Helping Hand

 So, I'm thinking about putting together a GoFundMe page for Ricky Schroder. If I can break it down for you here, and we can get enough people to contribute, we might be able to raise enough to buy this guy some shame. 

Let's start with this: Anyone who is introduced with the sobriquet "former child star" is already operating from a deficit. Or, to borrow a phrase from Spinal Tap, "currently residing in the Where Are They Now file." Which is perhaps doubly unfortunate for Ricky, since he has been working as an actor pretty steadily until just a few years ago. And yet, we have a very difficult time shaking the image of him sobbing over Jon Voight's corpse in The Champ. 

More on that Jon Voight connection in a moment.

Then there's the Ricky thing. That's just fine if you happen to be six years old, or married to Lucy Ricardo, but after that, you might have a hard time being taken seriously if you're going to toss around your thoughts and opinions. Like those about COVID 19, for example. 

Mister Schroder recently confronted a Costco employee about their mask policy, while the California state and Los Angeles city restrictions were still in place. The former child star made his scene and posted it on Al Gore's Internet, to prove his point. He did it, he insisted, not to embarrass the Costco employee Jason, but rather "to make a point to the corporate overlords." He apologized to Jason because he figured that he was just doing his job, earning a living. Which sort of flew in the face of Ricky asking everyone to cancel their membership to Costco. 

And then there was the Foo Fighters show. Dave Grohl and his band decided to play a small club date in Los Angeles as a warm up for their big show coming up at Madison Square Garden. The catch was that they were only allowing vaccinated fans in. The Silver Spoons star showed up to protest what he feels is "a new form of segregation." Ricky is not a big fan of vaccination. To that end, a couple days before the show and subsequent protest, he posted this on Facebook: "Dave Grohl is an ignorant punk who needs slapped for supporting Discrimination. Ignorance comes in all shapes & sizes. Kurt Cobain is laughing at you Dave along with Millions of Patriots....Fool." 

It is almost impossible for me to imagine Kurt Cobain aligning himself with "Millions of Patriots," but the complete and total lack of compassion shown by this former child star as he insinuates himself into the relationship between these grunge band members. 

And maybe now you're ready for that Jon Voight connection: As former Midnight Cowboy star Jon Voight's politics creeped ever more to the right, his career continued. His clear-eyed but confused support of the previous "president" didn't keep him from getting work. Which may have given former child star Ricky Schroder the impression that if The Champ could get away with it, so could he. Shame or no shame. Ricky even contributed to accused murderer Kyle Rittenhouse's bail fund. It's decisions like those that make me think that he probably can't afford to buy any shame for himself. 

Dig deep. Give until it hurts.