I Don’t Know’s On Third…
Well – again, I must confess to a certain degree of
ignorance here. These are people who you all think should be more
famous than they are, and I can certainly testify that at least
some of them should be at least a bit more famous, since I’ve
never heard of them. But as I said last time, a lack of knowledge
has never stopped me from holding an opinion, no matter how ill
conceived or poorly thought out. So off we go!
I’ve been trying to think my way through the issue of
fame for the past hour, looking at this list and musing. It seems
like what many of these folks have in common are their relative
anonymity despite having been part of enormously
successful projects – Bill Paxton had prominent roles in
blockbuster films (Twister, Aliens, Apollo 13);
Mandy Patinkin played Che Guevara in Evita on Broadway
before "Chicago Hope"; Marshall Crenshaw co-wrote one
of Gin Blossom’s big hits (‘Til I Hear It From You),
never mind his own Whenever You’re On My Mind, just
to cite a couple of obvious examples. So it’s not as if many
of the artists listed here have not been successful.
No – what it seems were talking about here is fame, not
so much success per sé. And that makes me wonder about the
tradeoffs involved. On the one hand, the publicity machines in
the music and entertainment biz are really powerful, and I’m
sure that the folks on this list are aware of the power of spin
control. But if you pursue a higher profile, your achievements
are writ larger, and so are your failures. Is it really better?
Sure, Kevin Costner could do anything he wanted after Dances
With Wolves, but what did he do? Waterworld. Eeeew.
So maybe the people on this list eschew the machine, and
decide that fame is not as worthwhile as a substantial body of
work (or in the case of Severance, a substantial body) of
consistent quality.
Finally – I’m sorry, I have to say this – Rush?
Rush? C’mon, you’re kidding me, right? This poll
was titled "Celebrity whose lack of popularity is hardest
to understand". Red Barchetta is a pretty cool song.
But really – The Trees? Ayn Rand must spin in her
grave every time someone points out that Neil Peart’s lyrics
are influenced by her writing. It’s not that I don’t
like Rush – they’re really good at what they do, and
certainly no one else was going to step in and play like them. In
fact, I was going to nominate them for the "Most Over-rated
Rock Band of All Time" poll knowing that they wouldn’t
win of course (that’d be The Doors. But I digress…).
There are great under-known bands out there worthy of hearing who’s
work has never gotten the kind of airplay that "Tom
Sawyer" or even "2112" got – King’s X,
Richard Thompson, Galactic Cowboys, the dBs, From Good Homes to
name five.
My personal faves – Denis Leary and Parker Posey. But I
voted for Marshall Crenshaw.
Next up: Best television drama!!
Poll
Topic: Celebrity whose lack of popularity is hardest to
understand
|
| Bruce
Campbell |
 13.1% - (99 Votes) |
| Illeana
Douglas |
7.2% - (55 Votes) |
| Diane
Lane |
7% - (53 Votes) |
| Janeane
Garofalo |
6.7% - (51 Votes) |
| Bill
Paxton |
6.3% - (48 Votes) |
| Rush
- Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart |
6.2% - (47 Votes) |
| Mandy
Patinkin |
4.5% - (34 Votes) |
| Tom
Berenger |
4.5% - (34 Votes) |
| Parker
Posey |
4.3% - (33 Votes) |
| Denis
Leary |
4.2% - (32 Votes) |
| Joan
Severance |
3.8% - (29 Votes) |
| Rosanna
Arquette |
3.5% - (27 Votes) |
| John
Leguizamo |
3.1% - (24 Votes) |
| Jaime
Pressley |
3% - (23 Votes) |
| David
Cross & Bob Odenkirk |
3% - (23 Votes) |
| Don
Cheadle |
2.9% - (22 Votes) |
| Kelly
Preston |
2.9% - (22 Votes) |
| Mena
Suvari |
2.1% - (16 Votes) |
| Harry
Dean Stanton |
1.9% - (15 Votes) |
| Jan
Hooks |
1.5% - (12 Votes) |
| John
Prine |
1.4% - (11 Votes) |
| Peter
Weller |
1.1% - (9 Votes) |
| Angela
Bassett |
1.1% - (9 Votes) |
| Queen
Latifah |
1% - (8 Votes) |
| Marshall
Crenshaw |
1% - (8 Votes) |
| Melora
Walters |
0.9% - (7 Votes) |
| Bess
Meyer |
0.2% - (2 Votes) |
| Lacy
J. Dalton |
0.1% - (1 Votes) |
| T'Keyah
'Crystal' Keymáh |
0% - (0 Votes) |
Total Votes: 754 |