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Corey Feldman, who for years has dressed predominantly in black, is finally being recognized as the social and style trend-setter that he is.
Not only was Feldman the only celebrity brave enough to decry sexism and assault in the entertainment industry over a decade ago, he did so to a cacophony of detractors who either discredited him or even more cruelly, ignored him. Undeterred, Feldman began the next phase of political activism. He studied Thoreau, Emerson, Gandhi. He came up with a subtle yet brilliant scheme to draw attention to the sick, rotten underbelly of America's thriving entertainment industry.
He started dressing like a malcontented teenager.
That was it. Beautiful in its simplicity, Feldman began introducing more and more black into his wardrobe to underscore the bloated, black underside of an industry that thrives on glitter and gold. Oh, he still talked about the abuse and the creeps and the sickening things that happen when Mr. DeMille truly IS ready for your close up. But nobody much cared. They barely noticed his stringy hair and black clothing. He was after all, just another failed child actor who was struggling to carve out some semblance of a living on the periphery of the Hollywood lights.
But then, something strange happened. A woman who had long ignored Feldman, perhaps she had even quietly discredited him in private Hollywood circles, found herself sick and tired of being taken advantage of herself. So she made a complaint. That complaint was brushed off out of hand, and suddenly the complaint became a personal stand. But nobody much listened to Rose either. She was after all, a *****. Nobody liked working with Rose anyway. It wasn't such a mystery why she couldn't get cast. Hadn't she been offered the opportunity to read for a part in an Adam Sandler movie? She was the one who shut THAT down. What did we say? A *****.
And, almost like Feldman, Rose McGowan was simply forgotten. Left on the back burner while Hollywood churned away.
But then another woman came forward. And another. Soon some fat, obnoxious producer got on the wrong side of one too many A and B list actresses. While they may have been perfectly fine "going along" in the coming up years, they weren't going to put up with this kind of **** from a fat **** like Weinstein now that they'd made it. Suddenly, Rose McGowan wasn't such a *****. Sure she wore a scandalous dress to an awards show that showed more breast and *** than it covered, quite literally, but hey, it's Rose's body! If Rose wants to dress provocatively for a party, that's HER choice. It sure as hell isn't Weinstein's. And who's to say she wasn't pressured into dressing that way by somebody powerful and influential?
No, the tide was turning and suddenly EVERYONE who had quietly ignored the sick, festering, bloat - indeed the very people who had kept that sickness alive, well and hidden in the dark sewers and dank cigarette reeking back rooms of Los Angeles office buildings were now shocked, horrified at the sheer volume of abuse. They had the audacity to pretend the were unaware of all the other victims out there. Hollywood does cater to a special type of personality. It is, at the end, all about ME. So one supposes these Hollywood victims could almost make themselves believe that somehow THEY were special. That THEY were one of the few victims of this systematic industry of exploitation. "What? Dana? It happened to YOU too?" "I mean, I went in for that casting call and they said they needed a topless scene and they wanted me to remove my top. I can't believe they asked YOU to do it TOO!" "I had to go and get breast implants after that because I was so embarrassed!" "Now that I think about it, wasn't Nina up for that part as well?"
Yes, the outrage has grown and a witch hunt has begun. And why not? Who can argue that crimes and misdeeds haven't been committed? Both men and women all across the industry have engaged in so many lewd and lascivious acts in support of this golden icon of entertainment industry that it seems some kind of reckoning is due. But what of the victims who remained silent for so long? What of the men and women who suffered in silence while they attended auditions and "private call-backs" and only began coming forward years, even decades later? How many hundreds of young women and men did they allow to be assaulted and molested in order to protect and advance their own careers?
Of course it's no easy thing to accuse somebody in a powerful position of taking advantage of you. A fellow like Weinstein and his friends make careers happen, or they nurture careers and keep them alive, or they cause careers to wither and die like Rose McGowan. No, it either takes an amazing person of integrity and personal conviction to stand up to people like Weinstein as well as all the actors and actresses he's helped through their careers, or it takes somebody with nothing to lose. Corey Feldman was probably closer to the nothing to lose type of guy, but regardless, he did stand up to the critics and the attacks. And with his career completely in shambles he stumbled along, doing what he could to not only make a living but remain on that ever tempting periphery of the spotlight.
It doesn't take any courage or strength to pile on today. In fact, it seems to take courage and conviction to NOT join the thundering herd demanding blood and the ever necessary change. These people all want change in a sickening and exploitative industry, and they are right to want it. But they don't want to accept their own responsibility in creating the stinking tar-pool of corruption, sex and scandal. They want no part in owning up to their own silence and acquiescence over years and years of personal success and prosperity. Again, they're victims. It's all about them, individually but not collectively. They aren't responsible for the sins of the past, but they absolutely want to stamp their names on the change of the future. And so, they'll wear Black! Like Corey Feldman did years ago. When everyone ignored him and called him a crackpot. They did this knowing in their darkest, blackest inner corners that he was saying the things they couldn't bring themselves to say. He was fighting a fight they wouldn't dare take up. Indeed, they'd even mock and ridicule him.
