ask myself, "who's in charge?"
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