LPSG Spotlight on Alex8!
- Thread starter Gillette
- Start date
jason_els (he whose wisdom broke free from the mirror to reflect our own humanity back at us):
You must be a big Rula Lenska fan.
Even though I must include her name on the list of seriously underused performers. I file her very much in the same section of my mind as Fenella Fielding, Prunella Scales, and Lucinda Lambton. And no, it's not just a section for women of a certain age whose first name ends with the letter 'a'.
Why do Germans not fear the grotesque and crass?
How do Germans transform those same things into something beautiful and novel?
I think these two questions have to be answered in tandem, insofar as the second question presupposes the existence of a transformational aspect, which I do not perceive to be the case. German literature, especially since the age of the Romantics, has been obsessed with the figure of the doppelgänger, that embodiment of the notion that we are all intrinsically the indivisible product of polar opposites. That could be tied in with pronouncements by the likes of Novalis, Schlegel, or Nietzsche along the lines of "if you look into the abyss, the abyss will look into you"; and this idea that we are all intrinsically made up both of what we project to the world and the opposite of that, may help to fuel the idea that the grotesque and the crass are merely necessary parts of beauty and erudition that should be afforded the same esteem and respect as these latter constructs.. since, in effect, they are these latter constucts already anyway.
I argue that the Germans and Americans share a most similar national character. Why is this expressed through film and music in each culture? Is this connected with the peculiar fascination with ancient Egypt?
When one considers the prominence of the German language and German culture in the United States well into the early Twentieth Century, in terms of German-language newspapers, books, theatres, etc... it's scarcely surprising that echoes of German-ness should continue to resonate in US culture. (Only recently, I was hunting out a review of a Theda Bara movie in a New York newspaper from 1916... only to be taken aback somewhat by the fact it was in German; it seems so alien to the way we've been taught to think of American culture at that time, of silent cinema in the US, of a star like Bara.) If you consider the period in time when Egyptology took hold in popular culture in Germany, especially in the late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Centuries, then it's perhaps no surprise that this likewise found its echo in the press and media of a country which was still so closely connected with the German(-speaking) roots of so many of its inhabitants at that time. (Of course, continuing from my earlier aside, it would be remiss not to mention Theda Bara's 1917 screen appearance as Cleopatra).
Do you like space disco or do you just find it derivative?
I would argue that all disco music has a strong sexual flavor; the rhythm, the sassiness, the look and sound of its performers, etc... indicative of that pre-AIDS age in which it first took hold as a musical style. Space disco merely lends sexiness a new set of clothes, in the form of 'space as sexiness', an ebullient 1970s eroticization of the manifest joy of dreaming of a post-Armstrong-on-the-Moon world of progress in space, articulated also on the big screen through "Star Wars" and its related filmic kith and kin. As such, it's not derivative as such, but rather an extension of the concept of sexiness within a specific historical socio-cultural context.
Pabst and Brooks or Herzog and Kinski?
I'd really want both. If I'm forced, then I'll take Kinski, because I think his characterizations show us much more of ourselves than merely bobbed hair.
Again and again foreigners claim Poe as the finest American writer yet most American scholars would nominate Clemens. Why do you think this is (feel free to be wry and pithy)?
From a German standpoint, and connecting to my response about German/US culture above: Poe writes exquisitely Germanic English, at a time when American English was still more heavily influenced by German. Even the simple example of the title of The Fall of the House of Usher illustrates this, with its punning use of "Fall" (der Fall = a case, or case-study; as well as a literal 'fall') more or less lost on modern American readers, but instantly recognizable in German. It's entirely possible that some translations of Poe into other languages may also communicate more of his puns and wordplay than can readily be spotted by a contemporary American readership.
Were you variously ignored, patronized, and isolated to the point of immense frustration as a child?
Yes, into early adolescence. At which point I made a fairly conscious decision that I actually didn't care what other people thought about me, and became a louder, more forthright version of the quirky person I'd always been anyway. And actually, one only does a disservice to many others around one if one hides oneself away; far more people enjoy and 'get' odd personalities than one ever imagines could possibly be true while one is lost in self-doubt and alienation-by-the-few.
When are you coming to New York?
