LAist: Staircase to Nowhere

guest

Mon, 03 Sep 2007 15:44:46 -0800

I'm just glad I bought one of his pieces years ago -- now maybe I'll be rich.

guest

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 16:20:12 -0800

Comment #15 wasn't that harsh. Can anyone really believe that because a person commits suicide that they're instantly a saint, or that any negative realities are wiped out? That's an adolescent, worshipful view. By many admissions Theresa could be cruel and harmful to others--likely egged on by her mental illness,sure--but no less painful for those she harrassed and betrayed. Killing herself didn't make her "right". You who say you knew her: if you in fact did, you are grieving and hurt, understandably, but remember--you saw one aspect, and you saw it through your own filters. It's akin to that old jr. high attitude here of "well, yeah, maybe she was a bitch TO YOU, but so? You're a loser and I'm sure you deserved it(if she even knew you), and I loved her and she was MY friend, so your experience is invalid and wrong". Um, no. She wasn't hit by a bus: she chose her death(and btw, there's been in all this writing very little on exactly WHY she killed herself on that day at that time. That isn't the norm-there must have been a big precipitating act). She committed the ultimate "fuck you" to her life partner. She had anger in her that was ugly and fatal. Again, death doesn't mean rewriting reality. Poster #15 gave her credit, lots of it. They also simply saw past all the phoniness, too.

guest

Mon, 13 Aug 2007 19:37:02 -0800

go out and experience their work....create your own dialog with the legacy theyve left us....if youre not interested enough in their work then find something to engage in that feeds your spirit....idle gossip ,unsustantiated meaningless labels are so beside the point....two people died....there is so much to glean about your own mortality....the value of your own life.....how you choose to spend your time....the value of your relationships... my heart goes out to their families and all those who really knew and loved them and mourn their loss...thank you for allowing us the opportunity to engage with their work "theres an ocean of consciousness inside each of us and it an ocean of solutions-when you dive into that ocean, that consciousness, you enliven it" david lynch

guest

Sun, 12 Aug 2007 10:40:32 -0800

I find it odd that so many that didn't know Jeremy or Theresa find their deaths so fasinating, almost like Marilyn Monroe or any other young tragedy. I am Jeremy's father's sister and Jeremy's aunt. If we were all so lucky to have had a love for 12 years that was as beautiful as theirs, well we would all be blessed. It is very sad what happened that one could not go on without the other, and our entire family is having a difficult time with this. It would be most respectful if any of the guests would remember the wonderful art and writings that both Theresa and Jeremy have left as their legacys and leave their comments about their deaths to rest . In the end the result is all the same after all the gossip and chatter and I think we would all be better of if we just remembered them in a positive manner with love and respect.

guest

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 08:08:27 -0800

I knew Theresa and Jeremy for 10 years. I hadn't seen them during their years in LA, but got back together with them when they returned to NY. Theresa never lied to me in all that time. She was honest and caring. She was also dedicated to success but not to the point of speaking ill of people. Maybe this changed in LA and maybe not. I do know that she was genuinely interested in people and I was lucky to be one of them. She helped me quite a bit in my career and never asked anything in return except the occasional laugh with her about our mutual love of the very un-hip Steely Dan or other sillyness. Jeremy and I had grown close in the last months and I heard quite a bit from him then about Scientology then. I do believe they were being harassed. I imagine they also inflated it somewhat in their minds and I can see that things did go bad for them in LA. However, Jeremy was very excited about his recent work and the upcoming Corcoran show. To me they were both kind and caring people who really loved each other enormously. In an interview some time ago Theresa was asked where she wanted to be for the "big one" (CA earthquake). She answered "Alseep in Jeremy Blake's arms."

guest

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 15:15:54 -0800

Commenter #15. Either you didn't actually know Theresa or you have no ethics. I've known many people, bad or good and it is unimaginable to me that I would write about them after their death in this way. Particularly after a suicide that may have involved mental illness. I doubt these claims to know Theresa. Was she a serial killer or something? What kind of people talk like this about someone they knew after they are dead unless they were paragons of evil--which Theresa clearly was not. I think when people talk about envy for her they are trying to understand why there is such a concerted effort to slander someone after death. What explains it?

