#Medici Bitch

[awkward-sultana]

(Almost) Every Costume Per Episode + Diane de Poitiers's white gown with black stripes in 1x01,3

[romeoslaughter]

[note-a-bear]

If the people at Amazon think I can't binge a Samantha Morton court intrigue in three days they have NO IDEA

[unbeleveable-archive]

With all the growth the show gave their relationship, I remain disappointed they didn't give us Catherine's reaction to Mary's execution.

[oldmanpazzi]

and Cosimo de Medici absolutely did too

no because Lorenzo de Medici did really have a type

[sirgawin]

The Serpent Queen (2022-)

1.01, Medici Bitch

[bookaddict24-7]

(New Young Adult Releases Coming Out Today! (August 6th, 2024)

___

Have I missed any new Young Adult releases? Have you added any of these books to your TBR? Let me know!

___

New Releases:

Dance of the Starlit Sea by Kiana Krystle

Medici Heist by Caitlin Schneiderhan

This Is Not A Dead Girl Story by Kate Sweeney

Loving, Ohio by Matthew Erman , Sam Beck (illustrator)

Silent Sister by Megan Davidhizar

Better Left Buried by Mary E. Roach

The House Where Death Lives by Various

The Girl with No Reflection by Keshe Chow

This Ravenous Fate by Hayley Dennings

Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson

Here Lies A Vengeful Bitch by Codie Crowley

Witty in Pink by Erica George

The Empire Wars by Akana Phenix

Maradonia & the Guardians of the Portal by Sofia Nova

A Family of Killers by Bryce Moore

New Sequels:

Ami (Guardians of Dawn #2) by S. Jae-Jones

___

Happy reading!

[markantonys]

i'd watched the first 2 episodes of ROP s1 when they first came out, but i found them boring and so didn't continue. however, i've been hearing that charlie vickers is eating and leaving no crumbs in the new season, and that is my sweet boy guglielmo pazzi from i medici (2019) and i've Got to see him killing it in a huge role, i'm so proud of him!!! always a delight when a previously-unknown actor from an obscure show you love ends up making it big

so i decided to give it another shot and dove straight into 1x03 after reading a summary of the first 2 eps to refresh my memory, and idk if 1x03 really is that much more interesting than 1&2 or if it's just that i happen to be in a different frame of mind now that's more predisposed to getting interested in this show, but WOW i am loving it!! i'm an extremely casual LOTR fan (in fact i wouldn't even rightfully call myself a fan, more just "i've watched the movies a few times and like them" haha) and so whatever complaints the fans have about ROP obviously are not things that bother me. i'm just here for a good time, and i'm having one!

the galadriel & halbrand plotline is definitely my favorite (heck, if the numenor stuff had arrived in ep2 instead of 3 i might've been on board with the show the first time around). i already know he's sauron, of course, so i was like "i won't get attached to halbrand since he's not a real person, just sauron's disguise" but fuck, i'm attached, and it hurts!!!!! loving a character who starts out good and turns to the dark is one type of pain, but loving a character who was never real at all because they were evil the whole time and this "character" was never anything more than a facade - it's an entirely different and perhaps even worse type of pain! i can't even soothe myself imagining an AU where halbrand never turned evil, because halbrand was never real! genuinely in immense anguish over this. but once i reach s2 and get to the Unabashedly Evil Sauron Era, it'll be so sexy that i might immediately go "oh no! anyway" and forget all about my anguish jdkjfg

............wait a moment. do i now know how show!rand must be feeling post-s2? attached to someone who was never real because they were always just an evil person's fake persona? oh rand honey i'm even sorrier for you now!

speaking of WOT, it really has broken my brain because i try to polyship everything all the time nowadays. why did i go "wake up babe new polycule just dropped" during that scene when galadriel, halbrand, and miriel had a meeting lmao girl you KNOW this bitch is sauron! but i already knew people were shipping him and galadriel, so i went in to my new watch expecting to see the vibes, and indeed seeing them, and i ALSO unexpectedly saw vibes for galadriel and miriel (two leaders overburdened by duty, oh it's my kryptonite), so how can i help creating a polycule? oh well, i'll enjoy it while it lasts and then once galadriel finds out he's sauron i will instead get some angst to enjoy! and she will still have her girlfriend to comfort her (as long as nothing happens to miriel.........i haven't heard any spoilers about her, so we shall see!)

