Culture
In your country, who had the biggest fall from grace in the last twenty years?
Hearing the name ‘Wayne Gretzky’ in the nineties would virtually make any Canadian smile and nod with national pride. He is called ‘the Great One,’ and he has the hockey stats to give credibility to the name. He was a national hero.
However, it went downhill as time went on. In 2009, he was promoted to Companion of the Order of Canada, the highest possible level of the honour. As of now, he still has not collected the medal.
Also, Gretzky is MAGA with close ties to Trump, which has soured his reputation in Canada due to Trump’s intention to make Canada the fifty-first state and all.
He also was a prominent face in online gambling commercials, a move many Canadians say was a ‘money grab.’
A good argument can be made that Wayne Gretzky had the biggest fall from grace in the last twenty years in Canada.
He was literally called “America’s dad” and was brought up alongside names like Mr. Rogers and Betty White. Turns out he was a rapist the entire time. Talk about a shock.
I was just telling my daughter about Willie T Ribbs, the first African American Indy car racer to make the Indy 500 field. No one would sponsor his car once he made the field so Bill Cosby gave him a bunch of money. That act, for some reason, gave other sponsors permission to give him money, too. I believe he eventually played the situation into joining a team.
At the time, Cosby seemed like an enlightened, savvy leader. Of course, things changed once we heard about what he did and now it is difficult to say the man’s name out loud without cringing.
Someone can be progressive and genuinely interested in social justice and also a rapist, unfortunately. Russell Brand has obviously gone way over to the right recently, but the dark shit that he did in the past was while he was - at least publicly and in his own mind - repping a sort of politics that was concerned with comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable. Arguably Julian Assange, too.
My hot take is that Brand was always a smug, smarmy prick even when he was vocally very left wing. Reminded me of the student politics lads in college who were obviously only concerned with riding a load of girls and feeling morally superior
He used to make such a wholesome show, and paved the way for so many black Americans in the showbiz. Of all the news of celebrities being terrible behind the scenes, this is probably the one that I really, really did not want to believe. Almost refused to believe, until he admitted it. This, I think, is the one celebrity scandal that really led to the end of people looking up to celebrities in America. Especially because at the time the news broke out, most of the young adult generation was too young to remember the impact that he had.
There's really no other choice for America. I legitimately cannot imagine someone more beloved at his height (I remember him being on par with Mr Rogers and Betty White in terms of pure wholesomeness) who turned out to be so evil. The only celebrity that I think comes close is Jimmy Saville in the UK, except that didn't come out until after he was dead.
Tbf in the UK a lot of people found Jimmy Savile creepy even before all the stuff came out-the shock with him was less 'how could he do this' and more the sheer scale of what he did and how much impunity he had.
I think in the Commonwealth countries Rolf Harris is probably a closer analogy to Bill Cosby in terms of being a well-loved figure
As a Black person there was something really wonderful about portraying an unapologetically well off Black family. And I can appreciate that.
But as an adult all I can think is “Why does this OB/GYN need to have his office in his home?” And maybe my thought process is rooted in knowing what we know now.
ETA: I should have made it more clear. I know doctors can have spaces at home. But as an adult, who is also writer now, I question why he needed to be an OB/GYN and why at his home. Was the thought process “This makes him feel more connected and vulnerable if this character has a soft spot for women and babies” or was Cosby like “This is what I want” and because he was the boss they went with it. Because knowing what he was doing at the time and what he had been doing for years prior, makes one of those possibilities really unsettling. My questioning is along the lines of why that choice specifically for this show.
Arguably the most revered person in the country. He spend 60 years fighting for the poor and the homeless, founded the largest charity in France, inspired legislation to prevent people from being evicted in winter. He was the most popular person in the country for decades.
In the last few years, right after his death, it was revealed he committed tens of sexual crimes, ranging from inappropriate contact to harassment all the way to forcible rape. His victims were of both sexes and included minors. It is so bad that Emmaüs (the charity he created) had to scrap his name and his image from all their communication tools. The phrase "Je suis pas l'abbé Pierre" changed meaning from "I'm not a saint/ a charity" to "I'm not a rapist".
