A Farewell to Doctors

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

This has been a rough patch for Whovians with the death of John Hurt on January 25^th, 2017 and now the departure of Peter Capaldi after this upcoming season of “Doctor Who”.

Both men played wonderful doctors – John Hurt’s War Doctor questioned his regenerations in “The Day of the Doctor” special. Peter Capaldi followed Matt Smith’s Doctor with an older, brooding gentleman who always tried to learn more about himself. While we only saw John Hurt’s War Doctor for this special (and a brief appearance in the Matt Smith episode prior to the special), his appearance alone was enough to make us wonder about the Doctor. Where did this War Doctor fit in? How did he endure the Gallifreyian War? Did he really have a mid life crisis?

Along with playing the War Doctor, John Hurt also took on the role of Ollivander from the “Harry Potter” movies, he played himself in “Space Balls”, provided the voice of Aragorn from “Lord of the Rings”, and gave voice to the Horned King from “The Black Cauldron”.  He also lent his voice to the Dragon from the series “Merlin”, starred in “V for Vendetta” as Chancellor Sutler, and played Trevor ‘Broom’ Bruttenholm in “Hellboy”.

John Hurt was an eclectic actor who was the youngest of his siblings in Derbyshire, England.  Despite showing little initiative and solitude as a child, he was guided into art. However, his admiration for acting took hold and pursued the field after failing to receive a scholarship in art. John Hurt embraced television and with it exposed his acting capabilities to an extreme level.

Peter Capaldi’s acting abilities bear the same extremity, especially when portraying the Doctor. His cynicism, his slowly warming heart, and his nail biting bluntness have created a unique Doctor. Albeit, there were a slew of comedic moments from him most met with sarcasm and a witty tone which is something that will be missed as he takes his leave of the Doctor.

Peter will be departing from “Doctor Who” at the end of 2017 with the Christmas special as his final performance. When the BBC asked Capaldi if they could renew his contract for the show, Capaldi declined and claimed that it was time to move onto different things.  While this appears to be a common reason for Doctors to retire, it is understandable. As much as we adore the actors who play the Doctor, at some point they want something more than running around chasing aliens, befriending companions, and travelling through all of time and space. It’s time for a change and a new regeneration for Peter Capaldi.

Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed it, feel free to comment, critique, share, and subscribe.

So tell me, did you enjoy the John Hurt’s War Doctor or Peter Capaldi’s Doctor more?

Carrie Fisher: Royal General and Bipolar Queen

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

2016 has to be Death’s favorite year. Death has taken almost everyone we’ve loved and now, it’s snatched Carrie Fisher. Carrie Fisher, an iconic woman who claimed overnight fame as Princess Leia, passed on December 27^th, 2016 at the age of 60 due to a devastating heart attack.

Carrie Fisher was famous before she was even born on October 21^st, 1956. She was the child of Eddie Fisher, an iconic signer, and Debbie Reynolds, screen legend who divorced when she was two. She escaped into books and was noted as a “bookworm” in her family. This later fueled her passion to write various episodes for series such as “Frasier”, “Family Guy”, “The Big Bang Theory”, “30 Rock”, and many more. She also crafted two plays (“Wishful Drinking” and “A Spy in the House of Me”), five autobiographies, three non- fictional pieces, and seven screenplays.  For some screenplays she was a “script doctor” – fixing scripts to make the films better; she helped with “Hook”, “Sister Act”, and other multiple films.  Fisher was a jack of all trades when it came to the cinema and even Broadway wherein she starred in “Censored Scenes from King Kong”, “Agnes of God”, and “Irene” with her mother, Debbie Reynolds.

Carrie Fisher has inspired many people everywhere as a warrior for women, a symbol of mental illness, and portraying many rolls from Camille (Mystery Woman) from “The Blues Brothers” to Princess Leia from “Star Wars”. Fisher used her struggles with her bipolar disorder, drug and alcohol abuse, and her parents’ divorce to empower her characters. With this, she essentially became the roles she played. It’s a common technique that many people with mental disorders execute. They utilize their struggles into a character – it’s a temporary form of escapism that allows them to become someone else.

