RIP - Robert Redford

[vdeane]

It's not like Redford only appeared in a couple obscure indie films 50 years ago and quickly stepped out of the public eye.

In this case, that's almost part of the problem.  I knew from a mention at work that he was a big deal (although without the context - I actually didn't do research then because I figured I'd be enlightened by the inevitable forum post, ironically), but a simple Google search was more likely to pull up a bunch of obituary articles rather than the overview that it would have before he died.  I think I found out when ABC News did 5-10 minutes on him (not just their usual story at the end) that I've probably actually seen a movie with him - specifically, the one about Watergate, which was probably one of the movies we watched in the month between the AP exams and the end of the school year (I mainly remember Deep Throat saying "follow the money").

[Rothman]

Eh, I'd give a pass to Gen Alpha on not knowing Robert Redford, but you'd have to live under a rock to not know who he is otherwise, especially given his appearance in the Marvel movies.

And, if those who don't know who he is are genuinely interested by your terse "Who?" posts in here, but unwilling to Google on your own, I'll gladly assign you homework due to your interest in being educated:

Please watch the movies Sneakers (1992), Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid (1969), All the President's Men (1976) and, heck, why not Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014).

Write a 1000-word report on your reactions.

[webny99]

Still, why even post if you aren't going to do the bare minimum ...?

Ironically the entire discussion boils down to this same point on both sides. Either you think the OP failed to do the bare minimum by providing context with the post, or the audience failed to do the bare minimum by researching the deceased. If everyone just put a little more thought into their posts to begin with, we'd have saved a largely pointless 50-post discussion.

[Molandfreak]

It's not like Redford only appeared in a couple obscure indie films 50 years ago and quickly stepped out of the public eye.

In this case, that's almost part of the problem.  I knew from a mention at work that he was a big deal (although without the context - I actually didn't do research then because I figured I'd be enlightened by the inevitable forum post, ironically), but a simple Google search was more likely to pull up a bunch of obituary articles rather than the overview that it would have before he died.  I think I found out when ABC News did 5-10 minutes on him (not just their usual story at the end) that I've probably actually seen a movie with him - specifically, the one about Watergate, which was probably one of the movies we watched in the month between the AP exams and the end of the school year (I mainly remember Deep Throat saying "follow the money").

The first obituary article I see is free from the Associated Press. It details his life, significant roles/productions, and involvement in the Sundance Film Festival pretty extensively. There aren't a ton of poorly-written pieces to sift through to get to exactly how he impacted the film industry.

[Bobby5280]

A bunch of this "I don't know who Robert Redford is" crap is bullshit.

I was a little kid when John Wayne died, but I knew who the hell he was. And we didn't have the Internet, personal computers, 24 hour cable news channels or any of the other digital shit we take for granted now. Back then the platforms that told the public someone famous died was the evening news, a printed newspaper or maybe a magazine.

Robert Redford was, arguably, in a similar caliber of popularity in the movie industry as John Wayne. Out of leading man style actors in the 1970's he was the most popular, even though he never won a Best Actor statue. Redford was in a lot of great/popular movies from the late 1960's into the 1980's. Some of my favorites are "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," "Jeremiah Johnson," "The Sting," "Three Days of the Condor," "All the President's Men," and "The Natural." BTW, out of actors in movies today, none have the star level Robert Redford did in the 1970's.

He was also a great director, even though he didn't direct all that many films. He won the Best Director Oscar for his first directorial effort, "Ordinary People," in 1980. I really liked "A River Runs Through It" (1992).

I've watched nearly all the Marvel movies from "Iron Man" to "Avengers: Endgame" and then mostly lost interest after that. "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" was one of the very best movies out of that entire saga. Robert Redford played the main bad guy in that movie.

I'm a pretty big movie fan and a hardcore nerd about the sound/projection hardware in commercial movie theaters. I admire what Robert Redford did founding the Sundance Institute and Sundance Film Festival. With all the damned media company mergers going on there needs to be at least some place for small studios and independent movie makers. Hell, the ink isn't dry on Skydance's deal to buy Paramount and now they're looking to buy out Warner Bros.

Anyway, any adult in the United States claiming they didn't know who Robert Redford was, is either really badly sheltered or they're just lying for some weird reason. The guy's politics were pretty left of center. That might be a motive for someone to level an insulting "who?" remark.

[Scott5114]

Still, why even post if you aren't going to do the bare minimum level of research?

Why even post if you aren't going to do the bare minimum level of providing context?

I would at least google the name, and if I wasn't interested, I would simply not post in the thread.

I need context to see if they're even worth Googling or not. If there's some obscure name that seems vaguely familiar, I am not going to be interested enough to Google them if they're just some actor or singer, but if they're something like an author or a scientist I might actually find Googling them for more information worthwhile.

And if I may quote chapter and verse about how the forum is run:

Posts that have no discernible meaning, only random text, or lack sufficient context to form the basis of or contribute to a discussion.

Obviously, a thread saying "RIP Bob Smingfingtinfordson" and nothing else meets this bar, but the idea of providing context to form the basis of a discussion is an explicitly stated goal of the forum rules, so the "maybe you should provide context here, pal" crowd is unambiguously right.

