Open Mike: The Dan Stevens Effect

This is a curious phenomenon that I've noticed a number of times over the years. Briefly, it goes something like this:

1. Someone wants to be an artist of some sort.
2. They get a big break and are part of a big success.
3. It's not enough for them, or they think they are above it in some way, so they spurn it and either leave or quit.
4. They never go on to do anything as famous or popular afterward.

The phenomenon could be called The Dan Stevens Effect. Wikipedia says of Stevens:

In 2010, Stevens got his biggest break when he was cast as Matthew Crawley in the ITV series Downton Abbey, created and written by Oscar-winning screenwriter Julian Fellowes. The series went on to be a global sensation and has been nominated for several Emmy, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards since its debut. The central love story of Matthew Crawley and his distant cousin, Lady Mary Crawley, played by Michelle Dockery, was enormously popular. Determined to ruin* his career, Stevens chose to leave the series after finishing the third season and the Christmas Special in 2012. His exit caused a huge uproar with fans, who notably took to Twitter and other social media sites to express their anger at the character's death. Fellowes later explained that Stevens did not give sufficient notice for a less drastic departure.

*Okay, actually Wikipedia says "move on with."

I should explain, for those of you unfamiliar with the British prime-time soap opera costume drama, that Stevens' character had to be abruptly killed off in an automobile accident...which of course also prevented his return in the various lucrative reunion movies either released or planned. Since leaving his biggest success he has "gone on" to do such things as: play a supporting part in Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer, a movie that earned a big $5.2 million at the box office; do a lot of voice-over acting; and play a robot in the German-language science fiction romance I'm Your Man.

I would have milked Downton a bit longer, personally. And not ruined the plotline for millions of fans, what about them?

Chevy Chase left Saturday Night Live after just one season. Sally Kellerman, who played "Hot Lips Houlihan" in the original movie of M*A*S*H, turned down the role in the television series, to her later regret. Neil Young felt his huge hit Harvest, the best-selling album of 1972 in the USA, was "middle of the road"—he said he was afraid of becoming John Denver—so he famously "headed for the ditch."** Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had a "love-hate" relationship with his Sherlock Holmes stories, considering them to be lowbrow entertainments; when he first entertained the idea of killing the fictional character off, his own mother said, "You won't! You can't! You mustn't!" He also raised his prices dramatically to discourage new commissions, hoping to "kill" Sherlock that way; but he found the magazines paid his prices anyway, helping to make him one of the highest paid writers of his day.

Arthur Conan Doyle, who considered his greatest literary
accomplishment to have been the 14th-century historical
novel The White Company. Not quite.

Then again, the reason The Hound of the Baskervilles is the best-known Sherlock Holmes story is that it was a reprise that brought the famous character back after a long absence. 

Whenever I think of this idea, it brings to mind the old-timey barn-dance saying, "You gotta dance with who brung ya." Sometimes you just have to be who you are, do what you can do, and give the people what they want. Luck is fickle.

Mike

**I do have to admit I like the ditch trilogy better than Harvest. Do kids today know who Neil Young is? I wouldn't be surprised if they don't.

Book o' the Week

Jay Maisel: Light, Color, Gesture. This was suggested by Moose. I got to meet Jay Maisel once. Everybody should meet him in his books, if they haven't already. Might help; cannot hurt. Jay's is some of the most positive, hopeful, and generous picture-taking advice you'll find.

This book link is a portal to Amazon.

B&H is the place to buy

Original contents copyright 2020 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Kevin Crosado: "I've heard of Neil Young. I bought one of his CDs from a discount bin at the local big-box store. It was defective, so I took it back for a refund. Never bothered about a replacement."

Mike replies: Well, there are more modern ways to go about getting a taste, you know. Here are a few favorites:

Change Your Mind

Pardon My Heart

L.A.

Motion Pictures

Fountainbleu

Razor Love

If you need more, I've got about 150 bootlegs in the barn.

Bill Tyler: "Having read both Conan Doyle's The White Company and all the Holmes stories, I can confidently say that the worst of Holmes is better than the best of The White Company."

