Avery Brooks Status?

[KirkPicard]

Avery Brooks has been incognito the past few years. Missing from participation in the DS9 doc and from conventions. When speaking to Cirroc Lofton at Mission NY in 2016 he mentioned that he is "fine" and that they both speak almost daily over the phone. Hope he is well as there were rumors of mental health related issues. Anyone hear anything legit regarding his status?

 

[Tenacity]

He's still waiting for the flying cars.

 

[Balok's Decoy]

He teaches theater at Rutgers. My understanding is that he's just a private individual.

 

[F. King Daniel]

Quite insane. Watch "The Captains"

 

[kkt]

He's just pulling Shatner's leg. And who needs it more.

 

[Balok's Decoy]

He's just pulling Shatner's leg. And who needs it more.

Absolutely. Brooks doesn't have a screw loose. I just think he wanted to throw Shatner a bone for his vanity project but not talk about DS9.

 

[mos6507]

Mental health is a spectrum and creative people tend to be on the edge in general. I know that's hard for fans to accept, but true.

 

[arch101]

Does anyone know if he participated in the upcoming "What You Leave Behind" doc? it would be so much less if he isn't in it.

 

[mattyhugh]

Does anyone know if he participated in the upcoming "What You Leave Behind" doc? it would be so much less if he isn't in it.

He did not. But he approves of it.
He will included in archival material.

 

[Kor]

Mental health is a spectrum and creative people tend to be on the edge in general. I know that's hard for fans to accept, but true.

And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. Unfortunately, the society we live in puts a stigma on mental health for some unfathomable reason, whereas there is no stigma around physical ailments such as having a broken arm or the flu. I find that quite hypocritical.

Kor

 

[Nakita Akita]

And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. Unfortunately, the society we live in puts a stigma on mental health for some unfathomable reason, whereas there is no stigma around physical ailments such as having a broken arm or the flu. I find that quite hypocritical.

Kor

Generally a broken arm or the flu, a person has for a time then gets better.

People with a broken arm or the flu font run at you from across s parking lot or across the street shouting gibberish and waving their arms, because of the broken arm or flu.

Mental illness has this stigma because unless you live under a rock you most likely have witnessed the above mentioned nonsensical ravings at least once.

 

[C.E. Evans]

Brooks always struck me as someone who lived in the now and wasn't one to keep on talking about something he did more than 20 years ago. He's talked about his time on DS9, he's done some convention appearances, but I don't think it's stuff he feels he must do every time he's asked. He's probably reached a point where he's continually saying "Been there, done that" as far as talking about DS9, so he picks and chooses whenever he does so. Any rumors of mental illness may come from fans wondering why he isn't on the convention circuit that much, IMO.

 

[Mark_Nguyen]

Agreed. The guy has a job, financial security, and apparently no interest in going over old times for an additional paycheque (which, despite however much our favorite actors genuinely like their fans, is really the reason they do this). We all love his work, but any responsibility he had to DS9 ended at the wrap party for "What You Leave Behind". Which, I guess, he actually did.

Mark

 

[Kor]

Generally a broken arm or the flu, a person has for a time then gets better.

People with a broken arm or the flu font run at you from across s parking lot or across the street shouting gibberish and waving their arms, because of the broken arm or flu.

Mental illness has this stigma because unless you live under a rock you most likely have witnessed the above mentioned nonsensical ravings at least once.

If you have a broken arm or flu that you can't get over on your own, then you go to a doctor for treatment and nobody bats an eye.

But the instant you go to a psychiatrist, psychologist, or counselor for help with mental or emotional issues, then people look at you sideways like the issue is all your fault and there's something morally wrong with your personal character. That's the kind of stigma I'm talking about.

Kor

 

[tomalak301]

Quite insane. Watch "The Captains"

I did and loved what he had to say. Was he out of it, kinda. But it still felt really intellectual to me.

 

[Sci]

He's not insane and I see no reason to think he's mentally ill. Yeah, he's a bit different, but nothing about his behavior in The Captains indicates a disconnect from reality. Not every perspective on the world that diverges from the mainstream has to be pathologized.

 

[Leviathan]

And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. Unfortunately, the society we live in puts a stigma on mental health for some unfathomable reason, whereas there is no stigma around physical ailments such as having a broken arm or the flu. I find that quite hypocritical.

Kor

The stigma is backwards. It's the "normal" humans you have to watch out for. Devious little bastards.

 

[Tenacity]

If you have a broken arm or flu that you can't get over on your own, then you go to a doctor for treatment and nobody bats an eye.

Anyone in the general population can experience a broke limb or the flu, that's not the case with a serious mental condition.

Having the flu doesn't cause you to stand in the middle of a public bus and yell at the other passagers.

 

[RuthlessNate]

I remember seeing him on stage at a con in Tulsa in 2008 or so. He came up on stage and with no preamble, began singing a poem he had written for five or six minutes, then took questions. He was very pleasant, and maybe a bit of an oddball, but he didn't seem like he had any mental health issues. Stuff can change in ten years, sure, but my guess he just likes to keep to himself these days.

 

[indranee]

He lives in the same town my parents do, and apparently my father has seen him and his wife at a Trader Joes a few times. As far as we know, he's doing fine and teaching. Nothing wrong with leaving behind that which should be left behind.

He's left DS9 behind and moved on. Nothing wrong with that.