Fans of
America's Next Top Model no doubt know platinum-haired Jay Manuel best as the creative director for the photo and commercial shoots featured on the show each week. But that is not his only role in the Tyra empire. He is also a producer for the show, and is the creative director/producer and host for the Canadian version of the program. Although that would be enough to keep anyone busy, he's recently signed on to participate in a new project. This time, he's not helping a model nail a photo; he's helping the general public get a date!
Jay's newest venture is to provide advice to the online dating world through his "Portrait Toolkit" on Match.com. He offers up some pragmatic and down-to-earth advice about how to maximize your personal portrait when posting a profile on their online dating service. Essentially, it's a lot like what he does each week on
America's Next Top Model in trying to bring out the appropriate look from each of the aspiring modelettes...just without the undercurrents of trying to get someone to cry.
Jay is certainly taking a page from his boss's book. Like Tyra Banks, who has branched out from modeling to television producing, chat show hosting and (albeit briefly and apparently unsuccessfully) singing, Jay is diversifying his career, going well beyond his initial fashion career entry point as a make-up artist.
In addition to the
America's Next Top Model and
Canada's Next Top Model activity and the Match.com project, Jay is also the host of the Style Network's
Style Her Famous, a show that takes an everyday woman and makes her over in the style of her favorite celebrity. He - both solo and along with fellow
America's Next Top Model cast member Miss J Alexander - makes regular appearances on the E! Network as a fashion correspondent. His dishy post-award show takes on fashion with the
Fashion Police program, along with host Debbie Matenopoulos and a revolving cast of fashion, beauty and hair experts, are usually uniformly entertaining. Jay has also recently launched "Manual Override" a cosmetics and skin care line that he sells through QVC. The line has been selling out for most of its appearances.
Of course, like many hyper-booked celebrities, all this activity can be a bit much, and Jay admits in his Q&A for his Style Her Famous show, that this year, he wants to try to take more time just for himself. One hopes he can manage to fit that in as well!
- Leslie Seaton, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Sources: TheStar.com, Stylenetwork.com, TheState.com
(Image courtesy of CW)