Circus Minimus: It’s just getting weirder now
typed for your pleasure on 2 May 2008, at 1.07 amSdtrk: ‘Empire state human’ by the Human League
As no-one tells me anything anymore, I learned that BBC America aired Nick Holt’s ‘Guys and Dolls‘ yet again a week or so ago. That particular documentary is like the equivalent of Soft cell’s Tainted love for Sidore and I, or perhaps like Blue Monday by New order — it’s the vehicle that’s brought us to the most peoples’ attention, as most don’t know we’ve done other interviews previously. But I have to say, when we get round to putting in another appearance on telly or film, if nothing else, we can show that we’ve not been living at my parents since last year. Man.
So guess which media juggernaut contacted me recently?
from: Donnelly, Christine
to: pulsedemon [at] gmail [dot] com
date: Mon, Apr 21, 2008 at 4:17 PM
subject: Interview Request – from Alan ColmesHi Davecat,
I’m with Alan Colmes’ national radio show.
Last night, I happened to see the BBC America documentary featuring you and Sidore.
We’d love to have you on the show. Both Alan and our audience find this topic very interesting; we had David Levy on the show a few months ago.
What about a phone interview at midnight on Thursday night? Well, technically, that’s Friday, but you know what I mean, right?
It’d be about 20 minutes or so.
If so, at what landline (and backup – like a cell) can you be reached?
Look forward to hearing from you and hope we can arrange.
Best,
ChristineChristine Donnelly
Booker, The Alan Colmes Show
Durr — what? Colmes, of the FAUX News pseudo-pundits Colmes and Hannity? What??
I’d mentioned this invite to New Internet Bestest Friend Forevar, the lovely Gina Banina, during an IM conversation, and she thought it was pretty ace. At that point, I’d asked her if Colmes wasn’t a berserk frothing neo-con, and she replied she didn’t know. I don’t keep up with politics, and I’d only heard tell of Colmes’ and Hannity’s television programme: one representing the left wing agenda, the other plumping for right-wingers, dancing round each other for an hour in an enclosed ring and slicing at the other with homemade prison shanks, their left wrists bound together with a length of rough twine. I hadn’t a clue as to which one was which; however, a quick spin on the Wikipedia wheel set us straight — Colmes was the liberal one. With that news, I began to think that perhaps 20 minutes over the phone wouldn’t be altogether bad… after all, David Levy was once a guest…
I was beginning to consider saying yes, when a crucial factor came to my attention. So I wrote Christine back:
from: Dave Kuroneko
to: “Donnelly, Christine”
date: Tue, Apr 22, 2008 at 6:01 PMHello there –
Thanks for posing an enquiry, however, I’m afraid I’ll have to respectfully decline. Basically, I work a staggered shift, which has me getting off at midnight Wednesday through Friday, so I probably won’t be able to do the phone interview. Thanks very much for the opportunity, though!Cheers,
Davecat, with valued assistance from Sidore
That’s that affair put to bed, right? Wrong. She wrote back almost immediately — literally, like almost half an hour later:
from: Donnelly, Christine
to: Dave Kuroneko
date: Tue, Apr 22, 2008 at 6:25 PMDave,
Thanks so much for replying.
Not trying to be a pain here but…we would love to have you on the show! If 12:30am on Thursday (after you get out of work) would work, that’d be great. Or midnight next Monday or Tuesday?
Best,
Christine
One half of my mind’s going ‘well, what’s the harm in it?’ and the other half is shouting ‘your segments in “Guys and Dolls” were misrepresented on Jay Leno and Talk Soup, for fuck’s sake’. Sometimes, bad press is better than no press at all, but that’s only sometimes. With a subject such as being an iDollator, caution when dealing with the media is extremely important. Plus, all told, FAUX News equals high-RPM spin doctoring in my mind.
So days later — which I kinda feel guilty about, as leaving any booking agent hanging is pretty unprofessional — I finally responded:
from: Dave Kuroneko
to: “Donnelly, Christine”
date: Wed, Apr 30, 2008 at 1:17 PMHey Christine –
Sorry it’s taken so long to get back to you; both my work and my personal life have been in a state of flux over the past few days…
Unfortunately, I think I’ll have to respectfully decline your invite to be on Alan Colmes chat show. To be completely honest, I’m rather distrustful of the way that media, American media in particular, has a habit of spinning topics to serve their own ends, especially in the instance of something as ‘out there’ as being an iDollator. I wanted to have a listen to the interview you say he’d conducted with David Levy, to see how that went, but I was unable to locate it. Besides, the past couple of days at work have been rubbish, and I’m sure that would inadvertently affect my demeanour and circumspection on-air. I’m sure you understand.
