Wilt

[TB]

Originally Posted by pitbulllady

That's one of the reasons I really do like "Make Believe It Or Not", in spite of it not really being so popular with fans in general. It really shows Wilt's adult/parental side off well. When they try to get him away from the computer long enough to play the part of the "bad guy", he DOES really sound like any grown-up who's capitulating to the kiddies, even though it's obvious that such a thing is below his grown-up dignity, and he really would rather not join in. Later, when Mac and Goo start arguing and it's clear that Goo is getting the short end of the stick, so to speak, Wilt immediately recognizes the symptoms of a real falling-out, if not an outright fight, about to occur, and intervenes by stepping out-of-character and telling them to go back to attacking him, trying to take their minds off the conflict. His whole adult outlook and responsibility probably are what set him apart from the other Imaginary Friends more than anything, including his past injuries or his height. Most IF's act like kids, since they were created to be playmates and pals to children, for the most part, but Wilt's role seemed to have been much different, since he was more or less subconciously created to take the place of a big brother or father. Just as Nina subconciously needed for HER big, scary-looking Imaginary Friend to be gentle with her baby brother, and love playing little girl games like tea parties and dress-ups, Jordan needed for his Imaginary Friend to do things around the home that fathers normally do, including keeping the peace between Jordan and his older brother, when he wasn't coaching Jordan on the finer points of basketball.

pitbulllady

I think that's another one of the big reasons I like Wilt above all the others. It sounds goofy but my childhood I didn't really have much of a father figure(my dad was..eh..not so nice), but I did have a lot of older siblings(3 brothers and my sister). It reminds me of one of my brothers specifically and how he'd put up with my ADD shinanigans as a kid. So I see Wilt in that episode and it makes me smile.

[BabyCharmander]

Hey, um, forgive me if this's been talked about before, but...

I was watching The Sweet Stench of Success today and thought of something. Wilt says he's been on TV before on that Friday's Friend news segment. ...But... given how he generally fails at public speaking, I wonder how well he did with that? XD As bad as Eduardo, d'you think?

[TB]

Originally Posted by BabyCharmander

Hey, um, forgive me if this's been talked about before, but...

I was watching The Sweet Stench of Success today and thought of something. Wilt says he's been on TV before on that Friday's Friend news segment. ...But... given how he generally fails at public speaking, I wonder how well he did with that? XD As bad as Eduardo, d'you think?

Also look how bad he was just speaking over the intercom in Better Off Ed. Oh man..

[pitbulllady]

Originally Posted by BabyCharmander

Hey, um, forgive me if this's been talked about before, but...

I was watching The Sweet Stench of Success today and thought of something. Wilt says he's been on TV before on that Friday's Friend news segment. ...But... given how he generally fails at public speaking, I wonder how well he did with that? XD As bad as Eduardo, d'you think?

Yeah, that tv appearance probably didn't help win over any potential adopters, that's for sure, poor guy! It's odd, though, that Wilt had no trouble performing onstage in front of a large audience in "Schlock Star", not once, but twice, nor did he have any issues being in front of a camera in "One False Movie". Apparently, if he's playing some role, whether it's acting the part of a pirate captain or a retired cop or a '70's Funkster, he doesn't have a problem with being in front of a crowd, but as himself, he does...as Mr. Spock would say, "Interesting....".

pitbulllady

[Vampyre]

Originally Posted by pitbulllady

Yeah, that tv appearance probably didn't help win over any potential adopters, that's for sure, poor guy! It's odd, though, that Wilt had no trouble performing onstage in front of a large audience in "Schlock Star", not once, but twice, nor did he have any issues being in front of a camera in "One False Movie". Apparently, if he's playing some role, whether it's acting the part of a pirate captain or a retired cop or a '70's Funkster, he doesn't have a problem with being in front of a crowd, but as himself, he does...as Mr. Spock would say, "Interesting....".

