#like my dude you should be banned from ever working again in Hollywood

[juanabaloo]

reading about some Hollywood veteran talking trash about Jenna Ortega's actions on her show Wednesday...

[trilies]

an argument for AO3

So I’m in a conversation with someone who is kind of in the “against AO3″ camp, and they asked me a couple of questions. Namely, who wouldn’t be uncomfortable with pedophilia? Isn’t it sketchy that a beta website is asking for so much money despite reaching its goals?

And my answer became so long... I figured it might as well become its own post. Please bear in mind that this is cut from a whole conversation.

But here it is.

------

No. It doesn't seem sketchy to me at all. Why would it? I know we make jokes about how much money tumblr has cost the various sites which purchase it like Yahoo, but there's some truth there: it's really expensive to host a website to thousands and thousands of people. It's why we see so many tumblr owners trying to shoehorn in ads or make people buy services, or why Photobucket tried to pull that truly atrocious bullshit a year or two back. Without image hosting capabilities (tumblr and photobucket's big thing), the strain isn't as huge.... but AO3 is MASSIVE. It is hosting literally thousands of accounts, millions of stories. That's massive on a server scale alone, ignoring all the other work they do. Yeah, it's in beta... but that's because it's trying to reach a goal of being as good a fanfic archive as they can be, and they don't believe they've reached that goal yet. Being in beta means they can better listen to their uses on shit like tagging systems and make those changes. Not to mention, again, they are INCREDIBLY transparent. If you are worried about where the money is going, you can go on the site and they have all their stuff up there.

As for the pedophilia subject matter.... Please give me a moment. because there's honestly a lot to say on that particular issue, if nothing else. This will take a while, so if you see this and there hasn't been a reply yet.... I'm still typing lmao.

To start with, of course people are uncomfortable about pedophilia. However, there are a lot of problems with how pedophilia is viewed or *used* as an accusation in the current fandom climate.

For example, in honestly EXTREMELY recent times, I was told I was "defending" pedophilia because I disagreed that a character (an immortal food gijinka) was "minor-coded" or "designed as an underage teenager". (As a note, an argument for this view was that the character's breasts were too small.) When I pointed out, hey, that's kind of a fucked up accusation to throw at a complete stranger, especially as I am a CSA survivor, I was told "You have to be lying about that, then, because a real CSA survivor would understand."

c o o l

That's just my personal experience that happened within a couple of months. Other people have talked about running into people who think that a character turning 18 means they're a pedophile for still dating a 17 year old. Or running into people who think a 40 year old dating someone in their 30s is pedophilic. Or believe that even SHIPPING characters who were not yet 18 was pedophilic if you yourself were over 18.

(Of course, you also have the kinds of people who try to use Moral Purity as a way to bash ships they don't like. I once saw someone try to claim that a popular mlm ship, A/B, was pedophilic because one half of the equation looked young.... when some other artists drew him... Of course, on the side, this person liked to also get angry that *their* favorite ship, a dude/chick ship composing of A/C, wasn't more popular. So. You know.)

So that's one half of the problem: the word "pedophile" being so warped that a lot of people now have no idea if the person using it has a genuine concern or if the accuser is trying to smear someone who doesn't ship the same thing. FFnet and Tumblr have gone with the "burn it all down" approach, which hasn't actually helped anyone and is, to boot, sloppily moderated. So we know from history, from experience in cases like mine, that it doesn't help in that area.

The other half of the problem is... How far is too far?

This is where "anti" culture begins to find similarities with the whole Warriors for Innocence thing. If you completely and blindly block an entire tag, or anyone associated with it, you have to ask: who are you hurting? Warriors for Innocence hurt actual rape victim, and queer folk, and a whole lot of others. Far as I can tell, anti culture is on the route to the same thing, because I have yet to see appropriate answers to a lot of issues.

If one says "anything with underage sex in it is bad and should be banned", what about fics that tackle it in a serious manner? The young adult novel "Speak" deals with rape of an underage girl and how she works through that mental trauma; are fics with stories equivalent to that allowed? Do fics with underage sex have to focus purely on how it is Horrible And Bad to be allowed? Does only a chapter have to be allowed? A paragraph? An author's note? A tag? Or are we allowed to never explore dark subject matter?

Is fic with underage content in it only horrible if it's someone over the age of eighteen who writes it? Can a teenager write smut (terribly written as it may likely be) between teenage characters? Can a teenager write smut between a teenage character and an adult character? For the record, i did in fact, over the summer, run into someone who said that teens/minors "shouldn't even know about NSFW", which is asinine to me, because Abstinence Only is a terrible thing to put in schools, and somehow worse in a way when you try to put that into effect in fandom. If the answer is 'yes', what are you going to do, demand to see people's birth certificates in fandom?

