The twelfth anniversary of the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, passed with barely a murmur on Monday. There were folks at the gates of Kensington Palace as has been the norm since her death… but with each passing year, it gets quieter, with less people, less crap strewn everywhere. No, I don’t think she’ll ever be forgotten, at least not as long as the future King William V lives, but grief becomes muffled with every year that passes.
Just think: today, Rudolph Valentino, whose maniacal celebrity back in the 1920s was very like Diana’s, is now just a reference and a fuzzy ideal.
My money is laid on this: no future daughter of either of her sons will go by the name Diana, and certainly no heiress presumptive – they wouldn’t dare set up a Queen Diana. Elizabeth, Jane, Catherine, Alice, Alexandra, even Victoria – but never Diana. Diana will be a second, third or fourth name for her sons’ daughters, should they have any. Why? Diana’s shadow is far too overwhelming, even from the grave.
So do finally rest in peace, Diana. One day, I think your son will repatriate your remains to an appropriate place rather than that silly island that makes money for the brother who had no problem shunning you in life, because by then, people won’t be so unreasonably nutty over you.
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There’s one thing the Brits are right to be rabid about: the idea of Queen Camilla. That woman gives me the heebie-jeebies. Her eyes are fathomless.
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Another death, however, caused a media frenzy last week. Edward Moore Kennedy, who hadn’t been seen in public for the better part of this year, died last week of brain cancer.
His death, much like Diana’s, leaves a mixed legacy, although you’d never guess it by the media orgasm about how wonderful and great and rainbows and unicorns… um, no. He seemed to settle down once married to Victoria, but nothing can really erase his tainted past. Sorry, he may not have intended to kill Mary Jo, but he was a prime contributor to her death. Yeah, he served in the military, but it was minimal and undistinguished, and he should not be buried in Arlington – he’s there because he’s Jack and Bobby’s brother, not because he meets the requirements to be buried there. While his older brothers were noted for their brains and drive, Ted didn’t seem to have either trait – but he got his Senate seat anyway, thanks to Dear Old Dad.
The argument I’ve heard is ‘well, his constituents kept sending him back…’
Well, there’s no accounting for brains, is there?
His death, unlike Diana’s, really didn’t become the media jackpot they hoped. They tried, though, they really did. One headline in a ticker I saw read ‘Hundreds line streets for Kennedy cortege’ or some crap like that. Not five minutes passed and hundreds was hurriedly edited to read ‘thousands.’ I didn’t see thousands on the skewed video clips. People have jobs. People have lives. They’re too busy trying to keep said jobs instead of gawk at the cortege of a man who never had a financial worry in his life.
Modern America does not care about the Kennedy hype; that really died with Old Joe.
Ted was just not really that popular – people said nice things because it’s the polite thing to do, but he just didn’t have that kind of personality. People are tired of dynasties anyway, and in this country they tend to fizzle out. Adams, Harrison, Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Taft – the political children and relatives of these presidents eventually fizzled out. It is the same with the Kennedys – they’re still in the political venue mostly because on the East Coast, you can’t help but trip over Kennedys; there’s just too many of them. But they illustrate what’s wrong with families in politics – they think they’re entitled to it: see the attempt to place Caroline in Hillary’s seat – complete disaster.
And now that we have had Bush I and II, plus various other political offices that the Bush family has held in places, the American public is fucking tired of political families. It would stand to reason that Obama is in office, in part, of this frustration with dynasties, and in particular, the Bush family, but also the Clintons – no more Bushes, no more Clintons was a slogan used during the last campaign.
This is the case with the Kennedys, too.
Rumor has it that there is vicious infighting over Ted’s seat. Please God, no. No more Kennedys. It’s over.
Besides, I think ol’ Ted was a rallying point for the younger generations of the family; he held them together because he knew how – he had done it in the worst days of his life under the most horrendous circumstances. I suspect that, politically, the Kennedys will slowly dissipate in another generation.
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Another one with a tainted legacy is Michael Jackson, who died suddenly back in June. Even his death is tainted, with shameless parents hawking things and bickering, crazy siblings, all of whom are attempting to capitalize on his death. He isn’t even buried yet, probably because they’re still fighting over where to put him.
Here’s yet another one where the media tried to whip people up and failed, confirmed by an L.A. cop who was doing duty at the memorial who essentially said ‘Thousands? There was maybe three hundred.’ Barricades and police for almost nothing.
His career was destroyed, and although so many in my age group nearly deified him when we were growing up because he was just so freaking cool and innovative (oh, the hallways full of red leather jackets and single gloves… !), his weirdnesses and his predilections in the years following that success slowly and completely eroded it.
There were those who compared Michael with Elvis Presley. Not even close. While Elvis had his many, many issues and fuck ups, he never lost his popularity or his reputation. He too died of drugs, he too had doctors who were criminally feeding drug addictions, but Elvis never, ever stooped as low or was as certifiably crazy or criminal as Michael.
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When are we, as a nation, going to stop rewarding people who do terrible things in their lives and sanctify them in death?
Oh, Carradine was wonderful! No, he was a sex fiend who had interesting predilections, but was careful not to get caught. He only got caught when it killed him.
Oh, Cobain was wonderful! No, he was a colossal addle-headed fuckup. His wife isn’t much better. Let’s hope Frances sees what her parents have done and run screaming the other way.
Oh, Michael was wonderful! No, Michael was a symbol of what is wrong with us today. We as a country excused his behavior because he was so screwed up in the head (oh poor Michael! [insert excuse here]), and he had the money to beat the rap. He wasn’t wonderful; he was psycho and a kiddie diddler.
Oh, Teddy was so wonderful! No, he never thought the rules applied to him to the point where causing someone’s death was a point of humor throughout his life. He wasn’t above sexually accosting waitresses in his favorite restaurants. Holy Christ! The audacity, the ego, in sending a letter to the Pope so he could be exonerated… what an arrogant bastard.
Please, can we please stop glorifying people who are not good people, who are never sorry for what they’ve done to others, who never lived anything close to the golden rule?
I know, I know: ratings, baby.