Zyni Moë: "You confuse two things.

"Thing 1: person has some initial success; head grows enormously big, think this success is too little / too lowbrow for them; walks away from that success...oops.

"Thing 2: person has great success; person realises they will never need money again; walks away to do what interests them instead.

"People driven by money find (2) very hard to understand, as do people who do not understand that enough money means you can choose what you do.

"Neil Young is perhaps example of (2): long time ago he made enough money to do whatever he wanted to...so that is what he did. Recently sold half the rights to his back catalogue for probably $150 million: he has been very rich for a very long time.

"Perhaps Robert Plant is another good example: presumably very rich man makes occasional highly-regarded records which sell...some copies, but Led Zeppelin reunion and probably hundreds of millions of dollars...not so much.

"Charlie Watts is example of someone choosing not to do (2): at any point since say 12 May 1972 [the day Exile on Main Street was released —Ed.] he could have quit the band he played with and done whatever he wanted to for the rest of his life. But he chose not to, probably because he enjoyed playing with that band: certainly not because he needed the money.

"From my generation same for any of the stars of the Harry Potter films (although Daniel Radcliffe has gone on to do interesting perhaps-not-profitable things sometimes, not needing the money)."

Mike replies: You make excellent points, and your analysis may be right—it does feel like my thinking on this is somewhat confused. However I would say that what is more interesting to me is people misunderstanding the nature of their success, or success itself. I recently did a quirky little post about Calvin and Hobbes—Bill Watterson is an example of someone who had enough money and retired at the top of his game and near the peak of his popularity. I have no problem with that (or with his contemporary Gary Larson, who wrote and drew "The Far Side," who did the same). Nor do I have any problem with Yusuf Islam, who used to be Cat Stevens, who walked away from a successful career as a folk singer and pop star because he wanted to live a more committed religious life. And you can speculate that Dan Stevens wanted something different too—that perhaps he preferred to pursue a number of small, interesting, quirky roles in a variety of productions at a lower level, and he considered a standard ITV costume drama to be a potboiler and beneath him. Perhaps he shouldn't have accepted the role in the first place then. Just consider a.) how difficult it is for an actor to land a lead role in a TV series, and b.) how rare it is for a TV series to be a big hit. It's likely or certainly possible that D.S. will never achieve anything near that level again. It doesn't look to me like he has done so since. I'm speculating too, but I don't think he understood what he had.

It could also be that what I am objecting to is a deep level of self-centeredness on his part—his insistence on disrupting the entire series right in the middle of its run for his own ego, or his own personal reasons whatever they were. With zero regard for the creator/writer and his creation, the cast and crew, and the audience. Of course Jessica Brown Findlay did the same thing, and other creative people do similar things all the time.

If Arthur Conan Doyle had retired the Holmes series because a.) it was too difficult to keep coming up with plots, b.) he was getting burned out, c.) he didn't want the series to grow stale and repetitive, or, as you say, d.) he had made enough money and didn't need any more, I don't think I would remark on his case. The interesting feature to me is rather that it looks like he just didn't grasp the rarity of what he had accomplished—he was still locked into old standard ideas about plays and historical fiction being more "serious" and more prestigious, and hence more worthy of him, and magazine stories about a detective being frivolous and lowbrow. When in fact he had created one of the iconic literary characters of his century. But then, I am not very respectful of assertions of cultural prestige and status and hierarchy—for me, Bob Marley is the equal of Mozart, for instance.

I just think some people seriously misjudge their actual talents and the true nature of their accomplishments, that's all.

If you would like to write a reply to this I will post it below!

Zyni replies: "Sorry I did not read your note on my comment earlier. In summary: you are right, what you describe does happen. I can give example from my own field. I have a very dear friend who was (is) a gifted physicist. He could also have been a gifted mathematician perhaps, but he had not trained as one and that is a thing you must train to be. Well, he decided when picking his Ph.D. that he would do a very mathematical bit of physics which he really was not equipped to do, but he would do it because it was 'purer.' And of course he struggled, got depressed, gave up, left physics and deprived everyone of (I believe) his great gifts.

