As the “Johnny Weir family-friendly” story goes viral, it’s interesting to look at the ice-show political background. Just two years ago, as 2008 came in, Johnny was set to skate for Champions on Ice, the gay-friendly tour where Rudy Galindo skated for an entire decade. Remember Rudy Galindo? Our 1996 U.S. National Champion who was not only out but as OTT as Weir in his own unique way? He who wore his own brand of outrageous costumes — like fluttering rainbow flags, and Village People costumes, and a large sequinned star on his butt?
Champions on Ice was a big successful show since 1969. Despite competition from the newer Stars on Ice, COI hung in there through the peak of figure-skating popularity in the 1990s and a change of ownership in 2006. The show always took a liberal tack — hiring not only the “safer” gold medalists and world champions, but controversial figures like Rudy Galindo. Like Surya Bonaly, who never medalled at the Olympics — apparently because she was considered too athletic, muscular and masculine to fit the profile demanded of female figure-skaters. Like Oksana Baiul, in spite of her DUI arrest and notorious battles with drugs and booze.
Stars on Ice didn’t debut till 1986, starting as the “American Tour” organized by Scott Hamilton, with sponsors Discover Card and Plymouth. Though Hamilton was openly homophobic, the show did have its gay faces in the earlier years — Rob McCall and Brian Orser. But the emphasis began to veer towards male skaters like Kurt Browning who were paragons of “masculine heterosexual skating style.” SOI’s turning point into deep figure-skating conservatism probably came in 2001, when Smucker’s became the show’s title sponsor. Though the Ohio-based food company hasn’t been screamingly high profile in politics, a glance at their political contribution record shows that they have contributed heavily to state and national Republican causes, including Mitt Romney and John McCain for President. Co-CEO Tim Smucker has served as a GOP delegate to the RNC.
Then, in December 2007, the roof fell in on COI. International Figure Skating Magazine reported, “When AEG Worldwide, one of the world’s leading sports and entertainment presenters, bought the Champions on Ice tour in 2006, company officials said they planned to take the tour around the world. [But] the ride has apparently come to an end. Phil Hersh (in a report in the L.A. Times) is reporting that the Champions on Ice ‘is dead after a 38-year run….’ The article indicated Stars on Ice, its rival tour managed by IMG, would take over the COI tour.’
The COI website is still up, but frozen in time – complete with pics of its 2008 cast who were left high and dry by the closing — stars like Victor Petrenko, Irina Slutskaya, Evgeny Plushenko, Sasha Cohen…and Johnny Weir.
So if a top skater wants to tour, Stars on Ice is now the only game in town. There is nowhere else for a brilliant and controversial figure to go — not Weir or anybody else. How convenient for SOI, and for everybody in figure-skating who want to see certain skaters and certain skating styles disappear. SOI is now coiled in position, like the sequinned boa constrictor that they have become, to put the big squeeze on private lives of skating figures. Sasha Cohen is the only COI refugee who got herself onto Stars on Ice’s 2010 tour.
SOI denies allegations that they’re snubbing Weir because he’s not “family friendly.” It’s also been alleged that SOI intended to hire only Vancouver medalists. But their 2010 roster includes some world and national champions who are not Olympic medalists. So if SOI really hungered to have three-times U.S. National Champion Weir on their roster, there would surely have been room for him.
Clearly the snub of Weir is part of a bigger paradigm shift in U.S. figure skating. Other things may be going on behind the scenes (Stars on Ice hasn’t hired a single top Russian skater this time). Meanwhile, the Republicans who make all that strawberry jam at Smucker’s mean it when they bill their ice show as “family entertainment.” I would say that the issue is as much Weir’s so-called “feminine” appearance and behavior as his actual sexual orientation. On the 2010 cast of SOI, the males are all certifiably “masculine looking” — though their skating styles and costumes might be “artistic” enough to make Elvis Stojko gag.
