I have to give Charlie Sheen credit for something. If he has accomplished anything with the on going circus that is now his life it is this, that his antics has awakened some people up in the entertainment industry. And the people in the industry who woke up first were probably the accountants.
You see, what Hollywood does not like to be seen by the public as is something that they, meaning the elitists among them, despise. The truth that Hollywood hides from the public is that they are a BUSINESS. In fact, Hollywood is a BIG BUSINESS, as big a business as any other that are out there. As big as the oil companies, the investment firms, the insurance companies, the pharmaceutical industry. etc. The entertainment industry is just that: AN INDUSTRY. An industry that makes HUGE amounts of money. It is also an industry that wastes a lot of money.
Those higher ups in the industry, yes, those big businessmen in suits and ties and corner offices with a beautiful view are also beginning to see what "actors" like Charlie Sheen are. They are not just an employee, they are the commodity of their business. The product that they promote and sell.
Hollywood and the entertainment industry have also, probably for the first time, have found out that they are no longer recession proof. That in this current economic depression, people are watching and holding on to their money more, and are not going to waste it on bad products or commodities.
Let me draw an analogy. If you were in the produce business, and you got in a load of cabbages, say a thousand of them and found among them four or five rotten cabbages, would you still place them in with all of the good cabbages? No, you would not, you would toss them aside in the garbage.
Great chefs only buy the best fish, meat and produce for their restaurants to prepare for their customers, right? I believe now that the entertainment industry is waking up and doing the same.
I'm coming to a point here, and I know what some of you out there are going to say, that Charlie Sheen though is a great actor. My answer to that is simple and blunt: No he is not.
I'm going to refer to one of my favorite movies to make this point, it is the 1982 motion picture "MY FAVORITE YEAR" starring Peter O'Toole and directed by Richard Benjamin. In the story, which takes place in the early 1950's, Peter O'Toole plays Alan Swan, a drunkard and washed up swashbuckler actor from the 30's and 40's who is based on Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Errol Flynn. Swan is given the chance to appear in one of the top television variety shows of the day. The show is based on the old Sid Caesar Show. Swan cleans up his act enough to impress the "Sid Caesar" character and "Sid Caesar" compliments him on his effort. After doing so he tells Swan and everyone else to be ready to go live the next night for the show. This makes Swan perplexed, asking the "Sid Caesar" character what he means by "live". He informs Swan that this is live television and that's how he will do his performance. Swan goes into a panic, saying he can't go on. The "Sid Caesar" doesn't understand saying "What's the problem? You're an actor!"
Swan then turns and says one of my favorite lines in movies, "I'M NOT AN ACTOR! I'M A MOVIE STAR!" To now make my point, Charlie Sheen is not an actor, he is a movie star. I can say the same about Sean Penn, Danny Glover, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins, Dakota Fanning, Jennifer Lopez, Natalie Portman, Kate Hudson, Linsay Lohan, etc. etc. etc.
If you want to see real acting, go to the live theatre, on stage. See what real actors have to do. To do the same show, night after night, all in one shot, without the advantage of doing "take" after "take" and with the help of a great film editor.
ANYBODY can be a movie star, Oprah Winfrey is proof of that.
Now the entertainment industry is waking up and starting to see that their rotten "commodities", with their on going off camera behavior, with there leftist, elitist statements and actions, with their childish antics, and with the double standard that comes with celebrity when it comes to serious legal matters - - - is costing them money.
Really, with Sean Penn embracing Hugo Chavez, and insulting those who have traditional American values, you don't think that has hurt the movie studios? Ask yourself this, when was the last Sean Penn movie that has made a profit? Some years ago, I read in on of the top Hollywood entertainment newspapers that Sean Penn, because of his off screen actions, has become, "box office poison". People also vote with their feet as well with their wallets. I personally will not pay any of my hard earned money to waste it on a movie ticket for any film that involves Sean Penn in any way. I do not want one dime of my money being filtered into his pocket for any reason what so ever.
The entertainment industry is waking up to other things like, for every Charlie Sheen, there a thousands of others out there wanting to take his place. That yes, the world will go on without Charlie Sheen and people will get along just nicely without watching any new episodes or reruns of "TWO AND A HALF MEN".
And look at all of the people that Charlie Sheen, with his "holier than thou", tiger blooded, Adonis gened attitude has put out of work. They all should turn around and sue him for all lost wages, present and future.
Keep waking up Hollywood, keep firing and getting rid of all your bad cabbages. Maybe someday you will get back on good standing and in the good graces of all the people as you once did in your glorious heyday. But back then, you all had class. That is something that has just died with Elizabeth Taylor, and will be totally gone when GOD calls home Olivia de Havilland and Mickey Rooney.
