I'd like to post something to articulate how I feel about what is being discussed here (versus what the original thread was about - that topic has long since fallen by the wayside)
I don't want to offend anyone and I'm not posting this to get into an argument. Think of this as a kind of offshoot of some of the discussions about the tone of posts on these boards, as well as a bit of a rant about appropriateness and compassion.
First, I'd like to say that no matter what actor this disccusion might have been about, it would have been inappropriate. The fact that I have some knowledge of this person doesn't mean it is any less or more appropriate.
The discussion seems to have started with a comment about Lane not signing. Perhaps the person didn't realize that he rarely does sign at the stage door though he has been known to do so on occasion. There are actually people who will (in spite of the claims of Lane's evil core) say that he's been sweet and accommodating. This sometimes has to do with the approach made by the person asking and sometimes is just a factor of his discomfort with the public
He has said that he is shy and has been very public about his alcoholic addiction, subsequent recovery efforts, his family and personal demons. All of that aside (and presuming most of you could care less about his personal life and just care about whether he is available to you as an actor), if he isn't working hard enough for you on stage then that's ashame. He is one of the most dedicated and talented men on the stage today and has given freely of his time for charities and to promote theater and NYC.
This seems in stark contrast to the stories that always swirl around about him (yes, he can be difficult but talk to people who work with him, and his family and friends and you will hear a totally different story). So what is the truth? The truth is that he is a complex person, just as we are all complex people, and no one situation can be taken as the whole.
For those who have encountered him more than once in a certain situation, there are also conflicting stories. And, if you listen to the naysayers, you will believe he is evil and should be shot. Interesting that those with whom he is the closest and works the most intimately are the first to find him giving and sensitive.
But, the truth is that none of us should be judging him (or anyone) from this distance. There is no reason for us to discuss his personal life and dissect it as if he were a bug (not a human being with feelings) and talking about the horror stories we've heard (some of which can be proven, many of which are the stuff of legends and have about as much truth to them as the National Enquirer). One such story comes to mind where a person told of a situation in a theater where he cursed at an older lady who was just trying to compliment him on his performance in the Producers. After everyone had torn him apart for several days someone came forward and said that, in fact, the woman had asked him for an autograph and he demured...whereupon she called him an 'a**hole' and added some other impolite comments. And THAT is why he cursed at the little old lady...so there's always more than one side to a story.
But I'm not trying to discount or challenge anything that has been said and call it untrue. I'm wise enough to know that will get me nowhere. For every story I throw out, others will throw out three. I do want to say that, whether he is a person in the public eye or not, there is something less than compassionate and something very tacky about us sitting here blithely picking apart his personality, when he can't defend himself and when his family and friends and coworkers are not here to defend him. How would we feel if someone did that to us?
And all over the fact that he didn't stop to sign an autograph. BTW, for those who recommended therapy and suggested that perhaps he doesn't KNOW he has problems, I'd have to say you are being quite naive. He has publicly talked about much of this and what he hasn't publicly talked about has still become common knowledge. Lane, of all people, knows he has problems and he's doing his best to work on them.
If he had cancer, I presume you would not consider him an evil person. Emotional issues and alcoholism are just as much a disease as cancer. And the day we can all say we've withstood and tried to overcome what he has in his life...is the day we should be allowed to talk about this. Not until. The idea that he would be as out of control as he has been painted in some circles and still able to function and write and act at the level he does is ludicrous. At some point, after that many years of physical and emotional abuse to one's body, you can't maintain the grueling schedule required of an actor of his caliber. You've seen it happen to other actors and people who have not worked through their problems and it is sad. If indeed he is still managing that kind of abusive schedule, then he must be super human.
There's an old Native American saying that says you have to walk a mile in a man's moccasins before you can understand him.
While we try that one on for size...I'd like to close by saying I'm saddened and disappointed by the fact that we, on this board, can't take the high ground and that we have to resort to the sort of gossip and nastiness that seems to surround us and face us at every turn in this world today.
Whether you like Lane (or ANY actor) or not you have no right to judge his life or his person from this distance. I'd like to think we could limit our discussion to the theater and stage performance. Perhaps I'm being naive. I guess the juicy stuff is better. And what does that say about us?
"Life is a lesson in humility"
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