Raul Esparza Interview in Sunday Times- Page 4

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:08pm

No, they COMPANY people would not have to approve it. They are not the NY Times editors.

And "Considering what this could have been, it's pretty tame."? I must be very, very old.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:08pm

I didn't get the impression that there's any issue of him trying to 'fix' his marriage, but more it's a case of trying to figure out, maybe through therapy?, as to why he even married her in the first place. He's obviously conflicted but I don't see anything here other than a situation that many men face after denying, for whatever reasons, who they truly are and attempting to lead a more 'traditional' and acceptable life. He's very close to his wife, which is not unusual at all, even in a situation where he's now coming out publicly.

Yes, exactly. My assumption on first glance was very much that they just have a lot to sort out, together and separately, now that this is becoming official.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:11pm

Rath, I would have assumed that if their leading man was going to go on record with anything regarding the show, potentially controversial or not, it would have to be cleared by the press agents. I would think they'd have to give the okay for him to sit down for this interview.

And no, it's not an age thing by any means. But this could have dug up far more dirt than it actually does.

Updated On: 11/25/06 at 08:11 PM

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:13pm

Of course they approved him sitting down for the interview - they may have solicited it, in fact. But they don't get to approve what actually goes into the article.

Updated On: 11/25/06 at 08:13 PM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:14pm

Oh, no, I didn't think that. With this kind of thing, the content may have been planned, though. You don't just "happen" to make such a big statement.

Updated On: 11/25/06 at 08:14 PM

[StageManager2]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:15pm

I hope he's not giving his wife false hope.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:16pm

That would have been Esparza's plan - not the press agent's.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:16pm

If he's acknowledging that it's done, why would he be? False hope would be attempts to work it out, which... well, have failed, considering that he's been sleeping with men while still married for years.

And yes, I meant his plan. Of course.

Updated On: 11/25/06 at 08:16 PM

[StageManager2]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:20pm

Sorry, Emcee. I didn't get from the article that he views the marriage as over. It appeared to me that he was working it out, especially when he mentions how his friends want him to stay with her.

[TomMonster]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:23pm

It's almost the reverse plot of COMPANY. I certainly don't think the COMPANY press agents would mind any kind of comparison to the show. Who knows, this might actually work in bringing in more audience. Now people are "curious". Just like Raul...although his curiousity went out with the cat (or cats...).

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:24pm

Right, but that's when he's addressing all of the pressures he's had to deal with. Friends, family, culture...

“It’s the end of something I thought was going to be perfect..."

I think what he's saying here is he's accepting his sexuality, which is fairly opposite of trying to work out the marriage and suppress all sorts of things about himself. That's what he's been doing, and my impression is that he's finally accepting that that's not going to work.

Updated On: 11/25/06 at 08:24 PM

[mominthecty]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:24pm

After reading the article the first time, I wondered if the Times reporter took this part of the interview and made it "the story". There is always a chance that these questions and answers are part of a much more general in-depth interview, and they just made this the focus.
It will be interesting to hear what Raul has to say. I just hope this is what he intended.

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:24pm

Sorry, Emcee. I didn't get from the article that he views the marriage as over. It appeared to me that he was working it out, especially when he mentions how his friends want him to stay with her.

Even if that's the case, how can it not be essentially over by this point? The guy just revealed to the public that he's gay. I honestly can't think of a situation where a marriage could function normally under such circumstances. Maybe that's the point you were trying to make - I'm not sure - but I think Esparza's decision to come out effectively ended any possibility that he could still "work it out." I also hope that he isn't giving his wife false hope, but I can't imagine that would be the case here.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:27pm

SM2, I think you're getting the wrong impression. I don't think he has any intention of 'working it out'. He's with another man now, he's been with many others through the years, he's announcing it publicly via the NYT. I think it's obvious that he's now as out as out can be and I'm sure his wife has been aware of it for years and would not be feeling 'false hope'. The marriage has by all accounts been over for years. Raul is a gay man.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:28pm

I just read the entire article. That has to be one of the most intensely personal interviews I've ever read. Those are not the words of a "private" person. In fact, he was so open - not just about his sexuality, but about other people and relationships in his life - that I felt uncomfortable.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:28pm

oops

Updated On: 11/25/06 at 08:28 PM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:31pm

People have long accused him of "hiding behind" his marriage. So if he were announcing that he was going to find ways to work it out, this wouldn't be that much of a big deal. That'd be like an "into the closet" article.

Rath, that's exactly why this is very surprising. Even if he did end his marriage and go about his life as a man who... is attracted to men, I wouldn't have expected him to go and put it on record.

Updated On: 11/25/06 at 08:31 PM

[StageManager2]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:35pm

"They’ve been separated, on and off, he says, since he came to New York in 2000; they even went for divorce papers once, in Miami, but couldn’t go through with it. He can’t get away from the feeling that he’s doing something wrong, disappointing other people, particularly their families."

“We’re still trying to figure a new way to figure it out,” he says. “Boy, are we.”

I guess I got confused by that paragraph/statement.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:37pm

Anyone think that perhaps he was getting the jump on a story by someone else by doing the interview? It just seems like there has to be a reason other than he just happened to be doing an interview surrounding Company and just happened to open his heart to this interviewer about the most personal information of his life.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:38pm

That's the part I referenced, SM2. I think it's just awkwardly phrased.

This reads like it was planned -- like the parallel was set to be drawn and like he intended to come out. He had been toying with doing it in some capacity for a while.

Updated On: 11/25/06 at 08:38 PM

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:39pm

That's possible, erin, but still no reason to go into such intimate detail.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:44pm

I don't know. If you look at this from the point of view of crafting a story, the ties between the show and his personal life present a perfect opportunity for him to do something like this *and* to make a big push for the emotional capabilities of the show. If you want to make a case for those ties, it's got to be extremely personal, and in this particular case, he couldn't have gotten around the sexuality issue without bringing up a lot of difficult material. I tend to think that since in the past he HAS been very protective of his personal life in the press and only made vague allusions (more or less because he was closeted), that he knew he was going to do this for the interview. It's a tough, complicated call.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:51pm

Still does not call for the detail. There are plenty of people who "come out" without anywhere near that level of detail.

I felt uncomfortable for all the other people involved, as well as for myself - I have no desire to know that much about an actor, and I don't understand the psychology of someone who feels the need to do that.

[raulfan]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:53pm

Makes me love and appreciate him even more.

[Becoz_i_knew_you21]

Posted: 11/25/06 at 8:56pm

Wow. I can believe he would be so open about everything in his life.