atti debacle

[amezri]

I'm cutting it for people who don't care or don't want to know, but I was slightly interested in the André issue since I'd been off his list for several months. Meh.

Basically André Schneider lied about knowing Orlando Bloom and made up the whole "Lullaby of Clubland" thing to further his non-existant career. He little white lie spiraled out of control and, well...

André's confession, posted at his now defunct Yahoo Group:

Well, I have an appointment in about two hours, and I normally would have to leave the internet café soon, but, well, I wanted to post this message many, many weeks (three months) ago, because it is very important for me to, you know, give you the truth. Because, and let me tell you this straight at the beginning, I am really, really fond of you and consider you being my friends. And I am sorry I have done something unbelievably bad.

Wow, it's hard to make a start. Well, I think I better start right off at the beginning...

In 1999 I moved to Berlin to start my career as an actor-writer. Between October 1999 and April 2001, I went to numerous castings which were all unsuccessful and led to a (quite serious) crisis. The Berlin comedy clubs didn't want to hire an unexperienced comedian. It was like a vicious circle, you know: "We don't take anyone who hasn't got any experiences." -- "But how can I gain experience when no-one lets me perform?"

I didn't know anything about the internet when I first entered it in April 2001, I really didn't. After a little bit of surfing I found many, many movie sites, and, well, I so longed to be on one. Out of the blue, I invented "Lullaby of Clubland" and sent the "news" off to an Orlando Bloom fan site. I also told the site owner that Orlando and I have been good friends for several years. There were only two or three Bloom fan sites on the net then, and I had *no* idea that he was going to be so big. I wrote some reviews for my (already existing) one-man comedy shows, and put them up as well.

A couple of months later, after the opening of the first LOTR movie, I found my name spread all over the net. Other fans had invented the "Deed Poll" movie, and some of them wrote that Bloom and I were having an affair. By then, the whole thing had gone way out of my hands already. I had absolutely no idea about the dimensions of the internet, about the quickness with which news and rumours spread themselves via this media, and I was both, amazed (because I really thought it would give my career a lift), and shocked (because I realized that one day the @#%$ would come down and nobody was to blame but me). I never wanted to disappoint, or hurt anyone. Never!

The original "plan" (if there was any) was "to take these lies and make them true somehow" (to quote George Michael), and, for a while, anyway, it seemed to work: I *did* the cameo in Peter Greenaway's movie (and I think it was for the comedy "reviews" on the net), I did make a guest appearance on "London's Burning", and only recently I got the offer to perform in one of Germany's biggest and best comedy clubs. On Friday I received an offer to do my first appearance in Dublin early next year. (I can show you the E-mails if you like.) I did make the CD, I did write the book, I did write the stand-up comedy material. (And, by the way, all the things I told you about "Deed Poll" are true; we are working on it and it will come true!)

By December 2001, this whole internet thingy had also taken over my "real" life. I told my "real" friends and even my family that I was working in England. They were happy for me, and for about one year, I got my boyfriend back (well, I know it was for the wrong reasons, but I didn't care then). Even though I didn't post any more lies since May 2002, I had to keep myself updated and surf the net constantly to adjust my "real" life (which was by then practically non-existent) to the internet rumours.

By January 2003, some boardies (or rather ex-boardies) found out by checking the IPs of several sites I have made. Instead of telling me, they claimed to be my personal friends. They came to visit me, they even spent several weeks with me in my flat. It wasn't until May that they started blackmailing me. I should confess publicly, erase all my false sites, close this board, quit the internet entirely, and "never work as an actor" ("You are not an artist, you're a piece of @#%$, nothing but a liar," were the exact words of a certain someone.)

Two months ago I worked up the balls to tell my family and friends, and I have lost practically everyone. I don't blame anyone but me, it was my own fault, I brought it all about, and there is no reason for self-pity. I am frightfully ashamed of having done this to you, to them, to me, to everyone. As I said, I never wanted to hurt anyone, I didn't want to cause this disappointment. The one and only reason was to get attention from people who might be able to give me a job.

I wanted to tell you by the end of July, but by then I was in such a bad state of mind that I saw myself unable to deal with dozens of E-mails, because I had a lot of trouble with my parents and my then-friends. Alright, now I am all alone and I am strong enough to tell you, to face my shame. I am so sorry. I AM SO DAMN SORRY!

Let me assure you that everything I told you about my feelings, my thoughts, and plans was absolutely true. Everything I told you about what I did in the past few months was true. But I am not a celebrity, I know only a few German celebrities, I did only appear in one film so far, and I did only a couple of comedy performances in Germany so far.

A couple of weeks ago, I deleted all the sites I have put up back in 2001 and early 2002. I have written many E-mails to many boardies and ex-boardies to explain and apologize; many of them knew the truth anyway because they have been told already.

It is not over. Even though I did practically everything they have "asked" for, the threatening does not stop. (One of the ex boardies that befriended and then blackmailed me even stole a collection of my favourite CDs and keeps sending me text messages on my mobile phone.) I hope it will stop now.

Once again, I can't turn back time. I would if I only could. I cannot undo the hurt and disappointment that I've caused, I cannot give back the precious time you've wasted on me. I can only apologize from the bottom of my heart and promise to tell you the truth and not spread any more lies. I am very, very sorry.

André

That's just like... really sad.

More comments and reactions at Journal Fen

Comments

Fans are naive...

[logansrogue.livejournal.com]

... if they think any artist gets to the top without doing something naughty. That's why they call it 'selling out'. Even the Beatles partook in some lies when they were struggling. Nothing huge, they just had ads in the paper saying they were the most popular new band etc etc (their manager organized it) and they weren't - they'd hardly played in Liverpool when those ads printed.

I mean, heaps of performers in the 'networking' drop names of people they know and say 'Him and me? Oh yeah great friends.' It happens all the time! It's abnormal if you're in the biz and you haven't tattled about who you know at least once!! It gives the illusion that you're in the loop, and really, it's just human nature.

People are always looking for someone to sling shit at, and sadly, this fellow looks to be the next target. Next month it'll be someone else. Probably Orlando's girlfriend again.

Re: Fans are naive...

[amezri.livejournal.com]

I think there is a difference between name dropping and purposefully perpetuating a lie to the poinht where people are using it to blackmail you. That's not fans being naive... that's people being played.

[semplice.livejournal.com]

Is he contactable at all?
That utterly broke my heart, and I want to tell him so. *g*
The poor guy. He feels so guilty and upset, and.. oh, that's just...
yeah.

[amezri.livejournal.com]

I had his e-mail at one point, but can't seem to find it now. :-/