"The character was a compound of stereotypes of people with dwarfism. He was hypersexual, unintelligent and aggressive. He was not even a character in his own right but a replica of another, average height role. Like dwarf performers in circuses of days past, his character only existed in contrast to others.... Throughout the series he serves as Dr Evil’s biddable pet. I imagine few who watched it know that in the past aristocrats and monarchs often 'kept' dwarf people like this – abusing, ridiculing, and, sometimes, even killing them... Troyer died on Saturday. He was just 49 years old. A statement on his Facebook page, said he had struggled with 'his own battles' but that 'unfortunately, this time was too much.'... Even in death, his body marks him as a target for ridicule. Ignorant still but much less malicious were comments that he was 'bigger than [insert height here],' 'a small guy but had a big heart,' or 'a big man in a tiny package,' and so on. Such remarks, commonly used by the media, propagate assumptions that dwarfism is something negative for which we have to compensate through our achievements or character.... [I]t is often in death that average height and able-bodied people easily erase an individual’s disability or difference – as demonstrated by the recent passing of Professor Stephen Hawking – to claim they were 'larger than life' or are 'finally free from their disability.'"
From
"Verne Troyer’s tragic death underlines the harm Mini-Me caused people with dwarfism/The role of the aggressive, biddable pet in the Austin Powers films did huge damage to the dwarfism community and our struggle for respect" by Eugene Grant (in The Guardian).
This continues the discussion we were having last month when Hawking died,
here, after the actress Gal Gadot, surely believing she was being nice, said "Now you’re free of any physical constraints."
And here's the Wikipedia article on
"Court dwarfs" ("Court dwarfs enjoyed specific placement right next to the king or queen in a royal court during public appearances and ceremonies, because they were so small, the king appeared much larger and visually enhanced his powerful position").
There's some interesting artwork, such as this, by Velasquez (c. 1645):
Posts
84 comments:
The second class human status could have been avoided through Planned Parenthood.
#HateLovesAbortion
That painting totally looks like Peter Dinklage!
Tyrion Lannister
Another insufferable whiner heard from.
"The character was a compound of stereotypes of people with dwarfism. He was hypersexual, unintelligent and aggressive. He was not even a character in his own right but a replica of another, average height role.
'Cause the standard height people in the Austin Power movies were characters straight out Greek tragedy in their awful majesty, they wuz!
The movies were named "The Spy Who Shagged Me" & "Goldmember", for Chrissakes! Did anyone really walk out of the theater afterwards & think "Those movies were profound studies on the nature of human being in the world. I really must write something up for Cahiers du Cinema on this."
The Parade of the Offended continues by my window. Which self-acclaimed victims are next?
Unidexters are next.
Did he read the script and sign the contract?
We all do things we regret, but that's life.
propagate assumptions that dwarfism is something negative
They'll grow out of it.
So let's all agree that Hollywood, in addition to not hiring sexy women, shouldn't cast dwarfs (or dwarves). And maybe no People of Color either. And People of Pallor should only be cast as villains. I'm open to additional suggestions.
Was it Troyer who played the 'dancing dwarf' in the Twin Peaks series?
I prefered Agent Cody Banks (the original, not the sequel) for more mature Bond allusion humor.
People of Pallor
I like it, GF! Sounds better than, say, 'melanin-challenged'.
Dewey Cox - Let Me Hold You
mockturtle said...
Was it Troyer who played the 'dancing dwarf' in the Twin Peaks series?
No, it was Michael J. Anderson...and he was only in 4 episodes..?
I would tell this whiner to grow up, but that would probably be disrespectful.
...and insensitive.
:-D
The victim mentality permeates leftwing intellectual thought. Oh my word, Austin Powers portrayed Troyer in such a terrible light that it negatively effected all dwarves!!!
Let's just say a prayer for Troyer, learn a bit about his life, pay our respects, and then move on, without another cause.
He had an opportunity for fame and fortune based on his physical state. He took advantage of it.
But, "Oh my pretty pink panties, he's made my life more difficult in the abstract".
Sod off swampy.
He was not a fan of Mickey Rooney jokes.
"Let's just say a prayer for Troyer, learn a bit about his life, pay our respects, and then move on, without another cause."
Dammit, Bay Area Guy, don't mellow my harsh. There's outrage to be mined here.
Wm. Empson said that a short man is not likely to call another man tall, lest people wonder what he considers tall.