guest

Wed, 08 Aug 2007 17:25:48 -0800

Theresa Duncan is and has been at the top of my list since we met .This was before her and Jeremy hooked up for good. This girl did not choose self preservation-via self inflicted death because of burned bridges, The only thing she said you couldn't believe was her age,and that was a joke-to her it was like what's the differnce anyway,just look at her-I would bet she looks better than most of the dickless bitches writing about her,and she's older than you.She had a temper...what's your point? Jeremy Blake is an established artist,people were paying 6 figure commissions for his DVDs nearly 10 yrs ago.The man could do what he wants. History of Glamoue is actually about music and fashion,not art-it's a perfect movie. She was only one way to me,cool-she only ever said yes-even about things anyone else would have made up an excuse to get out of.She didn't want anything from me-did she con me into givingher a ride,to meet a guy who had her one silver glove-then after we had thanksgiving style supper at the drop in.Talking about thinking-and all of you,writing here,think because you am er's. How many female writer's start their exploit,stating Theresa's intimidating them-really their own chip,their own ego-Theresa was on her own trip-it's what made her impressive at everything she did-she wasn't trying like you guys,she was doing-she wasn't showing off her college education,or a new word she learned just in time for deadline,like Katie Coe did the other week. Theresa never intimidated me-I was totally impressed-totally platonic too-sure the first time I say her,it was like the scene in Weird Science when they had created a woman-only I had no romantic ideas ,I didn't sexualise her. She had the greatest personality-the fastest wit,the namesake of her blog really didn't apply to her.She was fast.I wanted to see her again,I wanted to here that voice,see those wet eyes. Her personal accounts of being fucked with,I believe-I don't care how many of you so called friends of her's degrade her by writing her off as paranoid. Read her conversation with Frank Morales.Her blog about Anna Gaskel isn't a rant,it's not obsessive-it's actually highly direct,and filled with information. Her decision was not out of self-loathing. Any thinking person,a philosopher,an artist or writer-can see the repitition in living-can conclude they've seen enough,that they have nothing more to create-so why continue-just because I love her voice-no that's not enough,it's nice-but it's not peace of mind. Theresa Lee Duncan is not a tragic figure- Jeremy swam to his death,it takes balls to enter the dark Atlantic-swimming to death he may have realised he wanted to live,when it was too late and his energy spent-drowning is a painful death. peace out

guest

Tue, 07 Aug 2007 14:41:54 -0800

OK, I've noticed a lot of people saying that negative remarks about Theresa are because she's beautiful, implying some sort of simplistic prejudice against young beautiful intelligent women. Most of these comments come from people who, by their own admission, never met Theresa. I knew her well, though years ago. Theresa was pretty and intelligent. She was also a compulsive liar, manipulative and had a formidable mean streak she used against anybody who didn't kowtow to her. She could be incredibly charming when it suited her. Was this her personality or mental illness? Call it what you will. It was Theresa. The paranoia was relatively recent, but it didn't surprise me. Theresa's writing was good. Always fashionably hip and witty. But the writings of those she chose to quote were even better. She certainly knew how leverage other people's talent: be they Monica Gesue or Jeremy Blake or Nietzche. In the end they all served her neediness. One last note: Those that say her beauty shouldn't be held against her, think about your own prejudices. Would this even have been a story that held your attention if she hadn't been photogenic? She was bright and polished apple with a rotten core.

guest

Tue, 07 Aug 2007 05:45:19 -0800

Well, as far as two people having the same mental illness, it isn't that strange. In fact there is a name for it, folie a deux. It's common within families or very close relationships where a mental illness is present and they begin to share the same delusions... Whether or not this is the case is not up to me. Personally I've never trusted to whole Scientology bullshit... Hmmm... we're all possessed by aliens? And only the rich and famous are worthy of enlightenment? I totally believe they would be invloved in this kind of conspiracy.. It's sick and someone should put a stop to it.. It's no religion!! Maybe it's an elaborate method of tax evasion for those invloved. They scare me! They are the true psychopaths!!

guest

Tue, 07 Aug 2007 04:31:15 -0800

Untreated mental illness claims two more victims. If you see this same type of paranoid, destructive behavior in yourself or in your family or friends please do whatever you can to help them. People with cancer always seek help. People with mental illness rarely do.