Do you think I need to get my teeth into a bigger apple, then?
Does anyone on LPSG or, failing that, anywhere actually intrigue you enough to marvel?
There are very few people who have that incredible quality to them which lights up one's world upon first contact with them. I can count the people I've encountered who had that 'spark' on the fingers of one hand. But their rarity is what makes it worthwhile to keep hunting them out.
Thank you for what I will confess has been a taxing set of questions. Of course, no-one would expect or accept anything less from you, good sir.
You must be a big Rula Lenska fan.
Even though I must include her name on the list of seriously underused performers. I file her very much in the same section of my mind as Fenella Fielding, Prunella Scales, and Lucinda Lambton. And no, it's not just a section for women of a certain age whose first name ends with the letter 'a'.
Why do Germans not fear the grotesque and crass?
How do Germans transform those same things into something beautiful and novel?
I think these two questions have to be answered in tandem, insofar as the second question presupposes the existence of a transformational aspect, which I do not perceive to be the case. German literature, especially since the age of the Romantics, has been obsessed with the figure of the doppelgänger, that embodiment of the notion that we are all intrinsically the indivisible product of polar opposites. That could be tied in with pronouncements by the likes of Novalis, Schlegel, or Nietzsche along the lines of "if you look into the abyss, the abyss will look into you"; and this idea that we are all intrinsically made up both of what we project to the world and the opposite of that, may help to fuel the idea that the grotesque and the crass are merely necessary parts of beauty and erudition that should be afforded the same esteem and respect as these latter constructs.. since, in effect, they are these latter constucts already anyway.
I argue that the Germans and Americans share a most similar national character. Why is this expressed through film and music in each culture? Is this connected with the peculiar fascination with ancient Egypt?
When one considers the prominence of the German language and German culture in the United States well into the early Twentieth Century, in terms of German-language newspapers, books, theatres, etc... it's scarcely surprising that echoes of German-ness should continue to resonate in US culture. (Only recently, I was hunting out a review of a Theda Bara movie in a New York newspaper from 1916... only to be taken aback somewhat by the fact it was in German; it seems so alien to the way we've been taught to think of American culture at that time, of silent cinema in the US, of a star like Bara.) If you consider the period in time when Egyptology took hold in popular culture in Germany, especially in the late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Centuries, then it's perhaps no surprise that this likewise found its echo in the press and media of a country which was still so closely connected with the German(-speaking) roots of so many of its inhabitants at that time. (Of course, continuing from my earlier aside, it would be remiss not to mention Theda Bara's 1917 screen appearance as Cleopatra).
Do you like space disco or do you just find it derivative?
I would argue that all disco music has a strong sexual flavor; the rhythm, the sassiness, the look and sound of its performers, etc... indicative of that pre-AIDS age in which it first took hold as a musical style. Space disco merely lends sexiness a new set of clothes, in the form of 'space as sexiness', an ebullient 1970s eroticization of the manifest joy of dreaming of a post-Armstrong-on-the-Moon world of progress in space, articulated also on the big screen through "Star Wars" and its related filmic kith and kin. As such, it's not derivative as such, but rather an extension of the concept of sexiness within a specific historical socio-cultural context.
Pabst and Brooks or Herzog and Kinski?
I'd really want both. If I'm forced, then I'll take Kinski, because I think his characterizations show us much more of ourselves than merely bobbed hair.
Again and again foreigners claim Poe as the finest American writer yet most American scholars would nominate Clemens. Why do you think this is (feel free to be wry and pithy)?
From a German standpoint, and connecting to my response about German/US culture above: Poe writes exquisitely Germanic English, at a time when American English was still more heavily influenced by German. Even the simple example of the title of The Fall of the House of Usher illustrates this, with its punning use of "Fall" (der Fall = a case, or case-study; as well as a literal 'fall') more or less lost on modern American readers, but instantly recognizable in German. It's entirely possible that some translations of Poe into other languages may also communicate more of his puns and wordplay than can readily be spotted by a contemporary American readership.
Were you variously ignored, patronized, and isolated to the point of immense frustration as a child?
