Some Musings On Celebrity
Whether they are climbing heights in La La Land, or Gladiators of sports...I'm still just M.~ to them.
I watched the Cavs game with a recently acquired male friend. He asked me the question men tend to ask when they have discovered my family and LeBron's are close. "Do you think when he becomes a free agent in 2010, he'll stay with the Cavs?" I told the lie I often tell when people are overstepping their boundaries, "He and I only discuss his children...". It has been a topic a few times within our circle- but only a few times. That business is better left to the professionals. It was just weeks into our friendship that he found out "King James" was quite close to my family; I blame LeBron! He called about some children's clothing line I'd once told him about as he was purchasing a present for a friend's daughter, and had forgotten where I'd gotten the 'princess' dress for my niece. "Hey Ms. M.~!" It took me a moment to place his voice as I did not check the caller ID, and I have several surrogate little brothers with the same deep voice and manner of greeting. We chatted about family; I gave him the information; and I ended the conversation to continue the one I was having with my new friend. He was quiet for a time then asked with a little bit of incredulousness, "Were you just talking to THE LeBron?" I could not help but smirk. When I first met him he was young teen, goofy but sweet as teenaged boys go. Watching grown men- sometimes twice his age- genuflect before him literally or figuratively is still hilarious to me. I told my friend the abridged version of how I came to know the young man that has been symbolically 'the holy ghost' in Nike commercials and is so popular he has made commercials with several manifestations of himself.
"This is UNbelievable- he is AMAZING!", then I was subject to hearing why this particular person felt LeBron was the greatest...yadda yada. Don't get me wrong: I adore him, his children and the mother of his children; his friends (the hangers -on and the true friends for life); and basketball is one of my favorite sports because much like soccer, I get to see millionaires sweat for their money. I am actually as proud of LeBron as I am of all my other surrogate little brothers who have grown up to be strong-spirited/business-minded/thoughtful men. I tell him how proud I am of him as often as I tell Willie the Child Advocate, Darrell the Teacher and Chris the Police Officer. Even when we are given celebrity treatment in Cleveland and out-of-town because of LeBron it doesn't get heady- for any of us (except maybe the hangers-on). I will always be 'Ms. M.~' to him and his friends: the lady who talks alot and loves kids. When he spends holidays with us I still get scolded for walking up to him as he goofs off with his friends had giving him 'indian burn' on his close-cut scalp. I can't help but treat him like a kid sometimes, but he knows it's from the heart.
Friends and relatives that call me from awards ceremonies are a different animal! "Princess (my family nickname)?" "Yes Laurie?" "What is that name you gave to ---? You know, the actor from "-----"?" "Why?" I inquire as I hear tons of noise behind her. "Because he is standing RIGHT HERE and I was telling him about how funny my cousin is!..." I fear that I will become a published author; gain national (if not international) literary acknowledgment; accidentally find myself at a party on either coast with a group of entertainers, and one will recognize me as the woman from one of the countless anecdotes a cousin or friend has told about me. My name is too unique for them NOT to! This, strangely enough, is not the first time something like this has happened. My friend Stan embarassed me at an Indie film festival by literally putting an actor I had a superficial crush on on his cellphone and not telling me who it was; my friend Timothy (who seems to have a knack for befriending stars he works on films with) had a LEGENDARY actress send me a birthday E-card (I freaked out for weeks!). Do not envy me, dear reader...they all do this because I am normally cool as a cucumber.
I try to live my life treating people I don't know...like people I do not know! Celebrities should be treated just as one treats the guy who lives five houses down three blocks up. Do you know THAT fellow? Should you know any of HIS personal business? Do you hunger for photos of HIS wife sunbathing? Then...by all means, treat the people you claim to admire in Hollywood the same! No one is perfect (even a goddess!); I have been guilty of Hollywood fever too. We are not speaking of the three actors that I would literary marry within WEEKS of meeting (my passion is pretty much STOKED), but my odd desire to know which actors originated in Ohio, who is a writer/artist in their off-time, who is multi-lingual, who was raised Catholic, or who shares my astrological sign (and I don't really care that much about astrology). One supposes, giving others the same benefit of my doubt, it is a vanity thing with others too. 'How does this star relate to me?' It gets sickening to me when it gets to the level of my ex-friend Kathy.
