#hollywood scandal 2024

[sabspoetic]

Sean ‘P. Diddy’ Combs scandal

I have been interested in this whole situation for so long, so I finally dived into it, and let me tell you my jaw is on the floor! So, I decided to share some of the things with y’all, since I know there’s so many people like me who have been searching for some information on Tumblr and couldn’t find any. I have made several posts about facts, theories and my thoughts, which are below👇🏻

Celebrities trying to warn us

Shakur family hiring a lawyer

Theory about Beyoncé

Theory about Kanye West

Diddy’s adopted white kid

P.S. If you have crazy theories or just want to yap about this whole situation, please do jump straight into my inbox and don’t. be. shy!

[familythings]

Summary of Celebrity News and Gossip – September 2024

Dear friends. As many of our readers love the celebrities gossip rubric, we have decided to transform it into a monthly rubric. So in the last day of the month, you’ll be able to be informed about that month highlights of: showbiz, fashion, sport, royalties and politics. So, here we go with biggest events and gossips during September 2024: Showbiz Emmy Awards Highlights The 76th Emmy Awards…

[spotlight-if]

Lights, Camera…Chaos.

[PLAY HERE] (October 23rd, 2024) Act 1, Chapter 1, 64.2k words.

For as long as you can remember, your dream has stayed the same—you want nothing more than to make it as an actor in Hollywood. After years as an overlooked, overworked talent, your big break comes from an unlikely source. And it’s one that changes everything, for better or worse.

Hollywood is its own character within this world—sometimes it loves you, sometimes it wants nothing more than to see you crash and burn. Navigating this ever changing landscape while balancing your own interpersonal relationships is only half the challenge. The other half is memorizing your lines.

Navigate the red carpet, bloodthirsty paparazzi, cut-throat tabloids and complicated relationship dynamics with A-list celebrities (who may or may not be completely insane.)

But, hey: isn’t this what you’ve always wanted?

Key Features:

- Customize your Actor: are you a classic Hollywood heartthrob? An eccentric and unconventional recluse? Are you kind and genuine despite the fame, or a cutthroat diva with undeniable talent?

- Navigate scandal, paparazzi, and stan culture: dodge or embrace the flashing lights. Interact with your fans, or distance yourself from them for your sanity. Wait—who are they shipping your character with?

-Build your legacy: choose between the stability of superhero blockbusters or turn into an indie darling. Or, maybe forgoe both to become a household name in the horror genre.

- Network and build relationships: whether they’re manufactured by your well-meaning publicist or spawned from real feelings, forge dynamic and ever changing relationships with other industry icons.

- Try to manage your mental health: the dark side of the industry lurks in every corner—the highs are high, but the lows are ever lower.

Characters:

Kendall Mays (gender selectable)—ever the loyal best friend, Kendall followed you into the throes of showbiz without hesitation. From fighting over toys on the playground to helping you run lines for a major motion picture, you can always count on them to have your back. That is, before they met Mason—their ever-present boyfriend who demands more and more of their time. You were never that great at sharing.

[Note: Kendall is not a romance option.]

Sutton Foster (he/him, she/her)—child star turned award winning powerhouse. Sutton Foster has everything an actor could want—well, minus the countless stays at rehab centers around the world. It’s undeniable that Sutton is a generational talent, but what’s even more notable is their messy personal life. You yourself have been caught in Sutton’s gravitational pull, once upon a time. The question lies in whether or not you’ll pull yourself away.

Wyn Grace (he/him, she/her)—on stage, Wyn is electric. The same cannot be said for Wyn off-stage. The lead singer of the up-and-coming Indie band is struggling with their meteoric rise to fame. As the awards pile up and the crowds get bigger, Wyn is unraveling at the seams. All they wanted to do was make music with their friends, but the fame makes them reconsider it all.

Lex Moreau (he/him)—an older, award-winning director with an…eccentric disposition. Yet despite his volatile nature and obsession with perfection, anyone who’s anyone would kill to work with him. Lex is always in search for a muse, a great beacon to pour all of his artistic vision into. And now, he thinks he’s found that in you. Lucky you?

[C is a conditional character, only appears based on choices you make.]

Carlo/Carmen Mencina (gender selectable)—C is harder to pin down than a stable acting gig in LA. When you’re together—it’s kismet. The problem lies in when you’re apart. C’s frequent disappearances abroad leave a bad taste in your mouth, and when a shocking truth comes to light, it’s not just your relationship in the spotlight—it’s your life, too.

Flings and other mini-romances will be available as well. But these I will let be revealed as the story progresses.

When writing this game, I knew what themes I wanted to focus on, and the care/detail needed to do so. Hence, this game is strictly 18+.

TW: death, substance abuse, suicide, bullying, explicit language, violence, and explicit (skippable) sexual content.

Thank you for reading my intro! Reblogs are welcome, and my ask box is open (:

And major thank you @thecutestgrotto for the gorgeous headers!

[gottiewrites]

Preorder Last Seen Online, the novel of An Unauthorized Fan Treatise, to get a signed postcard goody bag, with bookmarks, bookplates and a letter from the author! Sign up here!

Open to anyone in the UK who preorders the book before 1st August 2024.

Last Seen Online is a contemporary YA murder mystery set in sun-drenched LA, for fans of Malibu Rising, We Were Liars and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. The novel of Lauren James’ hugely popular online story An Unauthorized Fan Treatise. When Delilah meets Sawyer Saffitz (son of the Anya Saffitz, aka Hollywood royalty), she becomes hooked on a decade-old scandal. In her quest for the truth, Delilah uncovers blogposts written by the mysterious “gottiewrites” and is soon caught up in a world of greed, fandom conspiracy theories … and murder. And the deeper Delilah digs, the more dangerous it becomes – because someone is willing to kill to hide the truth.

Word count: 75,000 Aimed at ages 13+

Publishing in August 2024 by Walker Books in the UK and Australia

Goodreads

Amazon UK

Waterstones

Anyway, hi tumblr, I haven't been on here in an AGE because I was off working out I'm non-binary, changing my name to Wren and locking down the world's cutest girlfriend >:) >:) How are y'all doing?

