Wednesday, January 19, 2011

The Cost of Celebrity and the Price of Fame

Dog Poet Transmitting.......

We dogs have a saying, “May your nose always be cold and wet.” Some of us are show dogs. I’m a show dog. I love it when you show me the way.

Years ago, some friends and I were lost in Beverly Hills, or somewhere like it. There was no one on the streets to ask for directions. At one point I saw a man come out of a house and walk briskly down the street. I had the car pull over and got out of the car and went after him. I was calling out, “Sir! Sir!” Finally he turned around with an annoyed look on his face and I saw that it was Henry Fonda. I didn’t show any recognition and just asked him for directions. He couldn’t/wouldn’t help me so, I just turned around and walked away. I could feel his mind turning over the improbability of what happened as opposed to what he expected.

Years later in Maui, I had gone to the Intercontinental Hotel in Wailea for their breakfast brunch with my girlfriend. It was off season and it was also that time of day, I suppose, because there were only a few people there. While I was sitting there and eating I looked up and saw Jeff Goldblum staring at me. When he caught my eyes he gave me a hard look that said, “Don’t you dare come over here and bother me”. He was sitting with a very attractive, young Hawaiian lady that he had obviously contracted with for the night. I looked back at him and shook my head, as if to say, “Why the Hell would I want to do that?” I ignored him for the rest of my meal.

Another time I was in Foodland in Kihei late at night. There were very few people there and when I came into the vegetable department I saw Alice Cooper looking at some fruit. He’d brought his fairly extensive pot belly with him and he looked up and saw me and glared at me the same way so many celebrities do. I shook my head again and went right past him. The thought occurred to me to go to the cashier and say that I had seen a man in the vegetable aisle that had snuck a melon under his shirt. I didn’t do it and I regret that.

Another time I was in Lahaina and saw Dr. Wayne Dyer in a bookshop (probably checking out the placement of his books) and he saw me and glared at me and I laughed and shook my head again and said, “Big deal” and walked away. I’ve always wanted to get one of his ‘kits’ but I managed to demur. These days he dresses up like David Caradine lite and he looks like he means business, accent on ‘business’.

Once in a small diner in New York City, I was having a cup of coffee when Roy Scheider came in with a gym bag in his hand. He took one look at me and went right out the door. Another time I was in my girlfriend’s shop in Woodstock when Joe DiMaggio came to the door in a camel hair coat. He opened the door, saw me and away he went. I’ve got lots of tales like this. I won’t mention the positive encounters because I’ve only got so much space here. I can hardly make a dent in the negative encounters. One thing I take away from all of this is that people really have an exaggerated opinion of their own importance and conversely, that I have an interest in it.

Sometimes I sit around and think about things like celebrity and success in a ‘what does it get you’ fashion; pros and cons and the like. I think about the sports heroes; movie stars, rock stars, politicians, new age gurus, artists and what have you. I think about how they have this exclusive sense of the value of their contributions and never seem to realize that there are hundreds of thousands of people with talent, some of them even have real talent but, no matter what, there’s always something terrifically unique about them. Most of the time I would be mortified to be someone like Dr. Dyer, or most anyone else. If I woke up and found out I was someone like this, I would have to give away everything I owned and spend my life working in selfless service to make up for what I had become.

In rare cases, celebrity is a blessing because it allows people to see a decent human being at work, denying personal responsibility for his or her talents and successes. Most of the time, it’s a curse and it pursues the celebrated like flies and furies. They want to be famous but they don’t want to be bothered by the people they got famous in order to impress. I was in Planet Hollywood one night with some friends and Arnold Schwarzenegger came out of the back room with an entourage of bodyguards; he looked a lot shorter and smaller than I expected and he was moving at a great rate and looked scared shitless. My friends and I discussed this afterwards.

To see the absolute vacuity of these times you really need to attend a Hollywood or ‘in’ NYC party. It’s like watching hypnotized zombies; something out of the ballroom of The Overlook Hotel, wishing there were more mirrors in the room. Charity balls are best because then you have people whose only celebrity is that they have money, political or social influence and the kind of sternocleidomastoids needed to wear a lot of jingly shit around their necks, as well as a clueless capacity to wear things that make you look like a jumped up martinet. I’ve seen just enough of all of this to know I don’t want any part of it.

When I was younger and had visions of being a name poet and a recording artist, I always thought about the impact of the message and how much it meant to me that people would hear it. I never thought too much about poncing it up in any big way. I’d been around those people already and I couldn’t understand why they behaved like assholes so often, when they didn’t have to and when people would have loved them so much more if they hadn’t.

I was fairly well known at a younger age in smaller circles and one time a publisher I knew brought me up to Alan Ginsberg and said, “Alan, you’ve got to meet this fellow, he’s a terrific poet”. He treated me very, very badly with something more than dismissive contempt (he didn’t even know me) and I said, “You really are a very small man, aren’t you”? That didn’t go over well. A couple of months later (heh heh), someone else tried to do the same thing and Alan was waving his hands and saying, “Go away! Go away!” I laughed so hard I had to leave the room. I could be really cruel here and mention some personal things about the man but I won’t. I used to read accounts of him with important people and it always amazed me that they hadn’t met the fellow I had, or maybe they did. That’s the thing about celebrities; they tolerate a lot in each other because the downside of doing otherwise can be severe.

I know a lot of stories and I suspect that a good portion of them are true and I will tell you; celebrity is a cross to bear and a responsibility that very few shoulder. Then again, I’ve met some real celebrities and they are as humble as the dirt and they shine like the sun. In the ordinary world they don’t seem to notice that there are two kinds of celebrities, or the fact that they are mostly only aware of the one type. I could tell you some very funny and tragic stories but that would be the wrong thing. I suspect I already regret what I said but these are just illustrations toward a larger point. People don’t know when they have it good. They just don’t.

I understand the need for celebrities. We like movies and music. We like to read books and enjoy the force and power of ‘the muse’ as it works ‘through’ someone. A lot of us even enjoy the arrogance of those who deny the existence of the muse; to their great misfortune. I’ve seen her abandon many a denier in search of greener pastures. If you should become celebrated then you have a duty and it is not to yourself. It is the duty to show people what they so rarely see, your humanity and awestruck countenance in the presence of something so much greater than yourself.