Once again, sorry for the delay, and thanks for the opportunity!
Cheers,
Davecat
And that seems to have done it. Sigh.
It’s crazy: the venues that I’d want to be interviewed by don’t seem to have any interest in the topic, and the venues I wouldn’t touch with a barge pole are all over me! This, then, is Irony
EDIT (03 May): So I went ahead and made a ‘Circus Minimus’ category, cos this sort of thing is happening more often than I would’ve ever thought possible. Who knew?
Technorati tags: Guys and Dolls, Nick Holt, Alan Colmes, RealDolls, iDollators, David Levy
Random similar posts, for more timewasting:
Circus Minimus: supplemental on November 1st, 2007
Phil and his short-term memory loss / A stunning likeness! on February 3rd, 2011
May 2nd, 2008 at 7.28 pm
I am your Bestest Friend Forevar online? YAY!!!
I cannot wait til July when we finally meet! Remember to send me info on which weekend in July works best so I can get some cheap airline tix. 😉
Muah!
May 2nd, 2008 at 10.47 pm
Jebus
Keeping contact with you back and forth is hard enough without being some press person. What persistance but it really means nothing if you already have your mind made up. They must have more time on thier hands.
Meanwhile, I am also just as choosy re: “furry media”. I give them alot more of a chance than most in my fandom do, but some media are rats you can smell a mile away. I wasnt born yesterday. >.<
I havent heard from you in a while. Missed your really cool emails. 🙂
Kat
May 3rd, 2008 at 8.52 am
Colmes is the “liberal” from the Hannity and Colmes circus minimus production.
According to some accounts, his part in the show was a distant afterthought, as Hannity had already been offered the show and it was called “Hannity and to be determined” while in early pre-production.
Colmes is considered widely to be a hand-wringing nincompoop who was selected because of his inability to defend his side of any issue effectively, allowing Hannity to “win” all the debates and arguments on the show.
I don’t know what he’s been doing aside from these ignominious beginnings, but I don’t think you’re squandering any great opportunities by passing on his offer.
May 8th, 2008 at 12.19 pm
I saw a clip of ‘Guys and Dolls’ on ‘The Soup’, of course they were making fun of it, but that’s what made me watch it, and I’m glad I did! I hate how they portray people here in the U.S. as well, I’m glad you declined! Chances are, they want to exploit people, grr.
May 10th, 2008 at 12.45 pm
Gina-chan –
Well, someone’s got to fill the position on BFFO, and as you’re the only one who put in an application, looks like you got it! I should warn you that the pay isn’t very competitive, though. In fact, there is no pay! Nevertheless, welcome aboard! 🙂
Kat –
Please don’t get the impression that I’m ignoring you! It is sometimes hard to get hold of me, as many of my friends can attest to! So it’s not just you. 🙂
The Media Carnival is a tricky thing to participate in, as you well know, especially when it comes to ideas or lifestyles that fall outside the ‘norm’. Even when you take as many pains possible to present your case in a positive and educated light, all that can be erased with clever editing. And even disregarding that, even if whatever media vehicle does actually present you in as fair and objective a light as possible, it’s how the audience interprets what they’ve seen as well. Showing an objective presentation to someone with a highly subjective mindset can ruin everything.
I look it at it like this: I’m going to do what I can to help represent a harmless, fun and enriching (yes, enriching) lifestyle, but one person can only do so much. No matter what facts you present, a biased person is going to believe what they want to believe, and short of a grand definitive experience altering their view, nothing will change that. I’m just happy knowing that the people I call my friends know the truth, and those open-minded enough will know the truth as well. What else can one do?
Gah, soapbox. 🙂
SafeT –
Yeah, the Wiki article on him describes him as ‘a FOX liberal’, which just basically said to me that the creators/producers of the show installed him to fulfil the network’s ‘liberal quota’. They’ve got enough blacks to meet Union standards, and now they have enough liberals.
I dunno; perhaps Mr Colmes is a genuinely motivated liberal-leaning person, and is the equivalent of a missionary in the heart of the Congo, trying to change the ways of the one million heathens that surround him, but I can’t in good conscience go onto a show hosted on the FAUX network, and seriously expect to come out at the end having convinced anyone of the worthiness of being an iDollator.
Lizzy –
Thanks for dropping a line! Arguably, the Leno/Soup thing did indeed get the Missus and I exposure, but good lord. The media in this country isn’t exactly open-minded — it’s all about the exploitation, not the education. But at least some people such as yourself got some positive value out of it…
Welcome to ‘Shouting to hear the echoes’! Enough Synthetik articles to make you wonder why you aren’t looking into getting a Doll yourself! Well, maybe not. 🙂