[hanashegum]

The horny grannies (and non-grannies) did it! Or did they?

“To bed — or to sleep?” Jamie asked. “To act — or to make drinks?” This may have been S’s dilemma at one point. It’d be fair to say that the latter has been winning. An embryonic idea, it may have gained traction after filming S3. The S that answered interview questions upon returning from filming S3 in SA was a very different public S. It was a pissed-off S who had had it. And this, of course, must encompass the personal and the professional — a series of intertwined circumstances that led him to do what he could to take control of his life. But how did we get here? How did we get to the here and now where S’s acting career does not seem to have many prospects but his partner-in-crime costar’s does? For starters, C attaches herself to projects with A-list leads where she plays supporting roles. While she’s very attractive, her appearance is subdued. She can disappear in a role without taking any attention away from the lead actor or the storyline. There aren’t many worthwhile supporting roles for a tall striking male actor who’s already led a successful 8-season series but achieved no significant industry recognition. Likewise, he has too much exposure and too little star power to be the lead in important projects; and he’s too old to be the next Thor. Starz, RDM, politics, “horny grannies,” whatever — they all set him up to do what he’s doing now. It all started with the seemingly harmless female gaze marketing: Empowered modern career woman with magical powers meets hot stable boy/warrior from the past with magical dick. She was promoted for awards; he was not. Simple as that. He was downgraded to a beefcake from the start because, apparently, female audiences are not expected to walk and chew gum. He would bring in the cash; she, the prestige. It was a setup. S did outstanding acting in the first few OL seasons and yet he got no recognition. The industry ignored him. Where to go from there? He must’ve figured, “If not now, when?” All he could count on was the crazed, unconditional fervor of his committed female following. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade — in this case, alcohol, merchandise, fan events. A significant segment of the audience turned him into something that was beyond his control. And then he became it. He turned being the object of desire into a business. A Taurus boy, he has an earthly relationship with money. He was not going to let lemons go to waste. The other side of it is that you can’t be a serious actor or be taken seriously when you spend much of your time and energy promoting your side business, which you deem your passion project. The craft of acting requires a focused mind, and he’s all over the place with business pursuits.

An exceptional filmmaker, some day (hopefully sooner rather than later), may discover OL and fall in love with S’s subtle, deep, sensual, vulnerable, honest, visceral and arresting performances. And S may just be whom they were hoping to find for the leading part in their stellar project. But life goes on. It doesn't have to be like you once imagined or other people imagined for you. If you can't have what you love, love what you have — as the saying goes. (In the words of 17th century Comte de Bussy, “Quand on n'a pas ce que l'on aime, il faut aimer ce que l'on a.”) I believe that’s called growth.

[lallybroch-pr-watch]

Poor Steph! That villa does not look very nice

https://www.rentbyowner.com/property/can-ventet-by-sunvillas-mallorca/HA-61111740578

Unless this was booked at the absolute last minute and every other villa on the island was already taken, I find it hard to believe Sam would choose a place like this.

I may have high standards, but it looks perfectly average, with the pool being pretty much its only real selling point, and the price is much more in line with what an ordinary family might spend than with the standards of a wealthy celebrity.

At this point, I’m less doubtful that Steph was there and more doubtful that Sam was. Either that, or his financial situation is considerably worse than we thought.

[hanashegum]

Okay, I’m going to say something here, with respect. Who is this “ordinary family” who can afford a vacation in Mallorca at $544 a night? For how long? One night? Or is it the kind of ordinary family that spends years saving for their dream vacation? (Maybe by “ordinary family” you just meant well-off but not famous?)

I live in a high income US city (mean household income, ~$168,000; median household income, ~$141,000). It is also one of the places in the US where people save the most. Yet 45% of households still live paycheck to paycheck with zero net savings. Just above that 45% (some of whom are poor and some not poor but low-income for the city) are those I would characterize as ordinary families. No way they can afford a rental in Mallorca at $544 a night plus plane tickets, food and activities. Say a short 6-night dream vacation? Depending on the number of people, what they do with their time, and where they travel from and to, that would raise the cost to a minimum of several additional grands. I’d say ordinary families go camping in Mallorca. Or they book a tour package – no villa.

Those in my family who spend summers in Ibiza (admittedly more expensive than Mallorca) are well-off, yet they book a typical Ibicencan house with swimming pool in a quiet coastal area not long after they return from vacation, when the prices are lowest. No one goes to the Balearic Islands in search of Beverly Hills. SH is low-level rich. He’s very far from rolling in it. His net worth has been reported as $5M to $6M for years, so I don’t know how accurate that is. But considering his apparent sense of urgency to make money, and that much of his money is tied up in investments, he’s definitely not wealthy enough to throw money away. Most likely, he also helps members of his family financially. There is no shame in living within one’s means – far from it, it’s a great skill.