We are all celebrities in the making, just as we are all stars in the sky someday. If you shine for yourself you will not give off very much light for very long, because the source of the light abhors that but it does wait and watch to see what you will do, when adversity comes. If you do not shine for yourself, you will shine forever.

These are dark times and most people have little clue as to the possibilities of a human state, nor how rare it can be and how difficult to win back. It doesn’t matter where you are at this point or what you may have done so far. It doesn’t matter what mistakes you have made. At any point you can change your course. It may not be easy, especially at the beginning but its been done many times, whenever someone comes to the point where they can no longer stand the lies and the hypocrisies it takes to go on as they have. There is probably no more critical time to think about this than now... especially now.


End Transmission.......

Visible sings: God in Country by Les Visible♫ Pure Sweet Love ♫
'Pure Sweet Love' is track no. 8 of 11 on Visible's 2001 album 'God in Country'
Lyrics (pops up)

God in Country by Les Visible


The New Shangri-La
(7,000+ members and the spammers are gone- I think).

62 comments:

Pstonie said...

I've been thinking about this and about people who are supposedly "rich and powerful". Most people imagine that if they had a lot of money they would be happy, but we never really put ourselves in that position and see if we'd really enjoy what we think we want.

But imagine it, rich or celebrated, you'd never be able to tell if any of your friends are real or whether everyone you know and who say they love you are really just out to get themselves a piece of the pie. And of course, the more pretend riches you have, the more you have to worry about who's trying to steal it. It seems these people don't have to wait for their judgement to begin their suffering.

WV: rourine.
Ruh-roh

Anonymous said...

Les,
This story of yours took me back in time.(you are like a time machine)
I've been married 29yrs.(to the same woman)and we were fortunate to be blessed with two beautifull girls to raise. They are 23 and 27 now. About 10yrs. ago,while we were eating supper, I asked them
"if you could have big fortune but had to have fame with it,would you?"
A big NO was their reply.

Thanks for the good memories and big smiles.
Walking Hawk

Anonymous said...

Dear Les,

Celebrities? Who the fuck cares? I googled the word and got 976,000,000 hits in .08 seconds.

I've sat here for a few moments trying to compose a profound comment. Alas, it didn't happen.
There's the MSM that provides selected news as fact through rose-colored glasses and the alt-media that bitches and does not suggest any solutions.

Oh well. I believe in one true God, the Creator of all things.
Smoke, mirrors..........takes us back to the question of "What is reality?" The fact is that nobody knows. There is a barrier between the seen and unseen. Don't try to cross it since it will come soon enough.

AMT is amazing at 30mg. That gal will make some seeker an excellent spouse.

Buried alive,

Tom FRUM

Peter said...

Mr Visible, you recounting "brushes" with fame prompts me to share my encounter with John & Yoko Lennon in early 1978 Manhattan. It happened on 2nd Avenue up behind Bloomingdales around 58th Street. John and Yoko were with a small entourage of maybe 10 people walking south on 2nd Avenue. I think they were there to avoid the larger crowds of pedetrians on Lexington and 3rd Avenues (That's why I walked there anyway)
As I was walking north I noticed this amazingly attractive East Asian woman dressed in a vibrant multi coloured peasant dress, with a rich lion's mane of hair. It did not dawn on me for several seconds that it was Yoko Ono. As soon as I realized it was Yoko, my eyes darted desparately through this smallish group looking for John. Suddenly, there he was, fast approaching me. As we converged, he seemed slightly cautious , he knew I recognised him. My reaction was, poor guy, always having to dodge thrill seeking celebrity maniacs. Consequently, I tried not to appear too entranced. but it was my first encouner with someone famous. Heck, I was just a rube, straight from the woods. (call me country)
I think what impressed me most was his fearlessness. He was determined to live as normal a life as posible.I know as we passed I looked behind me to watch him literally skip down the street as if relieved not to have to deal with some fool worshipping or hasseling him.

mayaseri said...

Les,
Thank you for all you do.I was thinking about the very things you are talking about here last night especially the part about how we all can shine to chase away the darkness that is all around us now especially now.
If we all shone not for ourselves but for everyone else what a light that would be we would shine like the sun and indeed chase the darkness away but as you mention we are all wrapped up in all these little pretend worlds that we prefer to dwell in some of us more so than others...what a waste of humanity maybe that is the point after all...to waste away all this humanity actually to destroy it forever.

Thank you Les,
c.j

kikz said...

never understood the attraction to notoriety /fame. wouldn't wish either on anyone i care for.

nice post, les :)

Erik said...

Heh Visible,

Glad you've written another Origami. My story of today would probably not fit anywhere else ...

I need to go out more ... I had a chance meeting with the Divine today, but more about that later.

Today was my re-asessment interview to see if I would qualify for a continuation of my wellfare/ social security check ...

At one point in the interview the subject came to things of (monetary) value I might posess, like art ...

I find myself answering to her "I have a heart of gold" She chuckles, and anwers back "Now that's very valuable indeed, but unfortunately not to us"

After the interview I was sent back to the waiting room, while she would take care of some affairs ...

In the waiting room was a stroller with a little girl. I sat down and she started gesturing me, "No don't sit there, come sit opposite of me" So I did.

I find myself looking at a mesmerizingly beautiful oriental face, big round eyes, a kind of miniature Budha or Tibetan monk (kind of like Ming, Visible)

She started talking to me with her pacifier still in her mouth; I was amazed that a girl of her age was able to speak more than baby talk, so I asked her to remove the pacifier, which she did.

All during this short conversation I was drawn to her eyes, which expressed more wisdom than a child her age could possibly possess, neither did she blink once during the conversation.

Unfortunately I am a little deaf, so most of what she said to me I could not understand. One sentence came through very clearly though. She looked at me, pointed at me and matter of factly said "You are different"

It's not about me, but what to think of that? I was filled with tremendous energy and smiled all the way back to my home ...

Zoner said...

