Kim from Top Model!

Kim Stolz, a 21-year-old student from New York, joined this season's Americas Next Top Model as an out lesbian. Though she didnt win the coveted title, she did get to go to London and she got to make out with one of the other models in a limo! So now shes here to dish on granola, harmonicas, and Cousin It. Im going to start off with the most important question of all. I see on the UPN site that your favorite show is Beverly Hills, 90210. So: Brenda or Kelly? Well, I have to admit that Id rather date Kelly, but Id rather be Brendas friend. Because Brendas such a bitch, and I love her attitude, and its just something I think I want in my life. Whereas Kelly, you know, shes blonde and shes so cute. Youre so diplomatic. Im trying to be fair to everyone! Did you enjoy the Out 100 party in New York? Oh, God, yeah, I had a great time at the Out 100 party. I met a lot of people that Im talking to and working with now there. It was great for me and it was also a really exciting party. I had a blast. Are you still with your girlfriend? My girlfriend and I are definitely together. Did she ever get insecure about the relationships you developed with Nicole and Kyle and Sarah? Well, she never got jealous of Kyle or Nicole because those friendships are very platonic. They were just really close connections I had in the house. As far as Sarah, yeah, it wasnt her favorite thing to watch, but she definitely understood that it was a reality TV show and I was in a really crazy situation. And she also knew that emotionally I was committed to her no matter what happened. Were you surprised to find yourself hooking up with Sarah? Yes and no. I think that my situation with Sarah was a surprise to me because I didnt have feelings for her. At the same time, being in that house can be very lonely, and when you find a connection with someone, its easy to have the lines get blurred a little bit because you crave closeness given that youre sequestered with a group of people you hardly know. Are you still in touch with the other models? Some of them. I talk to Kyle almost every day. I have spoken to Sarah a few times. And I talk to Nicole and to Ebony. What did you think about Cassandra leaving the show? Its not exactly Survivor, even though theres a lot of pressure. [Laughs] Thats a good point. You know, I understood her placeand I understood that even though it was only an inch [of hair] they were asking [her to cut], on principle they were asking a lot from her. She had very strong views about the way she looked. And, obviously, when you go on that show, you have to be OK with changing anything they want to change. But I think that they had pushed her so far, and shed finally become comfortable with her short hairstyle, and then for Tyra to ask her to cut it an inch farther, I think that was the thing that broke the camels back for Cassandra. Are you still in school? No, I graduated from Wesleyan in May of this year. All right! What was your major? My major was government with a specific focus in international politics. Wow! Youre smart too. I hope so after all that education! I better be! Are you sorry that you got involved in the Bre-Nicole fiasco? No, because I have my own principles. I stand up for what I believe in, and when I see someone doing something wrong to another person Im not the type that will step back and just let it happen. Like if I had been in the limo when Bre was attacking me, and I was someone else, I would have stood up for me. And for me, watching Bre attack yet another person, and wrong another person, definitely brought my own principles to the table, and I had to stick up for Nicole. Shes my friend, and Bre was stealing from her. It was crazy. It was very strange that Bre was like, Yes, I did take your Red Bull, and, no, Im not going to replace it. Exactly. Bre didnt really make much sense. And it seemed like shed really just taken a turn for Crazy Town. Yet she seemed fairly stable at the beginning. Well, she had this sort of of maternal instinct and this air about her that made you feel that she just had everything under control. And I think at some point she just snapped. It seemed very fast. Yeah, it was very fast. I mean, it seemed faster on the television because you dont see all the hours that were leading up to it. But for me, it was definitely a surprise, because I thought we were on good terms until that limo scene. Well, did you ever find out who ate the granola bar? No. I wish Id eaten the granola bar! [Laughs] Because that would have been so funny! Unfortunately, I really despise granola. I wish I knew. Nicole certainly didnt. Nicole is scared of Bre. And the other girls, I cant speak for them because I wasnt very close, but I dont think they took it either. Maybe one of Bres other personalities took it. What was your favorite shoot? My favorite shoot was either the Ford Fusion commercial because it really allowed me to succeed in reaching my feminine side which was something I definitely was working on throughout the competition. Or I really liked the Wild Boyz shoot too just because it was so much fun. Do you feel more comfortable being not just a hot tomboy but being girlish now? They didnt break me down and have me change my personal style. Im too much of a confident, strong person for that. If you see me walking around on the street, Im wearing the same types of clothing, maybe with an enhanced style because my style changes