Come follow me on Insta where I post much more often than once a year, including about my Heartstopper work!!

[the-forest-library]

June 2024 Reads

Jingo - Terry Pratchett

Royal Scandal - Aimee Carter

Swiped - L.M. Chilton

Summer Fridays - Suzanne Rindell

Take Two, Birdie Maxwell - Allison Winn Scotch

Such a Bad Influence - Olivia Muenter

Love is for Losers - Wibke Brueggemann

Treacle Walker - Alan Garner

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky - Kwame Mbalia

Your House, My House - Marianne Dubuc

Willow the White House Cat - Jill Biden

The New Girl - Cassandra Calin

Homebody - Theo Parish

The Friday Afternoon Club - Griffin Dunne

First Love - Lilly Dancyger

Heartberries - Terese Marie Mailhot

There's Always This Year - Hanif Abdurraqib

The Klansman's Son - R. Derek Black

The Conscious Style Guide - Karen Yin

The Ritual Effect - Michael Norton

How We Show Up - Mia Birdsong

Come Together - Emily Nagoski

The Emotion Code - Bradley Nelson

Unlearning Shame - Devon Price

Hello, Higher Self - Bunny Michael

A Sand Country Almanac - Aldo Leopold

The Feel Good Foodie Cookbook - Yumma Jawad

The Salad Lab - Darlene Schrijver

Bold = Highly Recommend

Italics = Worth It

Crossed Out = Nope

Thoughts:  Really enjoyed Griffin Dunne's memoir. I have a small fascination with Hollywood and filmmaking, so I loved hearing those bits, but his family's story is the star here.

Goodreads Goal: 220/300 2017 Reads | 2018 Reads | 2019 Reads | 2020 Reads | 2021 Reads | 2022 Reads | 2023 Reads | 2024 Reads

[film-classics]

Clara Bow - The It Girl

Clara Gordon Bow (born in Brooklyn, New York on July 29, 1905) was an American actress who rose to stardom during the silent film era and successfully made the transition to "talkies" in 1929. Her appearance as a plucky shopgirl in the film It (1927) brought her global fame and the nickname "The It Girl".

Bow's parents were descended from English and Scots-Irish immigrants who had come to America the generation before. Against her mother's wishes but with her father's support, Bow competed in Brewster publications' magazine's annual nationwide acting contest, "Fame and Fortune", in fall 1921, winning an evening gown and a silver trophy. Bow was then introduced to director Christy Cabanne, who casted her in her first film role.

Encouraged by her father, Bow continued to visit studio agencies asking for parts. She made a handful of films when she caught the eye of Preferred Pictures, which signed her and paid for her move to Hollywood. Bow became a hugely popular actor soon after moving. After her original studio closed down, she became Paramount Pictures' biggest star in the late 1920s. Aside from  It (1927), she made other memorable movies like Wings (1927), the first Academy Award for Best Picture winner.

However,  the pressures of fame, public scandals, and overwork, took their toll on Bow's fragile emotional health. She eventually left Hollywood, her last performance being in 1947, and retired in a ranch in Nevada.

Sadly, she began showing symptoms of psychiatric illness and checked into The Institute of Living. She was was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and after leaving the institution, Bow lived alone in a bungalow in Culver City, where at age 60, she died of a heart attack.

Legacy:

Named as the foremost "baby" of the WAMPAS Baby Stars in 1924

Listed by the Motion Picture Herald as one of America’s top-10 box office draws from 1927 to 1931, topping the list in 1928 and 1929

Is the model for Max Fleischer's cartoon character Betty Boop, created in 1930

Opened The 'It' Cafe in the Hollywood Plaza Hotel in 1937

Honored with an image on a United States postage stamp in 1994

Nominated for the 1999 American Film Institute "100 Years...100 Stars" list

Is the namesake of a song by 50 Foot Wave in 2004 and another by Taylor Swift in 2024

Has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1500 Vine Street for motion picture

[hellwoodfms]

𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐄 𝟎𝟎𝟏 : 𝙅𝙄𝙈𝙈𝙔 𝙁𝘼𝙇𝙇𝙊𝙉

welcome to our very first talk show, hellions. below are some tips to help ensure a happy and healthy flow for our writers. please be sure to take a look and reach out for any q's you may have. * remember, this is just fictional and purely ic. please do not take these items personal! * you may delete or ignore any asks you are not comfortable answering. no pressure. * you must send in order to receive, please make this a team activity!! * tag all asks with : hellwood.meme * last but not least, you MUST reblog on all muse accounts in order to participate. please utilize notes to view who has reblogged, i.e., who you can send asks to. UNDER THE CUT : you will find a series of ask memes that we have designed to follow the hollywood interview fashion as well as some juicy gossip driven ones, which we hope you will give a whirl. this will only help feed our hacker so that we can continue to develop ic drama within the group !!

INDUSTRY / WORK RELATED

what project(s) are you currently working on?

what are you most looking forward to this year? any highlights in 2024?

any upcoming films, music or other projects that you can dish on?

where are you based out of? do you see yourself relocating?

have you taken a recent hiatus, if so, when do you plan to return?

did you attend the met gala or cannes? if not, why?

how would you describe your fashion?

if you're a musician, what was the inspiration behind your most recent music?

are there any new albums you've had on repeat?

"OFF LIMITS" / PERSONAL

when was your last relationship? are you moved on?

how do you deal with break ups?

would you reunite with your ex? why or why not?

who is your celebrity crush?

are you beefing with anyone in the industry right now?

have you ever lied to your fans?

do you regret being famous?

what is your biggest regret to this day?

what is the most embarrassing scandal of your career?

FMK (fuck, marry, kill) : include three names.

HCK (hug, cuddle, kiss) : include three names.

would you rather: include two topics.

smash or pass: include a name.