A question springs to mind here - who are the least affected by their own stature? I would hope the musicians, since so many of them with real talent clearly channel directly the Real Stuff and I don't think that spigot opens often for wankers pursuing ass exclusively.

The modern professional athlete is the most vile example of the effect of preferred treatment followed by obscene wealth on a human being (assuming they were to begin with). Imagine being 22 years old with 20 million in the bank and no responsibility other than performing your tricks and trying to stay out of jail.

A few get it. Most don't. Can't hold too many in the spotlight up as role models, so these creatures are kept at arm's length while the little one's get further along, then they can make up their own minds about the "Rich and Famous".

The bit about the muse and her presence or lack of same really kicked me hard, too. As one who has had the blissful experience of being "used" for musical expression, all I can say is I sure hope she comes back around. I guess I need to try a bit harder to court these favors?

I'm thinking that being a rock star on a very small level might be ideal. Like maybe limit it to just the end of the block, or possibly the county, but that's about it. Leave some room for the others who deserve it just as much. Might make managing the groupies easier, and keep recognition hassles to a minimum as well since you'd likely know everyone anyway.

The Monkeysphere rules.

Z

DaveS said...

My experiences with celebrity mirrors Les (and probably the rest) and like him I've gotten over the whole 'celebrity' thing...

I've learned that the longer a celebrity has been playing the game, the better they are at fooling the average folks into thinking they walk on water – when they want to.

I worked an interesting job at an interesting place and our clients tended to be wealthy and famous. For the most part, the folks who created something (company, invention) from nothing but their hard honest work were a pretty down-to-earth bunch who tipped well and were also a lot of fun to guide. Yeah, they were the exceptions, but they existed and who, at the time, I wished I could be like. These days I'm content, but sometimes (like now when I'm almost three months behind in rent) I wished I had their resources.

One thing about money is that it gives a person choices... many people choose wrong, but still they had the freedom to make bad choices. Like Pstonie writes, people don't honestly think about what they'd do with say, a million dollars, because it's a pretty far-fetched concept to them.

I'm still a bit of a greedhead... not that I want to be greedy, per se, but that I would like to have the freedom money can create. I know that the bible and the philosophers say money is the root of all evil. But I look at it more like the Force; it can be used for good or evil, depending on who is controlling it.

The PTB want the freethinkers to stay poor, that way we can't be as effective countering their dark money magic. Trust me, give a guy like Les ten million cash, and I'd imagine he'd create a billion dollars worth of happiness for others from that sum. I'd like to think we'd all do that, but I also know it rarely happens. Money is more dangerous than cocaine or heroin, and once you're living under its influence, you easily forget why you wanted all the money in the first place. It becomes the drug, and collecting piles of it often make people feel as good as spending it.

I'm sure this post might step on a few toes, but if you think about money like say, yeast, then you'll eventually come to the realization that it only takes a wee bit of yeast to make a lot of bread.

In the perfect world, we'd be able to trade our skills directly to fill our earthly needs, but such isn't the case yet for nuts like me who have expensive habits, like publishing.

I've lived a lot of different lifetimes in the 41 years I've been bumping into things, from hoboing to a couple of years of riches, and I've loved it all. But for getting things done on the scale I like to work, it becomes a bit easier when the greenbacks are flowing like wine.

Peace
DaveS

wv:ectshum... what the hum of multiple voices everyone is hearing is called ;)

Lately I've been going a little bit crazier from the ectshum ringing in my ears.

Terrance said...

Hi Les...this post is so right on! I work at a high end hotel and encounter many celebrities. Large egos and insecurities go hand in hand...I have many stories and one that stands out...One evening, many moons ago, Donald Trump and his then girl friend Marla Maples, were waiting in front of the hotel for a car to take them to dinner. She had on a fur coat and a young lady came up to Marla and was verbally assaulting her...do you know how many animals died, so you could have your fur coat! and without hesitating, Marla turned to the woman and said, lady you have no idea how many animals I had to fuck to get this fur coat. One of the best lines I ever heard....

Anonymous said...

Thanks for making me chuckle. Again.

I often think of William Burroughs sitting there in that chair drinking and smoking and me here I come walking by pretty much on schedule. He'd see me, look purposely at me and this would initiate our little ritual.

I'd yell Hare Krishna! Hare Rama! He'd shake his fist at me, laughing, and I'd continue on my en(chanting) walk amused.

I knew for sure that I could approach him anytime, accepted without fanfare or drama.

But I never did.

Mark said...

Ah, the Overlook Hotel…that sure rings a bell. My favorite book of all time, Stephen King’s one and only masterpiece (in my biased mind), "The Shining." Both movies of the same could not do it justice, but man, that book was “chiseled,” as they say.

As for celebrity encounters, Renee once bumped into John Wayne on Balboa Island. They made eye contact, he smiled and said, “Yeah, it’s me.” That was all.

I once spotted George Harrison at LAX. This was about 1971, and I was wearing a hideous back brace due to scoliosis (curved spine caused by falling off a roof and landing on my back years before. I was also holding a B-B gun and planned on shooting a few birds, which I have been ashamed of ever since. Here’s an example of instant Karma (grin).)

He was with a woman and they were backed into a little alcove to go unnoticed. Harrison and I made eye contact. I imagine he was trying to figure out what the hell I was wearing underneath my clothing (the tales I could tell about that stupid back brace which did no good). There’s no way I would have approached him with or without the brace, and I continued on my way.

For some reason, I have never wished for celebrity. I have always been shy, and have consistently avoided the spotlight, and it feels as though this tendency is more than a tendency, that it is one of my prime directives for this go-around. I like being no one in particular…

Erik said...

In all fairness, the little girl in my previous comment could have just reacted to my shabby vagabond appearance (long unkempt hair, bushy beard, crooked teeth) but ... clean clothes, heh.

Hey, I was re-applying for wellfare wasn't I? (Wearing my three piece suit I would have been kicked right out of the door)

But I like to think otherwise ... (grin)

nina said...

