Posted on 01/18/2016 9:59:21 AM PST by rey
Not a Fan
by Theodore Dalrymple
January 16, 2016
One should not speak ill of the dead, of course, especially of the recently dead, but it does not follow that one should speak well of them, or speak of them at all. Personally I was astonished at the amount of coverage given to the death of David Bowie. One might have thought he was really a figure of world historical importance such as David Beckham or Leonard DiCaprio.
On the day after his death, the supposedly serious newspaper that I take most often when I am in Britain, The Guardian, ran a special 12-page supplement on his life and activity, as well as five pages in its normal section. There have been articles about him on the two subsequent days. I wait patiently for the tide to turn.
(Excerpt) Read more at takimag.com ...
served in a snifter.
There’s a lot that played into that, certainly when the hippy movement made long hair automatic in rock and roll the whole industry pushed towards androgyny. And Jagger was getting the “hot” rating when the Stones still performed in suits.
“Major Tom”. That was about it. Never bought a single Bowie recording.
That’s just not true.
A couple of points - I have no idea how Barnum’s death was treated when it happened. Maybe there was a lot of press coverage, since he was a pretty famous guy.
My second point - I don’t think it’s appropriate to compare entertainers with prostitutes.
“One should not speak ill of the dead, of course, especially of the recently dead....”
And then the jackass does exactly that.
And yes, who could ever argue that Bowie was bigger than Umm Kulthuma? I remember all those top 40 Egyptian Hits playing as the soundtrack to kids lives in the 70s and 80s. lol,,,, just wow.
“Mother Teresa was,during her life, a far,far,far greater force for good than Princess Di ever *dreamed* of being”
You know, id call it a draw at best. Teresa opened up soup kitchens and shelters. Diana worked on the landmine thing and dozens of charities.
Seriously.
Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga soundtracks are a big part of kids’ lives today, doesn’t mean that their “music” is worth a damn. I’m not saying Bowie was as phony and utterly untalented as they are, but arguing merit from popularity doesn’t count for much. After all, popularity also got Obama elected twice.
“Upon his demise I listened to some of his work, realizing that I’d practically never heard what he’d done, only that he was out there and very important in the niche he occupied.”
Wow, you must be VERY cool, can I hang out with you at your next cocktail party?
“....as he merely prostituted himself to make money.”
As opposed to you, who only works at things that bring deep satisfaction to you, and you remained pure through it all. I can see you now, writing poetry. When complete, you read it, smile, and then burn the page lest ye be prostituting your ideas.
(rolling eyes)
“...but arguing merit from popularity doesn’t count for much.”
Except, that is precisely what the writer did by invoking Uum’s funeral.
I wouldn't call it a draw...not even close.Mother Teresa got her hands dirty.She lived in squalor.She was constantly exposed to the terrible diseases that her patients had,as well as those found in and around Calcutta.Diana left her castle,got into her limo,hugged a kid who lost a leg from a land mine and got back into her limo.
Diana was gorgeous.And what little I heard her say suggests to me that she was a basically nice woman.But she was no Mother Teresa.
Just my 2 cents' worth...
It’s VERY true. The summer of free love and all the dirty smutty sex that implied was 1967, 1967 also saw the musical Hair which an entire song about dirty smutty sex. Bowie didn’t start getting hits until 1968 and didn’t become a personality driving fashion until the 1970s. The math is quite clear, teens having wild crazy filthy kinky sex BEFORE they ever heard of David Bowie.
No. I did not prostitute myself. I did not dress as a cross dresser, I did not engage in homosexual affairs. I did not publicize my relationship with anyone, I did not make sexuality the cornerstone of my profession, I did not facilitate other into mainstreaming their sexuality, and I did not take it from Mick Jagger or Freddie Mercury, so, no I did not prostitute myself to create an image based on sex.
I do not think that any of them are figures of world historical importance! Are they all cut ups, successful entertainers, singers, sports figures?
I was being TRUTHFUL.
Seems like he’s venerated more in death than in life. Unlike other major pop icons - Presley, Lennon, Jackson who were legitimately big stars before their untimely deaths, it seems to me that there are now all of a sudden “huge” Bowie fans who weren’t as into him when he was alive.
I could be dead wrong of course but that’s what it seems like to me.
A couple of my friends and I were talking about Bowie the other day, and I mentioned this song, saying I found it somewhat haunting. 2 days later we learned of his death.
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