Johnny Weir has said he’d like to launch his own show. With Champions on Ice gone, there is definitely room for a 2nd show that has more fire to it — especially if Stars on Ice goes even more conservative.
on Mar 13th, 2010 at 9:55 PM
Thanks for a wonderful and very accurate analysis of the history of these two shows. Champions on Ice always had a wide variety of skaters for everyone’s taste and didn’t limit the cast to a handful of handpicked favorites of the producers. SOI had its glory days in the late 80s and early 90s, with wonderful stars like Brian Orser, Paul Wylie and Wilson & McCall. After they were gone, however, it turned to an entirely different profile. I don’t care if the skaters are gay or straight, but right now they’re plain boring.
As for SOI’s excuse that they can’t hire everyone, it’s laughable. They’ve hired nobodies for years — skaters with no credentials and little popularity. They just had the right connections. And they don’t have room for Johnny Weir, a three-time national champion and one of the most popular skaters in the world?!!
Please hold their feet to the fire on this one!
on Mar 14th, 2010 at 3:36 AM
I loved the COI show; but attempting to compare it to SOI I feel is unfair. They were always slightly different shows with SOI putting together more “themes” particular to the show and tending to keep skaters in the show longer over rotating them out for the latest medal winners. COI has also always included more international skaters while SOI is more US focused. COI was geared more to skaters still in “amateur” competition and featured them each (or as a team) doing their season exhibition programs. They tended to have a larger cast because they’d rotate the skaters to fit their schedules. SOI tended to have a smaller cast with professional regulars and programs created specifically for the show. Meagan’s characterization of SOI skaters as “nobodies” “with no credentials” bugged me, so I did some actual research. They have their casts from 2001 to present and frankly, most have better “credentials” than Johnny does. To review Johnny’s major medals: US Champ 3X (the last, four years ago), one Worlds Bronze, and Grand Prix Bronze 2X. The general public tends to know Johnny because he tends to do stuff to get attention that has nothing to do with skating… like have a little strip of real fox fur put on his costume instead of fake fur and MAKE SURE EVERYONE KNOWS IT get the expected response and then cry over getting supposed “death threats.” Or … claim homophobia was the reason he didn’t get hired for a show he’s never worked for (because he was working for other shows during his peak) in his “comeback season” where he was third in Nationals, third in the Grand Prix and sixth in the Olympics over a World Champion who has worked for the show for six years (Todd), a man who has a fairly equal record to Johnny but has been working for the show four years (Michael), the current US Champ (Jeremy) who also won last year (and also did the show last year) and the current Olympic Gold Medalist and last year’s World Champion (Evan.) They have four men, three pairs, two dance teams and seven ladies listed on the current cast. (The ladies seem overweighted but that’s because some only appear in a few shows some about half. There are really only three ladies who will appear in most of the shows.) Five men would have been too many for this show. We’ll probably never know if Johnny was offered a “guest spot” or limited appearance. Which “nobody” should they have fired (all four men appeared in last year’s tour) to pick up Johnny?
on Mar 14th, 2010 at 4:36 AM
Wonderful article, Patricia. I knew bits and pieces of the history but reading this article gave me a more clear picture of the setting and circumstances. I got a lot from this.
Daybreak, Johnny has never been offered even a guest spot for Stars on Ice. The multiple overtures by his agent to Stars on Ice over the years have all been rejected. It’s a shame that unless he can get himself in with SOI, his skating will essentially be banished from the American conscience. I expect him to retire from competition after this season. I wish he could start his own tour but that is an impossibility without sponsors.
For anyone interested, here is the petition to include Johnny in Stars on Ice. Please sign it and pass it to others. I have been told that it is important that we meet the goal of 10,000 signatures by Monday. Any help would be appreciated! Thank you.
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/include-johnny-weir/signatures.html
on Mar 14th, 2010 at 8:55 AM
Include Johnny Weir in your shows, or I will not be buying any tickets to see any of them. Period.
on Mar 14th, 2010 at 10:51 PM
On the 2010 cast of SOI, the males are all certifiably “masculine looking”
I don’t know in what galaxy hottie Jeremy Abbott would be considered “masculine looking” but OK.
