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Lea Michele was told to get a nose job because she โwasnโt pretty enoughโ to be on TV.
The 36-year-old โGleeโ star has opened up about her past insecurities in a new interview celebrating her role as Fanny Brice in Broadway show โFunny Girlโ and Lea revealed she was thrilled to get a letter from her idol Barbra Streisand โ who played the same part on stage in the 1968 film โ as the actress said she shared Barbaraโs worries about her looks.
She told Town and Country magazine: โGrowing up, people would tell me to get nose jobs, that I wasnโt pretty enough for film and television.โ
Lea went on to say of Barbaraโs note to her: โIt was so surreal and such a wonderful moment. The fact that she acknowledged my performance โ I could cry โฆ t was a beautiful, hand-written note that I will cherish. She was incredibly complimentary.
โIt exists. It happened, and now I feel like so many dreams can come true.โ
Barbara has previously spoke about her own struggles with her appearance and admitted she considered having surgery on her nose in the early days of her career but she couldnโt afford it.
In a 1977 interview with Playboy magazine, Barbara said: โWhen I was young, everyone would say, โYou gonna have your nose done?โ It was like a fad, all the Jewish girls having their noses done every week at Erasmus Hall High School, taking perfectly good noses and whittling them down to nothing. The first thing someone would have done would be to cut my bump off. But I love my bump, I wouldnโt cut my bump off.โ
She went on to explain her nose actually helped her sing and changing her face would have been a disaster. Barbara added: โMy deviated septum [makes my voice special]. If I ever had my nose fixed, it would ruin my career.โ