Amanda Palmer Killed Amanda Palmer
In my drafts sits a (barely written) piece entitled “Amanda Palmer’s Complicated Cultural Legacy.” If you’re familiar with her whole…thing, you can probably imagine some of what I was considering when jotting that down. She hangs in the Bisexual Hall of Shame, wherein I described her as “Perpetually battling Joss Whedon and Lin-Manuel Miranda for the #1 spot on Wesleyan’s Most Annoying Alumni power ranking.” But since the revelations of the New York piece on Neil Gaiman’s reprehensible sexual abuse of multiple women — and her degree of complicity — she’s gone from arguably problematic to absolutely fucking canceled in my book. To be clear, when I say canceled, I mean that I’ll never listen to her music again and I regret ever patronizing her work. I finally saw the Dresden Dolls live in October 2023 and now I wish I could erase that experience from my memory. Kayleigh Donaldson at Pajiba puts it succinctly: “The absolute least she owes the world now is silence.” And fuck Neil forever, obviously.
The Oscars Race Is Messy As Hell
It’s possible that by the time I hit “Send” on this post, another Oscars controversy will have reared its ugly head. Kayla’s excellent recap (above) became outdated within hours. Most recently, Emilia Perez’s Karla Sofía Gascón gave a tearful TV interview defending herself from accusations of bigotry and refusing to “renounce” her Best Actress nomination. So why’s this particular film awards cycle so drama-driven? The obvious answer is desperation. With the industry’s contraction and the overall economic downturn, it’s become even harder to make and distribute features. Every studio, streamer and producer with a horse in the race really, really wants to win for financial and reputational reasons. It’s fascinating to watch the campaigns play out in real time, of course, but all the clawing and grabbing can be a bit much. The Internet also has a long memory. Right now Best Actor nominee Adrien Brody’s not only weathering a post-production AI scandal; he’s also haunted by missteps from his last Academy go-round...which took place 22 years ago. To maintain sanity until the actual ceremony on March 2nd, I suggest we all focus on Demi Moore’s feel-good narrative and adorable dog Pilaf!
Recommendations
RuPaul’s Drag Race S17
As a longtime Drag Race viewer — I used to stream it on Logo’s website (gulp) — I approach each new season with trepidation. The recent All Stars installments have sucked. I’m tired of production gimmickry, catchphrase-first queens and fandom shenanigans. BUT. Every premiere, I tune in and start warming to the cast. Within a few weeks, I’m hooked all over again. This time it started with Suzie Toot’s nine tap dancing toes…and now I’m identifying as a proud Piggy. My finalists are Onya, Suzie, Lexi and Jewels <3 Let’s go girls!!!
Conclave
I knew I’d like Conclave. Whispering, conspiratorial clergymen? The iconography and ritual of Catholicism? Stanley Tucci? Yeah, I was in. But I didn’t expect to become so invested in this fictional search for a new Pope. The question of a woman’s “place” in the Church is addressed in a surprising, delightful way, and the narrative (wisely) sidesteps the whole, uh, abusing children thing. This isn’t Spotlight, for fuck’s sake! So good, I started wearing a cross around my neck again — purely for the aesthetic. It’s Vatican chic!
Shameless Self-Promotion
I had the best time at Pure Chaos’s Lindsay! last October. My dear friend Anddy Egan-Thorpe hosted the show, and co-produced it with Chris Metcalfe. Pure Chaos runs great mics/shows throughout NYC that I highly recommend to comics and audience members alike. Watch this short, loose set if you like jokes and/or care about my personal life!
You Should Also Be Reading…
I am a longtime fan of Julie Mitchell’s writing, comedy and hilarious social presence. I’m also lucky enough to know her IRL through the NYC stand up scene. Subscribe to her Substack, cowards!!!
If you’ve made it this far, thank you. Send your comments, questions and complaints to rossiferous@gmail.com OR respond directly to this e-mail. Adios!
Omg thank you! 😇🌸 Honored!!