Delta Burke has opened up about the severe fat-shaming she endured during the peak of her popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. In an interview on the podcast “Glamorous Trash,” Burke revealed that her body was considered so unacceptable at the time that her show, “Designing Women,” even made it a plot point in multiple episodes.
Burke, who rose to fame for her role in “Designing Women,” said that if she had entered the entertainment industry during a time when curves were celebrated, things would have likely been different. “They treat serial killers kinder than if you put on some weight,” she remarked.
The pressure to maintain a thin figure became so overwhelming for Burke that she turned to drugs. In her 1998 memoir, “Delta Style: Eve Wasn’t a Size 6 and Neither Am I,” she detailed her struggles with weight-loss pills and crystal meth.
Despite her attempts to slim down, Burke continued to receive criticism about her body from industry professionals and fans. “They were still saying, ‘Your butt’s too big. Your legs are too big.’ And I now look back at those pictures [from that time] and go, ‘I was a freaking goddess,”‘ she said.
Burke admitted that she was emotionally fragile and unable to cope with the constant scrutiny. She described how her body language changed, becoming hunched and withdrawn. “Hollywood will mess your head up,” she said. “I thought being a famous actress meant being respected, but that’s not what it was.”
Despite the painful experiences, Burke acknowledges that meeting her husband, Gerald McRaney, on the set of “Designing Women” was a silver lining. They married in 1989 and have been together ever since.
