| Author |
Message |
Gidget
Member
07-28-2002
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 1:53 pm 
Can Macho, Non-Metro Actors Play Gay?
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/Movies/story?id=6378749&page=1
Another perspective. I remember but can't find a link, some bruhaha about casting only gay actors for gay parts. I remember thinking if that is the case then I guess gay actors shouldn't go for straight parts.
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Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 5:47 pm
Yeah I guess I don't understand the parallel. LOL
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Gidget
Member
07-28-2002
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 6:00 pm
You can't have it both ways or all ways. I am so sick and tired of how the rules change depending on the players.
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Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 6:10 pm
I guess I didn't know openly straight actors were systematically denied roles because of their sexual orientation.
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Gidget
Member
07-28-2002
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 6:12 pm
I don't know if they are or not. I do know there are complaints.
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Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 6:21 pm
From whom? Straight actors? The whole point of that article is that straight actors always get to play gay in films and gay men don't.
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Gidget
Member
07-28-2002
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 6:29 pm
For me the point is actors get to play parts that directors and audiences want to see in those parts. Gay playing straight, straight playing gay, neither have any bearing on anything in my opinion. The quality of the performances is what counts.
Complaining that only straights get to play gays is the same as complaining only infertile men get to play fathers????
I can't see why a gay actor can't play straight. What the hell is straight anyway? What is gay?
The best actor for the role should be the sole criteria.
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Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 6:30 pm
Which brings us back to Ms Chenowith.
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Gidget
Member
07-28-2002
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 6:42 pm
Sorry I don't follow that line of reasoning. The guy who wrote the article she reacted to did not think the guy played the part well. He is entitled to his opinion.
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Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 6:52 pm
Because of the reason he thinks Mr Hayes didn't play it well. Because he's unable to disassociate Mr Hayes from his gay identity. [From his review: "But frankly, it's weird seeing Hayes play straight. He comes off as wooden and insincere, like he's trying to hide something, which of course he is. Even the play's most hilarious scene, when Chuck tries to pick up a drunk woman at a bar, devolves into unintentional camp. Is it funny because of all the '60s-era one-liners, or because the woman is so drunk (and clueless) that she agrees to go home with a guy we all know is gay?" And it gets more homophobic after that.]
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Gidget
Member
07-28-2002
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 7:05 pm
So a gay guy can be homophobic? The drunk woman goes home with a guy we all know is gay. Do we all know he is gay because he is out or because he failed to create some mannerisms appropriate to a straight 60's guy at a bar?
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Gidget
Member
07-28-2002
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 7:07 pm
I still don't know what gay is. Unfortunately in entertainment, too often gay is swishy - I can't think of a better word.
I was stunned when I learned Robert Reed was gay. I so bought him in bed with Florence Henderson every week.
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Maris
Member
03-28-2002
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 7:24 pm
Here is my argument about Ramin. Ramin is young, hip. he hasnt been subjected to the discrimination or pressure of those of previous generations. He critiques the entertainment industry and sees it for what it is. He isnt saying all gay actors cannot play straight roles, he is saying some cant pull it off. An actor who attaches himself to an identity has difficulty convincing the public of other roles. Lets look at it, Could Arnold Schwartzeneger, a straight conservative play a convincing role as a serious gay man?
What is wrong with a saying a specific gay actor cant play a straight role ---
Just saying
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Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 7:50 pm
Well, in the case of Sean Hayes, for example, I don't think it's true. Hayes did a great job and was nominated for an Emmy for his portrayal of Jerry Lewis...who isn't exactly a Friend of Dorothy. While it's totally possible that Mr Hayes is wrong in this role, I don't think it's legitimate to say it's because he's gay; he may just be wrong for the role, but, as Mr Setoodeh's review points out, it's because he has a conception of the character that is about macho swagger.
I'm also troubled that Mr Setoodeh believes that now that we know about Rock Hudson, we can no longer look at his films without seeing the 'truth' of his identity--I guess his gayness is the transcendental signifier. It's a deplorable, reductive way of viewing people IMO. And if "an actor who attaches himself to an identity has difficulty convincing the public of other roles," what does that say about Tom Hanks, who always celebrates his wife Rita Wilson (and by extension his heterosexuality) when he wins awards for, among other things, playing a gay man in Philadelphia?
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Ginger1218
Member
08-31-2001
| Wednesday, May 12, 2010 - 3:43 am
I can still watch Rock Hudson with Doris Day and believe it. <just sayin>
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Yesitsme
Member
08-24-2004
| Wednesday, May 12, 2010 - 5:11 am
I think there are just bad, or limited, actors. I don't think it matters what their sexual orientation is and guess I don't get the fascination there seems to be with regard to it. I tend to accept what is on the screen, and don't really go beyond that to what I know about their personal lives. But I know that others who can't get past the personal lives of the actors on screen. And I know both gay and straight who seem to have this obsession. It's a shame....I think I get the most enjoyment with my simplistic outlook!
And I, too, still believe in Rock Hudson and Doris Day.
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Mameblanche
Member
08-24-2002
| Wednesday, May 12, 2010 - 9:54 am
I love Rock Hudson!  And Richard Chamberlain in Shogun was perfection in a macho, straight-role. I wish people, like the author of that stupid article, would either smarten-up or just keep their ignorance to themselves. Geez.
Actors are actors, they are hired to PRETEND, to take on fake personas for the duration of a performance. It's their job. They are either good at their job or not. They are either suitable for a certain part or not. Hundreds are usually auditioned until one actor/actress seems right for the part. I daresay their religion, political leanings, and sexual orientation isn't on the 'job application'.
Mind you, I suppose that any amount of time spent living in 'the closet' would make them even better at their craft, since until they come out of the closet, they have to act 24/7 as something other than themselves. Sad to put people through that though.
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Ophiliasgrandma
Member
09-04-2001
| Wednesday, May 12, 2010 - 12:39 pm
Richard Chamberlain in Thorn Birds kept me hyperventalated for the whole series and up until today. That man was hot!
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Yesitsme
Member
08-24-2004
| Wednesday, May 12, 2010 - 1:28 pm
Mameblanche I agree, though I don't really care if people share their opinions (or ignorance, when it happens to be that!) You can't usually change thinking until people talk about it. I like the dialogue. Especially because I do think it seems to have been the underlying opinion that a person's real-life sexual orientation (or even other things such as weight, less than perfect looks, or age) limits them to certain parameters in casting. I think they are wrong and are denying some great performances.
Oh..and Shogun. Don't think I ever saw that. But agree with OG....loved Richard Chamberlain in Thornbirds.
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Mameblanche
Member
08-24-2002
| Wednesday, May 12, 2010 - 3:40 pm
OMG Yessie, run, don't walk, and rent SHOGUN... I'll personally refund you if you don't like it. (Or you could download it free, LOL) It's probably one of the best mini-series EVER!
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