@Zoner
Dedicated to everything that enables deepening of unfathomable darkness:

One cannot help but take in the headlines while viewing the schmooz. Stephen Tyler said about Miley Cyrus video-bonging salvia "Tell her to come see me." One week later Stephen Tyler says his collapse on stage due to snorting Lunesta.

These headlines are the crossed signals and dimming stage lights of celebrated American Idols. Is it real or is it Memorex?

Anonymous said...

obscure pathways
extreme deceptions
profoud atmospheres
deceiving impressions
death cult images
servicing the idol
recipes indoctrinated
subtly confined all
sanctity then turmoil
artificialy confused
formula's degenerating
withering views
abuse amplifying
disfunction embraced
seems humanitys
mind been debased

..peace..

Unknown said...

Great article. I also agree that celebrity is over-rated. That's why my work exists, but I don't.

;O)

Anonymous said...

Many years ago, me and a friend were sitting in a restaurant having lunch, and in walks Diane Keaton. He was a huge fan of her work, and when she went upstairs to the restroom, he followed her.

His plan was to 'run into her accidentally' when she left the ladies' room. His timing in this regard proved to be impeccable, and he was, in fact, able to chat with her very briefly.

And all I could do while witnessing these events was shake my head and hide my face in embarrassment, because I knew only too well how little privacy celebrities have when out in public.

I confess that I did stare a little bit at her, but I only did so to verify that my eyes weren't deceiving me, and that yes, it really was her.

If I ever had to make a choice between having fame and money, I'd take the money over fame, every time. I'm a private person by nature and would have a hard time being buttonholed by every Tom, Dick and Harry at every turn. But I also realize that sometimes fame automatically comes with a lot of money, and you get a choice when the fame versus money question comes up.

I suppose the only way you could have money, fame, and a modicum of privacy is to become a bestselling author. You're not as likely to be recognized in public, although I don't think you'd be safer from the really dedicated crazies out there. Some famous writers have been known to be the victims of stalking and worse.

Anonymous said...

As bad as celebrities can be,(I was recently yelled by an Australian soap star because she had to pay ten dollars for a petrol can), there is one thing worse - those who are just entering the fame game and dedicating every essence of their being to winning it.

I wanted to be a sound engineer, loved working with sound and it's related technology, but was simply too delicate to deal with the budding ego-junkies who've had their first taste of fame from community radio/street press exposure and locked their sights firmly on Rolling Stone and high-rotation.

Thought it was a personal failing, but beginning to see more clearly now. Of course when making such judgements, you need to be careful of falling into bitter tall poppy syndrome. But generally, and increasingly, celebrity means poppies of moderate height being advertised as mighty oak trees.

Anonymous said...

"If I woke up and found out I was someone like this, I would have to give away everything I owned and spend my life working in selfless service to make up for what I had become." Consider it seriously

Taoszenshaman@yahoo.com
I am not an anonymous spammer, I use my real email I do not use google or other services.

Anonymous said...

Thank God that your talent is such that you'll never be so burdened. (grin!)

Anonymous said...

The Cost of Celebrity and the Price of Fame.
It brings something else to mind.
I went to see BLACK SWAN. Horrible, dark, satanic flick. GLad I went because it opened my eyes to just how dark Hollywood has become. I wondered if the anorexic, tortured looking young actress who played the lead, had to sell her soul to get such a foul, gross & digusting part.
I can't imagine anyone in their right mind doing those things so as to be glorifed by the zombies who inhabit the planet with the rest of us.

Anonymous said...

The fragile facade of celebrity doesn't wish to be confronted with those that can see through it, or the one to one encounter with a lone admirer. The inflated ego needs a lot of pumping to retain its buoyancy. Frightened people need something to hide behind, whether it be false image, muscles, or bodyguards. Their dread might be the discovery of who they truly are, and the unravelling of the fabricated persona.

New age gurus such as Wayne Dyer, combine a mixture of occultism, and metaphysics garnered from various sources. Then dress it up as a religous science that'll deliver anything you want in abundance. Often screwing their adherents in more ways than one.
"What purpose does it serve a man in gaining the world, loses his soul". This wisdom was given freely by one of the most celebrated ever born.
Pete

Anonymous said...

Greetings Les! Well, I think it's been a "sharp" '11 so far. I can, but I shudder at the thought of being at an "in" LA or NYC party.
Then again, I could have some fun with it before being unceremoniously tossed from the affair. Every film, every Oscar, Golden Globe, and talking head has been rendered redundant since 9/11. Best actor, actress, best special effects, best supporting actor, best story, best stand ins, best lead in to war, est you name it. They ain't got nothin' on the masterminds of 9/11. Despite how much Hollywood seeks to bathe in mindless, redundant, slop...they've been outdone...and it's a REAL KILLER!!

a GrebBear said...

opps, did i just double post ??

... better give me the boot Les ))
Shameless spammer in the making here, hohoho )

Peace Love Light TRUTH
(- ;
; -)

Anonymous said...

I lived in Nyc. Up on Riverside Drive, upper west side, I was waitinng in the car for my friend. I saw two men walking towards me, on the sidewalk. they looked like homeless winos/druggies. I hit the auto lock on the car door. they got closer, and I looked at their skinny boney dirty greasy selfs. It was Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. they were seriously hung over. I'm always surprised those two are still alive. I thot at that time, they won't make it much longer. you never know.

Peter of Lone Tree said...

"Nearly 10,000 years ago, man's best friend provided protection and companionship - and an occasional meal.

"That's what researchers are saying after finding a bone fragment from what they are calling the earliest confirmed domesticated dog in the Americas.

"University of Maine graduate student Samuel Belknap III came across the fragment while analyzing a dried-out sample of human waste unearthed in southwest Texas in the 1970s. A carbon-dating test put the age of the bone at 9,400 years, and a DNA analysis confirmed it came from a dog - not a wolf, coyote or fox, Belknap said."


But the article at 9,400-year-old dog found, earliest found in Americas declined to say whether the dog was a poet, philosopher, musician, or even if it had a wet nose. I presume Les knows but so far, he's not telling.

Unknown said...

I used to work at a jeep dealer close to the Hollywood hills and I saw a lot of stars and rich people. I would help them with their jeeps and I would treat them like any other customer. It would bother some as if everyone is supposed to get giddy over them.

