And That's All I Have to Say About That
To quote Forrest Gump*.
Hi, I'm Margaret Bates, which everyone knows, and I am the co-founder and treasurer for Legendary Women, Inc.. I feel like I have to say something, despite others' probably better advice, but I have been churning on this since January, and I've reached the point where feeling for my own peace of mind that I need to say this and move on. As the title implies, this is the first and last time I'm going to elaborate on this. I'm not taking comments or answering emails. I'm just going to say this and let it go as a personal journal statement.
I have been in Smallville fandom since the spring of 2006. I was just a lurker until I started writing a fanfic called "Of Keys and Kryptonite" and posting it on the KSite forums after the season five finale aired. Obviously, over the years, things picked up steam and I got deeper into the fandom as a whole and its good and bad points. My first fandom was Buffy the Vampire Slayer but I only was online with it after its finale had aired and Angel as a series had only six episodes left to air. I was never in a fandom when the show was actively playing out and so, to be honest, even though there is that huge "Spuffy versus Bangel" divide in Buffy fandom, it didn't matter as much because the show was over. Frankly, after the penultimate episode of Angel where Spike and Angel are made fools of in Rome over The Immortal, both ships had officially been sunk onscreen (not my fave Angel episode, no doubt).
So everything that transpired in SV was different to me because it was this active three way dog fight and then super intense two way one in the final three seasons over shipping. Like in any fandom with shipping or character wars, things were said that weren't very polite from all sides. I honestly don't even know how much worse any of it is than shipper wars in other fandoms. I don't think I want to know. I know that, personally, I don't have the energy to be as involved in fandom---any fandom---again as I ever was with Smallville and, had I not had a sabbatical from graduate school in 2008 and been recovering from an illness even into 2009's fall, I probably still would not have been as swept in because I wouldn't have had the time.
This all said, things got less than pleasant. I think the pinnacle of that was when a fan-based podcast, which was also subsidized by Warner and the CW and allowed access to spoilers and to CW talent to interview as a "objective source," had a whole rant that aired (later edited out but still aired) about how the "Chloe fans" were all "sitting around eating chocolate and masturbating to Tom Welling" and "were just as crazy as Nazis." It was profane, cruel, misogynistic, fat-shaming, and degrading. The Warner publicist was sent the full audio clip and promised to deal with it and, I don't know, maybe she asked them to tone it down. I'd like to hope that she did. They still were able to receive special goodies and access to the end of the show, however, despite a clear bias against one fan base and degrading them to the point of even trying to get guest stars like Brian Austin Greene to agree with random fan hate.
On the heels of the infamous "Chloe fans = desperate, fat Tom Welling fangirls" and the first release of ratings for the season nine premiere, I wrote something that expressed all that frustration I'd been feeling since that podcast had come out. It was angry and it had profanity and it was probably not the best way to deal with that kind of hurt, but, frankly, it was my journal and we'd already done the high road, let The Powers That Be know route of saying "This podcast is hurting your own fans' feelings and isn't as effective PR as it could be." So, I was human and I had a moment. I think that happens to all of us. I am regretful that it was as vituperative as it was but, at the same time, it was not without a very clear trigger, something that I've noticed, when it gets reblogged and reposted over the last three years, no one ever mentions.
I'm not interested in throwing stones or playing the "Who shot John" game. We've played it in fandom for forever. I'm just saying that's the full context for why the post came out at all. It happened, it was written, it exists, everyone and their brother (including fandom_wank, I'm sure) knows about it by now. Because of the magic of screencapping and how the internet is similar to "The Library of Congress" and things never get forgotten, I get it will come up for a very long time to come and that's something that happens when you write things out publicly. I am not sure I understood the power of that in 2009, but I do now.
C'est la vie.
However, that was still three years ago. A lot has changed since then. I'm not as active in fandom anymore. I don't follow the comics (I never did with Buffy or Angel either because I feel once the show's aired, it's aired, tbh). I don't have a tumblr and I barely use my personal twitter. I sometimes have to make a concerted effort to remember to keep the LW Twitter engaging too. I am not on Kryptonsite. In fact, I haven't had an active account there since January of 2008. That was a personal choice to leave that the site administrator and I agreed upon after, frankly, comments he'd made that left me feeling uncomfortable as a site member in general. It was nothing that ever had anything to do with my own behavior or him having to force me out. Basically what I do is run the secret_chlark exchange and write Chlark fic for posting on my LJ, AO3, fanfiction.net, and Two of Us archive accounts. That's as far as I get these days---just hanging out with other like minded Chlark fans and posting fics and AU ones at that.
