#embracing that fan-oriented vision and making it official

[shadowed-yet-vibrant]

I think my favorite thing about Epic’s creator and cast (and particularly about Jay) is that as the project grows, they’re embracing how fans of this media typically interact with that media. Choosing to do lyric videos, partnering with artists for official animatics (previously reserved for fandom spaces only), doing livestreams, embracing the parts that fans end up liking the most instead of rejecting them. It feels like Jay and all of the cast/creators truly understand their audience and how to promote this project in a way that speaks to that audience. Truly fantastic work.

[the-seas-song]

Richard Armitage and Astrology

Hi! I find astrology fascinating, and am an armchair expert on it myself, so I found Richard's comments in his recent Total Film Magazine interview very interesting. This is what he said:

I’ve been incredibly lucky. I’ve dabbled with having my celestial chart looked at every couple of years, just for a little tune-up. Every time, the guy sighs, and goes, “What can I say? You’ve just got a sprinkle of luck.” And I say, “That’s good, because I don’t have the talent, so I really need the luck!”

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There is a naughty, dark side to me. I am quite strongly affected by the moon. So if there’s a full moon I’ll go a bit crazy. (source)

This isn't the first time Richard's mentioned astrology – he's mentioned being a Leo, reading his daily horoscope, and finding out he was born in the Chinese Year of the Pig; but these were all informal twitter comments. He has also mentioned the effect the moon has on him before, in February 2020:

“Everyone has cycles of positive mental and emotional feelings and negative mental and emotional feelings and I know that I am profoundly affected on a monthly cycle. I always look at the calendar when I'm feeling particularly low and check the lunar cycle to see if it's a full or new moon.” (source)

However, what prompted me to write this is that Richard's personal put-downs were even more direct here than usual; and the connection that has to his natal, or birth, chart.

A little disclaimer: Personally, I think general horoscopes (like the ones you find in magazines) do far more harm than good. They are based solely on the twelve sun signs, and your sun sign is just one puzzle piece out of 25+ pieces that make up your natal chart. This is why many people don't relate to their horoscope or it's personality description.

Your natal chart, however, is a whole different animal. It's an intricate puzzle created by the exact date, time, and location you were born; which is why most people find their natal charts to be scarily accurate.

Back during the Hobbit days, a fan blog reported that Richard told a NZ fan that his birth time was just after 4 a.m. I used 4:05 for this post, and being off by a few minutes doesn't really make a difference.

Richard and self-esteem

I really feel for and relate to Richard's self-esteem struggles, because our charts mirror each other. We are both Leo suns; but I have my moon in Aries with my MC and Chiron conjunct each other in Virgo and sextile my North Node; while Richard has his moon in Virgo with his MC and Chiron conjunct each other in Aries and sextile his North Node.

What on earth does that mean?

Each planet represents a different part of you. The sun represents your ego/conscious self; the moon your emotions, mercury your mind/intellect, venus love and beauty/aesthetics, mars passion and drive, etc.

On top of the twelve planets, there are specific points and asteroids that are also important. Your MC, or Midheaven, represents your career and public persona. Your North Node describes your inner journey and life purpose. The asteroid Chiron describes your major soul wound, that you will be forced to deal with throughout your life.

A conjunction and a sextile are two of several different kinds of aspects. The different kinds of aspects are the different ways your respective puzzle pieces can interact with each other. Some are 'easy/positive' and some 'difficult/negative'. A sextile is considered easy/positive. A conjunction means two things are next to each other and overlap with one another, and is usually considered positive.

Leo and Aries are both fire signs. Fire signs are generally playful, warm, passionate, confident, and optimistic. Virgo is an earth sign. Earth signs are generally practical, grounded, sensual, and logical.

Richard's personality is dominated by an almost equal amount of Leo and Virgo influence, with both his sun (core self) and venus (love and beauty) in Leo and his moon (emotions) and mercury (mind) in Virgo.

Aries and Virgo are said to be the most difficult Chiron signs, because they are the wounds tied directly to your self-worth (Aries is the wound of Self and Virgo is the wound of Perfection). With Aries Chiron you feel a core sense of worthlessness, like you're missing a fundamental piece of your core self. This deeply felt lack of self-worth leads people to be people pleasers and have issues with confrontation and conflict.

Aries rules the planet mars. It is the warrior planet of passion, drive, and combat. A conventional Aries is confident, outgoing, impulsive, and strong willed. Aries and mars are definitely the rowdiest sign and planet in the zodiac. However, with Chiron here the traits are inverted, and so someone like Richard is much more likely to be scared of his inner passion, confidence, and willpower – depending, of course, on what the rest of his chart is like.

That leads us to Virgo. Chiron Virgo feels impure, like there is something fundamentally wrong with them. This kind of low self-esteem makes you feel like you have to constantly try to 'fix' yourself so people will love and accept you. It's an OCD type of perfectionism that only ends in failure and heartbreak.

A good example of how this works is when I talked to my therapist recently. I hadn't quite succeeded in meeting my goals, and so my automatic response was to condemn myself for failing. My therapists immediate response was to congratulate me on how much progress I had made.

Ironically, unlike with Aries, this isn't an inversion of the conventional Virgo. Conventional Virgo is meticulous, detail-oriented, focused, patient, efficient, practical, perfectionistic, systematic, and pessimistic with high expectations. If Aries is the official warrior of the zodiac, Virgo is the official nit-picker.

This means that Richard's subconscious intellectually (mercury) and emotionally (moon) expects and demands perfection, whilst simultaneously feeling fundamentally worthless. In short: ouch.

Interestingly, a significant number of celebrities have their Chiron conjunct their MC. Personally, I think Richard hit the nail on the head as to why in his essay on the Human Condition for Cybersmile:

The answer in my humble opinion, (and believe me it is humble, to a point of taking 43 years to be shared) is actually something which applies to my work as an actor. It’s why sometimes actors are called in to work with therapists, in large corporations, in schools. It’s why drama therapy is fantastic to understand what we do, how we do it and what the outcome might be, and in an improvisation where we aren’t playing ourselves sometimes we explore avenues that are too frightening or unacceptable in our own lives.

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So going back to my very first point, the “social media society” in which we’d all like to feel safe, supported, excited, creative, spontaneous, innovative, courageous, is really in our own hands. And back to acting, it’s taken me a long time to shake off the effects of bullying in school. That people were always laughing behind my back. I was always looking out of the corner of my eye. I now have incredible peripheral vision which is so useful, (as is Kinesthetic sense…Google it) but try being a brave, experimental, uninhibited actor with all of those hang ups. Wasn’t happening.

So here is the thing, and it’s key to my work and I think ours as a community. When we speak or write, we ultimately desire to ‘affect’. If we aren’t watching the destination of that affect, then how do we know our words have landed and the ‘effect’ they have caused?

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If I have a strong opinion about something which I want to express I really task myself with backing it up with the ‘why do I feel that?’

Again it’s part of my work building a believable character, and actually part of building a believable ‘me’ outside of my work. Just.. “because that’s what I feel” is a bit of a cop out.

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As for Bullying, it’s like the moment the pot boils over, or it’s the poisoned stream that can’t be cleansed, so why bother. Well I think that’s what art is for. It’s can support the best and the worst of ourselves. We can ‘attack’ a canvas with black angry paint, we can ‘savage’ a piano keyboard, we can dance until we drop, we can read about a Puritan society who executed elders, we can explore the psychology of a serial killer, and when we can’t do this ourselves we can experience it, and witness it through others.

It’s more than being nice. Edward Munch’s “The Scream” is far from nice. Francisco Goya’s “Saturn” is horrific, Metallica, Die Antwoort etc etc. But then there is Monet, Faure, Renée Fleming, Peter Jackson, Ariana Grande (ok it’s getting a bit eclectic I admit) but when we look, listen and empathize, we tune in to the Human Condition.

We are all part of The Human Condition, whether we like it or not. Social Media. Expression. The Human Condition.

Us human beings are wired for emotion and connection. For actors, their career gives them a way to safely process and explore their personal wounds through the characters they play. For Richard in particular, his mars is conjunct his North Node. So, his mars and North Node are sextile his Chiron and MC.

Remember, Aries (the sign of Richard's Chiron and MC) is ruled by mars. Mars is the warrior planet, like Aries is the warrior sign. This means that Richard's spiritual journey/life's purpose (North Node) deals directly with healing his soul wound so he can accept and embrace his inner confidence and willpower. This explains why he ends up playing a lot of ultra-masculine characters – mars/Aries are the most macho of them all.

This isn't to say I think Richard should change who he is! I wouldn't be interested in him if he was ultra-masculine or macho. However, for his own sake, I would be overjoyed to see him gain more self-esteem and inner confidence.

Extrapolating from my own personal experiences, the constant criticism and judgement I received during my adolescence from my peers and various authority figures (like family members and teachers) for being unconventional and 'over the top' caused me to turn on myself and repress my passion and will-power for several years. I think it's highly likely that Richard experienced this too.

Here are some quotes from Richard that illustrate everything I've been talking about (emphasis is mine):

Armitage is still notably handsome, but, within minutes of meeting him, it’s apparent how incongruous it is that this bookish, sensitive, self-described ‘melancholic, philosophically-minded softie’ and ardent fan of The Great British Bake Off was cast as beefcake killer totty for a considerable part of his career. ‘It’s ridiculous. It’s the complete opposite to who I am. I’m such a pacifist,’ he laughs. ‘But then, part of me always felt: “Well, isn’t that why we’re actors?”

[cut]

'I think the turning point was losing my mum,” he says. “Up until that point, I felt like I mustn’t put a foot wrong, that if I said the wrong thing or revealed too much about my personal life, it could all come crashing down, and it would come down on my parents, and they wouldn’t be proud of me anymore.” He shrugs. “Now that I’m past that I’m actually much more carefree about the choices I make.” (source)

Richard Armitage puts his head in his hands and emits a noise that's somewhere between a sigh, a laugh and a groan. “Oh no! Why would you want to pin this up?” he says with a horrified whisper.

[cut]

Never has a man seemed more ill at ease with the heartthrob label. He squirms with embarrassment in his chair every time the subject comes up. He is grateful for the loyalty of his fans, he says, but worries that “there is this thing of, 'Is he just totty?' Because the industry will sometimes write you off as a serious actor if they think that. I have always been conscious of that and fought against it, because I don't really see myself like that at all.”

[cut]

This brings us back to Astrov, who looks so relentless towards the future that he can't see the truth in front of his eyes. “It's interesting that he's an outsider in the play. I've often felt like that myself in life. I'm quite a solitary person. I enjoy my time with me, and sometimes it's not necessarily healthy, because I can talk myself into quite a dark place.

