Friday, January 8, 2010

Why Can't We Be Friends?: An Open Letter to Jeremy Sisto


Dear Jeremy Sisto,

So I feel like we got off on the wrong foot.  Last week, I posted a review of the excellent 2002 cult horror May, in which you play a pivotal role and meet a very, um, choppy fate.  In said review, I devoted a sidebar to your effective portrayal of bipolar sister-lovin' Billy Chenowith on the seminal series Six Feet Under--a portrayal so effective that it's sometimes hard for me to watch your other work (which is varied and consistent, the Holy Grail for actors) without thinking of Billy.

Backwards as it sounds, I meant it as a compliment.

In the comments, someone posted a tidbit about you that they believed to be true.  Without doing my homework, I went along with it.  Naturally, you were upset, and I apologized.

I then did a little research on you (as maybe I should have done before replying to the comment).  I found out that not only are you a former Chicago resident, but you attended the lovely Francis W. Parker School.  In my day job, I've not only worked with the school itself but some of its alums and parents, and they're all delightful people.  I have no reason to believe you aren't the same.

I have to admit, I wasn't sure if it was really you posting at first.  So I did some more research, and I found out that not only do you friend your fans on Facebook (which not every celebrity does), you also respond to them via Twitter (which not every celebrity does).  That's really nice.  You seem intent on giving props to people who like your work, and I respect that a lot.  As for me, I'm really excited to have the subject of one of my posts track it down and comment, as this has only happened once before.

Because of this, I am thinking it was really you commenting on my last post.  Did you know that my May review got the most comments out of any of my posts, ever?  Thanks, dude!

In the commenter's defense, she is a personal friend of mine and is not the type to stir up trouble.  As you know, the Internet is a place where rumors fly and people are easily misled.

In my defense, I'm a nerd for proper spelling and grammar.  A complete and total NERD.  I've been taken to task for it, trust me.

So Jeremy, I extend an olive branch, which if your latest comment is to be believed, you are "considering."  Consider this, dude: I think you are cool for calling me out, and there are no hard feelings on my end.  I hope you keep reading this blog, because I've been told I'm kinda funny.

Roll with me, homey!

Your (hopefully) friend,
The Unprofessional Critic

P.S.  I really dig Waitress.  Also Clueless.  Will probably write about them at some point.

21 comments:

  1. Aww, that was the real Jeremy Sisto? Now I feel bad for my stupid silly comment. I'm sorry. You are a good actor, Jeremy, and I shouldn't have snarked on your spelling. I'm a former English teacher, so I'm kind of like that.

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  2. Bryn--I don't have 100% confirmation, but like I said, I did some homework and it seems like he is a) online a lot, and b) still attuned to his home city of Chicago. Also? I know that people can be crazy, but a Jeremy Sisto impersonator is just too random.

    So yeah, naive as it may sound, I'm thinking it really is him.

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  3. I hope it is, and that he wants to make friends. Is he on twitter?

    I love how I feel like I'm interacting with big stars when I retweet something John Stamos said. Though R.L. and Lerangis do tweet back at me, which is ALL KINDS of surreal.

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  4. He is on Twitter, though I don't think he checks it very much. I Tweeted him this blog post, just in case.

    "Interacting" with celebs is what I love most about Twitter. I didn't know R.L. and Lerangis were on there, that's awesome! My goal is to get a celebrity to follow me. Michael Hitchcock has direct messaged me twice and I was unnaturally excited about that.

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  5. Dear Unproffessional critic, thank you for responding to my concern. I have always wondered what would happen if I were to speak up. (I don't google myself as much as it sounds, not quite as much). I suppose if I were a big star I would have to deal with people saying things like that about me a lot more and I don't think I would like that too much. Your comment about seeing Billy in other things I have done was not insulting at all. Just honest. Of course I hope at some point I will do something that will involve you enough that the memory of "six feet" won't get in the way. So we're all good. You don't think I'm a wife abuser, I don't thing you're a gossip hound, all is right in the world.

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  6. Dear Jeremy,

    YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    I am glad we're cool, and there are no hard feelings. You have quite an impressive resume, and I wish you every success in your career. (Chicagoans repreSENT!)

    Feel free to stop by anytime, and pass this blog along to your pals!

    P.S. I know you were in Clueless with her, but I'm not sure how well you knew Brittany Murphy. In any case, I was very saddened by her death, and if you two had kept in touch, I am sorry for your loss.