[Roadgeekteen]

A bunch of this "I don't know who Robert Redford is" crap is bullshit.

I was a little kid when John Wayne died, but I knew who the hell he was. And we didn't have the Internet, personal computers, 24 hour cable news channels or any of the other digital shit we take for granted now. Back then the platforms that told the public someone famous died was the evening news, a printed newspaper or maybe a magazine.

Robert Redford was, arguably, in a similar caliber of popularity in the movie industry as John Wayne. Out of leading man style actors in the 1970's he was the most popular, even though he never won a Best Actor statue. Redford was in a lot of great/popular movies from the late 1960's into the 1980's. Some of my favorites are "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," "Jeremiah Johnson," "The Sting," "Three Days of the Condor," "All the President's Men," and "The Natural." BTW, out of actors in movies today, none have the star level Robert Redford did in the 1970's.

He was also a great director, even though he didn't direct all that many films. He won the Best Director Oscar for his first directorial effort, "Ordinary People," in 1980. I really liked "A River Runs Through It" (1992).

I've watched nearly all the Marvel movies from "Iron Man" to "Avengers: Endgame" and then mostly lost interest after that. "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" was one of the very best movies out of that entire saga. Robert Redford played the main bad guy in that movie.

I'm a pretty big movie fan and a hardcore nerd about the sound/projection hardware in commercial movie theaters. I admire what Robert Redford did founding the Sundance Institute and Sundance Film Festival. With all the damned media company mergers going on there needs to be at least some place for small studios and independent movie makers. Hell, the ink isn't dry on Skydance's deal to buy Paramount and now they're looking to buy out Warner Bros.

Anyway, any adult in the United States claiming they didn't know who Robert Redford was, is either really badly sheltered or they're just lying for some weird reason. The guy's politics were pretty left of center. That might be a motive for someone to level an insulting "who?" remark.

The user who said "who" is also decidedly left of center. I had barely heard of him when I heard the news- the name only sound familiar. I'm only 22 and I don't watch any movies. Some people just don't care about celebrities.

[Max Rockatansky]

Is not Kirk a media celebrity? 

[Roadgeekteen]

Is not Kirk a media celebrity? 

He is in the political sphere, which I have a high level of interest in so I was very familiar with him.

[Scott5114]

Is not Kirk a media celebrity? 

He is in the political sphere, which I have a high level of interest in so I was very familiar with him.

I was aware of the name, but to me he was one of an interchangeable class of pundits—before his death, I might have gotten him confused with Ben Shapiro, Steven Crowder, or even Nick Fuentes because to me they all kind of provide the same function. (On the other hand, I can identify pretty much every US senator, governor, and Cabinet official by name, so it's not like I'm not politically aware.)

[Scott5114]

I was a little kid when John Wayne died, but I knew who the hell he was. And we didn't have the Internet, personal computers, 24 hour cable news channels or any of the other digital shit we take for granted now.

You knew who he was because you didn't have the Internet, personal computers, or 24 hour cable news. You had NBC, ABC, and CBS shoving John Wayne down your throat.

Nowadays you have the freedom to not give a shit about celebrities because you can just choose to click on something else.

[Max Rockatansky]

Is not Kirk a media celebrity? 

He is in the political sphere, which I have a high level of interest in so I was very familiar with him.

Charlie Kirk wasn't part of any elected office.  He was a media celebrity apparently very famous among younger folks. 

[Roadgeekteen]

Is not Kirk a media celebrity? 

He is in the political sphere, which I have a high level of interest in so I was very familiar with him.

Charlie Kirk wasn't part of any elected office.  He was a media celebrity apparently very famous among younger folks.

I will say, he's very famous with young people but not as much with older people. Also if you don't use social media you wouldn't have known him as well.

[Molandfreak]

I would at least google the name, and if I wasn't interested, I would simply not post in the thread.

I need context to see if they're even worth Googling or not. If there's some obscure name that seems vaguely familiar, I am not going to be interested enough to Google them if they're just some actor or singer, but if they're something like an author or a scientist I might actually find Googling them for more information worthwhile.

And if I may quote chapter and verse about how the forum is run:

Posts that have no discernible meaning, only random text, or lack sufficient context to form the basis of or contribute to a discussion.

Obviously, a thread saying "RIP Bob Smingfingtinfordson" and nothing else meets this bar, but the idea of providing context to form the basis of a discussion is an explicitly stated goal of the forum rules, so the "maybe you should provide context here, pal" crowd is unambiguously right.

I don't mind a bit of digging to get to the heart of new topics that previously didn't interest me. Variety is the spice of life.

But I see your point.

[Bobby5280]

You knew who he was because you didn't have the Internet, personal computers, or 24 hour cable news. You had NBC, ABC, and CBS shoving John Wayne down your throat.

We weren't stuck indoors back then unless we did something to get grounded by our parents.

Nowadays you have the freedom to not give a shit about celebrities because you can just choose to click on something else.