every once in a while, as I was when I entered the competition. But I am more comfortable wearing feminine clothing. And if youd seen me at the Out 100 party, I was wearing a Balenciaga dress, which I found to be really beautiful. And Ive learned to look at clothing as pieces of art that youre wearing and youre carrying around. And so Im excited that Im more comfortable wearing feminine clothing, but that doesnt mean Im changing my personal style. So. Veronica Mars. How was that for you? I loved my experience on Veronica Mars. Acting is something that Ive wanted to do for a long time, but Id not had the opportunity, mostly because of my schoolwork and because of sports when I was younger. But this really jumpstarted that opportunity for me and I enjoyed it so much that I think Im really going to try and do some more TV and movies if possible. I dont know if youve been asked this before. But did Lisa really pee into that diaper? Lisa absolutely peed into the diaper. At the time, it was very, um, disgusting to a lot of us. We were revolted by it. But I got to know Lisa very well after we were both eliminated and I learned that shes a very genuine and pretty amazing person. Shes had a really hard life in a lot of ways, and shes grown from it immensely. Lisas someone that I wish I had not spoken up so harshly about when I didnt know her that well, because I really learned a lot about her and I grew to love her. With the editing, its hard to really know, because they like to show wacky and dramatic things. Yeah, they show 10% of everyones personality because thats all the time theyre allotted. And I think that, obviously, the parts of your personality that work in with the storyline are the parts that are filmed. There are really important things about everyone that were left out, which is unfortunate, but which is also inevitable. What was the most interesting thing that happened that was edited out? I felt that it was not only until the episode that Kyle was eliminated that it showed our friendship and how close it was. And Kyle and I in fact had been really close since the first week. Kyle and I were really crazy and wacky together. And there were times when she broke down because of the competition, or I broke down, and we were really there for each other. And I think that that was my most fond memory of the house, is with Kyle. So for me it was sadand Kyle and I spoke about this a lotto not see the evolution of our friendship from the very first episode. Who do you think got the rawest deal from the editing. Besides you, of course. I think that Jaylathey really didnt show any of her comments in the entire season that had been taken so harshly by other girls, until that one recap episode when it showed, like, all her bitchy comments at once. And I feel like that recap episode was sort of like the trying-to-get-the-public-to-hate-Jayla episode. And certainly a lot of us did have problems with her, but perhaps if they had edited it correctly to show what happened each week, it would have been less harsh than, you know, having it all put together in one place. Jayla can be difficult, because shes home-schooled and she doesnt know as much about social graces as a lot of people do, but she also isnt a bad person. Like, her problems are somewhat endearing at times, and even if I was irritated at her many times, I think that she sort of did come out as this huge bitch, and shes not necessarily like that. Its hard to know, because we watch these shows and we see these people being shaped into characters in a sense, and we know that theres editing, but at the same time, thats all we have to go on. So we look at it like, Lisas a freak. Jaylas a bitch. Thats the other thing. Another answer to that question is Lisa. Lisa was a freak in the house, but I think Lisas not someone you can understand unless you really get to know her. And so perhaps there is no way the editing could have captured that. Its too bad that it didnt, because she is a really genuine and thoughtful person. And when she was giving advice to the other girls, it came out as obnoxious and condescending. She really was trying to help. And thats something I learned and was so surprised by, but she absolutely was trying to help, and she just wanted to liven up the competition a little bit. So, I guess Lisa got a pretty bad deal as well, but thats also just the consequence of having such a strong personality. And she does! So, tell us the real story behind Cousin It. [Laughs] Well, I mean thats something you should really ask Lisa. I wasnt there during the Cousin It conversation, but I think that she felt that the treewas it a bush or a tree, I dont really rememberthat it was really alone and left out and perhaps criticized by the shrubbery around it. And maybe that was a good analogy to the way she felt at the time. In the house, I tell you, youre lonely, you dont get to use the phone a lot, and you want to connect with something, and its very sad that Lisa had to connect with, you know, the brush. [Laughs] Thats probably the best answer Ive ever gotten from anyone about anything! Which girl who outlasted you do you think should have been cut before you? You know, I think that the final five were all very strong in different ways. I think I would say Bre, just because I think our photos were very similar. Sometimes we werent doing so well, and then we picked it up towards the end. But her walk was really