HI ALL! 'Tis I,
your loving hostess with the mostess!
Believe it or not, back in the
day people would email me thinking I was Arleen Sorkin, or had
a direct line to her, or was somehow associated with DC Comics or
Warner Bros.
Not so!
So... just who am
I?
Who is the gal behind the
obsessive-compulsive website dedicated to a pair of psychotic,
dangerously unpredictable clowns?
Welp... here's just a little
information about me.
Name: Elise
Nicknames: Princess Bee, e the bee, peebs, The Bee, Ee
Age: Let me put it this way: I'm over twenty, under
thirty but the younger you tell me you think I am, the better friends
we're gonna be :)
Hair: Red
Eyes: Blue
Measurements: Perfect
Location: Sydney, Australia
I am: Fabulous.
In more detail: I'm a dancer (poledancing,
bellydancing and ballet) and a writer. I'm High Femme, submissive,
a feminist and pansexual. I enjoy reading, going to live theatre
of any sort, art and other cultural shinnanigans, light hearted movies
(particularly trashy cheerleader movies and B-Grade monster flicks),
dining out, circus arts, BDSM, painting and singing. I'm a fitness
and health freak who enjoys a little sin now and then. I'm politically
and physically active; highly intelligent and extremely passionate. I'm
unashamedly consumeristic and exceptionally fond of money. I have a huge
repro vintage wardrobe and way too many shoes. I'm gregarious and
charismatic, but tend towards a bit of hermit-ness now and then (it's
the writer in me). I'm a Burlesque performer who can spin her pasties her
different directions, and very proud of it too! I'm obsessively fond
of the colour pink, it's 'my' colour and has been for over six years.
So. You know. Like I said: fabulous.
Idols: Marilyn Monroe;
Harley Quinn
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Me in cosplay
as Harley Quinn at Supanova 2009
Me and Harley:
The best kind of coincidence - an Alex Ross illustration
of Harley with an uncanncy resemblance to yours truly! See Batman Black
& White vol 2!
I first caught a glimpse of Harley in the episode
'Joker's Favour', in her very first scene whilst distractedly
channel-surfing one day in the 1990s. She immediately intrigued me, with
her fabulous costume, striking voice and, of course, her interaction
with Joker, whistling him on. It was bent and twisted and cute and,
naturally, I liked it.
So I sat down to watch, and saw the episode through
to the end. I thought it was great, and Harley's little poem to
Commissioner G made a big impression on me; I loved the sense of
danger and insanity beneath her playful exterior.
But I never made any effort to watch another Batman cartoon until
sometime later... I don't know how long... when I caught 'Trial'
halfway through, once again just randomly channel-surfing. Again, Harley,
swooning over The Joker. It attracted me more powerfully this time and
I was determined to tape every Batman episode after that until she
appeared again, the B:TAS show at that time being on once a week. I can't
even describe the agony of waiting for the next week's show, not sure if
it would be an episode featuring Harley, but somehow... somehow KNOWING it
would be... WELL.
As luck would have it 'Harlequinade' was the epsiode straight
after 'Trial' - which, as we know doesn't just FEATURE Harley, but STARS
Harley. I was at the dentists' at the time and when I got home and rewound
that tape only to see Harley's face on the intro panel - I could scarcely
believe it, the synchronicity of fate. Well, that episode clinched it. I
was hooked, line and sinker. ;)
It was the early days of the Internet gradually
becoming a household thing, and it didn't take me too long to
start trawling the web. I found an absolutely ancient website,
Harley's Homepage, literally the first one on the web, which introduced
me to the 'Mad Love' comic. I can't even EXPLAIN the sensation that ran
through my body when I realised there were other incarnations of Harley,
especially ones that had such rauchiness going on between her and Joker!
More fuel to feed the fire!! I had to travel an hour out of town to a
comic book shop that had 'Mad Love' on the shelves at the time, but there
was no way I could've waited to order one in to a store closer to home.
I HADDA HAVE IT! ;)
And... there were other Harley fans too! I should've
been glad, instead it made me MAD. I was intensely fixated and
quite possessive... don't ask me to explain it, I can't. Let's
just say I was going through a very weird and immature period,
okay?
Anyway, I resolved to build my own Harley website,
not wanting to do much, just express my love for her. The more
time passed, the more determined I became it should be the biggest
and best one on the web. There were a couple in those days, but none
of them comprehensive. I wanted to fill that gap.
With the aid of some wonderful friends I met
online, specifically Columbine and Query, as well as some other
absolutely lovely HQ and general Batman fans, I succeeded. I was
given Paul Dini's email address and used to harass the poor man
for MORE HARLEY INFO. He was always incredibly gracious and helpful
and I must send out a thank you to him for that. Onya Dini!
You have to understand - back then, it was INSANELY
difficult to get HQ related stuff in Australia. Comics were accessible
enough, but merchandise and the animated series? Forget it! You
were subject to syndication whims and most stores wouldn't stock.
I was absolutely reliant on my internet friends to help me get Harley
merchandise. By virtue of being webmistress of this website, I was
sent many things as gifts, for which I have to say a HUGE THANK YOU
to anyone who did such a thing who may read this - I have NEVER forgotten
it, it absolutely made me overwhelmed with joy. Harley was my drug,
I needed a constant fix, and you folks helped me out! ;)
You see, this was before television series on
DVD, before eBay was so comprehensive and all the rest of it. Nowadays,
it's so much easier. Back then, it was next to impossible. And,
oh yeah, I make a helluva lot more money these days! ;)
Harley
uses my real name to check into a hotel. See Gotham Adventures #10! Thanks
to Ty Templeton!
But I was a gal motivated
by passion and nothing was gonna stand in my way... and nor did
it... until I started to grow up a bit, in combination with a lacklustre
mainstream treatment of Harley.
I was frustrated, everyone called me Harley
and I felt like my identity was entirely tied to hers... once
I would've LOVED that, but it started to get to me. I still adored
her, don't get me wrong, I just wanted to walk my own walk for awhile.
And since I didn't like the mainstream direction at the time, I made
the decision to walk away.
Now, I never stopped loving HQ&J, I just
stopped being an active fan. I still felt very passionately
about Harley and the Joker and always recounted my days as her biggest fan
with pride.
True love never dies. In late December 2008 I
went to the movies and happened to see the preview for The Dark Knight.
I'd been looking forward to it anyway, but the incredibly intense emotions
that washed over me as I caught glimpse of Heath Ledger's Joker were overwhelming.
After the movie, I dragged my then-boyfriend to the comic book store where
he proceeded to buy me $200 worth of comics. I felt incredibly intimidated,
knowing I had years to catch up on... but I found out quickly that the path
was set.
By the new year I had updated the Haven. By February 2008 I had started writing
fanfiction. And then I simply couldn't be stopped. I was back, with a vengeance.
These days, however, I've got a better grip on
things. More sense of balance. Other priorities and interests
and projects to focus on. These days I just enjoy participating in the fandom
and interacting with other Harleyites as I indulge my passion for Harley
and her Puddin'.
I still have a very strong sense of connection and commonality with Harley.
I identify with her on many levels and the character really resonates with
me. She'll always be a part of my soul.
As for The Joker - well, it's thanks to Harley
that I got into The Joker too. Because part of my attraction
to Harley was identifying with her on many levels, it wasn't hard
for me to see what she saw in The Joker and to be affected by it.
What can I say? I adore him. Yes, he's sick, twisted and wrong. Many
of his actions are unutterably heinous. But there's... well... something
about him. It's irresistible, and compelling and fascinating. So maybe
I'm sick, twisted and wrong.
I can live with that!
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