Monday, September 29, 2008

Alec Baldwin: Why Him?

Based on the article by Ian Parker, what type of person is Alec Baldwin? How does the writer use dialogue to convey this? What other things does the writer do to SHOW you what kind of person Alec Baldwin is without telling you? What techniques do you think this writer uses effectively that you can use in your own writing?

19 comments:

Brittaney Hebert said...

The article on Alec Baldwin seemed as it was written in a sarcastic, mocking tone. The dialogue used to express Baldwin's feelings and personality was usually one where he complained or bragged. The quote used by his brother was "There's always something for him to fucking whine about," to express this. Humorously enough the comment from Donaghy, the sitcom character he plays the role of is said to have" the calm joy of someone who knows that nothing matters in life but ambition." The article also speaks of his low budget movies he's involved in, and the book on divorce and the law he's recently written. I could use Parker's techniques to sarcastically pobrtray a point of view on someone that I would like to e seen. Dialogue on negative comments and complaints was a great way to show Baldwin's whiny ways.

JM Robinson said...

To me, it seems as if Alec Baldwin is a man with great success and a ton of money, but is still unhappy. I believe this is because he has nobody to share it with. This article makes it pretty clear that he is lonely and almost pathetic. Parker uses a lot of dialogue to show Alec's sadness or need of something more. Parker sarcastically says, "Baldwin-carrying two hundred and twenty-five pounds, like an athlete in his sportscasting years. This is kind of alluding to the same fact that sometimes when athletes don't make it or last long in proffesional athletics, they sometimes become sportscasters. Baldwin, a man who is past his prime, now does sitcoms. I think that what most made Parker's writing effective was the use of so much dialogue. In my firsthand portrait, using more dialogue would increase the real perception of who my character really is.

Cassie said...

Ian Parker portrayed Alec Baldwinas a man who had it then lost it. Im not jsut talking about his carrer, Im talking about his personal life. Which is made clear by Parker is somewhat pathetic and he must be so very unhappy. When Parker uses dialouge he uses many parts where Baldwin basically wines or is being realistic.He also has others talk about him like Marci Klien and his brother billy in a kind way to show that he is a good person. Though he did give some insight into his childhood when Baldwin taked about growing up in Massapequa. Besides dialouge Parker uses flashback with of Baldwins childhood. He defianetly uses a lot of sarcasm. He uses foreshadowing as well when he quotes baldwin saying that he didnt think that he was that good. I could use more flashbacks and foreshadowing in my writing.

GeraldSoder said...

For me, this article did a decent job of summing up the unusual and mostly depressing life of Alec Baldwin. It gave us an idea of the struggles Alec Baldwin is facing on his journey as a dying actor. It gives much insight to Baldwin's emotional demons, and demeanor. The author's sarcasm as well as blunt rudeness, actually makes the reader feel a strong sympathy for Baldwin. The author also, used various methods such as dialogue and flashbacks to portray the struggle that is Alec Baldwin. After reading this piece I was able to come to the conclusion that fame and wealth is not the secret to happiness, and I believe this message was trying to be expressed.

Kortney Sorensen said...

The article on Alec Baldwin seemed to be written sarcastically and with a lot of dialogue. The article talks a lot about how he never had the leading role, and could never reach the highest he could as an actor. This results to him thinking and saying that he doesn't think he has a talent for acting like Jack NIcholson, his idol, does. I could use dialouge and sarcasm like Parker did to relay a message about someone i was writing about. Also, i could use negative comments but still get my point across

Brittany Haynes said...

The article seems very sarcastic. It seems as though it is putting Alec down by stating that he never gets the leading role. There is a lot of dialogue that helps portray how unhappy Alec is. I thought it was funny how his own brother said there is always something for him to whine about. I think Alec feels as though he will never be good enough or never get that leading role. I loved the part where it was trying make Alec seem jealous of Leonardo Dicaprio and his role in Aviator.I think to make my own writing more effective I could use more dialogue.

Phillip Westbrook said...

The article I read on Alec Baldwin was a mass of sarcasm and dialogue. The dialogue used in the piece captures Baldwin's personality very well. The piece also demonstrates a more serious side of Baldwin. Baldwin describes advice given to him by his father and it seems as though it has stuck with him: "The older I got, I learned to behave as he did, which was to not be afraid of anybody." I could use Parker's writing techniques to make a sarcastic point as well as a serious point about someone.

Evan Riley said...

This piece seems to be a satire, containing alot of dialogue and sarcasm. The author of the piece seems to focus on the views of Baldwin from other people he is close to, like family members and friends. He sleects quotes that make Baldwin look like he wines over everything and is immature. The author makes it clear that he feels Baldwin is past his prime and that is the reason he can only get sitcom roles and no major roles anymore. The author makes Baldwin seem to be extremely famous and wealthy, but proves the point that you can't buy happiness and that Baldwin is a very unhappy past-prime star.

Caroline14 said...

