06-20-2013, 01:37 AM
guitarist wrote:
Unfortunate that we live in an age where a notice of a death of a beloved talent is immediately followed by a scold "let this be a lesson to us".
I have a better idea. Let's not.
A person's demise needn't be a lesson, or a message, about anything. Better to respect the life they lived and the choices they made, they were their own. And be grateful. And save the finger-wagging for something more appropriate. Like training a dog, or lecturing a child.
It's possible to honor someone's life, and talent, without the obligatory PSA about smoking, drinking, overeating, or whatever ancient human vice they enjoyed. By habit, and by choice, not without pleasures, and not without risks. People who spend their lives avoiding unhealthy or improper behaviors, and carefully managing risks, drop dead, every day. Just like people with habits we don't approve of do. None of us escapes death.
We loved your work, James. You will be missed. You were one of this generation's finest actors, and left behind an indelible body of work. We will treasure it.
This message to reject the tyranny of socially-reinforced disapproval messages was brought to you by the Screen Actor's Guild, film lovers, TV fans, and Italian Americans everywhere.
:repost: