In a dramatic episode featuring a surprise double-elimination, Rebecca, a 22-year-old engaged former flight attendant from Minneapolis, MN, and Tiffany, a 22-year-old single mother from Miami, FL, became the sixth and seventh girls eliminated from the fourth edition of America's Next Top Model during last night's UPN broadcast.
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The next day, the girls faced an acting challenge, using their new skills to perform a scene with actor Boris Kodjoe. While most of the girls just struggled with remembering their lines and getting into character, Tiffany began to lose her drive to succeed and Rebecca found herself unable to loosen up. In the end, it was decided that Naima had delivered the best performance, winning her the chance to share $10,000 worth of diamonds with two friends (who she selected to be Michelle and Tatiana.)
The next day, the girls participated in a sexy Wonderbra ad photo shoot with male model Rib Hillis. The girls had to playfully interact with Rib while wearing revealing lingerie. Rebecca failed to get into character for the risqué photo shoot, saying "I'm not excited like some of the girls. I'm engaged -- I'm about to be married when I get home so it’s a little awkward."
Meanwhile, Kahlen also showed apprehension regarding the intimate nature of the shoot, covering her eyes as Rib wandered into the room wearing only his boxers. "I didn't really ever have a boyfriend," the 21-year-old Broken Arrow, OK restaurant hostess confessed to the cameras. "I'm still like in the fifth grade mode where I get really beet red and I'm a little freaked out."
Later, at the elimination panel, the girls were challenged to read fashion news from a teleprompter for the judges. All of the girls struggled with the words and mispronounced designer names, but Tiffany quit reading after a few lines, saying, "I can't do this." The judges encouraged her to just do the best she could, and finally Tyra said, "If you don't do this, you're gonna go home." Tiffany read some of the text and then stormed away, saying, "This is humiliating more and more each week."
While deliberating over the girls’ teleprompter readings and photos from the lingerie shoot, the judges felt that Rebecca’s look was too safe. They were also disappointed with Tiffany’s defeatist attitude. The judges thought that most of the girls’ performances during the week had been lackluster, and that as a whole, the group had become complacent and stopped improving. Judge Nigel Barker said, "There needs to be something that really gets the competition going again. They need a wakeup call."
During the elimination, Tyra shocked the girls by sending both Rebecca and Tiffany home from the competition. Afterward, Tyra became very upset with Tiffany for not taking the competition seriously enough and joking and laughing as she said her goodbyes to the other girls. Calling the eliminated girls back so that she "could say one more thing" to them, Tyra launched into a lengthy explosive tirade against Tiffany, a former Top Model 3 semifinalist who had managed to make the finals of the show's fourth season.
"Tiffany, I'm extremely disappointed in you, this is a joke to you. You've been through anger management, you've been through your grandmother getting her lights turned off to buy you a swimsuit for this competition, and you go over there and you joke and you laugh? This is serious to these girls, and this should be serious to you," said a visibly upset Tyra.
Further annoyed over hearing more of Tiffany's excuses in her rambling replies, Tyra cut her off and exploded at her, shouting "Be quiet Tiffany! Be quiet! Stop it!"
"I have never in my life yelled at a girl like this. When my mother yells like this it's because she loves me. I was rooting for you, we were all rooting for you! How dare you! Learn something from this! [When] you go to bed at night, you lay there and you take responsibility for yourself -- because nobody's going to take responsibility for you. You['re] rolling your eyes and you act like it's because you've heard it all before -- you've heard it all before -- you don't know where the hell I come from, You have no idea what I've been through, but I'm not a victim; I grow from it and I learn. Take responsibility for yourself!" yelled an emotional Tyra.
Later, in her departing confessional, Tiffany acknowledged that she agreed with much of what Tyra had said. "Part of me did give up... I was being disrespectful, but I'm taking a lot home with me."
