Mel and The Crucible Bookii: More Like Oprah and Less Like Jerry Springer
Question: What Does Mel Think of Being Written About in The Crucible?
Submitted by: Jenn, Ontario
A friend was over today and asked him just this question. I was also curious about his answer.
He said he felt vulnerable and exposed and a little nervous. He talked about the difference between Jerry Springer and Oprah Winfrey. We asked him what he meant.
Photo by:Brett Weinstein
with permission
Oprah Winfrey and Jerry Springer both had shows that told people’s stories and in the beginning, they were pretty similar. Oprah had people on and exploited their stories and in the beginning (her show debuted in 1986) she told the same kind of drag you through the gutter sorts of stories that Jerry Springer started telling in 1991. But then Oprah stopped. She started talking to people and hearing their stories without the exploitation. She started to have compassion and connection with the people who came on the show. Jerry Springer has produced over 5,000 shows that tell people’s stories but make them the “other”, the freak, and the weirdo. He doesn’t have the same compassion–he just goes after the thrill.
I think Mel is hoping the Crucible Bookii will be a lot more like Oprah and very little like Jerry Springer. He wants dignity and belonging and doesn’t want to be the other.
When I started to realize it was my relationship with Mel that was the lens I wanted to write from, I talked with Mel about the project. He saw how it shaped my story and my life. He was incredibly supportive. I also believe he is one of the bravest people I have ever known and he is so quietly powerful. Sometimes people ask me why our story of his transition seems so easy. I believe it is because he is so incredibly sane and solid. He blows me away with his honest understanding of his world. So he is supportive of my stories in the Crucible. He just asked me not to post about being mad at him–ever. So, I won’t.
How could I get mad at a guy that amazing anyway?
The Crucible Bookii is my story as it continues to unfold and how I see the world from my perch on the edge of the Crucible…because falling in love changed everything. To read more about our story, may I suggest One Day in the Closet?
