Talk:Kevin Spacey

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[edit] Old Vic

He's been recently named something to do with the Old Vic. Is it atistic director? -- Zoe

Thanks for the tip. After a quick search of recent news stories, I found enough to write a paragraph about his appointment as artistic director. -- Islandboy99

[edit] Austin Powers in Goldmember

His filmography has him listed as playing Dr. Evil in the second Austin Powers movie, who, of course, was played by Mike Myers. I thought perhaps he was a stand-in for the scenes where it was neccessary to film Dr. Evil and Austin Powers in the same frame. Could someone look into this, confirm it, and either strike it from the filmography or add clarification? --Frag 08:25, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

Goldmember was the third film. Spacey played Dr. Evil in the first 3 minutes of that film. Mad Jack 08:29, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

And the end part?

[edit] Sexuality

The article asserted he was a homosexual despite his public claims to the opposite. I changed the language to reflect that. If someone has "proof" that is openly gay, then go ahead and change it back. --Feitclub 20:18, Nov 7, 2004 (UTC)

The article still asserts that he is a homosexual. The change in language only acknowledged the fact that in public Mr. Spacey claims to be heterosexual while in truth being homosexual while around friends and coworkers. If that is true then the article needs to be changed to say that there is suspicion to his being gay, but not proof. It's all in where you put your allegedly. Wjw 06:45, 28 Nov 2004 (UTC)
I think that unattribtuted, tangential speculations should be removed, regardless of their context. --Viriditas | Talk 01:58, 15 Dec 2004 (UTC)

If something like this cannot be proved, it is libellous. This is true regardless of whether we add "allegedly" or "some people say" or even "a few people have said, but I don't believe them myself, but". jguk 22:57, 20 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Not in 2006. It is no longer libelous to state that someone is gay or lesbian. It may have some effects on their career, but it is not libelous in the year 2006. I don't know whether Spacey is gay, straight, or bisexual, or asexual, but if people continue to suggest that saying (it is no longer, "accusing") someone is gay is libelous, it will merely delay ever more the time when it is clear to all that it is no longer libelous. It is like revealing that Tom Cruise wears elevator heels in his shoes to conceal that he is only 5' 7" tall. He may not want his shortness to be revealed to his many female fans, he may feel such revelations to be embarassing, but it is not libelous. 66.108.4.183 09:18, 13 September 2006 (UTC) Allen Roth
It's true that alleging that someone is gay isn't libelous as such. But given that Spacey - following the article's publication - openly stated that he's not gay, what is subsequently being alleged is that he's deliberately lying about his sexuality - and that is arguably defamatory. Besides which, as others have stated, baseless speculation doesn't belong in WP. Tobelia 20:47, 31 March 2007 (UTC)
I'd like to know what basis either of you have for saying that falsely claiming that someone is gay is no longer libelous. Any demonstrably malicious and harmful (and false) accusation is libelous or slanderous. If an accusation is true, that's another story. Wahkeenah 21:12, 31 March 2007 (UTC)
The issue here, I believe, that in our enlightened times, being gay isn't a crime nor something to be ashamed of; therefore, calling somewhere "gay" is not an insult. And thusly, isn't libelous or slanderous. CaptainJae 19:40, 28 August 2007 (UTC)

I am doing a survey of Wiki pages for actors, musicians, and other celebrities who are subject to rumors about their sexual orientation, and I am surprised to see that for Spacey, the matter has been removed completely. That there are rumors and speculation about his sexual orientation is completely NPOV. Such rumors are included for Tom Cruise, Clay Aiken, and others. Furthermore, a federal (US District Boston, MA) court ruled in 2004 that “In 2004, a statement implying that an individual is a homosexual is hardly capable of a defamatory meaning” and therefore, stating that someone may be gay is not grounds for libel. If there is going to be biopic statement that "rumors about sexuality exist for X" applied to any celebrity, it needs to be consistently applied throughout Wiki. WebTraveler 23:12, 14 October 2005 (UTC)

Could you provide a source for any of these rumors? WP is an encyclopedia, not a gossip rag. Try The National Enquirer for that. Bbatsell 03:43, 15 October 2005 (UTC)

There is a post up on Margaret Cho's blog about Kevin Spacey being on an (implied, but not explicitly stated) date with Jason Gould. Is a blog post enough? http://www.margaretcho.com/blog/2008/05/05/white-out-vs-yellowface.html Leslilesli (talk) 00:19, 11 June 2008 (UTC)

