| Keanu biography... | |||
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| 2009-03-01 15:27:29 | |||
ADMIN  Forum Posts: 3074 Comments: 405 Reviews: 1 | Write one? ...My father suggested that I write a Keanu biography and get it published, since I have all the articles and interviews.  What's the most recent Keanu biographical book out there? Would people even bother reading stuff that most people already know? I don't exactly have any new original material... Are biographies this unauthorised even allowed to be published; if so, why isn't there a slew of inaccurate celebrity biographies out there? Or is there...  Unless I add in stuff about Keanu fandom and folks like Isis and KLM. All names changed, of course. Makings of an epic novel.  | ||
| 2009-03-01 16:56:38 | |||
| Forum Posts: 4842 Comments: 381 Reviews: 13 | well, there are a few unauthorized biographies out there, written mainly by journalists who did the same thing : took almost all articles available to them, and complied them chronologically in some sort of a book... I even bought one, Brian J.Robb's "Keanu Reeves - An Excellent Adventure" - printed in 1997, so it ends just before The Matrix... and we all know nothing was the same anymore after the blessed year of 1999  having read a good part of the articles archive, this booklet did not tell me anything new - except for a few personal speculations of the writer, without which I could do very well... but since I got the opportunity to buy the thing, I just had to. I'm a collector , like that squirrel and its acorns ( Ice Age, anyone  I soooo felt for the poor thing... ) I read that this journalist came up with a second edition of his book, to include all the Matrix years...printed in 2003, so that would make it the most recent one... I guess... then there's also Sheila Johnston's book, and some others as well... just google... but who am I to teach you research thing is, all these could be useful for a curious non-fan who wants to get the 'compact' story... or for a new fan who wants to read the facts... problem is, there's a lot of journalism fiction in those facts... as anyone who read the archive can tell. does the world need another such biography ? honestly, don't know... personally, I think that you did a wonderful and unique job in restoring and maintaining the articles archive... not to mention the whole idea of WINM. I'd dare say that is much more important and valuable than yet another paperback edition of ...an essay based on articles... admiration and tributes can take many shapes. WINM is special... ( and the search function in the archive is absolutely awesome !) and I'd dare say that maybe concentrating your energy on your own writing could be a better idea... of course, if you'd ever write that biography, I'll buy it. it's your call ; as always. | ||
| 2009-03-02 09:01:38 | |||
ADMIN Forum Posts: 3074 Comments: 405 Reviews: 1 | Yeah, that's the thing. I thought that if I ever write a biography, it wouldn't just be a regular one because that's been done before - but something that also encompasses not just Keanu's life but the fandom that resulted. The fans, the dishonest journalists, the sites, the Keanuweb, the death of Keanuweb, CK, the cliques, the SWAT team, the reincarnated goddesses, the folks who do not take their medicine... Basically something closer to the spirt of the books 'Skywalking' and 'Trekkies', though I just skimmed through those and didn't have time to read it. Something that won't just be read by Keanu fans. | ||
| 2009-03-02 20:31:36 | |||
| Forum Posts: 4842 Comments: 381 Reviews: 13 | now THAT could be a different approach... and a good idea... you could include the answers to the questions you posted on IMDb or here... practically it will be more an study on fandom than a biography. like the idea... but will you find a publisher ? or it could be an e-book... I'm already thinking logistics | ||
| 2009-03-03 12:42:21 | |||
ADMIN Forum Posts: 3074 Comments: 405 Reviews: 1 | Yeah. If I can't find a publisher, I'll go the e-book route. Tentative title: 'Punching Back: Fandom, the Internet, and Keanu Reeves', after the quote: "It's the powerlessness you go through when the media focuses on you that really bothers me sometimes. It's like getting punched in the face and not being able to punch back." http://www.whoaisnotme.net/articles/1997_02xx_are.htm Sort of like WINM in book form.  (I'm at school. Whoa, the WINM search engine is awesome.) | ||
| keanugirl76 | 2009-03-04 16:09:34 | ||