back to halbrand, the "he's the lost king of the southlands" idea is such a clever misdirect because it allows halbrand to demonstrate unusual skills in combat/diplomacy/manipulation that we wouldn't expect a seeming peasant to have, but provides a cover for it and so we think this one "identity reveal" is all there is to it, and aren't suspecting a second, bigger identity reveal! and actually, as far as i can remember, he never actually confirms that he's the lost king, he just plants a clue to lead galadriel to believe it and then responds to her assumptions in ways that seem to confirm them but don't actually. very aes sedai of him! and hey, if the southlands used to serve sauron, wouldn't it technically be accurate for him to be considered their lost king? very aes sedai of him x2. liars who lie without technically lying are the best kind (gen from the queen's thief also). anyway, because of this misdirect, i don't think i'd be suspecting him of being sauron at all at this point if i didn't already know. on the other hand, there aren't really any other sauron candidates except adar who clearly isn't him. but back to the first hand, the show never set up a "one of our major characters is sauron, who is it?" mystery so i might just be assuming he was hanging out offscreen yet to show up, if i didn't already know.

i'm enjoying the other plotlines too! i remember feeling that the hobbits & the stranger plotline was the weakest link in the first 2 eps, but totally changed my tune now, nori and the stranger (who i'm guessing is gandalf, but i'm not sure, so don't tell me if you know) have the most wholesome friendship, i could die!!

or rather, the second most wholesome friendship after elrond and durin, which i remember was my favorite storyline the first time around. they are so pure!! and disa is a delight! she and elrond have impeccable sibling-spouse energy (yes we've got another polyship in the house, of course we do)

i'm trying not to get too attached to bronwyn because i know they kill her off between seasons due to the actress leaving the show, but i really like her :(( her son's kinda annoying, but he's an angsty teen, so i can't hold it against him. and arondir!! what a man, i'm swooning constantly over everything he says and does. i really like how in the most recent episode i watched they had a Good Guy (bronwyn) genuinely consider giving up her principles of honor and going to swear fealty to the bad guys in order to survive, it feels more realistic and it really sells us on just how desperate and hopeless the situation is (and on how sauron is able to get supporters by creating such situations).

it's also a visually gorgeous show, very decadent (i was practically drooling the first time they showed numenor haha i love white stone seaside cities, and the ancient greek aesthetic vibes are the cherry on top!), and the MUSIC!!!!! you guys know i'm a tv soundtrack fanatic, and my god, this is the best tv soundtrack i've heard in a LONG time. i'd put it as second to WOT because it's traditional fantasy orchestra whereas WOT's soundscape is so different and unique. but "traditional fantasy orchestra" isn't a knock here, because it's done INCREDIBLY well, so it does feel unique instead of generic like other, lesser Traditional Fantasy Orchestra soundtracks do. it's sumptuous, it's lush, it's rich, it's got very distinctive Themes for each character/location that always play in the appropriate contexts (which is one of my favorite aspects of WOT's soundtrack too). i'd been listening to the s1 soundtrack for quite a while before now, so i'm well-primed to recognize all the different themes!

my favorite has gotta be the halbrand theme, i have a character in my WIP who's a sad mountain prince (and a gawyn knockoff <3) and this theme just reminds me sooooo much of him, i cry. but if we dispense with the halbrand pretense after s1, we might not get to hear this theme anymore!!!! it's also the southlands theme, though, so hopefully we'll keep it, and i did hear it crop up briefly in a track from the s2 album. also, shoutout to the fact that the halbrand melody is an inverse of the sauron melody, bear mccreary you son of a gun (the sauron theme is another one of my favorites, the first time i heard it i assumed it was his theme from the original movies because it just had the feel of an Iconic Villain Theme, but no, it's new to ROP!)

anyway! i've watched up through 1x05 now. pacing's definitely still a bit slow, but i'm enjoying it nonetheless, and it's picking up now that galadriel & co are headed for the southlands. and i've heard that s2 is a big step up in many respects (a la WOT s2), so i'm excited to get there!

[thiswaycomessomethingwicked]

The first letter written to Giovanni that Marsilio includes in his collection is placed directly following that friendship-spat between Lorenzo and Marsilio which never was ever wholly resolved. It was, to quote, a goddamn bitch of an unsatisfactory situation.

Lorenzo, thinking Marsilio should pay him more mind, tetchy and hot headed: You tell us to love wholly, utterly, to write letters of love to one another, to write-write-write – well write me, you absolute –

And Marsilio, busybusybusy with his new parish, rector now of a church, he has lambs in a pasture to care for, cannot attend always to his young patron: I love you I love you I love you but remember always the importance of mirrors in Plato and how we reflect within each other – therefore I am with you and you with me &c. &c. &c. also your anger is sweetness, your bite is sweetness, your kiss is sweetness, nature mingles sharp and delightful together so this is natural your hot-cold, your anger-forgiveness, it’s fine. I’m fine. You’re fine. We’re all fine. Also, if we must come to it, Lorenzo, you’re the reason I am busy. I have thanked you for the parish you got me already, here I will thank you for another four paragraphs &c.  

