I feel for Jodie Foster the way I feel for Anderson Cooper - both of them feel that their sex life isn’t any of the public’s business, both are old enough that “coming out” had career consequences even if it was the public’s business, both are held up as some sort of possible role model where their lack of living their lives in public is decried as not providing role models. Professionally, they aren’t role models - professionally they are an actor and a journalist who both want private lives. Neither has lied about their sexuality, or pretended to be something they weren’t - they just left it unexplored as a public topic.
When they come out, they are criticized for not doing it sooner, or stronger, or more frequently or criticized because “everyone knew” and so why is this a big deal and why even bring it up.
I remember when Ricky Martin came out, someone on the Dope announced
“This just in, gay man is gay”
Same response (with “woman” for “man”) to this speech.
Bullshit Back At You. Which is it now? Poor choice of words or a pre-written script? Can’t have it both ways.
Bullshit Back At You. All those people at that back table? They are consultants and members of her team / company / LLC / daily job. Research, PR, promotions, investment decisions and 100 other things are likely handled on several daily conference calls. A nickle says she burns more batteries on her phone in a year than you do in 20. Starvation is easy? Whats your next revelation…that millions do it daily for free???
Bullshit Back At You. So, having money means you love your parents less? “On Call” doesn’t only mean changing bed-pans. It can also mean taking her Moms calls when she isn’t lucid, getting calls from the nurse about treatment decisions and medical changes real time. And making damn sure she isn’t too far away in case she is needed. Three Guesses how I know this, Kreskin.
Bullshit Back At You. Her statement, among some jokes that fell flat, was that her privacy is constantly being invaded and has been for 47 years. The joke was intended to draw attention to both: sexual choice is nobodies business, but though boundries had been drawn that blind men could see, people still push to try to invade it. I think it was her way of saying, “No. You don’t win. You never will either.”
Bullshit Back At You. I said raising kids. I didn’t say alone. And No, she didn’t go to auditions with a kid on her hip and an ugly purple-trimmed diaper bag across her shoulder either. It still doesn’t make make parenting while juggling the prize acts of Dante’s Hell over her head any easier… let alone public speaking with a smile, sans emotion.
Fine, her birthday wasn’t this month. I should know this… how?
But what I do know is that I’m a parent. I’ve dealt with the endgame & deaths of my parents. I’m closer to 50 than I’d like to admit. I’ve worked long hours & dealt with the crap stress can bring and generally I’m forgiving when I see it in others.
So I just watched the speech (I DVRed the GG’s) and I thought it was much ado about nothing. I actually thought it was a decent speech and all the personal stuff actually fit into her speech pretty decently, IMO. She was being playful and funny and somewhat honest and I don’t think she came across as crazy or overly scattered at all. I enjoyed it.
You can’t write a poor speech? Are you for real? I absolutely can have it both ways. Jodie Foster’s speech is living proof.
As for all the rest of your complaints, if you don’t understand what it means to not have to worry about having the time and money to devote to things you want to do, I can’t help you.
One thing I learned from her speech; if there’s a place in your speech where you’re expecting a particular reaction (say, a wolf-whistle) and you don’t get it, you should move on without comment.
Joel Stein, in the latest issue of Time (Jan. 28, the one with a dramatic B&W pic of Michael Bloomberg, Joe Biden and Gabby Giffords on the cover, on p. 54), wrote a wicked good piece on Foster’s Golden Globes speech. He began,
I have room in my brain for only one adjective per celebrity. Angelina Jolie is hot; Russell Crowe is angry; James Franco is overcommitted; Ryan Seacrest is nearby. This rule also applies to noncelebrities. My lovely wife Cassandra is lovely. My adjective for Jodie Foster was smart. Apparently, Foster wanted me to have many, many more opinions of her…
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