| Forum Posts: 268 Comments: 0 Reviews: 0 | A biography written in the way Anakin explained could be interesting, as it would be different from all the previous ones, and maybe Keanu himself may appreciate it more  , since most actors hate their biographies. As far as I'm concerned, I noticed that, at some films festivals, there were people who wanted actors to sign these biographies and they refused to do so. They signed anything else, but not those books. | ||
| 2009-03-04 17:50:09 | |||
| Forum Posts: 4842 Comments: 381 Reviews: 13 | yeah, that... isn't it ? can't thank you enough for it ... | ||
| 2009-03-04 22:41:43 | |||
ADMIN Forum Posts: 3074 Comments: 405 Reviews: 1 | Shifted the thread to Off-Topic because that other forum is public. Anyway, this is what I have so far: * "It's like getting punched and not being able to punch back." - Keanu Reeves on media scrutiny, 1995 interview Prologue ________________________________________ This is not a biography. The world does not need another Keanu Reeves biography. It does not need to know that his name is pronounced kay-ah-nu; that it means Cool Breeze Over the Mountain in Hawaiian; that he was born to a British mother and a Hawaiian-Chinese father in Beirut; that he suffered a series of tragedies in the form of dead loved ones at the peaks of his success; that he started out with no more than $3000 to his name and rose to become one of the most highly-paid celebrities in Hollywood and one of its most reluctant stars. The world already knows that. What the world does not know as well is how his life has impacted so many other individuals. The many fans who see him as far more than just an actor, but also a role model and constant source of inspiration. The fans who have stood up and defended him from countless ungrounded attacks against his talent, intelligence and personality. The many fans whose lives he has changed by the simple act of existing and being the person he is. This is our story. ________________________________________ PUNCHING BACK Fandom, the Internet, and Keanu Reeves ________________________________________ contents (not in order. basically just me trying to be clever.) It's Not What It Looks Like Identifying the bandwagon There Is No Spoon The constructed image of celebrity Tale of Angst and Whoa The Private Lives of Keanu Reeves Consider the Source Journalistic integrity and the lack thereof Acts of Vengeance and Brotherhoods of Justice The Keanu SWAT Team: Defending Keanu Reeves Free Your Mind Confronting fishy views Deliver Us From Freedom The pitfalls of Internet free speech You Should Let Me Go The psychotic side of obsession * 1. It's Not What It Looks Like "In show business, there are few universally accepted articles of faith, but one of them would seem to be this: Keanu Reeves is a bad actor." So wrote journalist Adam Sternberg in October 2001. His observation is true, if a bit of an understatement. The media frequently presents Reeves as some epitome of bad acting, an opinion often driven more by bandwagon than truth. If a situation or article calls for a joke about bad acting, bring in Keanu Reeves. Or Paul Walker, or Sylvester Stallone, although they seem to bear the brunt of such jokes far less than Reeves does, possibly due in part to their lower star status in Hollywood. I have reason to say that these attacks have little grounding in truth, for every now and then I encounter a puzzled person--usually not a Reeves fan--who asks why all these even exist. When I mention how I spend my free time defending Reeves on the Internet, there will inevitably be those who ask why he needs defending in the first place, their knowledge of him limited to the films of his that they have seen. It is often only those exposed to popular film culture who feel obliged to jump in and loudly agree that they too think that Keanu Reeves sucks, though when pressed, many of them admit to having seen only a handful of his films, in some cases none of them. Then there are those writers who start off praising Reeves, only to check themselves along the way: "I thought he was good in this film, but otherwise I think he sucks"; "I think he's a nice guy, but I don't think he's a good actor", and so on. That qualifier is always there, that conditional statement, as though to leave Reeves completely unscathed is taboo if one wishes to preserve one's reputation as an intelligent and discerning film critic or individual. (Before going any further, I would first like to say that--as with any other artiste--there are those who genuinely think that Reeves is a bad actor and have valid reasons and solid argumentation to support their stance. I respect their differing opinion. They are not the ones I am referring to here.) It is