Thoughtful

You sometimes this blog will be filled with the happenings of the day...sometimes with sill stuff...sometimes with inner thoughts and philosophy.

Today, I have been thinking about fame. As a performer you naturally want it. With fame comes more bookings....I love preforming. With it comes more money...who couldn't use that. I want that kind of fame.... so that we can get more booking so I can make the living I love and provide for my family. BUT, I don't want it at all if it means the type of exploitation I see in People magazine, TMZ, etc. or if it threatens my relationships or turns me into one of those celebrities on People, etc. If I ever arrogantly stick a 1" thick cigar in my mouth and swirl a brandy at a popular celebrity club and I am not doing it as a joke but am actually taking myself seriously in that roll then put a fork in me...I'm done.
There are trade-offs for fame I suppose. And few can handle it without those trade offs, I suppose.
People postpone having kids for fame. Fools. People put their fame ahead of their marriage. Fools. And I have noticed that fame brings you many many friends who are really fools because when the fame is gone...so are they. Fools.

Now if I were to tell you my heroes who have fame, or a sort of it (people who have handled it well and humbly) , then I have to name Jimmy Stewart, Alex Trebek, and JC Dunn. All three men were or are terribly humble. They love what they do and they don't get their kicks flaunting their notoriety. If people know of them...great. If not...fine...at least they get to do what they love. OK, the first two you know...who is this JC Dunn fellow? Let me tell you. If you meet him you will remember him always. He is a generous, kind, sometimes silly, always entertaining magician friend of mine (who is reading this right now...Hi JC). When we are together for a lunch or just hanging out at a store, a park, a nature center and we end up, or sometimes just he ends up performing for the workers, patrons, kids, whoever, he is generous in telling everyone who I am so that if they ever want to book some entertainment they will remember my name. Big hearted man! (Truthfully it drives me crazy because he deserves the fame and name recognition because he is the one usually leading the impromptu performance and has such a powerful personality. He deserves any bookings that come from these little mini-shows.) But fame means little to him. He just loves what he does and loves to make others happy. Sometimes I loose sight of that and that's why I am writing this. JC is a blessing.
My family has had chances at fame; we have turned down a couple of exploitative TV offers and fate kept us from one that we were interested in but turned out to be a bad choice. In fact, if we can control the content we would take a good TV deal. But anything that could wiggle into the delicate fabric that binds my family and relationships and God then begin to eat away at that fabric in exchange for fame, or money, or momentary pleasure. Well you can keep it.