Russell Armstrong Items
This morning there are all kinds of theories as to why Russell Armstrong killed himself and they are not much changed from yesterday morning. What is certain is that Taylor Armstrong was with the people who discovered the body on Monday evening and was allegedly hysterical. Radar Online says that Russell's gay secrets were about to be exposed and interviewed his ex-wife who blames Taylor for Russell's suicide.
Bravo has ordered the cast to not talk about the death of Russell which I am not sure they are allowed to do unless they are citing that this is somehow related to the show. I hope there was no camera crew with Taylor when she went there but that would be the only reason I could think of where they could order the cast to be quiet. Confidentiality agreements do not usually apply to things that occur outside the show because there is this little thing called the First Amendment.
Also from Bravo is the word they are going to wait 24 hours before deciding whether to postpone the show. Please. They are going to milk this thing for all it is worth. They want to appear sympathetic to the public by saying they are thinking about it, but inside they are not going to delay this thing at all.
I could see him being gay and tortured by it (not cause he's gay, but because he's not free to be gay)and killing himself. That's a shame if that's the case.
ReplyDeleteOn a side note, as much as I do not like stupid Taylor, I hope people don't blame her for it. I don't think that's fair.
It's sad when people feel suicide is the only way out.
ReplyDeleteI read on TMZ that his lawyer said Russell was doing everything he could to finance Taylor's lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteMay not be right, but I'm sure she will feel partially guilty.
As I said on Twitter in response E! tweeting to what Bravo could do about this situation? NOT capitalize on his death, would be a nice start!
So as his widow, is she now responsible for his debts?
ReplyDelete@Patty....oh yeah!!!
ReplyDeleteBy the way...I have come up with the central unanswered question to this whole entire mess:
Is reality tv reality??? In other words, I hear so many people say it is scripted. Yet often times the truth is stranger than the fiction. Does one cause the other? Did reality tv cause this man's mess, or just exemplify it?
So what is reality tv? Is it art showing the life, or creating the life? Or what???
It just seems like reality tv has created a tangled web of truth and reality that some people just cannot take and it drives them over the edge.
Look at all the "normal" people forever changed after "reality" tv:
Jon & Kate
The Hogans
The Osbournes
All of the bachelors and bachelorettes
Survivor folks (particlarly the guy in prison for tax evasion)
The other family of a million kids that the husband went nuts and they divorced later
So one has to ask....is it all the crazy people that are attracted to and thus successful in realtiy tv-so they were already nuts to begin with? Or are they normal people that reality tv messed up?
Maybe a little of both, Ice, but more of the latter?
ReplyDeleteI loved Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey together and I always wondered what if they wouldn't have had their little show?
I have read interviews from people in these shows and how it feels to have cameras rolling 24/7, some claim to forget the cameras are there, but others admit it definitely screws with their lives. It's just human nature to react differently than we normally would when we know we're being recorded.
Bravo might have the BH ladies on lock down, but I read that Giggy tweeted his condolences today.
@Ice Angel,
ReplyDeleteJust my guesses at all of your questions, but I think reality show TV is made up of people looking to get any shot they can at being a celebrity. With the shows I think it's a hybrid mix of what happens when you throw a group of people together, plus some coaching from the sidelines from the shows producers. My nephew saw a Real Housewives show being taped at a restaurant and he said that there was definitely some coaching going on. One person would say something to another and then they would be asked how they felt about what the other person said and then the taping would resume. Definitely some heavy coaching afoot, but then with a group of attention grabbers, well sometimes you just don't need a script. They ham it up on their own.
great write @iceage awesomeness!
ReplyDeleteoops! iceangel
ReplyDeleteCall in the hoardes of corporate lawyers-STAT!
ReplyDeleteThis poor guy. He clearly wanted nothing to do with the reality show from the get-go. This was shown as being "antisocial" and "unsupportive" and "mean" last year on the show. The wife wanted to be on a reality show and exploited the situation to make herself interesting and stay on the show. She's a manipulative, empty, uninteresting s/hell of a human being otherwise. The show was going to make the divorce a plot point. The previews showed her all hysterical blubbing about "abuse." Clearly it was going to be a one-sided exhibition of the facts. He had financial troubles and possibly other things he wanted to keep private. He was completely hosed. RIP.