(As a note, I think this is a terrible message to put into fandom for teenagers because I believe it will inevitably lead to self hatred and a warped view of sex. If you make the extremely simplified black-and-white statement of "teens and sex should never go together ever in any way", that's going to mess up teens who are starting to experience arousal in their bodies. The message, whether intended or not, ends up as "NSFW things are bad, which means my brain which thought NSFW thoughts is bad, and my brain thought those thoughts because my body had these feelings". )

(This is bad for any average teenager. This will be especially worse to CSA and rape victims, along with queer youth who, in a lot of places, are still struggling with their bodies and/or feelings because the world is still pretty damn queerphobic.)

Speaking of CSA and rape victims, what about those of them who write/read underage ships or dark content as a way to cope with what happened or Just Because? That's a thing lots of us do, especially those of us who don't look like the Perfect Victims people can use as an excuse for whatever crusade they're waging. I've heard anti types go "Well, it's an unhealthy way to cope" or claims that CSA/rape victims who write such dark content are "just as bad as their abusers"... But are they psychiatrists/therapists? Are they the psychiatrists/therapists of *those specific people*? Will you moderate this kind of content by forcefully interrogating CSA/rape victims to out their trauma to a complete stranger? Will you demand to speak to their therapists? Over fanfic?

When I was a teenager, I wrote all sorts of stuff. I wrote dark dub-con fic, because I liked to explore those dark feelings in the process and the aftermath separate from myself. I wrote a fic with a fairly young teenage girl (what age was kh2 kairi? who even knows, I sure didn't) falling for a MUCH older man built like a brick shit house so that there was never any doubt to him being an adult, even giving him her first kiss, because they were my favorite characters, I wanted both of them to have a moment of happiness (that i promptly ruined but hey), and, *in this fic*, I knew it would be alright. I knew the girl would always be in control, she'd be the one making moves, that the guy was nonthreatening and kind and protect her and work alongside her.

(and then I began the process of killing him off in the next paragraph through him saving her life, but, like. Drama (tm), baby)

This was all good for me. At an age where I was young, vulnerable, and figuring out weird shit like arousal and romantic feelings, it was *invaluable* to have a space where I could explore all of that while relatively safe from actual danger, even if the stuff I wanted to explore was a little messed up. This whole thing against AO3 wouldn't have helped me, and I'm pretty sure it's not helping a lot of other people too.

There is an issue with underage people and sex stuff- not just in fandom but in culture at large. We have Hollywood dressing up young girl actresses in super slinky or revealing clothes. We have schools saying girls basically should never wear shorts, and capitalism fucking this up further by only selling SUPER SHORT shorters. We have media of all sorts giving us adults, whether in real actors or character design, in the roles of young people. (See: "how do you do, fellow kids") We should probably take more care about fandom spaces, so that people of all ages don't feel pressured to engage in sexual shit they're not 100% game for or into, or just have it shoved into their faces without consent. It's a complex issue... and it's not stuff that can just be 'banned' and have that fix it.

AO3 has on its plate a very complex problem that will, if we're all honest, never have a perfect answer. It has given us the best that can possibly be asked for. It obeys the law by not having actual child pornography on it (aka visual proof of actual real children, defined by us law as such), which is closest to "objective" we can get at the current stage in humanity and state of fandom. It has a very comprehensive and moderated tag system, so that people can post warnings along their fic so that people don't stumble onto shit they don't need to, and so that people can moderate their own reading experience to some degree.

If some people aren't comfortable with AO3, that's fine. However, most of us are getting annoyed not with those people, but with the people who just blindly say "AO3 supports child porn and is probably stealing money" (statement simplified for the purpose of this post). It shows an ignorance of the fandom history that lead us here, no understanding in either AO3's practices or how expensive it is to run a site, and no consideration for how complex this problem can really be. It would be great if this was a black and white issue, if there was an easy answer as just "banning" certain kinds of content... but there isn't. And that's where I am.

[365days365movies]

April 2, 2021: The General (1926)

From one legendary early filmmaker onto another!

Joseph Frank Keaton was born in Piqua, Kansas, on October 4, 1895. His parents were vaudeville performers, which might be sounding familiar to you, based on Chaplin’s life history. But Keaton’s childhood was VERY different, I promise. When he was an infant, he fell down the stairs in front of a family friend, and stood up afterwards, seemingly fine. The actor said, “He’s a regular buster!” And the name stuck, as did Buster’s tendency to shake off what could be massive injury. And that proved useful, as he would soon lose the tip of his finger, hit his own eye with a rock, and was also SUCKED OUT OF A WINDOW BY A TORNADO AND DROPPED TWO CITY BLOCKS AWAY. FUCKING SERIOUSLY. And according to some accounts, al of that happened in the same fucking day. Allegedly, because that shit would be CRAZY if true.

Regardless, he was brought on to work with his parents on stage when he was three, and they became “The Three Keatons”. During the act, Buster would be thrown against the scenery, into the orchestra pit, or into the audience itself! He earned to take trick falls quickly, and was billed as “the little boy who can’t be damaged”. And kid was INDESTRUCTIBLE. Sure, he never got hurt because of surprisingly well-thought out stage trickery, but he also was VERY good at landing on his feet, describing himself once as “landing like a cat” on regular occasions. But eventually, the law banned child performers in vaudeville, putting an end to the act.