Fisher has advocated for people to understand mental illness. As a whole, mental illnesses bear a stigma in society while people attempt to correct this. Mental illnesses are nothing to be ashamed of; they make up our genes and are a part of who we are. Yes, we can repair ourselves in various means and eventually we will emerge as someone stronger than before. Fisher inspired many to take note of mental illnesses and treat those affected like any other human being: with respect, dignity, and care. She emphasized this greatly in her interviews and targeted her own struggles to help people not only understand her better, but her bipolarity as well. She even referred to bipolar disorder as bipolar pride – a trait that is a part of those who have it. After Fisher’s death, people have taken to tweeting their mental illnesses following the hashtag #InhonorofCarrie.

Society still has a long way to go to understand just how crippling depression is, how one can be so shaken from anxiety, or how one manages to live a daily life with bipolar disorder. Yet through Fisher’s legacy of words and strength as well as being open about our illnesses, can we eliminate the stigma. Listen to her words, raise your lightsaber in her honor, buy her books, and remember Carrie Fisher as we march into a new year.

Thanks for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment, and critique.

So tell me, what will you miss most about Carrie Fisher?

Goodbye 2016: You Were a Roller Coaster

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

A new year is on the horizon. For some, it may mean the apocalypse with Trump’s reign as the new president. For others, it may be a chance to start anew or continue in growth as a person. 2016 has been a festering pile of garbage – bearing ghastly moments we never thought would occur such as the death of some iconic people, tragedies with no end in sight, and political debates as wayward as a curved road.

We are standing on a hazardous shore with rough tides, wondering what exactly 2017 will promise us. We can swim out to sea and brave the choppy waves and roll with them, becoming a stronger being. We can stay at the shore and bide our time before making a move. We can watch from afar and carry on our lives as best as we can. We have choices, but we can’t turn away from 2017.

Despite the harshness of 2016, this year was by far the best year of my life. Not because of any celebrity’s death or the ungodly tragedies that scattered our world or even the winning elector. Rather, it was a year of meeting Internet celebrities I’ve been following for years, for being more of myself and becoming empowered, for meeting someone who I want to spend the rest of my life with, and for broadening my mind and world more than what I’ve already known.

2017 for me will mean moving on with my life. Yes, I’m absolutely terrified of what Trump will do especially to people of my feminine gender. This fear, paired with my depression and anxiety cannot dominate me. I’ve allowed it to win too many times in the past and frankly, I’m done with them.

Here are the things I need to do in 2017:

1.       Live – 2016 flew by and the older you become, the faster time flies. I need to take time with my hands and do with it what I want. By that I plan to live – go out more and try Cuban food or go to that museum I’ve always wanted to see especially with the one I love by my side. Time can’t stop me anymore.

2.       Work out – Hey, did you know your metabolism slows as you get older? Want proof? In January 2016, I weighed 120 and now I weigh 134. I need to tone my body, shake off the extra weight, and continue my fight to cut soda from my diet. Albeit, I do accept who I am physically and mentally, I realize that I’m getting older and my body isn’t what it used to be. I need to take care of it now more than ever. 

3.       Write – This goes in hand with taking time into my hands and doing what I will. I have to utilize time to finish my original works and work on the blog. I have allowed time to get in my way of publishing my entries due to my social life, a relationship, the holidays, and going out into the world around me. Yes, I apologize, but now I understand what I need to do.

4.       Improve  - This also ties in with working out, but more so on a mental note. While I do already accept myself mentally and physically, I still want to improve my anxiety which seems to attack me most in my life. I need to find ways to quell it so that it doesn’t affect me as much.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry! If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment and critique.

So tell me, what are your New Year’s resolutions?

Gene Wilder: A Man of Pure Imagination

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Holy gobstoppers, Gene Wilder is deceased.

Gene Wilder (originally born as Jerome (“Jerry”) Silberman) has passed on August 28^th, 2016 in Stamford, Connecticut at the age of 83 due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease. He hadn’t informed the public of his condition because he didn’t want children to sadly view him for his illness, but rather happiness for all the joy he brought them.