I do hope this is a joke!
What does Margaret say, actually? "I am a big Kevin Spacey fan. I liked him since he came to my 23rd birthday party with Jason Gould". If you look at her biography, since she was born in 1968, she was 23 in... 1991! And if just coming to a birthday party with a gay friend necessarily implies you are on a date with him, and subsequently gay, then I must be very, very gay too :-))).
"Is a blog post enough?" I suppose this is a rhetorical (and ironical) question. If this is the only valid "proof" of someone's sexual orientation that can be brought to light... well, the court will judge.
Anyway, is the English Wikipedia turning into a den of gossip-mongers? This would be really pathetic. Clabel 12 June 2008

[edit] NPOV

I think this should be removed as too general and certainly POV: is arguably one of the greatest American actors of his generation. If that claim can be associated with a specific person, like a critic, writer, or film professional, that would be great. Otherwise, it should be removed as POV. Also the awards should be moved to an awards section. And his birthplace information (South Orange, New Jersey) should be moved to an Early life section. It's best if we NPOV the introduction so it reads as follows:

Kevin Spacey Fowler (born July 26, 1959) is an American actor

What do you folks think? --Viriditas | Talk 01:49, 15 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Be bold :) jguk 22:58, 20 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Kevin Spacey went to Chatsworth High School with Val Kilmer and my aunt. :) -anon

And with Mare Winningham. Preaky 04:17, 4 November 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Honda commercial

I just saw some Honda commercial with Kevin Spacey as the narrator. Is he doing alright? --MightyGiant 01:24, 3 March 2006 (UTC)

He's in trouble for his alleged mismanagement of the Old Vic.

[edit] Weasel words

No one seems to have added anything to discussion about it, so I am removing it until they do. I'm guessing the tag was added because the article says "his father was alleged to be a member of the American Nazi party". Well, maybe we need to add "alleged by Fox News to have been". Otherwise, the section is NPOV. Mad Jack 20:24, 24 June 2006 (UTC)

Fox News is a corporate entity; as such it lacks cognition and is unable allege anything. Those making the allegations are all named or otherwise identified as are those who claim to be reporting it. Mansquito (talk) 19:25, 29 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Full name

Some sources say his full name is "Kevin Matthew Fowler", and some say "Kevin Spacey Fowler". Does anyone know for sure which is which? Mad Jack 23:12, 26 June 2006 (UTC)

And the name middle name was "Spacey". So we had it wrong and now we have it right.[1] Mad Jack 07:22, 2 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Personal life

Can anyone either source this to a reliable source or comment on its relevance to the article? " A skilled mimic, Spacey is known for impressions, including Johnny Carson, Walter Matthau, Jack Lemmon, Christopher Walken, Katharine Hepburn, William Hurt, Anthony Hopkins and Dr. Evil." Mad Jack 23:12, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

He also does great impressions of Jimmy Stewart and Cary Grant (see Letterman 6/26/06).

I saw one on Conan O'Brien, but this all still strikes me as unencyclopedic... You could list dozens of names. In summation, we should mention his "talent", though maybe not give any examples. Is there any good source that mentions his "talent" that we can quote? Mad Jack 04:55, 30 June 2006 (UTC)

i guess he learned it autodidactic and to the fun. i remember he used it on his early carrer in a comedy club. but in WWW i don't found anyone about it. but what i can show you is: "Inside the Actors Studio" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0611292/ http://www.bravotv.com/Inside_the_Actors_Studio/videos/Kevin_Spacey.shtml http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8JmN_-oudY&search=bluedog12 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inside_the_Actors_Studio , Verbal99

He did a fabulous impression of Bill CLinton during a Parkinson appearance tp promote his Bobby Darrin bopic too.

What relevance are the gay rumours? That seems a little out of place and too tabloidy to me. Codeviolation 04:04, 9 March 2007 (UTC)


I totally agree that this part of the article is mere gossip and, as such, irrelevant. I removed it. If we want Wikipedia to be credible, then we must be convinced there is no room in it for that kind of speculation. Especially if, for some reason one can guess easily, the contributor's work (so to speak) essentially consists in cherry-picking through unreliable, or even made-up sources, deliberately ignoring a number of contradictory firsthand testimonies. This is despicable. Bachibz 29 July 2007

