17-Year-Old Twiggy Outsmarts Condescending Woody Allen

A 17-year-old girl just outsmarted a grown man trying to embarrass her on live television, and the clip is still inspiring people nearly 60 years later.

In 1967, British supermodel Twiggy was at the height of her fame during her first trip to the United States. Director Woody Allen, then 31, invited her for what seemed like a friendly interview in front of a live studio audience.

Then Allen asked with dripping condescension: "What are your views on serious matters?" When Twiggy looked confused, he pressed further: "Like, who's your favorite philosopher?"

The teenage model could have crumbled. Instead, she laughed charmingly and admitted she didn't know any philosophers, then stuck her tongue out playfully. "Who's yours?" she shot back.

Allen fumbled, caught off guard. "Oh, I don't know. I like them all," he said weakly.

Twiggy sensed her opening and pounced like a hawk. "Who?" she demanded, mimicking his earlier interrogation.

"You know, all your basic philosophers," Allen stammered. Twiggy pressed again: "Who?" When he couldn't name a single philosopher, she delivered the final blow: "But I don't know their names. What are their names?"

The clip ends with Allen looking dumbfounded at the camera while Twiggy grins victoriously in the background, tongue out once more.

Why This Inspires

Twiggy's response resonates because women face this type of intellectual bullying constantly. Insecure men try to make them feel small by questioning their knowledge or intelligence, hoping to elevate themselves in the process.

What makes this moment special is how Twiggy turned vulnerability into strength. She didn't pretend to know something she didn't, and she didn't shrink when challenged.

YouTube comments flooded with praise when the clip resurfaced. "Her retort was perfect, cheeky, funny, and totally deflected him," wrote one admirer. Another noted: "I love how the light dawns in her eyes, like, 'Oh, you want to play like THAT.'"

But Twiggy recently revealed the moment wasn't as effortless as it looked. "He was trying to make me look stupid," the now 75-year-old said in a 2024 documentary interview. "My heart sank. I remember looking at him, pleading with my eyes for him to stop."

Her confession makes the victory even sweeter. Feeling scared and standing up anyway can look exactly like this: confident, badass, and undeniably cool.

We often stop ourselves from speaking up or demanding respect because fear holds us back, but Twiggy proves that courage doesn't mean fearlessness—it means acting despite the fear, and that's always worth celebrating.