[candymay]

My crazy roman empire is Lana and Armie's work and life parallel like in that it's always sunny in philadelphia conspiracy theory meme way

2010: Lana's debut studio album as Lana Del Ray, a.k.a Lizzy Grant // Armie's breakout role in The Social Network. Fun fact: one of the songs is titled "Put Me In A Movie." Armie also tied the knot that year.

2012-2013: Marked Lana's major-label debut with "Born To Die," a divisive album that jumpstarted her career but also faced enduring criticism from media and critics. // Armie experienced his first "flop" with big studio films in "Mirror Mirror" and "The Lone Ranger," but the real ones know they're actually golden lol.

2017: marked a pivotal moment for both Lana and Armie. Lana unveiled her first SMILE on her album titled LUST FOR LIFE (the antithesis of her pessimistic Born To Die), sounds like a stupid insignificant detail yet it resonated deeply with the fans, marking a departure from her "sad girl" persona. It's her summer bop album. Very Timothee's Elio. // Obvi, Armie delivered his standout summer love performance in CMBYN, solidifying his position in Hollywood. It was a momentous occasion for Lana, particularly with the release of her song "Get Free" — you literally just had to be there it changed her history forever lol. Finally, I'm crossing the threshold From the ordinary world To the reveal of my heart I never really noticed that I had to decide To play someone's game or to live my own life But now I do I want to move Out of the black Into the blue

2020-2021: Lana faced major backlash for her infamous Instagram post "Question for the Culture" and later for wearing a mesh-looking mask during COVID. // Armie's divorce and scandal lol. Interestingly, the year before, Lana released the masterpiece "Norman Fucking Rockwell!" featuring the song "The Greatest." And I'm wasted Don't leave, I just need a wake-up call I'm facin' the greatest The greatest loss of them all The culture is lit and I had a ball I guess I'm signin' off after all

2023: Lana Del Rey released a diaristic masterpiece with "Did You Know That There's a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd," transitioning from her self-indulgent, character-driven songwriting to a more personal and introspective exploration of her family and personal life. // After a period of silence, Armie's interview was published in AirMail as a full-length article. One of the songs, "Kintsugi," reflects on the recent deaths of three of her relatives, including her grandmother. Similarly, Armie had recently experienced loss; his father, his grandmother, and Florence.

Daddy, I miss them I'm in the mountains Probably running away, I've been meaning to say That there's nothing to do except know that this is How the light gets in Like cracking, the light gets in Then you're golden Just another folk song, but anyway I try so hard, but that's okay It's how the light gets in Armie opened up about his experience of sexual abuse by his youth pastor, marking the first time he publicly discussed it. Lana addressed a similar theme for the first time in her Grammy-nominated song "A&W". If I told you that I was raped Do you really think that anybody would think I didn't ask for it? I didn't ask for it I won't testify, I already fucked up my story On top of this, so many other things you can't believe

2024: Both are now living their best sober lives, with Lana having been sober for 20 years after her early struggles with alcohol and Armie has been sober for three years. They are now thriving, embracing new habits like vaping (lol), learning more about spirituality, and hanging with their family, and it seems like it's only up, up, up from here.

[silmarillionwritersguild]

The world's largest film industry isn't Hollywood, with its stars and scandals and endless sequels but Bollywood, the film industry that originated in Bombay in the late 19th century, more than a decade before Hollywood got its start. This month's challenge celebrates the lively dances, glittering costumes, towering emotions, and music you can't get out of your head of Bollywood.

Prompts this month come from Bollywood films and will be assigned by a moderator. You can request your prompt on Dreamwidth, ask us here on Tumblr, the #monthly-challenges channel on our Discord, or by emailing the mods. You can specify whether you'd like a song, film title, trope, or color palette—or you can let us surprise you! (If you choose a song, let us know if you'd like a song with an English translation available.) As always, you can use any aspect of your prompt to inspire your fanwork.

In some cases, we provide an intentionally brief and vague synopsis of a film or definition of a concept so that creators can get started with a prompt without having to do additional research. However, creators are welcome to dig deeper into a prompt if they want to and use what they learn to inspire a fanwork. For example, you might find that the film in your prompt has a clever subplot you will write a story around, the music video for a song has costumes you will include in a drawing, or a concept has aspects not included in our definition that you wish to use to make a playlist. While this is not required, you should feel free to dig as deeply into the prompts if you want and use anything you find!

In order to receive a stamp for your fanwork, your response must be posted to the archive on or before 15 August 2024. In addition, July is Disability Pride Month, so we have a special stamp for fanworks that include characters with disabilities. Make sure it is clear from your summary or let a moderator know if you need this stamp. For complete challenge guidelines, see the Challenges page on our website.

[sabspoetic]

P. Diddy Scandal: celebrities trying to warn us.

There are so many theories I believe on lyrics that might be laughable for some of y’all, but I don’t care, I want to share them with you.

So, first of all, let’s start with Eminem’s song “Fuel” which came out a few months ago with his latest album “The Death of Slim Shady”.

“I’m like a R-A-P-E-R (yeah), Got so many S-As (S-As), S-As (huh), Wait, he didn’t just spell the word ‘Rapper’ and leave out a P, did he? (Yep),”

I believe that this is a reference to Sean ‘P. Diddy’ Combs, after he was charged with racketeering and sex trafficking. It makes sense, just look; Eminem cunningly morphs "essay" into "SA" an acronym frequently used online for sexual assault. Moreover, dropping a P from "rapper" gives you "raper". Also note that "P, did he? " resonates remarkably like "P. Diddy."

Now, I want to move on Justin Bieber. Since his complicated relationship with P. Diddy is really difficult and gut wrenching story, I won’t discus it here.

Everyone thought his song “Yummy” was innocent and all until now. The clip makes sense. So, the music video starts with Justin walking through some creepy hallways. He walks into a dining hall and first thing we see is a group of little kids playing instruments in front of the mic, but in the end we hear the high pitched sound that a mic makes when someone drags it and those kids are nowhere in sight. Throughout the video, we see grown, rich people eating with absolutely zero respect, if I can word it like this, and in the end of the video there’s also a plate with young Justin Bieber with the text ‘Yummy’ underneath, which, I believe, is a reference to older people in the industry using young Justin as their doll. In the video there’s also this one scene, where two women dressed in white dance next to him.