Rahman Hyder said...

May your nose always be wet, brother.

Anonymous said...

All Is Vanity
1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.
3 What profit hath a man of all his labor which he taketh under the sun?
4 One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.
5 The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose.
6 The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits.
7 All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full: unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.
8 All things are full of labor; man cannot utter it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.
9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
10 Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us.
11 There is no remembrance of former things; neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come with those that shall come after.

saucepanbach said...

We were playing music at our local pub last night and the question of material reward came up - as in - 'twould be nice.

Consensus was that connection with others through song is actually what we'd like to achieve.... perhaps material success will follow - perhaps not.

It's the connecting which is the primary directive.

The other aspect of performing which gives pause - for those of us who are a bit shy or uncertain - is that so many acts at an open mike night leave you feeling
" Gee, I'm glad I'm not following them - they were sooooo good!"

Funny thing - as soon as the next act gets up, the previous act is irrelevent, irrespective of 'worth'

Much the same with fame perhaps.

brian boru said...

It's hardly surprising that these so called celebrities are such unpleasant individuals. The whole anti culture that they inhabit is infused with the spirit of the jew. Hollywood must be one of the worst places that a spiritually healthy person could find himself. Many people have difficulty understanding that these actors and other celebrities are not the characters they portray. Often, these actors have very little personality of their own and are able to adopt other personalities easily as they take on a role. The constant intrusive attention eventually makes them lose their grip on reality. Some of them may start out as decent human beings but most of them don't end up that way.

a GrebBear said...

...
Great post Visible )

Connecting the dots in OUR experience takes a real knack for seeing things as they are, not as WE want them (as you say over and over)).

i was in NYC in 1990 and saw a few celebrities ... i was very impressed with Grandpa Munster )) ... he was sitting in an old rocking chair in front of his restaurant (i think it was called Grandpa's ?) Anyway, i was only 20 and had grown up in a small town ... i walked straight over to him and thanked him for his contribution(s) to humanity (i'm sure i said something like, "i loved y-our teevee show, when i was a kid") ... he smiled, and said something like, "don't ever stop being a kid."
... short, sweet, smart ))

Just a quick thought on, "One thing I take away from all of this is that people really have an exaggerated opinion of their own [[importance]] and conversely, that I have an interest in it."
... emphasis on importance

i've been looking at the math of the Divine/Universe (= well described by Marko Rodin = toroidal math = infinity), its all centered around '9' (= completion and perfection) ... in the alphabet 9 is letters, I and R ... if WE take the Divine out of 'importance', but fail to remove OURselves (= I) at the same time, WE get impotance (= phonetically impotence).

i've been working on a logical 'experiential' progression of this idea and will post it at:
http://agrebbear.blogspot.com/ ... in the next day or two ))

i've just touched on the idea over here, in the comments, talking about 88's:
http://g8ors.blogspot.com/2011/01/acceler8-then-activ8.html#comment-form

One more thing, I had another amazing dream last night ... i was a jet pilot, of a 'huge' aqua blue fighter jet (2 seater, kind of Clint Eastwood's, FireFox like), with no markings and no 'killing' equipment. i was in a small town and everyone at the airport k-new me to be a pilot ?? Yet, when i told my co-pilot i didn't k-now how to fly, he just replied, "i hate Wednesdays" ??
He proceeded to kindly and jokingly, re-teach me ... and, the dream went on and on with a very familiar (= always have been t-here) tone ??

To make my comment longer )), when i awoke, i felt a very deep peace and exhilaration, that everything was/is going to be ok !? i just watched this video series a few days ago: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkwqebatT7Q&feature=related ... about cosmic radiation accelerating human evolution through OUR DNA.

OUR local cosmic radiation generator is CYGNUS X-3, "Cygnus can be seen as a key constellation in Olmec and Mayan astronomy, a point previously unrecognized by everyone but Popenoe Hatch"
CYGNUS is a bird constellation (= flying) in the 'dark rift' (= a black swan, if you happen to be filled with darkness) and more specifically to my dream, a 'goose' (= as in the movie 'top gun')
Was the co-pilot in my dream CYGNUS ??
... or OUR co-pilot in Life, the Divine ??


Thanks for sharing Visible ... and of course, All of you wonderful Cats here with-in the comments.

Peace Love Light TRUTH
(- ;
; -)

Anonymous said...

Fame is way, way overrated. Back when I was a working musician I sometimes ran into the fame junkies. They are attention vampires who don't feel happy unless they're sucking the energy out of a roomful of people. A little fame is required for any performer. These days I have my share but most of the time it feels like a burden. I long for the days when it will be possible for me to go back to my normal contemplative existence. Too much work to do for now, though. I understand why you had Clif declare that you're not the 'real' Dog Poet.

kikz said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Sui Juris 249 said...

Les,

When you said the following;

“I used to read accounts of him with important people and it always amazed me that they hadn’t met the fellow I had, or maybe they did. That’s the thing about celebrities; they tolerate a lot in each other because the downside of doing otherwise can be severe.”

I could not help but think to myself this is exactly the way Ayn Rand shows her villains (if you can call them that) in her books The Fountain Head and Atlas Shrugged.

Its like they can see the worst in others but it’s a reflection of what is really in them and they know that real honest people would say something about it and so they know to stay flocked to those that are basically as bad or even a worse scumbag than they are.


“We are all celebrities in the making, just as we are all stars in the sky someday.”

Yes as long as we make the right choices we will eventually reach Starhood and even beyond that when the time comes. Yet only when the time comes and the right choices have been made.

“It doesn’t matter what mistakes you have made. At any point you can change your course. It may not be easy, especially at the beginning but its been done many times, whenever someone comes to the point where they can no longer stand the lies and the hypocrisies it takes to go on as they have. There is probably no more critical time to think about this than now… especially now.”

