Sunday, April 3, 2011

Charlie Sheen Encounters a Tough Crowd in Detroit

It sounds like the most entertaining aspect of Charlie Sheen's "performance" in Detroit is A.O. Scott's fantastically negative review in The New York Times:
You could say that Mr. Sheen and the audience failed each other. The ticket buyers did not show him the “love and gratitude” to which he felt entitled, and he did not give them the kind of entertainment they thought they had paid for. But you could also say that the performer and the audience deserved each other, and that their mutual contempt was its own kind of bond. The ushers, in their black gold-braided uniforms, retained an air of inscrutable dignity in the midst of an orgy of depthless vulgarity. Everyone else in the room — onstage, backstage, in the $69 orchestra seats — had to swallow a gag-inducing, self-administered dose of shame. And no, the journalists who traveled to Detroit to gawk and philosophize at the spectacle are not exempt from that judgment.



6 comments:

  1. Every diverse news site, blog, and message board I read has this story.

    I think there is another side to the Charlie Sheen story. Chuck Lorre did not handle his anger properly either, "blogging" in a backhanded way about Charlie, and leading an unstable person toward a breakdown.

    I've heard of people who took one class or two in psychology thinking that by giving an unstable person a hard time, they are doing society a favor by leading them to a breakdown, forcing them to "get help" or be turned over to "authorities". Never bought into that theory.

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  2. As much as this saga has played out in the public eye, I don't think anybody, except maybe Charlie Sheen's therapist, is qualified to comment on who's to blame for his behavior. But I find it hard to believe that it's Lorre's fault. Addicts often have to affix blame on somebody for their behavior. That's always easier than blaming themselves.

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  3. On the bright side, at least the Fox made some money.

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  4. Well, you don't do this to the most important person in your life's work. You handle it in private.

    http://www.chucklorre.com/index-2hm.php?p=329

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  5. There must be some bad tiger blood goin on in that crowd.

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  6. Keeping score:

    Detroit: major negative. Long line of people asking for refunds after the show.
    Chicago: somewhat better. Finished the show, minimal booing.
    Cleveland: better than Chicago. Some people liked it, few thought it was awful.
    NYC #1: Last night. Even more negative than Detroit. Booed off the stage after 45 minutes of a scheduled 90 minute show.
    NYC #2: scheduled for tonight. Only about 3/4 of the house is sold, and tickets are steeply discounted on Ebay, Craig's List, etc.

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