But that wouldn’t stop Buster Keaton, NO SIR. It did stop his father, though, who eventually succumbed to alcoholism and wrecked the family business. But Buster and his mother left for New York City, and Buster moved on to his lifelong passion: acting. While acting on stage, Keaton met a young man named Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle, who would become one of the most prominent early film stars. But then, World War I happened, and Buster served in France, where he would become permanently deaf in one ear.

When he came back, he was a writer for Arbuckle’s films before breaking out on his own projects, being able to write, direct, and act in his own films. In the process, he developed his unique style of acting and filmmaking, which was extremely visual and full of slapstick. In acting, he became famous for his emotionless stony face, known as the “deadpan”. He also ALWAYS did his own stunts, which sometimes resulted in some major consequences.

Yeah. YEAH. Dude did a stunt that caused him to BREAK HIS NECK, and he DID NOT REALIZE THIS for YEARS AFTER THE INCIDENT! This man is the GREATEST BADASS THAT FILM HAS EVER KNOWN. That was on Sherlock, Jr. in 1924, and by this point, Keaton was a millionaire, and one of the biggest names in Hollywood, alongside Charlie Chaplin, of course. He was married to actress Natalie Talmadge (who was the SAME AGE as him, go figure), and they had three children together by 1924. And their marriage...also began to suffer. Just like Chaplin, except that Keaton wasn’t abusive to Natalie or the kids, thankfully. It was her spending habits, and the two of them growing apart. 

And then, in 1925, inspired by history like Chaplin was with The Gold Rush, Keaton was inspired by a true story from the Civil War, known as the Great Locomotive Chase. See, Buster LOVED trains, and with the money and resources at his disposal, he had the ability to make his magnum opus, his favorite film, and one of the most expensive films ever made. Working with Chaplin’s United Artists, he made today’s film of focus: The General. And, uh...this would have mixed results, I’ll just say that much for now.

I’ll tell you what happens to Buster after this in the review, but for now, let’s jump into the movie! It’s a short one, but that’s OK! SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap

Y’know, I considered saving this one for Historical July or War November, but I think it’s better here for a few reasons. Plus, I’d rather those films not be comedic, if I can help it. Anyway: Marietta, Georgia, 1861!

The Western & Atlantic Railroad train known as The General is bring driven by its chief engineer Johnnie Gray (Buster Keaton). As a title screen tells us, Johnny loves two things: the majestic The General, and his equally majestic fiancée, Annabelle Lee (Marion Mack). Living in the decadent pre-Civil War South, the two are happy with each other, although Johnnie is somewhat awkward in his way. He provides Annabelle with a photo of him and The General.

Just then, though, Annabelle’s brother (Frank Barnes) comes in and tells her and their father (Charles Smith) that Fort Sumter’s been fired on. UH OH. It’s war. As Annabelle’s brother immediately goes to enlist alongside many other men, Johnnie follows suit. However, when he gets to the enlisting station, he’s refused the opportunity, as he will be needed to act as a railroad engineer. Which, to be fair, does make sense. Railroad engineers would be vital for the effort. However, they never tell him why he isn’t fit for the job, so he just goes back and tries to enlist under a false name. They catch him, though, and he’s again refused. Dejected, he goes back to the train.

However, as he leaves, Annabelle’s father and brother see him in line, and try to get him in to join them. He shakes his head, but instead of assuming that he’s been rejected, they assume that he’s too cowardly to join. They relay this message to Annabelle, who goes to him directly He tells him the truth, that he’s been rejected, but she IMMEDIATELY assumes he’s lying, and tells him not to speak to her again unless he’s in uniform. Dammit, Annabelle! And poor Johnnie doesn’t even know how important he is! Geez, guys, get your shit together.

A year passes, and the war continues in earnest. We go to a Union camp, where Captain Anderson (Glen Cavender) plots with General Thatcher (Jim Farley) to ambush a train and steal it, in an effort to debilitate the train and the South’s efforts as a whole. Meanwhile, Annabelle’s father is wounded, causing her to go and see him. This requires a trip on The General, and a brief and awkward reunion with Johnnie.

However, we now have a much bigger problem than lost love. Because the train is stopped for Johnnie and the passengers to get some food at a nearby stop. And this is when Captain Anderson takes the opportunity to steal The General right from under Johnnie’s nose. And Annabelle, who catches them in the act, is kidnapped in order to hide their scheme.

The men take off with The General and Annabelle, and now BOTH of Johnnie’s loves are taken away from him. He chases after the train, first running, then using a handcar, and THEN taking a man’s penny-farthing bicycle. By the way, fun fact about me: it is my life’s goal to be able to afford a penny-farthing bicycle and ride it around town while wearing a top hat and coat, like it’s completely fucking normal. I need this - I FUCKING NEED THIS, UNDERSTAND???