Yes, into early adolescence. At which point I made a fairly conscious decision that I actually didn't care what other people thought about me, and became a louder, more forthright version of the quirky person I'd always been anyway. And actually, one only does a disservice to many others around one if one hides oneself away; far more people enjoy and 'get' odd personalities than one ever imagines could possibly be true while one is lost in self-doubt and alienation-by-the-few.
When are you coming to New York?
Do you think I need to get my teeth into a bigger apple, then?
Does anyone on LPSG or, failing that, anywhere actually intrigue you enough to marvel?
There are very few people who have that incredible quality to them which lights up one's world upon first contact with them. I can count the people I've encountered who had that 'spark' on the fingers of one hand. But their rarity is what makes it worthwhile to keep hunting them out.
Thank you for what I will confess has been a taxing set of questions. Of course, no-one would expect or accept anything less from you, good sir.
Xcuze
Cherished Member
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2008
- Posts
- 2,935
- Media
- 0
- Likes
- 452
- Points
- 303
- Location
- In a treehouse
- Sexuality
- 90% Gay, 10% Straight
- Gender
- Male
Drifterwood (he whose username I actually remembered to include at the top of my response to him this time round ):
Apologies, Alex, but you did agree to this.
I think you underestimate the size of Gillette's collection of nipple torture devices if you truly believe I agreed to this entirely of my own free will.
What motivates researchers? and you in particular in this respect?
The pithy answer would be: we're those people in the world who are obsessed with delving deeper, looking beyond the surface to find out something overlooked or undiscovered. The element of 'obsession' may be what distinguishes us from others who merely like to look beyond the surface. Personally... this world weighs quite heavily on me at times, what with its constant change, the near-instant fading of each yesterday into something new, and its annoyingly short lifespans. Perhaps one shouldn't be surprised to find me trying to keep part of yesterday alive always, trying to cast light on forgotten fame, on lost joys, on fading splendor; because I find it so hard to accept their transience. I'm like the relative who refuses to switch off the life-support machine, who finds solace in feigning 'extra life' for the loved one in the hospital bed; but of course, it's all an illusion. However, there are enough others who enjoy these illusions to make me continue with them.
Is there an aspect to your motivation that you don't like?
I'm nearly always drawn to the ultra-obscure, seldom to the mainstream. This is both fascinating and limiting, in terms of resurrecting 'yesterdays' which no-one noted even while they were stills 'todays'.
How high are your personal standards of disgression and integrity?
I name few names, I spill few beans.
What is your position with regard to outing famous people?
Two wrongs don't make a left-turn. While I find it unproductive to hide one's true identity from the world beneath a veneer of heteronormativity, I don't necessarily think that it's productive to present potential rôle models who have lived with their sexuality as if it's a "dirty little secret", which they are only revealing to the world after being forced to do so. I understand why outers do what they do, I just would rather put my faith in potential rôle models who've been open about and comfortable with their identity from the off.
If you were to write an autobiography, who would it be about?
Do I get to ghost JB's autobio?
Do you think I caught out JB with that last question?
I dunno, the ghosting may have him spooked, though.
Why do you think that JB needs to number his questions?
In case one falls onto the floor. You know how it is trying to work out retrospectively where an unnumbered question fits into the scheme of things.
b/ What do you make of Stephen Fry's love of Wagner?
The ability to juggle Wilde, Wagner, and Coward effortlessly is the mark of the true eccentric. :wink:
What do you get if you combine nihilism with existentialism? (I won't accept a KFC family bucket)
LPSG?
The Germans, the Brits and the French, should we be having more sex with each other?
Only if our sexual organs fall within specified EU parameters.
):Apologies, Alex, but you did agree to this.
I think you underestimate the size of Gillette's collection of nipple torture devices if you truly believe I agreed to this entirely of my own free will.
What motivates researchers? and you in particular in this respect?
The pithy answer would be: we're those people in the world who are obsessed with delving deeper, looking beyond the surface to find out something overlooked or undiscovered. The element of 'obsession' may be what distinguishes us from others who merely like to look beyond the surface. Personally... this world weighs quite heavily on me at times, what with its constant change, the near-instant fading of each yesterday into something new, and its annoyingly short lifespans. Perhaps one shouldn't be surprised to find me trying to keep part of yesterday alive always, trying to cast light on forgotten fame, on lost joys, on fading splendor; because I find it so hard to accept their transience. I'm like the relative who refuses to switch off the life-support machine, who finds solace in feigning 'extra life' for the loved one in the hospital bed; but of course, it's all an illusion. However, there are enough others who enjoy these illusions to make me continue with them.