I hadn't been aware of a stereotype of dwarfs as hypersexual. I have difficulty thinking of any instances of that stereotype reflected in anything I've read (perhaps because I have mostly read about dwarfs in Tolkien-esque fantasy where they're as a good as asexual, even by the standards of Tolkien). I don't recall any of the dwarfs in the Nibelunglied (either Wagner's retelling or the original) as being particularly lustful either. In modern times, the only major dwarf character I can think of is Hop Frog, who isn't even particularly greedy, just out for revenge after his friend is abused. Hypersexual? Is that actually a thing?
It's sexual harassment if a dwarf says your hair smells nice.
It was a fashion to collect people.
Blacks were collected too, and you will also see some in court paintings. A notable one was Peter the Great's black page Abram Petrovich Gannibal who served several Russian monarchs in entirely legitimate, responsible senior posts and was given a patent of nobility. He had many interesting descendants.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abram_Petrovich_Gannibal
It was also customary for European regiments to have a "moor", a black man, as a member of the regimental band, usually carrying a 'Jingling Johnny', an instrument of Turkish origins. The whole thing was I think a fashion started by Russian/Austrian/German regiments returning from Turkish wars with booty, both objects and humans.
Jingling Johhny
And there was the further advantage that a dwarf or other unusual person in royal service was not just a pet, an object of fun, but was also seen as an unusually loyal servant, being entirely isolated otherwise, and completely dependent on royal favor.
No, it was Michael J. Anderson...and he was only in 4 episodes..?
Thanks, CT IV.
In other words, he was the Steppin' Fetchit of dwarves.
Rhhardin suggests: It's sexual harassment if a dwarf says your hair smells nice.
;-D
I hadn't been aware of a stereotype of dwarfs as hypersexual.
It comes from the fact that (usually) the dwarf's genitalia, three piece package, is normal sized however when in perspective with a smaller body the "package" seems huge.
The body is genetically programed to be smaller, shorter etc, however that affects (mostly) the bones and not the soft body parts which would be the standard size.
@Balfegor,
Hypersexual? Is that actually a thing?
Well, yes, apparently of dwarfs in show biz, if Judy Garland is to be believed.
I know several dwarfs. Oddly they do not define themselves by and thru others. Don't define yourself by what is without.
Perhaps this particular person should try defining himself with an inward focus.
Anybody consumed with their victim-hood 24/7 like this is small regardless of their physical size. He's doing exactly what he's decrying. He's making this man all about his victim-hood.
Now that really is insulting.
And defining oneself with an inward focus is good advice for us all. We are all flawed and ugly and weird and goofy and terrific, at intervals. So concentrate on what can be better within yourself. Or try to let those better things reveal themselves more often.
Either allowing others to define you or looking without to define yourself seems a worse option. Avoid those tragedies.
Michael Dunn was an example of a life worthy, who escaped Planning and seemed to avoid or preceded #NoLabels exclusivity.
Perhaps this particular person should try defining himself with an inward focus.
Yes, character, not color. Diversity, not "color" diversity. Ignore the popular culture, and find people with a principled-alignment.
So I guess dwarf bowling is now out of the question?
Whay about dwatf tossing for sport?
John Henry
I dunno, the court dwarf thing, with its special status, sounds kind of like dwarf privilege to me....
I hate dwarves. Beady-eyed little knee biters.
I, of course, am a shade over five feet tall (measured generously), so I am normal sized, not a dwarf.
Balfegor said...
I hadn't been aware of a stereotype of dwarfs as hypersexual. I have difficulty thinking of any instances of that stereotype reflected in anything I've read (perhaps because I have mostly read about dwarfs in Tolkien-esque fantasy where they're as a good as asexual, even by the standards of Tolkien). I don't recall any of the dwarfs in the Nibelunglied (either Wagner's retelling or the original) as being particularly lustful either. In modern times, the only major dwarf character I can think of is Hop Frog, who isn't even particularly greedy, just out for revenge after his friend is abused. Hypersexual? Is that actually a thing?
4/23/18, 12:04 PM
Freya's necklace wasn't free, viz., BrÃsingamen:
http://thenorsegods.com/the-necklace-of-the-brisings/
We need to seperate Comedy from Tragedy
To have a Safe World making
Self Esteem paramount
"The Me Two Generation"
Nobody has mentioned tossing.
" Tolkien-esque fantasy where they're as a good as asexual"
Tolkien's Dwarfs weren't asexual, they were PRIVATE.
The appendixes state that there ARE female dwarfs, they just NEVER go out in public; and that the common misconception that there were no females was just that: a misconception.