amazing, and I think that really kept her in the competition for a while. Im not sure I have an answer to that question. I think that even though I got better I didnt think my final photo was all that good. And the rest of the girls really did have strong photos. So if you ask a lot of people, they might say Bre because she doesnt really have as much of a model look as a lot of people. And there were a lot of people I would have put in the top five instead of myself. I think Kyle should have been there. Kyle had an amazing look and an amazing walk. I think Lisa should have been there too. Lisa was cut because of her personality and thats very clear. And that seems to me very unfair because she had amazing pictures. You know, whether or not you hated Lisa, you couldnt deny that her photos were amazing. That seems to be the consensus about Lisa. Everyone was shocked because she was so consistently good the entire time and then, boom, out of the blue, it didnt make a whole lot of sense for her to get cut. Yeah, it didnt make any sense to us either. Its still something that makes you question the judging techniques. Hows the harmonica playing going? Are you still doing that? Well, the harmonica definitely comes back into my life now and then when Im bored or feeling a little bit stressed out. And it really helps me, because I always feel like Im doing a kind of Irish jig when I play the harmonica, and I sort of prance around, and its very strange, but somehow relaxing. I love the harmonica. Id never played it before. And I guess at that point I sort of started to go insane in that house and the harmonica was like my Cousin It, I guess. Are you sad you didnt get to be on the show when Janice was? Yeah, at times. I think Janice would have been a blast to have just because shes so hilarious and so outrageous, and I would have liked to mess with her a little bit. At the same time, I think that I made it so far, partly because of Twiggy and the fact that Twiggy and I had a connection and she really liked what I was doing in my photos. So perhaps it would have been fun with Janice, but I probably wouldnt have made it as far. Death is not an option: drunk Lisa, hungry Bre, or topless Jayla? [Chuckles] Oh, God. Drunk Lisa all the way. Drunk Lisa can be a lot of fun. Hungry Bre equals kind of lunatic who you obviously want to stay away from and youre perhaps extremely frightened of. And topless Jayla, I mean, wellno comment. Did Jenny Shimizu have any special advice for you as a lesbian model besides be yourself? I think just having her there and having physical proof that being yourself as a tomboy and a lesbian can actually work to your advantage on the runway, that was really helpful for me and it definitely gave me a bit of a boost of confidence. What advice do you have for other aspiring young lesbian models? The advice that I have for aspiring lesbian models is, dont let the people judging you or the people that are criticizing you merge your gender and your sexuality because that is a common and also a very unfortunate thing that happens. And I think that my masculinity was looked at ten times more just because Im gay. So I would tell them to be aware of that. I also would say that its not necessary to bring your sexuality to the professional life. I mean, I was on a reality show, so it was inevitable for me, but you dont have to do that. Its a business and you wouldnt, like, give an opening argument, if you were a lawyer, and tell everyone that youre gay. Its a business, and you can use it or not use it to your advantage. The other thing, though, if you do decide to be really open and out about sexuality, which is something that I would always decide, because it is something that Im proud of and something I think is an advantage not a disadvantage, but when you go and tell someone that youre gay or that youre bisexual or however you define yourself, if youre confident about it, other people will respond well, whereas if youre timid and insecure, youre more likely to encounter criticism. Thats such a good answer. Its so well thought out! Thanks! OK, of the final three, who do you think is most and least deserving to win? I think that Nicole is most deserving. I mean, I think that both Nik and Nicole have a great shot. They have fantastic photos, theyve been consistent throughout the competition, and their walks are pretty good. Its not that I think Bre doesnt deserve it, but I just think that those two deserve it worlds more. I hope that Nicole wins, because I think that her personality is fantastic and her black-and-white photo still blows me away. And I think that Nicoles photos were the best, but Nik is a fantastic model as well. The black-and-white photo of Nicole Oh, it was so haunting. I know. Its like, how do I get a copy of that? I know, right? OK, last question. Imagine all 13 of you reunited for Survivor. Who would be voted out first and who would win? I think given the nature of the show Survivor, Nicole unfortunately might be voted out first just because she hates pigeons, and when we did that obstacle challenge shes a strong model, but shes not the strongest girl in the world. Which may be to her advantage, but I dont think that she would be fantastic on Survivor. The winner thats a good question. I think Lisa may have won. Lisa is so determined and so strong and even if shes annoying, shes a good one to have on your team. So I think Lisa may have won Survivor.