Is there an aspect to your motivation that you don't like?
I'm nearly always drawn to the ultra-obscure, seldom to the mainstream. This is both fascinating and limiting, in terms of resurrecting 'yesterdays' which no-one noted even while they were stills 'todays'.
How high are your personal standards of disgression and integrity?
I name few names, I spill few beans.
What is your position with regard to outing famous people?
Two wrongs don't make a left-turn. While I find it unproductive to hide one's true identity from the world beneath a veneer of heteronormativity, I don't necessarily think that it's productive to present potential rôle models who have lived with their sexuality as if it's a "dirty little secret", which they are only revealing to the world after being forced to do so. I understand why outers do what they do, I just would rather put my faith in potential rôle models who've been open about and comfortable with their identity from the off.
If you were to write an autobiography, who would it be about?
Do I get to ghost JB's autobio?
Do you think I caught out JB with that last question?
I dunno, the ghosting may have him spooked, though.
Why do you think that JB needs to number his questions?
In case one falls onto the floor. You know how it is trying to work out retrospectively where an unnumbered question fits into the scheme of things.
b/ What do you make of Stephen Fry's love of Wagner?
The ability to juggle Wilde, Wagner, and Coward effortlessly is the mark of the true eccentric. :wink:
What do you get if you combine nihilism with existentialism? (I won't accept a KFC family bucket)
LPSG?
The Germans, the Brits and the French, should we be having more sex with each other?
Only if our sexual organs fall within specified EU parameters.
Gillette (she who wields the spiked titty-clamps ):
You mentioned once that begärsten has been around for decades.
It gets more hits at Google than 'pisstardism'. What further proof do you need?
How long did it take you to master it?
Six years to master the primary position, followed by three minutes to defeat gravity.
Were you ever injured during a session?
There was the time I had to mail my penis to Copenhagen for recalibration, but I prefer not to talk about it.
Have you ever traced how it evolved to be? if so, can you share that with us?
Three dinosaurs were sat around in the primordial forest. The first one put her webbed talons over her eyes and said: "See no weevils!" The second one put his webbed talons over his ears and said: "Hear no weevils!" The third one got his cock out and said, "Look at me, I'm bastin'!"
Are there any special moves you've added to improve upon it and make it your own?
I was fortunate enough to receive funding from the European Sex Project, and developed the so-called "spring left-right up-down move"; it's like kung fu combined with raw sex and a bunch of spring onions.
Will you show me?
Are you able to process widescreen webcam images on your computer?
):You mentioned once that begärsten has been around for decades.
It gets more hits at Google than 'pisstardism'. What further proof do you need?
How long did it take you to master it?
Six years to master the primary position, followed by three minutes to defeat gravity.
Were you ever injured during a session?
There was the time I had to mail my penis to Copenhagen for recalibration, but I prefer not to talk about it.
Have you ever traced how it evolved to be? if so, can you share that with us?
Three dinosaurs were sat around in the primordial forest. The first one put her webbed talons over her eyes and said: "See no weevils!" The second one put his webbed talons over his ears and said: "Hear no weevils!" The third one got his cock out and said, "Look at me, I'm bastin'!"
Are there any special moves you've added to improve upon it and make it your own?
I was fortunate enough to receive funding from the European Sex Project, and developed the so-called "spring left-right up-down move"; it's like kung fu combined with raw sex and a bunch of spring onions.
Will you show me?
Are you able to process widescreen webcam images on your computer?
Fuckin' Jeff "Question Master" Black :
Would you ever classify yourself as:
Brilliant?
Only if I've used shampoo and conditioner that day.
Sexy?
'Sexy' is a state of mind which anyone can achieve with confidence and desire. You know the tale, but it bears repeating: I arranged to meet a guy through a well-known online gay profiles site once, who described his body type as 'large'. When he turned up at my apartment door (tsk, tsk), he was morbidly obese, well over 300 pounds. For the first time ever, I actually wondered whether a person was too wide to get through the doorway of my apartment. And he was confident, fun, and in every sense of the word, 'sexy'. We had a truly fantastic night of ass-fuckin' fun... because we both found the 'sexy' within ourselves and applied it accordingly.
