Tell it like it is Spike

In our current celebrity obsessed culture we tend to put famous people on a pedestal and we think of them as something greater than they really are. Just because people have money or fame or a certain measure of celebrity that doesn't mean they still aren't regular people like you or me. And after seeing Spike Lee speak at ETSU the biggest thing that came across to me was what a regular guy he was. He didn't act like he was better than anyone else or like he was special because he's made many many films and has achieved a level of success both cinematically and financially that others will only dream of, regular guyness oozed from his every pore as he spoke to and took questions from the 250 or so people who came out to hear him earlier this evening.
I've been a fan of his films since he first hit the scene and I've seen most all his movies, with the exception of Girl 6, School Daze, and 4 Little Girls. Some of his films I thought were brilliant, like Do the Right Thing and Malcolm X and some I didn't much care for like Bamboozled and The 25th Hour. The thing I like most about Spike is that he is prolific and he doesn't shy away from speaking his mind. Yes, in the early years of his career he was prone to saying things to get attention and to be controversial but as time went on and his body of work spoke more and more for him, he's left the controversy for controversy's sake remarks fall by the wayside and he's matured into a great filmmaker with a social conscience.

Here's some of the highlights from his talk that stuck with me the most:

• We've come a long way in this country from where we once were but we still have a long way to go and we've got to guard against being stupid. As for how far we've come Spike told about his Grandmother dying a few years ago on Christmas Eve and what struck him most about the loss was the fact that her mother had been born a slave. So his connection to that awful period in the past was and still is palpable. A little later he talked about how far we still have to go and as an example he spoke about how some African Americans ostracize other African Americans for being studious, speaking proper English, and reading books. He echoed Bill Cosby's sentiments that it's ridiculous for young African Americans to think acting "gangsta" is good while acting "white," i.e. being studious and wanting to achieve something concrete, is bad.
• Young people today need to accept the fact that they have to work to in order to get what they want. He laughingly told the students in the audience that if they thought that they were going to have anything handed to them or if they thought that they would one day just become an over night sensation then they were sadly mistaken. Spike admonished them to study hard and to look for a major and work that made them happy and to not necessarily choose a major that would make them the most money. He kept emphasizing choosing happiness in one's career over a high paying job that would be soul crushing and life deadening.
• If you're going to make the choice to seek happiness in your work and also in your life in general then you've got to drop the negative people in your life. And he smiled as he told the crowd that sometimes the most negative people in our lives are our family members. Then he laughed and he repeated it two more times so it would sink in.
• He spoke about the upcoming election and he said he was proud to be supporting his homeboy John McCain. Then before anyone took him seriously he said, "JOKE! I'm joking!" He then paused and gave a sly smile and he said, "I think you all know who I'm supporting." But he was very even handed, unlike some supporters of the other major Democratic Party candidate, he urged us all to vote but to first make sure we were informed. He advised us all to check out Hillary's and Obama's websites to learn more about the choice we have facing us.
• One of the funniest moments was in the Q & A portion of the event. After a few fawning questions from film students and from ETSU professors, a young black male told Spike that coming to see him in person was the only thing that would have made him miss Flavor of Love on VH1. Spike calmly asked the young man if he was serious and the young man assured him he was. Spike then asked him how long he had been watching such televised "atrocities." The kid said he'd been hooked for a few weeks on that show and then he went on to tell Spike that the reason why the NY Knicks sucked so bad was all Spike's fault. The kid said that if Spike didn't sit courtside and talk smack to the other team's stars then they wouldn't light the Knicks up for 50 points per game. Spike took the ribbing like a man but he reminded the kid that some of the guys who score 50 a game in Madison Square Garden do it because they are in the world's most famous basketball arena and they can't help but play better when they play in NYC.

Overall it was a fun evening. It was nice to see someone so famous talk about everyday stuff and just be a regular guy. It was also nice to hear the viewpoint of someone who's life experience is so different than my own. I got the distinct feeling that unlike others in his position, Spike wasn't just another fake celebrity asshole.

And who will you be spending this evening with?

Me, I'll be spending it with the guy who directed these films:

That's right kids, Dr. Monkey is going to see actor/activist/film director Spike Lee speak at East Tennessee State University. If you never see any other Spike Lee film, you owe to the people of New Orleans to see his documentary on the aftermath of hurricane Katrina called When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts. The title of his talk is America Through My Lens. It should be interesting as hell. No worries if you can't make it, I'll write about it later.