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  7. Lerangis follows me--does he count as a celeb?

    Glad all is right with Sisto.

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  8. Lerangis follows you? Not only does he count as a celeb, but I am jealous.

    Jen Lancaster follows me, and that makes me happy. :)

    And yeah, Sisto is a cool guy, isn't he? It's been fun "corresponding" with him this past week. Of course, now everyone has to deal with me yelling, "HE READ MY BLOG!" whenever Sisto pops up on screen.

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  9. Oh, and Lita Ford follows me, which is pretty neat!

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  10. Lita Ford? Nice! Kiss me once...kiss me twiiiice. :D

    R.L. Stine doesn't follow me, but he regularly tweets back at me when I respond to him. It's kind of awesome.

    I wish Ann M. were on twitter, but are we surprised that she's not? She's still barely getting used to having a modem on her desk!

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  11. It's funny how many people say they always see him as the guy from Clueless or Six Feet Under. I've never had that issue, although I liked him in both. Every time I watch him on screen I see something new. If you want to get past Billy, watch the show Kidnapped. It's a great show. It got cancelled, but it's available on DVD. How shows like that get cancelled but shows like Big Brother last for years is beyond me. Or the movie The Movie Hero, it's a bit older but a really neat movie. Population 436 and Paranoia 1.0 are both good; if you're into horror type movies. Into Temptation is getting good reviews; I haven't gotten a chance to see it yet though. Jeremy Sisto is a lot more than Billy. :)

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  12. Thanks, Kay, for your comments and suggestions! I always love movie recommendations (and I LOVE horror), so I will try to check those out.

    I hear ya about good TV shows getting canceled while total crap stays on the air. It's gotten to the point where I'm almost afraid to get TOO into a new show until it's been on the air for a few months. I did hear good things about Kidnapped.

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  13. I like horror too. There are a few more horror movies that I thought of that Jeremy Sisto is in; Wrong Turn, and Dead and Breakfast (which is more of a comedy than horror but it's a really cool movie).

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  14. i'm going to apologize for my post about Sisto's alleged/never-happened past. but why do i remember it? I recall some report while "6 feet" was still on the air. I withdraw my comment. Unpro, feel free to delete it. Jeremy, sorry for stepping on your toes.

    Will it make you feel better to know that I was once referred to as being a former pin the prostitutue in the press? Yeah, and THAT one WASN'T withdrawn...

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  15. Okay, gotta say though, I don't think it's the real Jeremy. "Not a big star"? Um, no. Is a big star.

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  16. EB, we are cool, no worries. I think everything is all good with Jere, real or not real. (He's becoming like the Santa Claus on this blog...I believe in Jeremy Sisto. ;)

    Someone called you a prostitute once? Oh HELL no!

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  17. I've mentioned the name Jeremy Sisto in conversations before and several times I've gotten Jeremy who? I mentioned his name to several people at my work the other day when talking about movies and they did not know who he was. Not one out of about 8 people; sad but true. Now maybe if they saw his face they'd say oh I've seen him before on tv or some movie. They are all into the blockbuster movies, which I like just fine but I love indie films. You won't get that with someone like Tom Cruise, Bruce Willis, Will Smith,... Jeremy is not a "big star" . I'm not saying that he is any less talented, but he is not nearly as well known as them, that's for sure. I would guess it's because he is in many indie films and is maybe not as well known out of that circuit. It might not be as bad now that he's on Law and Order, but I'm not so sure. I bet there are even people who watch Jeremy on Law and Order and still don't know the name of the actor who plays Lupo.

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  18. I came late to the Jeremy Sisto party, dammit. I went to high school with his younger half-sister, who was best friends with MY best friend's older sister. BFF's older sis got to meet Jeremy once, and he told her she was pretty. This was after Clueless so we all were hyperventilating that the guy from Clueless thought Amy was pretty. Random story, I know. But it seems like it fit. Sort of. Maybe. (Plus, now Amy can say the guy from L&O once told her she was pretty.)

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  19. All of that is in the past. Lets look for the future.

    Jeremy Cushing

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  20. Interesting article, added his blog to Favorites

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  21. Personally,when I think of Jeremy,I think of Paranoia 1.0. (oh,and as Jeremy in Hideaway!) He's such an ace.Ive been a fan of his forever. :)
    If you really do read theese,..keep making movies that are just a bit out there.I love em!!

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