Thursday, April 30, 1998 | 9:45 a.m.
Close call of the day: Depressed over a recent trip that would separate her from her kids, Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson first grew despondent, then, at the end of her rope, contemplated a desperate, perhaps life-altering move: eating a tomato and cheese sandwich. Oh, the humanity! Luckily, a Weight Watchers friend talked the perpetually weight-conflicted ex-princess back from the brink of that horrible abyss. Don't do anything you'll regret later. You're not really hungry, just depressed over leaving your children. Put down the sandwich and we'll talk. "Weight Watchers," Fergie says, "quite frankly saved me." Whew! Thank God she didn't go for the roast beef: Scramble the emergency squad! Of course, the dark impulse behind that episode still lingers, manifested in her continuing cravings for butterscotch ice cream, sausage rolls, mayonnaise -- "the full-blown fat mayonnaise," she adds. Despite that, she's still dropped some serious poundage and doesn't mind showing off her sveltish physique: "I think I've gotten a little more risque," she says. "Shorter skirts. My dream is to run along a beach in a nice black swimsuit." Ours, too! Except there's never anyone around to save us from our sandwiches.
Miscellany
Despite our many hours of running on beaches in nice black swimsuits, we here at People in the News were mysteriously left off of People magazine's upcoming list of 50 most beautiful people in the world. Oh, well, 51st isn't bad. In any case, along with the usual suspects -- Will Smith, Matt Damon, Calista Flockhart, Halle Berry, Gwyneth Paltrow, some guy named Leonardo something -- the list contains a few surprise twists. Missing in action: stalwarts John F. Kennedy Jr., Tom Cruise and Mel Gibson. Unexpected faces: Indian author Arundhati Roy ("The God of Small Things"), L.A. Police Chief Bernard Parks, British Prime Minister Tony Blair ... Tony Blair? That's it, we've had enough! Someone give us a loaded ham sandwich!
Compiled by Scott Dickensheets
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