How interesting, to place the first letter to the ostensible love of his life apres cette deluge of whatever it is Lorenzo and Marsilio are failing to do for one another. There is, naturally, a point to it.

Marsilio Ficino to Giovanni Cavalcanti, his unique friend: greetings. “Tonight I had decided to write to you in the morning like this: ‘come back, my hero! Hurry! Fly here, I beg you!’ Then, on more mature reflection, I deemed it wiser to dissemble my longing so that you would return all the more speedily, thinking me angry. Well, I am! But what’s the point? Will anger stir him whom love has not moved? I don’t think so. So I don’t know which way to turn – to entreaty or to scolding.”

See, look at the mirrors! The Janus-ian nature of this collection. Here it is Marsilio's turn to play as a supplicant begging for letters how Lorenzo had only two pages back. We are in each other, we are of each other, reflected, subsumed, consumed - God is whole and all and nothing. If we are in God then we are whole and all and nothing. Reflecting, refracting, through centuries.

Few of the letters in Volume One are dated, as Marsilio arranged them for effect rather than chronology though we can assume most of the letters were written between 1464 and 1473/74. He would, in future volumes, be broadly similar in approach except we can (more or less) stamp years onto them. Everything in Volume Two is from 1474 to ’76, Volume Three is ‘75/’76 to ’77. Volume Four is '77 and ’78 and - well. ’78 is what matters, of course.

By Volume Two the tone will change. Marsilio will not know this as he puts together Volume One as early as 1473. Indeed, it is dedicated to Giuliano de' Medici. But later, later there will be a knife dropped between One and Two. How we all were before 1478. How we all are after 1478. It haunts every letter. And after 1478 the letters will be haunted by 1492 and '94 and '96.

Haunting every letter is our knowledge of how it ends.

“Ah! Now that I have found a refuge. I shall trust in that heroic heart of yours which usually moves more quickly of its own volition than when spurred.”

Giovanni is an absence and a silence throughout Marsilio’s letters. This is not a new statement. That we know of Giovanni precisely because Marsilio loved – that is not a new concept. Most throughout history are understood through their absence. Their silence. Queer love is especially notable in it’s silence. Which can be a violent absence but, at the same time, silence can be what exists when words have lost meaning, when they cannot hold what needs to be expressed. Silence can be soft as much as it can be harsh. Sweet and sharp.

With Giovanni we are lucky for Marsilio's penchant for veering most verbose. He comes to us, now, in fits and starts. Little gasps and flutters of ah! Ah! I can almost see you! There is a glimmer of, at the minimum, how you were interpreted by another.

So here we have Giovanni who prefers not to be pressured. Who might have a bit of a contrarian nature. Perhaps there is some spark, some flare to him (we know, we will see later, his By Hercules! His stubbornness, his insistence on having his opinions heard). We are only just meeting him, you understand, in this letter. This introduction to the man who will haunt Marsilio’s works – all of them – in one capacity or another.

Indeed, while Marsilio's work is not a hauntology in the strict sense of the definition, there are moments when it could be read as such. Moments when we see him, it's 1495, and he's putting the final touches on the full twelve book series of letters and he opens Volume One and sees the original preface, the original dedication: Giuliano de' Medici. He must see ghosts, then. He must know he has captured men, women, a society, a world, that will echo forward through time shaping this and that while, simultaneously, falling to dust.

“Meanwhile, how shall I stop myself grumbling at you just a little because you are so unmindful of me? But I shall hold back my complaints and, not to bore you with the same old tunes, I shall embark on mattes of greater moment. I shall write about affairs of state. You ask what is going on in town. Serious matters are afoot. Listen! But tell no one! Many of the chief citizens are saying: ‘Oh Marsilio! Why have you been alone in town for so long?’ ‘Because the man who never leaves me on my own so wishes it.’ ‘He has not returned, then?’ ‘Not yet.’ I have nothing more to write you at present. I have written about the state of affairs in town; now it is for you to write about the country.”

Marsilio is often humourous in his letters to Giovanni. He will berate himself when he is not. When he cannot manage a jest, he will apologize. When he must think only on philosophic topics, he will still attempt to inject levity. There were philosophic reasons for this – the power of humour as a teacher, the importance of laughter in learning. Plato wrote about this, as did Church fathers, and Marsilio was ever devoted to education. But more than that, fundamentally at the end of the day, Marsilio liked to joke. He liked a laugh.

It is the nature of time and distance to obscure meaning. There are things we cannot fully appreciate because we are not them, we are not there, but what we can know is that they thought it funny, they found pleasure in each other’s happiness. Though, by some third-parties, Giovanni is painted as a rather serious man. A contrast to the impish Marsilio. Still, he must have appreciated Marsilio’s humour or Marsilio wouldn’t spill so many words attempting to be humourous for Giovanni’s sake.