I have very recently been reminded of what broke up our friendship...quite often recently...like every Tuesday night. My ex-friend Kathy's OBSESSION with a certain actor caused me to so completely sever ties with her that my other friend, whom I also called Kathy, agreed to allow me to nickname her KATE, so I would not have to say 'my friend Kathy' again! In this sad tale of a lost friendship may lie the answer to why I will rarely listen to anything not uttered directly from an actor's mouth in an interview (and even then who really knows); or tend to drown out the idle gossip in magazines and on TV. Or maybe that's just ME~.
We watched the show together most times, unless I was babysitting. Much like Jeopardy! we prided ourselves on watching and enjoying something on TV that most people at our school didn't catch onto until later. When they did, it had more to do with cute guys than dialogue and storylines. And, to be sure, the 'Teacher Seduction' storyline. After fielding a bunch of questions each week about a character that did not exist and how his life MIGHT be similar to the actor portraying him...this storyline became the proverbial STRAW to my tolerance of her obsession! "Do you think he REALLY seduced a teacher when he was in school?" Kathy asked, excitedly. "Probably not! He's just a really good actor..." "But he's sooo HOT he probably could!" Her constant mooning had sucked half his attractiveness right out of him to me, "Maybe." After that, her dreams and fantasies got more 'involved'...we had cute guys at our school, WHY she was so fixated on this poor fellow was beyond me. I snapped at her and she did not speak to me for two episodes (weeks).
She had shown herself to be a bit vengeful in the past but this was pretty sophisticated even for her. She took something that I was still experiencing melancholy about and used it to show me that as much as I cared about this, she cared about this crush she had on him. A bit of 'you poo-poo on my feelings, I'll poo-poo on yours'. "Your grandfather was from Vancouver, right?" I thought this was an odd way to open a conversation after not speaking to someone for two weeks but I can be forgiving so..."Well,...he grew up there but he was born in-" "Did you know --- is from Vancouver?" I rolled my eyes- deeply- then sighed. "Nevermind...", then she began talking about school. I foolishly thought it was over. "Did you know ---'s mom is from Dublin?" "Ohio?" "No silly!" she giggled, "IRELAND". I could feel my face flushing with anger. I still tried to be amicable, "Well if his dad is from there TOO-" "No his dad's American." I calmed down some, "Well...that would mean his surname is from his dad and-" "NO. He has his mom's last name- like you!" I was very sensitive about my paternal family; due to the little time I was able to spend with them as a child, I was left with several holes in the tapestry of my family. Da (what we called my paternal grandfather) was MY only tangible link to my family in Canada and Ireland...and he had passed away. The 'Heritage Tour', as it became known later, taken by Da, my Daddie and my oldest brother, was "for father's and sons" as my father reminded me even as I begged to go. "You'd miss school Princess", he told me as the final excuse while placing the silver claddagh on my finger he'd bought earlier in an attempt to soothe me. Da died not long after they returned, as had my father- in his prime and suddenly- from a brain aneurysm. Her constant clinging to any information about this guy she did not know, then using it in an attempt to draw a link between us, as if to validate her obsession in some way, was too much. "WHERE in Ireland was your family from again?" "Kathy, don't do this-" "Chapelizod, right? Wow! That's close to Dublin! Isn't there-" "KATHY! I don't know what your problem is but you need to stop it NOW! Just because he shares my family's last name doesn't mean anything! It's a VERY common surname!" My ears were burning with anger and I was pretty sure I was the color of a tomato. "Your dad had a ring made with your family crest on it while he was in Ireland right? Why don't you let me make a rubbing of it and send it to his fan site-" I hung up and did not accept calls from her anymore. I dodged her until she got the hint. When approached about the situation by my mother I was told I was being too sensitive and "What if you found our you all WERE distantly related...wouldn't you feel bad for how you treated Kathy?" As my mother walked away I wondered why I was really so angry with Kathy.
It was the not knowing that did it. I was angry because there was no way to really find out short of a genealogy.com search. I don't think about her too often when enjoying my new favorite show. I secretly hope she is somewhere working late so she misses the show every week and doesn't own a VCR, Tivo or a DVR!