Again, I think it's obviously no secret I was a big part of the Legendary commercial along with Liz De Razzo. I had enough interviews about it and pieces in the spring two years ago. It wasn't planned that way, I just got nominated to be the talker by default. However, that said, while the commercial was a Smallville specific effort, the charity that has grown from it is not rooted in any one fandom. We've profiled Chloe, true. However, we've also looked at Dana Scully and done a fundraiser with fans from that fandom as virtual team. We've done Buffy Summers. We've also had two months so far in our first five that haven't involved a character at all. March was Women's Month in general and this month (we're like 10th-10th or so) is still Mothers' Month.
The one thing that keeps Legendary Women, Inc. linked into something Smallvillian is that every year as an organization we do a fundraiser for The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. The first time I worked on a fundraiser for them was in season nine and it was completely fandom based for Operation Truth and Justice. However, they are such a nice, sweet, appreciative group---especially for a foundation as large and renowned and with famous donors and sponsors---that I enjoyed working with them. I pitched it to the board that we make them our signature charity (they are the only charity we give 100% of the donations to) and the board agreed to continue with that. Year one officially went off very well, I think.
Year two was more intense. Sweet was and I hope they continue to be amazing. I honestly didn't think that having our first step be a partnership with the other fan group who'd raised for the CDRF officially in the past would cause quite the stir it did. It was, frankly, a first volley to see how working with other SV fans and with other fan groups as a whole would work since we'd not tried large scale team-ups in the past. We just figured it was easiest to go with a group that also had a favorite female heroine and that also was familiar with fundraising for the CDRF in particular. I will say that no one who was a fan of Martha or Tess or Kara ever spoke with us about feeling frustrated or excluded. Everyone was more than welcome to donate; it was set up as a way to honor two characters and actresses that the groups (Sweet and LW) agreed to do that year and wasn't about excluding anyone else's favorite. I think you can focus on two and not be pejorative by not including the other regular cast or even guest starring cast if you want to keep a narrower focus. Again, I'd like to point out that nothing in our literature or promotion specifically said we were all Smallville fans everywhere as one front and we were a definitive voice on what all Smallville fandom everywhere thought. We said we were two groups and a collection of Smallville fans (and we were) who were raising for our two favorite actresses/characters (and we were). I am unclear how people at Superman Homepage became so upset that they interpreted it as deliberate exclusion or as a slight when it was only about TWO CHARACTERS/ACTRESSES to start.
I think a lot of the comments said there were unfair, especially a few saying things like "personally I would not trust that woman [Margaret Bates] with my money," which was one comment posted. The implications weren't very polite toward LW's ability to handle money, which has never been an issue. We've raised for the CDRF, Moving Creations, Inc. and as a team in an event that IBG, Inc. ran and we've never once not turned in the money. We've always been honest and given exactly what we promised and what we've raised. The CDRF was even kind enough to write us up twice and thank Legendary Women, Inc. as an organization (and Sweet in year two as well equally) for what we'd done. It was extremely hurtful to read comments like that because, yes, it is a personal opinion of the poster and not technically a libelous comment. However, it makes people start to think about "Wait, are they crooked?" which is the last thing a fledgling charity should have to deal with.
Also, I'd like to add that we can track donations made via the CDRF site. We asked a representative if any donations had come in via the site earmarked as "from Smallville fans" or "Apart from the current drive but in honor of X Smallville character/actor/actress" during the months of both January and February.
There were none.
So, unfortunately, all the conversation there about "I'll prefer to give in my own way" or "I'll be making a donation but not as a part of this drive soon" never actually came to fruition. I'd honestly have loved if they had. The money all goes to the same place and a good cause and if they make more then the CDRF is the real winner there.
