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I remember that guy who did some minor parts in Hollywood (and also did some side work as a camera operator), was told he had no future in the business, became a carpenter to pay his bills, did some carpentry work for a minor producer who got him a minor role in some fledgling director’s second (and first successful) film, said director liked him enough to hire him to read lines for his third film’s castings, and since he turned out to be more charismatic than the guys who were actually auditioning ended giving him one of the main roles in said film… which turned on to be one of the most successful films of all time (mostly thanks to said director realising the power of merchandising). That carpenter went on to have a pretty good acting career in Hollywood after that, it turns out; he’s still working now at over eighty years old.
That probably wouldn’t happen these days, and Hollywood is the poorer for it.
Harrison Ford?
well heres the thing
But who was that guy?
Most likely Harrison Ford.
I can’t speak for the US, but in the UK from the 50s all the way to the 90s there was enough social safety net, affordable housing and government sponsored arts grants for someone from a modest background to be able to hone their craft in acting, music, art, writing, comedy etc.
Nowadays all that’s gone (shockingly a lot of it under Labour), and it’s only trust fund kids that can afford to spend five years not working a full-time salaried job.
The post-war period was the only time in human history where a person could get rich just through their day job. You could have one parent be a teacher and the other a mechanic and that provided enough security that their kid could afford a guitar and take a chance at being a musician.
And the thing that’s so crazy is that “post-war period” describes a time when the country had just spent 6 years getting the shit bombed out of it and expending all its resources into sending troops abroad. If people can rebuild a country and still be able to support a whole family on a single salary, why can’t we do the same in a country that’s already had that work put in?
(that’s a rhetorical question, we all know why)
Given the large amount of sex abuse in the industry, it is likely that a producer or director plied young talent with promises of fame in return for sexual favors. Once the talent would start fighting back, they could go onto the next starlet.
Nowadays, you can’t fuck the talent, so might as well hire those with industry connections to help get the movie made.
Nowadays, you can’t fuck the talent
[Citation needed]
Are there even still some waitresses in LA hoping to make it in Hollywood? (Other than those that are method actors researching their thirtieth role?)
Acting used to be a profession with low status and bad reputation.
It still is for most acting gigs that are not large productions
Today? More like in 90s?
Today most actor’s Wikipedia pages have links to their parents’ Wikipedia pages.
I think it was largely the same even in the '90s, the connections just weren’t advertised as prominently. I was desperately in love with Kate Beckinsale after she appeared in Much Ado About Nothing, but I only learned recently that she was the daughter of a beloved British actor named Richard Beckinsale.
Edit: I’m still in love with Kate Beckinsale, but I used to be, too.
And many “Musicians”. Just look at Taylor Swift. Oh how convenient if Daddy is a big shot in the industry and makes you all the connections, so you don’t have to do anything but look pretty with make-up.
Daddy actually bought his way into the industry to help further his daughter’s career - not that that makes it any better. Most people don’t have a dad who can drop over $100,000 into something like that.
Edit: most people also don’t get parents who can move the entire family to Nashville so the daughter can pretend to be a country singer. It’s like the swiftie world has just agreed to forget about that shit entirely.
Thank God the swifties are not on the best social media platform that is Lemmy!
I have noticed in the anglosphere that a significant percentage of mainstream reporters and journalists are what used to be called “independently wealthy”.
I guess it’s always been that way, but I think it’s more so now
Any job that someone could be passionate about, like a journalist, is exploitable because people will put up with a lot of bullshit for thier dream. So you make shit money with brutal hours and expectations in an unaffordable city. The only people who can handle that are the ones’ who’s parents can support them.
Or more commonly:
His dad was a famous actor and his mom was a famous actress, he got his big break when he was born the child of a famous actor and actress
Yeah, I read something about Chris Pine the other day in this fashion. And he would say he’s not a nepo baby. I like some movies and stuff he’s done, I think he does a fine job, but it’s a little insulting to claim you’re not a nepo baby when, in fact, you are the definition of a nepo baby.
This sounds like a Norm Macdonald joke with the set up being the same as the punchline
Genuinely the best compliment I could have asked for
Ha! You’re welcome. I’m not one for celebrity worship but I miss him. Feels like not a day goes by that I don’t think of one of his jokes and cheers me up a little
Nah, that’s not fair, this is how it usually goes:
His parent was a famous actors/director, he got his break when his parent worked a project that needed a baby in shot, and brought him with them when he was 2 weeks, cementing his legacy from a young age.
Almost, but not quite:
His parents were a famous actors/directors, he got concieved because the producer said they wanted a baby in the scene to help audiences empathize better (unused footage; from the dvd commentary only). Unfortuately the government bent to protests from people that wouldn’t allow the studio to warehouse him as a prop, cementing his legacy from a young age.
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Escaping the daily grind of working-class life via a career in the arts is not really a thing anymore. Scratch the surface of anyone born in the last ~40 years making a living that way and you’ll find either family connections, generational wealth, or a bread-winning life partner.
I mean, a lot of those actors were WW2 vets. So no need to fret, we’ll get better actors after ww3.
A lot of those actors were famous before WW2 started and put their careers on hold to enlist. Almost inconceivable that anybody would do such a thing today.
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