"He did this all because he misunderstood his talents or anyway what he could achieve from where he was.

"This is a tragedy I believe (he does not now rate himself so highly: I am allowed to!), and also ate some significant amount of funding of course. So certainly you are correct in your analysis: this happens. But I believe something else also can happen which looks similar on surface but is not the same, and is admirable where the first thing is not. (Now I must go and apologise to my friend for using him as an example...it's OK, I did ask first.)"

Patrick: "Whenever I think of people who got too big for their britches and made a poor career decision, I think of McLean Stevenson leaving M*A*S*H. From his IMDB entry—'After leaving "M*A*S*H," Stevenson headlined in a series of failed TV shows.'"

Sean: "I’ve never watched a single episode of Downton, but I have seen Dan Stevens in many things, and he’s usually the most watchable actor in the scene. I last saw him play an AI companion in the German sci-fi film Ich bin dein Mensch. Stevens really brought the character to life. I'll get me coat."

Jim Arthur (partial comment): "Here’s a great quote from the ditch where Neil Young is talking to Rolling Stone in 1975. It seems he wasn’t all that concerned with returning to fame or popularity. 'Nobody expected Time Fades Away and I'm not sorry I put it out…I didn't need the money, I didn't need the fame. You gotta keep changing. Shirts, old ladies, whatever. I'd rather keep changing and lose a lot of people along the way. If that's the price, I'll pay it. I don't give a sh*t if my audience is 100 or 100 million. It doesn't make any difference to me. I'm convinced that what sells and what I do are two completely different things. If they meet, it's coincidence.' (From the Rolling Stone website.)"

Mike replies: Neil is a "keep going" type, like Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney. There are some stars who just keep at it. Most fade away, and most of those who do don't have any control over that...there's an interesting recent article at The Guardian called "'That's it? It's over? I was 30. What a brutal business': pop stars on life after the spotlight moves on" by Nick Duerden.

The ultimate comment on the fickleness of fame might be a short YouTube video from 2005. It shows Tara Reid, who was an "it girl" in Hollywood following her role in the Coen brothers' The Big Lebowski in 1998, getting stopped at the door of a nightclub. As she argues with the door supervisor, the then-current 2005 "it girl," and Tara's former friend, Paris Hilton, comes striding down the sidewalk arm-in-arm with her new bestie Kim Kardashian, who was relatively unknown at the time. A word to the doorman and in they go, while Tara continues to wait. The fickleness of fame in a minute and 35.

Pity we don't have a 2022 video of Paris getting stopped at the door while Kim K. and her unknown new best friend go right in.

My brush with this sort of thing happened when my son was about five. The mother of one of his school friends was dating a guy who used to be a rock star—I don't remember his name, but he had played drums for a variety of bands including Thin Lizzy. He had started a limousine service with his rock-and-roll money, but he was getting out of that and wanted to buy a Burger King franchise. Evidently one of the requirements was that prospective franchise owners had to work the counter of a Burger King for a certain number of weeks so they would know what it was like. So the four of us, in high spirits, went down to the busy local Burger King to get waited on by the former rock star, who was none too happy to be where he was—maybe it was my imagination, but I thought he had a distracted, sort of "how did it come to this?" expression on his face.

rick l: "Of the several friends of my grandchildren, they know far more of music from 50 years ago than I do of their music from 50 days ago. that, I think, is my error, not theirs."

Miguel Tejada-Flores: "I have to respectfully take issue with the idea that Dan Stevens has never really done any acting roles of note since leaving 'Downton Abbey.' In fact, he played the leading role in the stunningly complex sci-fi series, 'Legion,' which was created, written and produced by Noah Hawley, the brilliant storyteller behind all of the 'Fargo' streaming series. Stevens' character, 'David Haller,' has been mistakenly diagnosed as an extreme paranoid schizophrenic, but as the story evolves, we learn that his misdiagnosed schizophrenia actually is due to his extreme psychic powers, and that his paranoia is all too justified, as he becomes the unwitting pawn of a brilliant and evil cabal who will go to remarkable lengths to convince him he is 'crazy,' which will allow them to manipulate his powers. The series ran for three years (2017–2019) and has been justifiably critically acclaimed, as well as attaining near-cult status in serious sci-fi circles. At its heart, Stevens delivers a complex performance as he brings Hawley's disturbed protagonist to life. Some, including myself, believe that the opening hour-long pilot episode of the first season is one of the finer standalone paranoid science-fiction thrillers ever created. I'm not suggesting that his other roles and oeuvre is on that level, but Stevens' performance in 'Legion' has, I think, helped establish his reputation in the acting universe, in ways which his role in Downtown Abbey never could have."