This whole story is just sad, in a “who do they think they’re kidding” way. It’s like ballet: no matter how many times it’s shown otherwise, the stereotype will always be that male ballet dancers = gay. Same with figure skaters, they’re fighting a losing battle.
on Mar 14th, 2010 at 11:45 PM
EXCELLENT article. Really appreciate your analysis, and I couldn’t agree more. Thank you!
on Mar 15th, 2010 at 12:24 AM
Stars on Ice is not about sex or being gay, it’s about figure skating and entertaining viewers. So from that perspective, Johnny Weir is a true champion and one of the best entertainers around.
Start on Ice is also a business and makes money by selling tickets. If I was Stars on Ice I would want the best entertainers and that most definitely includes Johnny Weir.
The fact that Stars on Ice doesn’t want Johnny Weir suggests that someone within that organization would rather exclude Johnny Weir for other reasons such as religious or anti-gay issues.
I enjoy watching Johnny Weir not because he’s gay but because he’s a world class skater and entertainer!
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on Mar 15th, 2010 at 11:24 AM
The fact that Stars on Ice didn’t hire Johnny Weir, knowing that he would boost the show numbers, that they would rather lose ticket sales than have Johnny Weir in the show…..is the real smoking gun.
on Mar 15th, 2010 at 12:46 PM
Daybreaq:
Here’s who SOI considers more deserving of “room.” Jeremy Abbott has fewer national championships and resurfaced the Vancouver ice with his butt. He completely crumbled. Weir has at least risen above a similar performance in Torino to exit Vancouver with two clean performances, two standing ovations (followed by loud BOOs when his marks came up) and an international outcry about how his scoring. As for his alleged attitude he is the opposite of a diva when it comes to his skating. It’s clear from watching his reality show that he has been his own worst enemy — not by arrogance or bad work ethic but because he battles nerves. He has worked like a dog, but not always productively, necessitating the recent coaching change. But what you also see his one of the greatest role models for perseverance ever. Just in the past year he failed at nationals due to sickness, got written off by everyone, but worked on his conditioning enough to medal at NHK Trophy with two clean programs while also suffering from the flu and make a second Olympic team. It’s also clear to him that he has a scoring problem, but rather than quit or just whine he plans to retool and keep competing. He doesn’t have to do this — he has a good enough “amateur” resume to make a great living no matter what Smuckers or Stars on Ice has to say about it. (Somehow in “homophobic” Russia nobody has issues with his effeminate demeanor.) Not to mention his possible entry into design school.
Alissa Ciszny won a fluke national championship last year, has virtually no international career, and didn’t even come close to making the Olympic team this year as the defending national champion. It’s more important to make room for this one-hit-wonder than for a demonstrably popular skater like Weir? (In her case, maybe they needed a woman. Michael Weiss has likewise three national championships and one world medal just like Wier. Stars on Ice has room for him. (Scott Hamilton has known him all his life — Weiss’s dad was an Olympic gymnast who taught Scott Hamilton his backflip.)
Scott Hamilton can hire anyone he wants for his business. Nobody denies that. But claiming that Weir just doesn’t make the cut achievement-wise is disingenuous. They should make a less intelligence-insulting CYA statement such as “we consider many factors in casting, such as gender balance, blah blah blah.” My own theory, based on Scott Hamilton’s tone when discussing him, is that he just doesn’t like Weir and only gives him grudging respect when forced to — such as while calling a clean program. Again, it’s his business and he can run it anyway he likes. Presumably he has made the business calculation that losing the draw that Weir represents would be worth it emotionally or financially.
What Johnny has said about this issue is that his agent (presumably Tara, seen on the reality show) has been approaching SOI for years, only to be rebuffed every single time, and according to THE AGENT, the explanation was that Smuckers won’t allow Weir to be signed because they don’t consider him “family friendly.
So someone is lying. Johnny could be lying about what his agent told him. Tara could be lying about what Stars on Ice told her. Stars on Ice could by lying to the public in their denial that homophobia is at play.
Note that Stars on Ice did not address what role their sponsor plays. (They probably have a contract limiting what they can say. And note that Smuckers has not said anything.
At this point Smuckers will not silence the rumors unless they publicly declare Weir to be family-friendly.
The best irony in all this is that Johnny Weir comes from Amish country in Lancaster County, PA. His family is amusingly unfabuous vanilla, soccer momish but this is a family that lavishes each other with affection and unconditional support.