Still when all that happened with the Superman Homepage, we, as an organization, let it roll because that's our M.O. We're a business. We aren't a fan group. We work with fans, we do do conventions and profile genre show material. We do do that as a part of an overall whole, but we're still a business. Our 501c3 paperwork is in the process of being done, and, as a result, we file taxes like anyone else. We have expenses like anyone else. We have to find funding somehow like anyone else. I think when it starts being something where the federal and state governments are looking over your yearly business records, then it's about more than fandom. At its base, who liked which actress/character on a show that's been off the air a year now really should not be affecting the ability of a business to function because of the opinion of one board member, much less of a three year old post of said member.
Again, I'd have let this lie.
I was really hopeful that people had moved past it, founded Smallville Women, Big Hearts and people were ready to just not fight and let bygones be bygones. For the record, I am more than happy that the Smallville Women, Big Hearts organization exists. There's no trademark on charity. There's no limit on how many can come from a fandom or how many groups out there can honor women. Again, like CDRF stuff, the more the merrier. The more people who donate or take action, the more it gets out there and the end benefits are to the charities and to the groups about whom awareness is raised.
However, we get to this weekend and I realize sometimes things just won't go away and it's becoming frustrating and complicated. I don't care about myself. I wrote what I wrote and it happened and that's my cross to bear. I do care about when it affects LW, but we can make it work and have with our "Keep Calm and Carry On" plan so far. However, when it affects third parties is when I feel that, in fairness to innocent groups, I should clarify. There was a lot of anger over a certain media outlet and reporter's review for the Saving Hope pilot. There were also accusations that LW, specifically Ms. De Razzo and I, had pressured or convinced the writer to create a negative review about Erica Durance's acting in the pilot out of pettiness or a desire for show sabotage.
THIS IS NOT TRUE.
I am going to say this very, very clearly, and I hope people understand this. Legendary Women, Inc. is NOT, I REPEAT NOT affiliated in any official capacity with IBG, Inc. and it never has been officially entwined. Once we were a virtual team for them among a collection of virtual teams in an event (there were groups from all over like France and things, we weren't unique) and Ms. De Razzo is on the board of both groups. Saying IBG, Inc. and LW, Inc. are related or influencing one another because of one board member in common is about like saying Equality Now and The National Women's History Museum Project are both the same organization because Meryl Streep is on both boards. It's simply not true. Danielle Turchiano worked on the commercial. She's been very honest about that. Calleigh Scott was cast in it, and Liz produced it. This is all known public record and has been from our own released stills or Ms. Turchiano's own blog. However, we have not had any direct association with or ties to IBG, Inc. beyond being one of many virtual teams for them back in 2011. We are not even doing their All Things event currently happening in summer of 2012. So, for future reference, Ms. Turchiano is not influenced by us and any hate directed toward her or her work or attribution of bias is unfair for her and her job.
This weekend, a fan of Erica Durance/Lois did come to our booth at Comic Con. For the record, she and her friend were polite, they didn't overtly do anything or cause any trouble. They made conversation, asked a few questions, and dropped off a folded letter that none of us read and tossed on Friday without ever having read it. They were well-behaved and they do have a right to voice grievances in a polite, freedom to assemble way. That's what makes the United States (where we are based) so wonderful. For all parties involved, it was definitely a bit awkward but it wasn't a shouting match or a spectacle or even heated. It was done in a professional way and that's appreciated. However, for all its politeness and low profile, I still want to point out that it is something that affected a real life third party. We were there working to help Moving Creations, Inc. again. While the encounter lasted no more than probably five minutes it was still five minutes spent engaging with people who weren't there to donate or to sign our mailing list to get in further contact with Ms. Nussdorfer as a volunteer for MC, Inc. So, technically, the five minutes wasted on an encounter that could have been done a different way or by taking one of us aside while the other manned the table, still took away/ate into time that could have been fully devoted to getting more volunteers/money for the charity we were faithfully representing.
This has to stop.
When you do things like go to Superman Homepage and say "I don't trust them with my money for personal reasons but I'll totally give to the CDRF in my own way" and then DON'T or when you distract us in person from actively fundraising from true donors, then you are hampering our ability to raise funds for third parties who are either marginally aware of Smallville fandom or don't know a thing about it and do not care. Ms. Nussdorfer, the founder of MC, Inc., is a dancer and an artistic person. She's sweet and generous and hasn't done anything and, frankly, I doubt she knows the difference even between the Marvel Universe and the DC one or even knows there are two universes of comics big boys out there. It is not fair to them that years' old fandom resentments are being used to hamper fundraising. In the end, what you're doing even if you hate me or hate my thoughts or whatever else, is actively keeping the physically handicapped and girls who come from a depressed economic background from obtaining the optimum help and funding they could be getting.
