by Olga Barsky
I first saw Jillian on Good Day Live, the national version of Good Day L.A. Each morning before school I would look forward to her loud and outspoken style. Even at the tender age of 9, I imagined that when I grew up, we would make the best of friends.

She was beautiful, Canadian, and a major shit stirrer. What’s there not to love? Between her marriage, battle with depression, and being adopted, Jillian did not hold back. If it was on her mind, it was on the air…often to the dismay of co-anchors and producers who couldn’t handle a woman who was smart AND opinionated. What blasphemy.

Now, some years later, I finally get to meet Jillian who is happily remarried to actor Grant Reynolds and the proud mama of one very pretty little lady named Ruby Raven Reynolds. Jillian was recently in Canada to promote Nutrisystem, which helped get her pre-baby body back. It was quite the trip – “I got to meet 30 relatives I’d never met before.” Her birth mom had 8 brothers and sisters!

In addition to the program, Jillian used a rather unorthodox method to get back in shape. She wore bikinis and other scantily clad attire around the house as to “catch glances of fat ass” in the mirror and get instantly motivated.

Our meeting/ brief platonic love affair (as I like to think of it) took place in the dimly lit Camera Bar. She sat on a stool with a “Ruby” necklace draped across her neck, tattoo on her ring finger, and wore a smart black cocktail dress with sky-high patent black Frederick’s of Hollywood pumps ($40!). Although she owned up to having a pair of YSL’s that look exactly the same.

Originally from Burlington and a graduate of Mohawk College in Hamilton, Jillian moved to the U.S. fifteen years ago to pursue a career in broadcasting and hasn’t looked back. She has hosted the TV show EX-treme Dating, and in 2002 began her hugely popular weather segment on FOX NFL Sunday pre-game show. In 2006 she also took part as a contestant on Skating with Celebrities and came in second.

While I tend to (silently) shun some Canadians who make the big move south instead of supporting the Canadian industry, in Jillian’s case there was nowhere else for her career to go. She also definitely does her part as a cheerleader for our nation whenever possible.

She loves Canada – Toronto especially. “Everything is so close – it’s so easy to navigate the city. LA is the home of strip malls, there’s no architectural integrity. We have no old places, no sense or respect of history.” She adds that there’s no way to get around without a car, and “‘down the street’ is twenty minutes from us!”

At the same time, as we’re speaking on the phone (during the second interview) Jillian is cruising home to the valley in 72 degree weather. “Everyday is a vacation filled with tropical breezes and palm trees.” Tough life! Though a part of her does long to spend her days in a Perry Sound cottage.

Despite finding major success in her chosen field, she still finds the attention odd. She recalls walking out of a restaurant the other day where Posh, Becks and Kate Beckinsale were dining, and being caught off guard when the paps started angling for her pic too.

These days Jillian’s got way more important things to worry about than publicity – like her adorable family; “I do my three hours and split,” she says. The day of our interview, Minnie Driver and Eddie Izzard stopped by and the “hours just flew by.” Tough day at the office.

So in the land of stars, who does Jillian hang with? We’ve seen pics from her baby shower with Heather Locklear and in Vegas with Pamela Anderson. She was even featured in Pam’s show VIP as well as in Clueless the TV series and Melrose Place. Retired porn star hottie Jenna Jameson is also a friend. We even bond over our love for glossy Vivid porn as opposed to the amateur kind riddled with pimples and blemishes.

“Heather was at my wedding….I hung out with Carmen a lot, but your life changes. Now it’s all about my family, and it’s such a freaking cool place to be. We live in a small ranch house in the valley, I love it, and we’ve got this very freaking normal life. We just hang.”

Jillian is passionate about more than just her friends and family. She has always had a soft spot for rescue animals. At one point she had 11 (5 dogs, 5 cats, and a rabbit).

“My husband came into a petting zoo,” she laughs. Now they’re down to 2 dogs and 4 cats. She’s still very involved in pet rescue and hopes to some day teach Ruby the responsibility of caring for her very own animal.

What I’ve always found fascinating about Jillian is that she’s got a male and female following. This is no easy feat. Whether she’s ad-libbing on FOX or promoting Nutrisystem, men are drawn to her sense of humour.

In fact, Jillian hates the separation of women’s and men’s programming, “why spread the content?” she exclaims, puzzled by her own question. She talks about flipping through women’s magazines to discover featured articles like “how to have a great orgasm” and dismisses it as antiquated thinking.

As for why women like her, she believes its because she’s honest and forthcoming with her flaws. “Women in this business try too hard to conceal things. They won’t tell other women their secrets because they’re insecure.” This ranges from career tips to unwillingness to disclose a great hair salon. Interestingly enough, Jillian has found that “the bigger the celebrity, the cooler, nicer, and more secure they usually are.” Then her mood turns a bit sour as she recounts some not so nice folks in the industry she’s met along the way, although she’s quite sure that “those people end up in the gutter.”

Jillian’s a big believer in karma, “you give it away once and it comes back twice for sure,” and she’s got a “gazillion” examples to prove it. This had just happened on the air the other day. She was interviewing a guy from an auction house. “There was a bunch of shit on the table and we were talking.” She asked if he had any 60’s memorabilia as she collects anything having to do with Sharon Tait. She was in luck – he had a ring that had belonged to her.

Interestingly enough, Sharon’s sister Debra was watching the show (they’re friends) and she called Jillian up to tell her that the ring was stolen. Apparently, Roman Polanski had cleaned the house and packed all the clothing and jewelry himself. He had given their wedding ring to Sharon’s manager, and a young woman who was living with them stole the ring. “That’s karma! That kind of karma comes back to you.” Jillian is now in the process of buying the ring back to return it to rightful hands.

Now onto my favourite topic – Jillian’s style! Did you know that Jillian is single-handedly credited for the way women dress on American TV? Says who? Oprah. Not bad.

In a world of stuffy suits and mousy don’t-look-at-me women news anchors, Jillian donned a sweater set for a news broadcast and advanced the women’s movement by at least ten years. “I embraced my femininity and was able to deliver an accurate newscast.” Shocker! And she’s not stopping there. “I would love to do more, to have my own show.”

Then as quickly as it started our short affair seems to be ending – I can hear her hitting car breaks and entering her house where an excited Ruby is cooing. It’s clearly time for Jillian to move on for today. And that concludes a brief glimpse into her ever more complicated life – that Jillian just seems to keep living more simply and beautifully.