IN THE AIR has a suspicion that James Franco is really a series of robots engineered during the Cold War to seduce enemies and steal atomic secrets — these robots just happened to develop the ability to feel and turned their new emotional faculty to an appreciation of art and literature. There is much evidence to support this theory, only the most recent of which is the fact, confirmed by Franco’s publicist, Genevieve Penn, that the actor will be attending both Yale University (for a PhD in English, after Harold Bloom sent him an email asking him to “please come”) and the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), starting this fall.
While IN THE AIR wants to think that this is physically impossible (the schools are in different states), it’s possible to suspend some disbelief based on the fact that Franco has pulled a stunt like this before: this year he completed simultaneous M.F.A. programs in writing at NYU and Columbia University.
Now, none of this would be that impressive were it not for the fact that Franco has — at the same time that he’s been pursuing all of this higher education — been collaborating with some of the most prominent (and most remarkable) people in the art world. Last year, he conducted a video interview with Marina Abramovic for the Wall Street Journal in which he can be seen with the artist, wearing matching lab coats, peeling almonds, and eating gold.
If that were not enough to make IN THE AIR drool with envy, Jeffrey Deitch said, in a recent interview with the Los Angeles Times, “I wish Andy were here to meet James Franco. Andy would have been so enthusiastic.” Yes, Deitch is talking about Andy Warhol. He’s alluding to the fact that MOCA plans to screen a film that James Franco is making about the character he has been playing on General Hospital (“Franco,” the artist, who lands a show at the MOCA). IN THE AIR’s mind reels.
Oh yeah, and he’s been making movies, or whatever.
