That's
a little akin to asking someone how they voted in
the last election, but I'll answer any way.
I
generally don't give standing ovations to anyone because
I enjoy sitting down so much. Sometimes I'll stand
if the people directly in front of me stand and block
my view of the stage. I also stand in temple when
so instructed by the Rabbi because you never know
Who's watching.
I
applauded Kazan for his work. I don't admire what
he did in the 50's, but I don't think he's evil incarnate
either. Anyone who's seriously anti-Kazan and wants
to be consistent should have boycotted the Academy
awards altogether because of the Academy's complacent
and cooperative role during the witch-hunts. Plenty
of other ''friendly witnesses'' have been honored by
the Academy and nobody's said a word. One ''friendly''
actor was even elected President of the United States
(twice). I don't remember anyone vilifying Lloyd Bridges
when he died last year. (Another friendly witness.)
They're mad at Kazan because he's never apologized.
However, as any woman in this newsgroup will tell
you, men just don't apologize. We're not hard-wired
that way because we're always certain we're right.
I
should also mention that I remain on very friendly
terms with the assistant D.A. who prosecuted Lenny
Bruce in New York, ostensibly driving the final
nail into the coffin of Bruce's career. He's also
never apologized because he felt he was doing the
right thing at the time. You've got to admire the
consistency of a guy like that.
What
finally made my decision on the Kazan thing was all
the people who came up to me and told me I should
sit on my hands. I don't like being told what to do
or how to think and will generally do the opposite.
(This may account, in part, for my attraction to Bruce.)
When one woman urged me to sit on my hands, I told
her, ''I'll do better than that. I'll have a pen and
a pad of paper with me, and I'll write down the names
of everyone I see standing up. I'll give you that
list, and maybe we can keep everyone on it from ever
working again.''
Obviously,
I love getting morality lessons from an industry where
90% of the participants would sell out their own mothers
to get a better table in a restaurant.
I
do greatly admire people who were victimized by the
black-list who spoke out against Kazan. They earned
that right. Abe Polonsky, a wonderful blacklisted
director said (I'm paraphrasing), ''I hope someone
shoots Kazan. It will be an exciting moment in an
otherwise boring evening.'' I appreciated that anger
because it came from a real place -- not from someone
hopping on the latest Hollywood bandwagon. Then again,
I live in a town where ''bravery'' is defined as ''cutting
your $20 million fee in half to work in an independent
film.''
With
the Kazan thing behind us now, Hollywood can get back
to what they do best -- blacklisting any creative
talent over the age of 50.
You
asked.
Cheers,
-W.