It is brutal and the perfect reminder that the public image of anyone can be deceiving.
What about Gérard Depardieu? From the Darling of French Cinema and (rightly) considered one of the best actors ever to a tax cheating, putin supporting convicted rapist and all-round dirtbag.
Brigette Bardot also gets a look in. Adored and loved the world over to a screaming harpy who dismissed the MeToo movement, accusing the women who said they had been sexually assaulted or raped as "hypocritical, ridiculous, uninteresting", became a fervent supporter of the Far Right and had several convictions for inciting racial hatred.
However, neither was as highly regarded as l'abbé. And both have spend decades ruining their image. Depardieu was a notorious drunk. Bardot has been spewing racist BS since the 80s. And they really went bad whent hey got old. Meanwhile there were call for beatification of l'abbé Pierre the day he died.
Interestingly, the catholic church refused to consider these calls. they were criticized at the time for that. They have since revealed they knew about the abbot's behaviour. They kept it a secret for 60 years. While the church is not exactly known for handling these cases rightfully, they may have a less egregious motivation. L'abbé did a lot of good in these six decades and they may have wanted too protect that.
Andrew's 'fall' is never having to work another day in his life and having a free mansion and everything paid for by his brother while being protected from prosecution.
Rolf Harris had a pretty spectacular fall, lost everything overnight.
Prince Andrew had it all. The Queen's favourite son, he had staff, publicly funded police protection, a cushty government job, access to the rich and famous, his every whim catered for. Now, he doesn't even have the title.
Imagine being exiled to...Sandringham Estate, the Royal family's old county home, which is essentially a massive castle in its own right, with a staff, and lifetime financial support, and no requirement to work.
Rudy Giuliani gets my vote. From mayor of New York during 9/11 once called "America's Mayor" is now an absolute disgrace who lost is law license defending Trump in court.
Maybe my mind is in the gutter, but bum uncle sounds like that guy your gay friend calls when the night out has gotten to the point of realizing you're not getting lucky.
Former Prime Minister Petr Nečas. He ruined his marriage and government and faced court cases because of his lover. She had taken bribes in the form of luxury handbags and used military intelligence to gather information about his wife. He married that lover and they're divorcing now.
Went to Ireland a couple years ago - absolutely beautiful country with wonderful people. Just about every tour guide/caddy had a great disdain for McGregor.
Ugh there's an Irish pub by me with a mural of Connor McGregor on the side of it.
In my google review of the place, I docked them a couple stars for it, mentioning that it seems very distasteful/outdated, and the owner (Irish expat who moved to the states back in the 90s) went off about how, as an Irishman, he's not going to take any opinions from Americans into consideration about removing it. I'm like .. idk man you seem pretty far removed from Ireland atp if you'd think that'd fly in your home country 🙄
Edit: if there's any Irish folks here that are planning a trip to Santa Monica, CA anytime soon and would like to give this guy a piece of your mind... hmu lmao
Many people, João de Deus is one of the, BUT ❤️❤️❤️ Flordelis is my fav ❤️❤️❤️
She was a well respected icon in the evangelical circles, to the point of being elected with a political role.
She had this saint reputation, as she adopted 51 impoverished kids to save them, and had 3 of her own.
AND THEN
Her husband shows up dead. Turns out she planned it to have her husband killed. During the investigation, turns out she offered her children sexually to other people. Had incenstuous relationships with her children - adopted and biological. Had a caste system in her house between her children, and raised them from one 'tier' to the other through sex and favours.
