Ow . . . I hurt . . .
. . . and other sundries.
Keep a watchful eye, or they'll attack en masse.
A series of events has led Geo and me to be teaching the 4-year-olds every other Sunday. Yesterday was our first such. Dang, but those kids are sharp. Quite interactive, and active. Quiet when they're coloring, rowdy when they have balloons to play with. Yesterday I spent a fairly decent amount of time lifting the muchkins up (one at a time, taking turns, of course) to hang streamers from the ceiling fans.
Between that and getting back on my elliptical machine this morning (after way too many months of neglecting it), my legs are sore. Ow.
One of the things I had most fun doing was teaching them how to make balloons stick to the wall with static electricity. However, one little black girl's hair wouldn't produce enough electricity, so I let her rub the balloon on my hair. Pretty soon I was surrounded by 4-year-olds (4 in total, I think) rubbing balloons on my hair.
Random SPN
I forgot to mention that Mom had not had the opportunity to watch the fairy episode, and so we watched it together. She enjoyed it rather a lot. She laughed in all the right places (including Sam's "Dean? Did you service Oberon, King of the Fairy?" Actually, I think that was the part she laughed at the most).
Did you all notice that when Sam and Dean split up, and Dean tells Sam to watch the watchmaker while Dean goes to check out the cornfield, that Sam says, "Okey dokey"? I'm wondering if Sam used that phrase because he remembers that as being something Dean likes or approves of. "I like him. He says, 'Okey dokey.'" Is this an attempt to stay in Dean's good graces? Hm . . .
Leading man, character actor, or both?
It occurred to me the other day . . . perhaps after reading this poll . . . that Jensen could become an outstanding character actor. Here are my thought processes, if you want to follow along.
Iirc, Johnny Depp started out as leading man material (21 Jump Street, which I never watched, but I remember that show being where JD made his first big splash). However, since then, he's made his career being more of a character actor. Even his "leading man" roles (I'm thinking specifically of Sweeney Todd) fit the character mold moreso than the stereotypical leading man mold.
And that got me to thinking about Jensen.
Jensen obviously has leading man looks. But his talent and his diversity send him, more often than not, into the character actor realm. His role on Mr. Rhodes? Definitely a character role. Priestly, in TIH? Character. All the way. Alec on Dark Angel? Character. Even Dean Winchester has "character" in him, and he's a leading man.
My two favorite examples of actors who were originally positioned as leading men but who chose to go against type in their careers are Vincent Price and Leslie Nielsen. Vincent Price is reported to have found villain roles more interesting than leading man roles, even though the studio intended to groom him as a leading man, and he of course is best known as one of the creepiest (and upon occasion, campiest) screen villains ever. Leslie Nielsen is today most remembered for his comedic roles, more so, I think, than in his early career when he often played the heroic lead.
I have a special fondness for character actors for a few reasons. Possibly foremost is because a long time ago one of my favorite acting instructors told me that I could be a great character actress. One of my regrets is that I never followed through on that. Also, character actors don't outgrow their career or role options. They remain employable, and there are always roles for them. And sometimes, the "character" roles are more interesting than the lead roles.
I'd never really thought of Jensen as a character actor before, because he's pretty much everything one looks for in a leading man. But when I think about it and consider how Jensen excels at pretty much everything--comedy and drama, subtlety and OTT-ness--he could easily make a career out of roles other than "leading man" roles. And any leading man roles he lands, he could easily give an additional layer of "character."
It kind of makes me all thespically twitterpated just thinking about it.
Oh, and btw . . . Of all the roles that Jensen has been rumored to be in consideration for recently, I think seeing him as the Lone Ranger probably interests me most. (However, keep in mind that the poll is just a fan wish poll. It's not an actual industry rumor.) Geo filled me in on the origins of the character, and dude. I totally want to see Jensen in the role. (My mom pointed out: "Oh, no! He'd have to wear a mask! We wouldn't be able to see his cheekbones!" To which I replied, "But you'd still be able to see his eyes.")