He rides that penny-farthing to another stop, where he encounters Confederate soldiers, who he tries to recruit to aid him in retrieving his train. However, he accidentally leaves them all behind, using a small engine, Texas to chase after his train and the robbers. Johnnie’s soon leading them in a hot pursuit, also managing to procure a cannon on the way.

However, the robbers have taken notice now, and the Captain is under the mistaken impression that the Texas carries reinforcements. Instead, they keep going. Meanwhile, Johnnie’s hooked the cannon up to the back of the Texas, and is trying (and failing) to fire it at the robbers. Instead, he accidentally unhooks it as it’s about to fire, and it’s aimed at the Texas instead. To avoid the shot, Johnnie...Johnnie does THIS.

...Damn, Buster Keaton, that’s awesome. That’s him doing this, FOR REAL, in this film. Holy shit. Tom Cruise, eat your heart out. Anyway, the cannon misses the Texas, but ends up firing pretty close to The General, spooking the men onboard. To stave him off, they first detach their last car, which falls off the tracks when Johnnie’s looking away, confusing him greatly. Then, they through railroad ties on the tracks, which Johnnie has to clear by getting off the train, riding it’s grill (again), and removing by hand! God, I love this dude.

The Union soldiers divert the tracks, driving Johnnie into a dead end, but he manages to reverse the Texas and switch back onto the right track. Meanwhile, the Union men are building fires in The General’s train cars, and leaving those cars on covered bridges in order to burn them down. They do this on one, and the Texas follows, driving into it, and pushing it OUT of the bridge. And goddamn, this movie is cool as shit.

As Johnnie deals with this latest situation, the train drives through Chattanooga, where the Confederate Army is in full retreat, chased away by the Union. And it’s at this point that I should point something out: I really, really should be rooting aginst Johnnie here, for obvious reasons. But, the movie is putting him in position as the protagonist, and it works, because I do like this guy, even if he’s inevitably on the wrong side of history.

It’s also at this point where Johnnie COMPLETELY loses any advantage, as the men on The General have now realized that he’s the only one on the train, and start fighting back, throwing things at him and the Texas from above. Now in danger, Johnnie takes off and runs into the forest, where he hides. This, mind you, is also as Annabelle is watching from The General.

That night, he happens upon a house in enemy territory, and goes there to hide. As he does, however, a group of officers come in, and discuss their plans to ambush the Confederate soldiers, and to secure one of their bridges for their own trains. Johnnie, all the while, is hidden under a table.

Annabelle is brought in, and the men decide to hold her for now, until the deed is done and they can make other plans. However, Johnnie also hears this, and waits until the officers clear out of the house, leaving him, Annabelle, and a couple of guards. Johnnie, being a badass, knocks out the guards, put on one of their uniforms, and rescues Annabelle. The pair of them escape back into the forest, as a thunderstorm rages. They also encounter a bear in the woods, because that’s basically par for the course with these movies, it would seem.

So is a beartrap, which Annabelle briefly gets caught in (yikes), until she’s freed by Johnnie...who also gets caught in it right afterwards. Nice. With all this trouble in the dark, the two decide to hunker down in the woods. Annabelle thanks Johnnie for coming after her, even in the country of their enemy. And they reconcile as they sleep for the night. Thatnext morning, Johnnie gets his bearings, and sees The General at an encampment down below. Wearing a Union uniform, he devises a plan to get to the train, and warn the South of the Union’s plan.

He convinces Annabelle to hide in a burlap sac, which he carries with him into the encampment. Dude’s a strong guy for being as scrawny as he appears to be. He carries her over his shoulder to the train, then puts her on one of the cabins. The makes his way to the front, and surprises the few men there, pushing them off of it, and stealing back The General! Badass!!!

He gets Annabelle out of the bag and the two attempt to outrun the Union together. They block the way with telephone poles, then grab some wood from recently constructed fences in order to fuel the engine (with some humorous difficulty). The Union catches up quickly, however, and the two are forced to flee again. They dump barrels and other items on board the train onto the tracks, then attempt to replenish the water reserves for the steam locomotive (again with some humorous difficulty) before moving on.

But precious little seems to impede the train’s pursuers. Meanwhile, Annabelle makes herself busy by sweeping the train? Oh ho ho, silly women, with their cleaning and uselessness in vital combat situations! Tee hee hee, why isn’t she pregnant in the kitchen right now? Silly baby receptacles, I mean, women! 

OK, that mildly chauvinistic moment aside, the two continue speeding ahead, but then, at a moment when Johnnie gets off the train for manipulate the tracks, Annabelle winds up on The General by herself!. She reverses the train at almost EXACTLY the wrong moment, nearly causing an accident, but Johnnie’s trick with the track works, diverting the Union trains to another unfinished track. And the two gain a wider lead once again. And then...we reach the Rock River Bridge.

