For the past twenty years, lifestyle media told us that the best life was a lean life. Fitness VHS tapes, diet shakes, and "thinspiration" posters demanded we erase any evidence of excess. Consequently, millions of people destroyed or hid their "fat pictures."
To understand the current fascination, we must look at how entertainment historically treated these bodies. For decades, if you were "fat" in Hollywood, you were the sidekick, the villain, or the butt of the joke. Think of Oliver Hardy (of Laurel and Hardy) or John Candy in his earlier roles. Their size was the punchline, not the lifestyle. Old Fat Pussy Pictures