I, being my usual self, also caught on this little thing in his song “Baby”. When he’s singing “Baby, baby, baby oh” it could have been a reference to ‘baby oil’ but that’s probably the stupidest thing you’ll ever hear, just me being delusional.

I want to talk about Kanye West as well. In his song “Famous” we see mannequins lying on the big white bed from Diddy’s White Parties, which suspiciously looks like Taylor Swift, Donald Trump, Kim Kardashian and some more. Kanye also said once "They tryna suppress me because they can't control me, they can control Shaq, they can control LeBron James, they can control Jay-Z and Beyonce. But they can't control me.

I don't care about who you are but l'm not taking advice from nobody except God, he's the only person I serve. My mum is not here, she was sacrificed, Michael Jordan, what about him? Dr Dre and his son,

In Hollywood, a lot of people come up missen and it feels like it might be a lot of that in order to control, traumatize. They first monetize you then traumatize you. But God loves me, they wanted to hit me too, first try to steal from me with Adidas...

And this truth is gonna be hurting, none of y'all MeekMill, none of y'all puffy none of these names, none of these people that had to listen to y'all, their dealings. I never kill nobody, I'm the person that never killed nobody and that means I can say whatever I want and not go to jail.”

People started calling him crazy for this, but he also said “I just tell the truth, and telling the truth is crazy in a world full of lies. That’s simply it.”

His interview, the one when he says “If I ever go missing and come back, it’s not me,” went viral. After that he took a seven week break and came back with a totally different face. You don’t just go missing and come back out of nowhere, suddenly looking different and dressing different. I don’t know about you, but I believe that the real Kanye is dead and that’s just a clone.

The next song I’m going to yap about is “She Knows” by J Cole, which has been banned for some reason on YouTube in USA.

The theory suggests that title of this song is a subtle nod to Beyonce’s last name "Knowles," and accuses the rapper of being complicit in alleged crimes involving Diddy and Jay-Z.

A specific part of the song is referencing the deaths of Aaliyah, Left Eye, and Michael Jackson in the first bridge:

"Only bad thing 'bout a star is they burn up. Rest in peace to Aaliyah, Rest in peace to Left Eye, Michael Jackson, I'll see ya, Just as soon as I die."

For those who don't know, these three are some of the people who knew about Diddy’s horrible doings.

Apparently, Diddy sent people out to kill them or he would just pay their doctors to give them the wrong medication to make them die because they knew too much about what he did. And pay attention to this line "I’ll see ya, Just as soon as I die". In my opinion, J Cole thinks he's gonna die next cuz he knows too much too…

There’s also a theory about Beyonce, that she would torture or something like that if another female artist would win a Grammy.

Many celebrities thanked Beyonce on stage, and doesn’t it look suspicious? And back then, Beyonce was more popular then Taylor Swift, and when Taylor won a Grammy Kayne West jumped on the stage and said Beyonce deserved it better, and he did it in order to save Taylor and it worked. Many people say it’s delusional, but just think for a second; why Beyonce and not any other artist? If any female artist thanked someone completely different, it’s Beyonce. Why? Why not someone other?

She has the most Grammys. Beyonce has thirty-fucking-two Grammys, do you know how much that is?!? The whole family together has 57 Grammys, because Jay-Z has 24 and their daughter Blue Ivy has one too for appearing in her mother’s music video!! If this is not crazy, y’all are crazy for sure.

There’s also a SIA’s old tweet that says: "Baby, everything your own nice cat eats. Kangaroo is dead, nowhere and purple penguins every day. My egg.” The first letters say ‘Beyonce kidnapped me’. However, I don’t know whether or not it’s fake, I won’t start proving this is real.

I can’t not say something about Michael Jackson’s last phone call. When he said “Not the government, it’s bigger than the government. They are a group of people,” that was what he meant.

Oh, and for the people who believe in the magic of numbers, P. Diddy, Beyonce and Jay-Z were born in 4th of something, and Aaliyah, Left Eye and MJ died at 25th of something.

I don’t know what y’all believe or not, but I do believe all of these.

[shannendoherty-fans]

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/17/opinion/shannen-doherty-gen-x.html

The New York Times — Opinion

We Owe Shannen Doherty an Apology

July 17, 2024. By Jennifer Weiner

Shannen Doherty was difficult.

If you were alive and sentient in the 1990s — whether you, like me, were a devoted fan of “Beverly Hills, 90210” and E! or you were just the most casual reader of People magazine — you knew this to be true. The sky is blue. The earth is round. Shannen Doherty, the star of multiple hit movies and television shows, is difficult. She was, per the tabloids, a volatile, unmanageable diva, and that reputation was only reinforced by the pouty, prima donna roles in which she was so often and so brilliantly cast.

Ms. Doherty died on Saturday, at the age of 53, of the cancer that was diagnosed in 2015. Since the news broke, the tenor of the conversation around her has changed. Instead of being an eye-roll-inducing wild child, Ms. Doherty is now being praised for the sensitivity and candor with which she discussed her cancer diagnosis and her time in the spotlight. And those ’90s tabloid stories? They’re hitting differently. The glee with which they were once consumed no longer feels appropriate. Ms. Doherty made her fair share of mistakes, but Gen X’s quintessential bad girl no longer looks all that bad.

If this reassessment feels familiar, it’s because in death, Ms. Doherty has joined the growing ranks of female celebrities whose scandals and legacies are being reconsidered by a newly sensitive culture.