Comments

[Keith Cartmell]

Pricing. Writers and photographers aren't fully in charge of their pricing. Yes, we can ask what we like for our work, but we only get paid when others say yes to that price. However, I like the advice I've heard. Charge more, rather than less. At the least it weeds out the riff-raff.

Truly creative people don't want to be doing the same thing over and over, no matter how much other people like it. They get tired of writing about the same character. They get tired of doing that style or subject of photography.

After a while the money doesn't matter. I never believed this early in my so-called career, but it's true. If you have enough money for what you need, then you're free to take creative risks. Maybe Dan figured he'd milked it long enough. Maybe there was an opportunity we don't know about that didn't pan out. Maybe he regrets the choice. Or maybe his creative next big thing hasn't happened yet, and he's happy to be working on it.

[Malcolm Myers]

Yes, as a Brit and a big fan of Downton Abbey I thought Dan Stevens was nuts for leaving. Very few actors are famous for lots of roles; some are lucky enough to be famous for just one; most are out of work. He should have milked it for as long as he could. AON apparently Alec Guinness hated playing Obi-Wan Kenobi, but it made him a fortune as he was on a percentage.

[John Camp]

I agree with the general drift of your column, but I think you sorta jumped the shark with Neil Young, of Neil Young fame (and also of Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills Nash and Young fame.) So what if some young people don't know him; lots of young people don't know Franz Liszt, either.

[Yes. Neil is not a good example. Except that he really turned his back on his biggest success. Seems he was ambivalent about Harvest almost from the start. --Mike]

[Tex Andrews]

Young was sorta right. And the ditch trilogy is better. Can't listen to him on Spotify any longer (good for him...), but after Jan. 6 his song "Revolution Blues" is chilling...and prescient. And, yes, "young kids" do still listen, some avidly. Young is routinely mentioned as a touchstone by younger musicians. Truly a great one.

[Alex Mercado]

Do kids today know who Neil Young is?

Yes and no. He requested his library be removed from Spotify due to their support of a certain podcaster. Said caster's fans know of Young as an old man whom Dan Stevens Effected himself on Spotify.

Personally, I think Young made the right decision.

[KeithB]

Valarie Harper in "Valerie" - "Valarie's Family" - "The Hogan Family".

[David Saxe]

Its the "self destruction" gene at work. Some people are just masters at it.

[Jeff]

Sure the younger generation knows ‘Neil’… sort of…

https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/national-international/neil-young-on-fallon/2165641/

Interestingly, Neil has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist and as a member of Buffalo Springfield, but not as a member of Crosby, Stills, Nash (and Young).

[Steve Renwick]

On the other hand, sometimes an actor or writer abandons a lucrative effort and then has a change of heart and comes in from the cold in time. Consider Leonard Nimoy.

[darlene]

Music always played in the background of my classrooms as students worked on their Photoshop & Lightroom assignments. Unfortunately it was not Neil Young's guitar or voice coming out of the ceiling speakers. How very, very sad it was for this Cinnamon Girl.

[Stephen Scharf]

I think this applies in other areas, too, e.g. motorsports, where drivers or riders jump teams between seasons, only to end up in a calamity: a new, problematical car or a bike that's not driveable or ride-able....happens all the time.

Just look what George Russell left Williams for, only arrive at Mercedes in a car that is practically undriveable. And may forever ruin his back over the course of this season.

And then there the fact that, George, as talented as he is, is not Valentino Rossi or Eddie Lawson, who were still able to win championships on "highly problematical" racing vehicles.

