http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/gatecrasher/index.html
Barbara Waltersures us that she and "Precious" star Mo'Nique got along
famously during their interview for Walters' final Oscar special, airing Sunday.
But, privately, Babwa is said to be grumbling that their get-together was a
horror show.
"Barbara is telling friends that Mo'Nique was one of her most challenging
subjects ever," claims our well-placed informant. "If Barbara needed one more
reason to quit the Oscar specials, Mo'Nique gave it to her."
Walters is said to have first gotten under Mo'Nique's skin during the actress'
2006 appearance on "The View," when the ABC News queen inquired about Mo's
newborn twin boys.
"How are those little creatures?" asked Walters.
"Wait a minute, Barbara, they're not creatures," Mo shot back. Walters quickly
pronounced the babies "adorable." Later, she chided her guest: "Remember, you
come and go. We stay."
Now the mistress of her own BET talk show and the front-runner for the Best
Supporting Actress Oscar, Mo'Nique has become choosy in granting interviews. And
when Walters' producers came calling, she had a few requests.
"She had very specific hair and makeup demands," says a source. "She also
insisted that Barbara fly down to Atlanta. Barbara usually goes to her subject's
home, whether it's Tom Cruise or Julia Roberts. Mo'Nique wouldn't let Barbara
into her house."
Mo is also alleged to have treated Walters just slightly better than her brutal
character, Mary, treats her daughter in "Precious."
"She was so disrespectful and dismissive that Barbara's producer, Bill Geddie,
had to step in and ask Mo'Nique's husband, Sid [Hicks], why Mo was being so
rude," claims the source. "Bill has told people you won't be seeing Mo on 'The
View' again soon."
But Walters insists, "There was nothing about her that was rude."
"It's a wonderful, funny interview," says Walters, who talked with the star
about everything from her open marriage to her hairy legs. "She couldn't have
been more open. If you're not happy, you don't answer those questions."
Walters adds that there was nothing unusual about Mo'Nique's hair and makeup
requirements and says, "I can't remember when we did an interview in someone's
house."
As for her "creatures" comment: "We were joking that day, and Mo'Nique knows it.
She laughed and I laughed. I don't understand why some people want to make
trouble."
Mo'Nique said through her rep: "Oftentimes we hear things that are far from the
truth. Watch the Barbara Walters special and decide for yourself."
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