But now - They'll wear black.
Not only was Feldman the only celebrity brave enough to decry sexism and assault in the entertainment industry over a decade ago, he did so to a cacophony of detractors who either discredited him or even more cruelly, ignored him. Undeterred, Feldman began the next phase of political activism. He studied Thoreau, Emerson, Gandhi. He came up with a subtle yet brilliant scheme to draw attention to the sick, rotten underbelly of America's thriving entertainment industry.
He started dressing like a malcontented teenager.
That was it. Beautiful in its simplicity, Feldman began introducing more and more black into his wardrobe to underscore the bloated, black underside of an industry that thrives on glitter and gold. Oh, he still talked about the abuse and the creeps and the sickening things that happen when Mr. DeMille truly IS ready for your close up. But nobody much cared. They barely noticed his stringy hair and black clothing. He was after all, just another failed child actor who was struggling to carve out some semblance of a living on the periphery of the Hollywood lights.
But then, something strange happened. A woman who had long ignored Feldman, perhaps she had even quietly discredited him in private Hollywood circles, found herself sick and tired of being taken advantage of herself. So she made a complaint. That complaint was brushed off out of hand, and suddenly the complaint became a personal stand. But nobody much listened to Rose either. She was after all, a *****. Nobody liked working with Rose anyway. It wasn't such a mystery why she couldn't get cast. Hadn't she been offered the opportunity to read for a part in an Adam Sandler movie? She was the one who shut THAT down. What did we say? A *****.
And, almost like Feldman, Rose McGowan was simply forgotten. Left on the back burner while Hollywood churned away.
But then another woman came forward. And another. Soon some fat, obnoxious producer got on the wrong side of one too many A and B list actresses. While they may have been perfectly fine "going along" in the coming up years, they weren't going to put up with this kind of **** from a fat **** like Weinstein now that they'd made it. Suddenly, Rose McGowan wasn't such a *****. Sure she wore a scandalous dress to an awards show that showed more breast and *** than it covered, quite literally, but hey, it's Rose's body! If Rose wants to dress provocatively for a party, that's HER choice. It sure as hell isn't Weinstein's. And who's to say she wasn't pressured into dressing that way by somebody powerful and influential?
No, the tide was turning and suddenly EVERYONE who had quietly ignored the sick, festering, bloat - indeed the very people who had kept that sickness alive, well and hidden in the dark sewers and dank cigarette reeking back rooms of Los Angeles office buildings were now shocked, horrified at the sheer volume of abuse. They had the audacity to pretend the were unaware of all the other victims out there. Hollywood does cater to a special type of personality. It is, at the end, all about ME. So one supposes these Hollywood victims could almost make themselves believe that somehow THEY were special. That THEY were one of the few victims of this systematic industry of exploitation. "What? Dana? It happened to YOU too?" "I mean, I went in for that casting call and they said they needed a topless scene and they wanted me to remove my top. I can't believe they asked YOU to do it TOO!" "I had to go and get breast implants after that because I was so embarrassed!" "Now that I think about it, wasn't Nina up for that part as well?"
Yes, the outrage has grown and a witch hunt has begun. And why not? Who can argue that crimes and misdeeds haven't been committed? Both men and women all across the industry have engaged in so many lewd and lascivious acts in support of this golden icon of entertainment industry that it seems some kind of reckoning is due. But what of the victims who remained silent for so long? What of the men and women who suffered in silence while they attended auditions and "private call-backs" and only began coming forward years, even decades later? How many hundreds of young women and men did they allow to be assaulted and molested in order to protect and advance their own careers?
Of course it's no easy thing to accuse somebody in a powerful position of taking advantage of you. A fellow like Weinstein and his friends make careers happen, or they nurture careers and keep them alive, or they cause careers to wither and die like Rose McGowan. No, it either takes an amazing person of integrity and personal conviction to stand up to people like Weinstein as well as all the actors and actresses he's helped through their careers, or it takes somebody with nothing to lose. Corey Feldman was probably closer to the nothing to lose type of guy, but regardless, he did stand up to the critics and the attacks. And with his career completely in shambles he stumbled along, doing what he could to not only make a living but remain on that ever tempting periphery of the spotlight.
It doesn't take any courage or strength to pile on today. In fact, it seems to take courage and conviction to NOT join the thundering herd demanding blood and the ever necessary change. These people all want change in a sickening and exploitative industry, and they are right to want it. But they don't want to accept their own responsibility in creating the stinking tar-pool of corruption, sex and scandal. They want no part in owning up to their own silence and acquiescence over years and years of personal success and prosperity. Again, they're victims. It's all about them, individually but not collectively. They aren't responsible for the sins of the past, but they absolutely want to stamp their names on the change of the future. And so, they'll wear Black! Like Corey Feldman did years ago. When everyone ignored him and called him a crackpot. They did this knowing in their darkest, blackest inner corners that he was saying the things they couldn't bring themselves to say. He was fighting a fight they wouldn't dare take up. Indeed, they'd even mock and ridicule him.
But now - They'll wear black.
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