Is a television show ever worth that?
I don't think so.
Finally, of the late unpleasantness with Tumblr. I had no idea it happened. In fact, on Sunday I was in transit in some form from 7:30 am until 9:00 pm eastern standard time. It took me 3 hours because of train delays on the SEPTA to even get to the convention center, I was there to report for the site and work our table until 4:00 pm. Then I rode the SEPTA train back to the suburbs until quarter of six. Then I drove home from Paoli, PA to Annapolis, MD from six until nine-fifteen (I got lost in both Wilmington, DE and in Towson, MD). I got home had dinner, had a hot soak because three days on concrete equals screaming muscles and went to bed so I could drive another six hours down to North Carolina. After this post, actually, I'm heading three more hours away to Boone, NC to teach this summer. I was in job and trip prepping mode for what few hours I was conscious on Sunday.
I do not know who made that post. I wish I did and I've asked because it's not cool. It's not funny, and it's not cute, and what it did was just rehash old fandom backbiting and make it harder than ever for LW to work above it and for the fandom as a whole to try and get over this shipper war and be an enjoyable place. It wasn't endorsed by us or created by us or inspired by us any more than Ms. Turchiano's article on Thursday was related to us. It was a stupid, infantile joke by a Chloe fan who, I understand where they were coming from as far as I think they did it because they were sad and frustrated at all the flack LW has gotten and lashed out. I get lashing out with anger. I've said already to the Chloe fen I know I'm not angry about the Tumblr.
I'm not.
I'm just disappointed that when I mentioned to people in confidence over the phone no less that I had an awkward day at the convention Friday that they then interpreted that as an invitation to spread my feelings on that and to use it to further stir fandom shipper drama. It was probably coming out of a camaraderie place but it was misguided and counterproductive and, yes, I'm sure extremely hurtful to Lois and Erica Durance fans and to Saving Hope fans and to Smallville Women, Big Hearts, none of whom deserved to see that ugliness pop up on their tumblr feeds. It was crass and tasteless and, if I knew who did it, I'd assuredly never tell them anything of consequence again (I can guess who it was but he/she has refused to even tell me privately via text) but they heard about the convention letter, was outraged, and ran with it while I was still lost somewhere in Delaware.
It's really appalling and I'm truly sorry it happened and none of the Chloe fans who have seen this are impressed. Our entire sentiment has been "show's over, fandom war needs to stop, why are you stirring the pot now?"
So, in closing, three years ago I wrote something vituperative but not completely out of the blue in response to an insulting tirade from a podcast sponsored by the CW and Warner. I regret that it was framed as ugly as it was and that it continues to be trotted out to make fandom life difficult for everyone because every time it is, it just stirs up outdated feelings when show's off the air and I live quite happily in my corner writing Chlark fic. However, its existence does not give a blanket license to attack and interfere with LW every time it tries to do something in the world. It just doesn't. Everyone has places to vent, I get that. Go to twitter or tumblr or livejournal or facebook or whatever and feel frustrated; that's why they exist. Please, however, stop going to public press release announcements and making borderline libel accusations about our ability to be trusted with money when we've always been above board as all the charities we've worked with as well as the federal government can attest. Please, now that the letter has been delivered, do not come to public events to see us and to distract us from the task we only have a set number of hours to accomplish. IF someone does come again to issue grievances, please at least be upfront about your purpose, take one of us aside to speak with us privately so the rest of the table can effectively work and raise funds. Finally, do not smear journalists or groups that have NOTHING to do with our operations.
When it gets to affecting third parties who were never in Smallville fandom, then it's gone too far.
Finally, I am truly sorry for the Tumblr debacle and I am publicly stating that it wasn't funny, it wasn't cute, and it was nasty and bitter and vile and makes the entire fandom look terrible and petty. So, KNOCK. IT. OFF.
And, again, as Forrest Gump says, "that's all I have to say about that."
&&&&&
* = this post will be under a cut tag starting tomorrow morning. I feel that it's fair to give open reading access to this even if it is very much a case of tl;dr so thank you for your patience.
