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'Winning' is the new losing

By Catherine Toth Fox • March 8, 2011 • Musings, The Daily Dish

I didn’t want to blog about. I really didn’t.

But Charlie Sheen — who was fired yesterday from CBS’ wildly popular “Two and a Half Men” — is making it hard for me to ignore him.

First he made the rounds on TV morning talk shows, saying absurd things like he has Adonis DNA and he’s a “rock star form Mars” living with “goddesses” (aka: a former porn star and a “model”). Then he told ABC’s “20/20” that he’s “on a drug. It’s called Charlie Sheen. It’s not available. If you try it once, you will die. Your face will melt off and your children will weep over your exploded body.”

To top it off, he joined Twitter (@charliesheen) — no, no, no! — and tweeted things like he’s looking to hire “a #winning INTERN with #TigerBlood.” (He broke records when about 350,000 started following the actor before he even sent his first tweet, then more than 1 million within 24 hours of signing up.)

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Djh7U2U-uxQ
Charlie Sheen, the topic of a recent “Jimmy Kimmel Live”

Yesterday, after the news of his firing, the Hollywood Reporter said Sheen climbed to the top of the Live Nation office building in Beverly Hills, wielding a machete and drinking out of a bottle. When asked by reporters what he was planning to do next, the actor screamed, “I ain’t gonna go to f—ing Disneyland, I’ll tell you that much.”

His career is shot. His twin boys were taken away from him. And there are questions about his sanity.

Still, Sheen is flying high — on himself, of course — and we’re all riding the roller coaster with him. We’re following him on Twitter. We’re buying merchandise bearing his famous quips. We can’t wait to hear or see what he’s going to do next.

So what’s with the fascination? I have no idea. But I find myself pausing whenever the TV news anchor says his name. It’s like I have to know.

There has been outcry about the media’s role in all this, giving Sheen a platform from which to extol. James Rainey of the Los Angeles Times wrote that news outlets are enablers, “aiding and abetting the epic meltdown of a celebrity.”

We can only pray Charlie Sheen doesn’t start burning cigarettes into his palms. Or gouging himself with a fork. Because he doubtless would invite a camera crew along. And, at the rate they’re going, a platoon of television producers would rush to bring us every bloody, self-mutilating moment.

So what do you think about this whole Sheen fiasco? Newsworthy because he’s a public figure and media is just meeting the demand of curious Americans? Or has this been played out?

@charliesheen20/20ABCactingAdonis DNACBSCharlie Sheenfeatured_blogsfeatured_homepage_offledegoddessesHawaiiHollywoodHollywood ReportermediameltdownSober Valley LodgeTigerBloodTothtwitterTwo and a Half Menwinning
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About the Author

Catherine Toth Fox

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15 Comments

  • Reply dbjack March 7, 2011 at 6:23 pm

    Maybe this is Charlie’s version of a midlife crisis… or maybe he is way smarter than people think he is and will milk this for whatever he can get out of it. I suspect he was tired of Two and a Half Men and wanted out.

  • Reply johngarcia March 7, 2011 at 8:03 pm

    Thank you Cat! #Winning is lame already and it’s a shame that America is exploiting this dude and watching him die a slow death via UStream… Hope he gets some help!

  • Reply M March 7, 2011 at 8:41 pm

    Hello Cat,

    I don’t pay attention to that kind of stuff.

  • Reply whitneyd March 7, 2011 at 10:19 pm

    I’ve been frustrated by the media’s coverage of Charlie Sheen. I remember the criticisms with E! exploting Anna Nicole Smith when it was clear she needed rehab, as well as how horrified everyone was at Stern for making videos of her visibly high just to sell. After she died, everyone wondered if we would behave better the next time a celeb lapsed…

    Then Britney had her meltdown, and the media was everywhere. Now with Charlie, it’s clear that the media (especially mainstream media who’re struggling to keep up with the pace of the internet) have been prepared to do anything to get a piece of the action.

    He’s sick, but what’s worse is that while he wants to cash in on this mania… everyone’s enabling him by following him on Twitter and watching his ridiculous webcasts (while I do read a couple news stories on him, I’ve yet to watch any of the webcasts or follow him on Twitter). Ugh.

  • Reply Cat March 8, 2011 at 3:28 am

    For everyone who is tired of the Sheen Effect, check s out :https://mashable.com/2011/03/08/tinted-sheen/

    Thanks, Leilani!

  • Reply Cat March 8, 2011 at 3:29 am

    I don’t think he’s gonna die… This might (sadly) bolster his career!

  • Reply 808marv March 8, 2011 at 6:39 am

    You know that speech Tony Montana gives in the restaurant in Scarface? That’s what I think of when I watch Charlie Sheen. “So say goonigh to dee bad guy!” 😉

  • Reply johngarcia March 8, 2011 at 9:05 am

    @whitneyd totally agree — I actually tuned into his uStream webcast this morning and actually felt really bad for him. Some say he’s just doing this to cash in on his exit. I hope he gets some help!

  • Reply johngarcia March 8, 2011 at 9:06 am

    @Cat True. Do you think this is a well orchestrated publicity stunt?

  • Reply nonstopmari March 8, 2011 at 10:33 am

    media are snowballing the story like they do w/ all celebrity car wrecks… but i gotta admit i’m enjoying the jokes :>

  • Reply MaxMaxMax March 8, 2011 at 12:02 pm

    I honestly don’t know why this is so interesting for people to tune into. Kind of sad really. I just start channel surfing when a “news” piece about him comes on. I really enjoyed Two-and-a-Half Men, and I’m sad to see it end …and that’s really the only thing I’m remotely concerned about in this whole Sheenopera.

    My advice to you Cat would be to follow the first instinct you had, and ignore it for future blogs. I think you have better things to ‘dish’ about than this megalomaniac, LOL!

    😉

  • Reply MaxMaxMax March 8, 2011 at 12:02 pm

    I honestly don’t know why this is so interesting for people to tune into. Kind of sad really. I just start channel surfing when a “news” piece about him comes on. I really enjoyed Two-and-a-Half Men, and I’m sad to see it end …and that’s really the only thing I’m remotely concerned about in this whole Sheenopera.

    My advice to you Cat would be to follow the first instinct you had, and ignore it for future blogs. I think you have better things to ‘dish’ about than this megalomaniac, LOL!

    😉

  • Reply turkfontaine March 9, 2011 at 2:59 am

    he’s gong to become very rich very soon. he knows that disaster and pathology are now the after dinner entertainment in the Un-tied States of Amereekaa.

  • Reply ChanceUm March 9, 2011 at 5:39 am

    His celebrity meltdown will be the meltdown that all future celebrity meltdowns will be compared too.

    In the end, I hope things turn out alright for him. But I wonder, can you undo crazy?

  • Reply Gonzo March 9, 2011 at 6:34 am

    Kinda reminds me of Joaquin Phoenix retiring from acting to pursue a hip hop career. Something inside of me thinks that Charlie Sheen knows exactly what he’s doing.

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About Me

About Me
Born and raised on O‘ahu, Hawaiʻi, Catherine Toth Fox has been chronicling her adventures in her blog, The Cat Dish, for more than a decade. She worked as a newspaper reporter in Hawai‘i for 10 years and continues to freelance—in between teaching journalism, hitting the surf and eating everything in sight—for national and local print and online publications. She’s currently the editor of HAWAIʻI Magazine.

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