Quote Of The Day: Art, Loss And Celebrity
This event has spurred another topic in my mind, the odd truth that though we come to know these people by name and appearance, they are not our neighbors, nor our friends. Surely we can admire, support and mourn for those we never meet, but many of us do not know the inner personalities or insecurities of the celebrities we enjoy. Their publicity makes them ours to discuss, criticize and love, but the masses are not necessarily welcome in the hearts of Heath Ledger and his peers. Our love is not requited. So it strikes me as a little weird to feel a sense of loss for a person I've only come to know through the cinema. And yet, I still mourn him, and I still appreciate him.
----------Danny Zucker
Posted by
Deepti Lamba on January 23, 2008 03:58 PM 
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In remembering Edmund Hillary, I wrote, "I loved Edmund Hillary as much as a person could possibly love someone they’d never met." Certainly, as the quote you've pulled says, that love was not directly requited. And yet, the love existed precisely because of the mutuality of the relationship. Hillary loved the world of which I am a part, and contributed to it in a way that made it a better place for all of us. His generosity touched me, even if obliquely. He earned my love.
I can't say about Heath Ledger. I know nothing about his life and am not sure I've ever seen anything in which he acted. But perhaps Mr. Zucker's feelings stem from the same sense that Mr. Ledger contributed to make the world a better place, and therefore earned his grieving. Perhaps the comment was born of the sentiments best expressed by John Donne, "Every man's death diminishes me." But in all likelihood, it came from the sense of voyeuristic fixation which our media culture cultivates. The last alternative is a bit sad.
Posted by: mbjesq | January 23, 2008 11:11 PM