It was about six months ago now that I was sitting around and wondering aloud, "What ever happened to that 'Dude, you're getting a Dell guy'?" I think it's a valid question. In the early 2000's that guy's weaselly little slacker face was flashed across TV screens at a near constant basis. And then...nothing.A quick bit of Internet research will clue you in on what happened to the Dell dude aka "Steven" aka the real life actor Ben Curtis. Apparently Mr. Curtis's career reached a screeching halt after he was arrested, whilst wearing a kilt, for attempting to buy a bag of marijuana on the streets of NYC. You can see Curtis himself explain the situation in this video at around the 2:00 mark. This incident proved to be the death of the poor Steven character and his Dell hawking ways. Ben Curtis subsequently faded from the public eye as well. An article from 2007 has Ben working at the Tortilla Flats, a New York bar which is described as belonging to "...that species of cantina where you can scream 'whoo-hoo!,' make a lasso out of your Brooks Brothers belt and still find a date." Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
As much as I hated those Dell commercials back in the day and as much as I find this whole story perversely funny, it's hard not to feel a bit sorry for old Ben (Curtis, not Kenobi). This guy had ambitions of becoming a real actor and had even put in some time at NYU to show for it. And yet perhaps it's this desire for a real career that only makes the punchline that much more potent and ironic.
...Or perhaps I'm over analyzing? Oh well, you have to admit that it's a great story.
This is great, a summary of explorations into what exactly happened to Ben Curtis. Wouldn't it be great to pretend to be legitimate fans & ask for him to be our waiter at the Tortilla Flats?!
ReplyDeleteI remember early on in our lives together, we were having a discourse on the nature of celebrity (oh so Rob!) & I told you how Americans like celebrity rise & fall stories (take it all) glance the press triumphing someone (like Esther) only to later tear them down. I love it!
Wouldn't it be even more awesome to just go to Tortilla Flats w/o knowing he worked there and get him as your waiter! It would be surreal and random like Salvador D!
ReplyDeleteI so remember that celeb rise and fall conversation!! I actually started thinking about that convo as I was wrapping this post up. It's like the psychology of Daily Mail culture!