not enough to ask why; if one is honest it is obvious that, whatever one's opinion on Reeves' skills as a thespian, he is far from the worst actor in Hollywood or anywhere else. We know how a single opinion can take hold and build and spread far out of control through the singular power of the media, bolstered by the Internet and millions of people who wish to be heard and accepted as cool. The question is how to stop it and right the wrongs that have been done. Perhaps this seems like a frivolous task--after all, why does an opinion about some rich celebrity matter, when there are people dying of starvation and war and all sorts of other horrors that plague this planet and surely deserve more attention? Which is actually a very good question. So I won't stop you from putting down this book and going to save the world. Tell me about it when you're done. But I would also argue that to dismiss this issue is to underestimate the power that celebrity and the media hold on millions of lives. This is not just about Keanu. This is about truth and integrity and the dreams of countless people who turn to the shiny glamour of Hollywood and the entertainment industry as escapism from their own harsh realities, whose lives have in some way been affected by these celebrities and the ideals they represent. Meanwhile, what seems on the surface to be unimportant fluff is simply representative of bigger problems underlying the whole structure of the media, especially new media like the Internet. The same forces that lead to a bunch of self-important geeks declaring Keanu the worst actor ever are the same forces that can topple politicians and change the future of the world. Big stuff, the Internet. * I suddenly don't know where this is going. | ||
| 2009-03-05 01:20:21 | |||
| Forum Posts: 4842 Comments: 381 Reviews: 13 | LOVE IT, LOVE IT , LOVE IT ! ESPECIALLY the chapter titles ! AND the last four paragraphs. and all of it... don't worry ; the story will tell you ...  what can I do to help you write it ? bring you hot tea ? coffee ? chocolate ? just don't ask me to write your term papers... you'd flunk all exams and then some.  but anything else... let me know . | ||
| Fiercelyred | 2009-03-05 03:54:20 | ||
| Forum Posts: 125 Comments: 2 Reviews: 0 | Wow, Anakin! Very cool.  | ||
| 2009-03-05 12:14:04 | |||
ADMIN Forum Posts: 3074 Comments: 405 Reviews: 1 | Thanks! If I procrastinate long enough, maybe I can make this into my Communications & New Media thesis paper. Though I hope to finish it before that...Permission to use K-SWAT quotes.  | ||
| 2009-03-05 16:49:47 | |||
| Forum Posts: 4842 Comments: 381 Reviews: 13 | which K-SWAT quotes ? what are you referring at ? if you mean permission to use anything I posted online... of course you have it. As long as you keep the quotes in the context - but I know you will But unfortunately, I'm not a very active member in the rebutals department... so there won't be much to quote... anything else ? | ||
| 2009-03-05 20:43:32 | |||
ADMIN Forum Posts: 3074 Comments: 405 Reviews: 1 | Yeah, I meant stuff you posted online, like on IMDb or CK discussion threads and such. Context will be kept. gah. Stuff To Do: 1) The Book 2) The Not Particularly Excellent Adventures of the Keanu Spawn (got about 900 words of the next installment written, but I cheated so it kind of jumps to the fun bit out of nowhere and now I've got to join the two bits together) 3) Film group project due Thursday. 4) Comic strip which I can ignore. 5) Sociology term paper due 16 March, question released 10 March 6) Poster design due Monday (supposed to revolve around one of the ideas save, prevent or kill) 7) Minor class design exercise due today that should take about 10 minutes 8) Some presentation on story form due Thursday 9) Media writing team project due 30 March 10) South Asian Studies response paper due good question I should probably check. 11) WINM articles updates.  | ||
| 2009-03-05 20:57:05 | |||
| Forum Posts: 4842 Comments: 381 Reviews: 13 | to quote someone at the IMDb boards ( can't remember the name and too lazy to check ) - sleep IS overrated but first things come first. you'll know how to prioritize ... yes, you can use anything I ever posted, at IMDb or CK or here... errr... *tries to remember if she posted anything embarrasing* ...  oh, what the heck... at least it would give me a good reason to blush | ||
| 2009-03-11 08:54:12 | |||
