Pretenders

Pretenders

If you’ve ever watched “Sunday Today with Willie Geist” you may have seen a segment called “A life well lived.” Each week it highlights a person or persons, recently deceased, that have made noteworthy contributions to our country and, occasionally, the world. The alumni include: Medal of Honor winners, inventors, scientists, entrepreneurs, holocaust survivors, designers, the list goes on and on. Each story is fascinating and inspiring because they are the real deal.

Most people are familiar with the movie Schindler’s List. It’s the actual story of Oskar Schindler, a German industrialist and member of the Nazi party who saved the lives of 1200 Jews. It was his secretary, Mimi Reinhardt, who actually helped create and typed the list. She was just as involved in saving those lives as he was. She recently died at 107.

Another person of note from the same time was Madeleine Albright. She survived the concentration camps, emigrated to the U.S., and eventually became the first female Secretary of State. Willie’s program has paid tribute to many members of the greatest generation, but they aren’t the only ones to contribute to humanity.

Have you ever heard of Walter (Fred) Morrison? I’m sure most of us have played with his invention at one time or another. It’s called the Frisbee. He got the idea while playing catch with his wife using a pie plate. The list of people who have created real-life products that have entertained, changed people’s lives for the better, or expanded humankind’s knowledge is long and impressive. Then we have the pretenders.

Every year, pretenders gather to honor fellow pretenders for their exceptional portrayals of other people. The first award show takes place in September. It’s called the Prime Time Emmys. Male pretenders usually wear a tux and bowtie while the women wear as little as possible without getting arrested for indecent exposure. People cheer and spotlights illuminate the pretenders as they walk across a red carpet leading into a grand hall. Statuettes are handed out for the best pretenders in a multitude of categories.

So as not to be pushed out of the limelight by insignificant things like Christmas and Hanukkah, we have the Peoples Choice award show. This time statues go to pretenders chosen by the people. I’m not sure which people do the choosing? I know I’ve never been asked to choose.

If it’s February, it must be time for the Oscars. Once again, we have the red carpet, the paparazzi, the scantily clad women with penguin-suited men. Apparently, these pretenders are further up the food chain than their Emmy-winning brethren. The acceptance speeches are longer, and most reveal how poorly they communicate without a script to follow.

Finally, we have the Daytime Emmys in June. These pretenders have the smallest event because they have the least amount of people watching them. Who really cares which game show host, talk show host, or soap opera pretender gets a statue?

Yes, it’s true, that I’m being over the top negative toward the acting profession, but I have good reason to be. The people that have made humanity’s life better by inventing something as simple and functional as superglue or whiteout never receive the recognition an actor does. We all know that Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, but who made all the other antibiotics? Who made the first drone or invented the anti-lock braking system in cars? I bet everyone can list the main characters on the tv show Blue Bloods, or how many actors have played James Bond but can you tell me who invented the Laser? It was Ted Maiman in case you were wondering.

My position is simple. Give credit and possibly adoration to the people who earned it. Pretenders entertain us and that’s not a bad thing, but unfortunately, the roles they play can be done by dozens of others. Society needs to recognize real people, not pretenders.