Hi, I'm Margaret Bates, which everyone knows, and I am the co-founder and treasurer for Legendary Women, Inc.. I feel like I have to say something, despite others' probably better advice, but I have been churning on this since January, and I've reached the point where feeling for my own peace of mind that I need to say this and move on. As the title implies, this is the first and last time I'm going to elaborate on this. I'm not taking comments or answering emails. I'm just going to say this and let it go as a personal journal statement.
I have been in Smallville fandom since the spring of 2006. I was just a lurker until I started writing a fanfic called "Of Keys and Kryptonite" and posting it on the KSite forums after the season five finale aired. Obviously, over the years, things picked up steam and I got deeper into the fandom as a whole and its good and bad points. My first fandom was Buffy the Vampire Slayer but I only was online with it after its finale had aired and Angel as a series had only six episodes left to air. I was never in a fandom when the show was actively playing out and so, to be honest, even though there is that huge "Spuffy versus Bangel" divide in Buffy fandom, it didn't matter as much because the show was over. Frankly, after the penultimate episode of Angel where Spike and Angel are made fools of in Rome over The Immortal, both ships had officially been sunk onscreen (not my fave Angel episode, no doubt).
So everything that transpired in SV was different to me because it was this active three way dog fight and then super intense two way one in the final three seasons over shipping. Like in any fandom with shipping or character wars, things were said that weren't very polite from all sides. I honestly don't even know how much worse any of it is than shipper wars in other fandoms. I don't think I want to know. I know that, personally, I don't have the energy to be as involved in fandom---any fandom---again as I ever was with Smallville and, had I not had a sabbatical from graduate school in 2008 and been recovering from an illness even into 2009's fall, I probably still would not have been as swept in because I wouldn't have had the time.
This all said, things got less than pleasant. I think the pinnacle of that was when a fan-based podcast, which was also subsidized by Warner and the CW and allowed access to spoilers and to CW talent to interview as a "objective source," had a whole rant that aired (later edited out but still aired) about how the "Chloe fans" were all "sitting around eating chocolate and masturbating to Tom Welling" and "were just as crazy as Nazis." It was profane, cruel, misogynistic, fat-shaming, and degrading. The Warner publicist was sent the full audio clip and promised to deal with it and, I don't know, maybe she asked them to tone it down. I'd like to hope that she did. They still were able to receive special goodies and access to the end of the show, however, despite a clear bias against one fan base and degrading them to the point of even trying to get guest stars like Brian Austin Greene to agree with random fan hate.
On the heels of the infamous "Chloe fans = desperate, fat Tom Welling fangirls" and the first release of ratings for the season nine premiere, I wrote something that expressed all that frustration I'd been feeling since that podcast had come out. It was angry and it had profanity and it was probably not the best way to deal with that kind of hurt, but, frankly, it was my journal and we'd already done the high road, let The Powers That Be know route of saying "This podcast is hurting your own fans' feelings and isn't as effective PR as it could be." So, I was human and I had a moment. I think that happens to all of us. I am regretful that it was as vituperative as it was but, at the same time, it was not without a very clear trigger, something that I've noticed, when it gets reblogged and reposted over the last three years, no one ever mentions.
I'm not interested in throwing stones or playing the "Who shot John" game. We've played it in fandom for forever. I'm just saying that's the full context for why the post came out at all. It happened, it was written, it exists, everyone and their brother (including fandom_wank, I'm sure) knows about it by now. Because of the magic of screencapping and how the internet is similar to "The Library of Congress" and things never get forgotten, I get it will come up for a very long time to come and that's something that happens when you write things out publicly. I am not sure I understood the power of that in 2009, but I do now.
C'est la vie.
However, that was still three years ago. A lot has changed since then. I'm not as active in fandom anymore. I don't follow the comics (I never did with Buffy or Angel either because I feel once the show's aired, it's aired, tbh). I don't have a tumblr and I barely use my personal twitter. I sometimes have to make a concerted effort to remember to keep the LW Twitter engaging too. I am not on Kryptonsite. In fact, I haven't had an active account there since January of 2008. That was a personal choice to leave that the site administrator and I agreed upon after, frankly, comments he'd made that left me feeling uncomfortable as a site member in general. It was nothing that ever had anything to do with my own behavior or him having to force me out. Basically what I do is run the secret_chlark exchange and write Chlark fic for posting on my LJ, AO3, fanfiction.net, and Two of Us archive accounts. That's as far as I get these days---just hanging out with other like minded Chlark fans and posting fics and AU ones at that.