I'm an optimist, but at the same time, there's a discipline in me that will attack me for not working hard enough, not achieving enough, not being good enough. You always think, 'I'll grow out of that. With success, those voices will disappear.' But they don't, they get louder. I suppose I'm learning a bit about myself through Astrov.” (source)

The answer in my humble opinion, (and believe me it is humble, to a point of taking 43 years to be shared) is actually something which applies to my work as an actor. … And back to acting, it’s taken me a long time to shake off the effects of bullying in school. That people were always laughing behind my back. I was always looking out of the corner of my eye. I now have incredible peripheral vision which is so useful, (as is Kinesthetic sense…Google it) but try being a brave, experimental, uninhibited actor with all of those hang ups. Wasn’t happening. (Human Condition essay)

So I kind of travelled on that line for a while, and I was bullied for it as well. The problem with me is that as soon as you try to push me down or say “you can’t do this” and “I don’t think you should do that”, I immediately push back. So I did – I’d decided really young that I was going to try to make a career out of it.

[cut]

Actually, there was something I wanted to add to what Shaun said, about inclusivity, is that um, no matter how – how much confidence you have or how, in my case, lack. Y’know, I always felt like a misfit, or an oddball, or that I didn’t belong. But I always – I always told myself that ‘you exist in the world, so therefore there’s a place for you in this industry’. I think anybody who feels like, “I can’t become an actor because…” – you exist. And, y’know, the job of filmmakers is to write about our life and society, and if you are a part of that, then there’s a place for you in the industry. (source)

I'm a bit of a brooder. I don't like confrontation, so I think I suppress things. When my temper does come out, it goes all the way – the kind of temper you can't apologize for. Yep, the chair getting thrown out of the window. Those emotions are scary, but hey, they come in useful when you're acting. (source)

Armitage is a noticeably calm presence but he talks with passion.

[cut]

In the past, he has described himself as a shy person. “Not any more,” he says forcefully. “I mean… if I’m very, very honest, I’m a big guy, I think I’m at times quite a frightening person.”

In what way?

“I think I’m quite uncompromising. I can’t bear bulls---. And in a way the shyness is me protecting other people from that. I can feel that there’s an intimidation that can happen if I own my full height, and speak at my full volume. So I’ve learned over the years to just tone it all down a bit.” (source)

I've become one of those actors who find it difficult to say no when things are offered. I think if I had come out of drama school and been an instant Hollywood superstar I would be taking long, leisurely holidays. But I always feel somehow it's going to be taken away from me so I work when I can. When you struggled with work as I did when I left drama school you make hay when the sun shines. There was a time when I thought, and my agent thought, it wasn't going to happen for me. We both sat down and I actually said I don't know if I can stay in this state. The interesting roles have only come since I got into my 30s. But I didn't know that was going to happen. I'm a bit of an all or nothing kind of guy. To be honest, I had no blind faith in myself. I don't think I could have stayed around as a jobbing actor. I would probably have quit. Who knows? I think I would have found that too frustrating. But at the moment when I thought I was going to quit, something happened and it all changed again. (source)

[talking about being cast in the Hobbit]

There was a little bit of guidance as to what they were looking for. I felt that I was too young for the character, too tall for that character, so I thought, you know, ‘I’ll just look at the scene they’ve written’. And then I realised the essence of the character that they were aiming for. So I went to meet Peter and Phillipa and we read some of the scenes. I think we spent an hour-and-a-half talking about the character and what their vision was, and I sort of explained who I thought he was, and that was it.

[cut]

Yeah, my first instinct, whenever that kind of thing happens, is to say, 'Well what's wrong with the part? Why did nobody else want it'? Which is kind of the story of my life really. When I get offered something, I'm like, 'Well there must be something wrong with it if they're offering it to me!'

[cut]

But you know, the thing is, you talk about all of this: ‘How did you get the role? And how did it feel when you got the role?’ And once all that’s died down you start to think, ‘I’ve actually got to go and play this now’. They’ve trusted me. Everyone’s happy, everyone’s celebrated, the phones have gone down and the deal’s been done. Now it’s over to me to make the role work. And that’s the scariest moment, because you do have that elation and then the work begins and you think, ‘How the hell am I going to do this?’ (source)

How was it for you taking on this beloved role, this character that has such a huge responsibilty on his back? Could you relate in some ways?

Richard Armitage: Yeah. There is always building within him this paranoia that he’s not a good enough leader, and that weighs him down. I have experienced that same feeling as an actor in this role. And I was aware of taking on the responsibility of that character, so there was something I could latch onto there, as one of the people who loved ‘The Hobbit’ book and had envisioned that character. It took me a while to be convinced that I could do it, it wasn’t until I saw some sketches, this one particular pencil sketch….there was something about this characters eyes and the way that his hands are crossed, I thought, “I think I can do this, I can pull this off.” (source)

Q: I wanted to ask you about what your Arkenstone is. For you personally.

A: Me personally?

Q: And I meant for this to be materialistic. What's the thing that you covet so much that it makes you mad that you don't have it?

A: Well, it's actually not material. It's not material, and it's – (laughs) You want a comedy answer, don't you? But it's respect. It's the thing that always eludes you, you know. You have to fight for it and when you get it, your arkenstone, the thing that crowns you, is respect.

Q: And also a sweater.

A: And a sweater. I do have this little natty number.

Q: It's a good one man.

A: Tom Ford made this personally. But hey, he can have it back. I don't covet wealth and material. (source)

Q6: You’ve done a variety of different roles, I wonder what influences you to pursue those roles?

R: More often than not, you go where you’re wanted. So getting hired is still kind of a revelation to me, a shock and a surprise. Sometimes you have very flat periods, where I don’t really care what comes next, I just want to work on something. I feel like I’ve got a little cloud of luck over my head so the right thing always seems to come along. But again, I’m easily excited about literature and stories, so I’ve always said I don’t really pursue glory, I’d happily do acting for two people in my living room if it was a role that I really enjoyed with a story I’d really like to tell. So it’s chance, I would say.

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Q8: Once in an interview about Thorin, you were asked what your arkenstone was and your answer was respect. I like this answer a lot. So I was wondering what’s your red dragon? As you said yesterday he’s a character who sheds his skin, improves, and becomes something. I was wondering if there was something you’d like to improve, become?

R: I guess the antithesis of that is disrespect. Do you mean in myself?

Q8: Yes.

R: Yeah I try not to be too disrespectful. I guess I value the truth. I think we’re living at a time at the moment where the truth is warped and there’s a word that’s been in my head for a long time, and particularly recently it’s come to the surface. When I was studying Macbeth, at the RSC, I read a long thesis about the gunpowder plot, which was one of the things they thought that Shakespeare (or whoever Shakespeare was) was stimulated by to write Macbeth. And the word equivocation was used in this thesis, it was actually about equivocation and what equivocation is. And if you look it up in the dictionary, at the moment most politicians are equivocating. When you don’t answer a question, or you bend the truth to make it seem like you are answering the question, and in fact you’re telling a lie. So I would say my red dragon would be equivocation.

[cut]

Then there was the physical form that I was studying and observing, but also, I do sometimes enjoy locking myself away in a room and reading a book or just doing something alone, and you sometimes can go a couple of days without speaking to anybody. I don’t know whether anyone else experiences this or whether I’m just a weirdo. But I find that when that happens my voice changes, and I always forget how to make a noise, I have to do a warm-up before I go into the world and start speaking again.

[cut]

Q15: I was wondering if you ever had to pull out of a project because it felt wrong or something, and what is the point where you say “nope I can’t do this”?

R: Um, no. But that’s partly to do with the fact that I have a lot of loyalty, probably too much loyalty for my own good, really, and there’ve been moment when I’ve been on board a project, and actually it happened this year with The Lodge, I was already on board that project and something else came along which was bigger and better and brighter and more money, and your agent says “look we can pull you out of The Lodge, they can probably recast it,” and here I think “I’ve already started this process, I don’t want to let people down,” and I don’t have a problem with that at all, I never have any regrets over the things that you miss or the things that you decide not to do, I think there’s a strong enough reason why you’ve decided not to do it, but in general no I haven’t ever pulled out of something. There was one television show I remember, I’m not going to say what it is, but after the first readthrough, I did call my agent and asked, “can I get out of this?” And then he quickly got back to me and said, “don’t do it. Don’t build a reputation built on disloyalty.” So I try not to.

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Q18: I think you are very handsome, but your character Francis hated the way he looked, how did that make you feel?

R: Francis hated the way he looked? Yeah. I guess there is something we relate to in that. Without getting too personal, I don’t always enjoy looking at myself in the mirror. I don’t do it very often, to be honest. I do it just to be sure I don’t have food on my face. I do it in character, actually. I do spend a bit of time studying my own face when I’m playing a character, which is interesting because your face does change. (source)

He cannot see the handsomeness: “I think I am odd-looking. I have big lines on my forehead.” I squint, looking for them, but he is talking over me, sounding slightly panicked. “I shouldn’t draw attention to it, because then everyone else will see the oddness.”

[cut]

Laziness is what makes him angry: “Laziness in myself. Laziness in other people. And dishonesty. All things I feel capable of myself. I have a propensity to be lazy and lie about it. Fear makes me rageful. There are words in The Crucible I actually find it quite hard to say.” I beg for an example — The Crucible is in the public domain. “No,” he says, “you’ll see it in the play.” I tell him it will make no sense in print if he will not tell me. But he won’t. So I change the subject. It works. “OK, I will give you a line.” He inflates a little and says: “Is there no good penitence but it be public?” And then: “Were I stone I would have cracked for shame this seven month.” (source)

Q: How would you describe your evolution as an actor since you started?

A: I think everything has to do with the fact that today I’m not afraid anymore. At first, I was embarrassed to do something wrong or do things badly or make myself ridiculous. Today, I am almost looking for opportunities to be ridiculous or vulnerable or to make as much of a mistake as possible. In a sense, it’s now the opposite of being undercover.

Q: Are you the actor you dreamed of being when you started?

A: Not yet. I am not yet fearless enough. It’s in waves, actually. But I have already approached this dream. There were moments, especially during Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, which I performed on stage, where I felt I had no control over things. That’s what I’m looking for: to lose control.

Q: You often play bad guys. What do you like in these characters?

A: I like disobedience. I like the fact that you can be disobedient thanks to your creativity. As a person, I must always be polite in life, be careful and correct so as not to hurt anyone. In a fantasy world, I can be as offensive as I want. It’s an outlet. (Laughter)

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Q: Many actors are moving to directing. Is this also your goal?

