I had a sore throat this afternoon so I came home early to rest (translation: be babied by the wife; she gave birth and it's dismissed as part of a natural cycle but if I get a cold I expect to be doted on) and remembered the Penguins versus Canadiens game was on television so I flipped it on.
After the first period (Pens down 2 to 0, because they are goofing off and trying to pass, basically to me, since they sure were not passing to each other) a broadcaster did a quick interview with Brian Gionta, who was kind enough to score after about 30 seconds, and what I saw startled me.
Take a look at this screen cap taken on my phone:
Notice anything strange? Yeah, she is towering over him. So much so that I had to pause the television to take the pic and then Google her to find out who this giant woman sportscaster was and write this blog.
Now, when I lived in Pittsburgh, hockey players were already big. As a 6'2" 190 lb. I don't usually feel small but even a relative dainty player like Jaromir Jagr made me feel tiny (I'll find the picture of me with him later - did I not mention I have a sore throat?) and I knew athletes had gotten bigger and faster with time, but I was not aware broadcasters had also.
Turns out Brian Gionta's bio lists him as 5'7" 175 lbs., which means he is probably 5'6" and 160 lbs. But she is still craning her neck down pretty far to get in the frame with him. Erin Andrews, likely the nemesis of Charissa since Playboy named her America's sexiest broadcaster (Thompson placed fifth) clocks in at 5'10", which is not slight, but if Gionta is 5'7", Thompson has to be taller.
Do cameras add height as well as 10 lbs.? There may be something to that, depending on the lens. A wide-angle lens has a short focal length and it makes the person in the middle look both taller and wider, but the poor schlub on the borders just looks wider. And being flattened to 2-D does not help.