“Stay! I have blundered! I do not require you to write, but to speak of them. If we speak together, my hero, we speak about the same things; if we write, we write about different ones; I write from memory, Giovanni, and you from forgetfulness. Now I wish I had not said that. My friend has not forgotten me because he has not forgotten himself. Look, he has already granted my prayer. Here he comes. Yes, he comes! Run to meet him, lucky feet. Embrace him, fortunate arms.”

The letter wends its way into a typically Ficinian conclusion: I was harsh! I meant not to be! Love me! Fly to me! I love you! Know your Plato! We are mirrors of one another – one, as we are in God.

Later, Marsilio will call their souls married. He will husband Giovanni in words. He will love all consumingly. He will rewrite the world for Giovanni.

Here and now, though, he wants Giovanni to remember him. He wants Giovanni to know they are within one another, a balm, a soothing constancy. All Giovanni (Marsilio) need do is to turn inwards. All Giovanni (Marsilio) need do is ponder the inner world, the inner life, the soul. Come to stillness. Come to a form of soft silence.

----

Sometimes you just need to go !̷̨̛̖̬̫̺͕̻̫͓̥̭̞̈́́͐͐̔͑͛̂̕̕͜!̸̜͕̣̘̳͎̖̐͐̓̀͒̔̊́̕͜͠͝!̴̢̧͈̩̥͊̈͒̈́̄͋̅͠!̴̯̝̜̟͍̪̌́̊!̵̡̛̗̳̪̈́́̋̊̋̎̑̍̽̆́̚!̶̡̡͉̟̞͈̆̏̎͆̈́͜!̶̜͍̗̩̰̪͙̪̦̯̮̘̊̄̈́͗͑̒́̾͒͗͜͜ă̵̢̧̤͚̳͎̘͍̈̒̇̽̇͘͘̕ḩ̷̩̦̣̗̗̪̜͔͙̪̲̻̞̜̈́̏̓̈́̕̚ḩ̷̡͚̜͚̭̫̼̥̥͕̐̏̓̈́̚͝h̵̨̛̰̗̱͉̮͍͓̪͌̽͂͝h̴͙̱͍̭͕̭̖́h̵̨̛͎̻͎͑̒̓͋͌̎͆̅͛͌͝h̷̢̹̯͈̰̲̮̜̥̮̲̖͊̐͗̌̀!̸̡̖̯̭̳̠̥͖͝ͅ!̶̆͋̈́̈͒��̠͔̩̱̜̳̲̣̹̥͍ͅ!̸̧̢̗̗͙̪̝̹̦̣͓̪͕̂̀̾͒̈̍͐̐̄̀͠!̶̡͕̖̭̲̼̮̿̊̐͗!̷̢̛̦̂̿͛̀̉̎̌̓̌͑̑͂̾̕!̶͙̙̙̫̳̤̜̖̲̤̠͖̫̲̂̉͆͒̌̕̕!̵̛̻̆̀̀̓͊̽̔ about Marsilio's letters.. ,, . as a treat.

[cosmo-watches-movies]

Wilde (1997)

Triggerwarning: Homophobia, Sex (in the movie, not depicted in this blogpost)

Plot: A part of Oscar Wilde’s life story.

Spoilers beyond this

Michael plays Robbie Ross, a good friend to Oscar Wilde and, delicately put, his first male lover.

Following are my incoherent thoughts as I was watching the movie: (some gifs for context, for the other parts watch the movie and you'll get it)

starting out chill with Oscar meeting his future wife

oh who might this dashing young fella be?

lol that didn’t work did it?

Nevermind it did work

I was so not prepared for this

This guy has a lot of thoughts in his head and none of them are holy

Bitch what

If someone looked at me like that I’d instantly fall for them too. Man brought his A-Game

Oh my god this is going too fast even for me and I’m just watching

Why would you give him lines like that?

(I refuse to clip the next part, I don't know who might read this)

What in the what I barely got into the movie, why would you do this to me

I have questions

I have so many emotions at once right now I actually feel a bit sick

I’m 16 Minutes in and my heart is breaking at the thought of where this might be going

Okay, I got used to the fact that I am actually watching a movie about gay men

Me watching a movie about a gay author: （☆ω☆ ）

Me when theres actual portayal of intimacy between men: （○ □ ○ ）

I swear I’m so normal about this.

Wtf Oscar why would you drop Robbie like that. I get that this was an affair, but like this? He picked that other guy up like an apple from a tree.

Watch Robbie take this like the king he is

Oscar met yet another guy (Bosie) and seems to fall in love with him and guy #2 litterally wants to khs and/or Bosie, while Robbie has only respect, acceptance and love to give.

lol taste of your own medicie, huh?

