What Happened to David Sedaris

He takes himself too seriously and he's no longer funny.

what r1 said. . . he was dragged down by Amy. It turns out they have two separate fan crowds that generally despise one another... There was a period there when he was dragging Amy and she him everywhere as they were trying to option a show. But together they're quite hated.

He's also now considered "recovered" from addiction, so he moved from neurotic to just unbearable. . . plus all the usual bs of being a bitter eldergay made worse with still having a relationship at his age.

He now says things to fans like, "Do you know how much this jacket costs?"

"Why is everyone so vulgar now?"

^ oh, and the fraus love the one family member, a sister, that hated the both of them and they, of course, had numerous problems with.. thus don't even publically acknowledge and definitely not "professionall" before or even after her death.

He stopped being original, elfin, and funny.

That family is so truly dysfunctional that it's really not even funny.

Eight houses, seriously, do you know how much work that is?

I think he got his speech impediment fixed - his delivery's just not the same.

This was last month's appearance.

Do look at everything and criticize it thoroughly...

^ Damage control

His (non-dead) sister took the rest of his wit to go with her greater charm.

^ Is that the sister he calls "Material for my next book"?

Underneath it all, he's one of those insecure gays who can't stop competing with everyone in the room.

r13 Then you missed when they were everywhere together... they brought out the comedic worst in each other, and revealed too much of their internal biases... of being nouveau riche that believes it's old money.

^ and so above everyone...

"I was at my publisher's with my husband Hugh."

I don’t know, OP, but I absolutely loved his song “Calendar Girl.”

He's still around, still writing and touring, and as funny and insightful as ever. He and his boyfriend, Hugh (they're not married), had been living in England full-time until around 2019. By the time COVID started, they were in NYC full-time and traveling frequently to North Carolina during David's father's decline. He's achieved significant success and prominence as a writer and owns a number of real estate properties, which he mentions in his latest book. There are a lot of bitter and envious gay men who use his success as a reason to hate him, claiming he's no longer a good writer, he's changed, etc. Every talented and hard-working person should enjoy the fruits of their labor.

R20 Hi David

R20 He deserves to be successful, of course, but what's being called out is his decline in humility, less quirky humor, and a consistent smugness.

r22 Hi Augusten

[quote]He's achieved significant success and prominence as a writer and owns a number of real estate properties, which he mentions in his latest book.

What a scintillating read that must have been.

We get Sedaris threads regularly, about once every other month -- the last one was in June -- and there's always at least one poster accusing us all of being riddled with envy and malice.

Honestly, I think a lot of people are simply tired of him. Cute and quirky 30 years ago doesn't translate to continued popularity today.

Agree also with what R1 said. Unlike what R20 claims, Sedaris WAS funny, even if he was lying about everything and ridiculing his family; now, he's caught up in his wealth, bragging about his properties, living in Japan or France or England blah blah blah, and claiming to be oh so generous to his family materially. He's all about that shit anymore. He's a bore.

And nasty. See the link about his sister, who committed suicide. After her death, he grumbled that now he would never get his money back. That was an attempt at humor but really revealed just what a cunt he now is.

*After her death, he grumbled that now he would never get the money backthat he loaned her.

Fixed.

[quote]bragging about his properties

He simply mentions them within the context of each story which, I suppose, could be interpreted as "bragging" if you're an envious person.

Really sad to hear all of this. I loved his early books, saw SantaLand Diaries performed a few times, and saw him speak once. After the speaking gig, I kind of lost track of him and life got very busy. He was brilliant at one point. Too bad he's turned into an insufferable old snob.

I loved Amy too. She was funny af.

OP

r28 No, he's become a character of his own creation. The way he does it (and Amy for that matter, too. Her real life persona is hoity toity stuck up bitch. I'm honestly surprised she hasn't had a public "don't you know who I am" moment.) are of people wrought with personality insecurities.. and using everything else as a shield.

It's in their body language, tone, affect... that let's you know they're dropping it because they're still upset over what someone said in the 6th grade. It's all cock/clit measuring.

^ Colbert is another good example of that attitude of people with very low brow humour but it was their bread and butter that inevitably got them to where they are and now they're pseudointellectuals because they understand the "art" of buffoonery while all the plebs just laugh it. The plebians are just so cringe... they desire nothing else but to become us, they never will. Only some are born to greatness.

You know R20 is David because that post couldn’t be less sporting or more devoid of humor.

He put out some REALLY BAD books - one was a diary I think. There's no way he thought it was actually good. This why I no longer like him and he now sounds so whiny in interviews and is never funny.

as the American DLers used to say - "Gurl, bye!"

I think Sedaris is a wonderful writer. I’ve enjoyed all his books, except for the diaries, which were really a cash-in.

I also think his writing about his sister who committed suicide was really touching. His humour has always been a little spiky and not always in the best taste, but when he talks about her owing him money, it is the context of a journalist trying to get him to be emotional or heartfelt. It was blatantly manipulative . Sedaris thwarts that by making a slightly tasteless joke which serves to keep the interviewer at a distance.

However, despite the beautiful way he crafts his stories, his writing is suffering lately by the constant references to his wealth. It’s boring. In his earlier stories, he writes about his mother and him overhearing a boastful lady referring to “her house, or one of her houses”, and how ridiculous they found her. Now he refers to his own homes so often, or his shopping trips with his sisters and their extreme profligacy. It’s occasionally funny, but usually repetitive. I often wonder what his younger self would think of him now.

One story in his latest book left a really bad taste in his mouth. He writes of a shopping trip with Amy where she tries on a dress and is then told it is already reserved for another customer, so she takes it off and hurls it to the floor. He writes this as an endearing example of her offbeat personality. To me, the story just made them both seem like assholes, making work for someone who does not have their financial resources.

David Sedaris is fine! He sends his love!

I'm bored of him and bored of this thread. Gurl, bye!

[quote]What Happened to David Sedaris

I don't know her.

David's oldest sister, who I think is named Gretchen, lives in Winston-Salem, and I believe he has other sisters who still live in NC.

I used to have some mutual friends of the family - and based on the stories I've heard the Sedaris family dysfunction is deep, ongoing, and not really very funny.

Get over yourself, Mary R28. It's a ridiculous contention that if you have any criticism of this person, then you must be envious of him. I have a very pleasant life in NYC in a very nice apartment. I have no interest in living in England. I have no interest in having this guy's life. My attitude about him comes from the preening self-congratulation that drips from the last several books, his condescension of his own family, whom he exploits for cheap laughs at their expense. And he's just not that funny anymore.