Jlo: From Jenny to Jlo and Back

 

By Vic Everett HOLLYWOOD, California -- Jlo could have life summed up in a headline: “The American Dream Made Flesh.” But what does that mean exactly to the woman of Puerto Rican decent who grew up in the Castle Hill section of lower Bronx, New York? How has Jennifer Lopez changed from a sprinting, wide-eyed girl who chomped on Italian Ices to a world famous entertainer whose name has become tabloid fodder and the punch line to jokes on late night television?	Jennifer Lopez drifts away in thought while relaxing on her bed in lingerie.
Even Jamie Foxx, who worked with Jlo when she appeared regularly on the “In Living Color” TV show in the early 90s, said this during a comedy routine about Lopez’s changing behavior and diva-like attitude: “I knew you before you was Jlo. I knew you when you was just . . .’Hey, hoe!’ “ Shockingly funny, Foxx’s skit is but one example of how Jlo has reportedly changed from a fun-loving public figure into a demanding superstar.
Jlo proves that she still has a sexy side, shown here reclining on a leopard skin floor mat in a skimpy two piece bathing suit.	Somehow, likeable Lopez turned into the commodity known as Jlo, an entity whose sole concern seemed to be the marketing of all things commercial. How did this transformation happen? I first interviewed Jlo in 1992 when she worked as a Fly Girl on “In Living Color.” The magazine I worked for back then decided to run a feature on the FGs and decided to do a photo layout of the popular dancers in Hollywood, California as well. The shoot, which lasted several hours, wasn’t exciting. Most of the women who made up the FGs were superficial. Jennifer, though, stuck out in my mind.
Although only a cog in the FG machine (and far from the best dancer at that), her most memorable attribute was her refreshing pleasantness, that and “The Ass” she had – it mesmerized every male in the room and was wrapped around a pair of white cotton tights so closely that they were practically airtight.     CONTINUED