Maybe it’s the unconditional part that troubles Smuckers.
on Mar 15th, 2010 at 12:52 PM
BTW I want to respond on Bonaly.
The girl simply did not straighten her legs and point her toes. That is part of the technique of figure skating. And then when she got duly dinged for it her mother would play the race card. In her later years she was better. But if you want to see bad attitude, look at the medal ceremony of the 1994 world championships (or was it 1995) when she angrily took off her silver medal on the podium.
It was way fun to watch her go out there, do illegal jumps and generally make the sport her bitch — especially because her face is almost unimaginably lovely in a rather delicate way.
I bet Johnny would have her headline his own show if he gets one.
on Mar 15th, 2010 at 1:37 PM
I have to disagree about Bonaly. She was 2nd in World Championships twice, European champion 5 times, French national champion 9 times (and some good skaters have come out of France) — not to mention a 1st in Skate America and a Nations Cup 1st. She must have been doing something right in the eyes of those particular judges.
on Mar 15th, 2010 at 6:41 PM
@Patricia:
You would be mistaken about the caliber of the French skating teams and the competitors at Worlds during Surya’s reign as French National and European Champ.
Look who Bonaly came second to at worlds:
-Yuka Sato (largely felt that she lost her Olympic medal shot due to being rushed thanks to Tonya Harding’s antics).
-Oksana Baiul (Olympic Gold).
-Chen Lu (Olympic Bronze x2).
Her Skate America gold? Over Michelle Kwan and Irina Slutskaya in ’94. Neither lady was a real medal contender until years later. Her Nations Cup Gold was in ’92, ahead of Tanya Bingert of Canada and Marina Kielmann of Germany. Her French Nationals? Very weak field, the only other skaters of note to medal at French Nationals were Vanessa Gusmeroli (who was 3rd in the Worlds in the 96-7 season and 6th at the 98 Olympics) and Laetitia Hubert (who never placed higher than 4th at Worlds)
Many of these ladies have achieved a much higher level of fame than Bonaly in both the amateur and professional ranks.
The only real competition Bonaly had during the years she won the European Championships was Oksana Baiul and Maria Butyrskaya, with Irina Slutskaya as an up-and-comer.
None of the other female medalists who placed behind Bonaly from the years she won gold, Olga Markova, Evelyn Grossman, Marina Kielmann, or Patricia Neske, went on to achieve any real acclaim at the world level. It’s not like Bonaly beat anyone of any real talent (with the exception of Baiul in 1994, and her Olympic gold that year will always be debated due to her propensity to two-foot her landings).
Bonaly’s transitions were mediocre and at times very clumsy, her footwork was always a bit awkward, and while her spins were good, her real claim to fame was jumping. That’s what got her those medals; remember, although not credited with it because she may have two-footed it, Bonaly landed a quad before most of the men managed to pull it off.
I was always a fan of Bonaly, and was thrilled when she decided to land a single-blade backflip in the Olympics for the crowd, but I never had any illusions about her artistry, or lack thereof. It was like Tonya Harding (during the good days)… excellent jumps, but the artistry simply wasn’t there, and like it or not, it takes a complete package to win.
on Mar 15th, 2010 at 8:47 PM
Do a goggle search and you will see that Brian Orser was skating with ‘Stars on Ice’ when he was involved in his palimony suit with an ex boy friend. (thank you Mr. Sexy Rexy for reminding me)
Brian and Scott have been friends for years. So much for that argument. Just because you are religious does not make you anti-gay. Has Scott come out as anti-gay or just born again? Has someone ever asked him his opinion or is this hearsay. Sounds like Tim Tebow all over again.
on Mar 15th, 2010 at 9:17 PM
@DR — All those ladies who beat Bonaly were certainly helped along by the fact that they fit so perfectly into the gossamer and ethereal image of what women figure-skaters are “supposed to be.” And these stereotypes clearly can, and do, often influence the judges.
Besides, you have to look at all those skaters in the moment they meet and compete, not in terms of what they do years later.
on Mar 15th, 2010 at 9:45 PM
You continue to emphasize the fact that they’re “girly girls”, yet continue to ignore the fact that Surya Bonaly’s technique was always lacking. Your attempts at justification show your ignorance of the skill of the women she was competing against, Patricia, as well as your clear bias in an attempt to prove an invalid point.