My heart has been punched severely by this news and still aches as I write this entry.  So much so that I needed longer than usual to craft an entry that at best would convey my feelings for the man and to do it in a proper fashion. Even so, I’m still tearing up at “Pure Imagination” as it plays in my head.

In a sense, I feel as though I’ve grown up with Gene Wilder. We first met during my childhood with “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”. The movie terrified me greatly, but as an adult I appreciate it and adore it dearly especially with its trivia. Did you know that the first time Wilder ever appeared to the cast was when he rolled out to them upon opening the factory? And that the reactions of everyone during the boat scene were completely genuine? The director had informed the cast they were going on a boat ride, but didn’t mention the horrific images or Wilder’s improvised lines (“There’s no earthly way of knowing which direction they are going…”). In fact, most of the reactions in this movie were genuine – even down to the final scene where Charlie confronts Willy Wonka in his office.

Wilder returned to me in my teen years where I fell in love with “Saturday Night Live” especially the older, original cast including Gilda Radner.  It was during this time that I had learned that he had married Gilda Radner and when she died from breast cancer, he created Gilda’s Club. Gilda’s Club was a non-profit charity to help those with cancer. The notion of Wilder wanting to continue breast cancer efforts despite her passing and his suffering from it was beyond immeasurable and imaginable for me. The mere amount of heartbreak he must have endured had to be ungodly.

Following me through my adolescence and adulthood, Wilder thrilled me with “The Producers” (Pre-Nathan Lane/Matthew Broderick (though he loved their Broadway version)), “Blazing Saddles”, and “Young Frankenstein” (“FRONKensteen!”) both produced by Mel Brooks. Gene Wilder had met Mel Brooks in his early stage career and the two housed a wonderful friendship and partnership.  He was nominated for an Oscar for his role in “The Producers” which caused him to be a highly demanded actor which secured his iconic role as Willy Wonka.

It’s been about a week since Wilder passed and my chest still throbs terribly in knowing we lost a great man. In knowing I lost someone who I seemingly grew up with, who would always wind his way back into my life. For every moment he visited, I learned to love more of his work as well as life. Thank you Gene Wilder, for somehow secretly always being there and being a wonderful person.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, critique, and comment.

So tell me, what did you like Wilder in the most?

Sleeping With the Stars: Anton Yelchin

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

This year is incredibly bizarre so far. No, not for personal reasons, but more so the fact that fantastic celebrities keep dying. So far we’ve lost David Bowie, Muhammad Ali, Doris Roberts, Prince, and so many other people that I’m uncertain how much more our hearts can bear.

Sadly, we’ve lost yet another celebrity: Anton Yelchin. Anton Yelchin is also known as the young Chekov in J.J. Abrams’ rebooted Star Trek movies.

Yelchin was fatally pinned by his car against his brick mailbox pillar and the gate of his home. No one had tampered with the vehicle; officials found the car in the neutral gear. What many believe occurred was that the car rolled down the steep drive way and fatally collided with the young actor. The trauma from the incident led to his demise. His body was found by his friends who were concerned as to why he hadn’t appeared for an 11 pm rehearsal.

Yelchin drove a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee which had been recalled earlier this year due to rollbacks. Fiat Chrysler believes it was the car’s shifter behind the rollback which possibly caused 41 injuries. Fiat Chrysler claims it will aid in Yelchin's investigation.

Yelchin was twenty seven years old and originally from St. Petersburg, Russia. His parents were two iconic professional ice skaters who fled to America as political refugees. During their escape, Yelchin was still a child and raised in Los Angeles. After hitting his head as a kid, Yelchin didn’t want to become an ice skater. Instead he preferred reading, chess, and acting. His first professional role was Augie in A Man is Mostly Water. From there onward, he starred in other movies and series such as From Up on Poppy Hill, Only Lovers Left Alive, Huff, and The Practice. Yelchin just finished starring in the movies Thoroughbred and Star Trek: Beyond.

I’m not sure how many more wondrous people we’ll lose this year, especially one as young and as tragic as Anton Yelchin. Rest in peace, Yelchin – may you go boldly where no man as gone before.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to comment, critique, share, and subscribe.

So tell me, what will you remember Anton Yelchin most for?