[Scott Abbey]

I’m pretty sure Chevy Chase (and you’re not him) did much better financially making movies than he would have had he stayed with SNL. So what is success?

[Yonatan Katznelson]

Apparently he has higher standards than Maggie Smith.

[John Robison]

For some reason this post reminded me of a Far Side cartoon. You know the one;
“I used to be somebody…big executive…my own company…and then one day someone yelled, ‘Hey! He’s just a big cockroach!’”

[robert e]

Huh. I just read an interesting story today about an actor who opted not to abandon the lucrative windfall and instead doubled down, though it meant turning down opportunities she'd once chased as an artist. Her success also came in a costume drama, though of a different kind:

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/09/movies/elizabeth-olsen-doctor-strange-multiverse-of-madness.html

[Jnny]

I noticed Jeff Probst is still hosting the 143rd season of Survivor. Smart man.

[Grant]

I bought records from Neil Young before there were Neil Young records. Neil and Bruce Palmer worked at A&A Records in Toronto when they were in the Mynah Birds. Good band. Man Neil knew how to dress. The coolest looking guy in the store. I lost interest in his music after On The Beach. Our fathers were buddies at school in Winnipeg.

That's my 6 degrees of Neil.

[Very cool! I think that's actually 1 degree of separation, right? --Mike]

[Kirk]

So...let me get this right...it's not okay to make enough money to last a lifetime doing mainstream dreck and then quit to enjoy doing what you think you might love? You are obligated to just stick the millions of dollars you've earned into a Christmas account and go on ad infinitum as an indentured servant of your fans?

Or maybe my reading comprehension is skewed...

[You've got it. An excellent case in point is the jazz drummer Charlie Watts, who continued playing in a lowbrow rock and roll band (that often used Satanist symbology and profanity in its lyrics) in order to support himself and underwrite his jazz. Or like certain photographers continue to accept commercial jobs-for-hire in order to support their real focus, which is their camera-buying habits. It's logical, and makes perfect sense, really. --Mike]

[Peter Komar]

Just 3 of my many favorites from Neil Young, great guitar on “Down by the River”, the lyrics on “Old Man” and “When you dance I can really love” are just some of the best ever written and sung by a legend. I feel blessed to have grown up in that era of Rock and Roll, the late 60’s and early 70’s, WOW !!!!

[Sven W]

George Lazenby. He played James Bond once then quit.

[And strangely, I think his was the only Bond film I ever saw. Wasn’t it “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”? I might have seen one other one, but I don’t remember it. —Mike]

[Jim Arthur]

You might be surprised by what kids listen to these days. For example, my niece loves Pink Floyd. I was not familiar with the album Sleeps with Angels. Thanks for the heads up on that one. Here’s a great quote from the ditch where Neil is talking to Rolling Stone in 1975. It seems he wasn’t all that concerned with returning to fame or popularity.

“Nobody expected Time Fades Away and I'm not sorry I put it out…I didn't need the money, I didn't need the fame. You gotta keep changing. Shirts, old ladies, whatever. I'd rather keep changing and lose a lot of people along the way. If that's the price, I'll pay it. I don't give a shit if my audience is 100 or 100 million. It doesn't make any difference to me. I'm convinced that what sells and what I do are two completely different things. If they meet, it's coincidence.” (From the Rolling Stone website)

[Thomas Mc Cann]

Always start with a high price. You can come down but you can't go up

[Tom Burke]

Dan Stevens starred in Beauty and the Beast as The Beast. OK, he wasn't very recognisable, but I'll bet he got a shedload of money for it. And he's stayed regularly employed in TV, so I imagine he reckons he did OK. And as for the endless "Let's drag Downton out for another run around the block" thing - not good.

[Albert Smith]

Regarding Neil Young, buried in "Old Man" is a great line that explains Neil's general philosophy on putting on a facade to impress others: "Doesn't mean that much to me, to mean that much to you."

It takes supreme confidence to not worry about what others think.

[Mike Plews]

The documentary "Twenty Feet From Stardom" has some interesting things to say about the relationship between talent and ambition in achieving major stardom in popular music.
Not hard to see why a rational person with more money than they can ever spend might walk away.

