Mourning Public Figures

Inspired by the public tribute to Michael Jackson, the New York Times has put together this video on the history of public funerals and viewings. 

The introduction articulately states: "Memorials for public figures are equal parts mourning, celebration and spectacle." 

Facebook Tribute Page to Television Character

Either fans or producers of the TV show House MD have developed a Facebook page as a memorial to the character Lawrence Kutner. 

I don't watch House, but apparently, Kutner killed himself on last week's episode of the show. The Facebook page includes photos of the character and hand-written notes from his "friends," i.e., other show characters, with their reactions to his death.

It's easy to dismiss this as people going too far for a television character. But, if they're upset about the character's death, I think it's great that they have a place to come together and publicly "grieve" about it. And I've certainly had my share of becoming emotionally invested in characters from television and literature. 

That said, I do wish the language was restructured a bit ... just to make it more clear that everyone involved is really making the distinction in their minds that this is a television character. And that, while they may be sad to lose his narrative, they do realize it's not a real-life death. 

For example, the page's description reads, "Dr. Kutner was a hard working young doctor with a kind, unassuming, gentle manner. He will be missed by all of us." They couldn't have called him a character? I don't think it would have diminished the page to be honest about what it was. 

People become emotionally invested in television characters. There's no shame in that. There's no shame in feeling a little sad when a character dies. And publicly grieving for that character with other fans might be healthy. But let's not get together in a virtual group to pretend that character was a real person who we really knew just because we have new technology that allows for it. That's where this page goes too far, to my mind. 

And thanks Christian Sinclair for the tip. 

Facing Facebook

We've all had a teacher or two who really inspired us. 

For my sister, it was her high school art teacher, Mrs. Saad. 

Yesterday, she found out via Facebook that Mrs. Saad had suddenly passed away at a fairly young age. 

It occurs to me, before our age of new media, this is probably something my sister would have found out about much further down the road—as gossip through a friend, or at her next school reunion. Now, she is struggling with the tragedy of how this woman's life ended prematurely, and also the immediacy of the news. 

I wonder how it will change grieving that the entire community of people who know and knew someone can instantaneously become aware of their passing. Is this healthier, or is this more than we should be expected to handle?

John Updike Passes

I was sad to read about John Updike's death today.

I first heard of it in an email from a friend who was also upset. He wrote, "Oh man, John Updike died."

I think that expressed my state of mind. Genuine regret, but not real pain. I did not know the man, after all.

Here's what I'm wondering though: Why are we sad when notable, great people pass away?

Updike is a great writer. I have enjoyed his work in the past, but I am nowhere close to having read all of his material. So, I know I'm not upset because he won't be producing new pieces. It's not a personal loss. There seems to just be some general sense of sadness that passes through us all when a larger-than-life figure leaves us.

John Updike on Charlie Rose. Updike interview starts 22:59.

Mortuary Band

Today on Weekend America, I heard this story about a mortuary band. 

In San Francisco's Chinatown, they follow behind funeral processions and play songs like "Amazing Grace" and "Onward Christian Soldiers" on tuba and trumpet. The specific purpose to Chinese funerals is spiritual: The music helps keep the spirit close to the body until it can be buried. 

But the band also draws the attention of the entire community to the funeral. It announces the death. 

When I first heard this piece, I thought the concept was too bizarre to be of much value, but the more I think about it, the more I like it. I'm a big fan of public grieving. I think too much of our grief is dealt with behind closed doors, singularly or within a single family. This pulls it out into the open ... but in a beautiful way. 

One of the band members, Cindy Collins, says in the piece, "Even though it comes from a sad moment, it's this triumphant moment for the person who's going on and we're sharing that with the community. What gets better than that?" 

Heath Ledger Nominated for Golden Globe

Batman: The Dark Knight, which made huge sales at the box office, is once again making huge sales in DVD. And today, Heath Ledger has been nominated for a posthumous Golden Globe award for his portrayal of the Joker.