I hate Bosie

I love Robbie

Drama between Bosie and Wilde, which results in Oscar being sentenced to two years in prison

Oof that speech Oscar held in court tho, right in the feels

Robbie is an absolute treasure of a person. Get yourself a man like him. Don’t settle for less.

Wtf all this stress and heartbreak for Oscar and Bosie to break up after three months, the world is a cruel place

- End of incoherent thoughts-

That was heartbreaking in so many ways. The main story obviously is unbelievably tragic but we shall focus on other things. There are a lot of strong performances in this movie, the whole cast was quite good. You can strongly feel the love Robbie has for Oscar, he has this soft tone when he talks to or about him, he wants him to be happy even if it means that he himself wont be. He accepts that Oscar doesn’t love him the same way and still supports his friend under any circumstances. It's not just in the dialouge, it's also in the way Robbie talks to and looks at Oscar. He’s pure kindness, love and devotion.

He cares so much for him it's breaking my poor little heart :c

On a less serious note, my guy really went ahead and had his first on-screen kiss be a gay kiss!?! Fuckin hell! And he did so well! Icon, king, legend, right from the start!

Because there aren't enough gifs in this already, have some more little moments I enjoyed :3

✨Puppy dog eyes✨

Good save xD

Why would you hold it like that?

I don't even know why, just thought he looked dashing in this scene

Me too, Robbie, me too.

I probably could've written more, but that wouldn't do the movie and characters justice. Bosie's full brattiness alone is something I couldn't even capture in gifs. Kudos to Jude Law, he really made me hate that character. He's the exact opposite of Robbie. They had only two scenes together I think, but it's awesome to see their personalities clash.

I’d say you should check this movie out, especially if you’re lgbt+ yourself obviously. And then go ahead and read Oscar Wildes works, they're queer history and in general important literature anyone should know.

At the end of this I have learned that I, in fact, don’t hate love drama, I just like it if it's gay. And preferably has a certain actor in it.

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

💙 YA Book Releases August 2024

🦇 Good afternoon, my bookish bats. I hope you have a good book, hot cuppa, and sweet snack within reach! No TBR is complete without a few young adult novels, and plenty were released in August! Here are a few YA releases to consider adding to your shelves.

❤️ Which of these are on your TBR?

✨ August 6 ✨ 💜 The Girl with No Reflection - Keshe Chow 💜 Ami - S. Jae-Jones 💜 Death at Morning House - Maureen Johnson 💜 Better Left Buried - Mary E. Roach 💜 Silent Sister - Megan Davidhizar 💜 Dance of the Starlit Sea - Kiana Krystle 💜 Witty in Pink - Erica George 💜 This Is Not a Dead Girl Story - Kate Sweeney 💜 A Family of Killers - Bryce Moore 💜 Medici Heist - Caitlin Schneiderhan 💜 This Ravenous Fate - Hayley Dennings 💜 Here Lies a Vengeful Bitch - Codie Crowley

✨ August 13 ✨ ❤ The Dark We Know - Wen-yi Lee ❤ Zombie Apocalypse Running Club - Carrie Mac ❤ Return to Sender - Lauren Draper ❤ Ghostsmith - Nicki Pau Preto ❤ Kisses, Codes, and Conspiracies - Abigail Hing Wen ❤ Under the Surface - Diana Urban ❤ Hemlock House - Katie Cotugno ❤ Holly Horror: The Longest Night - Michelle Jabès Corpora

✨ August 20 ✨ 💙 A Bánh Mì for Two - Trinity Nguyen 💙 Love Requires Chocolate - Ravynn K. Stringfield 💙 Prince of the Palisades - Julian Winters 💙 Clown in a Cornfield 3: The Church of Frendo - Adam Cesare 💙 Something Like Right - H.D. Hunter 💙 Drown Me with Dreams - Gabi Burton 💙 Wisteria - Adalyn Grace 💙 My Salty Mary - Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, Jodi Meadows 💙 House of Thorns - Isabel Strychacz

✨ August 27 ✨ ❤ Mysterious Ways - Wendy Wunder ❤ Everything We Never Had - Randy Ribay ❤ The Sticky Note Manifesto of Aisha Agarwal - Ambika Vohra ❤ Libertad - Bessie Flores Zaldivar ❤ One House Left - Vincent Ralph ❤ Sync - Ellen Hopkins ❤ Fyrebirds - Kate J. Armstrong ❤ Practical Rules for Cursed Witches - Kayla Cottingham ❤ Our Shouts Echo - Jade Adia ❤ Don't Let It Break Your Heart - Maggie Horne ❤ The Extraordinary Disappointments of Leopold Berry - Ransom Riggs ❤ With Love, Echo Park - Laura Taylor Namey ❤ The New Camelot - Robyn Schneider ❤ Come Out, Come Out - Natalie C. Parker

[awkward-sultana]

(Almost) Every Costume Per Episode + Anne D'Etampe's green and gold gown in 1x01,2

[lesb0]

this renaissance documentary is so funny they're burning a printed photo of savanorola. TRIGGER WARNING: this one really conservative dominican friar bitch took over Florence from the Medicis for 5 mins and made art get really boring

[lilywily143]

Bad Moment

?: Coolant... This coolant is so common, why didn't our bosses tell us about this?