In 2002, when Britney Spears’s high-profile relationship with Justin Timberlake ended, she was a train wreck, a bad joke, a problem. Eventually, her career and her money were placed under her father’s control. In 2008, Katherine Heigl went from queen of the rom-com to Hollywood purgatory for the sins of taking herself out of Emmy contention and having the temerity to say that “Knocked Up” was “a little sexist.” In 2009, Megan Fox got slammed — and fired — for calling out Michael Bay, her director on “Transformers,” for a desire “to create this insane, infamous madman reputation.” (OK, maybe she did also compare him to Hitler, which never ends well.)

Today, so many of the former tabloid mainstays do not look like punchlines or cautionary tales, but like regular young women enjoying the pleasures of fame. Some even look like role models. Ms. Spears emerged as a hero, not a villain, and it’s her ex who’s the target of comedians’ jabs. Post #MeToo, Ms. Heigl and Ms. Fox look like truth-tellers, not ingrates. Ms. Doherty, sadly, did not live long enough to enjoy her restored reputation.

A former child actress, Ms. Doherty was only 19 when she landed a starring role in “Beverly Hills, 90210.” She played Brenda Walsh, half of a set of fish-out-of-water Midwestern twins navigating the halls of West Beverly High. She left the show after four seasons, reportedly after feuding with co-stars, including Jennie Garth and the boss’s daughter, Tori Spelling. When Aaron Spelling hired her again, giving her a three-season run on “Charmed,” tensions with a co-star reportedly led to her being fired a second time. She was separated from the other actors as though she were an irrational toddler rather than a skilled, valued employee.

Those high-profile roles, along with her talent and her beauty, made her a star. But the conversation about her often made it seem as if her real job was to be fodder for the tabloids and a target for late-night comedians.

To be sure, Ms. Doherty gave them plenty to work with. There were the feuds and bar fights, a pair of quickie marriages and a D.U.I. arrest. Producers complained that she showed up late to the set, hogged the spotlight, bailed on the Emmys. A former fiancé filed an order of protection.

Ms. Doherty was eviscerated for this behavior in a way that indecorous male actors were not, at least at that time. A People magazine cover labeled her a “hard-partying, check-bouncing bad girl.” A zine called Ben Is Dead published an “I Hate Brenda” newsletter, complete with the “Shannen Snitch Line,” where informants could call in reports of unaired bad behavior.

In a 1992 cover story, People asked “TV’s brashest 21-year-old” why she, “alone among ‘90210’ co-stars and teen idols,” got stuck with the “difficult” label. Is she “one of those women who rhyme with rich? Is she, as the tabloids have gleefully reported, impossible on the set? Is she a prima donna? Also: After hours, does she party too much?”

Years later, Ms. Doherty copped to some of her misdeeds. “I have a rep,” she told Parade in 2010. “Did I earn it? Yeah, I did. But, after awhile you sort of try to shed that rep because you’re kind of a different person.”

So what drove the scandal? Blame it on youth. “90210” begat a whole generation of shows with ensemble casts of teenagers. Ms. Doherty was not the only one who needed time to grow into her outsize prominence. “We were locked in this sound stage for 14 to 16 hours every day,” Ms. Garth, who was also just a teenager, said years later. “There were times when we loved each other and there were times when we wanted to claw each other’s eyes out.”

Blame it on a desire to typecast female celebrities as heroes and villains, sweethearts and shrews, and the time-honored tradition of setting women against each other.

Or blame it, if you like, on plain old sexism. Ms. Doherty said the first time she was called a bitch was when she called out a male cast member on the set of “Heathers” for taking advantage of an extra. “I’m a strong woman,” Ms. Doherty told People. “There are still some people out there who can’t deal with that.”

Today, maybe more people are equipped to deal, more likely to look askance at misbehaving men instead of the women who call them out. Instead of the coy, “is she a rhymes-with-rich?” of early ’90s People, a Rolling Stone tribute is headlined “Nobody Could Break Shannen Doherty, and Everybody Tried.” “Shannen Doherty was irresistible, underrated and permanently shackled to misogynistic speculation,” wrote Adam White in The Independent. The headline on an opinion piece in Vogue read, simply, “Team Brenda Forever.”

The reassessment is more than just a desire (sincere or otherwise) not to speak ill of the dead. It’s a result of a few tough decades that have taught us what real bad behavior in Hollywood looks like: not impolite ingénues but Harvey Weinstein. Or Bill Cosby. Or Danny Masterson.

Maybe Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton and Tara Reid were not hot messes, but just girls being girls, the same way we’ve always allowed boys to be boys. And at least their misdeeds were largely victimless, unlike the missteps of so many male counterparts or superiors.

Maybe showing up late to the set, while not ideal, is not completely unexpected from a teenager adjusting to sudden, unimaginable wealth and fame. Maybe the bitches and the bad girls were giving voice to inconvenient truths about men with power and the sexist scripts they greenlighted, the abusive film sets they ran and the bad behavior they indulged in or ignored. Maybe the difficult women like Ms. Doherty are the ones we should have been listening to all along.

[acotars]

books read in 2024

⋆ ⭒˚.⋆ january ⋆.˚⭒ ⋆

one dark window (the shepherd king #1) by rachel gillig

the murder on the links (hercule poirot #2) by agatha christie

pageboy by elliot page

house of sky and breath (crescent city #2) by sarah j. maas

rogue protocol (the murderbot diaries #3) by martha wells

cult classic by sloane crosley

malibu rising by taylor jenkins reid

the beauty of your face by sahar mustafah

exit strategy (the murderbot diaries #4) by martha wells

animal farm by george orwell

everyone in this room will someday be dead by emily austin

carrie soto is back by taylor jenkins reid

a court this cruel & lovely (kingdom of lies #1) by stacia stark

the rules do not apply by ariel levy

poirot investigates (hercule poirot #3) by agatha christie

yellowface by rebecca f kuang

every heart a doorway (wayward children #1) by seanan mcguire

house of flame and shadow (crescent city #3) by sarah j. maas

read: 18

* · ✦ · * february * · ✦ · *

beautyland by marie-helene bertino

bride by ali hazelwood

network effect (the murderbot diaries #5) by martha wells

fugitive telemetry (the murderbot diaries #6) by martha wells

faebound (faebound #1) by saara el-arifi

the raven boys (the raven cycle #1) by maggie stiefvater **

read: 6

.✦.· *. march .*· .✦.