Brother those words need to be plastered on every billboard across every nation. Some individuals today seem to be of the mind set that it does not matter at this point its all going to end in 20112. Well that is not true 2012 is a special date for another reason and there are other dates after 2012 that are going to be even more important than 2012. In the end there is really only going to be two paths from which to choose from and they both lead back to the source or the I am. One is through assention the other is via dust. Ultimately the choice is each individual’s to make. I think I already know the path you have choose Les, to everyone else if you don’t know the difference you might want to do some home work and see which option you like better. Either way we will all see each other at some point.

Peace.

Visible said...

I'll answer all of those comments her. I've read the Kybalion several times and have a copy. It is a profound and beautiful work; one of the best and made all the more so for being short.

Yes, it doesn't end at 2012. I got what might be some good news from that astrologer. Talk about irony; "This is interesting, I made notes on your chart before knowing that you've had these dreams (like the green fire one) of something immense coming. In the notes, I've written, for the aspect in August 2011, 'THE BIG ONE!' Because it is: it's your D-Day. Curiously, it's on your birthday! On Aug. 22nd, Neptune progresses exactly to trine your natal Pluto. 'Inner realisation of Truth.' Not for all with that aspect; they don't have your natal chart. You began the wash cycle around June 24th 2010. You're now approaching the rinse cycle (January 29th). August 22nd 2011 is the final spin!

I*'m looking forward to that, given the hardship I've had recently. I'm not talking about it but it's been painful (grin). You've a very bright person, Sui Juris.

Well, there is not real Dog Poet. It's all predictive linguistics but, let me say, may your nose always be cold and wet! heh heh. Great to see you.

Erik said...

Yo Kikz,

Great find, thanks!

gurnygob said...

“It doesn’t matter where you are at this point or what you may have done so far. It doesn’t matter what mistakes you have made. At any point you can change your course.”


Great words Les. Many people never come back from the darkness because they think/believe they are beyond the borders of forgiveness. It is good to remember that’s it’s never too late. Saints are made of such.

gurnygob

Anonymous said...

It is interesting to see which stars are famous in their own right and which ones have been "chosen" and groomed to be famous by the Tribe.

I saw Angelina Jolie, shortly after becoming a member of the CFR, give the Devil sign at one of the awards show. She seemed slightly embarrased. Not because she was a member, I'm sure. But because it seemed juvenile for her to show this sign so other members who were watching would know she was now a member of the club.

Shortly after that, it was announced on MSM that Brad Pitt was related to Obama. Guess that means Pitt is in line to be selected as govenor, senator or something some where down the road. The JoliePitts bought a house in New Orleans. Wonder if they're going to be a part of the rich white folks who are still trying to take over New Orleans for their playground. The Tribe needs one of their own to run Louisiana so they won't be stopped from stealing the land and the oil and gas which lies underneath it all over the state. Who better than Angelina Jolie and her black widow ways.

Anonymous said...

pig tongue scattering
ruthless demons shreik
devilry dismembering
unstable in what it seek
weakened minds unsatisfied
who poison sky and earth
practising in ruthlessness
death cult sold its worth
the sound of harmonizing pierce
subliminaly in wail
reach within the momentary
pathway in detail
a trail of starlight thunder burst
magnify and beam
freedom resonating life
energizing stream

..peace..

Pstonie said...

This easy to miss shot from Wanted kinda took me by surprise. I've been interested in Physiognomy--telling people's personalities from their faces--for years now and a look like that tells me everything I need to know. Danger, Will Robinson. Danger.

Lately I've been testing my theory of bent eyebrows being a bad sign. They're actually one of the things we're used to judging as beauty in women. That along with lots of gums showing on a grin or even smile, or some kind of not yet receded muzzle thing that makes people look like Scarrans, seems quite common among the jewoids. I may be wrong and/or just going crazy, though.

Anonymous said...

These Hollywood people would not have one thin dime if it weren't for you starring at the TV or paying to see their movies or pay to see a musician perform. Not one dime. The same with ball game players. Not one dime. But I can build a house and get paid. I can weld or cut firewood or plant some crops. It's the stupid public that these people making anything. Just turn off the TV and don't pay $500 to see someone put a basketball through a hoop and then they are screwed.

kikz said...

mornin les,

a new find of a very informative ebook website.

their latest addition. you might add it to 'the library'.

hugz*

http://knowledgefiles.com/authors/the-three-initiates/the-kybalion/

kikz said...

sorry for the repost.. i noticed my typo.. and just had to junk and repost... :)
y, its brevity is a large part of its 'attraction' for me. :)

yvw, erik :) enjoy. knowledge files is also on fb. the pgmaster was asking for a wish list of additions.. so i suggested the kybalion. that was a coupla days ago. they sent me notice this am, it was online :)

Anonymous said...

wolf moon rising
cold winter slow
fire light glisten
high inner grows
blind man indoctorinated
pig worship greed
sheep follow eyes shut
deception decieves
freedom howling
at demons no heart
mountain tip lifted
truth shake a spark
paradise invincible
north wind roll
humm a wild river
thunderbolt blow

..peace.

Anonymous said...

Les --

Fame is a curse when you realise that the people adoring you are the same assholes you tried to get away from by becomming famous. Having been on the inside I can assure you that the higher you go up the foodchain the worse the company gets. By far the worst parties I've ever attended were hosted by the Hollywood elite.

Probably the most tragic and ironic encounter I ever had was with Freddie Prinz. It happened in1975 when I moved to Hollywood. I was renting an aprtment at 7777 Hollywood Blvd. (should have known right there). While waiting for an elevator to move in I was reading Rolling Stone and it featured an interview with Freddie Prinz conducted at his secret Hollywood digs. He was pretty unhappy in the article and it stressed how much he craved his privacy. Right then the elevator arrived and I stepped in still reading Rolling Stone. In the corner was this hooded paranoid who was flattened into the corner and literally crawling the walls. He finally forced me to look at him and lo and behold it was the reclusive Freddie Prinz himself pinned to his eyeballs with a look of menacing distrust on his face.

I looked at him and back at Rolling Stone and then burst out laughing. I said to him what I said to many of them -- "You're not as famous as you think you are." I then flipped him a 'Lude and told him to relax or he was never going to make it.