Strong?
I can throw nuns off a cliff and barely notice I'm doing it.
Witty?
Nope.
Street Savvy?
Depends on the street. I'd rate my chances more highly in a Frankfurt back alley than I would in a Baghdad high street.
(that's my last one, I swear):biggrin1:
You ain't the only one who's swearin' by this point, buster.
:Would you ever classify yourself as:
Brilliant?
Only if I've used shampoo and conditioner that day.
Sexy?
'Sexy' is a state of mind which anyone can achieve with confidence and desire. You know the tale, but it bears repeating: I arranged to meet a guy through a well-known online gay profiles site once, who described his body type as 'large'. When he turned up at my apartment door (tsk, tsk
), he was morbidly obese, well over 300 pounds. For the first time ever, I actually wondered whether a person was too wide to get through the doorway of my apartment. And he was confident, fun, and in every sense of the word, 'sexy'. We had a truly fantastic night of ass-fuckin' fun... because we both found the 'sexy' within ourselves and applied it accordingly.Strong?
I can throw nuns off a cliff and barely notice I'm doing it.
Witty?
Nope.
Street Savvy?
Depends on the street. I'd rate my chances more highly in a Frankfurt back alley than I would in a Baghdad high street.
(that's my last one, I swear):biggrin1:
You ain't the only one who's swearin' by this point, buster.
Wartrac (the penis in the dark strikes back):
Oh I don't know if we put our minds to it, we may end up with something clever as this, don't you agree?
YouTube - Semaphore Version of Wuthering Heights (Monty Python) I'll even wear the bonnet.
If I can't wear a bonnet too, I'm not playin'.
Actually a sketch I love, along with (inevitably) the Spanish Inquisition sketch and the "It's the Mind" déjà vu sketch.
Was it sweet or savory?
Without meaning to be overly personal, I'm not sure whether you've ever had Chinese deep-fried balls, but it was very much like those.
Oh I don't know if we put our minds to it, we may end up with something clever as this, don't you agree?
YouTube - Semaphore Version of Wuthering Heights (Monty Python) I'll even wear the bonnet.
If I can't wear a bonnet too, I'm not playin'.
Actually a sketch I love, along with (inevitably) the Spanish Inquisition sketch and the "It's the Mind" déjà vu sketch.
Was it sweet or savory?
Without meaning to be overly personal, I'm not sure whether you've ever had Chinese deep-fried balls, but it was very much like those.
Drifterwood
Superior Member
I don't think that anyone could really find a bad word to say about a country whose national anthem implores tyrants to tremble, although I might question the proximity of Montevideo to the sea.
Apart from that: the Uruguay Tourist Board informs me that you are considered the most exotic site of national importance, with early opening on Saturdays and reductions for group access. Tell me it ain't so.
findfirefox
Sexy Member
- Joined
- Oct 9, 2005
- Posts
- 2,009
- Media
- 0
- Likes
- 50
- Points
- 183
- Age
- 40
- Location
- Portland, OR
- Sexuality
- 99% Gay, 1% Straight
- Gender
- Male
Xcuze (because second helpings are often filling):
Carry on Screaming is the best Carry on film ever; True or False?
While I think these kind of absolutes in terms of best/worst are always unreliable, I believe that in broad terms, the statement is true. Of course, the pinging-off of Barbara Windsor's bra in Carry on Camping is arguably the iconic moment of the entire series, but the rest of that film lacks the consistent pace and punchiness of Screaming imho.
You are very British with your references; where does that come from?
A fascination with British comedy and movies from an early age, British friends at school overseas, studying in Britain for several years, the pleasing attributes of many British men in an unclothed context.
You throw up names that I would only expect someone born & bred here in the UK to know....