pitbulllady

Perhaps it has something to do with this guilt he's been harbouring for the past thirty years. Obviously, he's got a problem with his confidence, he has a pretty low self esteem, and has seen himself as a horrible little creature for a large amount of time after that unfortunate accident back home. But perhaps when playing a role of some sort, he feels better about it, because it's not HIS character he's portraying. If you ask me, he's probably gonna get better at speaking in front of crowds now that he can finally put the past behind him. It'll probably take a while, since it takes a while to get over any fear as bad as his, but I think he can do it. I mean, even he WAS a little nervous speaking over the intercom in "Better ff Ed" he wasn't too bad... It just sounded as though he was trying to cough up a rabbit or something. But, hey, baby steps, baby steps...

[BabyCharmander]

I don't think his confidence in One False Movie was because he was acting out another role or something. I mean, wouldn't acting in front of a camera be different than actually speaking in front of a ton of people, though? I mean, when we see Bloo directing stuff for that movie, there's not much of an audience other than the other actors, Bloo, and occasionally Mac.

I'd forgotten about Schlock Star, though. Man, how the HECK did he manage to NOT be nervous playing keyboard in front of the whole house? O__o

I get bad stage fright myself, but for a play I get rid of it by putting all my concentration on the play and ignoring all of the people, but that doesn't keep my hands and legs from trembling. I've had to do piano solos for recitals and for church offertories, and let me tell you, if your hands are shaking when you're playing piano, you WILL make mistakes, even if you know the song by heart.

Sure, Wilt was only playing the keyboard using his stub of an arm (for the first performance, anyway... was he using his right hand for that final song? I don't remember), but even then he could have easily missed a key and hit the wrong one several times, had he been shaking. But he seemed pretty calm... I can't figure out how that could be, though, unless it's just a consistency error.

...And back on the subject with the TV, oh man, I can just imagine what some kid watching Wilt on that Friday's Friend program would be thinking. "Sheesh, this imaginary friend is broken AND he can't talk! No thanks!" Poor Wilt. XD It's really no wonder he, Ed, and Coco haven't been adopted yet, given how shallow some kids can be.

EDIT: Ah, yeah, Wilt WAS using his right hand to play keyboard for the final song. ...wait, is that thing an ORGAN? Oo Wonder how he learned to play that.

[pitbulllady]

Originally Posted by BabyCharmander

I don't think his confidence in One False Movie was because he was acting out another role or something. I mean, wouldn't acting in front of a camera be different than actually speaking in front of a ton of people, though? I mean, when we see Bloo directing stuff for that movie, there's not much of an audience other than the other actors, Bloo, and occasionally Mac.

I'd forgotten about Schlock Star, though. Man, how the HECK did he manage to NOT be nervous playing keyboard in front of the whole house? O__o

I get bad stage fright myself, but for a play I get rid of it by putting all my concentration on the play and ignoring all of the people, but that doesn't keep my hands and legs from trembling. I've had to do piano solos for recitals and for church offertories, and let me tell you, if your hands are shaking when you're playing piano, you WILL make mistakes, even if you know the song by heart.

Sure, Wilt was only playing the keyboard using his stub of an arm (for the first performance, anyway... was he using his right hand for that final song? I don't remember), but even then he could have easily missed a key and hit the wrong one several times, had he been shaking. But he seemed pretty calm... I can't figure out how that could be, though, unless it's just a consistency error.

...And back on the subject with the TV, oh man, I can just imagine what some kid watching Wilt on that Friday's Friend program would be thinking. "Sheesh, this imaginary friend is broken AND he can't talk! No thanks!" Poor Wilt. XD It's really no wonder he, Ed, and Coco haven't been adopted yet, given how shallow some kids can be.

EDIT: Ah, yeah, Wilt WAS using his right hand to play keyboard for the final song. ...wait, is that thing an ORGAN? Oo Wonder how he learned to play that.

