Pop Culture Extra: A New "Ironside"!

This week, NBC announced its Fall 2013 TV schedule, and one of its new shows is "Ironside", a remake … or maybe reimagining … of the classic "Ironside" starring Raymond Burr. The new Ironside will be played by Blair Underwood.

The Internet Movie Database says:

"Centers on Robert T. Ironside, a tough, sexy and acerbic police detective relegated to a wheelchair after a shooting who is hardly limited by his disability as he pushes and prods his hand-picked team to solve the most difficult cases."

Here is the trailer for the new "Ironside":

It looks like they are staying with all of the main elements of the original series, while sort of amping up the gruffness and unpredictable brilliance of the original Raymond Burr Ironside. The new Ironside may be a bit more physical, and possibly less cerebral, though he may be both, we'll see. Apparently, he's also "sexy", which I don't think was ever something that would be used to describe Burr's Ironside. He will still have his team of investigators, though I'm curious to see whether, being African-American himself, he will have any equivalent of Mark, the helper guy in the original series. I loved the little musical allusion to the original series theme … that short siren-like electronic passage.

Like all remakes, this could either be a big improvement, or a disaster. I'll be watching!

Pop Culture Review: "I, Claudius"

I, Claudius
BBC, 1976

Claudius - Derek Jacobi
Augustus - Brian Blessed
Livia - Sian Phillips

"I, Claudius" is one of my all-time favorite TV shows, and my absolute favorite with a disabled character.

It is a 12-part TV mini-series produced in 1976 by the BBC, brought to American television by PBS. It is an adaptation of two historical novels written by Robert Graves in the 1930s, about the Roman Empire's first imperial family, the Julio-Claudians, focusing mainly on Claudius. Claudius was a grandson of Emperor Augustus. Historical records suggest that he had either epilepsy, cerebral palsy, or possibly both. He walked with a pronounced limp, stuttered, and may also have been partially deaf.

History doesn't say much about how these disabilities affected his life, but Graves' novels offer a vivid take on what they might have meant. To begin with, the Claudius of "I, Claudius" is something of a laughingstock and irritation to his own family.

Even though "Grandmother" Livia is nasty pretty much to everyone, her insults and eye-rolling attitude towards Claudius are just somewhat extreme versions of what most people around Claudius think of him. He's a "halfwit" who's embarrassing and annoying to have around. This scene also shows how peoples' impatience with Claudius' disabilities make the disabilities more pronounced; the more Livia sighs and calls him an embarrassment, the more Claudius stutters and the clumsier he becomes.

There are a few very enjoyable exceptions to this attitude. Emperor Augustus, Claudius' grandfather, at one point tells Claudius that he's underestimated him. A couple of scholars come to realize how smart Claudius is after meeting him in the library. Herod, the visiting Prince of Judea … (yes, that Herod) … is a true childhood friend and adult supporter to Claudius. And there's my favorite example, Claudius' brother, Germanicus, who never disparages Claudius and speaks to him entirely as an equal:

A major theme of the story is that Claudius' "infirmities" actually save him from most of the intrigues and literal backstabbing that plagues his family. When Emperor Caligula is assassinated, the Preatorian Guard, grab Claudius from where he's hiding, and instead of killing him as they're doing to the rest of the imperial family, laughingly declare him to be the new Emperor. It is implied that they, too, see Claudius as a halfwit … not responsible for Caligula's horrible behaviors … and someone they will be able to control. As both the story and actual history make clear, they made a pretty good choice, but not for the reasons they thought.

In addition to being a key turning point in the larger story, Claudius' exchange with the Senators is an eloquent statement of the contrast between specific impairments and a person's actual worth.

The end of the scene hints at why Claudius isn't exactly a perfect role model for people with disabilities. Although now regarded as one of Rome's "better" Emperors, Claudius did preside over his share of corruption, war, and political murder. Still, he wasn't was a fool, and compared to dozens of Rome's "non-disabled" Emperors, Claudius seems to have been genuinely responsible for major territorial expansions (conquests), civic improvements, and somewhat less corrupt administration. Rome as a whole did well under Claudius' reign, and that can't be said of plenty of Emperors who didn't have disabilities.

Even though "I, Claudius" is a televised version of a fictionalized account of sketchy, 2,000 years ago history, let's just say that Claudius, as portrayed by Derek Jacobi, is one of my favorite disabled role models, and an indication that even in ancient times, disability wasn't always destiny.

I, Claudius

by Robert Graves

Claudius The God

by Robert Graves

Wikipedia entry on Claudius (Tiberius Claudius Drusus Germanicus)

"I, Claudius" is available on DVD, and also appears to be viewable in its entirety on YouTube.

This Disney Thing ...

Report: Wealthy hire disabled guides to skip lines at Disney World

Josh Levs, CNN - May 15, 2013

I've been seeing headlines about this for the last couple of days, and my main reaction has been a rather vague sense of "Oh, crap!" People are outraged, but in a weirdly unfocused way. What, exactly, is the problem here, rich people buying privileged treatment at Disney World, or misusing a kind accommodation meant for people with disabilities? Are we angry at the tour guide business that runs the scam, or at the disabled individuals who actually carry it out? Are these disabled guides amoral scammers making easy money, or victims of shameful exploitation?

Hiring yourself out to facilitate Disney tours for families actually sounds like a great job and a perfectly legitimate business idea. I'm sure there are lots of ways someone knowledgeable about Disney theme parks can make a visit smoother and more pleasant, doing anything unethical. And obviously, it's the wealthier families that are going to pay for a service like this. To me the problem is twofold ... It does abuse the intent of practices that are meant to accommodate actual visitors with disabilities, which erodes the benefit for people who can really use it. And I do get an ugly vibe of arrogant privilege from the whole thing. It seems like some of the clients think it's not just convenient, but high-status and cool to pull this little scam, with no apparent sense of guilt or ambivalence.

I wonder if the wheelchair using guides are real guides, or if they just tag along with families in order to fulfill the line-jumping function. A real guide in a wheelchair could provide a really positive experience ... spending a day with a wheelchair user who's organized, enthusiastic, energetic, and knowledgeable could give kids, especially, a more positive view of people with disabilities. But if their only function is to be a line-jumper, the effect would be quite the opposite, to the point of being dehumanizing.

It sounds like something that might have started out good ... a sound business model with a willing customer base, and an interesting employment opportunity ... but turned bad when everyone involved either chose to ignore a major ethical lapse, or was too dense to perceive it.