After I got the apartment it turned out that Freddie was living in the apt. above me and used to use the stairwell past my apt. to walk his dog and share the occassional comestible. He finally moved when he married a hooker from Las Vegas... Three months later he shot himself in the head.

So much for fame...

RJ

Anonymous said...

I'm nobody! Who are you?
Are you nobody, too?
Then there's a pair of us — don't tell!
They'd banish us, you know.

How dreary to be somebody!
How public, like a frog
To tell your name the livelong day
To an admiring bog!
--E.D.

est said...

-
'The ninety and nine are with dreams, content but the hope of the world made new, is the hundredth man who is grimly bent on making those dreams come true.'

Edgar Allan Poe


'There are few cases in which mere popularity should be considered a proper test of merit; but the case of song-writing is, I think, one of the few.'

Edgar Allan Poe
-

Visible said...

A new Smoking Mirrors is up-




An Empire of Lies, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.

Visible said...

Here's a new spoken piece from Patrick Willis.

Anonymous said...

Sel --

Torroidal infinity
No. 9 Sin-Phonies

What's in a name?
When Rodin's the game...

Start from The End
Of Jimbo extend

First grasp the Lizard
Then fortune smiles

Save yourself the trouble
Of walking those extra miles...


Rd. Egnarts

hehehe

Anonymous said...

I met two stars, both of whom were child actors. The first one was a kid that starred in the film "A Christmas Story".


My mom dropped me off at a mall, (I'm pretty sure this was early 1983. I was a happy 17 year old teenager heading straight for the record store in St.Catherines, Ontario Canada. I had walked pass two boy's starring away at manniquin displaying women's lingerie, and looked back at them because they both seemed to really be enjoying themselves. That is when I recognized one of the them. I walked over and asked him, "Aren't you the kid in that cereal commercial?" He just looked at me like I was an idiot, not worthy of his reply. I returned his sneer with my own, and shook my head at them both.
They realised I didn't care for their attitude, looked at one another and walked away.

The arrogant child actor was Peter Billinglsy.

The second actor was in a movie, oddly enough was the polar opposite of celebrating life and renewal.

A few years later in 1987, I witnessed close up a young actor who was in the movie theater which was located in the very same mall. A bunch of my friends wanted to go see the movie, "The Gate".
My buddy Joe was in a very good mood and wanted to celebrate his raise with some good brown and a show. he was more than happy to pay for it all , the pop popcorn, so why not.

We didn't catch the movie's reviews, but since my friend was into heavy metal at the time he wanted to see it. By the first few minutes I knew it was going to be shitty show. It was a terribly put together film.

Hardly anyone was in the theater, and we couldn't stop laughing. Now that I think about it, it should have been made over into a comedy, cause when it got to the part were the rubber demon was bouncing off the ground getting hit with a stick, we couldn't stop laughing. We got up and left. Heading for the theaters washroom and joking about the crappy, cheap props is when a young kid and two of his buddies passed us by. One of them went straight into the bathroom stall. It was obvious the poor kid was drunk or on something he shouldn't have been(he was the one in the movie with the glasses on). The poor kid was puking his guts out while his friends stood by. Barfing away, I made a joke that the movie wasn't that bad. Everybody laughed, his friends only smiled. We watched the kid stagger out from the bathroom, his friends who helped him stay on his feet, kept looking back at us with a look of satisfaction on their faces and probably couldn't wait to tell the other kids.
Later on that night, thinking of the look of fear on the sick kids face, I wondered if he was thinking we were there to take him to the real gate.


Billy Geier

Anonymous said...

Years ago when my wife and I were still good lookin' we ran into Telly Savalas and his brother in vegas. My wife was all excited about seeing a real live celebrity so I told her she should go say hello. The man was very polite and patient, gave her an autograph and won us both as life long fans.
A few years later, we had the same pleasant experience with George kennedy at the Airport in Grand Junction CO. Very decent fellow.
On the OTHER hand, in '76 we had the misfortune of meeting Terry Carter at Universal Studios. he was in a boothsigning portraits for a line of fans. There were 2 black ladies who had abstained from getting in line and were patiently waiting for the tour to resume....Carter called out to them, "Sisters!...Sisters, come right up here and get a picture!" Being polite, (more so than he), they smiled and walked to the end o the line...he again shouted..."No, sisters,...come up front here!". You could see they were humiliated by his open racist attitude, but they sheepishly acquiesced and walked ahead of the 50 or so people WAITING in the hot sun and he made a grandiose show of signing their porttraits. We were still near the counter, having just got our wives their photos, I snatched my wife's from her....ripped it up, stated louder than necessary, "We don't need a picture from that racist son-of-a-bitch!", dropepd it in the trash and to this day I don't watch ANY reruns with that bastard's name in the credits. Unfortunately, the U.S. of Israel is just chuck full of fools that treat celebrities as if they are gods.

edna smile-y said...

I was in a coffee shop in New Orleans and Louie Anderson walked past me as I was going out of the door and out of the blue he said "Hi." I was a little blown away, mostly because I didn't know who he was at first which is probably why I was giving him a weird look. I turned to my friend Rick and I said, "hey, that was Louie Anderson." And he said "Who?" LOL.

We don't watch much TV.

the BCth said...

Les,

I know I'm not much of a poet, but I wrote this anyway - or rather, sat down at the computer and let it out, because it demanded to be let out. You are the bodhisattva, of course. :)

Love,
~William


-------------


CONDITION OF A HALF-AND-HALF SOUL


How much say do we have
in defining who we are?

Is it our choices that define us?
Or our God-given nature?

Our nature is infinite in essence,
but particular in expression.

I long for the ecstatic joy and freedom of Source.
Alas, I will never know it as long as "I" exist.

But I don't.
I'm an imaginary character, playing a part.
That's all.
And when my part is through,
I will smile and remember
or scream and fight to the last
and die
in glory or oblivion
in accordance with how my part was played.

Did I find redemption?
Did I save my heart from the
darkness within it?
In the moment of truth,
did I fall or did I rise?

Prepare me, O Lord Shiva.
Cleanse my blackened self.
Blow the carbon out of my jets.
Burn me, burn me through
and let no impurity remain.