Look at the debate regarding Plushenko versus Lysacek. Plushenko had great jumps including the quad, but his transitions were weak and his spins got sloppy. Lysacek didn’t do a quad, but packed his spins, footwork and transitions with a ridiculous amount of difficulty.
Tonya Harding landed triple axels in several comps, but only once won a US Title, and never won a world title; she was the 1991 US Champ, but earned the silver behind Kristi Yamaguchi at the worlds that year despite landing a triple axel during that competition. There was always something missing in her skating when she wasn’t jumping. Like Bonaly, she just never grasped the importance of footwork and what you’re supposed to do when you aren’t jumping or spinning.
You’re clearing pushing the fact that Surya Bonaly was judged on her femininity rather than her technique, and that view is myopic. It shows a lack of understanding of the intricacies of the sport. When you compare her skating to Sato, Chen, and Baiul and you’ll see more than just “the more feminine” girl winning, especially when you compare Sato/Bonaly. Sato was just as strong a jumper. Chen was a strong jumper. But they packed their programs with solid footwork and transitions that Bonaly never did.
on Mar 15th, 2010 at 10:04 PM
Here’s the tale of the tape:
Surya Bonaly’s 1995 Silver Medal Free Skate: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlkt6lb7RgQ
Lu Chen’s 1995 Gold Medal Free Skate:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIRnCq2Dp_0
Notice the difference in the quality of spins (both revolutions and positions), quality of footwork (edging, speed, use of the ice, complexity), transitions between techniques, body position and extensions on spirals (check out Bonaly’s, and compare her really awful leg position to Chen’s at the 2:05 mark).
If you look at those programs and can’t see what Bonaly was lacking, then perhpas you need to do a bit of research before asserting that she was being penalized for not being “frilly” enough. That might work if she had the technique to back it up. She didn’t, her strength was jumping.
And as for your comment about “when they met” versus “what they became”, I find it interesting to see how other female skaters evolved over the years, while Bonaly never did, and that was in large part due to her mother, who knew squat about coaching. I mentioned the success and failure of her competition to counter your arguments about how strong the European and French skaters were; they simply weren’t as strong as you claim they were.
on Mar 16th, 2010 at 11:54 AM
Dawson: you sound like PR from Stars on Ice. Brian Orser was Outed against his will, after he had been working the shows for years, he said at the time he was worried he would get fired. Scott Hamilton speaks on Pat Robertsons 700 Club – very anti gay. You are defending Tim as not being homophobic? That is what really exposes you – wow, just wow.
on Mar 16th, 2010 at 1:09 PM
I still say it’s a pity that Weir couldn’t be included but I guess that’s the nature of the beast. I hope he finds something beyond figure skating, he’s certainly talented enough.
on Mar 16th, 2010 at 2:36 PM
@ DR — You can argue all you want about how other female skaters evolved more than Bonaly did. But that is mox nix.
The judges who gave Bonaly so many wins didn’t make their decisions on the basis of hindsight. They looked at the performance that was right in front of them in that moment. Whatever Bonaly did, including any mistakes she made or shortcomings in her style, it still added up to more than what other women skaters did in that moment.
And the judging decisions that gave her that run of wins were certainly not judges who penalized her for being “un-frilly.”
on Mar 16th, 2010 at 5:32 PM
No, Patricia, it isn’t. Your proposition is facially erroneous. You sit there and talk about how she’s treated unfairly because she doesn’t engender some specific ideal about what a female skater should be, but when presented with videos and analysis of her programs, you can’t answer those because the honest answer is I’m right about what she lacked on the ice.
You hold up wins over no-name skaters as evidence of her ability to win without any regard for the fact that a majority of those girls never went on to do anything of any substance in the world of competitive figure skating.
You refuse to acknowledge that the fields were weak in terms of talent. You can’t acknowledge that she was stuck doing the same thing every year while the women around her evolved in terms of technique and style.