This is where the Union troops are meant to be meeting the trains for supplies, and a vital part of the Union’s plans in the area. Turning the tables on the Union, Johnnie sets a massive fire on the bridge, but gets trapped behind it, and is forced to jump into the river as The General moves off of it. However, he gets back up just in time, and they head out to the southern territories.

As they do, Johnnie changes uniform to a Confederate Grey, so as not to get shot at once they arrive. He warns the Confederate troops or the coming Northern invasion, and they quickly mobilize. He and Annabelle figuratively and literally dress down the commanding officer (nice), and they head out to engage the Northern Invaders! I’m sure it’ll go well for everybody involved. It’s also here that Annabelle reunites with her father, alive and healing. Johnnie, meanwhile, tries to go and help the army face the North.

Speaking of the Union, they’re STILL trying to repair the train track that Johnnie messed up. They finally succeed, and head off to the Rock River Bridge, with the Texas ahead of them. The other troops meet with them after all, and the commander insists that the bridge is in tact enough to cross the bridge. And that leads to...the most expensive scene ever shot, at least at the time.

That’s real. Are you listening to me, THAT IS 100% FUCKING REAL! BUSTER KEATON COLLAPSED A BRIDGE WITH A TRAIN ON IT FOR THIS MOVIE!!! That shit? That’s some next level shit. The Union forces, now basically fucked, try to ford the river, only for the Confederate forces to fend them off, with Johnnie’s help. The Captain, hidden on the bank, starts to pick off soldiers that Johnny’s talking to, only for Johnnie to accidentally kill him with a sword, which flies through the air to get him. Which, yeah, is funny in a macabre way. He also accidentally takes out a dam, flooding the river and fishing the Union soldiers out, forcing them into retreat! Their other supply train is disabled, and the South has won this battle! I mean, booo, but I’m happy for Johnnie, at least.

Hailed as a hero with the rest, they all return to the town, where Johnnie reunites with The General in peace. However, he’s nearly done for, as one of the soldiers, an officer that he knocked out a WHILE ago, has actually been on the train the entire time, and has only now regained consciousness. Johnnie takes him prisoner, and the general in charge of this unit is so impressed by his actions that he brings Johnnie into the army, and promotes him to lieutenant, giving him the Union officer’s sword in the process! Good for you, Johnnie! Proud of you, bud.

Now officially enlisted at last, he and Annabelle happily reunite in love, and makeout right next to The General. And then, Johnnie marches off to war for an army on the losing side of history that’s defending slavery, and in all likelihood dies in the deadliest war in American history. Probably. The movie actually ends on the kiss, but it’s the Civil War, we all know what the fuck went down.

And that’s The General! Wow. I get why Keaton was so excited about this movie; it’s a massive accomplishment in film history, and engaging and entertaining movie, and a cinematic masterpiece...that was directly responsible for eventually ending Keaton’s career.

...See you in the Review! I’ll explain the last part, I promise.

[hgfstreamchats]

Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

Welcome to the 'highglossfinish' room. Zephra85: WOO movie night Knockout: Good evening, Zephra human! Zephra85: Hi Knock Out! Zephra85: Are we watching Pricsilla Queen of the Desert? :D Knock Out: We are indeed! Zephra85: YAY Zephra85: I've only seen it once but it's rad