Ledger gave a tremendous performance as Joker. It was externally loud and outward, but at the same time, he portrayed a character with an intense, seething inner life. He showed a man whose psyche was rotting away to such a degree that he had lost all sense of right/wrong and societal norms. Yes, it was a comic book character, but you bought how this being could have been born out of a real-life scenario.

Now, I do have to admit, there is extra value added because it's the last great role Heath Ledger will ever put down on screen. The finality of it all is enticing. I think he might have one more film left in post-production? But for the most part, Ledger's work is over, and that casts a haunting resonance this piece. How do we separate that from evaluating the work?

I don't think we can. And maybe it shouldn't matter.

As I said when he died and people were flocking to see the film in the theaters, there's a sense of public grieving that comes from appreciating this role. And I'm a huge fan of public grieving. It's cathartic and healing and doesn't happen often enough. There's no doubt it's a quality performance, and I don't see anything wrong with Ledger getting every possible recognition for his performance as Joker, even if part of the reason is the fact of his death.

Dark Knight Already Breaking Records

Fandango is reporting that 90% of their weekend ticket sales are going to The Dark Knight.

AP is reporting that the film has already set a record for midnight debuts, bringing in 18.5 million in its midnight shows alone. (The previous record was $16.9 million for Star Wars III Revenge of the Sith.)

Are people going in for some public grieving, is this morbid fascination, or is it the hype over how good the movie is and how good Heath's performance is?

The Dark Knight Extends 'til Dawn

This from the New York Times:

"In a frenzy, fans have bought so many late-night tickets for the July 18 opening of the next Batman movie that theaters in places like San Diego, Chicago, and even Eagan, Minn., are scheduling 6 a.m. screenings for those who can’t get in at midnight or 3 in the morning."

It seems likely, they're going to see Heath Ledger's last on-screen performance. It'd be easy to read this news as morbid, as vultures picking over the dead, but I find it exciting and uplifiting in a way.

Ledger's death was shocking and tragic. Mainstream America didn't realize he was struggling with depression, anxiety, extreme insomnia and was lost in a mix of prescription drugs. His death was sudden and sad. This film provides an opportunity for people to sit together in a dark room and appreciate him and his talent, silently, as a group. It will be cathartic. It will be public grieving. Which I have said before, I am a big fan of.

I'm sure, given the nature of entertainment reporting nowadays, the hoopla surrounding this film will get disgusting and overbearing. But for now, I love that people are flocking to see Heath Ledger's last role. It makes me much happier than having them buy his action figure. At least they'll get an experience out of this. He was an amazing talent. He was outstanding in Brokeback Mountain, and also, something a lot of people forget about, Billy Bob Thornton's son who commits suicide in Monster's Ball. Wow! Knocked my socks off.

I think The Dark Knight is something we all should see in the theaters, because we should be together to mourn the loss of this great young actor.

Public Grieving Courtesy of Melissa Block

NPR's All Things Considered is in China this week. They were doing reporting for the upcoming Bejing Olympics, but after yesterday's earthquake, their coverage has obviously changed. Correspondent Melissa Block was actually recording an interview when the quake hit. Shortly after the quake, she went to visit a collapsed middle school from which the the bodies of children were being pulled. Both reports have been combined into one dramatic clip online.

It is emotional. It is articulate. She mentions the grief and the way the parents are mourning and sending their children on to the afterlife. Melissa's voice cracks when she mentions how many dead children she saw—showing that even though she is a reporter who is used to covering the facts, the sheer devastation is getting to her. This is a moving and amazing report.

I'm a big fan of public grief, especially when humanity is hit with a mass tragedy, one like this earthquake. Sometimes we need it, and we should indulge that need. I think Melissa Block has provided us all with a great opportunity to explore some of that public grieving with this 8 and a half minute clip on NPR. You can find it here.