interesting facts about space by emily austin

penance by eliza clark

the book that no one wanted to read by richard ayoade

pride and prejudice by jane austen

unlikeable female characters: the women pop culture wants you to hate by anna bogutskaya

the shame by makenna goodman

greta & valdin by rebecca k. reilly

read: 7

✷ · ✶ · ✧ april ✧ · ✶ · ✷

this spells love by kate robb

out on a limb by hannah bonam-young

gwen & art are not in love by lex croucher

a lady's guide to scandal by sophie irwin

the friendship study by ruby barrett

the boyfriend candidate by ashley winstead

the pumpkin spice cafe by laurie gilmore

business or pleasure by rachel lynn solomon

how to end a love story by yulin kuang

this could be us (skyland #2) by kennedy ryan

the honeymoon crashers (the unhoneymooners #1.5) by christina lauren

we could have been friends, my father and i by raja shehadeh

how to stop time by matt haig

how to fake it in hollywood by ava wilder

with love from cold world by alicia thompson

funny story by emily henry

love radio by ebony ladelle

old flames and new fortunes by sarah hogle

just for the summer by abby jimenez

don't want you like a best friend by emma r. alban

love interest by clare gilmore

the exception to the rule (the improbable meet-cute #1) by christina lauren

worst wingman ever (the improbable meet-cute #2) by abby jimenez

with any luck (the improbable meet-cute #5) by ashley poston

last call at the local by sara grunder ruiz

happily never after by lynn painter

the ex talk by rachel lynn solomon

i kissed shara wheeler by casey mcquiston

the love wager by lynn painter

morning glory milking farm by c.m. nacosta

will they or won't they by ava wilder

read: 31

.　° * ☆ may ☆ * °　.

when the sky fell on splendor by emily henry

on earth we're briefly gorgeous by ocean vuong

blizzard by marie vingtras

bright young women by jessica knoll

the age of magical overthinking: notes on modern irrationality by amanda montell

the flatshare by beth o'leary **

read: 6

⋆ ˚.⋆ june ⋆.˚ ⋆

not in love by ali hazelwood

the way of kings (the stormlight archive #1) by brandon sanderson

words of radiance (the stormlight archive #2) by brandon sanderson

read: 3

. · ☆ . july . ☆ · .

edgedancer (the stormlight archive #2.5) by brandon sanderson

blue iris: poems and essays by mary oliver

woman, eating by claire kohda

oathbringer (the stormlight archive #3) by brandon sanderson

a novel love story by ashley poston

chlorine by jade song

how to read now by elain castillo

please stop trying to leave me by alana saab

beautifully broken life by catherine cowles

the god of the woods by liz moore

edgedancer (the stormlight archive #3.5) by brandon sanderson

the dead and the dark by courtney gould

a most agreeable murder by julia seales

the murder of roger ackroyd (hercule poirot #4) by agatha christie

read: 14

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁august ݁. ⊹ ₊ ݁.

the bluest eye by toni morrison

more, please: on food, fat, bingeing, longing, and the lust for "enough" by emma specter

the ministry of time by kaliane bradley

system collapse (the murderbot diaries #7) by martha wells

emily wilde's encycolpedia of fairies (emily wilde #1) by heather fawcett

emily wilde's map of the other lands (emily wilde #2) by heather fawcett

catalina by karla cornejo villavicencio

roadside picnic by arkady strugatsky and boris strugatsky

read: 8

reading goal: 93/100

add me on goodreads !

[ericdeggans]

The Peabody Awards 2024: Learning how "Stories That Matter" is so much more than a catchy slogan

(The author with Reservation Dogs executive producer Taika Waititi, Peabody judges Hannah Giorgis and Lorraine Ali, Peabody staffer Maggie Stephens and, below, Rita Ora and Kali Reis)

Midway through the ceremony, a thunderbolt struck in the form of a passionate speech from Sir Patrick Stewart, reminding me exactly why the George Foster Peabody Awards are such a special experience for judges, winners, staffers who works on the honors and media itself.

As a former judge and chair of the board of jurors, I had traveled to Los Angeles for the first Peabody awards held in person since the COVID lockdowns of 2020. It was also the awards’ first time taking place in Los Angeles, signaling a shift from the news-centered operation of old to a more Hollywood friendly production. And it happened to be the first awards ceremony since I stepped down as chair of the jurors in 2019, rotated off the panel – as is customary - after six years of service. (I was the first African American to hold the chair's job, in fact.)

It is tough to describe what a special experience it is to be among the judges helping hand out such a prestigious honor. The first time I served, among the projects we gave prizes to were House of Cards and Scandal – two shows which heralded the rise of streaming and the impact of diversity on television. I was part of the panel which decided to hand special honors to Jon Stewart, Rita Moreno and Carol Burnett at various times, recognizing the world-shaking impact of legendary performers and satirists.

Deliberations take place over three separate weeks in different locations, with our debates centered on impact, originality, scope, quality, substance and diversity — among other considerations — always with an eye on what the bright light of a Peabody win might accomplish when trained on a deserving project.

(The Peabody judging panel during my last year in the group.)

At the end, judges must have watched/consumed every entry under consideration and we must agree unanimously. With a judging panel that ranged from world class academics to high achievers in media, expert journalists and critics and more, we bonded like rowdy siblings at a media nerd’s ideal summer camp.

(Chilling with Tony Goldwyn and Jeff Perry from Scandal during my very first Peabody awards ceremony in 2014.)

But when Sir Patrick rose in the middle of Sunday’s ceremony to speak eloquently of the amazing work on display in the acceptance speeches of winners, I realized why the Peabodys were truly special. Conceived as the electronic/broadcasting/TV equivalent of the Pulitzer Prizes, the Peabodys this evening united Hollywood favorites like FX’s The Bear and HBO’s The Last of Us with searing journalism, like the PBS NewsHour’s coverage of war in Gaza or Tennessee investigative reporter Phil Williams’ dogged exposure of a mayoral candidate’s ties to white supremacists in a tony Nashville suburb.