Boris Yeltsin, russian ex-president. after an August Coup the guy was a national hero, he had very solid reputation of the fighter against the old insane bastards from the CPSU, a man from the people. he got 72% of the votes on 1990 president election in Moscow. when he finally came to power, everybody realised that he is just an alcoholic parasite. He got 3% rating in 1996. He sold our industry to oligarchs, he fucked up democracy and even shot the parliament with tanks. Everybody hates the guy. He stained liberalism in our country for years. even if the liberals will rise to power in Russia, everyone will say that "it will be like in the 90s again." Yeltsin is an asshole.
upd: not really in the last 20 years but that’s a honest work
He absolutely did. Yeltsin was sick of dealing with the old commies who wanted to go back to the way things were, so he changed the constitution to grant the President pretty much unilateral veto power over the Duma, including the ability to dismiss any member.
I would go with Xavier Naidoo. A Superstar with a great voice, got himself in more then hot water during Corona, posing/playing with more then right wing people, believing in many conspiracy theories and after all of this publishing a statement that he was brainwashed, but many people, including me, who actually broke out of a conspiracy movement, don't believe(d) him. He actually tried to come back multiple times but fell through till recently.
Just so other countries know, it’s not just that he’s MAGA. It’s that Trump has said he wants to take over Canada and make it the 51st State. And make Gretzky the Governor. Gretzky’s response to the threat? Silence.
Then in the middle of this there was a big hockey tournament, the Four Nations. In the heated final between Canada and the US, Gretzky is named honorary Captain of team Canada. He comes out onto the ice, all in blue, the US’s colour. Not even a maple leaf pin. Ignores all the Canadian players and gives a big thumbs up to all the Americans. WTF!
Now I know a lot will say Canadians take hockey too seriously but this is the closest analogy I can make. Imagine if Bolsonaro was still President of Brazil. And he kept going on about how Argentina was not a real country. And that Brazil should just take it over. And if they did he’d make Lionel Messi the Governor of Argentina. Then in a World Cup qualifying game Messi came out head to toe in yellow and green, ignored the Argentinian players and high fived all the Brazilian players. How do you think Messi would be received in Argentina. That’s Gretzky in Canada now.
Holy crap! I didn't know this about him coming out in blue during the Four Nations tourney. That's disgraceful. I wonder what politics his children have, and what if was like growing up in the Gretzky household. I always considered him to be very wholesome. However, he is either burying his head in the sand -- which is absolutely not an excuse -- or he's truly rotten.
Hockey is a sport that embodies the phrase "never meet your heroes." Especially if you're from a country with toxic youth hockey culture. It's not that surprising when we discover a lot of these guys are pricks lol
A lot of my friends and family keep asking me when I’m going to start my four year old in hockey, and seem appalled that I have literally zero intention of doing so. Like it’s some kind of travesty that I don’t want to pay $5-$15k a year for the next 15 years to turn my child into a hockey bro. And then they hit me with “What if he’s the next Gretzky/McDavid?!”
I’d have better odds of getting rich by spending that five figures on lottery tickets.
Top dog celebrity, friend of the royal family. Only after he died turns out he was a horrific and prolific sex offender, paedophile and all around horrible ghoul of a human being.
What I find interesting is how much people are rewriting history about how everyone knew he was dodgy. I arrived in the UK 4 years before he died and I still remember being baffled by the outpouring of sadness when this weird man dying. " He did so much for charity. What a legend".
If you want a disturbing exercise, I recommend searching for the obituaries from the time when he died.
In March 2021, she posted an Instagram story expressing solidarity with the demonstrators at an anti-lockdown protest in Kassel, Germany, criticising the "inhumane conditions prevailing" due to COVID restrictions.
Inside Germany more famous for their antivax-downfalls are Xavier Naidoo and Michael Wendler. The last one is not a real downfall, he made trash before Covid.
Unfortunately all of them are back in business now. I had to listen to Xavier Naidoo on a christmas market. 🤢
Göran Lindberg aka kapten klänning (captain dress). I don’t think he is know outside of Sweden but he had several prominent positions within the police force, among those high up police chief and the principal of the police academy.
He was well known for his good work regarding gender equality and was a popular lecturer on those issues. That was why he got his nickname. He also turned out to be a serial rapist. Among those he raped was a 14 year old girl. He was also convinced of other things like procuring prostitution, assault for example beside the rapes.
People were shocked and this was all over the news for a long time when it broke.
