Susan Boyle backstory
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GordoMuskegon
Apr 19, 2009, 12:05:33 AM4/19/09
to mpolitics
http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2009/04/susan-boyle-read-this-please.html
Yes,
this is my third post on this wonderful woman......you gotta problem
with that?
http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/featuresopinon/display.var.2501746.0.The_beauty_that_matters_is_always_on_the_inside.php
The beauty that matters is always on the inside
COLETTE DOUGLAS HOME
April 14 2009
Susan Boyle's story is a parable of our age.
She is a singer of enormous talent, who cared for her widowed mother
until she died two years ago. Susan's is a combination of ability and
virtue that deserves congratulation.
So how come she was treated as a laughing stock when she walked on
stage for the opening heat of Britain's Got Talent 2009 on Saturday
night?
The moment the reality show's audience and judging panel saw the
small, shy, middle-aged woman, they started to smirk.
When she said she wanted a professional singing career to equal that
of Elaine Paige, the camera showed audience members rolling their eyes
in disbelief.
They scoffed when she told Simon Cowell, one of the judges, how she'd
reached her forties without managing to develop a singing career
because she hadn't had the opportunity.
Another judge, Piers Morgan, later wrote on his blog that, just before
she launched into I Dreamed a Dream, the 3000-strong audience in
Glasgow was laughing and the three judges were suppressing chuckles.
It was rude and cruel and arrogant.
Susan Boyle from Blackburn, West Lothian, was presumed to be a
buffoon.
But why?
Britain's Got Talent isn't a beauty pageant. It isn't a youth
opportunity scheme.
It is surely about discovering untapped and unrecognised raw talent
from all sections of society.
And Susan Boyle has talent to burn. Such is the beauty of her voice
that she had barely sung the opening bars when the applause started.
She rounded off to a standing ovation and - in her naivety - began
walking off the stage and had to be recalled.
Susan, now a bankable discovery, was then roundly patronised by such
mega-talents as Amanda Holden and the aforementioned Morgan, who told
her: "Everyone laughed at you but no-one is laughing now. I'm reeling
with shock." Holden added: "It's the biggest wake-up call ever."
Again, why?
The answer is that only the pretty are expected to achieve.
Not only do you have to be physically appealing to deserve fame; it
seems you now have to be good-looking to merit everyday common
respect.
If, like Susan (and like millions more), you are plump, middle-aged
and too poor or too unworldly to follow fashion or have a good
hairdresser, you are a non-person.
I dread to think of how Susan would have left the stage if her voice
had been less than exceptional.
She would have been humiliated in front of 11 million viewers.
It's the equivalent of being put in the stocks in front of the nation
instead of the village.
It used to be a punishment handed out to criminals.
Now it is the fate of anyone without obvious sexual allure who dares
seek opportunity.
This small, brave soul took her courage in her hands to pitch at her
one hope of having her singing talent recognised, and was greeted with
a communal sneer. Courage could so easily have failed her.
Yet why shouldn't she sound wonderful?
Not every great singer looks like Katherine Jenkins.
Edith Piaf would never have been chosen to strut a catwalk.
Nor would Nina Simone, nor Ella Fitzgerald.
As for Pavarotti
But then ridicule is nothing new in Susan Boyle's life.
She is a veteran of abuse.
She was starved of oxygen at birth and has learning difficulties as a
result.
At school she was slow and had frizzy hair.
She was bullied, mostly verbally.
She told one newspaper that her classmates' jibes left behind the kind
of scars that don't heal.
She didn't have boyfriends, is a stranger to romance and has never
been kissed.
"Shame," she said.
Singing was her life-raft.
She lived with her parents in a four-bedroom council house and, when
her father died a decade ago, she cared for her mother and sang in the
church choir.
It was an unglamorous existence.
She wasn't the glamorous type - and being a carer isn't a glamorous
life, as the hundreds of thousands who do that most valuable of jobs
will testify.