The villa is traditional Mallorcan architecture, sober, functional, and without pretensions, which many find charming. And, as you said, it could be a last minute booking or that he didn’t rent it at all. My point is, is there a point in putting people down for not being rich enough? I just don’t see it.

[hanashegum]

🤣

[hanashegum]

S and C sitting in a tree,                               K-I-S-S-I-N-G!

Once upon a time there were two actors who engaged with each other in fun, highly sexual, public banter. They also looked at each other with heart eyes. Then, things turned weird and they suddenly called each other “screen husband” and “screen wife.” A wedding had taken place and language had to change because of the wedding; behavior had to change because of the wedding. (Those, however, did not have to change prior to the wedding, out of respect for a supposedly long-term committed relationship with the would-be spouse.) The banter waned down and eventually ended. Some very fun people here stopped posting because there was no fun left.

I’ve never been a fan of deep-digging. I much prefer observing what’s in front of me and letting my right brain do most—not all—of the work. Here are some observations on SC sex in OL.     Do they or don’t they—have sex? Well, of course they do—did, at least before the IC era. Over the years, a few filmmakers have acknowledged, in in-depth interviews for film journals, that sex was had in their films. They’ve basically said that sex is very hard to fake, so when it looks real (not that often), it’s because it is. By sex being real, I mean actors being deliberately and consensually aroused, experiencing sexual feelings, and allowing those feelings to drive and inform their performances. Those OL viewers/fans who dismiss SC sex scenes as just acting, know very little about acting.

Incidentally, I merely took a few acting and filmmaking classes in college, and never acted professionally, but I knew that. Not because I was explicitly told—I was not. But because it’s something you just get to know in the course of your training. And if I knew, you-really-pulled-it-off Susan S. certainly does. And so does the filmmaking community. This is a craft secret, and for good reason. General audiences who wouldn’t understand that part of the craft (and it really is a part of the craft) are better off not knowing. And the film industry is better off with them not knowing.

Of course, sex by no means can be reduced to penetration, but even that was most likely had on camera at least once in OL, IMO. That would reasonably lead to assume additional times off camera or edited out. Needless to say, this only works with actors who willingly and without coercion commit to this aspect of a given project. (Otherwise, we enter criminal territory.) All we saw all those years was love—a partnership rooted in love, admiration, and mutual respect.

[mojo106]

It couldn't be more of a contrast

I’m genuinely delighted to see how Caitriona’s career has taken off since filming for OL wrapped up in autumn 2024. She’ll be appearing in lots of interesting projects in the near future. She’s still a beauty, and as a former top model, we’re sure to see her in the front row at fashion shows. And her farewell posts for OL were awesome. All of them.

Her male counterpart on the other hand… Celebrating his birthday with shooting ads for his Quinn appearance with a 🌈 cake and pink earphones. And let’s keep quiet about the rest.

Because, to be honest, there isn’t much of that. Not even an official farewell post. At least not yet.

I hope Sam realises that without his portrayal of Jamie Fraser, he wouldn’t have sold a single bottle of gin, whisky or vodka. And MPC would have remained nothing more than a pipe dream.

And on top of that, there wouldn’t be any free tickets to a Dodgers game either. Not in June 2016 (iykyk) and neither in 2026.

However, it is an art to leave with dignity, and one that is clearly not given to everyone.

So. cheers and fingers crossed to new adventures for both of them.

And I'm pretty sure that both of them will continue to make a name for themselves in the future. Only in very different kinds of ways.

P.S.: The photo above shows a bottle of a Sasse liquor out of my stock. They do a whisky as well, btw.

[hanashegum]

He is who he is, not who fans wished, hoped or assumed he was. And he’s a product of his experience—like we all are. Life happened to him. And life happened to her too—hence the contrast in the direction of their careers. Politics, big and small, gave C four GG nominations in a row, not all deserved, and gave him none, even when he very much deserved some. He must’ve figured soon enough that if he was not going to be recognized for his acting in the first three seasons of OL, he was never going to. So he decided to take advantage of his Hot Scot image and female following to branch out into the alcohol business. And now he just thinks like a salesman. That’s where his focus is. It’s very hard to marry art and business. They live in two different, separate headspaces. OL has not ended for him and the alcohol-buying devotees on his IG. There’s more to squeeze out of it. The adventure continues.