LORD Knows what Gimli or Thorin would be doing in the privacy of their own bedrooms; the one thing that we Do know is that they wouldn't be talking about it.
It's important to remember that those movies were just movies; they were fiction. IF you want the real story, you have to go to the source (or, at least, Tolkien's translations).
What a little prick.
Buwaya, I read about the Jingling Johnny in an excellent book about the Alamo, THE BLOOD OF NOBLE MEN. (I forget the author's name, which is embarrassing, given that I reread the book once a year, on the anniversary of the siege and battle.) One of the many illustrations includes a Mexican soldier holding a Jingling Johnny.
I'm a Victim, He's a Victim, She's a Victim, We're a Victim,
Wouldn't you like to be a Victim too?
> " Tolkien-esque fantasy where they're as a good as asexual"
I bet you can find 'em on PornHub
With the gun instruction videos
THE BLOOD OF NOBLE MEN
2016
by Alan C Huffines (Author), Gary S Zaboly (Illustrator)
Which, I just bought through the professor's amazon portal
" bet you can find 'em on PornHub"
Simulations, sure.
In Regards to real dwarfs, you be far more likely to find a cremated dwarf in an urn than in a sex tape
I have been absolutely insufferable since 23&me told me that I have 2% native American and sub-Saharan African blood. I hate you white people, and you know what? It's okay. You stole my land and enslaved me, you disgusting dwarf-killers.
Troyer willing participated in his degradation and submission to the tall.
This Uncle Tom Thumb should rightly be condemned.
The Tiny Comedian You Can't Miss
At the end of the show, he holds up his merch, a shirt that says, “It’s not cheating if it’s with a dwarf.” The shirt is probably a medium.
<
OZY caught up with Williams before his set. This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
OZY: What’s your favorite joke?
B.W.: How I write my jokes is Step 1: Be a dwarf; Step 2: Wait. Funny things are going to happen to you. Someone came up to me and said, “Wow, Brad, you’re a dwarf. What a coincidence … my best friend is retarded.” It’s not the same thing. It’s not the same thing. We park in the same space, but it’s not the same thing.
OZY: What do little people think of your stand-up?
B.W.: Half of them love me and think I’m the savior. Half of them want me to die. They want to take the pedal extenders off my car so I get in a horrible accident. I say the word “midget” because I like it. I don’t know what the problem is with the word — I was always told it was a horrible word and no one could tell me why it was horrible. I’m not going to be offended just because everyone else is. Midget almost sounds nice. It almost sounds French.
It would have been more interesting if the writer had contrasted the personal travails and work of Verne Troyer with that of Peter Dinklage, both as Tyrion Lannister and as "The Station Agent" (although he might consider Tyrion as only an example of the hypersexual dwarf).
If everybody is a victim, nobody is.
So I had to look up this "hypersexuality" thing, because I thought I might know what it means, but maybe there was also some other good shit with it, too. But it's pretty much just what I thought it was, it isn't like you can also pop out a quart or anything when you shoot your load.
Anyway, when I looked it up the first few links were to articles talking about stereotypes of black people, which I kinda expected, because black men are supposed to really like a lot of sex, which is cool. And they say that's a stereotype and shit, but most of the rap songs I listen to have black dudes going on about banging strippers and shit, so I don't know if it's a stereotype when they say it, too, it gets confusing about who can say shit about who without getting your shit jumped.
But then a few links down was one that said:
"Asians stereotype whites as promiscuous and hyper-sexual - Tremr"
And I thought, like, that fucking rocks. Because it's nice to think that some people out there think us white dudes are oversexed, too, even if, like, the people who think that are only Asian and shit.
Anyway, as far as dwarfs go, any sex they can get is good by me, unless it's pedophile dwarf shit, because child molesters suck, no matter how tall they are. Or how short they are, whichever is least offensive to people who get offended by height and shit.
I post my shit here.
The best Dwarf show I ever saw included two jousting on pigs while a dwarf "damsel in distress" watched the contest in mock fear. It was a wedding show, quite inventive I thought.
The marriage didn't last but that wasn't the Dwarves problem.
"Asians stereotype whites as promiscuous and hyper-sexual - Tremr"
This is true. We are sexy beasts.
Did the fact that the ENTIRE movie set (Austin Powers) was a collection of parodies even occur to the offended? Mini-me was an unnatural CLONE, created by the narcissistic/misanthropic villain Dr. Evil using his own DNA but(intentionally?) small to be a, well, MINI-ME. Cluelessness and thin skin has WRECKED the comedy world. You couldn't even make the sanitized version of Blazing Saddles these days.