Again, I think it's obviously no secret I was a big part of the Legendary commercial along with Liz De Razzo. I had enough interviews about it and pieces in the spring two years ago. It wasn't planned that way, I just got nominated to be the talker by default. However, that said, while the commercial was a Smallville specific effort, the charity that has grown from it is not rooted in any one fandom. We've profiled Chloe, true. However, we've also looked at Dana Scully and done a fundraiser with fans from that fandom as virtual team. We've done Buffy Summers. We've also had two months so far in our first five that haven't involved a character at all. March was Women's Month in general and this month (we're like 10th-10th or so) is still Mothers' Month.
The one thing that keeps Legendary Women, Inc. linked into something Smallvillian is that every year as an organization we do a fundraiser for The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. The first time I worked on a fundraiser for them was in season nine and it was completely fandom based for Operation Truth and Justice. However, they are such a nice, sweet, appreciative group---especially for a foundation as large and renowned and with famous donors and sponsors---that I enjoyed working with them. I pitched it to the board that we make them our signature charity (they are the only charity we give 100% of the donations to) and the board agreed to continue with that. Year one officially went off very well, I think.
Year two was more intense. Sweet was and I hope they continue to be amazing. I honestly didn't think that having our first step be a partnership with the other fan group who'd raised for the CDRF officially in the past would cause quite the stir it did. It was, frankly, a first volley to see how working with other SV fans and with other fan groups as a whole would work since we'd not tried large scale team-ups in the past. We just figured it was easiest to go with a group that also had a favorite female heroine and that also was familiar with fundraising for the CDRF in particular. I will say that no one who was a fan of Martha or Tess or Kara ever spoke with us about feeling frustrated or excluded. Everyone was more than welcome to donate; it was set up as a way to honor two characters and actresses that the groups (Sweet and LW) agreed to do that year and wasn't about excluding anyone else's favorite. I think you can focus on two and not be pejorative by not including the other regular cast or even guest starring cast if you want to keep a narrower focus. Again, I'd like to point out that nothing in our literature or promotion specifically said we were all Smallville fans everywhere as one front and we were a definitive voice on what all Smallville fandom everywhere thought. We said we were two groups and a collection of Smallville fans (and we were) who were raising for our two favorite actresses/characters (and we were). I am unclear how people at Superman Homepage became so upset that they interpreted it as deliberate exclusion or as a slight when it was only about TWO CHARACTERS/ACTRESSES to start.
I think a lot of the comments said there were unfair, especially a few saying things like "personally I would not trust that woman [Margaret Bates] with my money," which was one comment posted. The implications weren't very polite toward LW's ability to handle money, which has never been an issue. We've raised for the CDRF, Moving Creations, Inc. and as a team in an event that IBG, Inc. ran and we've never once not turned in the money. We've always been honest and given exactly what we promised and what we've raised. The CDRF was even kind enough to write us up twice and thank Legendary Women, Inc. as an organization (and Sweet in year two as well equally) for what we'd done. It was extremely hurtful to read comments like that because, yes, it is a personal opinion of the poster and not technically a libelous comment. However, it makes people start to think about "Wait, are they crooked?" which is the last thing a fledgling charity should have to deal with.
Also, I'd like to add that we can track donations made via the CDRF site. We asked a representative if any donations had come in via the site earmarked as "from Smallville fans" or "Apart from the current drive but in honor of X Smallville character/actor/actress" during the months of both January and February.
There were none.
So, unfortunately, all the conversation there about "I'll prefer to give in my own way" or "I'll be making a donation but not as a part of this drive soon" never actually came to fruition. I'd honestly have loved if they had. The money all goes to the same place and a good cause and if they make more then the CDRF is the real winner there.