[i-ship]

Does this mean the MW wants us to know Sam and her began dating before January 2025?

Do any of them realize how bad it looks to insinuate that only 4 months after the unfortunate death of her husband she was already vacationing with another man?

This is getting worse by the second.

[hanashegum]

Another MW. Married a man (she had just met) six months after the death of her beloved, live-in SO. Marriage to new man lasted 40+ years.

https://people.com/movies/meryl-streeps-vigil-for-dying-boyfriend-and-marriage-to-don-gummer/

[hanashegum]

"North and South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, and the cities of Charleston are particular favorite of mine, obviously."

—King Charles III

[hanashegum]

[hanashegum]

[hanashegum]

[hanashegum]

Misogyny by other names . . .

I’m nauseated by the widespread misogyny expressed here toward S’s most recent female companion, and the bourgeois judgment and expectations regarding the child. Whatever the case, it’s very likely mother and daughter are signed up with a talent agency to get gigs as a family, which is very common. Nothing terrible is going to happen to the child while in the care of a loving and protective parent, which her mother seems to be. It’s not unusual in parades and other crowded public events to lift or hold a child (even 9 years old and older) temporarily, both to comfort a tired/overstimulated child and for the child to get a better view. It happens in families who believe physical closeness is paramount in child development; are mindful of their individual child’s needs; and do as required to be present for and responsive to the child.

Although S’s and companion’s differing attitudes toward each other look decidedly bad in the context of loving relationships between equals, they’d be justifiable in a very specific professional, transactional context. Given this hypothetical, but not unlikely, talent agency gig, she has a job she gets paid for and needs to ensure she does it well—that she plays the role she’s supposed to play. He, on the other hand, is in a very different position. He is the star of this movie where she is background talent—a featured extra.  He might want (and might have been advised) to make sure professional boundaries are clear and to stick precisely to the bare script, as to avoid any confusion and people’s feelings getting hurt. It’s not easy. As a professional performer, he would think of the background talent as background talent. Keyword: background.

Because the background talent (not a real actor) is in a vulnerable position—acting as SO, not in a real movie but in real-life situations—, feelings can get hurt; performance can be confused with real friendship and closeness developing. Furthermore, this is all happening in public view. S might want to preserve plausible deniability—have it both ways. It looks bad, but the alternative would be selling a lie he apparently does not really want to sell. It’s probably not fun for either of them.

As for S’s public performance in the NYC Tartan Day Parade, I get the feeling he’s one of those foreigners who go overboard in their enactment of American culture for financial gain, often interpreting stereotypical brashness as accepted standards. (Would he act like that in Scotland?) It’s just a lot of real-life performance for an introvert.

[hanashegum]

[harriethattie]

No Such Thing as a Neutral Observer:

In a social system, no one is neutral, we are all affected by social forces and structures. This is a key observation to the study of sociology.

No matter how distanced you think you are, no matter how much you think you don’t care about certain things, your opinions; experiences; hopes; dreams; family dynamics; social interactions; all shape us and inform us throughout our lives, it is next to impossible to distance yourself from them. Your opinion of certain aspects in society and your position in society itself will always inform your opinions.

The Fish-eye Lens

Imagine you are a fish in a fishbowl. The glass surrounding you will never block what you see. You have a 360 degree view of the world around you, just like every other creature on the planet, but, of course, your view is warped and distorted by the glass bowl around you. You assume, as a fish, that you see perfectly. You would never know that your view was warped by the glass.

We all live in separate fishbowls, all distorting reality through the lens of our experiences.

The fish is you. The bowl is your experiences with, and interactions in, society. You will never see past them.

While some seek neutrality by taking examples and reporting observations, they are inevitably being subjective in their choices. By moving from reporting an observation (presenting facts fairly) to expressing an opinion, adopting the moral high ground, they expose their bias and lack of neutrality.

[hanashegum]

True – no one is unbiased. But self-awareness and the intention to be fair can help you “check your biases.” And that’s how we become better individuals and a better society. It’s possible to create a space around you that allows you to set your ego aside to a great extent. Your experience and values will always influence your thoughts, but you can let go of attachment to thoughts, which is not at all the same as not caring. I like the Zen Buddhist concept of the beginner's mind. I think this attitude of openness and lack of preconceptions is as far as you can go in terms of being unbiased. Neutrality is too inert a concept, and so is objectivity. I don’t think they’re even desirable as an aspiration. Awareness OTOH is something we can all work on.

[hanashegum]

[hanashegum]

[hanashegum]

[hanashegum]