I was bored...now you are too- I LOVE to share!
I watched the Cavs game with a recently acquired male friend. He asked me the question men tend to ask when they have discovered my family and LeBron's are close. "Do you think when he becomes a free agent in 2010, he'll stay with the Cavs?" I told the lie I often tell when people are overstepping their boundaries, "He and I only discuss his children...". It has been a topic a few times within our circle- but only a few times. That business is better left to the professionals. It was just weeks into our friendship that he found out "King James" was quite close to my family; I blame LeBron! He called about some children's clothing line I'd once told him about as he was purchasing a present for a friend's daughter, and had forgotten where I'd gotten the 'princess' dress for my niece. "Hey Ms. M.~!" It took me a moment to place his voice as I did not check the caller ID, and I have several surrogate little brothers with the same deep voice and manner of greeting. We chatted about family; I gave him the information; and I ended the conversation to continue the one I was having with my new friend. He was quiet for a time then asked with a little bit of incredulousness, "Were you just talking to THE LeBron?" I could not help but smirk. When I first met him he was young teen, goofy but sweet as teenaged boys go. Watching grown men- sometimes twice his age- genuflect before him literally or figuratively is still hilarious to me. I told my friend the abridged version of how I came to know the young man that has been symbolically 'the holy ghost' in Nike commercials and is so popular he has made commercials with several manifestations of himself.
"This is UNbelievable- he is AMAZING!", then I was subject to hearing why this particular person felt LeBron was the greatest...yadda yada. Don't get me wrong: I adore him, his children and the mother of his children; his friends (the hangers -on and the true friends for life); and basketball is one of my favorite sports because much like soccer, I get to see millionaires sweat for their money. I am actually as proud of LeBron as I am of all my other surrogate little brothers who have grown up to be strong-spirited/business-minded/thoughtful men. I tell him how proud I am of him as often as I tell Willie the Child Advocate, Darrell the Teacher and Chris the Police Officer. Even when we are given celebrity treatment in Cleveland and out-of-town because of LeBron it doesn't get heady- for any of us (except maybe the hangers-on). I will always be 'Ms. M.~' to him and his friends: the lady who talks alot and loves kids. When he spends holidays with us I still get scolded for walking up to him as he goofs off with his friends had giving him 'indian burn' on his close-cut scalp. I can't help but treat him like a kid sometimes, but he knows it's from the heart.
Friends and relatives that call me from awards ceremonies are a different animal! "Princess (my family nickname)?" "Yes Laurie?" "What is that name you gave to ---? You know, the actor from "-----"?" "Why?" I inquire as I hear tons of noise behind her. "Because he is standing RIGHT HERE and I was telling him about how funny my cousin is!..." I fear that I will become a published author; gain national (if not international) literary acknowledgment; accidentally find myself at a party on either coast with a group of entertainers, and one will recognize me as the woman from one of the countless anecdotes a cousin or friend has told about me. My name is too unique for them NOT to! This, strangely enough, is not the first time something like this has happened. My friend Stan embarassed me at an Indie film festival by literally putting an actor I had a superficial crush on on his cellphone and not telling me who it was; my friend Timothy (who seems to have a knack for befriending stars he works on films with) had a LEGENDARY actress send me a birthday E-card (I freaked out for weeks!). Do not envy me, dear reader...they all do this because I am normally cool as a cucumber.
I try to live my life treating people I don't know...like people I do not know! Celebrities should be treated just as one treats the guy who lives five houses down three blocks up. Do you know THAT fellow? Should you know any of HIS personal business? Do you hunger for photos of HIS wife sunbathing? Then...by all means, treat the people you claim to admire in Hollywood the same! No one is perfect (even a goddess!); I have been guilty of Hollywood fever too. We are not speaking of the three actors that I would literary marry within WEEKS of meeting (my passion is pretty much STOKED), but my odd desire to know which actors originated in Ohio, who is a writer/artist in their off-time, who is multi-lingual, who was raised Catholic, or who shares my astrological sign (and I don't really care that much about astrology). One supposes, giving others the same benefit of my doubt, it is a vanity thing with others too. 'How does this star relate to me?' It gets sickening to me when it gets to the level of my ex-friend Kathy.
