The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Death by ‘Mommy Makeover’?

Posted on | June 5, 2023 | Comments Off on Death by ‘Mommy Makeover’?

Welcome once again to that recurring feature of the blog where I have to explain who a “celebrity” is, because this status has been extended to people who aren’t actually famous in the sense that word celebrity once designated. With so many shows on so many cable-TV channels (to say nothing of social media “influencers”) we seem to be approaching that moment once prophesied by Andy Warhol: “In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” The woman known as “Jacky Oh” (real Jacklyn Smith) at some point appeared on the hiphop comedy sketch show Wild ‘n Out, which originally aired on MTV but is now on VH1.

Probably not many of my readers have ever watched this show, as most of them are old enough to remember when MTV actually played music videos, which is ancient history to the 21st-century audience who know who Jacky Oh is. At any rate, it was while appearing on Wild ‘n Out in 2015 that Jacky Oh hooked up with Atlanta-based comedian John Whitfield, a/k/a “DC Young Fly,” who has over 1 million YouTube subscribers. The couple had three children, the youngest born last July.

Because I know my readership, I have researched the question I’m sure many of you are asking and, no, Jacky Oh isn’t one of those wannabe “cultural appropriators.” In interviews, she has explained that she’s only half-white, and growing up in Oakland, California, always identified more with her black father’s side of the family, which I’m sure Senator Bilbo would have expected (and perhaps even endorsed). However, we are not here to discuss the controversial opinions of long-dead Mississippi politicians, but rather to report the death of a 21st-century “celebrity”:

MTV star Jacky Oh had planned to have a “mommy makeover” surgery before her sudden death.
The former Wild N Out girl posed in a hospital gown with Dr Zachary Okhah as she boasted about her plans to go under the knife following the birth of her son Prince who was born last year.
“Getting ready for my mommy makeover with Dr Zach!! Stay tuned to my YouTube for the full reveal!” she wrote in her Instagram caption.
A mommy makeover typically includes any combination of a tummy tuck, breast augmentation, liposuction, and vaginal rejuvenation surgery. . . .

Without going into the details of such “rejuvenation,” what’s up with the apparently widespread belief that eternal youth can be (and should be) obtained through unnecessary surgical intervention? Isn’t there something vaguely creepy about this fetishization of youthfulness? Like, do we want middle-aged women running around boasting about having teenage vaginas? But anyway, now Jacky Oh’s dead:

Jacky Oh, born Jacklyn Smith, was staying at the Homewood Suites by Hilton Miami Downtown/Brickell where she was found unresponsive on the evening of May 31, according to a Miami Police Department incident report obtained by The Times. Police were dispatched and she was transported to Mercy Hospital where, despite resuscitation efforts, she was pronounced dead shortly before midnight. The case is still under investigation.

It would be an incorrect assumption — committing the fallacy of post hoc ergo propter hoc — to suggest that Jacky Oh’s death was caused by whatever surgical “rejuvenation” she underwent in Miami. Also, you might get sued for libel for making such a suggestion:

Late Wild ‘N’Out star Jacky Oh’s plastic surgeon Dr. Zach faced previous complaints from patients over alleged botched procedures, according to a new report.
Oh died this week at age 32, a BET Media Group spokesperson confirmed to PEOPLE, and her cause of death has not been made public. Since then, Page Six and other outlets report that the TV star visited Zach — real name Zachary Okhah — for a “mommy makeover” before her sudden death, as she reportedly updated fans about it in a since-deleted Instagram post.
And now, the outlet reports that the PH-1 Miami surgeon had sued multiple former patients over online reviews of his procedures in the past.
Okhah’s business PH-1 Miami did not immediately to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
According to a screenshot obtained by Hollywood Unlocked, Oh posed alongside the surgeon in a photo and teased a makeover before her death, asking fans to “stay tuned to my YouTube for the full reveal.”
In the days since, Page Six reports thay Okhah previous filed lawsuits against other clients, such as Leila Penn, who he reportedly sued for more than $30,000 in July 2021.
Penn, the publication reports, alleged that the surgeon “mutilated” her in a RealSelf review — claims that Okhah allegedly called “false.” He reportedly accused his former patient of “directly engaging with” prospective clients and encouraging them to go elsewhere, but dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice in December 2021.
Additionally, Okhah filed a lawsuit in September 2021 against Kyla Neirenburg for claiming that he doesn’t have “happy patients,” Page Six reports. She claimed his reviews on Google were “fake” and “written by their own staff or friends,” and Okhah filed a suit for $30,000, per the outlet He reportedly also had the suit dismissed without prejudice in December 2021.

Hate to keep using Latin phrases, but if a woman’s pursuit of “rejuvenation” results in her being “mutilated,” well, caveat emptor.

Far be it from me to risk a libel suit by suggesting that the late Jacky Oh died because “Doctor Zach” botched her surgery and, while dead people can’t sue for libel, I have no intent to blame Jacky for her own death, because de mortuis nihil nisi bonum, but there I go with the Latin phrases again. Pending the outcome of the investigation in Miami, we don’t know who is to blame for Jacky Oh’s untimely death. And neither Andy Warhol nor Senator Bilbo could be reached for comment.



 

 

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