"I am such an ugly man. I'm not attractive at all - or perhaps I am just seductively plump."

Cape Town businessman Ian Smith still can't believe the flood of responses he received after placing a naughty Valentine's ad in the classifieds of the Cape Times this week.

Smith, who has been engaged seven times and married four times, received more than 500 calls and SMSes from interested women - and one man - from all over the country. Smith (47) told Saturday Star he placed the ad for a laugh.

"I thought it would bring a smile to people's faces. I don't know what I expected to get out of it, but certainly not this huge response," said a surprised Smith.

'I thought it would bring a smile to people's faces'
His secretary Kim Woodman said she had fielded calls from women from early Tuesday morning.

"I am tired but it has been fun. The funny thing is the reactions of the women when I answer (Ian's) phone - they want to know who I am and why I am answering the phone. We've had a good laugh," she said.

The most interesting thing, Smith has noticed about all the women who have called and SMSed was that the older women were "a lot less serious than many of the younger ones".

"That for me, was a little off-putting especially since I prefer to date girls between the ages of 23 and 35.

"But it's the younger women who wanted a more serious relationship with some commitment and stability.

'I still can't believe this. It has been crazy'
"And that is not really what I want right now."

Most of the SMSes, he said, were downright in your face and sexy but there were a few that were "quite feminine and nice".

"One woman caught my attention but I'm not telling who she is. But I am going to try and reply to each SMS and call that I got," said the generous, fun-loving Don Juan.

"I still can't believe this. It has been crazy. You won't want to miss my April Fool's ad - not to mention next year's one for Valentine's Day," said Smith cheekily.

what it said ...

Wanted: A tall, well-built woman with good reputation,
who can cook frogs legs,
who appreciates fuch-
sia garden, classical music and tal-
king without getting too serious.

(But please only read lines 1, 3 and 5.)



This article was originally published on page 3 of The Star on February 18, 2006