thenightetc: Oh!  I remember this thenightetc: ...*remembering more things about this* thenightetc: Actually I'm going to have to sit this one out, see you next time Zephra85: Aw, okay. Bye! Knock Out: Not a problem! See you then! Zephra85: Yeesh at my bar the dude would be kicked out and banned for pulling that stunt Knock Out: I can't think of a Cybertronian bar where that would fly. Zephra85: A very fabulous funeral Zephra85: MY FAVE Knock Out: How's the sound situation? Does it need to be turned up? Zephra85: Sounds fine to me Clich: #goals Knock Out: Well, well! This is a pleasant surprise! Knock Out: How goes, dear Sparklebot? Clich: Almost as sparkley as I should be! Or to be more acurrate, as shiney as him. Knock Out: Excellent. Clich: Thank you kindly for asking! Excited to see this. (Again) Zephra85: Pomp and circumstance for all Zephra85: YES THAT'LL HELP THE HEADACHE CLEARLY. Clich: Not ever been to Australia, actually. A bit scared of the wildlife. Zephra85: I'm still convinced the country doesn't exist. Clich: Like the grog. That sounds horrid Ratchet: I wandered back to my tablet at an odd time, didn't I? Knock Out: Yes. Yes, you did. Zephra85: It's an elaborate scam to test how gullible the rest of the world is Zephra85: Hi Ratchet! Ratchet: Hello Clich: Howdy Doc. Clich: Rood. Zephra85: 'Face like a cat's ***' LOST IT Zephra85: Scandalous Clich: Loving the terms of endearment. Zephra85: Work it, ladies Zephra85: You own that shoe dress Mitzi Zephra85: (SNORTS) Zephra85: Boom Zephra85: More tension than most hollywood thrillers Zephra85: I love you Felicia but you deserved that Zephra85: Awww Shockbox: Greetings. Zephra85: Hello! Knock Out: Hello there! Shockbox: What is the title of this piece of human media? Clich: We haven't been introduced but hello there! Zephra85: Priscilla, Queen of the Desert Shockbox: Hello. Zephra85: Look at that train holy crap Zephra85: How'd she even fit that in the bus Zephra85: No road trip movie is complete without the obligatory car trouble plot Knock Out: Naturally. Shockbox: But of course. Clich: Well, it does add to the natural tension of being confined together. Shockbox: .....I was confused, I thought that window in the corner was a part of the movie at first. Shockbox: I may need to pay a little more attention to what is happening. Zephra85: One time Breakdown had a stream and he minimized the window for only a second but it didn't look like that's what happened Zephra85: So a dinosaur just appeared out of nowhere in the movie and it was really confusing for a second Zephra85: But it was just his desktop background Clich: HA Zephra85: We all had a laugh about a dinosaur in Mad Max Shockbox: Ridiculous...But amusing. Knock Out: Impact and I still bring that up during our movie nights. Zephra85: She gets bragging rights for the next millenia for this Knock Out: Too right she does. Shockbox: ...Rude. Zephra85: What do you have against ABBA Bernadette Clich: Too much of good thing, Zephra Zephra85: The only explaination I'll accept Shockbox: ...Where did they get the headpiece from? Shockbox: Headpieces, excuse me. Shockbox: Did they bring all of those clothes with them? Zephra85: Time jump from going back to the bus I'd imagine Zephra85: DIGEREEDOO SOLO Shockbox: ....Did they stop in the middle of the song sequence to dress him up? Zephra85: Yes Shockbox: "Stop the music, this fellow needs to fit our aesthetic." Knock Out: Well, the aesthetic is everything. Shockbox: ....Fair enough. Zephra85: Felicia you are a FREAK Shockbox: What an...../interesting/ story. Shockbox: Hm. Knock Out: I love humans. Shockbox: Such pleasant creatures, they are. Zephra85: Be free, sex-doll kite, BE FREE Zephra85: MY OTHER FAVE Breakdown: Ah! This is a good movie! Zephra85: :D BREAKDOWN Zephra85: HI Shockbox: Greetings. Breakdown: How's it going, kids? Zephra85: Good! Ratchet: I either need to stop walking away or give up, because I am still lost as to what's happening. Shockbox: Same. Knock Out: Hello there, mysterious stranger! Zephra85: Just go with it Clich: *turned away for a moment* WHOA, howdy! Zephra85: Bob is a sweetie Breakdown: Ugh, Hugo. You're so young and innocent. Shockbox: ...She has /quite/ a problem. Zephra85: ikr Shockbox: Ping pong balls? Zephra85: I sing this at karaoke! Zephra85: Awwww bob Shockbox: I don't understand their sense of fashion. Breakdown: It's fabulous. That's all you need to understand. Zephra85: It's meant to be over the top Shockbox: I..../See./ Clich: *points* dats gross. Shockbox: I'm... Zephra85: This movie is a wild ride Shockbox: [Shockwave.exe has crashed.] Zephra85: You really gotta just go with it Zephra85: Bob is a cinnamon roll Breakdown: I like how even the three of them think that Bob is flawless. Zephra85: They've adopted a 60+ mechanic as their own Zephra85: God I love showtunes Knock Out: I love that bus. Zephra85: Priscilla is actually the best character Knock Out: Dear Unicron, what a Cybertronian it would make. Breakdown: Don't. Don't even go there, doc. Clich: Don't rightly know anyone who would take that as their alt mode, but wish I did. Shockbox: Bus modes certainly weren't common in my universe. Zephra85: Priscilla is proof it's not about looks, but about ATTITUDE Shockbox: What attitude would that be? Zephra85: Fabulous. Zephra85: FELICIA WILL NOT BE CONTAINED Shockbox: Oh dear. Zephra85: sh*t Zephra85: PROTECTIVE BOB IS PROTECTIVE Shockbox: He didn't even attempt to fight back on that one. Zephra85: Bernadette'll kick all your @$$es Zephra85: Ikr Zephra85: One hit and he's down Zephra85: I ship them Zephra85: Master of Subtlety, Felicia is not Knock Out: Not in the slightest. Zephra85: She's so supprotive Zephra85: they are ADORABLE Zephra85: :D HERE WE GO Zephra85: YOU UNCULTURED SWINE Zephra85: oh snap Zephra85: psh Knock Out: Well, that's adorable. Breakdown: Where does he keep getting those flowers? Knock Out: Hah! Zephra85: Magical gentleman powers Zephra85: Stop trying so hard sweetie Zephra85: He likes you the way you are Breakdown: You struck gold with that one, Hugo. Zephra85: TIME FOR ABBA Knock Out: YES! Zephra85: Now THIS is an audience who appreciates a stellar performance when it's right in front of them Zephra85: I wish our gay bar had glitter cannons on the ceiling Knock Out: I wish more places had glitter cannons in general. Zephra85: True Shockbox: Well, that was a way to end that. Breakdown: ...We're not getting one installed. Shockbox: It was laggging very hard at the end, my connection isn't very stable at this time of day. What happened? Knock Out: Okay, but just consider. Knock Out: ...I don't know how to finish that sentence. But honestly, glitter cannons. Breakdown: I'm considering the cleanup. If we get one it's going outside. The wildlife would appreciate it. Knock Out: Deal. Zephra85: :D Knock Out: It will stop the monkeys from putting their fingers on the windows. Zephra85: THE SEX DOLL KITE GOT ALL THE WAY TO ASIA Knock Out: Good for you, kite! Shockbox: Hm. Amazing. Knock Out: Well, that was fun! Shockbox: Thank you for the stream, Knock Out. Knock Out: Always a pleasure! Zephra85: Yes, thank-you! Zephra85: Such a fave of mine Knock Out: Have a lovely night, everyone! Zephra85: Although it does remind me to ask you to put 'To Wong Foo Thanks For Everything Julie Newmar' on the eventually list Breakdown: Take care' y'all. Zephra85: Bye Knock Out! Bye Breakdown! Bye everyone! Zephra85: Say hi to Impact for me!