Keep a watchful eye, or they'll attack en masse.
A series of events has led Geo and me to be teaching the 4-year-olds every other Sunday. Yesterday was our first such. Dang, but those kids are sharp. Quite interactive, and active. Quiet when they're coloring, rowdy when they have balloons to play with. Yesterday I spent a fairly decent amount of time lifting the muchkins up (one at a time, taking turns, of course) to hang streamers from the ceiling fans.
Between that and getting back on my elliptical machine this morning (after way too many months of neglecting it), my legs are sore. Ow.
One of the things I had most fun doing was teaching them how to make balloons stick to the wall with static electricity. However, one little black girl's hair wouldn't produce enough electricity, so I let her rub the balloon on my hair. Pretty soon I was surrounded by 4-year-olds (4 in total, I think) rubbing balloons on my hair.
Random SPN
I forgot to mention that Mom had not had the opportunity to watch the fairy episode, and so we watched it together. She enjoyed it rather a lot. She laughed in all the right places (including Sam's "Dean? Did you service Oberon, King of the Fairy?" Actually, I think that was the part she laughed at the most).
Did you all notice that when Sam and Dean split up, and Dean tells Sam to watch the watchmaker while Dean goes to check out the cornfield, that Sam says, "Okey dokey"? I'm wondering if Sam used that phrase because he remembers that as being something Dean likes or approves of. "I like him. He says, 'Okey dokey.'" Is this an attempt to stay in Dean's good graces? Hm . . .
Leading man, character actor, or both?
It occurred to me the other day . . . perhaps after reading this poll . . . that Jensen could become an outstanding character actor. Here are my thought processes, if you want to follow along.
Iirc, Johnny Depp started out as leading man material (21 Jump Street, which I never watched, but I remember that show being where JD made his first big splash). However, since then, he's made his career being more of a character actor. Even his "leading man" roles (I'm thinking specifically of Sweeney Todd) fit the character mold moreso than the stereotypical leading man mold.
And that got me to thinking about Jensen.
Jensen obviously has leading man looks. But his talent and his diversity send him, more often than not, into the character actor realm. His role on Mr. Rhodes? Definitely a character role. Priestly, in TIH? Character. All the way. Alec on Dark Angel? Character. Even Dean Winchester has "character" in him, and he's a leading man.
My two favorite examples of actors who were originally positioned as leading men but who chose to go against type in their careers are Vincent Price and Leslie Nielsen. Vincent Price is reported to have found villain roles more interesting than leading man roles, even though the studio intended to groom him as a leading man, and he of course is best known as one of the creepiest (and upon occasion, campiest) screen villains ever. Leslie Nielsen is today most remembered for his comedic roles, more so, I think, than in his early career when he often played the heroic lead.
I have a special fondness for character actors for a few reasons. Possibly foremost is because a long time ago one of my favorite acting instructors told me that I could be a great character actress. One of my regrets is that I never followed through on that. Also, character actors don't outgrow their career or role options. They remain employable, and there are always roles for them. And sometimes, the "character" roles are more interesting than the lead roles.
I'd never really thought of Jensen as a character actor before, because he's pretty much everything one looks for in a leading man. But when I think about it and consider how Jensen excels at pretty much everything--comedy and drama, subtlety and OTT-ness--he could easily make a career out of roles other than "leading man" roles. And any leading man roles he lands, he could easily give an additional layer of "character."
It kind of makes me all thespically twitterpated just thinking about it.
Oh, and btw . . . Of all the roles that Jensen has been rumored to be in consideration for recently, I think seeing him as the Lone Ranger probably interests me most. (However, keep in mind that the poll is just a fan wish poll. It's not an actual industry rumor.) Geo filled me in on the origins of the character, and dude. I totally want to see Jensen in the role. (My mom pointed out: "Oh, no! He'd have to wear a mask! We wouldn't be able to see his cheekbones!" To which I replied, "But you'd still be able to see his eyes.")