Ravish Kumar, the news anchor in India who serves as the centerpiece for the POV documentary While We Watched, gave a passionate speech criticizing mainstream news outlets in his home country for enabling Hindu nationalism by spreading misinformation. Ron Nyswaner, creator and showrunner for Showtime’s LGBTQ-focused limited series Fellow Travelers, talked on how “art is about trying to make people think and feel.”

And Larry Wilmore, co-creator of Black-ish and host of the late, lamented Comedy Central news satire The Nightly Show, cracked a joke on how supremely compromised Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is kind of a dick. (Hey, everything can’t be highbrow during a three-hour show).

It occurred to me, that too many Hollywood awards shows are mostly about the star power and glamour of supremely acclaimed stars. Don’t get me wrong: it was gratifying and heartwarming to see the entire place leap to their feet for enduring icon and Career Achievement awards winner Mel Brooks, or Donald Glover presenting the Trailblazer award to his good friend Abbott Elementary star/creator Quinta Brunson or – for this Star Trek nerd anyway – the astonishing sight of watching castmembers/producers from Picard, Discovery, Enterprise and other corners of Trek gather onstage for the Institutional Award.

(The Star Trek crew, including LeVar Burton, Rebecca Romijin and Jeri Ryan, at the Peabody awards Sunday.)

But the secret sauce of the Peabodys is the way it utilizes Hollywood glamour to shine a light on quality journalism and public service programming like the micro-documentary series The Hidden Racism in New York City or PBS Frontline’s reporting on America and the Taliban or Dallas-Fort Worth NBC station KXAS’ look at how an organization of sheriffs were quietly radicalizing law enforcement officers across the state.

So, even though I’m no longer taking part in the long hours of viewing and debate required to pick these standout honorees – and it is part of the deal that every judge has to agree on every winner and finalist – I couldn’t be prouder of the selections my successors have assembled. We are all now part of a family dedicated to upholding the best in media, highlighting important work in a way almost no other modern awards ceremony can do.

(Me at this year's Peabody awards.)

See the list of Peabody winners HERE.

[noreligionisgood]

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/28/opinion/hulk-hogan-vance-harris.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

The Democratic Party must join the battle for the hearts and minds of young men. It matters not just for this election, though the vast and growing gender gap means that disaffected men could hand Donald Trump the presidency. It matters for how we mentor young men, and it matters for how we view masculinity itself.

And yes, the Democrats can do it. Within the Kamala Harris coalition, there are men who can show a better way.

If you ever wondered whether the Republican Party sees itself as the party of men, I’d invite you to rewatch the last night of the Republican National Convention. Prime time featured a rousing speech by the wrestling legend Hulk Hogan, a song by Kid Rock and a speech by Dana White, the chief executive of the Ultimate Fighting Championship — all as warm-up acts before Trump delivered his acceptance speech. Republican manliness was the capstone of the convention.

But what kind of men were featured? They’re all rich and powerful, and as a longtime fan of professional wrestling, I loved watching Hogan as a kid, but none of them are the kind of man I’d want my son to be. White was caught on video slapping his wife. Kid Rock has his own checkered past, including a sex tape and an assault charge related to a fight in a Nashville strip club. Hogan faced his own sex scandal after he had a bizarre sexual relationship with a woman who was married to one of his close friends, a radio host who goes by “Bubba the Love Sponge.”

We know all about Trump, but it’s worth remembering some of his worst moments — including a jury finding that he was liable for sexual abuse, his defamation of his sex-abuse victim, the “Access Hollywood” tape and the countless examples of his cruelly insulting the women he so plainly hates.

JD Vance is different. No one should denigrate his personal story. He has overcome great adversity, served his country honorably as a Marine and, by all accounts, is a good husband and father. But he now wears Trumpist masculinity like an ill-fitting suit. Last week, he was justifiably attacked for a 2021 interview with Tucker Carlson in which he declared that the country is run, “via the Democrats, via our corporate oligarchs, by a bunch of childless cat ladies.” He identified Harris (who has two stepchildren) as just the kind of person he was talking about.

For a brief period last week, I thought Harris might answer the Trumpists with a man who puts to shame every person who took the stage that Thursday night. She was reportedly considering Adm. William McRaven — a Navy SEAL, a former commander of U.S. Special Operations Command and one of the key architects of Operation Neptune Spear, the mission to kill Osama bin Laden — as a potential running mate.

He quickly pulled himself out of consideration, saying that “there are far better candidates” for the position. Politically, he’s probably right. Realpolitik requires picking a politician who can help carry key swing states, but McRaven still matters. His ideas matter. His comportment and bearing matter. What he says matters. And Democrats should embrace McRaven’s conception of how to live as a direct contradiction of Trumpist masculinity.

It’s not just McRaven, of course. There are other good and brave men who’ve rejected MAGA. Whether I’m speaking of Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, a former fighter pilot and astronaut, or Mark Hertling, my former division commander in Iraq, who is a Biden appointee to the American Battle Monuments Commission and a leading proponent of Ukraine’s cause, or James Mattis, a former secretary of defense who did his best to serve Trump honorably but could not abide Trump’s disloyalty to our allies.

But I highlight McRaven for a reason; he has perfectly articulated how to attack MAGA masculinity. Ten years ago, he gave one of the most powerful commencement speeches in recent American history. He addressed the graduates of the University of Texas, Austin, and three YouTube versions have racked up more than 70 million views combined.

It’s known — oddly enough — as the “Make Your Bed” speech. While it wasn’t aimed only at men, every person who forwarded it to me was a man. It appealed to universal values, but it connected with men I know at a deep and profound level.

McRaven draws on his SEAL training to teach students how to change the world. It begins with the small things, like accomplishing that tiny first task of making your bed, because “if you can’t do the little things right, you’ll never be able to do the big things right.”

