Friday, July 29, 2005

Must Love John Cusack, or not

There's a new movie out called Must Love Dogs. I know this because during my little summer break, I saw Madagascar with my family and it was in the previews, and because it's plastered all over Yahoo's web pages now. It stars John Cusack, and someone else. I don't know who else. I didn't get past John Cusack.

I loathe this person, because he represents to me what's wrong with Hollywood, and it's apparent knighting of itself as the country's political and sociological advisor. I'm not sure what it is about the talent of being able to act like something you're not, and being able to make tons of money doing it, that makes you believe the rest of America should take advice on their personal lives from you.

Many years ago, William Jefferson Clinton was running for President against the current president's daddy. Being somewhat conservative, I was not pulling for Mr. Clinton to win. I was in my car one day listening to the local 'classic rock' station on the radio, and after a song, the DJ was audibly surprised because he has John Cusack on the phone. I'm assuming the producer got in his ear and said something like, "Whoa dude. You won't believe who I have on the phone and he wants to talk to you." So anyway, the radio guy starts this obviously very impromptu interview with Cuscak, and Mr. Cusack just goes into this tirade about how "We have to get this bleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep scumbag Bush out of office and I want each and every one of you out there voting and voting for Bill Clinton before the Republicans ruin this country and.."* he was cut off, and the DJ said something like, "OOKAAAAAAYYYYY! That was a few minutes with John Cusack, and we'll have more Led Zepplin after this"...cut to commercial. I guess part of what pissed me off that day was the fact that I disagreed with Mr. Cusack, but most of it was the exploitation of local radio airwaves for Clinton commercial that was just in my face, unsolicited and unpaid for, and Mr. Cusack's apparent belief that what he just did was perfectly OK.

I don't mind these people having political views. They're entitled, just like the rest of us and I'm sure nobody entirely agrees with mine, just like I don't agree with theirs, but what is it about Hollywood people that makes them think that because they can act like something they're not, they are experts on how to run everyone else's lives? Babs Streisand, during the California energy crisis (through her "spokesperson") encouraged Californians to dry their clothes outdoors on a line instead of using their dryers. When the spokesperson was asked whether or not Ms. Streisand would be hanging her laundry outdoors, the spokesperson scoffed.

These people live in multimillion dollar homes and get paid more for a movie than I expect to see in my lifetime. (OK, maybe 2 or 3 movies.) There was a time when they knew what it was like to live from paycheck to paycheck, but that got lost in the same selective memory that included the waiting tables that spawned it. They are so far removed from how the average person lives it isn't funny, but they are self proclaimed experts on everything from medication for depression to the economy to the military ("I'm not a general, but I played one on T.V."), yet whine if we forgo their big screen performance and wait for the DVD, or if the song they sang got moved from the big chase scene to the closing credits. Then there's my personal favorite which you've seen before if you have read here for any length of time. God forbid, some member of the media should ignore them or not help them promote themselves, because that of course would somehow be infringing on their right to free publicit..errr...speech.

Oh and for fun, let's just throw on top of the heap, Hanoi Jane is on her way to Iraq. Why do I not think that'll be an effort to support the troops?


*not an exact quote, but pretty close

3 Comments:

Blogger Jo said...

Who the hell is Hanoi Jane ?

9:47 AM  
Blogger John said...

Jane Fonda, who during a visit to POW camps in North Viet Nam in the 60's was discreetly handed a note from one of the prisioners to get to his wife to let her know he was alive. She in turn gave it to the prison camp commander, which earned the 'offending' prisoner hours of torture. That is just the worst of the many stories that don't exactly make Ms. Fonda a favorite of Viet Nam veterans, or veterans in general.

9:54 AM  
Blogger S.S. said...

I lurveeeeee John Cusack! He's the coolest.

That guy on the radio might not even be him, you know... It could be an imposter.

10:35 PM  

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