A: I would like to, but I do not think I’m smart enough. I am good when it comes to working with another’s vision. I do not think I have that creative spontaneity that creates a vision from scratch. But the future will tell. (source)

I applaud Richard for being so open and direct about his fears and insecurities. It takes a lot of bravery to do so. And while I've seen some fans get annoyed with his continual self-deprecation, I think his honesty and openness is much more significant, and shows his inner strength. He doesn't try to pretend to be someone he's not.

He recently described himself as “patient, obsessive, and silly” (source). The patient part is classic Virgo, and the obsessive part comes from an element of his natal chart that I have not mentioned.

The silly part, however, is classic Leo. Like I said above, he has an almost equal amount of Leo and Virgo in his personality. Personally, I'm proud to be a Leo, but I also know we get misunderstood a lot of the time. I wrote the following for an essay of mine on Leos in Disney:

Your sun sign represents your core identity. Just like the physical sun is the center of the solar system and its energy creates life, the astrological sun is our consciousness and life force. Each of the twelve sun signs are ruled by a different planet and element.

Since Leo is the fixed fire sign, we don't inherit the reckless and impulsive nature of fire, but instead are a steady flame. No sign is more reckless and impulsive than Aries, because they have the double combination of being a cardinal sign and a fire sign. Meanwhile, all four of the fixed signs struggle with stubbornness and admitting when their wrong.

Leo's are well known to be natural leaders and the rulers of the zodiac. We are ruled by the sun and our animal is the lion. We dream big and are born with big personalities, and we can't help but be theatrical and dramatic. This means we are always self-centered in the sense of being strong-willed and having a strong sense of self. It does not mean all Leos are egotistical.

Unhealthy Leo traits all revolve around the ego: attention-seeking, egotistical, selfish, bossy, controlling, pushy, jealous, possessive, lazy, vain, arrogant, aggressive, and obstinate.

Healthy Leos, however, are known for our fire-based traits – being animated, theatrical, happy, outgoing, independent, competitive, charismatic, creative, open-minded, open-hearted, confident, assertive, playful, warm, social, courageous, idealistic, affectionate, romantic, optimistic, and adventurous.

What isn't often talked about is our steadiness, our fixed-based traits. Leos are authentic, steadfast, fiercely loyal and protective, consistent, persistent, full-hearted, dedicated, need to do their best, generous and selfless, honorable and moral, genuine and direct, extremely supportive, hard-working and responsible, dignified, strong-willed, and ambitious and determined.

Something that is often mentioned but highly misunderstood is our trait of courage. Having courage doesn't mean you're fearless or reckless. The definition of courage is “the power or quality of dealing with or facing danger, fear, pain, etc.” It means that instead of running away from our problems or denying our emotions; healthy Leos face them and be genuine and direct with ourselves, embracing our vulnerability.

Having a big personality doesn't necessarily mean someone has a big ego. C.S. Lewis once said, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it's thinking of yourself less.” Leos have huge hearts and are incredibly generous. The sun never goes retrograde, always shines, and gives life and energy to all living beings – it isn't selective or discriminatory. Healthy Leos are like mini suns; which is why we are also irrepressibly upbeat, optimistic, and fun-loving.

We're not pushovers. We are like roses – we have both flower petals and thorns. If you mess with someone we love you're going down. We're too loyal and protective to let major things slide; and even if we forgive, we never forget. Little things? We'll try to work them out with you.

Being naturally strong-willed and assertive is healthy – it just means we usually make horrible subordinates and yes people. There's nothing wrong with having high standards and being open about them. In fact, in relationships it's far better in the long run to open and frank about what you need and what you consider a dealbreaker from the beginning.

And oh yes are we ambitious and competitive – but most often with ourselves. We're natural leaders who always dream and think big. For a healthy Leo it's not about being the best, but doing your best. We have to be grand and intense, we're ruled by the sun. It's all or nothing for us. Settling is not something a Leo does. We need to be the best leader, the best friend, the best partner, etc. that we possibly can.

Also, in astrology each sign rules a different body part, and Leo rules the heart and upper back.

Adding to this, Leos are known as the Kings/Queens of the zodiac not because we're egotistical, but because our sun sign is the sun. It's like a double amount sun. I could go into significantly more detail about this, but it involves a lot of technical astrological details; so if anyone wants to know more just message me!

Going back to Richard, having his core self (sun) and love/beauty (venus) in Leo explains why he is an actor and artist; and why he is often warm, silly, and dramatic when he feels comfortable – his long interview with The Anglophile Channel (and it's deleted scenes) does a great job of showing the synergy between his Leo and Virgo sides.

We see Richard express the heartfelt, generous, sincere, and honorable side of Leo all the time. This is why I'm sure he has the inner-confidence and strength hidden within him to overcome the deep pain his Chiron causes him (like it does to us all). I hope he continues to find projects and people that help him on his journey to heal.

Thank you for reading this, I'm wishing him and you all the best. Take care!

[vitosscaletta]

>:) Personality + Background for Helena, Basics + Appearance for Erin

YES thank u... vampire time

Helena

PERSONALITY

What’s their alignment?

Probably neutral good ehehehe

What are their hobbies and interests? Do they have any particular “favorites” (food, books, and so on)?

Her number one passion is acting, it’s not really a hobby since she does it professionally (or is trying to lol).. She enjoys learning history though, especially the mid-18th century :^) Also music, corny movies, she’s also a huge sims fan >:)

As for her favorites uhhh her favorite band is My Chemical Romance DUH, fav movies are Shakespeare in Love, Valley of The Dolls (yeah ik it sucks),... Shark Tale.... aaaaand her favorite food is fries. Or it was, she can’t eat it anymore :(

What are they bad at?

Within the game’s mechanics and all that.. she’s not much good in a fight (thank u faelike background). She’s still significantly stronger than the average human of course, but very fragile for vampire standarts :/ Noodle arms bitch

Do they have any vices/addictions/mental illnesses?

None that I can think of

What are their goals and motivations?

Before her embrace it was to become a famous actress.. which isn’t possible anymore, she’s still craving that kind of lifestyle though. She grew up not being very well off and not being very popular either, so it’s kinda... wanting to be someone important? Like that Will Smith fish from shark tale :)

What are their manners like? Any habits?

She’s rather well-mannered, not exactly posh but she doesn’t do anything weird in public either.. usually.

What are they most afraid of?

irrelevance... something like that :/

BACKGROUND

Where were they born? What was their childhood like?

She’s originally from San Francisco, grew up with a single mom and her younger sister. They weren’t very well off so her mom had to work a lot, it was pretty much just her and her sister :/ She wasn’t very popular either so she made only few friends in school, it was lonely :(

What’s their family like?

Her mom Jenny is a nice lady, very goal-oriented.. she was very popular in high school, which is how she met Helena’s dad. He’s originally from germany and comes from a long line of vampire hunters and religious zealots (Society of Leopold hoes..), doesn’t really know anything about it though. His family are just a bunch of weird catholics. They had two children, miss Helena & her little Sister, Elizabeth before he divorced his wife and fucked off 👋. He cut off all contact and doesn’t pay child support bc he’s a freak. Also Elizabeth is currently studying law somewhere, their mother insisted they make something of themselves >:(

What factions or organizations are they a part of? What ranks and titles do they hold?

She’s with the camarilla, mostly due to the fact that Christian is in it too. She came to them all starry-eyed because the other members were all sexy, powerful and rich vampires which is pretty much what she wants to be like lmao.. She works directly for Lacroix, kinda like the fledgling except with better pay, slightly less shitty jobs and a tiny bit more respect (only a tiny bit everyone still thinks she’s dumb af). She just has to run small errants lol. There’s no official rank or title though lol.

She’s not really loyal to them or anything and quickly becomes disillusioned by it all. Vampire society is fucked up... she kinda starts spending more time with the Hollywood anarchs because toreador solidarity, doesn’t join their cause though. The anarchs can’t stand her lmao. She’s really mostly independent...

How do they fit into their “story”?

She’s just your good ol’ regular La Croy foundations employee, she was initially my fledgling but I don’t want Christian (her sire) to die, I suppose she’s just like.. there.. idk its kind of a wip

Where do they currently live? What’s their place like?

She has that little apartment in downtown LA during the events of bloodlines :^) It’s a nice place, modern interior and all that... she does miss her old apartment with the victorian furniture though :(( Post bloodlines she probably leaves LA after the whole thing with Lacrosse lol... she’s friends with Ash now they can go on a road trip or something

How do they eventually die?

she doesn’t... shes a vampire >:)

Erin

BASICS

What’s their full name?

Cassandra Erin Winters :~)

What does their name mean? Why were they named that?

Cassandra (from greek “to excel, to shine “) is a little nod to the seer Cassandra, who appears somewhere in her bloodline :^) In-universe it’s one of those names that appear throughout her family.. there are a bunch of important great-grandmothers, aunts and other relatives so her parents named her that to make it look like they’re an important dynasty or something. Rich people bs. Erin is an english derivative of the irish word for.. Ireland lmao. It was just one of those names that were popular in the early 80′s and her mother liked it, there’s no real reason behind it!

Do they have any nicknames?

jhdfjhfd Cammy by Damsel even though she helped them out 😒 also “Newbie” by her bf sdkjskjdf romance ❤

How old are they?

22 in 2004, I suppose she’s 37 in 2020 aka during the events of bloodlines 2

When’s their birthday?

December 13th, 1982

What’s their zodiac sign/element/birthstone/etc.? Do they believe that holds any significance?

I had to take a whole quiz for this but she’s a Sagittarius 😌 I’d say it definitely does lol... she reads her horoscope almost daily

What’s their species/subspecies? Do they have any special/magical abilities?

Vampire lol... specifically of clan Malkavikan. As for magical abilities yknow, typical vampire stuff, plus the voices & Malkavian insight and all that. Her abilities are Auspex and Obfuscate :^)

What “class” do they belong to (for fantasy characters)? If none, what weapon do they favor?

No class but her favorite weapon was the axe she found in the haunted hotel

APPEARANCE

What do they look like?

goddd.... small, pretty blonde, pale skin bc she’s dead, yellow-ish eyes (used to be blue)... big eyes, sliightly overplucked eyebrows bc it’s 2004 :( she’s still cute though

Do they have a face claim?