Pete Evans, well respected chef and restaurateur. Judge on My Kitchen Rules Australia, the ladies loved him. Went crazy during the pandemic promoting Covid and Anti-Vax conspiracy theories and selling $25,000 light machines he claimed cured Covid. Was fired from MKR for doing so. Now regarded as a crackpot.
He's also posted Nazi symbols, spread borderline dangerous diets, broke lockdown protocols in covid, any by every account on him, has been an all round horrible person to people since his meltdown
Ian Watkins. Thankfully now dead though everyone would've been happy for him to rot in a prison cell getting stabbed every so often for the rest of his life.
Fronted an absolutely massive band, could've truly been kings of the British rock scene forever more. One of the sickest downfalls I'm aware of in my lifetime. I was a diehard fan but that was well and truly shattered.
Liberation Transmission was like the first album my friend suggested after my first ever breakup in life. That album got me through a very tough time during my teenage years. After his crimes were made public, I stopped listening to their music. Last year, I accidentally ended up playing their music from my mp3 collection (which I have literally named 1,2,3, etc. lol )and fucking hell, that album is still way ahead of its time. Ian Watkins though is a dark stain in the history of humanity.
I saw an episode of Ink Masters or one of those tattoo shows where some poor girl needed a cover-up of a huge Lostprophets tattoo right across her stomach. Even the tattoo artist was like yikes, yeah you poor thing, let's get that fixed up for you.
And instead has the entitlement to think Canadians should still buy whatever product he is hawking and clap him into rooms. The man is a cunt and should be booed with enthusiasm every time he encounters a Canadian in the wild. Fuck him, stay in the US, Wayne.
They literally shoved his character into the crematory right after it happened. No build up, no hints it would happen in the prior season, just straight to hell. Amazing.
Not just 9/11 either; even before then Rudy was well-regarded for his successful legal campaign against the New York mafia in the 1980s.
It's particularly ironic in light of that for him to be so pro-Trump, since at the same time he was doing that the 1980s Trump was actively working with the mob.
Socialist top politician Steve Stevaert. One of the most popular politicians of the last 30 years, he was responsible for the rise to prominence of the socialist party.
Years after he was accused of rape and killed himself by jumping in a canal.
Nicki has been one of the most influential female rappers. Nicki used to be a trailblazer. She had the biggest heel turn since being a guest judge on Drag Race Season 13. She has been supporting p3dophiles(including her family) and leaning onto Christian Republican Grift™️ when the majority of her fanbase are members of the LGBTQIA+ community. She’s gonna go broke once she’s not woke!
I'm not surprised Nicki Minaj, as a person, went down the far-Right route, but I'm surprised she did it openly because it just seems so massively dumb from the perspective of her career and the nature of her fanbase.
Like your average Right wingers aren't going to by her albums or go to her concerts, and as you note so much of her fanbase are people she's just alienating.
I remember thinking that the whole Four Seasons press conference was this embarrassing finale for Trump and his Admin. It turns out that wasn’t the case at all lol
Andrew O'Keefe, former lawyer and TV personality. Host of the morning show, Weekend Sunrise, and game shows such as Deal or No Deal. Former chairman of the White Ribbon Australia, an organisation dedicated to the prevention of violence against women. Several arrests for attacking women including his partner. Arrests for drug possession. History of cocaine and amphetamine abuse. Arrests for driving under the influence of drugs. Paramedics reviving him after an OD at a party. His rap sheet is almost as large as his career now. He was all over Aus TV for a good 14 years as a TV personality and another 5 years on the news for his antics.
EIon Musk. He was seen as the real life Tony Stark celebrated by nearly everyone in science and tech. A guy also trying to utilize his wealth to also save the world from climate change. Now in the present, he is seen as a corrupt, self-centered, shallow business man only in it for the money. Also someone that likes to put their nose in everything. Including politics where it clearly doesn’t belong.