| Forum Posts: 328 Comments: 0 Reviews: 0 | Wow Anakin! That's a great book idea and I LOVE what you have so far. I agree with what LucaM said (I think it was Luca?) about the rehash of biographies and how they're just kind of cut and paste jobs and not too informative. Especially, if you're already a fan. The only KR bio I like is Sheila Johnstons and that was written a while ago. (I also agree, you've done a FANTASTIC job with the article archive!) I'd buy your book! I think your idea (or the people in Keanu fandom) just took an interesting twist. (See what I posted at the Nutters in Keanuland thread, it will blow your mind. Well, maybe. It did mine.) Actually, I have some old articles (things people had written) or at least I think I do, but I don't think you could use them without the authors permission, but it might give you some ideas. I know you weren't around in the "heyday" of Keanu fandom, when there were some great websites and great discussions (Reeves Drive, Chateau Ke, the Garden etc...). Well, boo, I did a quick look and didn't find what I was looking for. I thought I had saved a few things people had written, how Keanu had inspired them. But alas I guess not.  Anakin, I'm too lazy to look, but do you happen to have the NME (New Musical Express) article from August 3, 1996 (about Dogstar). It's one of the most bizarre interviews I've ever read of Keanu's. (I think he was on something. To put it mildly). Let me know and I'll type it up for you if you don't. (I'd scan it, but my scanner doesn't work and actually it's just a black and white xerox copy, not the ACTUAL magazine. A friend sent it to me). | ||
| 2009-03-11 09:26:27 | |||
ADMIN Forum Posts: 3074 Comments: 405 Reviews: 1 | Nope, don't seem to have that one... is it available online? You could do a Google search first, and if not, then you can type it out. Thanks a lot! | ||
| 2009-03-11 10:36:16 | |||
| Forum Posts: 328 Comments: 0 Reviews: 0 | My google search came up empty, so here it goes. Be warned there's some slang that might be hard to understand. NEW MUSICAL EXPRESS August 3, 1996 The cover says, KEANU REEVES: The Dogstar Man goes barking mad for it. YOU CANNOT BE SIRIUS! Exotic screen sex god KEANU REEVES is a tricky blighter. One minute it's all 'excellent, party on dude!', the next it's 'hey nonny no, forsooth...'. But now it's all thundering basslines down Mr 'Cool Breeze Over A Mountain's street as he picks up his bass for his rock combo DOGSTAR! GILL WHYTE harkens to his rocktastic tales of murder, drug abuse and some bloke called Bacchus. Sirius-ly, foks: DEREK RIDGERS "Keanu Reeves, 31, movie hunk, Shakespearian actor, surf dude, box-office sensation, looks bizarrely bleary. All bloated and stubbly, distressed in dishevelled clothing, which looks as if, horreur!, it might just whiff a bit. Then again, this is a man who claims to have been "f---ing five birds and doing coke and heroin al night." But woah there, members of the tabloid press and legal persons, there's more to this story-much more... See, Keanu is in attendance at Glasgow's T in The Park with his rock 'outfit' Dogstar, playing their first British gig. Thus we find him in a modest hotel room attempting to prove his rock credentials to NME by fabricating a tale of wanton sexual and chemical indulgences. The jury is out. Sunday, 6:20 pm, the NME tent. Bis have just wowed an excessively teenage audience into a frenzy of hairslide-popping disco mania. A few Bissettes remain, pushed ever further forward as the tent begins to swell with excitable females of every age clutching instamatics. Some are accompanied by scowling boyfriends seemingly determined to be unimpressed. A few hapless passers-by enter the fray. The place becomes rammed. Then it happens. "AAAAAAAAAHHHH! KEE-ANN-OOOO!" A flurry of fluffy animals pelts down the stage. That'll be the sound man testing the mike, then. So overwhelmed is the female contingent, that when Keanu and cohorts do actualy come onstage, the initial shreiks are intermingled with hushed swooning, concerted craning of necks and much popping of camer flashes. The girls, bless them, stay for a respectable few minutes, then depart contentedly, Hollywood hunkage forever theirs on film. By halfway through the set of abysmally average grunge pop/rock (including a horrifically faithful cover of Badfinger's 'No Matter What') there is so much cat-swinging room it's embarassing. ----------------------------- I'll finish this tomorrow Anakin. Dinner calls. | ||
| 2009-03-11 12:31:03 | |||
ADMIN Forum Posts: 3074 Comments: 405 Reviews: 1 | Wait, is the article by Gill Whyte or Derek Ridgers, or both? and:
I actually like the Dogstar version better. It's faster paced. | ||
| 2009-03-12 11:11:06 | |||
| Forum Posts: 328 Comments: 0 Reviews: 0 |