Mostly Bella Heathcote and Christina Ricci in one image I found on pinterest lol.. I never have faceclaims that are 100% what they look like :(

What’s their style like? Clothes, hair, makeup?

goddd jt was pretty much regular late 90s/early 2000s popular girl before her embrace.. short skirts, juicy tracksuits, tube tops, those awful tinted glasses, coats with fake fur. Her hair was often in those late 90′s updos with a few streaks hanging loose in the front... makeup is just regular looks from the time, lipgloss, frosty eyeshadow and all that 🤢 she’s a big fan of turtleneck sweaters though 😌

It’s still the same but a bit more fucked up post-embrace because she’s just like go crazy aaahh go stupid aaahhh and digs out some of her weirder clothes because half of these vampire bitches wear dumber clothes than her anyway... an old white lace dress that looks like it’s from the early 1900s or something like that... her standard outfits are still low-rise jeans with tank tops and those giant early 2000s shoes though, she just adds in a few weird looking clothes for fun sometimes

How do they carry themselves? What’s their default expression?

Honestly she looks like this emoji 😳 most of the time, Malkavian voices, weird doomsday visions and all that... She had a very cheerful attitude before her embrace and it still shows sometimes, most of the time it’s kinda weird though :(

Do they have any physical ailments or disabilities?

nope!

[nyslovesfilm]

Save the Date: Film Festivals and Events

Film Festivals take place in New York State throughout the year. The following is a list of upcoming festivals and industry events: Rooftop Films – Through Aug. 23 The Summer Series is officially here—explore the city with NYC's largest outdoor film celebration. Your membership will provide you with free and discounted Summer Series tickets, priority entry at screenings, invitations to special events, and first-access to Summer Series tickets.

Roosevelt Island’s Outdoor Summer Movie Series – Through Aug. 3 The Roosevelt Island Summer Movie Series, which kicks off at the Island’s Southpoint Park, is free admission and includes contests and prizes, food vendors, a state-of-the-art sound system, pre-movie music, and a 40-foot-premium screen. The festivities begin at 7 p.m. and the movies start at sunset. Visitors are encouraged to arrive early and bring their own lawn chairs and blankets.

New York Asian Film Festival – June 28 - July 14 The New York Asian Film Festival is a critically acclaimed film festival held in New York City. Programmed and operated by Subway Cinema, the festival generally features contemporary premieres and classic titles from Eastern Asia and Southeast Asia, though South Asian cinema has also been represented via films from India and Pakistan. Genres featured in the film festival include Horror film, Gangster/Crime, Martial Arts, and Action.

Rochester Jewish Film Festival – July 7-14 A committee of 18 volunteers was presented with a large number of film submissions to be sorted, screened and ultimately chosen for our festival. We looked for diversity, relevance, balance, meaning, and so much more.

Movies with a View in Brooklyn Bridge Park – July 11 – Aug. 29 Movies with A View takes place Thursday evenings in July and August on Pier 1's Harbor View Lawn. There is no better place to be on a hot summer night than watching a classic film and enjoying the breeze off the East River with the dazzling Manhattan skyline before you. This year's theme is "Better the Second Time Around" and will feature popular films shown over the series' history.

The 48 Hour Film Project – July 12-14 Filmmakers from all over the New York, NY area will compete to see who can make the best short film in only 48 hours. The winning film will go up against films from around the world at Filmapalooza 2020 for a chance at the grand prize and an opportunity to screen at the Cannes Film Festival 2020 Short Film Corner.

Long Island International Film Expo – July 12-18 The Long Island Film/TV Foundation and the Nassau County Film Commission present the 21st annual LIIFE – Long Island International Film Expo—at the historic Bellmore Movies. This year’s festival will include over a hundred short and feature-length independent films from all over the world.

Stony Brook Film Festival – July 18-27 You’ll experience talented performances by stars of the future and also see some familiar faces.  The Stony Brook Film Festival invites filmmakers to represent their films and participate in question and answer sessions after screenings. You’ll hear from directors, actors, producers, and crew from all over the world.

Hamilton New York International Film Festival – July 22-28 Hamilton New York International Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Hamilton, New York. It aims to present "the best in new cinema". The film festival was founded by brothers Wade, Grant and Todd Slater, whose father, Terry Slater, was the head hockey coach at Colgate University for 15 years.

Long Beach International Film Festival – July 31 - Aug. 3 The Long Beach International Film Festival (LBIFF) is an international film festival founded in 2012, the festival has since taken place every year in Long Beach and in Rockville Centre, New York. The Long Beach International Film Festival celebrates the art of storytelling through cinema. The festival presents shorts, fiction and documentary formats, the LBIFF mission is to exhibit films that convey a fresh voice and differing perspectives.

New York City International Reel Film Festival - July 31 - Aug. 1 The New York City International Reel Film Festival screens the best of today's independent cinema. NYCIRFF is held annually at the legendary Anthology Film Archives in Manhattan, which is home to celebrated filmmakers such as Andy Warhol, Jonas Mekkas, and Stan Brakhage. NYCIRFF is particularity interested in maverick filmmakers of any orientation, ethnicity, religion or country. Located in NYC, we are an ethnically and creatively diverse audience for your film

Hip Hop Film Festival NYC – Aug. 1-4 The Hip Hop Film Festival is a festival created for the new culture of global citizens, those who embrace the culture of revolution, progressive change, social mobility and giving voice to the overlooked. Another name for this culture is the Hip Hop Culture... once known as a music genre that served as the ‘urban CNN’, the culture has evolved to include film and the moving image to add visuals to the stories of the urban griots from every corner of the globe. 

Festival of Cinema NYC – Aug. 2-11 Festival of Cinema NYC is a competitive festival that accepts films and media of all lengths, genres, and subjects. Awards in over 15 categories include Best Feature and Short Narrative, Best Documentary, Best Animation, Music Video & Experimental, and Best Web Series. Audience choice for Feature and Short film are also awarded.

Lucille Ball Comedy Festival – Aug. 7-11 The Lucille Ball Comedy Festival is an annual festival that takes place in Jamestown, N.Y. Lucille Ball’s vision was an annual festival of comedy that would support rising comedians in her hometown. Lucille Ball worked with the Arts Council in Jamestown to develop a comedy festival and comedy film festival in her hometown in the late 1980s. Unfortunately, Ball passed away in April 1989 before attending the festival that would attract thousands of Lucy fans and contemporary comedy lovers alike.

Capitolfest – Aug. 9-11 Capitolfest is a celebration of classic films of the silent and early talkie eras. All movies are shown in the Capitol Theatre, a 1928 movie palace, and the silent films on the bill feature live accompaniment on the Capitol’s original installation Moller theater organ. The aim of Capitolfest is to recreate the experience of seeing these 80-110-year-old films when they were new for our audience members.

Central Park Film Festival – Aug. 13-15 Join us for the 2019 Central Park Conservancy Film Festival, which will be hosted in Central Park in recognition of the Conservancy’s ongoing commitment to the public. New York Latino Film Festival – Aug. 14-18 Come partner with the leading Latino/Multicultural film and digital conference in the country. The New York Latino Film Festival offers customizable, dynamic and activation friendly venues and one of a kind events and tailored programming to connect with your brand—with long-term partners, a loyal, global community of fans and followers along with authentic engagement. The festival is a cultural entertainment event unlike any other. Flame Con – Aug. 17-18 Flame Con, the world’s largest queer comic con, returns for its fifth year. Featuring a two-day comics, arts, and entertainment expo, showcasing creators and special guests from all corners of the LGBTQ fandom. It features thoughtful discussions, exclusive performances, screenings, cosplay, and more! Geeks of all types are invited to attend and celebrate the diversity and creativity of queer geekdom and LGBTQ contributions to pop culture.

New York State Fair Drone Film Festival – Aug. 21 - Sept. 2 The NYS Drone Film Festival is dedicated to educating audiences and empowering filmmakers and companies around the world to tell their stories with the use of drones. Amateur, professional, students and companies worldwide are invited to enter their films or photographs. Our mission is to help educate the public about the many positive and beneficial ways drones are being used to better society and capture the panoramic beauty of our planet. This competition is open to content filmed anywhere around the globe. Fan Fiction Festival – Aug. 22 This event offers writers at all levels the opportunity to hear their scripts read aloud using professional actors and showcased online for thousands to see. It gives the writer the opportunity to have their fan fiction read by professionals and showcased to the industry and world. Writers will receive full feedback on scripts by our established reading committee, so even if you’re just looking for feedback on your script, this is the festival for you. Brooklyn Women’s Film Festival – Aug. 22-25 Brooklyn Women’s Film Festival is a female-focused film festival, run by women, about women and for everyone. BWFF showcases films made by female writers and/or directors and gives special preference to films that contain women in key creative roles. Our films are fierce, edgy and relevant.

Trekonderoga – Aug. 23-25 Star Trek original series set tour weekend offers Trek fans events and tours of the original series set rebuilt by super Trek fan James Cawley.  The sets are complete recreations built using the original blueprints, hundreds of hours of serious research and thousands of photographs – both period images and images culled from extensive review and capture from the original episodes. 

Village of Brewster Film Festival – Aug. 23 - Sep. 3 This festival brings high quality, independent film to Putnam County and introduces new stories, new ideas and new dialogue through films, panels, and studies. Started in 2012 on one night and on one lawn, the festival has grown to be a weeklong event with other programming throughout the year.

[obsidianarchives]

The White Progressivism of the Harry Potter Franchises

Hi, my name is Porshèa Patterson and I have a confession: I’m a Black woman who hasn’t read books with characters’ racial/ethnic, gender, or ability identity in mind.

Growing up, I was a voracious reader consuming any fictional stories that contained magic, strong female characters, intrigue or mystery, history, or all of the above. Often these stories were about white characters who either appeared as such on book covers or were described with attributes of white people — blonde flowing hair or alabaster skin — which, to be quite honest, were not always clearly white to me. People of color can also have blonde flowing hair, blue, green, gray, or hazel eyes, and alabaster can be stark white or gradients of brown.

In fact, it was not until I attended Lincoln University, a historically Black university, as an undergraduate student that I began to question how these identities shaped my consumption of media. Upon reflection, I realized that when I read books and watched movies or TV shows, I didn't seek to identify with characters because of their racial or ethnic backgrounds, though I often bypassed extremely white shows like Friends and chose to watch shows with female leads most. The highest priority for my entertainment choices was that I was introduced to vibrant worlds and cultures where I could see fairness and accountability in play. Coming from a smallish town in Middle Tennessee, my idea of fairness was very much shaped by my white peers and teachers, whom I engaged with most during classes and social events. To them, fairness meant seeing things from ‘both sides’ and compromising on a concept that didn’t concede the point in question with ‘either side.’ These were all perspectives I had to unlearn by questioning why I was comforted by certain media over others. It just so happens that one of the book series that resonated with me most is also one of the most popular franchises of all time, Harry Potter.