You see, what Hollywood does not like to be seen by the public as is something that they, meaning the elitists among them, despise. The truth that Hollywood hides from the public is that they are a BUSINESS. In fact, Hollywood is a BIG BUSINESS, as big a business as any other that are out there. As big as the oil companies, the investment firms, the insurance companies, the pharmaceutical industry. etc. The entertainment industry is just that: AN INDUSTRY. An industry that makes HUGE amounts of money. It is also an industry that wastes a lot of money.
Those higher ups in the industry, yes, those big businessmen in suits and ties and corner offices with a beautiful view are also beginning to see what "actors" like Charlie Sheen are. They are not just an employee, they are the commodity of their business. The product that they promote and sell.
Hollywood and the entertainment industry have also, probably for the first time, have found out that they are no longer recession proof. That in this current economic depression, people are watching and holding on to their money more, and are not going to waste it on bad products or commodities.
Let me draw an analogy. If you were in the produce business, and you got in a load of cabbages, say a thousand of them and found among them four or five rotten cabbages, would you still place them in with all of the good cabbages? No, you would not, you would toss them aside in the garbage.
Great chefs only buy the best fish, meat and produce for their restaurants to prepare for their customers, right? I believe now that the entertainment industry is waking up and doing the same.
I'm coming to a point here, and I know what some of you out there are going to say, that Charlie Sheen though is a great actor. My answer to that is simple and blunt: No he is not.
I'm going to refer to one of my favorite movies to make this point, it is the 1982 motion picture "MY FAVORITE YEAR" starring Peter O'Toole and directed by Richard Benjamin. In the story, which takes place in the early 1950's, Peter O'Toole plays Alan Swan, a drunkard and washed up swashbuckler actor from the 30's and 40's who is based on Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and Errol Flynn. Swan is given the chance to appear in one of the top television variety shows of the day. The show is based on the old Sid Caesar Show. Swan cleans up his act enough to impress the "Sid Caesar" character and "Sid Caesar" compliments him on his effort. After doing so he tells Swan and everyone else to be ready to go live the next night for the show. This makes Swan perplexed, asking the "Sid Caesar" character what he means by "live". He informs Swan that this is live television and that's how he will do his performance. Swan goes into a panic, saying he can't go on. The "Sid Caesar" doesn't understand saying "What's the problem? You're an actor!"
Swan then turns and says one of my favorite lines in movies, "I'M NOT AN ACTOR! I'M A MOVIE STAR!" To now make my point, Charlie Sheen is not an actor, he is a movie star. I can say the same about Sean Penn, Danny Glover, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins, Dakota Fanning, Jennifer Lopez, Natalie Portman, Kate Hudson, Linsay Lohan, etc. etc. etc.
If you want to see real acting, go to the live theatre, on stage. See what real actors have to do. To do the same show, night after night, all in one shot, without the advantage of doing "take" after "take" and with the help of a great film editor.
ANYBODY can be a movie star, Oprah Winfrey is proof of that.
Now the entertainment industry is waking up and starting to see that their rotten "commodities", with their on going off camera behavior, with there leftist, elitist statements and actions, with their childish antics, and with the double standard that comes with celebrity when it comes to serious legal matters - - - is costing them money.
Really, with Sean Penn embracing Hugo Chavez, and insulting those who have traditional American values, you don't think that has hurt the movie studios? Ask yourself this, when was the last Sean Penn movie that has made a profit? Some years ago, I read in on of the top Hollywood entertainment newspapers that Sean Penn, because of his off screen actions, has become, "box office poison". People also vote with their feet as well with their wallets. I personally will not pay any of my hard earned money to waste it on a movie ticket for any film that involves Sean Penn in any way. I do not want one dime of my money being filtered into his pocket for any reason what so ever.
The entertainment industry is waking up to other things like, for every Charlie Sheen, there a thousands of others out there wanting to take his place. That yes, the world will go on without Charlie Sheen and people will get along just nicely without watching any new episodes or reruns of "TWO AND A HALF MEN".
And look at all of the people that Charlie Sheen, with his "holier than thou", tiger blooded, Adonis gened attitude has put out of work. They all should turn around and sue him for all lost wages, present and future.
Keep waking up Hollywood, keep firing and getting rid of all your bad cabbages. Maybe someday you will get back on good standing and in the good graces of all the people as you once did in your glorious heyday. But back then, you all had class. That is something that has just died with Elizabeth Taylor, and will be totally gone when GOD calls home Olivia de Havilland and Mickey Rooney.
This posting proves that great minds think alike, Scott, as you know, because you heard me state the same thing that you say here: there are no retakes in live performance, and it's really really different from being a film or tv actor.
ReplyDeleteYour point about the heyday of Hollywood makes me wonder if it's not Hollywood that has changed as much as our society has made a discouraging and unfortunate march toward Gomorrah over the last 50 years. The very fact that Sheen's show, and the character on that show, are so popular demonstrates how the popular culture has degenerated into the sewer that the Left has desired it become, no?
Nice illustration of Charlie, BTW.