guest

Tue, 07 Aug 2007 04:19:47 -0800

Yes indeed, scientology DOES use scare tactics, they DO follow people around, they DO end careers and put unreal amounts of pressure on their targets until they break. All of that is, in fact, very much the case. Did that happen here? We will probably never know for sure. The truth about these things is almost always somewhere in the middle of all the sensationalism; in this case probably that yes, scientology had *something* to do with it, but so also likely did depression, paranoia, and extreme misfortune. If scientology did have something to do with it, the very first thing to look for is shilling in the comment forums of posts like this one. Usually it'll be in the form of extremely irreverent posts mocking the dead. In this comment forum, so far, I count at least two.

guest

Sun, 05 Aug 2007 13:51:11 -0800

I've been following this story for a while. Thing is I can't make up my mind as to whether they were both having a mental breakdown or what. Two people sharing a delusion of persecution strikes as more than passing odd. I'm not much of a conspiracy theorist believer so I'm leaning away from this actually happening. On the other hand Scientology has been known to harass and torment people for years/decades. Paulette Cooper suffered years at the hands of Scientologist until the FBI found documents clearing her (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Freakout). That was by accident. The FBI was only looking for the documents proving that Scientology had been stealing documents for years (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Snow_White). So I don't really know what to believe........

guest

Sun, 05 Aug 2007 12:02:22 -0800

Hmm... check your facts (not to mention your punctuation of "it's") -- Duncan never claimed to have a degree from Michigan STATE. She claimed to have a degree from University of Michigan, a VERY different school. Perhaps those on the coasts don't think it's important, but U of M (vs. MSU) is often in the top 5 public universities in most rankings -- right up there with west-coast UC Berkeley. It's a very competitive, prestigious university. MSU is good as well, but a very different type of school. In other words, saying you had a degree from UM would open a lot of doors, more than claiming to have gone to MSU, which wouldn't have the same cache.

Tony Pierce

Sun, 05 Aug 2007 03:06:15 -0800

fixed Kate!

guest

Sun, 05 Aug 2007 02:40:01 -0800

You want "mean-spirited"? Try suicide, for starters. Killing yourself is the ultimate in self-loathing. I hate to call a spade a racial slur but these people were wacko with a capital "O". I hate to speak ill of the dead, but in this case - ba da ba ba ba, I'm lovin' it!

guest

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 23:59:40 -0800

Kevin Roderick, in the KCRW commentary above, never met Theresa Duncan. She said once on her blog that the Westside Driving Academy was the only course of education she ever finished--years after she told a different story to the NYT, USA Today and Salon. Certainly buffing up the resume isn't a capital crime. But it is a precursor of things to come.

guest

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 23:23:58 -0800

Maybe your cynically satirical 'translation' is simply mean-spirited? Hard to trust a 'translation' of someone who obviously lacks sensitivity . . .

guest

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 20:59:54 -0800

There's a difference between a quotation and a cynically satirical "translation".

guest

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 20:42:34 -0800

Duncan says in a few places that she never finished college. So she wasn't trying to hide that. http://www.kcrw.com/etc/programs/lo/lo070727tragic_lovers

guest

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 18:26:14 -0800

I had never heard of her before this. I started reading her blog, out of curiosity. I can't stop reading it. It's absolutely brilliant. Since I don't know her, it is absurd to speculate but--from the news stories and the blog--whatever brush with mental illness she was having (or he was having, or they both were having) seemed very recent and close to her death. Almost every news story I read about both of these people seems to follow the theme of 'guest' above--that she was a lying psycho. Is it hatred for a beautiful woman? Resentful acquaintances getting their revenge? It all seems very strange. It's not like she was Leni Riefenstahl. She wasn't making video games for Hitler. A woman falls into mental illness and dies from it and then someone who loved her (who may also have been ill) dies as well. That is undeniably tragic whether or not she was 'nice' to everyone all the time. I think this cruel pillorying of her is bizarre. But typical, I guess. I suggest people read what she wrote carefully before passing judgment on her. Her writing suggests an exceptional mind. A very beloved woman at MIT recently lost her job because she had falsified her educational background. While it's not a sign of great character, it is also not a sign of pathology or moral evil either.

guest

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 18:20:14 -0800

That's not what Christine Nichols said and that's not what I wrote. Art dealer and gallery owner Christine Nichols, who had known the couple for years, told the Weekly that Duncan sometimes found it hard to see Blake working with anyone but her. You want to write about these people, fine, but don't misquote, please. Kate Coe

guest

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 16:32:01 -0800

Translation: she was a lying psycho who knew how to schmooze and dragged her beta-male boyfriend down into death using her insanity as a tow-line. Nothing to see here, folks - move along.