A Slap to a Father's Face

This is Laurence Fishburne's hell.

As a proud father, a man can only hope to instill in his offspring the same values and positive character traits by which he, himself, has lived. That goes for any dad; but when you yourself have become rich and famous, you can't help but beam with pride in the opportunities that your hard work has not only produced for you, but for your child as well. And when you find out that your daughter wants to follow in your footsteps...well life just doesn't get much better, does it?

Fishburne, an acclaimed actor, has built a solid reputation for himself over his long career. He has starred in blockbuster films, and has become famous for numerous film, television, and stage roles; but he has never sold out in search of celebrity itself. So surely his 19 year old daughter, Montana, would do much the same in her burgeoning acting career, right?

Well...

In what surely has to be the press release most likely to make you start drinking before lunch today, Vivid Entertainment, the adult film company that gave us the notorious Kim Kardashian and Kendra Wilkinson tapes, explains Miss Fishburne's surprising foray into porn. "I view making this movie as an important first step in my career," she says. "I've watched how successful Kim Kardashian became and I think a lot of it was due to the release of her sex tape by Vivid. I'm hoping the same magic will work for me. I'm impatient about getting well-known and having more opportunities and this seemed like a great way to get started on it."

She's not joking, no matter how much her father wishes she was. And just how badly do you think Fishburne is wishing that he had one of those blue pills from The Matrix?

This story is a sad commentary on a generation of our society raised to value fame over the very trades which once earned this treasured commodity. People—like Laurence Fishburne—used to become actors because they loved theater and the art of being a true thespian; now acting isn't the destination itself, but instead a trifling means of merely being recognized at the Gucci store.

And what must all of the yet-to-be-discovered actresses out there think of this? The ones struggling, working as waitresses and Miller Lite girls to pay their bills while they pursue their dream of acting—how do they feel about Montana, at the seasoned age of 19, deciding her "career" isn't moving fast enough for her liking? What does it say about the trade they love when a teenager—who has had every opportunity and advantage you could dream of handed to her—is foregoing all of the years of paying dues, using a sextape to get herself to the top?

If I ever have the honor of meeting Mr. Fishburne, I'm buying him a drink. I think he's going to need it.