http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penn-jillette/celebrity-apprentice-blue-man-group_b_1395411.html - I can't really see the beauty and joy that's mentioned here, in people scurrying to grab stray money. I couldn't see it when The Who broke their instruments either, so maybe that was a sign I wouldn't much agree with the rest of the article.
Do you have opinions on this, nonnies? The article certainly made me think (and I had to go listen to "My generation" before leaving this morning).
Huh?? Maybe I'm stupid, but that article and this post are all kinds of a mess. I don't understand any of it. I mean, I got the first part, when she was complaining about The Who destroying instruments and then realized it was "art" or whatever. Then there's something about a Blue Man thing that IDEK, and then The Apprentice, and.. Clay Aiken? I don't watch that show, so maybe that's why I'm confused. Also I think I missed the stray money thing. There was also something about children being disgusted with money being wasted on homeless people. Whut. I don't think these hypothetical children give a fuck one way or another, or even understand what it means to be spending or wasting money. Anyway, IDG where you're going with this, or where the article writer was going. Peace.
I didn't get it either. I googled around, and I think what happened is:
1) On Sunday's Celebrity Apprentice there was a challenge to raise money for charity. I think they were supposed to be selling something, but most of the celebs just called their rich friends and asked them to bring donations down to the sales area. 2) Penn Jillette called the Blue Man Group. They don't care about giving to charity; they're all about the art. They suggested putting the money in balloons and blowing them up until they popped and blowing the money around with a leaf blower while Jillette's team tried to catch it for the challenge. Jillette and his team and the network and the camera crew said "sure." 3) The Blue Man Group brought down 8k dollars, but when the money started to blow around this public New York park area, ordinary citizens began to grab it before the celebrities could and put it with the other charity donations. Because ordinary citizens are greedy and don't understand art or charity. Or, you know, people are broke and money is blowing around, nobody explained what was going on, and this was a stupid, dangerous idea, and the show is lucky no injuries occurred. 4) Most of the money that was blowing around wasn't recovered, but Jillette's group got credited for the full 8k donation anyway and won the challenge. Although, obviously, the charity didn't get that money. 5) Penn Jillette doesn't care, because they weren't doing it for the money. They were doing it for the art, and the people who watched the show who are upset are just too poor or middle class or uncool or fans of Clay Aiken to understand that. But someday they will. Just like he now understands why The Who used to smash their guitars, although he didn't when he was a kid. Anyway, those people who grabbed the money were probably homeless, so that's just the same as if the charity they were raising money for had gotten it. 6) Clay Aiken very much does care, because his group lost the challenge. Even though he thinks the charity only got about 2k of the money, because the rest went to the outside people grabbing the money. That's not fair! That should be against the rules! 7) Viewers complained about the shocking display of complete inability of all involved to comprehend why it doesn't necessarily consider throwing 8k to the wind "art," why tossing 8k cash into a group of broke people and filming them wrestling each other over it seems exploitative and cruel, and why there's a certain irony in watching celebrities patting themselves on the back for donating money to a charity that the charity never got. 8) Penn Jillette wrote an article to explain to viewers that they're probably just too poor or middle class or fans of Clay Aiken to understand why The Who had to smash expensive guitars the Blue Man Group had to blow money around.
AYRT Wow. I.. Wow. I feel like you should get paid to do research. Maybe you do, I don't know. Thanks, knowing the whole story makes me realize the article really is a mess. How is one supposed to get all of this from that? Also, I've discovered Penn Jillette is a male. ~*The More You Know*~
I'm sorry I didn't give any context. lol it is a bit of a mess without one. The nonnie below explained it well. The Celebrity Apprentice episode aired Sunday, that was an article Penn Jillette wrote yesterday about it. It does seem like a terrible idea, what Penn Jillette and The Blue Man Group did. But I really, really don't like Donald Trump and Neil Gaiman and Stephen Fry (who I do like) tweeted about the article in a favorable way yesterday so I was trying to see some good in it.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Penn Jillette and the celebrity apprentice
(Anonymous) 2012-04-02 08:49 am (UTC)(link)Do you have opinions on this, nonnies? The article certainly made me think (and I had to go listen to "My generation" before leaving this morning).
Re: Penn Jillette and the celebrity apprentice
(Anonymous) 2012-04-02 03:27 pm (UTC)(link)Re: Penn Jillette and the celebrity apprentice
(Anonymous) 2012-04-02 06:03 pm (UTC)(link)1) On Sunday's Celebrity Apprentice there was a challenge to raise money for charity. I think they were supposed to be selling something, but most of the celebs just called their rich friends and asked them to bring donations down to the sales area.
2) Penn Jillette called the Blue Man Group. They don't care about giving to charity; they're all about the art. They suggested putting the money in balloons and blowing them up until they popped and blowing the money around with a leaf blower while Jillette's team tried to catch it for the challenge. Jillette and his team and the network and the camera crew said "sure."
3) The Blue Man Group brought down 8k dollars, but when the money started to blow around this public New York park area, ordinary citizens began to grab it before the celebrities could and put it with the other charity donations. Because ordinary citizens are greedy and don't understand art or charity. Or, you know, people are broke and money is blowing around, nobody explained what was going on, and this was a stupid, dangerous idea, and the show is lucky no injuries occurred.
4) Most of the money that was blowing around wasn't recovered, but Jillette's group got credited for the full 8k donation anyway and won the challenge. Although, obviously, the charity didn't get that money.
5) Penn Jillette doesn't care, because they weren't doing it for the money. They were doing it for the art, and the people who watched the show who are upset are just too poor or middle class or uncool or fans of Clay Aiken to understand that. But someday they will. Just like he now understands why The Who used to smash their guitars, although he didn't when he was a kid. Anyway, those people who grabbed the money were probably homeless, so that's just the same as if the charity they were raising money for had gotten it.
6) Clay Aiken very much does care, because his group lost the challenge. Even though he thinks the charity only got about 2k of the money, because the rest went to the outside people grabbing the money. That's not fair! That should be against the rules!
7) Viewers complained about the shocking display of complete inability of all involved to comprehend why it doesn't necessarily consider throwing 8k to the wind "art," why tossing 8k cash into a group of broke people and filming them wrestling each other over it seems exploitative and cruel, and why there's a certain irony in watching celebrities patting themselves on the back for donating money to a charity that the charity never got.
8) Penn Jillette wrote an article to explain to viewers that they're probably just too poor or middle class or fans of Clay Aiken to understand
why The Who had to smash expensive guitarsthe Blue Man Group had to blow money around.Re: Penn Jillette and the celebrity apprentice
(Anonymous) 2012-04-02 06:16 pm (UTC)(link)Wow. I.. Wow. I feel like you should get paid to do research. Maybe you do, I don't know. Thanks, knowing the whole story makes me realize the article really is a mess. How is one supposed to get all of this from that? Also, I've discovered Penn Jillette is a male. ~*The More You Know*~
Re: Penn Jillette and the celebrity apprentice
(Anonymous) 2012-04-02 10:22 pm (UTC)(link)This nonnie is amaaaazing. :o
Re: Penn Jillette and the celebrity apprentice
(Anonymous) 2012-04-03 03:11 am (UTC)(link)I'm sorry I didn't give any context. lol it is a bit of a mess without one. The nonnie below explained it well. The Celebrity Apprentice episode aired Sunday, that was an article Penn Jillette wrote yesterday about it.
It does seem like a terrible idea, what Penn Jillette and The Blue Man Group did. But I really, really don't like Donald Trump and Neil Gaiman and Stephen Fry (who I do like) tweeted about the article in a favorable way yesterday so I was trying to see some good in it.