'Stars' Who are Deluded and Disturbed—What's Going On?

[anniemcu]

@Wombat

… Some psychologically disturbed musicians are truly great and the fact that their distubance comes through in song does nothing to alter the fact that their work is fully competent and perhaps moving in ways that healthy people might not be able to be—the late, great, Ted Hawkins comes to mind. But none of the above are like that.

On one side, there is something genuinely funny about an inept performance presented by someone who thinks sincerely that they are highly talented. And at least one of the above, Madame Foster-Jenkins seems to have been blissfully happy about her singing career. Yet there seems to me also to be something disturbingly voyeristic about the people who feed their delusions and something sadistic about those who promote them. Andy Warhol’s ghastly exploitative use in films of very sad people as ‘stars’ is perhaps the worst example of this sadism. …

I agree with you that such exploitation is sadistic, but I am not so sure that Warhol’s was quite the focus you do… I may be wrong, but I think he was more trying to point out that peopele are just that… people, with warts and all, and I believe he was actaully making fun of the societal slavering for “stars” rather than the people he presented.

I find it a very sad comment on our society that it is considered ‘cool’ to make fun of people who are not purposely putting on a comedy act. It is an early schoolyard “skill” that most people thankfully grow out of and that the world would be a much much better place without. Well… at least it used to be that most people grew out of it… these days I’m not so sure.

[BillChin]

@Wombat

…
What I was highlighting is something else altogether. The people I was pointing out are not highly successful by any of the ordinary criteria and probably even at the height of their celebrity they didn’t make all that much money. They win no awards and people laugh at them. This is not the crass sort of ‘democratic’ success of which you speak, the sort of world which elevates a Letterman to celebrity.

This phenomenon is much darker. These people aren’t simply lacking in qualifications; they actually have an abundance of disqualifications. If Letterman got a little bit better, would he lose fans? I doubt it. But if Foster-Jenkins had got to be just average, her appeal would have disappeared altogether. Her popularity wasn’t based on her being a poor singer; it was based on her being an excruciating singer.

…
This isn’t just a slice of everyday reality; it’s a gentrified freakshow.

Makes me rather glad I ignored your links. Someone else already mentioned William Hung, the American Idol reject that has made more money from his excruciatingly bad singing than most musicians that graduate from conservatory.

In surveys of young people and what they aspire to, fame is at or near the top of the list, along with easy money for no work. Many of them aspire to follow in the footsteps of the no-talents that you cited. For example, one friend of mine said one of his heroes is a no talent NBA basketball player that got a big guaranteed contract, but had no talent, no personality, got little playing time, never seemed to hustle or play hard, but some stupid team signed him for many millions guaranteed. This is what we have. I guess it bugs you and some others, but it is the times we live in.

The less press these no-talents get the better. Best have Dale or Rich nuke this thread to avoid further contamination . You may have to go into quarantine after your exposure to cleanse your system. So may anyone else that clicked on those links. 100 daily doses of the Disney tune “It’s a Small World” for a month should make it safe for you to be out in public again .

[chas]

@Wombat

By making the highest rewards available to someone who is no more talented than average, you make life more of a gamble than a game of skill. In a game of skill, only the best have a chance. In a lottery, everybody does.

What a beautiful and concise way to explain to me something that I’ve never understood. Thanks, Wombly.

[Flyingcursor]

Harry Chapin did a song about a guy who sang all the time and everyone told him how good he was. Finally he went to the “big city” and failed an audition and never sang again.