Howie Mandel understands why Meghan, Duchess of Sussex felt like a "bimbo" on 'Deal or No Deal.'
Deal or No Deal host Howie Mandel speaks out in favour of Meghan Duchess of Sussex
The 66-year-old star was the host of the NBC game show when Meghan - who was then an actress known as Meghan Markle before marrying Prince Harry in 2018 - appeared as a suitcase girl and explained he can resonate with her recent claims that she was meant to feel like a "bimbo" throughout the modelling job because he himself "felt like nothing" during his presenting tenure.
He said: "I get it because — I’ve never said this before — but they had this pyramid of 26 beautiful, intelligent women standing there just staring at me like I was a piece of meat. I was in the center, just dressed up in a suit and I felt like I am more than this. And they would just look at me and I had to do nothing. I get it. I felt like nothing. And that’s why I’ve moved on and become a judge on 'America’s Got Talent'. I just needed more than to be a 'Deal or No Deal' host."
However, Howie - who stayed with 'Deal or No Deal' until it ended in 2019 and has served as a judge on 'America's Got Talent' since 2010 - went on to add that he had "never heard" of any of the women "complain" about their role on the show and opined that Meghan probably wanted to just "do more" in life than model.
He told UsWeekly: "I don’t think she’s maligning 'Deal or No Deal.' I don’t think there weren’t ever [any] complaints from any of the women. And unlike most shows up until that point, the ladies had more to do. They weren’t just pointing out gifts and opening [cases], a lot of times they were mic’d and they had their input. I’ve never really heard anybody complain and I don’t think Meghan is complaining. I think Meghan just said she wanted to do more. It wasn’t fulfilling for her. So I don’t know why there is a big hoopla, except I have to say that me standing there with 26 women staring at me made me feel like a bimbo."
His comments come just weeks after the former 'Suits' actress - who has children Archie, three, and 16-month-old Lili with Prince Harry - alleged that the game show job was about "beauty" and wants her daughter to "aspire higher" in life.
Speaking on her 'Archetypes' podcast on Spotify, she told guest Paris Hilton: "There were times when I was on set at 'Deal or No Deal' and thinking back to my time working as an intern at the U.S. Embassy in Argentina, Buenos Aires, and being in the motorcade with the secretary of the treasury at the time and being valued specifically for my brain.
"Here, I was being valued for something quite the opposite. I mean, you have to imagine just to paint the picture for you that before the tapings of the show, all the girls, we would line up. It was solely about beauty and not necessarily about brains.
"I want our daughter to aspire to be slightly higher. Yeah, I want my Lili to want to be educated and want to be smart and to pride herself on those things. I ended up quitting the show. I was so much more than what was being objectified on the stage. I didn't like feeling forced to be all looks. And little substance. And that's how it felt for me at the time being reduced to this specific archetype the word bimbo."
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