There are many celebrities I don't give two shits about, but I'm repeatedly made aware they exist by the entertainment industry, news/entertainment media and outlets online.

[Max Rockatansky]

Is not Kirk a media celebrity? 

He is in the political sphere, which I have a high level of interest in so I was very familiar with him.

Charlie Kirk wasn't part of any elected office.  He was a media celebrity apparently very famous among younger folks.

I will say, he's very famous with young people but not as much with older people. Also if you don't use social media you wouldn't have known him as well.

I had to show this reply to my wife.  I've been telling we are old for years and she doesn't agree.  Amusingly she also knew who Robert Redford was but had no idea about Charlie Kirk until last week. 

[Scott5114]

There are many celebrities I don't give two shits about, but I'm repeatedly made aware they exist by the entertainment industry, news/entertainment media and outlets online.

But see, I don't consume anything created by the entertainment industry, nor news/entertainment media, because I don't have to anymore; I don't have to wait for Entertainment Tonight to be over before I can watch the local news like I used to. I have no idea who the currently-active crop of actors with stature comparable to Robert Redford is, for instance.

[Molandfreak]

Is not Kirk a media celebrity? 

He is in the political sphere, which I have a high level of interest in so I was very familiar with him.

Charlie Kirk wasn't part of any elected office.  He was a media celebrity apparently very famous among younger folks.

I will say, he's very famous with young people but not as much with older people. Also if you don't use social media you wouldn't have known him as well.

I had to show this reply to my wife.  I've been telling we are old for years and she doesn't agree.  Amusingly she also knew who Robert Redford was but had no idea about Charlie Kirk until last week. 

So where does that put me, someone who knew both Charlie Kirk and Robert Redford without additional context?

The dreaded middle-aged?

[Max Rockatansky]

Is not Kirk a media celebrity? 

He is in the political sphere, which I have a high level of interest in so I was very familiar with him.

Charlie Kirk wasn't part of any elected office.  He was a media celebrity apparently very famous among younger folks.

I will say, he's very famous with young people but not as much with older people. Also if you don't use social media you wouldn't have known him as well.

I had to show this reply to my wife.  I've been telling we are old for years and she doesn't agree.  Amusingly she also knew who Robert Redford was but had no idea about Charlie Kirk until last week. 

So where does that put me, someone who knew both Charlie Kirk and Robert Redford without additional context?

The dreaded middle-aged?

Hey when I was growing up 30 was middle aged.  My parents certainly looked the part.

[Rothman]

I was a little kid when John Wayne died, but I knew who the hell he was. And we didn't have the Internet, personal computers, 24 hour cable news channels or any of the other digital shit we take for granted now.

You knew who he was because you didn't have the Internet, personal computers, or 24 hour cable news. You had NBC, ABC, and CBS shoving John Wayne down your throat.

Pfft.  I was a young kid when John Wayne died.  News was for adults.  I was busy playing with toys.

And I came to know John Wayne because of the zeitgeist.  Parents pass down their cultural stuff to their kids.  Never saw one of his movies in full until I was much older, though.

[TheHighwayMan3561]

An unrelated obit I'm specifically drawing Rothman's attention to    - Marilyn Haggerty, who was a columnist at the Grand Forks Herald in Grand Forks, ND, and wrote this review of their then-new Olive Garden in 2012: https://www.grandforksherald.com/lifestyle/the-eatbeat-long-awaited-olive-garden-receives-warm-welcome

[Rothman]

An unrelated obit I'm specifically drawing Rothman's attention to    - Marilyn Haggerty, who was a columnist at the Grand Forks Herald in Grand Forks, ND, and wrote this review of their then-new Olive Garden in 2012: https://www.grandforksherald.com/lifestyle/the-eatbeat-long-awaited-olive-garden-receives-warm-welcome

That one of the saddest things I've ever read.

[1995hoo]

....

And if I may quote chapter and verse about how the forum is run:

Posts that have no discernible meaning, only random text, or lack sufficient context to form the basis of or contribute to a discussion.

Obviously, a thread saying "RIP Bob Smingfingtinfordson" and nothing else meets this bar, but the idea of providing context to form the basis of a discussion is an explicitly stated goal of the forum rules, so the "maybe you should provide context here, pal" crowd is unambiguously right.

The Kirby Delauter thread from 2015 might be a fine example of one where the subject line made you say, "Who?," and then the first post told you why this obscure politician from Maryland merited mention and ridicule.

On the other hand, it's also fair to say Robert Redford was nowhere close to as obscure as Kirby Delauter.

[SEWIGuy]

I don't care if you're too lazy to click on it or not.

I hate to break this to you, but this place isn't just about you. There are many here who know don't know what the link is. Your apathy doesn't preclude others from discussing.

Cute...but ultimately a failure. I clearly stated that I don't care if he reads it or not.

[kphoger]

I thought I would get grief from folks not getting past the NY Times paywall, at which point others would chime in.
I didn't realize I was going to start another AAroads culture skirmish instead. 
Anyways, here is Robert Redford pretending to be a roadgeek, 33 years ago.

Loved that movie, and that was always my favorite scene!