Even those who start out with a beauty routine and an interest in
clothes find themselves reverting to the practicality of a tracksuit
and trainers.
Fitness plans get interrupted and then abandoned.
Weight creeps on.
Carers don't often get invited to sparkling dinner parties or glitzy
receptions, so smart clothes rarely make it off the hanger.
Then, when a special occasion comes along, they might reach, as Susan
did, for the frock they bought for a nephew's wedding.
They might, as she did, compound the felony of choosing a colour at
odds with her skin tone and an unflattering shape with home-chopped
hair, bushy eyebrows and a face without a hint of make-up.
But it is often evidence of a life lived selflessly; of a person so
focused on the needs of another that they have lost sight of
themselves.
Is that a cause for derision or a reason for congratulation?
Would her time have been better spent slimming and exercising,
plucking and waxing, bleaching and botoxing? Would that have made her
voice any sweeter?
Susan Boyle's mother encouraged her to sing.
She wanted her to enter Britain's Got Talent.
But the shy Susan hasn't been able to sing at all since her mother's
death two years ago. She wasn't sure how her voice would emerge after
so long a silence. Happily, it survived its rest.
She is a gift to Simon Cowell and reality television.
Her story is the stuff of Hans Christian Andersen: the woman plucked
from obscurity, the buried talent uncovered, the transformation
waiting to be wrought.
It is wonderful for her, too, that her stunning voice is now
recognised.
A bright future beckons. Her dream is becoming reality.
Susan is a reminder that it's time we all looked a little deeper.
She has lived an obscure but important life.
She has been a companionable and caring daughter.
It's people like her who are the unseen glue in society; the ones who
day in and day out put themselves last.
They make this country civilised and they deserve acknowledgement and
respect.
Susan has been forgiven her looks and been given respect because of
her talent. She should always have received it because of the calibre
of her character.
Yes,
this is my third post on this wonderful woman......you gotta problem
with that?
http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/featuresopinon/display.var.2501746.0.The_beauty_that_matters_is_always_on_the_inside.php
The beauty that matters is always on the inside
COLETTE DOUGLAS HOME
April 14 2009
Susan Boyle's story is a parable of our age.
She is a singer of enormous talent, who cared for her widowed mother
until she died two years ago. Susan's is a combination of ability and
virtue that deserves congratulation.
So how come she was treated as a laughing stock when she walked on
stage for the opening heat of Britain's Got Talent 2009 on Saturday
night?
The moment the reality show's audience and judging panel saw the
small, shy, middle-aged woman, they started to smirk.
When she said she wanted a professional singing career to equal that
of Elaine Paige, the camera showed audience members rolling their eyes
in disbelief.
They scoffed when she told Simon Cowell, one of the judges, how she'd
reached her forties without managing to develop a singing career
because she hadn't had the opportunity.
Another judge, Piers Morgan, later wrote on his blog that, just before
she launched into I Dreamed a Dream, the 3000-strong audience in
Glasgow was laughing and the three judges were suppressing chuckles.
It was rude and cruel and arrogant.
Susan Boyle from Blackburn, West Lothian, was presumed to be a
buffoon.
But why?
Britain's Got Talent isn't a beauty pageant. It isn't a youth
opportunity scheme.
It is surely about discovering untapped and unrecognised raw talent
from all sections of society.
And Susan Boyle has talent to burn. Such is the beauty of her voice
that she had barely sung the opening bars when the applause started.
She rounded off to a standing ovation and - in her naivety - began
walking off the stage and had to be recalled.
Susan, now a bankable discovery, was then roundly patronised by such
mega-talents as Amanda Holden and the aforementioned Morgan, who told
her: "Everyone laughed at you but no-one is laughing now. I'm reeling
with shock." Holden added: "It's the biggest wake-up call ever."
Again, why?
The answer is that only the pretty are expected to achieve.
Not only do you have to be physically appealing to deserve fame; it
seems you now have to be good-looking to merit everyday common
respect.