One of the seminal moments in terms of giving me an increased sense of my sexuality was thanks to Julian Clary, oddly enough. While in sixth form near London, I went to see him in a stage show he was doing, and afterwards bought a record he'd cut (trained singer he ain't, bless him). Said the man at the sales desk in the theatre foyer: "Would you like the eight-inch or the twelve-inch?" ... "the twelve-inch," replied innocent teenage me. "Ah, I could tell you were that sort!", he responded. And while I'm sure the guy made the same joke to tens of others that night, his words to me finally helped to fix something in my mind, about it really being alright to laugh about and enjoy the nonsense of sexuality and cocks.
***
At which point, I believe my 24 hours are up. As is my post-count. A few minor technical issues behind the scenes :biggrin1: mean that the next "Spotlight" thread will appear at some point in the next two to three hours, more or less. Oi vey.
Thanks to those who indulged me here, and who continue to indulge my peccadilloes on a regular basis. Although, as I always like to point out... peccadilloes really do make wonderful pets. :wink:
Carry on Screaming is the best Carry on film ever; True or False?
While I think these kind of absolutes in terms of best/worst are always unreliable, I believe that in broad terms, the statement is true. Of course, the pinging-off of Barbara Windsor's bra in Carry on Camping is arguably the iconic moment of the entire series, but the rest of that film lacks the consistent pace and punchiness of Screaming imho.
You are very British with your references; where does that come from?
A fascination with British comedy and movies from an early age, British friends at school overseas, studying in Britain for several years, the pleasing attributes of many British men in an unclothed context.
You throw up names that I would only expect someone born & bred here in the UK to know....
One of the seminal moments in terms of giving me an increased sense of my sexuality was thanks to Julian Clary, oddly enough.
While in sixth form near London, I went to see him in a stage show he was doing, and afterwards bought a record he'd cut (trained singer he ain't, bless him). Said the man at the sales desk in the theatre foyer: "Would you like the eight-inch or the twelve-inch?" ... "the twelve-inch," replied innocent teenage me. "Ah, I could tell you were that sort!", he responded. And while I'm sure the guy made the same joke to tens of others that night, his words to me finally helped to fix something in my mind, about it really being alright to laugh about and enjoy the nonsense of sexuality and cocks. ***
At which point, I believe my 24 hours are up. As is my post-count. A few minor technical issues behind the scenes
:biggrin1: mean that the next "Spotlight" thread will appear at some point in the next two to three hours, more or less. Oi vey. Thanks to those who indulged me here, and who continue to indulge my peccadilloes on a regular basis. Although, as I always like to point out... peccadilloes really do make wonderful pets. :wink:
Google for general queries. Yahoo! for fun 'n' frolics. Other for when I'm trying to hunt down naked pictures of you from a few years ago.
Drifterwood
Superior Member
Allo Allo is ....................?
Ooops, I thought that we were going to the hour.
Ooops, I thought that we were going to the hour.
Last edited:
...one of those many BBC comedy series which outstayed their welcome.
Rather like "Only Fools and Horses" or "Are You Being Served?", the great writing and impact of the opening seasons was only diminished by the endless return of the shows for yet another season or yet another Christmas special. Which is why they can never hope to compare with "Fawlty Towers", which knew better than to ever risk outstaying its welcome.See, never even mentioned the War.
Xcuze
Cherished Member
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2008
- Posts
- 2,935
- Media
- 0
- Likes
- 452
- Points
- 303
- Location
- In a treehouse
- Sexuality
- 90% Gay, 10% Straight
- Gender
- Male
...one of those many BBC comedy series which outstayed their welcome.
See, never even mentioned the War.
I totally agree. To really enjoy these shows you have to go right back to the first few series.
Even Abfab ran out of steam eventually.
I don't think that anyone could really find a bad word to say about a country whose national anthem implores tyrants to tremble, although I might question the proximity of Montevideo to the sea.
Apart from that: the Uruguay Tourist Board informs me that you are considered the most exotic site of national importance, with early opening on Saturdays and reductions for group access. Tell me it ain't so.
Absolutely, Montevideo shores are on Río de la Plata, not the Atlantic ocean.
Oh yes, very early on Saturdays in particular.:wink:
Drifterwood
Superior Member
D_Gunther Snotpole
Account Disabled
D_Roland_D_Hay
Account Disabled
It is all about you (and my comment summed it all up! You are the total package)
Similar threads
