Gender imbalance

Re “Casting cull for the next big hunk,” May 6

Sunday’s paper was very telling in terms of Hollywood’s gender imbalance. From the front-page article on the search for the next hot male star that came complete with a barbell scale comparing the actors’ brawn and the derision of some male actors as “pretty boys,” to the Calendar section on male-centered summer movies -- starring Spider-Man, Shrek, Captain Jack and Jason Bourne -- the point was clear: Women, or men who are too pretty and therefore too close to women, are not wanted or even needed anymore.

PHILIP SEYMOUR

Long Beach