On becoming the M’Lady Meme
April 21, 2018 4:48 PM   Subscribe

Maybe you've seen it. In the years since it was filched from Jerry's profile and uploaded to Reddit, the picture has become a meme of uncommon endurance and ubiquity. It remains the first Google Image search result for both "m'lady" and "tips fedora”... Jerry Messing, former child actor for “Even Stevens” and “Freaks and Geeks” discusses his history in show business and in private life, and how he feels about his image being co-opted by the internet entire.
posted by Slap*Happy (22 comments total) 11 users marked this as a favorite
 
He seems like a good guy; this kind of sucks.
posted by thelonius at 5:47 PM on April 21, 2018 [19 favorites]


Aw, man, the poor guy. In a rough spot already, and then that happened. I hope he does well, and stays the hell away from online culture. The comments got brigaded by GG and hardly have to do with Jerry at all, so give them a hard pass.

I never even thought the photo was a great representative of the type. For one thing, there's the fat-shaming -- the nasty look of a true Nice Guy comes out from inside, and the fat joke is too easy. For another, he's really smiling; he looks sweet. Entitled dudes of this kind tend to scowl or smirk instead.
posted by Countess Elena at 6:14 PM on April 21, 2018 [20 favorites]


I didn't recognize him from F&G, but I've thought about the unfairness of getting stuck as a meme's avatar just about every time I've seen the version of the "sharp knees" meme that features an unflattering picture of Rainn Wilson, who by all accounts is a decent, stand-up guy.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:18 PM on April 21, 2018 [5 favorites]


This could have been a good article. Terrible writing. "check-warranting disability"
really?
posted by Baby_Balrog at 7:04 PM on April 21, 2018 [3 favorites]


I often wonder about the actual people whose photos were turned into memes -- especially the cruel ones, like this one. It can't be fun to have that kind of... fame, I guess, thrown at you.
posted by sarcasticah at 7:18 PM on April 21, 2018 [2 favorites]


I guess the liberal version is that white girl in the mobcap and dreads. I hope she’s okay. (I also hope she fixed her hair, but mainly I hope she is literally okay. Being internet famous can be rough on women who didn’t ask for it.)
posted by Countess Elena at 7:25 PM on April 21, 2018 [14 favorites]


By my back of the napkin estimate with 12 seconds of thought, pretty much every meme person turns out to be fairly normal.
posted by rhizome at 7:53 PM on April 21, 2018 [2 favorites]


It's the rest of us who are a bit odd.
posted by I'm always feeling, Blue at 8:37 PM on April 21, 2018 [5 favorites]


I'm actually quite pleased that he seems so nice. I've always thought that picture looked like a fairly nice guy, and I'd assumed that there was some connection to the odious subculture that caused it to become so emblematic. It makes me happier that he just accidentally appeared like an asshole archetype as a goof and that he really is as nice as he looked.
posted by Scattercat at 8:54 PM on April 21, 2018 [2 favorites]


Aw, he was awesome in Freaks & Geeks, and therefore will always be cool. I wish him well.
posted by Brain Sturgeon at 10:36 PM on April 21, 2018 [4 favorites]


pretty much every meme person turns out to be fairly normal

exception: tronguy, who seems to be esr²
posted by scruss at 4:42 AM on April 22, 2018 [3 favorites]


For me the picture was not really the symbol of the hateful neckbeard but rather the slavish nerd with no social skills who will do anything for the women he's interested in. It's still an awful stereotype but it's better than being a representation of the bastards of gamergate.
posted by SageLeVoid at 5:02 AM on April 22, 2018 [1 favorite]


> esr²

What does this mean?
posted by ardgedee at 6:05 AM on April 22, 2018 [2 favorites]


> What does this mean?

I assume he means https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_S._Raymond, only to the power of 2.
posted by Horselover Fat at 7:23 AM on April 22, 2018 [3 favorites]


it would have been clearer to write it as (esr)2, since exponentiation binds tighter than multiplication.
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 7:32 AM on April 22, 2018 [12 favorites]


For another, he's really smiling; he looks sweet. Entitled dudes of this kind tend to scowl or smirk instead.

I learned today that smiling is now referred to by certain elements as “cuckface”, because happiness is of course the true sign of the beta male.
posted by yellowbinder at 9:34 AM on April 22, 2018 [5 favorites]


something something, area of an asshole = eric s radius squared
posted by little onion at 11:18 AM on April 22, 2018 [3 favorites]


I said pretty much!
posted by rhizome at 11:22 AM on April 22, 2018 [2 favorites]


The College Freshman meme guy (sitting under a tree with a grey hoodie, phone and earbuds) is an aquaintance of mine, and he's pretty matter of fact about the meme, but its a very generic, generally good natured, and socially harmless family of memes.

Too bad every single comment on the hopesandfears site is nothing but a gamergate brigade getting defensive.

Jerry was good in Freaks and Geeks, the episodes that specifically feature his character Gordon are among the deepest or most touching I think.
posted by thefool at 3:19 PM on April 22, 2018 [2 favorites]


I only know of Messing's work from his role as William van Landingham III in a crazy Mr. Show sketch, and I love how he kept his composure in a scene with Bob Odenkirk in a bald cap playing a "rock 'n' roll" lama. You can tell Bob is most definitely trying to make him corpse. I hope he can get the work he wants soon.
posted by droplet at 6:00 PM on April 22, 2018 [1 favorite]


Meme humor has a poisonous heart.
posted by Drexen at 4:31 AM on April 23, 2018 [1 favorite]


I learned today that smiling is now referred to by certain elements as “cuckface”, because happiness is of course the true sign of the beta male.

Ugh, that makes perfect sense if you embrace the mindset that the only emotion a man should express is anger (with maybe a shot of gloating or grim satisfaction on special occasions).
posted by Countess Elena at 2:13 PM on April 23, 2018 [1 favorite]


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