Lord Shiva does not answer.
He cannot do for me
what I must do for myself.
I know not how much work is left,
be it a lifetime, or an age,
or eternity.

And so I continue
the alternating heat and cold,
light and dark
process of the Great Work:
to know myself.

If it is so, as my dream has told,
that, in another time and place,
I was a hired killer,
then it comes as no surprise
that in this lifetime, I should be
a wounded healer,
channeling life and love and light
through hands that once devoured them.

My past is with me - I cannot change it -
reminding me of the depths of evil
of which I am capable.
What led me to murder fellow beings
who'd done me no harm?
It was fear, only fear
and unknowing.
So the antidote, you see,
must be love,
love
and awareness.

The bodhisattva exhorts us
to continually seek the One,
to make it the focus of all our endeavours,
to diminish our vain and limiting thoughts about ourselves
and let the light of the real shine through.

There are few, so few, who take these words to heart
and employ this sincere counsel of the wise.
Myself, I know not how,
for my desire is yet divided
and my will a sputtering pipe.
My hope lies in the mysterious
and inescapable workings
of the Architect
who owns all ways and means
with which to challenge hearts and minds
and, given only time,
win over all Creation
and make it bloom ever so much more wondrously
each time it's seemed to die.

Visible said...

You certainly are a poet, that was nothing short of beautiful, truly.

I loved this, "Our nature is infinite in essence, but particular in expression."

I noted your use of blowing the carbon out of the jets (grin)

the BCth said...

Aw, I'm blushing. :D There's only one Poet here. The best any of us can do is to write what it moves us to write as faithfully as possible. You are certainly a powerful example of that.

Yeah, I couldn't resist borrowing your colourful phrase. (Yours in the sense that it came through you first in that context... I don't own the words I use and I take no credit for the ones you quoted. One Poet, just my brain and fingers as its tools and I'm grateful for the opportunity.)

Visible said...

I just this moment posted about gratitude at Petri Dish.

In all honesty, that piece is terrific. It speaks highly of your connection to the one who comes up with that sort of thing.

Mike in the Lower Peninsula said...

There is a sports-talk radio show which airs in North America called the Jim Rome show, and one time, a caller by the moniker of "Toby in Houston" shared this story of a brush with celebrity, the celebrity in this case being long-time National Basketball Association head coach Larry Brown.

"I used to live in San Antonio, and, uh, actually when Larry Brown was there...I was out in a workout club, finishing up my workout, just got out of the shower, tying up my shoes, and, ah, a guy comes up to the locker next to me, opens up the door...foot away from my face, dropped his towel. I look over and there's a crank right in my face...Larry Brown."

For what celebrity encounters are worth......not much, generally

Anonymous said...

Love this piece. Always felt the same way.

I've met several "celebrities, sport heroes and wealthy" people. Few are remarkable. For the people these celebrities fear most are the people who "love" them the most.

One summer day in Chicago, walking along Michigan Ave. with my best friend, we spotted an old man sitting on a fire plug, near Water Tower Place. Upon closer inspection I recognized he had on a captain's hat, and he was a rather dapper old dude. Looked like a sharply dressed black leprechaun. Then it hit me! Count Basie. A jazz icon sitting on a fire plug! No one even noticed him except me and my buddy, both 15-16 years old both early rap fans, but both raised in jazz loving households. He greeted us just as kindly. I said, "you probably think we are too young to recognize you, but its always nice to meet a Count." He smiled like the sun. He said "what do you young boys know about me?" laughing at us while he signed his autograph. And together liked we practiced it, my buddy and I did the famous Count Basie signature ending to his songs,"Dint, dint, dint Duuuuuuuunnnn!" We all laughed like we were old friends. I asked him if he needed assistance because he was a very old man sitting by himself. He said no thanks, because he had a car coming for him. He said "tell your parents, they did a good job" We thanked him for his autograph and continued down Michigan ave. No one else new who he was. Fame is fleeting.
Flash forward..30 years later. Having dinner with same best friend in Las Vegas during All-Star weekend. Now, this good friend was a famous sport writer and personality for a sports network. He was recognized by the famous athletes and not famous athletes. As we exited the restaurant, we bump into Alonzo Mourning, his lovely wife and his mother. Although he was a beast on the court, he suffered from a heart issue that kept him from playing. But in his final season he was able to help his team win a championship with the greatest effort I had ever seen. He was a very classy individual. Introduced his wife and mother to me! Yes I was with a famous sports writer, but he talked to both of us, treated me with a great deal of respect. I mentioned to him how I admired the effort he put forth and how he deserved a championship. He rested his arm on shoulder and showed me his ring very cool and casual. While this going on... Vince Young and his entourage was coming out of same restaurant. He had just won the Rose Bowl that year with a magnificent performance and was considered then a number 3 draft pick. I thought the world of VY at that moment. He looked a Alonzo Mourning, his family, my sports writer friend and myself like we were something he stepped in. Alonzo gestured to shake his hand and he waved him and us off. Hustling behind this extra large man was 2 more extra large body guards. Wow! He waved off a man who recently won a championship ring, a man who literally played his heart out. I couldn't believe it. Neither could my sportswriter friend. Mr Mourning barely skipped a beat. I said "Didn't he see that ring gleaming in his eye?" Mr. Mourning said " he may never see a gleaming ring with that attitude." At that moment, I was no longer a Vince Young fan, but my admiration for Alonzo Mourning grew ten feet.

For the observant there are morals throughout these stories. For Visible Origami my admiration grew ten feet.

Peace Love Wisdom and Understanding
Imhotep

Anonymous said...

Some days are difficult. Sometimes, something you say here helps me get through one those difficult days. This is one of those times. Thanks Les, for being who you are and doing what you do.
Chiah

Visible said...

A more careful reading of what I said would reveal that I have nothing against celebrity per se, only against the way some people handle it. I didn't tell the positive side of my meetings. Celebrity will always be a feature of life. However, those who have it ought to use it for the good of all instead of as some kind of imprimatur upon their uniqueness when they are not as unique as they think they are.

As for another life, it's going to happen in this one.





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