Being a longtime fan of the series and a recent addition to Harry Potter fandom communities means that any news about future stories or character backgrounds was met with happiness and anticipation. Was. Yet, since the release of Magic in North America on the Pottermore website, I’ve met all news coming from official content production sources with dread and preemptive disappointment. After seeing Native American Harry Potter fans, namely Dr. Adrienne Keene and Johnnie Jae, address the issues in J.K. Rowling having a white, Scottish character create the first and only accredited Wizarding school in North America, where she moved with the same sense of ownership over the land as other colonizers, my guard went up. Following Rowling’s dismissive response once confronted, I knew that I could never read her work without also understanding that she does not care at all about how the representation, or lack thereof, of characters and communities she does not belong to reinforce ignorance, racism, sexism, classism, latent homophobia, transphobia, or ableist thinking.

I’ve been lucky enough to engage with fandom communities through Black Girls Create and The Harry Potter Alliance which have helped me to deal with and gain clarity on the ways in which the Harry Potter series lives on through activism and critical discourse. Belonging to these fan networks means engaging in fan theory, fan-created projects, and fan fiction. However, Warner Brothers limits and even impedes fan-made products and Rowling complies by trying to be our sole official Wizarding World supplier. We can see her frustration with the fandom becoming something she cannot control or intuitively understand its needs. Instead of embracing the people who have issues and are vocal about wanting to help make things better, she ignores them in favor of ‘yes’ fans, who have the same limited understanding of marginalization as she does. The promotion of the latest Fantastic Beasts movie has exacerbated all of these issues, especially after the surprise unveiling of the only Asian woman character in a speaking role in the Fantastic Beasts series with more than two lines — we hope — presumably becoming the tool of white supremacy/blood purity later in the franchise. I made my earlier confession to make it clear that because I understand my own blind spots and limitations, I am also empathetic to these issues of within us all.

I have admired the strength, creative vision, and social mores that Rowling has embodied as an author, particularly when the fandom was at its nadir. Unlike other popular authors who have similar world-building talents, Rowling never announced deadlines that she couldn't meet and remained true to her characters’ traits, instead of integrating fanfiction that made no sense into canon. That is, until recently. Rowling's prolific writing prowess aside, the feature of the Harry Potter series that resonates most with the fans I engage with are the social mores of acceptance, standing against tyranny, questioning the status quo, and doing the right thing.

By building the Harry Potter series as an allegory of these principles, Rowling has established that these values are important to her and supports these ideals in some of her interviews and tweets. Simultaneously, her remarks in the same spaces also indicate her socio-political shortcomings. While many Potterheads of Color had no choice but to grow up with a hyper-awareness of the myriad of ways in which their identities are scrutinized and discriminated against in the world, Rowling has not had this experience. Race and ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation, ability and disability each directly impact the ways in which peers, supervisors, content creators, and service providers decide how they treat us in formal and informal environments. Yet, in the Harry Potter series, there is little representation of characters who identify as any of the above and the ire they must face as someone who belongs to any of these communities. The main discriminatory thread that Rowling presents throughout the series is the concept of blood purity and the use of a slur for those regarded as impure blood being used by members of Wizarding society who are considered backward thinking by the general populace.

In many ways, the Harry Potter franchise and greater fandom are very reflective of white progressivism. Its steps and missteps look like the same conversations we have in political spaces. Directly impacted communities ask for inclusivity and the powers that be give us performative inclusivity. We voice opposition to the ways in which our lives have been presented and consumed by white people, then are told that we want too much or our opinions are invalid. In fact, one of the most egregious ways in which white liberals, including Rowling and her Harry Potter network, respond to the concerns raised by directly impacted communities is by ignoring our observations in service to their own sense of comfort. This obstinance leads Rowling to make oblivious statements like the Fantastic Beasts franchise was created in service to fans. Ironically, this statement will haunt the author, as even some of her most forgiving fans are taken aback by the latest installment of the series as evidenced by its numerous, poor reviews.

We are living in the time of peak social engagement, wherein societal blind spots are being brought to light. I urge us all to engage with those who openly share experiences that we do not have so that our shared values are as enlightened and inclusive as they are full of love.

[tittalogin]

Mosh museum

Mosh museum password#

Please volunteer and help make this a fun and successful fund raiser for the Mallory- Neely House. Volunteers can dress up in their favorite roaring 20's gear or wear black tops and black bottoms.

Mosh museum password#

Volunteers will assist with monitoring collections, direct guests around the grounds, help with check in, monitoring the VIP areas, assist with the break down after the event, and help guard the front entrances to make sure everyone knows the password and to make sure no one gets caught. The Blind Tiger Speakeasy will come back to life at the Mallory- Neely House and we need some special volunteers to help make it happen. The Mallory- Neely House in Victorian Village is having a special event on Saturday, March 5. Volunteer and wear your best roaring 20's gear. He said that building from the ground up will likely result in some savings as opposed to renovating and expanding the current building.The Blind Tiger Speakeasy will come back to life at the Mallory- Neely House. Johns river and a science exhibit about asteroids and. By appointment only contact University of Tennessee at Martin: 73. Fafard said one advantage of building a new museum is the current building can remain fully in operation during construction.įafard said the new museum would need about 4 acres, which is just a portion of what's available at The Shipyards site.įafard said the plan envisions a three-story building that would be about 129,000 square feet, compared to the 67,000 square feet in the Southbank building. The MOSH is a three story building with an excellent exhibit of early Jacksonville, the story of the St. The new museum facility would replace current plans to renovate and expand the Museum’s existing structure at 1025 Museum Circle. "We applaud the museum’s leaders for their commitment to downtown and their bold, innovative vision for the future that will inspire generations and strengthen our reputation as a premier destination in the Southeastern United States." “For nearly 80 years, MOSH has inspired Jacksonville citizens of all ages to embrace the joy of lifelong learning," Curry said. Mayor Lenny Curry also supported the MOSH move. Johns River would be a spectacular addition to downtown Jacksonville." Khan said he has expressed his "interest and endorsement to museum officials and pledge to wholeheartedly and personally support the effort. Opening a world-class destination like the Museum of Science and History at the confluence of Hogan’s Creek and the St. They all have distinct personalities, but the one thing they have in common are family-oriented attractions that benefit residents and nearby neighborhoods while drawing visitors and tourists from the region and elsewhere." "I consider myself a big fan of urban parks. "I’m all in on the proposed relocation of the Jacksonville Museum of Science and History to serve as the centerpiece of a new riverfront park," Khan said in a statement. Khan said Thursday he supports the concept of having a new MOSH museum to complement a city park on the Northbank. MOSH President Maria Hane said the plan would boost the museums total space from 77,000 to 120,000 square feet, expand educational programming, reorient its. The National Park Service would have to approve that swap of land for parks because it provided funding years ago to help create Met Park. The city recently asked the National Park Service to allow development of Met Park by substituting property that is on the western portion of The Shipyards.

[thereviewsarein]

Emerging/exciting/engaging/exploding pop star Lennon Stella has officially released her debut album, Three. Two. One. and fans are thankful that the countdown is over.

The Ontario native has grown up in the public eye on TV and YouTube. She’s gone from being a teen on the screen to an adult learning life, sharing her tales, and crafting a career from her talent and opportunities. It’s the continuation of the journey that her fans have been following her on for years, and the next step in who she is and what she does as an artist.

With 13 tracks and clocking in at 43 minutes, Three. Two. One. is a full ‘sit-down and listen’ album. It’s not over before you feel like it’s even begun, it’s not an EP that we’re begging to be something more. It’s the debut full-length album we were hoping as the follow-up to the Love, Me EP (2018). And it’s the album she wanted to make, which is even more important.

In talking to Apple Music, Lennon said, “This is me releasing myself from the pressure of prior expectations and intimidations. Three, two, one, I’m diving in and doing what feels good to myself. The album is a free fall.” she added, “Ultimately, I wanted [this album] to be an honest introduction, true to who I am as a human being. And hopefully people will draw parallels to their own lives.”

Hearing a 20-year-old express themselves that clearly is wonderful. Hearing an artist say those things and go for what they want and feel and need is empowering.

In the same Apple Music piece, Lennon spoke about the songs on Three. Two. One., here’s what she said about Fear Of Being Alone, “The song, production-wise, is definitely one of my favorites, if not my favorite… There’s a darkness… I really just wanted some of that. It’s a different feeling than the rest of the album.”

If you haven’t heard it yet, hit play and check it out now.

What we’ve known for years is that Lennon Stella is a talented singer and performer. What we’ve watched and learned is growth and discovery and experimentation. The road to country music was laid out in front of her, and we’re sure she would have been embraced by that community. But the road to pop was the one she took – and we can tell you from personal experience (having seen her play at a sold-out Danforth Music Hall) that it looks like she took the right path. We’ve seen the lineups down the street to get in. We’ve seen the rush to get to the front row of the GA floor. We’ve heard the screams and cheers when she’s taken the stage to start the show. It’s all legit.

And while her 2020 tour has been postponed because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we expect to see all of those same reactions again (at a more intense level) when she does get out on the road for her upcoming shows.

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Related: Lennon Stella Opens Love, me Tour in Toronto

The singer-songwriter honesty and vérité on Three. Two. One. speaks to the roots that Lennon Stella started with. The family business is music, she’s been learning and living it her entire life. And her ability to bring that experience in folk/country to her pop music and tell stories and be genuine and offer feelings and vulnerability and truth and hurt and questions in her music is lovely. She’s not the only pop star to release smashes with messages, but it’s not the easy path, and we recognize it as a risk worth taking and appreciating.

As with all albums that I dig, I recommend you hit play on track number one (Much Too Much) and let it play all the way through. But I will tell you that I am developing soft spots for Kissing Other People, Older Than I Am, Save Us, and Weakness (Huey Lewis) [ft. Maisy Stella] as songs I’m ready to listen to on repeat as I work through the record.

Note: I really like the little hit of I Love You Always Forever in Save Us. She nailed it.

The album is a statement and a strong debut. Lennon Stella was able to work with good, talented people to put it together and execute the vision and introduction she hoped for. And ending with Goodnight is about as perfect as it could have gone for Three. Two. One.

In her own words, “This song has a feeling of not wanting something to end – wanting it to just be good night so that you can wake up to it in the morning, rather than it being goodbye, because then obviously it’s gone. It’s hopeful.”

