30 Days of De-Objectification:
Professional RPF
Today,
I would like to address the use of real people characters in
professional creations.
Twelve
years ago, using a pseudonym, I published a book featuring real
musicians. I liked every one of these people and was very careful to
be respectful with my depictions. Nonetheless, my creation earned
some ire, including a death threat. I pulled it off the market. No, I
am not going to reveal the name of this ill-advised book.
Following
this experience, I was given some good advice.
Don’t
publish stories using real people as characters.
Working
with real people as characters is dicey at best even when the
author’s intent is benign.
At
this point, I wouldn’t publish my ill-fated book regardless of how
respectful I felt I was being. Most pieces I publish with real people
characters are completely on the down-low. Every now and then I’ll
share a brief, humorous bit in more public forums.
With
real people, one must not only think about the feelings of the people
depicted, but of their families.
A
number of years ago, I watched a show from a speculative anthology
series. I can’t remember if it was the “New Twilight Zone” from
the 1980s, the reboot of The Outer Limits, Tales from the Crypt, or
another such series the name of which I’ve forgotten. In the story,
a man’s car breaks down in a town where he starts seeing people who
are dead ringers for dead musicians. It turns out that these people
are, indeed, those musicians in Undead form, and they want the man
dead so he can’t tell their secret.
I
can’t remember all of the musicians depicted. I can remember Janis
Joplin, Ronnie Van Zant, and Elvis Presley being among them.
While
Ronnie Van Zant would probably have gotten a kick out of the
depiction of himself as a homicidal Undead, I’m not sure that his
surviving brothers were okay with it. I don’t know how Janis
Joplin’s sister felt about the story either.
I
can’t imagine that Lisa Marie Presley is keen for the multitude of
times that her father is used in various fictional depictions. I’ve
even enjoyed some of these stories. I liked the story from the
aforementioned anthology. I love Stephen King, and I enjoyed Needful
Things, which included a depiction of Elvis Presley. I realize that
there is a difference between Elvis Presley the person and Elvis the
Image. However, it’s a fine line to tread.
Recently,
I’ve been catching up on the fifth season of American Horror Story.
I just finished watching the episode where actress Elizabeth Johnson,
portrayed by Lady Gaga, meets Rudolph Valentino, who, it is revealed,
is a vampire. Valentino tells the story of being turned by F.W.
Murnau, the creator of Nosferatu. Valentino turns Elizabeth into a
vampire.
The
story line is compelling and the depictions of Valentino and Murnau
are not unflattering. Were I Natacha Rambova, however, I would not be
particularly keen for the way I was depicted.
Rudolph
Valentino is a figure who has become larger than life. He has been
dead for close to a century. He had no children. Most of his original
fans are dead. He belongs to the ages.
Working
with long-dead historical figures as characters allows more leeway
for the author. However, a degree of respect is still appropriate,
even in cases of legendary figures such as Valentino.
A
film such as 1990’s Henry and June depicts events chronicled by a
real person, in this case, Anais Nin. Nin explicitly described her
romantic and sexual bond with fellow author Henry Miller and his
wife, June. The erotic nature of the film is true to real events
recorded by the author.
Lurid
masturbation fantasies about aging and dead musicians penned by
members of the so-called “classic rock fandom” are nowhere close
to on par with the writings of Anais Nin. Generally speaking, such
literary codswallop serves only to offend real fans of the
unfortunate tunesmiths being objectified.
Perhaps
I’m lazy, but I find working with fictional characters to be much
easier than using real people as characters. One can take a lot of
liberties with a fictional character that they oughtn’t with a real
person. Even if the fictional character was inspired by a real
person, they become their own being and do not need to adhere to the
attributes possessed by the real person. There are also no real
people to be offended should the flight of fancy happen to cross into
risque territory.
~The Cheese Hath Grated It~
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