Hats off to insanely talented actor, director, fashion designer (!) and all-around good egg John Malkovich. His filmography alone was already enough to rank him high among The Deconstruction’s favorite peeps. Then he went and saved a life.
It happened last Saturday, in Toronto, where Malkovich is starring in a stage production of The Giacomo Variations. Outside of the theater, an elderly tourist from Ohio tripped on the sidewalk and (get ready to cringe) managed to slash his throat on a piece of scaffolding on his way to the ground. His wife shouted for help, and none other than John Malkovich answered the call. He used his scarf to hold pressure on the wound, and kept the man calm until EMS arrived. It should be noted that in every respect I can think of, Mr. Malkovich did precisely the right thing. This life-and-death performance of his should be an inspiration to us all.
We’ve talked a few times in this forum about the all-consuming importance of emergency preparedness (see here and here). No real need to revisit that screed, except to say that the only predictable thing about emergencies is their eventual inevitability. Being ready for them can (and probably will) mean the difference between survival and tragedy. Mr. John Malkovich can certainly attest to that.
With that aside, we can now take this opportunity to see a bit of John Malkovich at his recursive finest, in the 1999 Spike Jonze mind-trip, Being John Malkovich:
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