[immykidsmanager-blog]

Acting in Trump’s Gilead (An Actors Blog)

Advertisers and marketing professionals spend their days (and probably a lot of sleepless nights) wondering about and/creating buzz around the next big thing… but being able to identify a trend is not just their job, it’s also the job of the actor. Knowing that wider ties, and longer hems, often coincide with automakers manufacturing cars in shades of pink and turquoise is an example of identifying a trend. How do I know that? When you live long enough you start to see everything come back around. Now, to me a trend - is different than a fad. A trend will stick around for a while and then reappear in an updated form at least every twenty years or so. But a fad is something that is with us for a year or six months and then disappears just as quickly as it came - probably never to be heard from again. For example, it’s been a while since my kids mentioned Fidget Spinners. I’m sure those useless pieces of Chinese rubberized plastic will sit idle at the bottom of my kids desk drawer until i secretly toss them out. That obsession has given way to their current addiction; slime. I’m hoping slime is just a fad too - or a phase they grow out of at least, kind of like my mom’s approach to me being in to dudes. Sorry Mom, guess that was more of a trend that was here to stay.

As an actor what do you do when you’re not part of a trend? By that, I mean your “type”…your race, your age, your sexual orientation, even your religion. It might sound callous to break us all down into categories, but that’s what our brains do every single day as we file away and classify every new piece of information we encounter.

It’s no surprise that 2018 was definitely the year of the Asian actor, and it’s about time. An Asian actor hasn’t gotten an Oscar since Haing S. Ngor won in 1984 for “The Killing Fields.” You might say this all started with the popularity of Crazy Rich Asians and I would agree, but what led to that? With my 20/20 hindsight I would say that George Takei and his autobiographical play about his childhood experience being held in a post World War II Japanese internment camp shined a light on the Asian immigrant experience. It also doesn’t hurt that he has a hugely popular #Twitter feed dominated by daily anti-Trump tweets.

Another 70-ish celebrity with daily anti-Trump tweets is Cher who happens to be having the best year ever. She’s doing movies again, has an amazing new album of ABBA covers, a broadway show about her life, and is about to embark on a huge European tour. Is Trump the recipe to new found relevance - or is ageism finally dead in Hollywood?

On Sunday I kept seeing Carol Burnett in my news feed. She was definitely trending. I thought OMG did she die or something?! I was Immediately relieved to figure out that she was just being honored at The Golden Globes and not actually dead. So if Carol Burnett is in the news again what does this mean? If I were her manager what would be my game plan?? …what’s next? Maybe nothing. She’s got like a gazillion Emmys - she doesn’t have to do a single thing, but that’s not usually how successful people think. What this tells me is that there’s about to be a lot more roles for older actresses in #Hollywood. Perhaps at first for the A-listers but hopefully that trend can trickle down to the commoners like us too.

A few years ago my kids went in for a sitcom pilot audition that was starring Ms. Burnett playing a famous retired actress who was renting out part of her home to make some extra income. Then they went in for another one with a similar premise with a cast lead by Candice Bergen. Not sure if either pilot was ever made… but then the reboot of Murphy Brown happened and I assume the Bergen pilot died a quick death in the script pile at ABC Television Network. Anyway these projects are out there, which is a good sign that ageism is a dying fad. How ironic is it too that Jessica Lange has had a career resurgence doing campy horror just like her character in "Feud" (Joan Crawford) had in real life.

