This is a random thought, but what's with the all the shows where they take someone, pour acid on their face, bleach their teeth, give an hour in a mall clothing boutique, and show the whole sordid affair as if they're doing us all a favor? What Not To Wear, Ten Years Younger, just about anything on the Fashion Channel. It started with Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, I guess, and has blossomed into a jerbillion dollar industry of voyearistic humiliation. I don't get it.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all in favor of self-improvement, and have nothing against body art, cosmetic surgery, or improving one's wardrobe. I could use a little (or a lot) of all three, to be honest. (I totally want a chin, for example.) But something about the spectacle of watching someone go through it, step by painful step, with all the behind-the-back mockery of the hosts (and by extension the audience), that just seems to, well, unseemly to me.
That said, I wanted to draw attention to a number of very handsome folks, men and women I aspire to be as fetching as (but am not willing to pour acid on my face on tee-vee to get there).
Julia Buckley has done a wonderful interview of the amazing Robert Fate, a man whose first novel Baby Shark is among my favorites.
And over at the Killer Year Blog, JT Ellison draws our attention to the talented Barry Eisler, who was caught wearing a Killer Year t-shirt in Saigon! And he was happy about it!
Mindy discusses the death of Star Wars, Sandra ponders the wait, and Tracy isn't listening to tunes at the moment. Bekbek shares lovely poetry. Anne speaks of body chemistry.
I also want to share something I linked to in Mindy's post above, because it's an important story that needs to be heard. I don't know what the guy who tells the tale looks like, but he's probably a hottie too.
14 comments:
I tried to comment on Julia's interview yesterday and Blogger kept eating it.
And I've had words for you elsewhere, Mr No Chin.
I tried to comment on Julia's interview yesterday and Blogger kept eating it.
And I've had words for you elsewhere, Mr No Chin.
Oh, look at Beta Blogger. It's such a wondrous pain in the ass it duplicates everything. Grrr.
Yeah. It's a putz, but I actually think it's less of a putz than Reg'lar Blogger.
ah, that fire is nice. a little frantic though. i actually bought an electric woodstove this year and i love it. :D it's so weird how it continues to trick my brain into thinking it's real even though i know it's fake!!!
i've always wondered if i could make myself get cosmetic surgery. i'm not sure i could do it. i hate getting old -- it's not going to happen gracefully, but i don't think i could let somebody cut me up and pull my chin behind my ears.
thanks for the link. :)
I'm not getting the whole obsession with the new StarWars trilogy. Yes, it sucked. Yes, the early, low-tech movies were better, but c'mon peeps! Pull yourselves together! Jar-Jar was NOT the Anti-Crisco...just a dumb character for the kiddies. The horrors of Revenge of the Sith (or whatever) are not responsible for the fall of modern civilization. Yowza.
And your stuff about the reality tv shows just reaffirmed my decision to NOT have cable television. Thanks for reminding me of the joys of iTunes and DVD's.
I can't help it. Starting with Return of the Jedi, George Lucas broke my heart.
Watching all the recent clips of Ed Bradlee, I noticed how appealing that gap between his teeth was in an industry where every wrinkle is botoxed, every jowl tucked, and every smile bleached to phosphorescent whiteness.
Patry just made me feel so much better about myself.
"Starting with Return of the Jedi, George Lucas broke my heart."
Poor, poor Bill. My condolences on your loss...
Seriously, it does suck when something you really like gets fucked up beyond repair. So sorry about that.
(but I still don't get the whole dealio. guess I'm just a low-brow caddish kinda gal)
Of course, in the end, the failure of Star Wars isn't that big a deal to me. It is sad that it fell apart so horribly, but it's not like anyone can do anything about it. My son loves the whole shebang, and watches the movies whenever he can. I can only stand to watch the original and Empire Strikes Back though.
It's not the end of the world, but the failed potential is sad for those of us who enjoyed the first two.
I think also of the "His Dark Materials" series by Phillip Pullman. Great start, two fabulous books to begin the trilogy, and then it all basically comes down to the universe being saved by a couple of teenagers getting laid. Very disappointing. I mean, yeah, I'm opposed to fundamentalist sexual pathology too, but it was just dumb.
And life goes on. Lots of stories start with a bang and end with a whimper. When they start really well and seem to have amazing potential, then fizzle, it's particularly disappointing. Star Wars is one of those stories that touched many people deeply, so when it collapsed for them, it's especially pungent.
But, yeah, in the end, it's just a bunch of movies.
It was like reading a good book. The beginning rocks, the middle leaves you breathless...
Then the hero takes up needlepoint and wanders into the kithen to put on a tea. The credits roll and your flipping past 'The End' looking for the epilogue.
There has to be an epilogue, right? Because, y'know...the author forgot to END the thing.
I never got the whole Star Wars thing. Please don't pelt me with rocks. Still not listening to tunes. *grin*
Any time a storyteller talks down to an audience, life is cheapened. That's what happens with most stories told for children, and that's what happened to Star Wars.
I was ten when Star Wars came out. I remember being angry because there were reviews that said the movie was perfect for 10-year-old boys. Yeah, like boys own adventure. Pfft. Idiot boys.
I didn't even want to see the stupid movie. Dad wanted to. We gave in because it was only fair. And the lights dimmed. And the fanfare started. And that was it, the world was a new place.
You're right, though. It's not Jar Jar's fault. It was the cast of cute teddy bears that ruined it all. Yuck. And sometimes I wonder if I need to shoulder some sexism sometime. Maybe Star Wars was fine for 10-year-old boys (and me and my sister), and they ruined it by adding cute stuff designed for little girls.
Yuck.
I'd totally do the cosmetic surgery --I'm a big fan of laser hair removal, I swear, that ROCKS, and anyone who wants to give me 6 thousand dollars should do so asap-- but I'm with you on doing it onscreen. No. That's idiotically crude. I can't believe people like to watch that stuff.
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