Friday, August 31, 2012

An (Empty) Chair Shot to the Head? Clint Eastwood, the Republican Convention, Mick Foley, and a Promo That Never Was


I just got back from Chicon 7. Consequently, I missed Mitt Romney's speech--to be honest, I had no interest in watching how he would pile his own lies on top of the stinking fetid burrito of political feces and propaganda that was Ryan's stillborn lie of conservative afterbirth from the day before. I also missed out on the big surprise that the Tea Party GOP had promised its public--like many I was hoping for a holographic zombie Ronald Reagan. Alas, I am disappointed.

Instead, we were treated to one of the great elders of Hollywood, Mr. Clint Eastwood

I love Clint Eastwood's movies. I respect him as an actor. I am at a loss, a total loss, to explain his speech to an empty chair before a howling group of neo-John Bircher Secessionists. Yes, Eastwood starred in The Outlaw Josey Wales where he played a "good" Confederate. But, he also starred in Unforgiven with Morgan Freeman, and offered up one of the smartest recent meditations on the complexities of race and the color line in "post racial" America in the criminally underrated film Grand Torino. Play Misty For Me is all sorts of goodness--if I ever have a son I am going to show him that movie after my talk about how he best be weary of women with them "crazy eyes."

I would like to believe that the man with no name knows exactly what he is doing. In keeping with my ghetto nerd proclivities (and themes for the week of my attending Chicon 7), I would hope that Clint is actually doing a great pro-wrestling inspired "work/shoot" at the expense of the Tea Party GOP. Nevertheless, I must also entertain the possibility that he has suffered one too many chair shots to the head, and is lost in a waking dream. 

Maybe Ebert is right, and Clint Eastwood just souled out? But why, and for how much, given that he has more money than god?

Mirroring Mick Foley's classic promo, I do want to believe that Clint Eastwood is not a whore.

As such, I can still dream that in an alternate reality, Clint instead chose to give the Tea Party GOP his own version of Hogan's famous heel turn from Bash at the Beach circa 1996.

What a night that would have made for...

11 comments:

nomad said...

Clint's politics is a surprise to you? "Go ahead, make my day"? As they say, rotflmbao.

chaunceydevega said...

@nomad. dirty harry was a conservative reagan era wet dream. he then took down that mythos with blood work and grand torino.

but, clint also did the video in support of detroit and ford, is pro abortion rights, pro gay marriage, and is reasonable on a number of issues. he also mentioned the contemptible john voight in his speech, so maybe dude is really off of his meds.

CNu said...

uh..., Nixon era wet dream - as was Superfly, Shaft, and Enter the Dragon.

chaunceydevega said...

@Cnu. Don't make me send Black Dynamite after you!

CNu said...

This is a .44Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world and it'll blow your head clean off.

Black Dynamite gotta ask himself a question, "Do I feel lucky?"

Well, do he?

As a wee young lad, my scratchy voiced Dirty Harry impersonation was flawless and it never once even occurred to me that there was a racial component to that tableau.

Matter fact, the only racial component I can think of wrt the entire series was the fact that he always made work for his friend Albert Popwell.

nomad said...

What was that dust up between him and Spike Lee about?

Comrade Physioprof said...

Did you drink a fuckeloade of beer at the convention?

chaunceydevega said...

@Nomad. It was about how black marines were not shown in Eastwood's Iwo Jima films.

chaunceydevega said...

@comrade. today was good. i talked to one of the elders in sci-fi about writing and my fear of sharing my fiction work as i am an essayist and social critic in my freelancing. i have more than a few ideas that i think are good. i also believe that my fiction stuff--parts of my novella and graphic novel(s) are not too bad. they need a ton of work, but ain't nothing shameful either.

he said who cares, you have already cashed checks for your writing--which means you are competent and someone likes you. be embarrassed, get over it, and keep trying as you have done better than most already.

he also said most successful fiction writers fail many times before getting a decent result. join the club.

i particularly liked his advice about dropping adverbs in one's written fiction, editing strategies, and how many folks mess up the start of their novels and short stories by not creating compelling characters who do something immediately. who wants to read a book with a slow burn?

his advice on writing the stories that you would read was spot on too; also his real talk on how many people really don't have a story to tell made many faux writing types put their heads down. lots of pretenders out there.

I saw two very good panels on steampunk and philosophy in sci-fi. very telling that when race was brought up in a robust way, especially for the former, more than a few attendees got up and walked out. I am going to interview one of the panelists here on WARN--she was doing good work.

my panel was okay. unfortunately, the moderator was a good guy but not very focused and did not really drive us anywhere. there was good talent there, but he was very reserved and unfocused that kept us from doing our thing as a team. i wanted to step in salvage it; however, that would be rude.

the philosophy panel was cool too and i did some networking as there was much discussion about race in Star Trek. the audience looked at each other as the presenter and I chatted a bit about how problematically black men are depicted in that universe. we all end up unhinged and in insane asylums.

i got some brews. i did not go to any parties though--i am saving that for tomorrow. one is on poly amorous relationships in sci fi and the "real world" the other is a beer, star trek, don't bring your cameras party.

i am curious; but, save for two exceptions i have not seen any women that i would want to see naked. on the other hand i feel pretty sexy by comparison. but then again, i doubt that my aesthetic is pleasing to the women there. damn my ghetto nerdness.

btw joe scalzi is cool to see in person. seemed like a nice guy.

honestly, i have seen a few people but no one has reached out and brought me in. out of the hundreds (thousands?) of people i have seen, i do believe that i can count the people of color on my fingers. we are really an anomaly in such spaces. hopefully that will change tomorrow and sunday. part of me says just show up at these folks' parties, another part of me is worried that there will be suspicion, and a sense that folks like me don't belong there.

thanks again for the beer love.

nomad said...

I don't think Clint sold out or was faking. I think he was saying what he actually believed. But you're right. Having now seen more of the performance, it was weird. Jon Stewart has the best take I've heard so far.
http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/jon-stewart-praises-eastwoods-fist-full-aw

Comrade Physioprof said...

Sounds like fun! And dude, you should totally show up at the parties!