?: maybe oil is more effectiv- Nuh uh! It's not worth killing drones!

Uzi: GET AWAY!!

?: Uzi!

U: I want space!! Leave me alone, Rebecca!!

R: No way! This is too much fun!

U: Rebecca!

D: Why the fuck did you do that, babe?!!

R: Darren quiet!

?: Listen here. Can you be a respectful drone for once in your lives? This is fucking unacceptable!!!

R: Hey, I'm sure it is. But I'm having fun~ You can stop being a downer.

?: You bitch!! rip What is wrong with yo-

?: GAH

...

R: AHHHHHHHHHHHHH

?: AHHH

U: Stephan!!! Lord, I was about to threaten them with my gun, I probably will after seeing them do that shit. But fuck, you okay? Don't you have medici-

U: Y-you..

S: ow ow ow ow I-I

U: S-stephan

U: No No B-Buddy

U: Please stay.. I'm not scared. You're my friend. I want to help.

S: I... can't.... STAY!

[crazy-so-na-sega]

Norman Mailer accoltella la moglie che lo accusava di non saper scrivere come Dostoevskij al grido di “Lasciatela morire, quella puttana!”, ed altre imprese del grande scrittore

Il 19 novembre 1960 Norman Mailer (nato Nachem Malech Mailer), all’epoca lanciatissima “giovane promessa” dell’intellighenzia americana, in particolare per il suo saggio di pochi anni prima The White Negro, con il quale trasformava il teppismo bohémien dei giovani bianchi annoiati in una sottocultura rivoluzionaria, decise di dare un ricevimento per lanciare la sua candidatura a sindaco di New York, nell’appartamento dell’Upper West Side che condivideva con la moglie Adele Morales (artista e critica letteraria di origine peruviana) e le due figlie.

Fresco di arresto per oltraggio a pubblico ufficiale (aveva cercato di fermare un’auto della polizia come se fosse un taxi) Mailer aveva fatto di tutto per assicurare il sostegno dell’establishment progressista della città a una “struttura di potere” che avrebbe portato avanti le battaglie delle minoranze (tra le quali, per l’appunto, i “negri bianchi” che tanto gli stavano a cuore): una commistione, quella tra élite e rivoluzionari, che rappresenta alla perfezione l’anima della sinistra occidentale sin dagli esordi.

Nonostante la defezione di qualche “filantropo” come David Rockefeller, al party di Mailer convogliarono circa 200 ospiti, tra i quali Allen Ginsberg, Norman Podhoretz (in seguitò uno dei principali rappresentanti del neoconservatorismo bushiano) e una masnada di “derelitti, tagliagole e bohémien” che lo scrittore aveva raccattato letteralmente dalla strada.

Dopo aver bevuto tutto il bevibile, l’enfant prodige della controcultura americana cominciò a litigare con gli ospiti, obbligandoli a mettersi ai lati opposti della stanza a seconda se fossero a favore o contro la sua candidatura, per poi scendere direttamente in strada a prendere a pugni i passanti.

Alle quattro di notte passate, una volta tornato nel suo appartamento con la camicia strappata e un occhio nero, e constatato che tutti gli invitati se ne fossero andati (ad eccezione di 5-6 persone), Mailer se la prese con la moglie, probabilmente anche lei alticcia, la quale lo aveva apostrofato con un Aja toro, aja! per poi chiamarlo “frocetto” [little faggot] e insinuare che la “lurida puttana della sua amante” gli avesse tagliato i cojones (sic).

Secondo altri testimoni, la goccia che avrebbe fatto traboccare il vaso sarebbe stata l’affermazione da parte della Morales che il marito non fosse bravo a scrivere come Dostoesvkij. Fatto sta che a un certo punto Mailer estrasse un temperino arrugginito dalla tasca e colpì la consorte alla schiena e al seno, perforandole il pericardio e mancando di pochissimo il cuore.

Ai presenti, scioccati per l’accaduto, Mailer intimò di “lasciar morire quella cagna” (o “quella puttana”, Let the bitch die). La donna venne prima condotta nell’appartamento al piano inferiore e poi all’ospedale universitario per un intervento d’urgenza.