Lennon Stella, Three. Two. One. Tracklist

1. Much Too Much 2. Kissing Other People 3. Games 4. Fear Of Being Alone 5. Pretty Boy 6. Golf On TV 7. Older Than I Am 8. Bend Over Backwards 9. Jealous 10. Since I Was A Kid 11. Weakness (Huey Lewis) [ft. Maisy Stella] 12. Save Us 13. Goodnight



Three. Two. One. Lennon Stella Album Review Emerging/exciting/engaging/exploding pop star Lennon Stella has officially released her debut album, Three. Two. One. and fans are thankful that the countdown is over.

[gagandeepg02]

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Question: Were they addicted to being famous?

Answer: You're gambling. This is their main drive, by far. Being famous includes a few important functions: it gives power to the narcissist, provides him with a constant source of narcissistic supply (admiration, adoration, approval, awe), and fulfills important ego functions. 

The perception that he is thrown back at by the superficial programs, mirrored by those attracted to his celebrity or popularity. He feels alive this way, his own life is confirmed, and he gets a sense of clear boundaries (where the narcissist stops and the world begins).

The pursuit of celebrity is characterized by a set of narcissistic behaviors. The narcissist refrains from doing almost nothing, almost no lines which he hesitates to reach in order to achieve notoriety. There is no such thing as "bad advertising" for him–what matters is being in the eye of the public. 

Because the narcissist enjoys all kinds of attention equally and likes to be feared as much as to be loved, for example–he doesn't mind if what's published about him is wrong ("as long as my name is spelled correctly"). In times with lack of attention, recognition, or visibility, the only bad emotional phases of the narcissist are. 

Then the narcissist feels empty, hollowed out, insignificant, embarrassed, indignant, discriminated against, robbed, ignored, unjustly treated, and so on. At first, he is trying to get attention from continuously shrinking comparison ranges ("supply scale down"). But the sense of cheating is gnawing at his frail self-esteem anyhow. 

The air is coming sooner or later. The insecure schemes, crafts, prepares, conspires, considers, analyzes, synthesizes, and does whatever else is required to regain in the public eye the missed publicity. The more he does not gain the goal group's interest (always the largest)–the more bold, quirky and ridiculous he is. The firm decision to become recognized is turned into a committed movement and then into a panicky cycle of behavior-seeking scrutiny.

The narcissist doesn't really think for ads per se. Narcissists are being manipulated. The narcissist seems to enjoy himself–and, yet, he abhors himself. Similarly, he seems to be involved in becoming a star–because, in fact, he is concerned with his fame's REACTIONS: people are watching him, recognizing him, thinking about him, debating his acts–so he exists. 

The narcissist is about "hunting and gathering" the way people's faces eyes shift once they encounter him. He places himself at the center of attention, or even as a controversial figure. In an attempt to convince himself that he does not sacrifice his reputation, his golden touch, the affection of his social milieu, he continuously and regularly plagues those nearest and dearest to him.

The narcissist is not really an option. He does it if he can become popular as an author–he reads, if he is an entrepreneur. With simplicity and without regret, he moves from one sector to the other because he is present without hesitation in all of them, baring the belief that he will (and deserves) become successful. 

He rates practices, interests, and individuals not according to the enjoyment they offer him, but according to their usefulness: they can or can not make him aware, and to what degree, if so. The narcissist is (not to mention obsessive) one-track oriented. His is an universe of black and white (being popular and celebrated) (being anonymous and robbed of attention).

This is understandable: people like to see other people who are successful. But why do viewers like to see the embarrassment of celebrities?

A. With respect to their audiences, celebrities serve two psychological functions: they provide a fictional storyline (a tale that the audience will embrace and connect with) and they operate as blank screens on which the fans project their visions, aspirations, worries, ambitions, beliefs and wishes (wish fulfillment). The slightest deviation from these established positions triggers immense anger and makes us want to prosecute the "deviating" stars.

But why is that?

When it reveals a celebrity's human weaknesses, vulnerabilities, and frailties, the fan feels humiliated, "cheated," hopeless, and "empty." The fan must develop his moral superiority over the erring and "sinful" star to reassert his self-worth. The fan has to "teach a lesson to the celebrity" and show the celebrity "who is the boss." It is a basic method for security-the grandiosity of narcissism. This places the spectator on a level playing field with the star that is revealed and "naked."

Q. Does this taste of watching a humiliated person have anything to do with the attraction of catastrophes and tragedies?

A. There is always a sadistic joy of vicarious pain and a sick curiosity. The fact that others are spared the pains and tribulations makes the observer feel "selected," secure, and virtuous. The higher stars are rising, the harder they are falling. Anything gratifying is being resisted and imprisoned with hubris.

Q. Would you think the audience places themselves in the reporter's spot (when he asks a celebrity for something embarrassing) and gets revenged in some way?

A. The author "represents" the audience who is "bloodthirsty." Belittling celebrities or watching their arrival is the gladiator rink's modern equivalent. Gossip used to perform the same function and now broadcast live the slaughter of fallen gods by the mass media. There's no question of revenge here - just Schadenfreude, the guilty pleasure of witnessing the penalization of your superiors and "cut to size."

Q. Who are the popular people who love to hate in your country?

A. Israelis like to see diminished, demeaned, and slightly reduced officials and rich businessmen. In Macedonia, where I live, all well-known people are subject to extreme, constructive, and damaging jealousy, irrespective of their vocation. This love-hate interaction towards their heroes, this ambivalence, was related to the child's feelings towards his family through psychodynamic hypotheses of personal development. Yes, most negative emotions we hold about celebrities are moved and displaced.

Q. I would never dare to ask the celebrity journalists any questions. What are individuals like these journalists ' characteristics?

A. Sadistic, arrogant, selfish, empathic, self-righteous, pathologically and destructively envious, with a differing sense of self-worth (possibly a complex of inferiority).

6. Do you think the actors and reporters want to be as famous as they tease the celebrities? Because I almost think this is happening...

A. It's a very thin line. Newsmakers and newsmen and women become stars solely because they are public figures and whatever their real successes may be. A celebrity is known for being well-known. Of course, such journalists are likely to fall prey in an endless and self-perpetuating food chain to up and coming colleagues...

7. I assume both sides are gratified by the fan-celebrity partnership. What are the advantages of the audience and what are the rewards of the celebrities?

A. A celebrity and his fans have an implicit contract. The celebrities are obliged to "act the part," to fulfill their admirers ' expectations, not to deviate from the roles they impose and accept them. The fans are showering the celebrity with adulation in return. They idolatry him or her and make him or her feel omnipotent, immortal, "greater than life," all-knowing, superior, and (unique) sui generis.

What's the issue for the fans?

Above all, the chance to enjoy the fantastic (and typically partly confabulated) life of the star vicariously. The star in fantasyland is their "representative," their extension and conduit, the reification and representation of their deepest desires and the most elusive and culpable fantasies. Many celebrities are role models as well as figures of father / mother. Celebrities are proof of life being more than drab and normal. The stunning-well, great-there are people and they lead charmed lives. There is still hope-this is the message to his fans from the celebrity. 

The inevitable decline and corruption of the celebrity is the contemporary equivalent of medieval morality play. This trajectory-from rags to wealth and fame, and back to rags or worse-shows that order and justice prevail, that hubris is invariably punished, and that the celebrity is no better to his fans, nor is it superior.

8. Why are narcissistic celebrities? Why did this disease come into being?

No one knows whether pathological narcissism is the result of hereditary traits, the sad result of abusive and traumatizing education, or the confluence of both. Often in the same family, with the same set of parents and the same emotional environment-some siblings become malignant narcissists, while others are "normal" perfectly. This certainly indicates some people's genetic predisposition to the development of narcissism.

Although there is no shred of evidence at this stage, it would seem reasonable to assume that the narcissist is born with a propensity to develop narcissistic defenses. They is triggered by neglect or stress in puberty or early adolescence during the formative years. By "abuse" I refer to a spectrum of behaviors that objective the child and treat it as an extension of the caregiver (parent) or as a mere gratification instrument. Dotting and smothering are just as violent as hitting and starving. Yet violence can be washed out by friends, family, or role models of adults.

Not all popular personalities were narcissists. Today, there are definitely some of them.

We are all searching for positive signs from those around us. These indications reinforce our certainty

[i-jayadevi]

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Question: Were they addicted to being famous?

Answer: You're gambling. This is their main drive, by far. Being famous includes a few important functions: it gives power to the narcissist, provides him with a constant source of narcissistic supply (admiration, adoration, approval, awe), and fulfills important ego functions. 

The perception that he is thrown back at by the superficial programs, mirrored by those attracted to his celebrity or popularity. He feels alive this way, his own life is confirmed, and he gets a sense of clear boundaries (where the narcissist stops and the world begins).

The pursuit of celebrity is characterized by a set of narcissistic behaviors. The narcissist refrains from doing almost nothing, almost no lines which he hesitates to reach in order to achieve notoriety. There is no such thing as "bad advertising" for him–what matters is being in the eye of the public. 

Because the narcissist enjoys all kinds of attention equally and likes to be feared as much as to be loved, for example–he doesn't mind if what's published about him is wrong ("as long as my name is spelled correctly"). In times with lack of attention, recognition, or visibility, the only bad emotional phases of the narcissist are. 

Then the narcissist feels empty, hollowed out, insignificant, embarrassed, indignant, discriminated against, robbed, ignored, unjustly treated, and so on. At first, he is trying to get attention from continuously shrinking comparison ranges ("supply scale down"). But the sense of cheating is gnawing at his frail self-esteem anyhow. 

The air is coming sooner or later. The insecure schemes, crafts, prepares, conspires, considers, analyzes, synthesizes, and does whatever else is required to regain in the public eye the missed publicity. The more he does not gain the goal group's interest (always the largest)–the more bold, quirky and ridiculous he is. The firm decision to become recognized is turned into a committed movement and then into a panicky cycle of behavior-seeking scrutiny.

The narcissist doesn't really think for ads per se. Narcissists are being manipulated. The narcissist seems to enjoy himself–and, yet, he abhors himself. Similarly, he seems to be involved in becoming a star–because, in fact, he is concerned with his fame's REACTIONS: people are watching him, recognizing him, thinking about him, debating his acts–so he exists. 

The narcissist is about "hunting and gathering" the way people's faces eyes shift once they encounter him. He places himself at the center of attention, or even as a controversial figure. In an attempt to convince himself that he does not sacrifice his reputation, his golden touch, the affection of his social milieu, he continuously and regularly plagues those nearest and dearest to him.

The narcissist is not really an option. He does it if he can become popular as an author–he reads, if he is an entrepreneur. With simplicity and without regret, he moves from one sector to the other because he is present without hesitation in all of them, baring the belief that he will (and deserves) become successful. 