[Mike Giovinazzo]

Re Dan Stevens and his subsequent "lacklustre" career: my wife and I saw him perform on Broadway opposite Jessica Chastain in "The Heiress" - to great acclaim. A quick internet check shows he's appeared in many, many shows, movies and plays over the years as well. Maybe he did just want to take control of his own career and his Downton status allowed him to do so. Also, it seems to me that only one young unknown from Downton Abbey achieved major, breakout status and that person is Lily James, who starred in one of the Mamma Mia movies as the young Meryl Streep character. Michelle Dockery has done well too, but in a more low key way.

[Stan B.]

“Well, I’d look pretty daft doing this at forty- wouldn’t I?”
-Mick Jagger

[Carl Siracusa]

I'm surprised you haven't mentioned any famous photographers who fall into this category. Maybe because most of them tend to keep at it for a very long time? The one who does is, of course, Robert Frank, who creates perhaps the most influential photography book of the 20th century and then decides to chuck still photography for film making -- spending years producing films that maybe 27 people have ever watched. Have never understood that....

[Dave Levingston]

I think Joni Mitchell should be mentioned here. Very successful back in the '60s. A true artist who followed her muse and ignored expectations. Seems to me that's the very best use an artist can make of success...and very hard for many to do.

[Ernest Zarate]

Aren’t people just the most interesting and unpredictable? They keep the world (as we live it) on its toes. In broad terms, all these people achieve “success” and then some respond to it in confounding (to the rest of us) ways.

I try not to get too judgmental about how people live their lives. I’ve made choices that had others, on the outside, scratching their heads and muttering, “What the…?!?” Personally, I call that a good thing. Personally, I don’t want to be too predictable. And, so, yes, I’ve made some changes, big and small, pretty much just for the sake of change. Why not? Is it right for everyone, then? Well, YMMV. All I know is it’s right for me. Everyone else is on their own.

And, fortunately, I’ve reached the age (66) and status (retired) where I just don’t give a damn what others think of my choices. I’m not, IMO, obnoxious or an ass. I smile, I chat with the cashiers, I say “Hi, Pooch!” to dogs I encounter on walks. But I also chuckle when I come across people who fret and fuss about how others perceive them. But they don’t impact my life one iota. So I just go about my life and they do the same.

“Up on Housing Project Hill, it’s either fortune or fame.
You must choose one or the other,
though neither are to be what they claim.” - B. Dylan

“She knows there's no success like failure
And that failure's no success at all.” - B. Dylan

[Aaron H]

I'm pretty sure this same concept applies to all sorts of things beyond artists and creatives. I know plenty of people, myself included, who have had 'success' and plenty of future potential or opportunity in jobs, relationships, etc., only to throw it away to chase something else.

The reasons for why this happens vary, but include changing your mind or heart, becoming bored with your situation, believing you can do better (either because of your drive, or ego), and sometimes just a character trait that causes you blow up things when they are really going in your favor.

Sometimes it works out, sometimes it leads to a lifetime of regret.

The one thing most everyone discounts, however, is the role luck or coincidence play in our success. We all like to stoke our ego and believe we alone made our success, but too often that cannot bring about new and improved outcomes when we try to move on to bigger/better things.

[Chris]

Conan Doyle basically just got sick of writing about Holmes and Watson. I don't see it is any more than that. Perfectly understandable. Just as some bands hate to play their greatest hit. I can't imagine being in the Eagles and having to play Hotel California. A great song, but I never want to hear it again. Or Alex Trebek over 30 years on Jeopardy - god, the boredom. I haven't read the White Company, but the Lost World, and the Adventures of Brigadier Gerard are two of the most enjoyable books ever written and in the case of Gerard, excellent history too.

[Dennis M]

Dan Stevens did go on to do The Heiress on Broadway with Jessica Chastain. Not too shabby. You should look him up on IMDB. It's not as if he's not been working. He's been a busy lad. 39 projects since leaving Downtown Abbey plus stage work.