I have very recently been reminded of what broke up our friendship...quite often recently...like every Tuesday night. My ex-friend Kathy's OBSESSION with a certain actor caused me to so completely sever ties with her that my other friend, whom I also called Kathy, agreed to allow me to nickname her KATE, so I would not have to say 'my friend Kathy' again! In this sad tale of a lost friendship may lie the answer to why I will rarely listen to anything not uttered directly from an actor's mouth in an interview (and even then who really knows); or tend to drown out the idle gossip in magazines and on TV. Or maybe that's just ME~.
We watched the show together most times, unless I was babysitting. Much like Jeopardy! we prided ourselves on watching and enjoying something on TV that most people at our school didn't catch onto until later. When they did, it had more to do with cute guys than dialogue and storylines. And, to be sure, the 'Teacher Seduction' storyline. After fielding a bunch of questions each week about a character that did not exist and how his life MIGHT be similar to the actor portraying him...this storyline became the proverbial STRAW to my tolerance of her obsession! "Do you think he REALLY seduced a teacher when he was in school?" Kathy asked, excitedly. "Probably not! He's just a really good actor..." "But he's sooo HOT he probably could!" Her constant mooning had sucked half his attractiveness right out of him to me, "Maybe." After that, her dreams and fantasies got more 'involved'...we had cute guys at our school, WHY she was so fixated on this poor fellow was beyond me. I snapped at her and she did not speak to me for two episodes (weeks).
She had shown herself to be a bit vengeful in the past but this was pretty sophisticated even for her. She took something that I was still experiencing melancholy about and used it to show me that as much as I cared about this, she cared about this crush she had on him. A bit of 'you poo-poo on my feelings, I'll poo-poo on yours'. "Your grandfather was from Vancouver, right?" I thought this was an odd way to open a conversation after not speaking to someone for two weeks but I can be forgiving so..."Well,...he grew up there but he was born in-" "Did you know --- is from Vancouver?" I rolled my eyes- deeply- then sighed. "Nevermind...", then she began talking about school. I foolishly thought it was over. "Did you know ---'s mom is from Dublin?" "Ohio?" "No silly!" she giggled, "IRELAND". I could feel my face flushing with anger. I still tried to be amicable, "Well if his dad is from there TOO-" "No his dad's American." I calmed down some, "Well...that would mean his surname is from his dad and-" "NO. He has his mom's last name- like you!" I was very sensitive about my paternal family; due to the little time I was able to spend with them as a child, I was left with several holes in the tapestry of my family. Da (what we called my paternal grandfather) was MY only tangible link to my family in Canada and Ireland...and he had passed away. The 'Heritage Tour', as it became known later, taken by Da, my Daddie and my oldest brother, was "for father's and sons" as my father reminded me even as I begged to go. "You'd miss school Princess", he told me as the final excuse while placing the silver claddagh on my finger he'd bought earlier in an attempt to soothe me. Da died not long after they returned, as had my father- in his prime and suddenly- from a brain aneurysm. Her constant clinging to any information about this guy she did not know, then using it in an attempt to draw a link between us, as if to validate her obsession in some way, was too much. "WHERE in Ireland was your family from again?" "Kathy, don't do this-" "Chapelizod, right? Wow! That's close to Dublin! Isn't there-" "KATHY! I don't know what your problem is but you need to stop it NOW! Just because he shares my family's last name doesn't mean anything! It's a VERY common surname!" My ears were burning with anger and I was pretty sure I was the color of a tomato. "Your dad had a ring made with your family crest on it while he was in Ireland right? Why don't you let me make a rubbing of it and send it to his fan site-" I hung up and did not accept calls from her anymore. I dodged her until she got the hint. When approached about the situation by my mother I was told I was being too sensitive and "What if you found our you all WERE distantly related...wouldn't you feel bad for how you treated Kathy?" As my mother walked away I wondered why I was really so angry with Kathy.
It was the not knowing that did it. I was angry because there was no way to really find out short of a genealogy.com search. I don't think about her too often when enjoying my new favorite show. I secretly hope she is somewhere working late so she misses the show every week and doesn't own a VCR, Tivo or a DVR!
I was bored...now you are too- I LOVE to share!
posted by ScreenGoddessComplex at 8:57 AM
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