writing
December 30, 2016
Dear Keanu Reeves,
I am writing to you from a residential rehab facility located near Toronto, Ontario. It’s cold and a bit dismal up here, but beautifully silent. Having been born in Canada yourself, I’m sure you can appreciate the nature of the landscape.
I was watching My Own Private Idaho last night and a few of the more rural clients made fun of me for “liking gay stuff”. They asked me: “What? Are you gay or something?” I simply responded: “Why? See something you like?” I thought I was being clever, and I imagined that if you were here with me, you might have cracked a smile. Interesting factoid: When I was only 8 years old, I watched My Private Idaho, and I didn’t really understand it at all. I was a big fan of all your movies, especially Point Break. The one indelible moment that stayed with me had nothing to do with the script, but it was a colour. In the scene where River Phoenix is role-playing and cleaning his John’s house, the colour of the grapefruit pink room stayed within my consciousness for many years. When I was old enough to move downstairs to an enhanced space in our home – at around 13 years old, my parents let me do whatever I wanted in my living space. I painted one of the rooms that same grapefruit pink. I was so proud to bring that colour into my reality.
My real reason for contacting you is to ask you something. I know that you have experienced a lot of tragedy in your life, and you seem to have circumvented the typical Hollywood addiction subterfuge. I was hoping you could send me some tips on how you survived your difficult times. I’m not a Hollywood actor, but I have suffering and pain in my life and I think hearing something from you would probably help.
Warmly,
Evan Tyler