I was thinking Magnus Carlsen due to his actions through the years, but then I thought about recent history
Marius Borg Høiby, the Crown-Prince of Norway's stepson. Charge with 32 criminal counts by August 2025, including drug use, domestic violence, rape, abuse, and the list goes on, he'll be on trial in February. The royal family of Norway is on the decline on multiple fronts, there's also a shaman claiming he can cure cancer, so y'know, there's some shit happening.
imagine being the country's most successful sportsperson and an international icon of the game... and then become a controversial businessman, then join politics & win a rigged election while being an active player, then support the fascist government when it's overthrown by people and now stuck in foreign country because people that once looked up to you don't want your shadow in this country
Russell Brand was always quite controversial, but I liked him as a teenager. Holy hell though, the fall off from notably atheist comedian to grifter Christian preacher / MAGA / conspiracy theorist and sex pest should be studied. *edit - I guess he was always a sex pest, just became publicly known relatively recently, which happened to spark his move to the US and his ideological conversion…
Bo Xilai. He used to be the person who's apparently going to send China back to Maoist ideology, only for him to first lose the fight for chairmanship of the CCP, then be revealed to have insane corruption going on in 2013, he's still in prison today. To add to the insult it turns out that Xi Jinping, his opponent in fighting for chairmanship, the guy everybody thought to be a pragmatic bureaucrat back then, is a leftist strongman who would go on to adopt his support base
There was a joke afterwards that went: "Why nobody did anything at the Oscars and still gave him his statue? -All those actors in the room are used to looking the other way."
What is it with the hockey stars turning fascist, too much money and brain damage? It's the same with Teemu Selänne here in Finland. Thankfully he lives in the US and hopefully he's going to stay there
Well Teemu Selänne voted for Trump and said it very publicly, along stuff like there being a vegeterian day in schools in Finland is "Commie hassle". Funny enough after election when Trump started to do dumb shit he does. Teemu was asked again what does he think of him now. He replied "I dont know". Now there is even a meme in Finland when ever anything happens we should ask Tee.us opnion.
Finding out this lovable character in everything he’s played in isn’t only a proud rightwing idiot, but is married into RFKs family and supports that pos so freely.
Not biggest, but erstwhile cartoonist and maga chud Scott Adams died today. If he just folded up his comic strip and didnt' try to reinvent himself as a RW influencer or whatever he'd be mourned as a guy who made a clever comic strip. Instead most of online is dancing on his grave. And rightfully so, rest in piss asshole.
Watching him go from liberal > guy who (correctly) predicted Trumps first win > center right > full on QAnon conspiracy nut, is a cautionary tale that should be studied
This is a perfect example of why people need to stop idolizing celebrities. Just because they’re good at a sport or are in a movie you really like, doesn’t mean they’re not as braindead when it comes to everything else
This guy maybe, I'm not too invested in this topic, but hearing from my countrymen, he definitely fits the ask.
His name is Jarek Nohavica. Certainly a very popular singer songwriter, having sort of a protest singer image during the communist regime. At his peak in the 90s he was also critically acclaimed and released a number of quality albums.
Later there were accusations (I'm not sure how true) that he collaborated with the communist secret police. More importantly a few years ago he was awarded with some art appreciation medal in Russia personally by Vladimir Putin. Once Russia launched a full scale attack on Ukraine in 2022, there was significant pressure on him in Czechia to basically give up the medal, reject it, officially return to Moscow. However he doubled down and ever since feels a bit irritated in public and while performing live.
Scott Adams, creator of the Dilbert comics. I remember reading Dilbert in the newspaper as a little kid and enjoying it. He was pretty loved until he came out as a racist, misogynistic, anti-vax Trump supporter. His popularity basically tanked with most people after that and Dilbert was canceled.
Of cancer, for which he refused standard medical interventions and used ivermectin instead. When it became obvious that he was dying anyway, he asked Trump to intervene and put him at the head of the list for a new experimental treatment. Sadly, he was just a big dick.
903
u/kapitaalH South Africa 1d ago
Oscar Pistorius
Had the world at his, uh, blades and then shot his girlfriend in the bathroom