If, like Susan (and like millions more), you are plump, middle-aged
and too poor or too unworldly to follow fashion or have a good
hairdresser, you are a non-person.
I dread to think of how Susan would have left the stage if her voice
had been less than exceptional.
She would have been humiliated in front of 11 million viewers.
It's the equivalent of being put in the stocks in front of the nation
instead of the village.
It used to be a punishment handed out to criminals.
Now it is the fate of anyone without obvious sexual allure who dares
seek opportunity.
This small, brave soul took her courage in her hands to pitch at her
one hope of having her singing talent recognised, and was greeted with
a communal sneer. Courage could so easily have failed her.
Yet why shouldn't she sound wonderful?
Not every great singer looks like Katherine Jenkins.
Edith Piaf would never have been chosen to strut a catwalk.
Nor would Nina Simone, nor Ella Fitzgerald.
As for Pavarotti
But then ridicule is nothing new in Susan Boyle's life.
She is a veteran of abuse.
She was starved of oxygen at birth and has learning difficulties as a
result.
At school she was slow and had frizzy hair.
She was bullied, mostly verbally.
She told one newspaper that her classmates' jibes left behind the kind
of scars that don't heal.
She didn't have boyfriends, is a stranger to romance and has never
been kissed.
"Shame," she said.
Singing was her life-raft.
She lived with her parents in a four-bedroom council house and, when
her father died a decade ago, she cared for her mother and sang in the
church choir.
It was an unglamorous existence.
She wasn't the glamorous type - and being a carer isn't a glamorous
life, as the hundreds of thousands who do that most valuable of jobs
will testify.
Even those who start out with a beauty routine and an interest in
clothes find themselves reverting to the practicality of a tracksuit
and trainers.
Fitness plans get interrupted and then abandoned.
Weight creeps on.
Carers don't often get invited to sparkling dinner parties or glitzy
receptions, so smart clothes rarely make it off the hanger.
Then, when a special occasion comes along, they might reach, as Susan
did, for the frock they bought for a nephew's wedding.
They might, as she did, compound the felony of choosing a colour at
odds with her skin tone and an unflattering shape with home-chopped
hair, bushy eyebrows and a face without a hint of make-up.
But it is often evidence of a life lived selflessly; of a person so
focused on the needs of another that they have lost sight of
themselves.
Is that a cause for derision or a reason for congratulation?
Would her time have been better spent slimming and exercising,
plucking and waxing, bleaching and botoxing? Would that have made her
voice any sweeter?
Susan Boyle's mother encouraged her to sing.
She wanted her to enter Britain's Got Talent.
But the shy Susan hasn't been able to sing at all since her mother's
death two years ago. She wasn't sure how her voice would emerge after
so long a silence. Happily, it survived its rest.
She is a gift to Simon Cowell and reality television.
Her story is the stuff of Hans Christian Andersen: the woman plucked
from obscurity, the buried talent uncovered, the transformation
waiting to be wrought.
It is wonderful for her, too, that her stunning voice is now
recognised.
A bright future beckons. Her dream is becoming reality.
Susan is a reminder that it's time we all looked a little deeper.
She has lived an obscure but important life.
She has been a companionable and caring daughter.
It's people like her who are the unseen glue in society; the ones who
day in and day out put themselves last.
They make this country civilised and they deserve acknowledgement and
respect.
Susan has been forgiven her looks and been given respect because of
her talent. She should always have received it because of the calibre
of her character.
mdancer
Apr 19, 2009, 12:29:51 AM4/19/09
to mpolitics
Beautiful post, Gordo! Bravo!
I've always thought that beauty is on the inside and Ms. Boyle surely
exemplifies that theory. I hope she is successful beyond her wildest
dreams
On Apr 19, 12:05 am, GordoMuskegon <GordoMuske...@gmail.com> wrote:
> http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2009/04/susan-boyle-read-this-plea...