[c.d.embrey]

My favorite Neil Young song is Helpless. CSNY did a version but k.d.lang's version is the best.
I worked on a k.d.lang interview where she related why she didn't capitalize her name. She thought that it was presumptuous.

[Dillan]

Discovering Neil Young was quite significant to me. My parents were into country music, and it didn't do anything for me. I remember they were watching an episode of "Austin City Limits," and this guy came out and sang a couple of songs. He was completely different from anyone I'd ever seen before. He really blew me a away! That man was Neil Young. It was the first time I ever really liked music.

[Dean Johnston]

Hi.

Big 'ditch' fan, am I. Love On the Beach. And, tangentially, Higgs Boson Blues.

https://youtu.be/m0OWmE3_rJg

I pulled Maisel's Light, Color, Gesture off my bookshelf about a week ago, promptly put it back and pulled out William Albert Allard's The Photographic Essay. And Cartier-Bresson's The Man, the Image & The World. Spent the week with both.

But don't worry, pulled out Light, Gesture & Color just now. Thanks for the reminder.

I think I might own all three thanks to TOP.

Peace and all that,
Dean

[Daniel]

Ah yes, Ego & Stupidity combine to sink many careers.
NYPD Blue had David Caruso as the lead Detective the first two seasons. Then he got a big head and moved on - and basically disappeared. Odd watching him as he always held his head at one particular angle - looked uncomfortable. Guessing an agent of photographer told hime "this is your good side" - but he looked odd with it.

So he got greedy and moved on and is mostly forgotten.

[Not THAT Ross Cameron]

One consideration - it’s probably easier to judge a given artist’s contribution in hindsight, rather than in the middle of all the hype.

As with how you assess photos (pin on the board for 5 days) - some have staying power, some don’t. You won’t know that staying power straight away.

Can you say of the current crop of new musicians, actors, photographers etc who will make a lasting contribution?

[Roger BARTLETT]

To Daniel,
Have you not seen David Caruso on CSI Miami, for several seasons. Still did that thing with the head angle.

[Richard Parkin]

Regarding David Caruso and his funny head angle, I think it was his special ‘actor look’. Anyone remember the character in Get Shorty who had a similar special look? :o) .

[Yoshi Carroll]

“Sometimes you just have to be who you are, do what you can do, and give the people what they want.”

This is confusing for me. I take the main issue to be that for some, being who they are, who they have to be, means not giving the people what they want. And conversely, giving the people what the want means being inauthentic.

Some people can’t tolerate being inauthentic for very long, no matter how externally successful it makes them.

[John Krumm]

I have to agree with Miguel. Watching Dan Stevens in Legion, I thought he was great. In fact, I completely forgot that I had also enjoyed him in Downton Abbey. If quitting Downton allowed him to star in Legion, I'm glad he did.

[Patrick Perez]

Another Dan Stevens supporter chiming in here. I think the effect Mike is describing should be named after someone else. DS left a soap opera where he wasn't getting a huge payday and in a role that by definition didn't offer growth as an actor in order to take on new roles and get a payday from time to time. American television actors can get pretty wealthy, but the same generally isn't true in the UK. Hugh Laurie said the craft services budget on House, M.D. was bigger than a typical British television program's entire budget. Hyperbole, sure, but maybe not too much. Maybe the Downton cast got nice paychecks for the film, but I doubt any of them got rich.

Dan went on to do many projects, as others above have pointed out. And he hasn't been playing the same character. I'm certain he is very pleased with his career choice.

Patrick

[Animesh Ray]

This happens infrequently in other fields too, such as in science. A scientist becomes successful early in one area, then he/she leaves it and starts another area, leaves it again after a while, to move on to new fields every few years. Such people are recognized either as pioneers or as dilettantes, depending on how profound their relative contributions were. This suits these people quite well because by nature they abhor authorities. They get bored and choose to move on to more exciting things. It's the journey that counts for them.

[Ben Rosengart]

One possibility no one has mentioned: sometimes there's a toxic relationship on set and someone just really needs to get away from it. They may not be able to talk about it without sinking their career, so it looks like they just arbitrarily walked away. I suspect this happens quite often in the dramatic arts.