I asked my kids’ agent why my son always got more auditions and more bookings than my daughter. She said writers just don’t write for little girls the way they write for little boys. This is the same argument that’s been made at the very top of the food chain by Oscar winners like Jennifer Lawrence. Often we roll our eyes when someone as successful as she makes this claim but the amount of opportunities for women is just not the same as for men - and it has been even worse if you’re past a certain age.

So for the non-famous, for the everyday working actor, what can we do when a trend is not working in our favor? Make lemonade? No - Make Movies! My friend, Sarah Megan Thomas, has done just that. Instead of complaining that only 32% of all speaking roles in films belong to female characters, she wrote, produced, and acted in three of her own female driven films; "Backwards," “Equity,” and her third film “Liberté”. In each project she has immersed herself into three very different worlds focusing on the roles women play in: Sports, on Wall Street, and in WWII. Not really since “A League of Their Own” have we seen a film explore the feminine experience during war. This subject is very close to my heart since both my grandmothers worked for the war effort - one making bullets and shells in a gunpowder factory, and the other on an air force base. Both my kids had roles in her film Equity, so we saw firsthand that not only is she creating jobs for actresses but her crews are also heavily comprised of women, with all three films having female directors.

As Heidi Klum says “You’re either in or you’re out,” and as the former titans of film and TV are being dethroned by sex scandals, women are rising up to take their rightful place. We saw the peak of the #MeToomovement at last years Golden Globes. This year we saw The Hollywood Foreign Press reaffirm the strength of journalists, and vow to not let governments make them the enemy of the people. We also saw an Asian actress not only host the show, but win the award for best dramatic TV actress. So… is an awards show the barometer for what’s trending - or just the moment when enough people come together on a network TV platform to oppose Trump’s Republic of Gilead?

Speaking of critically acclaimed television series, sometimes I have a hard time telling the difference between a plot point from “The Handmaid’s Tale” and an actual Tweeted proclamation from the baby king himself. Here’s a list. Can you tell the difference?

Women should be punished for abortion. Total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States Transgender people banned from military service The Press is declared “The true enemy of the people” Separating immigrant children from their parents at the border Calling for the firing of NFL players who kneel during the National Anthem

Sounds like we’re all gonna be hanging on that wall of his!

Like it or not, Trump is an equal opportunity offender and every group that he attempts to marginalize seems to rise up and have their place in the sun. He discriminates… then whoever the oppressed group is…African Americans, Muslims, Women, Gays, Native Americans…that group is suddenly trending. We are lucky enough to live in a time when we are celebrated for our differences and the entertainment industry is finally responding. As soon as Trump offends, then I start to notice that minority group in more roles in commercials, TV, and film. Writers are now creating more diversity in their characters and in the stories they tell. So if you are an actor in one of these minority groups - you’re probably trending. This trickles all the way down to child actors too. Now I notice a lot more diversity in the acting pool at castings than I did 5 years ago when we had a president that rarely used Twitter - and if he did it was never used to offend anyone.

So now what? You’re part of a growing trend. How do you take advantage of a trend in your type? Well, first leaving your apartment is a good step. In the brief window where #GayDads were everywhere we did just that. It was about 2011 and the fight for marriage equality was in the news every day. As courts ruled and legislative branches voted in our favor state by state and eventually sea to shining sea, we made it our mission to attend every equality march, rally, and #Pride Parade in NYC and DC. We wrote letters to state senators, appeared on the local news and in the “failing” New York Times! We did print campaigns for Marriott and MetLife. Marriott even gave us our own float in the New York City Heritage of Pride Parade! I can’t begin to count the number of reality shows we were interviewed for. We actually filmed segments on two shows, one for Oprah and another for a Jerry Seinfeld comedy show on marriage, neither of which actually aired, but the point is we got “out” there (pun intended) and milked that trend for all it was worth. All you can do is create opportunities for yourself when you’re lucky enough to be part of the zeitgeist. Now if you’re gay and married, the only way to get exposure on social media is to take your shirt off and take a #BedSelfie with your husband. Aside from the occasional GymSelfie for my own motivational purposes - that is really not us, so hopefully sexy couple pics will die out soon. I can’t compete!

So if you’re not part of the “in” crowd my biggest piece of advice is to not start taking naked selfies with Ricky Martin’s baby, just BE YOURSELF!!! In college I spent a lot of time playing roles that I would never play in the real world, and I would compete with actors for those roles that I would never be sitting across from in a real casting office waiting room. When I first moved to New York, I wasted so much energy trying to be something I wasn’t. I look back at my old black and white headshots and I remember the photographer trying to make me pose like a soap opera hunk - which I wasn’t. Soaps and teen dramas were big business then. I was young but my hair was thinning, so I couldn’t be the hot teen and I was still too young to play the dad. I definitely wasn’t trending! I should’ve just shaved my head already and embraced roles like the comic book villain born out of a botched laboratory experiment. That would have been so much more fun! So as they taught us at @University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music - CCM… get out of your head and just beeeeeeeeeee……..(deep breath)

Sooner or later everything comes back around…. even you.

I’m My Kids Manager