I've always thought that beauty is on the inside and Ms. Boyle surely
exemplifies that theory. I hope she is successful beyond her wildest
dreams
On Apr 19, 12:05 am, GordoMuskegon <GordoMuske...@gmail.com> wrote:
> http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2009/04/susan-boyle-read-this-plea...
>
> Yes,
> this is my third post on this wonderful woman......you gotta problem
> with that?
>
> http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/featuresopinon/display.var.250174...
> Yes,
> this is my third post on this wonderful woman......you gotta problem
> with that?
>
Lake Shore Girl
Apr 19, 2009, 1:05:19 AM4/19/09
to mpolitics
Andy Borowitz says the same thing, in his unique way:
-----------------------------------
ANDY BOROWITZ
Talented Ugly Person Baffles World
Networks Lift Restrictions on Unsightly
The success of singer Susan Boyle on the reality show "Britain's Got
Talent" has caused both television networks and their viewers to
reconsider the intrinsic value of ugly people, media experts say.
In living rooms around the world as well as in the executive suites of
media giants, those exposed to the Susan Boyle phenomenon are
grappling with the paradox - thought impossible up until now - that an
ugly person could be talented.
In New York, NBC chief Jeff Zucker confirmed that his network was
"seriously considering" lifting its official ban against featuring
unattractive people on the air.
"For years, the letters NBC have stood for ‘No Butt-ugly Characters,'"
Mr. Zucker said. "We're beginning to re-think that."
Jenifer Genterson, a news anchor from Abilene, Texas, is just one of a
chorus of beautiful TV talking heads who have been startled and
inspired by the surprising presence of talent in an ugly person.
"In the TV business, we're told that beauty is everything," Ms.
Genterson said. "But Susan Boyle has shown us that ugly people have
the right to live, too."
But Professor Logsdon, who studies the rare occurrences of ugly people
in the media at the University of Minnesota's School of
Communications, warns that the isolated example of Ms. Boyle may give
ugly people around the world too much hope.
"The fact is, only one in a million ugly people will ever get on TV,"
said Professor Logsdon. "Most of them will wind up in academia."
Elsewhere, one day after lifting travel restrictions on Cuba,
President Obama said he would send Vice President Joe Biden there for
the next four years.
-----------------------------------
ANDY BOROWITZ
Talented Ugly Person Baffles World
Networks Lift Restrictions on Unsightly
The success of singer Susan Boyle on the reality show "Britain's Got
Talent" has caused both television networks and their viewers to
reconsider the intrinsic value of ugly people, media experts say.
In living rooms around the world as well as in the executive suites of
media giants, those exposed to the Susan Boyle phenomenon are
grappling with the paradox - thought impossible up until now - that an
ugly person could be talented.
In New York, NBC chief Jeff Zucker confirmed that his network was
"seriously considering" lifting its official ban against featuring
unattractive people on the air.
"For years, the letters NBC have stood for ‘No Butt-ugly Characters,'"
Mr. Zucker said. "We're beginning to re-think that."
Jenifer Genterson, a news anchor from Abilene, Texas, is just one of a
chorus of beautiful TV talking heads who have been startled and
inspired by the surprising presence of talent in an ugly person.
"In the TV business, we're told that beauty is everything," Ms.
Genterson said. "But Susan Boyle has shown us that ugly people have
the right to live, too."
But Professor Logsdon, who studies the rare occurrences of ugly people
in the media at the University of Minnesota's School of
Communications, warns that the isolated example of Ms. Boyle may give
ugly people around the world too much hope.
"The fact is, only one in a million ugly people will ever get on TV,"
said Professor Logsdon. "Most of them will wind up in academia."
Elsewhere, one day after lifting travel restrictions on Cuba,
President Obama said he would send Vice President Joe Biden there for
the next four years.
kiata77
Apr 19, 2009, 10:10:44 AM4/19/09
to mpolitics
I hope that Susan is able to put out a CD, because I would buy it in a
heartbeat. She has a beautiful voice!