Seppur in gravi condizioni, la Morales inizialmente disse ai medici di essere caduta su dei pezzi di vetro, ma due giorni dopo confessò alla polizia che era stato Mailer ad aggredirla; nel frattempo lo scrittore aveva fatto in tempo a rilasciare un’intervista televisiva al giornalista Mike Wallace, già programmata per promuovere la sua candidatura a sindaco, nella quale aveva sostenuto un’idea a lui particolarmente cara, cioè che il coltello rappresentasse per un criminale “la sua parola d’onore, la sua mascolinità”.

Quando la Morales ammise di esser stata colpita da Mailer, lo scrittore che in quel momento si trovava in ospedale venne subito arrestato. In seguito venne ricoverato per un paio di settimane in un istituto psichiatrico per una valutazione della sua sanità mentale, nonostante lo scrittore avesse implorato di non essere mandato con i pazzi poiché altrimenti “per il resto della mia vita le mie opere saranno considerate come frutto di una mente malata”.

A salvare la sua carriera, oltre che la clemenza dei giudici e la connivenza del milieu culturale newyorchese, fu probabilmente decisiva la scelta di Adele Morales di non sporgere denuncia in cambio del divorzio (ottenuto nel 1962). Mailer ne uscì praticamente indenne, e non solo dalla prospettiva penale, dal momento che i suoi amici “serrarono i ranghi” in sua difesa: il collega scrittore James Baldwin descrisse la sua “impresa” come un tentativo di liberarsi dalla “prigione spirituale che aveva creato con le sue fantasie politiche”, mentre il critico Lionel Trilling derubricò l’accaduto a “stratagemma dostoevskiano” messo in scena dallo stimato scrittore per “testare i limiti del male in se stesso”.

Qualche voce critica si sollevò dal fronte femminista: per esempio la scrittrice Kate Millett, proprio alla luce della violenza sulla moglie, tacciò l’intera opera di Mailer di legittimare il “sistema patriarcale”; tuttavia, quando Mailer si ricandidò a sindaco di New York nel 1969, le ideologhe Bella Abzug e Gloria Steinem lo sostennero con convinzione.

Le prime accuse di un certo rilievo sono giunte in tempi recenti, sia sulla scia delle memorie di Adele Morales (The Last Party, pubblicato nel 1997), sia con l’ascesa della cancel culture. Persino il “manifesto” di Mailer, The White Negro, è stato ridotto a espressione di esistenzialismo macho, ispirato a una concezione del maschile (anche in termini di aggressività e violenza) intrinsecamente positiva in quanto legato alla realtà e all’azione, e di conseguenza superiore al femminile, di contro schierato con l’artificiosità e il vaniloquio.

D’altro canto, per corroborare la sua candidatura a sindaco, Mailer abbozzò una lettera aperta a Fidel Castro nel quale biasimava che, a differenza di Cuba, negli Stati Uniti “troppi pochi colpi vengono sferrati alla carne. Qui siamo esperti nell’uccidere lo spirito, usiamo proiettili psichici e ci uccidiamo vicendevolmente cellula per cellula”. Se è probabile che annoverasse se stesso, in quanto intellettuale, tra i “carnefici dell’anima”, di certo ne includeva la compagna, le cui frecciate aveva definito come “una sequela di pugnalate psichiche” [psychic stabbings].

La mania per un certo tipo di mascolinità, declinata sempre in chiave progressista, emerge anche da uno dei punti più importanti del suo programma, con cui lo scrittore annunciava l’organizzazione di tornei cavallereschi in stile medievale a Central Park e corse di cavalli a Little Italy per contrastare la delinquenza giovanile.

Ad ogni modo, un parallelo più interessante è con il romanzo scritto dopo l’accoltellamento, Un sogno americano (1965) che racconta di uno stimato intellettuale e politico, Stephen Rojack, il quale in preda ai fumi dell’alcol uccide la moglie e poi si rifugia nei bassifondi di Manhattan dove, tra jazz club e puttane, scopre il valore liberatorio della violenza. Va osservato che al processo per l’accoltellamento della Morales l’avvocato di Mailer sostenne che il suo assistito avrebbe potuto “dare un contributo alla società” con il suo nuovo libro, che era appunto l’elogio letterario del suo gesto An American Dream…

.....

storia di fama, compagne, paraocchi e opportunismo...:-)

[ruvviks]

– OC TAG GAME.