Wilt apparently is one of those individuals who have a real "ear" for music, who can hear a song one time and memorize it, note for note, and play it back, without even reading music. He also apparently DOES know the keyboard, whether it's a piano or an electronic organ. I'd nearly forgotten, until someone in a discussion post on "Schlock Star" reminded me, that in the pilot, he actually plays a few notes on the piano while showing Mac and Bloo around the house, so even with one hand, he's able to still play one end of the scale. Given how LARGE that one hand is, Wilt can probably manage quite well playing with a group(so the others' instruments will partially mask when he misses a note due to being unable to play those two notes at the same time), and having an electronic keyboard that can probably be programmed to automatically play notes that he can't would help. You have to wonder if someone actually taught him to play, or if it's just a natural talent he's had from the get-go. I can easily picture in my head a scene back home in Charleston, with Jordan's mother being able to play piano or organ in church(which is a BIG part of that culture), and teaching Wilt how to play when he expressed interest in it. I do agree that Wilt's stage fright probably has more to do with his 30-year guilt trip and subsequent self-esteem issues than anything else, and that it's something he will eventually get over. He's been so obsessed with disappointing anyone, with hurting someone, that it just makes him awfully insecure and uptight when he knows that someone is depending on him, and of course, we all know that the more worried you are about messing up, the more likely you are to do just that. I don't know if his apparent nervousness on the PA system was really nervousness, or if he just wasn't sure how to work the darn thing...y'all should hear the Principal at our school on our sometimes-faulty PA system sometimes, when he's not sure if it's working or not, lol! A year ago, it would have been difficult to picture Wilt playing a rather twisted practical joke, making fun of his own amputee status, in a way, on those trick-or-treaters, since he would have been too worried about really traumatizing those kiddies, OR going along with an elaborate plan to basically get even with Bloo(concussion or no concussion), which involved lying when you get right down to it. It's clear that he has made some real progress in tearing down that self-made wall of self-doubt and obsessing over making anyone else feel bad.

It's kinda interesting too, though, that Wilt would have natural musical ability, since his artistic ability is...uh, lacking. Big time. Most people who are very strong musically are weak in the visual arts, and vice versa(I can't carry a note in a bucket, with reinforced handles), which is why someone who is equally talented in both areas is such a rarity.

pitbulllady

[antgirl1]

Aww, I can see Mrs./Miss Michaels teaching Wilt how to play a piano. It's just so....I donno, cute.

Yes, for sure he can't draw (or never had practice, it was never hinted that he liked to in the first place) but he can play an instrument. Really makes up for it. Music is an art too, so Wilt is artistic with music, but just not with drawing whatever on paper.

I feel Wilt was nervous over the PA system. Y'know, knowing the whole house would be able to hear him...and he wouldn't want to screw up...

[jekylljuice]

I did wonder if Wilt's glossophobia (I think that's the correct term for it) had something do to with the immense pressure he'd have inevitably felt through being gawked at by all those eyes at the talent show - really, who wouldn't falter under all that immediate scrutiny? (other than Coco, of course )

I didn't get the vibe that "Friday's Friend" was filmed before a live studio audience, so maybe he felt a little less distracted and a little more at ease in that particular environ...nonetheless, I have a feeling that his personal pitch was still likely to have been of a somewhat self-depreciating nature - remember his message to all potential adopters at the start of "World Wide Wabbit"?

[BabyCharmander]

Originally Posted by jekylljuice

I didn't get the vibe that "Friday's Friend" was filmed before a live studio audience, so maybe he felt a little less distracted and a little more at ease in that particular environ...nonetheless, I have a feeling that his personal pitch was still likely to have been of a somewhat self-depreciating nature - remember his message to all potential adopters at the start of "World Wide Wabbit"?

Even so, he knew that the Friday's Friend thing would be broadcast to a ton of TVs and he only got once chance of doing it, so wouldn't that make him nervous?

With the thing on "World Wide Wabbit" and "One False Movie" he could've re-done any scenes he messed up on, but with the Friday's Friend thing it looks like he would've only gotten one chance.