ReplyDeleteIt's official, Enty is not a lawyer. The First Amendment refers to GOVERNMENTS, not companies. A company can order someone to be quiet or face termination; especially since there are doubtless enforceable nondisclosure agreements. It's only a GOVERNMENT (federal, state, local) that is barred by the First Amendment from curtailing speech.
ReplyDeleteJeez.
You can bet the guys at Brovo, on hearing the news of Russell Armstrong's death, raise their hands to the sky and yelled, "Thank you, Lord!" because they knew they now had a ratings winner.
ReplyDelete@Patty - yes she is. After my father died this way, my mother was left with a shit load of property and debts to attend to. It really worsened the entire situation.
ReplyDeleteI got really pissed off at the Superficial's take on this yesterday. Totally insenstive. This isn't entertainment.
Personally, I felt that "reality" television was originally a bonanza for networks, with relatively low-paid nobodies scrambling to be on television shows ("Take your pick!") Now I think the concept has been co-opted by the People In Charge and is being used to divert an entire generation's attention away from the real problems of the world (as they take it over step by step) and focusing it on Teen Moms, Jersey Shores, Rocks of Love, Big Brothers (!) and so on. Increasingly illiterate generations will be unable to even formulate a strategy to combat or resist this power grab until it will be too late and the PIC will control EVERYTHING.
ReplyDeleteBut that's just me.
Ice Angel - I love your post.
ReplyDeleteI've been viewing RHBH, RHNJ and Jersey Shore, and I always wonder how much is manipulated by the producers/PTB on the show.
I also think to be on the programs you must be: 1. In desperate need of money. 2. In desperate need of attention. 3. A bit fucked up in the head. 4. Unphased or oblivious to the repercusions the program will have on your loved ones.
The children aren't a big part of the RHBH, but they are all up in it on Jersey, and it disturbs the hell out of me.
And I am just really trying to convince myself that the producers of Jersey Shore told the cast to act like the Vatican is in Florence. I refuse to believe that they are THAT stupid. I guess you could say I'm in the denial stage. So proud of our education system in America...NOT!!
I find it strange, this obsession Americans have with being famous. Particularly for doing nothing special. It's no different than any get rich quick scam. I find all the reality TV shows boring as hell.
ReplyDeleteHow about a reality show that shows people how to live within their means? Too real for ya?
@ robert---
ReplyDeleteYep, it's a true Idiocracy happening fo' sho'!!!
You aren't really a lawyer, are you? You didn't really go to law school or pass a bar exam, did you?
ReplyDeleteIt's pretty basic that the Bill of Rights only applies to state action, you know, protecting the rights of the people from government overreaching. I can demand that someone not say something, and that does not implicate the Constitution, unless I am a governmental entity, which I am not.
My children used to cry, "I have rights!" to which I would reply, "The Constitution does not apply in this house."
Not a lawyer.
And I can tell you, RHONJ is boring as freaking HELL this season. The first episode hooked me and then it has been all blah and drab ever since. Gyahh!
ReplyDeleteOops. Thanks rebecca.
ReplyDeleteThis is the sort of misunderstanding no person educated in the United States should ever have.
I read on TMZ that his lawyer said Russell was doing everything he could to finance Taylor's lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteThat's very sad if it's true. Taylor spent over FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS on her 4 year old daughter's birthday party and gave her a diamond necklace as a gift (yeah, like that impresses a 4 year old). Meanwhile Russell got their daughter a puppy, which Taylor HATED, and insisted her daughter was allergic to it so she could get rid of it. Yes, she tried to get rid of her daughter's beloved pet just to get back at her husband.
Reality TV is a cancer (says this as an insider) and this is just one of the many examples that proves it. You're messing around with people's lives, aggrandizing borderline sociopaths, and training the next generation that it's not important to actually accomplish anything in life, just to get famous. This is not an isolated incident, just a well-covered one...so many more tragedies brought about by the famewhore generation's addiction to reality TV.
ReplyDeleteIf y'all feel so much contempt for reality TV, why are you still watching? There are other ways to waste an hour (I hear World of Warcraft is offering 2 months of free to play ;D)
ReplyDeleteAgree with Robert and hunter. Cheaper television is cartoons, and they're working that angle as well.
ReplyDeleteNo plus ones and disinviting family members??? TACKY!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Rebecca and Snakeoiler, for saving me from pecking out my message on my iPod. Sometimes my jaw drops so hard here I've got a dent in my clavicle from the things I've seen the "lawyer" say!
ReplyDelete