He rates practices, interests, and individuals not according to the enjoyment they offer him, but according to their usefulness: they can or can not make him aware, and to what degree, if so. The narcissist is (not to mention obsessive) one-track oriented. His is an universe of black and white (being popular and celebrated) (being anonymous and robbed of attention).

This is understandable: people like to see other people who are successful. But why do viewers like to see the embarrassment of celebrities?

A. With respect to their audiences, celebrities serve two psychological functions: they provide a fictional storyline (a tale that the audience will embrace and connect with) and they operate as blank screens on which the fans project their visions, aspirations, worries, ambitions, beliefs and wishes (wish fulfillment). The slightest deviation from these established positions triggers immense anger and makes us want to prosecute the "deviating" stars.

But why is that?

When it reveals a celebrity's human weaknesses, vulnerabilities, and frailties, the fan feels humiliated, "cheated," hopeless, and "empty." The fan must develop his moral superiority over the erring and "sinful" star to reassert his self-worth. The fan has to "teach a lesson to the celebrity" and show the celebrity "who is the boss." It is a basic method for security-the grandiosity of narcissism. This places the spectator on a level playing field with the star that is revealed and "naked."

Q. Does this taste of watching a humiliated person have anything to do with the attraction of catastrophes and tragedies?

A. There is always a sadistic joy of vicarious pain and a sick curiosity. The fact that others are spared the pains and tribulations makes the observer feel "selected," secure, and virtuous. The higher stars are rising, the harder they are falling. Anything gratifying is being resisted and imprisoned with hubris.

Q. Would you think the audience places themselves in the reporter's spot (when he asks a celebrity for something embarrassing) and gets revenged in some way?

A. The author "represents" the audience who is "bloodthirsty." Belittling celebrities or watching their arrival is the gladiator rink's modern equivalent. Gossip used to perform the same function and now broadcast live the slaughter of fallen gods by the mass media. There's no question of revenge here - just Schadenfreude, the guilty pleasure of witnessing the penalization of your superiors and "cut to size."

Q. Who are the popular people who love to hate in your country?

A. Israelis like to see diminished, demeaned, and slightly reduced officials and rich businessmen. In Macedonia, where I live, all well-known people are subject to extreme, constructive, and damaging jealousy, irrespective of their vocation. This love-hate interaction towards their heroes, this ambivalence, was related to the child's feelings towards his family through psychodynamic hypotheses of personal development. Yes, most negative emotions we hold about celebrities are moved and displaced.

Q. I would never dare to ask the celebrity journalists any questions. What are individuals like these journalists ' characteristics?

A. Sadistic, arrogant, selfish, empathic, self-righteous, pathologically and destructively envious, with a differing sense of self-worth (possibly a complex of inferiority).

6. Do you think the actors and reporters want to be as famous as they tease the celebrities? Because I almost think this is happening...

A. It's a very thin line. Newsmakers and newsmen and women become stars solely because they are public figures and whatever their real successes may be. A celebrity is known for being well-known. Of course, such journalists are likely to fall prey in an endless and self-perpetuating food chain to up and coming colleagues...

7. I assume both sides are gratified by the fan-celebrity partnership. What are the advantages of the audience and what are the rewards of the celebrities?

A. A celebrity and his fans have an implicit contract. The celebrities are obliged to "act the part," to fulfill their admirers ' expectations, not to deviate from the roles they impose and accept them. The fans are showering the celebrity with adulation in return. They idolatry him or her and make him or her feel omnipotent, immortal, "greater than life," all-knowing, superior, and (unique) sui generis.

What's the issue for the fans?

Above all, the chance to enjoy the fantastic (and typically partly confabulated) life of the star vicariously. The star in fantasyland is their "representative," their extension and conduit, the reification and representation of their deepest desires and the most elusive and culpable fantasies. Many celebrities are role models as well as figures of father / mother. Celebrities are proof of life being more than drab and normal. The stunning-well, great-there are people and they lead charmed lives. There is still hope-this is the message to his fans from the celebrity. 

The inevitable decline and corruption of the celebrity is the contemporary equivalent of medieval morality play. This trajectory-from rags to wealth and fame, and back to rags or worse-shows that order and justice prevail, that hubris is invariably punished, and that the celebrity is no better to his fans, nor is it superior.

8. Why are narcissistic celebrities? Why did this disease come into being?

No one knows whether pathological narcissism is the result of hereditary traits, the sad result of abusive and traumatizing education, or the confluence of both. Often in the same family, with the same set of parents and the same emotional environment-some siblings become malignant narcissists, while others are "normal" perfectly. This certainly indicates some people's genetic predisposition to the development of narcissism.

Although there is no shred of evidence at this stage, it would seem reasonable to assume that the narcissist is born with a propensity to develop narcissistic defenses. They is triggered by neglect or stress in puberty or early adolescence during the formative years. By "abuse" I refer to a spectrum of behaviors that objective the child and treat it as an extension of the caregiver (parent) or as a mere gratification instrument. Dotting and smothering are just as violent as hitting and starving. Yet violence can be washed out by friends, family, or role models of adults.

Not all popular personalities were narcissists. Today, there are definitely some of them.

We are all searching for positive signs from those around us. These indications reinforce our certainty

source https://www.gyanns.com/2019/11/addiction-for-wealth-and-popularity.html

[mansoormaghfoor]

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Question: Were they addicted to being famous?

Answer: You're gambling. This is their main drive, by far. Being famous includes a few important functions: it gives power to the narcissist, provides him with a constant source of narcissistic supply (admiration, adoration, approval, awe), and fulfills important ego functions. 

The perception that he is thrown back at by the superficial programs, mirrored by those attracted to his celebrity or popularity. He feels alive this way, his own life is confirmed, and he gets a sense of clear boundaries (where the narcissist stops and the world begins).

The pursuit of celebrity is characterized by a set of narcissistic behaviors. The narcissist refrains from doing almost nothing, almost no lines which he hesitates to reach in order to achieve notoriety. There is no such thing as "bad advertising" for him–what matters is being in the eye of the public. 

Because the narcissist enjoys all kinds of attention equally and likes to be feared as much as to be loved, for example–he doesn't mind if what's published about him is wrong ("as long as my name is spelled correctly"). In times with lack of attention, recognition, or visibility, the only bad emotional phases of the narcissist are. 

Then the narcissist feels empty, hollowed out, insignificant, embarrassed, indignant, discriminated against, robbed, ignored, unjustly treated, and so on. At first, he is trying to get attention from continuously shrinking comparison ranges ("supply scale down"). But the sense of cheating is gnawing at his frail self-esteem anyhow. 

The air is coming sooner or later. The insecure schemes, crafts, prepares, conspires, considers, analyzes, synthesizes, and does whatever else is required to regain in the public eye the missed publicity. The more he does not gain the goal group's interest (always the largest)–the more bold, quirky and ridiculous he is. The firm decision to become recognized is turned into a committed movement and then into a panicky cycle of behavior-seeking scrutiny.

The narcissist doesn't really think for ads per se. Narcissists are being manipulated. The narcissist seems to enjoy himself–and, yet, he abhors himself. Similarly, he seems to be involved in becoming a star–because, in fact, he is concerned with his fame's REACTIONS: people are watching him, recognizing him, thinking about him, debating his acts–so he exists. 

The narcissist is about "hunting and gathering" the way people's faces eyes shift once they encounter him. He places himself at the center of attention, or even as a controversial figure. In an attempt to convince himself that he does not sacrifice his reputation, his golden touch, the affection of his social milieu, he continuously and regularly plagues those nearest and dearest to him.

The narcissist is not really an option. He does it if he can become popular as an author–he reads, if he is an entrepreneur. With simplicity and without regret, he moves from one sector to the other because he is present without hesitation in all of them, baring the belief that he will (and deserves) become successful. 

He rates practices, interests, and individuals not according to the enjoyment they offer him, but according to their usefulness: they can or can not make him aware, and to what degree, if so. The narcissist is (not to mention obsessive) one-track oriented. His is an universe of black and white (being popular and celebrated) (being anonymous and robbed of attention).

This is understandable: people like to see other people who are successful. But why do viewers like to see the embarrassment of celebrities?

A. With respect to their audiences, celebrities serve two psychological functions: they provide a fictional storyline (a tale that the audience will embrace and connect with) and they operate as blank screens on which the fans project their visions, aspirations, worries, ambitions, beliefs and wishes (wish fulfillment). The slightest deviation from these established positions triggers immense anger and makes us want to prosecute the "deviating" stars.

But why is that?

When it reveals a celebrity's human weaknesses, vulnerabilities, and frailties, the fan feels humiliated, "cheated," hopeless, and "empty." The fan must develop his moral superiority over the erring and "sinful" star to reassert his self-worth. The fan has to "teach a lesson to the celebrity" and show the celebrity "who is the boss." It is a basic method for security-the grandiosity of narcissism. This places the spectator on a level playing field with the star that is revealed and "naked."

Q. Does this taste of watching a humiliated person have anything to do with the attraction of catastrophes and tragedies?

A. There is always a sadistic joy of vicarious pain and a sick curiosity. The fact that others are spared the pains and tribulations makes the observer feel "selected," secure, and virtuous. The higher stars are rising, the harder they are falling. Anything gratifying is being resisted and imprisoned with hubris.

Q. Would you think the audience places themselves in the reporter's spot (when he asks a celebrity for something embarrassing) and gets revenged in some way?

A. The author "represents" the audience who is "bloodthirsty." Belittling celebrities or watching their arrival is the gladiator rink's modern equivalent. Gossip used to perform the same function and now broadcast live the slaughter of fallen gods by the mass media. There's no question of revenge here - just Schadenfreude, the guilty pleasure of witnessing the penalization of your superiors and "cut to size."

Q. Who are the popular people who love to hate in your country?

A. Israelis like to see diminished, demeaned, and slightly reduced officials and rich businessmen. In Macedonia, where I live, all well-known people are subject to extreme, constructive, and damaging jealousy, irrespective of their vocation. This love-hate interaction towards their heroes, this ambivalence, was related to the child's feelings towards his family through psychodynamic hypotheses of personal development. Yes, most negative emotions we hold about celebrities are moved and displaced.

Q. I would never dare to ask the celebrity journalists any questions. What are individuals like these journalists ' characteristics?

A. Sadistic, arrogant, selfish, empathic, self-righteous, pathologically and destructively envious, with a differing sense of self-worth (possibly a complex of inferiority).

6. Do you think the actors and reporters want to be as famous as they tease the celebrities? Because I almost think this is happening...