Each new principle is rooted in his experience, including “If you want to change the world, measure a person by the size of their heart, not by the size of their flippers.” Here’s one that’s particularly salient in the face of Trumpist bullying: “If you want to change the world, don’t back down from the sharks.”

The address builds to a conclusion that is alien to Trumpist masculinity: “Start each day with a task completed. Find someone to help you through life. Respect everyone. Know that life is not fair and that you will fail often. But if you take some risks, step up when the times are the toughest, face down the bullies, lift up the downtrodden and never ever give up — if you do these things, the next generation and the generations that follow will live in a world far better than the one we have today.”

You can see the contrast. Trumpist masculinity is rooted in grievance and anger. McRaven’s message centers on honor and courage.

There’s a seductive quality to Trump’s masculinity. Grievance is a form of counterfeit purpose, and anger is a form of counterfeit courage. For a time, your grievance can give you a mission — fighting the hated foe. And when you’re in the midst of an online temper tantrum, taking on all comers in your social media feed, you can feel a little bit brave, even if all you’re doing is tapping out vitriolic posts from the safety and comfort of your couch.

When you center masculinity on grievance and anger rather than honor and courage, you attract men like Hogan and Kid Rock and White. Worse, that is how you mold the men in your movement, including men like Vance.

Many conservatives rightly decry the way in which parts of the far left tend to use the words “straight white male” as a virtual epithet, as if there were something inherently suspect in the identities of tens of millions of men and boys. And if men feel that Democrats are hostile to them, they’ll go where they feel wanted, the gender gap will become a gender canyon, and more men will embrace Trumpism because that’s just what men do.

But that’s the masculine equivalent of a sugar high. For solid food, look not to Hulk Hogan. Look to William McRaven. It’s often said, and I generally agree, that politics is downstream of culture, but we also cannot ignore the cultural power of our politicians. We aren’t simply electing women and men; we’re electing role models, and Trump has unquestionably been a role model for countless men. He has molded not just the policies but also the ethos of the Republican Party. But America’s men need different role models and a different ethos.

I’m not the only person who sees this need. At The Atlantic, my friend Tom Nichols (who’s also written about the dangers of Trumpist masculinity) argues that men like Kelly, Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky and Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina also offer better models for men than Trump, and Nichols is right.

But let’s return for the moment to the Navy SEAL who served his country for decades, who helped kill one of America’s deadliest foes and who declared to American college graduates, “You must have compassion. You must ache for the poor and disenfranchised. You must fear for the vulnerable. You must weep for the ill and infirm. You must pray for those who are without hope. You must be kind to the less fortunate.”

When I heard those words, I thought: That’s the message American men need to hear. That’s a message the American people need to hear.

This might sound strange, but I wonder if Democrats should answer the Republican men’s night with a men’s night of their own — a night that features heroes instead of bullies and showmen, a night that answers the Republican appeal to men’s basest instincts with an appeal to their highest ideals.

When Vance says, “Our people hate the right people,” that’s the language of grievance and anger. But there’s a better way for men — for all of us. It’s rooted in honor, courage and love. Or as McRaven put it, “For what hero gives so much of themselves without caring for those they are trying to save?”

[gottiewrites]

The novel for An Unauthorised Fan Treatise is now available to preorder!

My publisher noticed how much love the Fan Treatise has been getting on Tumblr (thank you @aibafiles for your viral post!) They put this up for you all. Thank you all SO much for your support. You have no idea how much it means to smaller authors to get so many enthusiastic readers online. It's a huge boost for my wriitng. I am unbelievably excited to find out what you all make of the real truth behind Gottie's coniving adventures.

Blurb:

A contemporary YA murder mystery set in sun-drenched LA, for fans of Malibu Rising, We Were Liars and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. The novel of Lauren James' hugely popular online story "An Unauthorised Fan Treatise" When Delilah meets Sawyer Saffitz (son of the Anya Saffitz, aka Hollywood royalty), she becomes hooked on a decade-old scandal. In her quest for the truth, Delilah uncovers blogposts written by the mysterious “gottiewrites” and is soon caught up in a world of greed, fandom conspiracy theories … and murder. And the deeper Delilah digs, the more dangerous it becomes – because someone is willing to kill to hide the truth.

Publishing 1st August 2024 - 80,000 words

Preorder now

[tea-with-evan-and-me]

In a surprising twist, actor Evan Peters emerged as the unexpected winner of the 2024 presidential election, alongside his chosen vice president, Jeff Ward. The election was filled with debates about celebrity influence in politics, but few anticipated the outcome would veer so wildly off-script.

The announcement sent shockwaves across the globe, as Peters had never announced a candidacy nor actively campaigned. Social media exploded with reactions, memes, and theories surrounding how a Hollywood figure managed to step into one of the most powerful positions in the world. Political analysts scrambled to make sense of this phenomenon, pondering whether it was a sign of changing times or a mere anomaly.

However, just as the dust began to settle, a scandal erupted involving Jeff Ward and none other than Hillary Clinton. Allegations surfaced that suggested clandestine meetings and discussions that raised eyebrows within political circles. As the media rushed to report on the developing story, both seasoned politicians and newcomers expressed their shock and disbelief. The scandal cast a long shadow over the newly inaugurated administration, forcing it to contend with skepticism and outrage from both supporters and opponents alike.

Discussions on ethics, celebrity culture, and governance took center stage, prompting debates about the role of public image and accountability in leadership. As the political landscape shifted yet again, many wondered how this short-lived term would shape the future of political discourse and engagement in a society that increasingly blurred the lines between entertainment and politics.

While the world watched the drama unfold, Peters and Ward navigated their new positions amidst the turbulence, facing unprecedented challenges that few, if any, had predicted. Would this administration bring about change, or would it crumble under the weight of scandal? Only time would tell in this unpredictable new political age

i just want to know if AI created all this or if you actually sat down and wrote multiple novels in my ask box