you use the same terms for both. Is that more or less right?

Yeah, pretty much. I'd say there are guys that "don't do anything for me." Tyson's not one of those -- but it's only his picture that does something for me. Sure he's stunning in real life, but there's no pull there. So once I verified he still looked that good, I went on with my evening.

Djimon was more like me backing away, trying to get out of range of his mysterious powers before it was too late.

including that time I wrote a poem about Caspar Weinberger.

Aww, yeah:

How I love to watch the morn,
With golden sun that shines,
Up above to nicely warm
These frosty toes of mine

The wind doth taste of bittersweet,
Like jasper wine and sugar.
I bet it's blown through others' feet,
like those of... Caspar Weinberger

I think I see the distinction, ita; one is an aesthetic appeal and one is visceral.

And it's about twenty times more complicated in a fannish context, where most of the time, there's at least an element of the character appreciation involved in actor appreciation. There are so many levels.

Scott Bakula - loved him on Quantum Leap, think he's very attractive, cannot STAND him on Enterprise.

Bradley Whitford -- love the character *and* what I know about the actor, which includes his heartfelt devotion to his wife and children.

And there's got to be someone out there where it's a case of loving the character, but thinking the actor's an ass, although I can't think of...yes, I can. David Duchovny.

So with you on that one, Dana.

Well, I know I wanted smack Mulder upside the head more than one or two times. Then again, I have the tolerance of a gnat.

What always annoyed me was the general acceptance, in my old fandom, that photos of actors should be taken as if they were photos of characters. Like, that TV guide photoshoot is "proof" the characters are sleeping together. WTF??

Scott Bakula - loved him on Quantum Leap, think he's very attractive, cannot STAND him on Enterprise.

Bradley Whitford -- love the character *and* what I know about the actor, which includes his heartfelt devotion to his wife and children.

And there's got to be someone out there where it's a case of loving the character, but thinking the actor's an ass, although I can't think of...yes, I can. David Duchovny.

So in agreement with Dana on all of those. Add Ben Browder to the Bradley Whitford category, too.

Nutty, I remember those strips! They were marvelous fun.

I have nothing to add on the topic du jour. Except that I still want to read The Very Secret Diaries of Han Solo.

that TV guide photoshoot is "proof" the characters are sleeping together. WTF??

And having a threesome with their Creator to boot! Good times, good times.

You guys recall that old Madonna video, where she is all peep-show and bustier for the first 80% of the video, and then at the end goes prancing around in the street, in non-sexy clothes, with a skinny preteen boy?

Open Your Heart. IIRC, the kid was early teens (14 or something) when they shot the vid. I saw it a lot when I was out with chicken pox (I was 12).

Djimon was more like me backing away, trying to get out of range of his mysterious powers before it was too late.

Oh, hell yeah. I mean, I was safely across the room, and totally enthralled. I just wanted to stare until my eyes dried out.

PMM, please reassure me. It wasn't Who's-the-Boss-era Leo DiCaprio, was it? Please say no.

I'm really pretty sure it wasn't.