A. It's a very thin line. Newsmakers and newsmen and women become stars solely because they are public figures and whatever their real successes may be. A celebrity is known for being well-known. Of course, such journalists are likely to fall prey in an endless and self-perpetuating food chain to up and coming colleagues...

7. I assume both sides are gratified by the fan-celebrity partnership. What are the advantages of the audience and what are the rewards of the celebrities?

A. A celebrity and his fans have an implicit contract. The celebrities are obliged to "act the part," to fulfill their admirers ' expectations, not to deviate from the roles they impose and accept them. The fans are showering the celebrity with adulation in return. They idolatry him or her and make him or her feel omnipotent, immortal, "greater than life," all-knowing, superior, and (unique) sui generis.

What's the issue for the fans?

Above all, the chance to enjoy the fantastic (and typically partly confabulated) life of the star vicariously. The star in fantasyland is their "representative," their extension and conduit, the reification and representation of their deepest desires and the most elusive and culpable fantasies. Many celebrities are role models as well as figures of father / mother. Celebrities are proof of life being more than drab and normal. The stunning-well, great-there are people and they lead charmed lives. There is still hope-this is the message to his fans from the celebrity. 

The inevitable decline and corruption of the celebrity is the contemporary equivalent of medieval morality play. This trajectory-from rags to wealth and fame, and back to rags or worse-shows that order and justice prevail, that hubris is invariably punished, and that the celebrity is no better to his fans, nor is it superior.

8. Why are narcissistic celebrities? Why did this disease come into being?

No one knows whether pathological narcissism is the result of hereditary traits, the sad result of abusive and traumatizing education, or the confluence of both. Often in the same family, with the same set of parents and the same emotional environment-some siblings become malignant narcissists, while others are "normal" perfectly. This certainly indicates some people's genetic predisposition to the development of narcissism.

Although there is no shred of evidence at this stage, it would seem reasonable to assume that the narcissist is born with a propensity to develop narcissistic defenses. They is triggered by neglect or stress in puberty or early adolescence during the formative years. By "abuse" I refer to a spectrum of behaviors that objective the child and treat it as an extension of the caregiver (parent) or as a mere gratification instrument. Dotting and smothering are just as violent as hitting and starving. Yet violence can be washed out by friends, family, or role models of adults.

Not all popular personalities were narcissists. Today, there are definitely some of them.

We are all searching for positive signs from those around us. These indications reinforce our certainty

[jhansikumari]

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Addiction for wealth and popularity

Question: Were they addicted to being famous?

Answer: You're gambling. This is their main drive, by far. Being famous includes a few important functions: it gives power to the narcissist, provides him with a constant source of narcissistic supply (admiration, adoration, approval, awe), and fulfills important ego functions. 

The perception that he is thrown back at by the superficial programs, mirrored by those attracted to his celebrity or popularity. He feels alive this way, his own life is confirmed, and he gets a sense of clear boundaries (where the narcissist stops and the world begins).

The pursuit of celebrity is characterized by a set of narcissistic behaviors. The narcissist refrains from doing almost nothing, almost no lines which he hesitates to reach in order to achieve notoriety. There is no such thing as "bad advertising" for him–what matters is being in the eye of the public. 

Because the narcissist enjoys all kinds of attention equally and likes to be feared as much as to be loved, for example–he doesn't mind if what's published about him is wrong ("as long as my name is spelled correctly"). In times with lack of attention, recognition, or visibility, the only bad emotional phases of the narcissist are. 

Then the narcissist feels empty, hollowed out, insignificant, embarrassed, indignant, discriminated against, robbed, ignored, unjustly treated, and so on. At first, he is trying to get attention from continuously shrinking comparison ranges ("supply scale down"). But the sense of cheating is gnawing at his frail self-esteem anyhow. 

The air is coming sooner or later. The insecure schemes, crafts, prepares, conspires, considers, analyzes, synthesizes, and does whatever else is required to regain in the public eye the missed publicity. The more he does not gain the goal group's interest (always the largest)–the more bold, quirky and ridiculous he is. The firm decision to become recognized is turned into a committed movement and then into a panicky cycle of behavior-seeking scrutiny.

The narcissist doesn't really think for ads per se. Narcissists are being manipulated. The narcissist seems to enjoy himself–and, yet, he abhors himself. Similarly, he seems to be involved in becoming a star–because, in fact, he is concerned with his fame's REACTIONS: people are watching him, recognizing him, thinking about him, debating his acts–so he exists. 

The narcissist is about "hunting and gathering" the way people's faces eyes shift once they encounter him. He places himself at the center of attention, or even as a controversial figure. In an attempt to convince himself that he does not sacrifice his reputation, his golden touch, the affection of his social milieu, he continuously and regularly plagues those nearest and dearest to him.

The narcissist is not really an option. He does it if he can become popular as an author–he reads, if he is an entrepreneur. With simplicity and without regret, he moves from one sector to the other because he is present without hesitation in all of them, baring the belief that he will (and deserves) become successful. 

He rates practices, interests, and individuals not according to the enjoyment they offer him, but according to their usefulness: they can or can not make him aware, and to what degree, if so. The narcissist is (not to mention obsessive) one-track oriented. His is an universe of black and white (being popular and celebrated) (being anonymous and robbed of attention).

This is understandable: people like to see other people who are successful. But why do viewers like to see the embarrassment of celebrities?

A. With respect to their audiences, celebrities serve two psychological functions: they provide a fictional storyline (a tale that the audience will embrace and connect with) and they operate as blank screens on which the fans project their visions, aspirations, worries, ambitions, beliefs and wishes (wish fulfillment). The slightest deviation from these established positions triggers immense anger and makes us want to prosecute the "deviating" stars.

But why is that?

When it reveals a celebrity's human weaknesses, vulnerabilities, and frailties, the fan feels humiliated, "cheated," hopeless, and "empty." The fan must develop his moral superiority over the erring and "sinful" star to reassert his self-worth. The fan has to "teach a lesson to the celebrity" and show the celebrity "who is the boss." It is a basic method for security-the grandiosity of narcissism. This places the spectator on a level playing field with the star that is revealed and "naked."

Q. Does this taste of watching a humiliated person have anything to do with the attraction of catastrophes and tragedies?

A. There is always a sadistic joy of vicarious pain and a sick curiosity. The fact that others are spared the pains and tribulations makes the observer feel "selected," secure, and virtuous. The higher stars are rising, the harder they are falling. Anything gratifying is being resisted and imprisoned with hubris.

Q. Would you think the audience places themselves in the reporter's spot (when he asks a celebrity for something embarrassing) and gets revenged in some way?

A. The author "represents" the audience who is "bloodthirsty." Belittling celebrities or watching their arrival is the gladiator rink's modern equivalent. Gossip used to perform the same function and now broadcast live the slaughter of fallen gods by the mass media. There's no question of revenge here - just Schadenfreude, the guilty pleasure of witnessing the penalization of your superiors and "cut to size."

Q. Who are the popular people who love to hate in your country?

A. Israelis like to see diminished, demeaned, and slightly reduced officials and rich businessmen. In Macedonia, where I live, all well-known people are subject to extreme, constructive, and damaging jealousy, irrespective of their vocation. This love-hate interaction towards their heroes, this ambivalence, was related to the child's feelings towards his family through psychodynamic hypotheses of personal development. Yes, most negative emotions we hold about celebrities are moved and displaced.

Q. I would never dare to ask the celebrity journalists any questions. What are individuals like these journalists ' characteristics?

A. Sadistic, arrogant, selfish, empathic, self-righteous, pathologically and destructively envious, with a differing sense of self-worth (possibly a complex of inferiority).

6. Do you think the actors and reporters want to be as famous as they tease the celebrities? Because I almost think this is happening...

A. It's a very thin line. Newsmakers and newsmen and women become stars solely because they are public figures and whatever their real successes may be. A celebrity is known for being well-known. Of course, such journalists are likely to fall prey in an endless and self-perpetuating food chain to up and coming colleagues...

7. I assume both sides are gratified by the fan-celebrity partnership. What are the advantages of the audience and what are the rewards of the celebrities?

A. A celebrity and his fans have an implicit contract. The celebrities are obliged to "act the part," to fulfill their admirers ' expectations, not to deviate from the roles they impose and accept them. The fans are showering the celebrity with adulation in return. They idolatry him or her and make him or her feel omnipotent, immortal, "greater than life," all-knowing, superior, and (unique) sui generis.

What's the issue for the fans?

Above all, the chance to enjoy the fantastic (and typically partly confabulated) life of the star vicariously. The star in fantasyland is their "representative," their extension and conduit, the reification and representation of their deepest desires and the most elusive and culpable fantasies. Many celebrities are role models as well as figures of father / mother. Celebrities are proof of life being more than drab and normal. The stunning-well, great-there are people and they lead charmed lives. There is still hope-this is the message to his fans from the celebrity. 

The inevitable decline and corruption of the celebrity is the contemporary equivalent of medieval morality play. This trajectory-from rags to wealth and fame, and back to rags or worse-shows that order and justice prevail, that hubris is invariably punished, and that the celebrity is no better to his fans, nor is it superior.

8. Why are narcissistic celebrities? Why did this disease come into being?

No one knows whether pathological narcissism is the result of hereditary traits, the sad result of abusive and traumatizing education, or the confluence of both. Often in the same family, with the same set of parents and the same emotional environment-some siblings become malignant narcissists, while others are "normal" perfectly. This certainly indicates some people's genetic predisposition to the development of narcissism.

Although there is no shred of evidence at this stage, it would seem reasonable to assume that the narcissist is born with a propensity to develop narcissistic defenses. They is triggered by neglect or stress in puberty or early adolescence during the formative years. By "abuse" I refer to a spectrum of behaviors that objective the child and treat it as an extension of the caregiver (parent) or as a mere gratification instrument. Dotting and smothering are just as violent as hitting and starving. Yet violence can be washed out by friends, family, or role models of adults.

Not all popular personalities were narcissists. Today, there are definitely some of them.

We are all searching for positive signs from those around us. These indications reinforce our certainty

[daughterofthemuse]

If 'EPIC' has one fan, it's Jay.

If 'EPIC' has no fans, Jay's dead and we're not getting any more content. Which would suck.

But seriously, Jay's amazing!

I think my favorite thing about Epic’s creator and cast (and particularly about Jay) is that as the project grows, they’re embracing how fans of this media typically interact with that media. Choosing to do lyric videos, partnering with artists for official animatics (previously reserved for fandom spaces only), doing livestreams, embracing the parts that fans end up liking the most instead of rejecting them. It feels like Jay and all of the cast/creators truly understand their audience and how to promote this project in a way that speaks to that audience. Truly fantastic work.