This piece was written in a mocking tone. He is sarcastic about Alec Baldwin's bad habbit of complaining and how pathetic he is. But the author does a good job of explaining where Alec came from, who he is, and gives the reader a good feeling of how Alec Baldwin became the great actor he is today. The dialogue used gave the reader a great feeling of what kind of a person Alec Baldwin is when he is not the famous actor. When he adds details from Alec's friend about how he did not want a divorce, this makes Alec seem more like a gentleman and it gave him a good side for the reader to see. I thought it was a good piece.

zfickes said...

In the article is sarcastic as you can see from the title. It talks about how Alec Baldwin has plenty of money, but is still unhappy. Through the description of the book he wrote the reader can infer that his relationship with his children is not great. He seems to be overworking himself so that he doesn't let his thoughts linger. He longs for big time roles and to be the charectar who "makes the movie" but he has seen various roles slip through his fingers. This show 30 Rock may be his last chance at making it big on the silver screen once again. He seems to often put Baldwin in situations where he is imagining himself ina new life as a different person. The piece goes to show that fame is not always equivelant to happiness.

Perfect Paul said...

Throughout this article the use of sarcasm and quotes help to show how Alec Baldwin really feels. I come to find that no matter how much success Alec achieves he is always looking for more. Alec said "I’m a pastry chef now; I’m not the big chef at the big restaurant." Alec has an amazing career right now but still doesn't see himself at the top.

The article itself was well written with its use of quotes to show how Alec feels.

(Isn't this the guy for Celebrity rehab)

Taylor Moncrief said...

I didn't know much about Alec Baldwin until i read this article. I would gave never guessed how lonely and pathetic he is. He always gave me a good laugh in movies he was in, but i guess that's why it is called acting. Sure he might have been successful in his movies, but he acts like it isn't enough; like he is missing something. Parker's dialogue makes Alec seem annoying because he is always whining about something. You always hear that a lot of movie stars are unhappy even though they have all the money and fame in the world, and this article proved that in great detail.

rebecca paz said...

The article on Alec Baldwin is written with a sarcastic tone. As I read the article i kind of felt sorry for Baldwin. The majority of the dialogue used in the article include Baldwin complaining or being unhappy. The author gives a good description of Baldwins personality through dialogue and also gives a good description of how his life was, when life wasn't so easy. The author describes how he was a struggling actor. I could use Parker's techniques like his use of sarcasm and his use of dialogue. After reading the dialogue you really understood how Baldwin was and how he complained so often.

jitchmohn said...

This article is just almost a sarcastic mockery of how shitty Alex Baldwins life is. He has a steady job where he works only three days a week and makes good money. But his past has obviously made him a pretty depressed person. The author does a good job though to show how good his life could be and how enjoyable it could be but he chooses to not let it be that great. The comment from his brother really sums it all up. His brother basicly says that he always has something to bitch about, which seems to be true. I have a friend who looks just like Alex Baldwin, but he is a pretty happy guy.

kevin.tran said...

Before reading the article, I always pictured Alec baldwin as a serious person. I think the writer did use a very sarcastic approach in his writing, and that he includes negative dialogue throughout the article. I liked the part when his brother said "if this idiot can do it, I'll give it a shot" this satires towards Baldwin about his own brother talking bad about him. The title "WHY ME?" kind of sets the tone itself when first read. Whether it's something that pertains to him living a sad life or Baldwin always complaining. This steered my impression of Baldwin being a serious person away and gives me a different view

kevin.tran said...

Before reading the article, I always pictured Alec baldwin as a serious person. I think the writer did use a very sarcastic approach in his writing, and that he includes negative dialogue throughout the article. I liked the part when his brother said "if this idiot can do it, I'll give it a shot" this satires towards Baldwin about his own brother talking bad about him. The title "WHY ME?" kind of sets the tone itself when first read. Whether it's something that pertains to him living a sad life or Baldwin always complaining. This steered my impression of Baldwin being a serious person away and gives me a different view

Corday Barnes said...

Ian Parker portrayed Alec Baldwin as a man with a lot of money but still depressed. It seemed like it was written in a sacastic tone and Ian Parker used a lot of dialogue to describe Baldwin's personality. The article states how Baldin was unhappy that he didn't ever receive a leading role to live up to his acting goals.

joel j said...

In this article the author does a great job describing Alec Baldwins life while keeping it still relatively entertaining. He depicts Alec Baldwin as a man with much success in life such as his carer as an actor, the family he had, and the substantial amount of money he has accumulated. Although Baldwin has attained all these things he is still an unhappy man and manages to screw his life up. I like all the sarcastic humor in the piece and i think i could use that to improve my writing.

jimmy egu said...

The article of Adam Baldwin showed that money can't buy happiness. Even though Baldwin is famous and has a lot of money, inside he is not happy with himself. Many people think that when they have money, that's it, happiness has been reached, but on tv everyday you depressed rich people and see how they act out in certain situations such as marriage. They go in and out of relationships because they cant find happiness