After getting recent interview requests to talk about Disney's Jonas Brothers, I've decided that the red flag for exploiting kid performers is pretty simple: is the family on the payroll.
They almost always are at that level and that almost always leads to some situation where they sign on to a tour of the Far East and with millions of dollars on the line, you shove your kid out on to stage with a fever of 100 degrees. Or some similar scenario where the kid's interests are not foremost.
So, Miley's already opted into the exploitation business. Or her parents did for her.
Also, I'll note that Annie Leibowitz is famous for asking people to take their shirts off for her photographs. Not just sexy starlets but old folks and famous writers and others. It's not usually sexualized but vulnerable and open.
Also, I'll note that Annie Leibowitz is famous for asking people to take their shirts off for her photographs. Not just sexy starlets but old folks and famous writers and others. It's not usually sexualized but vulnerable and open.
Absolutely. But if my daughter were 15 that would either sit on the mantle or wait until she was 18.
::stabinates erin's boss::
Miley seems to be one of the few in this bunch of star kids whose parents have some career other than her. I mean, Billy Ray hadn't really been in the public eye much between Achy Breaky Heart and Hannah Montana, but he still had those royalties and stuff, and it looks like he did have a bunch of songs in between that got some decent airplay on the country charts. With Britney Spears and Lindsey Lohan, on the other hand, it seems like the kids' careers are the only thing the parents have.
hey Kat, did you get my other email this morning?
I've decided that the red flag for exploiting kid performers is pretty simple: is the family on the payroll.
Isn't that true of every kid performer? I don't even think being the family breadwinner is a sure bet to be fucked-up -- look at Sarah Jessica Parker. She may or may not have been exploited, but she never flipped out.
I think Hil's point is a good one, that Miley was hardly the only way the Cyruses were getting dinner on the table. Most of the other Disney kids, though...
It seems like parents are going to have to be more involved/careful (whatever) if they have a kid who is a performer. My nephew has a friend who is a child actor and who has been cast in a couple of series -- when he's over at my sister's house, there's a long list of things he's not allowed to do, and what she must do if anything happens -- because the studio doesn't want the kid to get bruised or otherwise marked.
And so even if nothing happens, the kid is still aware that there's a sort of hyper-awareness surrounding him. And that mother pretty much had a full time job making sure of all this.
Sox, yes! THANK YOU! Also I'm wading through my inbox and sent you an answer to an older email.
And so even if nothing happens, the kid is still aware that there's a sort of hyper-awareness surrounding him. And that mother pretty much had a full time job making sure of all this.
That's the parents choice though. Some parents nod and smile and if the kid gets a bruise deal with it then. I've known both kinds.
When I was a kid, I had a few friends who did theatre stuff, but I think that Broadway is a different environment for kids than TV or movies. Also, none of them were the breadwinner for their families by any means -- most of the money got put into their college funds.