"The beauty that matters is always on the inside". I wish more people
held that belief.
On Apr 19, 12:05 am, GordoMuskegon <GordoMuske...@gmail.com> wrote:
> http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2009/04/susan-boyle-read-this-plea...
>
heartbeat. She has a beautiful voice!
"The beauty that matters is always on the inside". I wish more people
held that belief.
On Apr 19, 12:05 am, GordoMuskegon <GordoMuske...@gmail.com> wrote:
> http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2009/04/susan-boyle-read-this-plea...
>
> Yes,
> this is my third post on this wonderful woman......you gotta problem
> with that?
>
> http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/featuresopinon/display.var.250174...
> this is my third post on this wonderful woman......you gotta problem
> with that?
>
Lake Shore Girl
Apr 19, 2009, 10:43:46 AM4/19/09
to mpolitics
What gets me about this thing is that Susan Boyle is not ugly, she's
quite "normal" looking, to me. OK, so maybe she appears to have a
poor sense of style, but hey, hang around a beer tent in downtown
Muskegon and you tell me how many 48 year-old women you see who look
"hot" and how many you see who look "normal" as in, Susan Boyle level
of "normal," and how many of them have a better sense of style than
she does.
If I knew Ms. Boyle personally I'd have no trouble befriending her
(assuming she's a nice person). There is NOTHING WRONG with how that
woman looks!
quite "normal" looking, to me. OK, so maybe she appears to have a
poor sense of style, but hey, hang around a beer tent in downtown
Muskegon and you tell me how many 48 year-old women you see who look
"hot" and how many you see who look "normal" as in, Susan Boyle level
of "normal," and how many of them have a better sense of style than
she does.
If I knew Ms. Boyle personally I'd have no trouble befriending her
(assuming she's a nice person). There is NOTHING WRONG with how that
woman looks!
kiata77
Apr 19, 2009, 12:10:59 PM4/19/09
to mpolitics
I agree with you Lake Shore Girl. There is nothing wrong with how she
looks. The way the people in the audience acted, they are the ones who
need to realize that it isn't all about how someone looks, or how they
fit into the "mold" of how they think someone should look. There are
just way too many people in this world who judge others on their looks
and that's sad. There was a commentary on tv this morning talking
about how she will probably be the next person to get a major make-
over, and the commentator said how sad it was that people just can't
appreciate others for who they are and how they look without trying to
change them to meet their standards.
> > > of her character.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
looks. The way the people in the audience acted, they are the ones who
need to realize that it isn't all about how someone looks, or how they
fit into the "mold" of how they think someone should look. There are
just way too many people in this world who judge others on their looks
and that's sad. There was a commentary on tv this morning talking
about how she will probably be the next person to get a major make-
over, and the commentator said how sad it was that people just can't
appreciate others for who they are and how they look without trying to
change them to meet their standards.
>
> - Show quoted text -
Lake Shore Girl
Apr 21, 2009, 10:02:30 PM4/21/09
to mpolitics
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jI2DxkrgpgQ
Listen to THAT. (It's supposedly a recording Susan Boyle made on a
charity fundraiser CD. You thought the TV appearance was good? You've
gotta hear this.)
Yeah, I'd cut off my left nut to sing like this... wait, I don't have
a left nut and scooping out an ovary isn't practical, so I suppose
that means I'm not going to be singing like this any time soon.
Listen to THAT. (It's supposedly a recording Susan Boyle made on a
charity fundraiser CD. You thought the TV appearance was good? You've
gotta hear this.)
Yeah, I'd cut off my left nut to sing like this... wait, I don't have
a left nut and scooping out an ovary isn't practical, so I suppose
that means I'm not going to be singing like this any time soon.
kiata77
Apr 22, 2009, 7:44:16 AM4/22/09
to mpolitics
Wow.. I would LOVE to have a CD of her. I think she should do a duet
with Josh Groban.
> > > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -
with Josh Groban.