Your entire position is based in a fallacious notion because you can’t see this from any other angle. Watch the videos. Look up her other performances. Compare them to the other champions of the time in which she competed, and you’ll grasp what she’s lacking. Or don’t, and continue to assert something which is simply wrong.
on Mar 17th, 2010 at 10:21 AM
Weir will have his own documentary on Sunday night cable. It looks interesting, especially when he skates in a Speedo. But this will not help him find a job with Stars on Ice.
on Mar 17th, 2010 at 12:17 PM
@DR —
First — the ISU rules mandated parameters on women’s costume that translate as “feminine,” and points were given or taken off for costume as part of presentation. Bonaly’s skate in tights in 1989 was one of the reasons why the ISU relegated women to skirts for a while. So you can’t tell me that Bonaly wasn’t colliding with official issues of “feminine style” when she was active.
Bonaly had to comply with the rule change, but she also avoided the filmy “dying swan” type of costume that was/is such a “feminine” stereotype with many women skaters. She knew it didn’t flatter her body type, which is stockier than that of an Oksana Baiul. As a result, she went for a different costume style, and was often accused of looking “exotic” or “theatrical.”
Second — you missed my point, which was that Bonaly’s style did find favor with judges at Worlds and European championships. You don’t mention that she beat Chen Lu at Worlds — Lu went on to be World Champion and bronze medalist at the Olympics.
You also don’t mention that she actually beat Oksana Baiul twice at the European championships. And she actually beat Maria Butyrskaya, who went on to be World champion twice and place 4th at the Olympics. All three of these women were noted for their “flowing lyrical” style. In spite of Bonaly’s technical shortcomings, she outskated these good skaters on a given day.
Third, it’s too bad you don’t give Bonaly some credit for improving her artistry after she started training with Frank Carroll.
You can read “Passing as a Lady: Nationalist Narratives of Femininity, Race, and Class in Elite Canadian Figure Skating” http://www.genders.org/g41/g41_mcgarry.html. Bonaly and her difficulties in the sport with being perceived as “aggressive,” “ethnic” and “exotic” are discussed in detail.
on Mar 17th, 2010 at 2:54 PM
Patricia:
Costumes don’t equal technique. You continue to dodge the main point, which is when compared to other World Champs, her technique is lacking. You continue to dodge the point that her competition at the French Nationals was weak. You continue to dodge the fact that her competition at Skate America and Nationals Cup was weak.
Please tell me what about her footwork, spins, edging, or other technical aspects of her program were superior to Chen Lu, Yuka Sato, or Oksana Baiul. Yes, she was able to beat them on a given day, great, but not consistently. Bauil, Sato, and Lu were all much more consistent in international competitions. Beating them on any one occassion doesn’t change the fact that she still lacked the artistry and technique to win Olympic and World gold, and if you watch her skating, you’ll see why.
Blaming it on her “ethnicity”, “exotic” appearance or “aggressive” style is a simplistic assertion failing to account for the actual skill level of the skater.
on Mar 18th, 2010 at 1:02 AM
DR — You have your opinion and I have mine. So we’ll just have to agree to disagree.
on Mar 18th, 2010 at 11:44 AM
Such an interesting debate that shouldn’t become confrontational. After years as a coach and an enthusiast, I feel the sport needs to evolve as society has. When John Curry died it was a taboo to even mention how. The USA team is always headed by the Ice Princess of the games. The women’s team is undergoing a rejuvenation and has a promising future as does ice dance. The men’s event was what we had to offer this year. Diversity is what we strive to promote as a community. However, business owners are first and foremost business owners. Different sells..but it seems easier to sell without too many rhinestones..at least on men.
on Mar 31st, 2010 at 12:46 PM
Hamilton IS A BIGOT!!!! That is the reason SOI is the way it is. Plain and simple. Hamilton should be called out on it EVERYWHERE he goes!
on Jun 3rd, 2011 at 1:22 PM
Why the hate for oksana baiul? She is not a drug addict nor an alcoholic. True she was driving drunk but that doesn’t prove she’s addicted to alcohol. Shes never been convicted of drugs. Jealous skating types loose all credibility portraying her this way. She sold those shows because she was in demand by audiences. Not because someone had pity. Businessmen wanted to make money so the booked baiul stop lying against her.