Re: Fans.....

[chrisw@fciad2.bsd.uchicago.edu (chris williams)]

Fiona writes:
>Given the, uh, strong mania of many Kate fans, is it possible that
>Kate avoids them (and touring, most promotional activity, etc.) because
>she is scared?
>
>I recall reading that The Dreaming was partially influenced by John
>Lennon's murder and Kate's own security fears after that. And I must
>say that the extremely detailed knowledge of her activities displayed
>on this list, which is probably shared by some KateFans not on the 'net,
>might be enough to give a security-minded person pause. (I'm not, however,
>implying that anyone here is of the 'she secretly loves me and an
>evil conspiracy is stopping her from saying so' bent. Not even IED :) )

    Well, the people who know too much tend to be really protective of
Kate. For years it wasn't difficult at all to speak to a member of
her family. Most of the information that is relayed to Love-Hounds
is from various books and magazines. What little actual information
any of might posess tends to be held *very* closely. Would anyone
here *really* want to publicize Kate's home phone number if they had it?

   The most "obsessive" activity that I know of any Love-Hound engaging
in is visiting East Wickham Farm. That's *hardly* stalking behaviour,
especially as Kate hasn't lived there in years. When Kate's mother
Hannah was alive, she used to invite the fans who visited in for 
tea. 

   I wouldn't say that *any* of us possess "detailed" knowledge. Nobody
here has the faintest idea what she has been doing for the, oh say,
past few months. Our group surprise at Kate's music for Fruitopia
is an indication of just how far in the dark we are. I don't think
even the Homeground folks knew about it.

>Does anyone know if Kate is particularly security conscious, and if any
>specific personal events have led to that?

   I've never witnessed security beyond what would be expected for
any well known person. She has reasonable protection in public
appearances, little when she is going about her business. At the
Convention she was guarded by Homegrounders (not a particularly
fearsome bunch.) 
 
   No, in general she's protected by the respect that her fans have
for her, taking more care when needed.

   One note about Sarah's stalker; he must really be behaving like a 
jerk. I've met her several times and she has always been incredibaly
open and approachable. She wasn't even freaked out by the guy who
had a tattoo of a piece of art from one of her albums covering
his back. She signed it. So this person would have to be really
scary to frighten her that much. Tori has a stalker as well.

  It really doesn't have anything to do with we who are big fans
of the *music*. The stalker types are generally complete losers
who pick an attractive female media figure to obsess on. They
might have some of the outward appearances of the true fan,
hundreds of pictures and posters for instance, but they serve
an *entirely* different purpose for them. Many male, and quite
a few female Kate fans pass through a period of physical attraction
to Kate. But that usually passes after a while. Sure some fan
activities might appear obsessive to the outsider, but compared
to many more accepted obsessions (say, Harley-Davison motercycle
fans or stamp collecting) we are dilletantes. Anyone here wear
a Kate t-shirt *every single day*. 

                          Chris Williams of
                             Chris'n'Vickie of Chicago
                               chrisw@fciad2.bsd.uchicago.edu (his)
                                 vickie@njin.rutgers.edu      (hers)