Is America ready for fashion endorsements from regular people? To clarify, "regular" means "A person who is famous in some way, but not pretty." It's a heartwarming concept, but the answer is "no." Americans will never relinquish our devotion to models (though we have been known to tolerate slightly less anorexic models). But! What if said "regular person" is the woman who spawned superhuman American fish hero Michael Phelps? Still no: Debbie Phelps, Michael's mom, has signed a six-figure endorsement deal with Chico's, the company that made most of the clothes she wore in the stands at the Olympics. Michelle Obama is also on the record as a Chico's fan!

"We thought, 'Wow, these are real customers. Let's talk about it,'" says Chico's spokeswoman Jessica Wells. "To shoppers, to real women, they feel authentic."

1. Michelle Obama, the future first lady of the US, is not some average "real customer." 2. She is far more glamorous than Debbie Phelps, too. 3. Maybe they should have just used photos of Michelle Obama instead, forcing her to sue and create free publicity? 4. Michael Phelps fast, wow! (Obligatory). [WSJ]