Still when all that happened with the Superman Homepage, we, as an organization, let it roll because that's our M.O. We're a business. We aren't a fan group. We work with fans, we do do conventions and profile genre show material. We do do that as a part of an overall whole, but we're still a business. Our 501c3 paperwork is in the process of being done, and, as a result, we file taxes like anyone else. We have expenses like anyone else. We have to find funding somehow like anyone else. I think when it starts being something where the federal and state governments are looking over your yearly business records, then it's about more than fandom. At its base, who liked which actress/character on a show that's been off the air a year now really should not be affecting the ability of a business to function because of the opinion of one board member, much less of a three year old post of said member.
Again, I'd have let this lie.
I was really hopeful that people had moved past it, founded Smallville Women, Big Hearts and people were ready to just not fight and let bygones be bygones. For the record, I am more than happy that the Smallville Women, Big Hearts organization exists. There's no trademark on charity. There's no limit on how many can come from a fandom or how many groups out there can honor women. Again, like CDRF stuff, the more the merrier. The more people who donate or take action, the more it gets out there and the end benefits are to the charities and to the groups about whom awareness is raised.
However, we get to this weekend and I realize sometimes things just won't go away and it's becoming frustrating and complicated. I don't care about myself. I wrote what I wrote and it happened and that's my cross to bear. I do care about when it affects LW, but we can make it work and have with our "Keep Calm and Carry On" plan so far. However, when it affects third parties is when I feel that, in fairness to innocent groups, I should clarify. There was a lot of anger over a certain media outlet and reporter's review for the Saving Hope pilot. There were also accusations that LW, specifically Ms. De Razzo and I, had pressured or convinced the writer to create a negative review about Erica Durance's acting in the pilot out of pettiness or a desire for show sabotage.
THIS IS NOT TRUE.
I am going to say this very, very clearly, and I hope people understand this. Legendary Women, Inc. is NOT, I REPEAT NOT affiliated in any official capacity with IBG, Inc. and it never has been officially entwined. Once we were a virtual team for them among a collection of virtual teams in an event (there were groups from all over like France and things, we weren't unique) and Ms. De Razzo is on the board of both groups. Saying IBG, Inc. and LW, Inc. are related or influencing one another because of one board member in common is about like saying Equality Now and The National Women's History Museum Project are both the same organization because Meryl Streep is on both boards. It's simply not true. Danielle Turchiano worked on the commercial. She's been very honest about that. Calleigh Scott was cast in it, and Liz produced it. This is all known public record and has been from our own released stills or Ms. Turchiano's own blog. However, we have not had any direct association with or ties to IBG, Inc. beyond being one of many virtual teams for them back in 2011. We are not even doing their All Things event currently happening in summer of 2012. So, for future reference, Ms. Turchiano is not influenced by us and any hate directed toward her or her work or attribution of bias is unfair for her and her job.
This weekend, a fan of Erica Durance/Lois did come to our booth at Comic Con. For the record, she and her friend were polite, they didn't overtly do anything or cause any trouble. They made conversation, asked a few questions, and dropped off a folded letter that none of us read and tossed on Friday without ever having read it. They were well-behaved and they do have a right to voice grievances in a polite, freedom to assemble way. That's what makes the United States (where we are based) so wonderful. For all parties involved, it was definitely a bit awkward but it wasn't a shouting match or a spectacle or even heated. It was done in a professional way and that's appreciated. However, for all its politeness and low profile, I still want to point out that it is something that affected a real life third party. We were there working to help Moving Creations, Inc. again. While the encounter lasted no more than probably five minutes it was still five minutes spent engaging with people who weren't there to donate or to sign our mailing list to get in further contact with Ms. Nussdorfer as a volunteer for MC, Inc. So, technically, the five minutes wasted on an encounter that could have been done a different way or by taking one of us aside while the other manned the table, still took away/ate into time that could have been fully devoted to getting more volunteers/money for the charity we were faithfully representing.
This has to stop.
When you do things like go to Superman Homepage and say "I don't trust them with my money for personal reasons but I'll totally give to the CDRF in my own way" and then DON'T or when you distract us in person from actively fundraising from true donors, then you are hampering our ability to raise funds for third parties who are either marginally aware of Smallville fandom or don't know a thing about it and do not care. Ms. Nussdorfer, the founder of MC, Inc., is a dancer and an artistic person. She's sweet and generous and hasn't done anything and, frankly, I doubt she knows the difference even between the Marvel Universe and the DC one or even knows there are two universes of comics big boys out there. It is not fair to them that years' old fandom resentments are being used to hamper fundraising. In the end, what you're doing even if you hate me or hate my thoughts or whatever else, is actively keeping the physically handicapped and girls who come from a depressed economic background from obtaining the optimum help and funding they could be getting.
