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Post by flossieskid on Jul 6, 2021 4:39:08 GMT -5
As I told Brenda, I have been working on a book for a while now. I am in the very lucky position of having met or spent time with a great number of celebrities. Many I have already mentioned in some of my threads. But there are a lot of other stories too like: how I spent most of my 6th grade graduation party dancing with my classmate, Keith Thibodeaux (also known as Richard Keith and “Little Ricky” on the
“I Love Lucy” Show). Also, one of my friends in high school was Melissa Mathison, the incredibly gifted screenwriter of “E.T.” and the wife of Harrison Ford for 18 years and mother of 2 of his children who sadly died at age 65. Many stories are just anecdotal, but there are some with more sordid details.
Running through my lifetime of experiences, though, is the knowledge of some of the sadder, more private moments of the celebrities I have known for many years, or just met or, perhaps, know about. Having been raised a Catholic, I was taught a deep sense of respect for everyone and no desire to hurt any person by sharing stories of infidelities, addictions, mental health issues or any other negativity. Of course, I am absolutely not saying ONLY Catholics have respect for others, I am just attaching a lot of the guilt I was raised with and taught NEVER to say or do anything to hurt my fellow man or to somehow praise or elevate myself at the expense of others.
As I am writing about my memories, I guess I am using this guideline:
“if my knowledge about the celebrity has been shared elsewhere i.e., in news articles, magazines, books or TV interviews, then I don’t think I am abusing our friendship and I am not stepping over a line. But what if the celebrity is now deceased and I’m not sure if the negative information about their life was ever shared? Does that standard still hold?
I truly value the sensibilities and perceptions of Walton fans and I would like to know what you all think? Your opinions and observations would be very helpful. I have always felt that knowing the failings of celebrities (or anyone really) and how people overcome their own challenges is a great life lesson. For fans and readers of celebrity recollection books, it is essential for all of us to learn from the mistakes they have made and just like them, we can adapt and be able to emerge stronger and more self assured, Or am I trying to justify behavior that is just plain mean?!?!?!?
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Post by Easton on Jul 6, 2021 7:54:28 GMT -5
I truly think that you have to give serious thought about what will go through the readers' minds when they read your words about a particular celebrity, whether or not they are deceased. How is it going to affect the readers, especially if they are fans. Would such gossip change their feelings about that person? Would they stop being fans?
It may just be gossip, but there are always people who will believe it, and gossip can literally destroy careers and lives. Think Tab Hunter.
If it is innocent 'fun', such as the pin-up boy of the day skinny dipping in your backyard swimming pool, no harm done if you relate that story. It may even spruce up the readers' fantasies about him. But if the story was about him being involved in a gang rape in college, that's a different story unless, as you said, the news (not just gossip) has already been circulated, in which case you may be able to affirm the story or defend the person if you know the real story.
See what I mean?
As I said, though, think of it in terms of the reader and not of the writer.
I'll give you a real example. In Carol Burnett's memoir, she went into great detail about her life as a child with alcoholic parents who were absent a lot of the time, especially her father. She told how her grandmother took care of Carol and her half-sister, Chrissie, eventually taking them out of their home and away from their parents abusive parents and moved to L.A. where she raised them and encouraged their ambitions. Any stories about the treatment of the sisters by their parents could not possibly damage their reputations and more than they already did by themselves. Those stories would not alter the mindsets of the readers.
It's all about the readers.
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Post by flossieskid on Jul 7, 2021 6:05:13 GMT -5
You make some very good points Easton! That is why I asked for the input from all the smart Walton fans. As we know, publishers usually want the most salacious, revealing and unflattering books about celebrities. I knew from the beginning I would not write a book like that or allow it to be changed into something it is not. When my sister-in-law, Jenny Jones, hosted the first year of her talk show, the ratings were slipping. The network told her she would have to spice up the topics of the show or face cancellation. To prove their point, instead of offering 3 segments on her program, they had her do an entire show on one subject. The first topic: sex toys! Her ratings began to climb after that, which I think speaks more to the mind set of her audience and not necessarily Jenny or her program runners. So, Jenny and her producers had to cater to the audience, just as a writer should cater to their readers. I am not condemning Jenny for her decision to change her format or topics, because losing a hefty payday is an intense motivator. Sometimes, I wonder if I would have the courage to turn down lots of money to stand up for my principles? Would I be able to refuse to write true, but unpleasant stories about celebrities if I was told if I didn’t write those kind of stories my book wouldn’t be published? I’d like to think I would, but  ? |
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Post by flossieskid on Jul 7, 2021 6:08:08 GMT -5
I have NO idea how those emojis got printed after the last word of my recent posts. I put down 5 question marks after the word “but” and when I saw the post, the 2 emojis appeared! Very strange!
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Post by Easton on Jul 7, 2021 7:44:54 GMT -5
^ In answer to your Emoji question, the emojis used on this board (as in other boards) are assigned keyboard shortcuts. To get an emoji to show on the screen, you can either use the smiley face icon in the text box (where you type your post) menu at the top and select the icon from the pop-up menu. Else, if you know the keyboard code, you can just type that in and the board will change it automatically into the emoji you want.
The keyboard shortcut for the grumpy face you ended up with is 3 consecutive question marks. And since you posted 5 of them...