TAGGED BY: @aragorngf, @devilbrakers & @aartyom, thank you so much!! TAGGING: @reaperkiller, @faarkas, @morvaris, @cultistbase, @swordcoasts, @katsigian, @ncytiri, @adelaidedrubman, @henbased, @strafethesesinners, @shellibisshe, @dickytwister and YOU! – picrew director's commentary: did this one without including ocs from original stories because those guys go waaayyy back LMAO so i'm only including (semi) familiar faces here :D

– FAVORITE OC.

vitali dobrynin [cp2077]

alright fine you got me i KNOW vincent is the main character but this cunt has bewitched me body and soul officially now. sexy as hell in both the past and the present, gives me gender envy on a daily basis, i need to study him in a petri dish i need to wrap him in a blanket i need to pick him apart like a little lego figure i need to bend him over the nearest surface. do you understand me. he is fucking everything to me

– NEWEST OC.

kitty bennett [cp2077]

i create new guys so often but i think she's the newest one! kitty is reid's older sister and she recently FINALLY divorced her piece of shit husband and now she's showing her face in night city again to bother the shit out of her younger brother :^) she's got twins and they're taller than their uncle at the fresh age of 11 and that will forever be hilarious to me. i'm still spinning more ideas around for her but she's also very tall that's one thing i know

– OLDEST OC.

rafael rodriguez [jc3]

i don't actually know if he's my oldest oc of all of them but i feel like he is?? very self indulgent one because there's no fandom here but i loved the game so i made a little guy for it :^) most tired little man in all of medici and he hasn't changed all that much since i created him i just made him More tired over the years. someone please let him take a nap he's been awake for three consecutive days now

– MEANEST OC.

michele diaz [cp2077]

the baddest bitch out there in my honest opinion but also all she's ever done is constantly manipulate everyone around her so. hee hee!! she will make you feel so so safe around her until she doesn't need you anymore and then she tears you apart and you'll end up in shambles for the rest of your life. if she even lets you live in the first place. so yeas definitely not one of my nicest ocs i shan't lie!! cold and ruthless and likes ordering people around and doesn't care about the consequences of her actions. turned into a monster by militech and now she's constantly showing everyone her teeth but what can you do other than play the cards you've been given

– SOFTEST OC.

luna serratos [cp2077]

this one was difficult because a lot of my ocs have a very big soft side but i think luna is one of the few of them who's actually like. more than 95% soft. mostly because of the fact they're not a mercenary of some sort like most of my cyberpunk ocs LMAO luna is the one who patches everyone up after the gig is done and they're always so gentle with those around them even if they're complete strangers. that's how she met cassidy and by definition the rest of the gang too :^) throughout the entire story she remains a constant in everyone's life and despite all the horrible things that happen, not at any point does luna turn to the mercenary life themself. they have this very strong belief that they can make themself the most useful as a medic and as a friend, not as a fighter or an enemy

– MOST ALOOF/STANDOFFISH OC.

nathan dixon [tew]

man who will just stand there and autism stare at you until you start talking to him. and then he continues to do that actually he just occasionally says some words back (if you're lucky). he's mostly just distant because a lot of people have hurt him in the past so he doesn't warm up to others well or quickly, and he tries to look at everything very objectively so a lot of people would think he just doesn't care. which is honestly true a lot of the time actually. elevator music playing in his brain on loop

– DUMBEST (AFFECTIONATE) OC.

aubrey valentine [cp2077]

where the fuck do i even begin mein fucking gott aubrey. he's so. <3 like genuinely he is in fact very intelligent and capable he's running a fixer business and a club right now with the same kind of job guarantee + safety levels as vitali's business so he's got it all!! but he's also just dumb as bricks!!!! his siblings (three sisters and a trans brother) have successfully managed to convince him he will get his period at some point in his life. any day now aubrey. he eats crayons. sand. anything really he's eaten glass before (the counter is on five. he's still alive somehow. don't ask) and he'll do it again. will confidently use a random word in a sentence believing he's used it right but by god he is not right. he can drive but he also can't drive but he also can't not drive. he doesn't know what a horse is

– SMARTEST OC.

vatha nefiti [d&d]

this one was very difficult because vatha is in a party with artyom (nuclear artificer), lorelei (chronomancy wizard) and sascha (cthulhu warlock) but i think she (cryogenetics sorcerer) can be considered the smartest because she's got like. Everything. the high wisdom high intelligence high charisma kind of stat combination. they love reading books and learning things about the places they visit and have all this information stored in their memories but at the same time she also knows a LOT about surviving and living on the road, and she's usually the one to handle business with people they help. beacon of knowledge but also very passive in it, they're not someone who would rub it in your face but the party knows that if they need any sort of information, ask vatha LMAO

– OC YOU'D BE BEST FRIENDS WITH IRL.

reuben de la rosa [cp2077]

the sweetest little guy ever to exist he would be SUCH a nice friend to have. excited about basically everything, gives great hugs, always has Something to talk about and he will include you in Everything so you'll never ever feel left out or lonely basically. i wouldn't let him cook for me though he exploded an egg in the microwave once 🥚🤯