Houston health club

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A Mel Gibson geiger-counter reading from Houston critic Joe Leydon, who wrote his morning to say his wife "just returned from a morning visit to the health club for a half-hour or so on the treadmill. The club isn't exactly upscale, but it's in a nice neighborhood -- actually, a very nice neighborhood -- and many of the folks who live around there are Jewish. (No, I'm not stereotyping: The very large Jewish Community Center is nearby, and the supermarkets have well-stocked kosher sections -- something you don't see nearly so often in other areas here in Houston. And, no kidding, the area is officially known as Meyerland.)

"Anyway, while at the health club she overheard some heated conversations by a few of the other members. Specifically, a group of middle-aged men and women who were talking about Mel Gibson. Mind you, when I say 'heated' I don't mean they were arguing. I mean one or two were loudly griping, and the others were more or less nodding in agreement. Here is an almost verbatim quote from the dialogue: 'Did you hear what that Mel Gibson did? First he made that Passion of the Christ, and now this. He's never going to get another penny of my money again.' Mrs. L. -- whose mother, by the way, was Jewish -- was more than a little surprised by the vehemence of the remarks. And even though she herself never saw Passion of the Christ - she's a practicing Catholic, but was turned off by advance reports of blood and gore - she's now tempted to view the film on video.

"This may be such an isolated incident that it doesn't even begin to qualify as anecdotal evidence. And then again, maybe not. Either way, I'd be interested in seeing if there's any kind of significant spike in Passion DVD rentals and purchases during the next few days. And I'm even more interesting in finding out: Have we only just begun to see the fallout from Mel's misbehavior?"

comment #1

Daniel Z says ...

Oh good lord...

People are upset to hear that Gibson is a bigot, but they give WHAT WOMEN WANT a free pass?

PRIORITIES PEOPLE!!!

comment #2

MAGGA says ...

Mel Gibson has never been in anything I´ve liked, but this is pure E! style gossip. Who cares what he thinks. I guess this is easier when you come from outside America, as we don´t take his Passion seriously, but still, he´s a pin-up. What he thinks about anything is beside the point, or am I wrong?

comment #3

Jeffrey Wells says ...

Wells to MAGGA: Mel's not a pin-up any more -- he's a hyper-sounding middle-aged guy with thinning hair who wears flannel shirts from central Oregon -- and what he thinks and says about Jews is very much a part of the overall picture, I'm afraid, whether you were born in Stockbridge, Mass. or Turin, Italy.

comment #4

Stephen L says ...

What Mel Gibson says about anything is of no interest to anyone outside of America and should be no interest to anyone inside America; he's nothing more than a slightly-faded moviestar. Those of us who live outside the USA find it more than a little amusing that the opinions of such people are worthy of publication or note. I mean who cares? This is the problem with the American worship of celebrity; you think these people actually have something to contribute politically when most of them, to put it plainly, aren't that smart.

comment #5

says ...

The truly scary thing to me is that Mel may be tapping into another huge niche. I believe his voice accurately represents most of the christian conservatives I know.
I do not share their views and it genuinely scares me what may happen if these sentiments fester. Hopefully Mel's actions will release a bit of the pressure. But, if its perceived that he is harmed for these beliefs I think a bigger movement will become more visible and it will be very ugly.

comment #6

MagillaOrangutang says ...

A man associated with the Christ figure persecuted by agents of the Jews in the chosen kingdom?
This is a joke right?

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