As you said, you must know your audience and give them what they want, which may not be what you want to give them. Just look at the various talk shows and how they differ according to their audiences, both in studio and on television. Jerry Springer was all about confrontation and his audiences lapped it up. Even television court shows are vastly different because the producers know what the audience wants and they give it to them. I have even seen some court shows which would
cater to the Jerry Springer crowd.
Just remember that book publishers are in it to make money. There was an episode in The Waltons in which John-Boy was told to change his writing style to make it more appealing to the readers. There was the substitute teacher, Miss Pollard, who tried to get John-Boy to change his writing style to something more like Keats (I believe). Rosemary Hunter often offered suggestions but they were more for clarity and grammar than writing style.
But, as John-Boy often said, he had to be true to himself. And that's what you have to be, even if you have to self-publish. You may never reach the best-seller list, but at least your book would be about stories you want to tell and not stories which will sell your book.
Tough choice all around.
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Post by flossieskid on Jul 7, 2021 10:20:18 GMT -5
Thank you for your excellent advice which I will certainly take to heart! Good to know the emojis, sometimes, have a life of their own! I appreciate the explanation and will try to refrain from “over punctuation!”
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Post by Easton on Jul 7, 2021 13:25:56 GMT -5
Knock yourself out with the punctuation. You're not likely to randomly hit on an emoji the way you did with the question marks. That was just a fluke.
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Post by wacokyd on Jul 7, 2021 22:25:42 GMT -5
flossieskid
When you brought up Jenny Jones, it took me back to the olden days when I was married and my wife and I were watching "Star Search". A new comedian, Sinbad, was hilarious and we anxiously awaited for who was surely the winner. But no, you can't always tell what those judges are thinking. They gave first prize to someone named Jenny Jones. She was terrible.
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Post by flossieskid on Jul 8, 2021 7:18:27 GMT -5
Wacokyd, I, too, thought Sinbad was hilarious as a contestant on Star Search. But I must admit (maybe because she is family!) that Jenny Jones was very funny too! Not everyone is someone’s cup of tea. But when you read The Who’s Who of participants on Star Search from Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Beyoncé to Rosie O’Donnell, Dave Chapelle, Drew Carey, Kevin James and several others, a win on SS was quite the stepping stone for any entertainer.
Jenny’s humor may not have appealed to you, which is perfectly fine, but after her win on Star Search, she was asked to open up for incredible stars like: Tony Bennett, Sammy Davis,Jr., Andy Williams, to name a few, and Engelbert Humperdink who was so impressed with her, he asked her to tour with him for a full year. So they all must have thought she was extremely funny if each one wanted her to be their opening act.
Jenny then created a sensation with her comedy tour, “Girl’s Night Out”. The success of that show lead her to an in-depth interview on 20/20 and then to the 11 year success of her talk show. But, as I said, her brand of humor might not be for everyone. I have seen many famous, successful comics who I thought were total duds!
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Post by patriciaanne on Jul 14, 2021 9:35:13 GMT -5
Tracey, I think it's incredibly admirable that you're approaching this from such a thoughtful perspective. I agree that if something is already "out there" and it's relevant to what you're writing, there's no harm in referencing it. I also agree with Easton about harmless stories of teenage pranks and shenanigans being perfectly ok. As for the rest...
I would ask yourself 1) the relevance of the story to what you're writing; 2) are there family members left who could be harmed by what you say; 3) is it something you observed yourself or is it heresay? If the latter, and it's not true, you could subject yourself to legal issues.
I will be one of the first people to buy your book!!! 🥰 Now about Keith....oh my goodness, I'm not embarrassed to say I'm quite a bit jelly!!! 😄 He was such a cute kid as he grew up. I enjoy seeing him on The Andy Griffith Show and that would have been right around the time you were dancing with him. Oh you lucky girl!!
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Post by flossieskid on Jul 15, 2021 1:09:06 GMT -5
PatriciaAnne - thank you for your kind words. Your remarks are very much appreciated and definitely points to ponder.
I was very lucky that I was not too tall in eighth grade and I was the closest in height to Keith - or maybe we were just the best dancers!!
All I remember is I had a wonderful night. Many years later, my brother ran into Keith on a talk show and my brother said he had salt and pepper hair heading toward gray. Little Ricky losing all his black hair?!? Say it ain’t so!!!
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Post by patriciaanne on Jul 15, 2021 16:16:59 GMT -5
PatriciaAnne - thank you for your kind words. Your remarks are very much appreciated and definitely points to ponder. I was very lucky that I was not too tall in eighth grade and I was the closest in height to Keith - or maybe we were just the best dancers!! All I remember is I had a wonderful night. Many years later, my brother ran into Keith on a talk show and my brother said he had salt and pepper hair heading toward gray. Little Ricky losing all his black hair?!? Say it ain’t so!!! I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but I've seen more recent photos of him and he's lost some hair, too. 😮😁 |
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Post by flossieskid on Jul 16, 2021 1:25:41 GMT -5
Shocker!! Balding?? Can’t think of him that way! But, we should celebrate each year we are alive (even with grey thinning hai!) because so many are denied the privilege!
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Post by Easton on Jul 16, 2021 6:49:36 GMT -5
^ I can post a few photos of Keith as he is now, but I will post this instead:
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Post by Easton on Jul 16, 2021 7:07:48 GMT -5
There was no notation with this photo but, from the article, I believe this is Richard with his wife, ballet dancer Kathy Denton, and his grandson (by his daughter, Tara), Bryson. (Richard calls Bryson 'Little Buddy'.)
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