Seinfeld did a number of episodes in which Danny Woburn played Kramer's dwarf buddy Mickey Abbott. Mickey was kind of an asshole, but short. His dwarf girlfriend dumped him for putting lifts in his shoes.
Re: gilbar:
It's important to remember that those movies were just movies; they were fiction. IF you want the real story, you have to go to the source (or, at least, Tolkien's translations).
I suppose they might be terribly lascivious in private, but the Appendix strongly suggests otherwise. It notes that female dwarves are no more than 1/3 of the population, and goes on to explain:
The number of dwarf-men that marry is actually less than one-third. For not all the women take husbands: some desire none; some desire one that they cannot get, and so will have no other. As of the men, very many also do not desire marriage being engrossed in their crafts.
Thank you, gilbar, for supplying the name of Alan Huffines,
By the way, there apparently no foundation for the story that Davy Crockett stood on the wall of the Alamo and called out, "Hey, Santy Anny--I've got yer Jinglin' Johnny right here!"
Although Crockett as Congressman did spend some time in New York City, and could have picked up some of our habits and expressions there.
@trcrosse,
Seinfeld did a number of episodes in which Danny Woburn played Kramer's dwarf buddy Mickey Abbott. Mickey was kind of an asshole, but short. His dwarf girlfriend dumped him for putting lifts in his shoes.
Good one! Those were funny. "Mickey" was treated as one of the guys. I wonder if that portrayal offended any activists in the anti-tall community.
I wonder if that portrayal offended any activists in the anti-tall community.
IIRC Mickey (the character) was ostracised for Conduct Unbecoming a Little Person.
I'm Mickey Abbott! I stood in for Punky Brewster when all of you was nothing!
I don't see size.
The whole complaint about hypersexuality sounds more like a humblebrag.
BTW: I learned during a presentation at the Fels Planitarium at Philadelphia's venerable Franklin Institute that Copernicus kept a dwarf as a pet. (He also wore a metal nose.) Both factoids were dropped on me during a tour of the universe, without explanation.
Eugene has to get over his hatred of rhetoric. The examples he plucks from recent dwarf obits are not malicious, merely a way of livening up the copy. If anything, they obliterate stereotypes and prejudices and replace them with positive tropes. (The better obits, anyway. Many obits are poorly written, but they manage to trash people of all heights, not just dwarf people.)
Hey, Eugene, perhaps that was the whole idea behind the character. He was named "Mini-Me," after all. Troyer's character had all the nasty habits of Dr. Evil not because he was a dwarf but because he logged a lot of hours at Evil's side. (Unless you're suggesting that Dr. Evil's characteristics-- unintelligent, aggressive, hypersexual-- were chosen specifically because, embodied in Troyer's "little person body," they would discredit all dwarf people. In which case, you're off your rocker. And wasn't Austin Powers-- the movie's good guy-- also quite hypersexual, unintelligent and aggressive? Why should the dwarf in the script be the only one in the picture who isn't those things?)
I've been thinking about this more, and the fact that I've never masturbated to a naked picture of a dwarf chick maybe means I'm a bad person, maybe. Like, I'm discriminating against dwarf chicks by not filling a sock about them and shit.
But if I make a conscious decision to jerk off to a picture of a naked dwarf chick, I would think that means I'm picking her out just for her size, and then that maybe means I'm a bad person, too, because I'm, like, objectifying her and shit. This all gets confusing.
I don't think I'm racist when I masturbate though, because I have filled a lot of socks over Japanese chicks dressed in that Japanese schoolgirl shit, and I got off just fine, I don't think that racism, like, affected me shooting my load. I mean, the Japanese chicks weren't even being fucked by tentacles or anything, not that I have a particular thing about Japanese girls getting fucked by tentacles, I think it's the Japanese guys who dig that shit.
But then I'm thinking that I don't masturbate to gay porn, and now maybe that means I'm homophobic or shit. And I haven't jerked off to any she-males, at least that I know of, and I think I'd notice if there were, like, balls under their asshole. And I think that would affect me shooting my load, so I guess if that makes me a hater then I'm a hater.
Because if the porn has a Japanese she-male getting fucked by a gay tentacle then I'm still not watching, no offense to those who get off on that particular shit.
I post my shit here.
"(He also wore a metal nose.) "
That was Tycho Brahe
Mini Me may have been all those things, but the movie was nowhere near as consequential as that.