Sorry guys I felt obliged to remove the paragraph about Spacey's sexual orientation, even though it was rather objective. This point is a matter of dispute and always will be. It will inevitably draw in the fanatical gay activists and the homophobes who have been relentlessly after him for years (just as they are after Tom Cruise, John Travolta, George Clooney etc.). Spacey is one of the greatest living actors and a respectable personality. He doesn't deserve this. Let's cut it off once and for all. Clabel 26 August 2007

[edit] Awards

There's a problem with the accuracy of the dates for his Oscars and awards. Many people are confusing the release dates of The Usual Suspects (1995) and American Beauty (1999) and the dates of the awards Spacey won for his performances in these films (respectively 1996 and 2000). This should be fixed once and for all. Bachibz 5 August 2007

[edit] Links/footnotes

There is a link to a Val Kilmer website/article given as a reference (#6) to the section on Spacey's sexuality, but I can't find any mention of Spacey at that site? Spamming? Birgitsnet 11:00, 03 July 2006 (GMT)

Looks like a mistake - thanks Mad Jack 16:41, 3 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] GA Result

There are 7 things that must pass before an article reaches GA status. I have reviewed it and the result is as follows:

  1. Well-written: Pass
  2. Factually accurate: Pass
  3. Broad: Pass
  4. Neutrally written: Pass
  5. Stable: Pass
  6. Well-referenced: Pass
  7. Images: Pass

Well done, the GA has passed successfully —Minun Spiderman 19:40, 28 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Sexuality (again)

Users Bachibz and Clabel have been actively reverting information I have added concerning speculation about Spacey's sexuality. I navigated to this page after hearing many friends tell me that Spacey was gay, and I wanted to find out more. There wasn't any, so I did some research and added verifiable, referenced, NPOV information reporting the speculation and Spacey's response to it. If someone wants to question its inclusion on the basis of whether or not it is encyclopedic or not, that's one thing. But removing it because one doesn't like it is POV-pushing, pure and simple. Clabel's comments above lead me to think that he believes the speculation is somehow defamatory - but I'm open to being disabused of this notion. fishhead64 16:09, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

The text reinstated by fishhead64 appears to be sourced and to offer a qualified description of the matter, so I can see no reasonable justification for its exclusion. If you were to stop and ask them to name an actor with an 'open closet' - that is, whose sexuality is most-frequently discussed as a 'secret' that everyone knows - Spacey would almost certainly top the list. Whether he identifies as 'gay' or not is besides the point; that most people believe he is, or bisexual, or whatever, is a cultural fact. This is besides the fact that in the theatre community in London, the idea that he doesn't sleep with, erm, men, would raise a hearty chortle. There are actors here who would beg to differ... (if not publically). DionysosProteus 15:44, 8 October 2007 (UTC)
Oh, I see. Of course, "an average punter in the street" has an unimpeachable authority on the matter. And you yourself appear to be such a well-informed insider that I don't doubt you're burning with the desire to reveal the names of all those "actors here who would beg to differ". Go ahead then, don't be so shy!
All I have to say is that I too happen to know a few people who could make troubling revelations, as a matter of fact, but from what I understand it's not exactly what you'd like to hear.
You're right on one point though: gay gossip is indeed a "cultural fact" in puritan societies. When will you Anglo-Saxons get over your sexual obsessions? Clabel 11 June 2008

[edit] Spacey/Chávez

An anon keeps removing the paragraph about Spacey meeting with Venezuela's president (Hugo Chàvez, a strong critic of the United States). Other actors have met with Chàvez (Sean Penn, Morgan Freeman) and this is mentioned in their articles, probably because this says something about their political views. I invite the anon to explain why he thinks this is not worth mentioning. -Yamanbaiia 19:43, 8 November 2007 (UTC)

Regarding the Chavez inclusion, it includes the line "state-controlled movie studio". I may be incorrect here, but "state-controlled" seems to as if it has an ulterior motive, i.e. to attack the Chavez government. There are such institutions all over the world. For example Australia has the ABC and to a lesser extent SBS. The US has PBS. The UK has BBC, etc. I do not know if the word "controlled" would be accepted in describing any of these, as it connotes negativity and implies that the state is illiberally controlling a media outlet. I propose that a word such a "operated" by used in place. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 58.111.99.135 (talk) 08:41, 10 November 2007 (UTC)
Source for "state-controlled movie studio". "to attack te Chaves government"? It's Chavez that it's controlling the studio, not a third party.Yamanbaiia 09:42, 10 November 2007 (UTC)