Time magazine (Asian edition) has a cover story on 60 years of Asian heroes. Freddie is included among artists & thinkers, together with Akira Kurosawa, Amartya Sen, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and others. Very nice write-up, even though nothing new for a Queen fan. From the article:
"Bulsara duplicated in popular music what other Indians—such as Salman Rushdie and Vikram Seth—have done in literature: taking the colonizer's art form and representing it in a manner richer and more dazzling than many Anglophones thought possible. But in his case, the empire wasn't merely writing back—it was singing its heart out in arenas all over the world in a voice that spanned nearly four octaves. Put on Queen's Greatest Hits at any party, anywhere, and there will be a song to bring a smile to the face of almost anyone, of any age. No other Asian musician or pop-cultural figure has enjoyed the same universal appeal: that Bulsara was able to achieve this as an openly gay man from India is further testament to his gift. It's time to recognize him as the great Asian artist that he was, and to bring his memory home." link
i was the first one who found out about this, and the first one who made a thread in the personal section. plus, this article was made last month, and i told brian about this.
nuff said. :)
<font color="indigo"><b>friedchicken \m/ wrote: i was the first one who found out about this, and the first one who made a thread in the personal section. plus, this article was made last month, and i told brian about this.
nuff said. :)
Wish you were THE FIRST Queenzoner to travel to the moon as well! And "lift off"... :-)
I bought a copy of this issue only to read this article...:D
deleted user 12.12.2006 14:57
... He was openly gay ?
Sorry, I wasn't around at the time - but I thought he never "came out" publicly...
Not that I really care...
Voice of Reason 2006 wrote:
I always thought Freddie was Persian rather than Indian?
From what I understand (and trust me, I don't) - his ancestors came from Persia - but lived in India for generations - and "Bulsara" is an Indian surname since the Parsi undoubtedly mingled with the local people.
deleted user 12.12.2006 15:14
<font color=red>The Audacity of Charles wrote: ... He was openly gay ?
Sorry, I wasn't around at the time - but I thought he never "came out" publicly...
Not that I really care...
Freddie never publicly announced he was gay. Of course, it was obvious, but that's besides the point. If somebody were to ask him of his sexual orientation, he would say something smart like the famous quote "If you see it darling, then it's there" or my favorite "I'm as gay as a daffadil." By never publicly announcing his sexuality, and all at the same time expressing himself as a gay man, it kept his audience interested and his appearance fresh. In a way, he was smart for the way he lived out his life. He knew how to seperate his personal life and musical life. He was brilliant for that.
On the other hand, a lot of gay magazines and TV programs would call Freddie a coward for not only not coming out all the way, but for lieing about his AIDS situation. They say that he gave gays a bad name or something. Which is totally false.
<font color=#FFFFFF>The Invisible Man wrote: Freddie never publicly announced he was gay. Of course, it was obvious, but that's besides the point. If somebody were to ask him of his sexual orientation, he would say something smart like the famous quote "If you see it darling, then it's there" or my favorite "I'm as gay as a daffadil." By never publicly announcing his sexuality, and all at the same time expressing himself as a gay man, it kept his audience interested and his appearance fresh. In a way, he was smart for the way he lived out his life. He knew how to seperate his personal life and musical life. He was brilliant for that.
On the other hand, a lot of gay magazines and TV programs would call Freddie a coward for not only not coming out all the way, but for lieing about his AIDS situation. They say that he gave gays a bad name or something. Which is totally false.
I would agree with the first paragraph. I think he made more of a "statement" by NOT announcing it.
I think it's silly for any pro-gay publication to get "upset" about it. I respect him not wanting to have his personal life all over the place.
If anything, he "accomplished" something by showing that he could offer an entertainment product and be remarkably competitive without explicitly advertising his sexuality.
I think he gave gay people a good name by sending a post-death-something-who-knows message that sexuality is just part of the equation.
Hooray ! Now I'm going to go eat a chocolate wafer-stick-thing !
Freddie's #1 Fan Forever wrote: OK, so I wonder how some of you got copies of this. I could not find it at Barnes and Noble in the US. Is this a British magazine?
It's the Time Magazine's Asian edition. Like... National Geographic has different "editions" in different parts of the world.
You can read stuff on it here : link
And lookie all you nutty Queen fans, Freddie's in the picture !
And the article just on that "Farrokh Bulsara" person : link