Real Maid Claims ‘The Help’ Is Her Life

The Help, starring Emma Burns Stone and Viola Davis, has been a critical and box office hit, raking in $119 million while standing strong with scores of 73% (critical) and 91% (audience) on Rotten Tomatoes. The story, of course, centers around a young white girl (Stone) who befriends two black women who are maids for wealthier white families, and they write a book about their work as the help. Ah, that title makes sense now.

The film is also based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Kathryn Stockett, and it turns out that the author had some good insight into the lives black servants, as her brother had a servant named Abilene. Viola Davis’ character is named Aibilene. You see where I’m going with this?

Abilene says: ‘When I started to read the book, I said, ‘‘This is the closest thing to my life I ever seen. It’s gotta be me.’’

‘Kathryn spelt my name wrong, but they pronounce it exactly the same way in the book and the film. I introduced myself to Kathryn when I first met her at her brother’s house that way: ‘‘Aib-e-leen”. (Via The Daily Mail)

Oh come on, that’s not a big deal. What’s that? You have more?

‘I just cried and cried after I read the first few pages. In the book, Aibileen has taken her job five months after her son is killed in an accident. My son, Willie, had leukaemia and died when he was 18, in July 1998, three months before I went to work for the Stocketts.

‘I felt the emotions in my heart all over again. Kathryn copied parts of my life and used them without even asking me.’

Well maybe don’t have such an interesting life next time, jerk.

In all seriousness, I’m no big city fancy lawyer type, acting all legal-like with my notepad and some diploma from a fancy college like Florida State, but I think that Abilene might be receiving a check soon. It might be from Stockett or it might be from Publisher’s Clearing House. Either way, she should keep an eye on her mailbox.

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