I think both Anakin. I'm just writing what it says. I think Gill White interviewed them and Derek Ridgers wrote the article. If I had to guess. I like Dogstar's cover of Badfinger's "No Matter What" too. Maybe they hadn't rehearsed it very much when they played at the T In The Park?  I do want to mention that birds is slang for women. I was a bit confused when I first read this interview. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The band plod steadfastly onward. Keanu's lacklustre stage routine consists of static fret board watching and the occasional rock-nodding of head; his bass-playing competent if undynamic. And then the set ends, squib-like, with an obligatory, "You've been a wonderful audience." THREE GUYS from LA, actors one and all, into Pearl Jam, probably. Two of them (Keanu and drummer Robert "Bob" Mailhouse) meet in a supermarket, start talking about hockey, play hockey together, start talking about music, meet up in Keanu's house for a 'jam.' Sometime later, singer and lead guitarist Bret Domrose--formerly of punk band The Nuns, whoever they are, and possesor of blond surf-boy good looks--joins them. They play local bars. A Dogstar is born. "Yeah, after a while we were just like, "Hey! Let's go play a bar.' I'd never been in a band before," offers a laconic Keanu. Hmmm. Can the explanation be so simple? A vague act of whimsy following a bit of a mess about round a mate's? Are Dogstar 4 real in a rock'n'roll stylee? Is Keanu just a beefcaked, airhead making a large prawn of himself in the name of vanity rock? So many questions... Let's go. Sadly, however, there are two obstacles in the way of our quest for hot Keanu interview 'action'. Specifically, Bret and Robert, who seem determined to witter on endlessly about how they're "really into" Pink Floyd and how they're "exploring their emotions through music", and how Dogstar's 'art' lies midway "between Radiohead and the Foo Fighters" and oh dear the entire planet seems to have fallen asleep. Time then, to get tough in an attempt to make the sleepy-eyed icon, like, converse. By a happy coincidence, Dogstar's first would-be single, "Honesty Anyway", has been dropped by the bands label, RCA, supposedly because the band are "unavailable for promotion". Which is strange, since right now they seem to be in a Glasgow hotel room promoting like billy'o. OK, guys, so the single's arse, but you can still make gadzillions from all those drooling fans, so why not just release the f----er? "You want people to hear the music, now it's like the horse before the cart, I suppose there's got to be a reason for it," bemoans a bewildered Bob. "The artist never understands the corporation, like why we're touring without an album, it's strange." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Okay Anakin, this is longer than I thought I'll post more tomorrow, I swear! | ||
| 2009-03-12 11:18:59 | |||
| Forum Posts: 328 Comments: 0 Reviews: 0 | I did find this cute post that I had saved from ages ago (the one I was thinking of). How Keanu had inspired this woman who was turning 40. I think because I've always wanted to learn how to fly a plane, that I saved it. Plus, it was a nice testament to Keanu IMO Hey, (she was writing to a friend, but I've deleted the name) 24th September, and I'll be the dreaded 40. There, I said it. I'm still breathing, blood is still flowing. My mid life crisis started last year, I started yearning for the stupids of youth. You know, things like, learning to fly a plane, re-honing my surfing skills, reading all those books on my lists, having a mindless, wild sex fling with a man other than my sig other, developing meditation skills, buying a new bike and simply disappearing in a cloud of dust to "find myself." Then I "found" Keanu. He became my focus, my guiding light. I am saving to fly the plane, I'm trying to surf again, I've started to read those books, I only want sex with Keanu, I'm working on my meditation, and I will get the new bike but I won't ride into the sunset in a cloud of dust to "find myself." Keanu helped me "find myself", in the comfort of my own home, in front of my own TV, watching my own vids and dvds. Many of my friends, who have always "complimented" me on my uniqueness, now think I'm eccentric, that my balance is somehow off, but I "feel" more balanced and centred than I have been in years. Thanks to Keanu, I found this place in cyberspace, where I'm not alone in the intensity of my emotion for the Man, the chicks are real and the guys are babes. Thank you all you chicks and babes for spending time in this place with me, you help keep me sane in my insanity.  | ||
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