Omni
Apr 22, 2009, 10:42:36 AM4/22/09
to mpolitics
I'm sure she's a nice enough lady, but let's not kid anyone here.
That woman is not attractive physically. Maybe to a select few, but
not to the mainstream world. It's one thing to be nice, but
really... you're acting like she's due for a stop into the mpolitics
forums.
Not everyone gets a blue ribbon or a trophy. So she's ugly, whoop dee
do. She sings wonderfully. Something I ,and I'd venture most people,
cannot do. Everyone has their strengths and their weaknesses. I'm an
opinionated, loud-mouth a-hole most of the time, but you don't see me
on here asking people to say nice things about me. You gotta play the
hand you're dealt. Just the way it goes.
The world ain't fair and it's rarely pretty.
That woman is not attractive physically. Maybe to a select few, but
not to the mainstream world. It's one thing to be nice, but
really... you're acting like she's due for a stop into the mpolitics
forums.
Not everyone gets a blue ribbon or a trophy. So she's ugly, whoop dee
do. She sings wonderfully. Something I ,and I'd venture most people,
cannot do. Everyone has their strengths and their weaknesses. I'm an
opinionated, loud-mouth a-hole most of the time, but you don't see me
on here asking people to say nice things about me. You gotta play the
hand you're dealt. Just the way it goes.
The world ain't fair and it's rarely pretty.
Lake Shore Girl
Apr 22, 2009, 11:38:31 AM4/22/09
to mpolitics
Omni, I'm not sure what you're trying to say. We're talking about her
voice, not her looks.
I think I know why everyone is cheering for this woman: most of us are
"average" looking. Some of us are on the better end of that and some
are on the worse end, but few of us are stunning. When we see someone
who is not stunning and has amazing talent we all see ourselves
reflected in that. If an ungroomed virginal cat lady from a village in
Scotland can do something amazing, so can all of us. She's like us,
or our aunt or mother or grandmother, and we identify with that.
Watching her performance and interview, I got the impression that
she's more or less at peace with who she is. If you're at peace with
who you are, what other people think about your looks is a minor
issue.
As a woman, it's really nice to be perceived as reasonably attractive
for my age; however my character is of far greater importance, and
developing my talents is not dependent on my looks.
If you enjoy being a loud-mouthed asshole, you can't expect people to
say nice things about you, Omni.
voice, not her looks.
I think I know why everyone is cheering for this woman: most of us are
"average" looking. Some of us are on the better end of that and some
are on the worse end, but few of us are stunning. When we see someone
who is not stunning and has amazing talent we all see ourselves
reflected in that. If an ungroomed virginal cat lady from a village in
Scotland can do something amazing, so can all of us. She's like us,
or our aunt or mother or grandmother, and we identify with that.
Watching her performance and interview, I got the impression that
she's more or less at peace with who she is. If you're at peace with
who you are, what other people think about your looks is a minor
issue.
As a woman, it's really nice to be perceived as reasonably attractive
for my age; however my character is of far greater importance, and
developing my talents is not dependent on my looks.
If you enjoy being a loud-mouthed asshole, you can't expect people to
say nice things about you, Omni.
Omni
Apr 23, 2009, 8:28:35 AM4/23/09
to mpolitics
On Apr 22, 11:38 am, Lake Shore Girl <LkShoreG...@aol.com> wrote:
> If you enjoy being a loud-mouthed asshole, you can't expect people to
> say nice things about you, Omni.
My post was in reference to all the coddling and rationalization going
on about Ms. Boyles looks. I don't know why it's even an issue. I
don't see ugly as anything other than normal or absence of beauty and
I don't think it's right to sugar coat the fact that she looks like
the front end of a '78 Ford F-100.
It's not like she's the first ugly singer. Seal comes to mind, along
with that tub of goo Wynona Judd.
I guess I don't get all the hullabaloo over her not being attractive
which is the central theme to nearly every news report I've seen
lately and at least some of the above posts.
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