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All Entertainers are Terrifying People, and OnlyFans Models are no Exception
I watched McMahon some while ago, and it was kind of amazing. Basically tells the story about a young psychopath working his way up from being raised by a single mother in a trailer park, to building a multinational media empire and being friends with the President. All the same, he's still a psychopath. You can admire his unparallelled achievements and greatness, but he's still a terrifying individual you would never want to know personally. At a certain point in the documentary, I think before a slew of new allegations came out about McMahon but maybe not, a bunch of interview subjects are asked what they think McMahon's legacy will be. All but one of them choke on the question, knowing all the skeletons that man has in his closet, but not wanting to say anything because they aren't public (yet).
And McMahon was just one example. It was an industry built on people willing to make any sacrifice for fame and fortune. Putting aside the steroids, they worked at a pace that destroyed their bodies. Listening to the Undertaker go over the list of permanent injuries he's left with is a nightmare. And these people undoubtedly blew off steam in ways greater society would condemn. Drugs, alcohol, sexcapades, you name it.
With Hollywood, and all the high profile sex and crime rings that are being exposed with Harvey Weinstein, P Diddy and even old Epstein paint a nightmarish picture of an industry that paints itself in a very good light. The casting couch has always been infamous, but who knows how far the depravity goes. We catch glimpses every now and again. Brian Singer, the director of the first two X-Men movies was criminally outed as a gay pedophile.
And then there was Lily Phillips, who broke down crying after taking 100 cocks in a day. It's repulsive. But, as I sit with the knowledge of it for longer, most entertainment is made by repulsive people. Has Lily Phillips abused her body and broken with public morals more or less than McMahon, or P Diddy, or Harvey Weinstein? Or even the average wrestler or movie star willing to do anything to be famous? How was Chris Benoit doing during his career? How does taking thousands of cocks over a career, and the BPD and narcissism associated with such an act weight against CTE?
I guess if I have a point, it's that the Roman's were correct. Entertainers are all degenerates and you should scorn anyone who chooses to be one.
I loved the McMahon doc. One of the most interesting parts that no one commented on: him and his son both had great wrestler genetics. Like, yes there were a ton of roids involved, but still: it's crazy that they were able to put in a solid workmanlike performance in the ring with guys who weren't nepo-babies from ownership. Like most of the other wrestlers who were main event guys were pure genetic freaks who worked their way up, and then you had Vince and his Son participating and they got into it purely from having inherited the role.
It's wild that not only was the original documentary planned as a hagiography, it was specifically planned to go with the Netflix-WWF deal. So Netflix didn't just find themselves with a documentary they needed to salvage from a MeToo disaster, they had to salvage a multi-billion dollar content deal in real time.
I mostly endorse your opinion, and extend it to all famous people. Famous CEOs, politicians, intellectuals. Rare are the famous people who wish they weren't famous, who just want to work and hate what has been thrust upon them, rare enough that I think they can mostly be ignored. Even those who got big out of love of their art, fame changes them, money changes them. A FiveHourMarathon who women recognized in the street would be a different man than I am.
You aren't wrong. Which is why it's so much more remarkable when people do turn away from fame. The example probably most near and dear to myself is Bill Watterson. There is something transcendent about becoming the best, a worldwide sensation, and then walking away and living a nice quiet life in the Midwest. Wikipedia says he has a wife, no mention of kids, but as private as he is I think we only know about the wife from public real estate transactions, since it's only mentioned alongside him buying a house.
I kind of love this. It makes it easier for the art to stand on it's own. I'm not fretting squaring my love for Calvin & Hobbes as a child with Watterson's political beliefs, his support for or lack thereof for Israel, which party he supports, his twitter beefs, outrageous bullshit he said for attention, etc. I know virtually nothing about him except by proxy from his art.
Even more than that, he stood to make millions from licensing Calvin & Hobbes for merchandise, but refused, as he wanted the comic to stand on its own. Every piece of C&H merchandise you've ever seen (including the infamous sticker of Calvin going for a piss) was unauthorised. You have to respect that kind of integrity.
My wife and I had to hand sew a Hobbes stuffed tiger for our son when he was born, it wasn't until that moment that I realized he never merchandized the characters.
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