Is a television show ever worth that?
I don't think so.
Finally, of the late unpleasantness with Tumblr. I had no idea it happened. In fact, on Sunday I was in transit in some form from 7:30 am until 9:00 pm eastern standard time. It took me 3 hours because of train delays on the SEPTA to even get to the convention center, I was there to report for the site and work our table until 4:00 pm. Then I rode the SEPTA train back to the suburbs until quarter of six. Then I drove home from Paoli, PA to Annapolis, MD from six until nine-fifteen (I got lost in both Wilmington, DE and in Towson, MD). I got home had dinner, had a hot soak because three days on concrete equals screaming muscles and went to bed so I could drive another six hours down to North Carolina. After this post, actually, I'm heading three more hours away to Boone, NC to teach this summer. I was in job and trip prepping mode for what few hours I was conscious on Sunday.
I do not know who made that post. I wish I did and I've asked because it's not cool. It's not funny, and it's not cute, and what it did was just rehash old fandom backbiting and make it harder than ever for LW to work above it and for the fandom as a whole to try and get over this shipper war and be an enjoyable place. It wasn't endorsed by us or created by us or inspired by us any more than Ms. Turchiano's article on Thursday was related to us. It was a stupid, infantile joke by a Chloe fan who, I understand where they were coming from as far as I think they did it because they were sad and frustrated at all the flack LW has gotten and lashed out. I get lashing out with anger. I've said already to the Chloe fen I know I'm not angry about the Tumblr.
I'm not.
I'm just disappointed that when I mentioned to people in confidence over the phone no less that I had an awkward day at the convention Friday that they then interpreted that as an invitation to spread my feelings on that and to use it to further stir fandom shipper drama. It was probably coming out of a camaraderie place but it was misguided and counterproductive and, yes, I'm sure extremely hurtful to Lois and Erica Durance fans and to Saving Hope fans and to Smallville Women, Big Hearts, none of whom deserved to see that ugliness pop up on their tumblr feeds. It was crass and tasteless and, if I knew who did it, I'd assuredly never tell them anything of consequence again (I can guess who it was but he/she has refused to even tell me privately via text) but they heard about the convention letter, was outraged, and ran with it while I was still lost somewhere in Delaware.
It's really appalling and I'm truly sorry it happened and none of the Chloe fans who have seen this are impressed. Our entire sentiment has been "show's over, fandom war needs to stop, why are you stirring the pot now?"
So, in closing, three years ago I wrote something vituperative but not completely out of the blue in response to an insulting tirade from a podcast sponsored by the CW and Warner. I regret that it was framed as ugly as it was and that it continues to be trotted out to make fandom life difficult for everyone because every time it is, it just stirs up outdated feelings when show's off the air and I live quite happily in my corner writing Chlark fic. However, its existence does not give a blanket license to attack and interfere with LW every time it tries to do something in the world. It just doesn't. Everyone has places to vent, I get that. Go to twitter or tumblr or livejournal or facebook or whatever and feel frustrated; that's why they exist. Please, however, stop going to public press release announcements and making borderline libel accusations about our ability to be trusted with money when we've always been above board as all the charities we've worked with as well as the federal government can attest. Please, now that the letter has been delivered, do not come to public events to see us and to distract us from the task we only have a set number of hours to accomplish. IF someone does come again to issue grievances, please at least be upfront about your purpose, take one of us aside to speak with us privately so the rest of the table can effectively work and raise funds. Finally, do not smear journalists or groups that have NOTHING to do with our operations.
When it gets to affecting third parties who were never in Smallville fandom, then it's gone too far.
Finally, I am truly sorry for the Tumblr debacle and I am publicly stating that it wasn't funny, it wasn't cute, and it was nasty and bitter and vile and makes the entire fandom look terrible and petty. So, KNOCK. IT. OFF.
And, again, as Forrest Gump says, "that's all I have to say about that."
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* = this post will be under a cut tag starting tomorrow morning. I feel that it's fair to give open reading access to this even if it is very much a case of tl;dr so thank you for your patience.