Not all dwarves can attain the stature of Peter Dinklage, but Troyer seems to have succeeded in a world where his options were limited. Dwarves should have the option of playing out their dwarfism in any way they choose. I think Dinklage has more or less cornered the market on romantic leads for dwarves.......Dwarf porn is a gateway drug to pedophilia and should be banned.....In a related topic, are there any other left handers besides myself who are offended by the simplistic, stereotyped way the Simpsons chose to portray lefties in the person of Ned Flanders.
The whole complaint about hypersexuality sounds more like a humblebrag.
Paul Lynde remarked on the midgets in the circus in one of the high moments of Bye Bye Birdie.
Brahe it was. Not Copernicus. (Or maybe the Fels was *gasp* wrong. Probably not, though.)
Under the Rainbow (1981) uses wild, cavorting munchkins as a plot element. It's set in 1938 during the making of Wizard of Oz, and all the Little People are raising Hell at the same hotel.
That painting is a joke, right? It's freaking Dinklage.
That painting is a joke, right?
It's Drollig Hansel, as forged by Francis Cornish in What's Bred in the Bone
the 4chan Guy who reads Althouse said...I don't think I'm racist when I masturbate though, because I have filled a lot of socks over Japanese chicks dressed in that Japanese schoolgirl shit, and I got off just fine, I don't think that racism, like, affected me shooting my load.
--
Careful there..like them too much and you'll be accused of having "yellow fever".
Balfegor wrote: I don't recall any of the dwarfs in the Nibelungenlied (either Wagner's retelling or the original) as being particularly lustful either.
I'm shocked. It's Alberich's lust for those luscious nekkid Rhinemaidens that kicks off the whole Ring Cycle. After being spurned by those moistened bints (ht: Monty Python) the short guy sublimates his lust for Rheintöchtermuschi with a world-conquering Lust for Power. It had nothing to do with his height, so they say. But I suspect Siegfried would have scored with all three without much courting.
It is not unreasonable to ask that people do not insult you based on a condition you have which visibly marks you as a statistical outlier in society. It is unreasonable to ask that people not notice that condition nor make any comment regarding it. Well-intentioned comments made after a person's passing, even if somewhat clumsy, should still be treated as well-intentioned comments. Hearing a comment that was meant well, but still came off as slightly off-putting isn't unique to people with ALS or Dwarfism. Just be a decent person and accept it with grace.
I've noticed that in The Walking Dead, there are no dwarf zombies. Somebody should look into this.
Bill Veeck made an excellent point in Veeck as in Wreck when responding to accusations that he had taken advantage of Eddie Gaedel (the professional midget he sent into a baseball game as a pinch hitter).
Gaedel was a professional entertainer who chose his own life. All Veeck did was supply the role that made him famous.
Troyer was a professional actor, and he was brilliant as Mini Me. Surely he has the same right to make a movie as Mike Meyers.
You know the proprietor of this blog is extremely short. I often see her at various places in Madison.
I think she is technically a midget.
Here you go 4chan guy.
You can whack your bag to the hottest dwarf chick on record.
I post my shit here.
langford peel: You know the proprietor of this blog is extremely short. I often see her at various places in Madison.
I think she is technically a midget.
According to Wikipedia, adults with a height of less than 4'10" are considered dwarves (of which "midgets" are merely a subset).
At least I feel safer about not facing the horror of a remake of Gidget.
I realize this is a few years old but I just found this through Google, and had to say something, because I don't know that I've seen a more vivid example of the sickness destroying our country in recent years.
It's amazing how well people have been trained to be attack dogs, incapable of simply disagreeing and moving on, and certainly not capable of (and even less interested in) understanding their fellow citizen's experience if it's in any way outside their own. But, rather, they've been reeducated to instinctively respond, and by nothing more than immediately showing the whole world how very well they can foam at the mouth and snap viciously at what their master told them to. As if they believe they'll get a pat on the head for it, or be fed some more kibble.
This isn't thinking, it's just a feeding frenzy.
And what concerns me is that that tendency, when nourished, is good for no nation.
Does "E Pluribus Unum" mean "seize every opportunity to attack and vilify your countrymen"? Does a house divided against itself stand stronger than before? Does it benefit or hurt this country that Americans are taught to relish the opportunity to turn against each other?
But then, the thought strikes me that if you're a citizen of this country in word only, and your actions betray more loyalty to media figures or online forums than to your fellow citizens, then nobody should really be surprised when you do things that demonstrate that the good of this country isn't much of a priority for you.
Post a Comment