I can't remember when I got these books, it would've been between 2003-2007. I know I was still in school. I was a huge fan of the show, my mom and I watched it as it aired and were so bummed when it was canceled. I'd love to remember when I got this.
I remember there was this website online I'd chat with people about the show. We all signed a petition to try and get them to make a DVD box set for the show. Downloading shows wasn't quite as popular at the time, and the video quality back then was quite poor once uploaded to a video streaming site.
I just finished watching Freaks & Geeks for the first time….. beautifully done, perfect - no notes.
Now what do I do!!!! I want more….
I don’t know Jerry personally and I’m not connected to this fundraiser. I just came across it when I looked him up during a rewatch of this amazing show and thought some people here might want to know.
Jerry Messing played Gordon Crisp on Freaks and Geeks. A lot of people also know his face without knowing his name: he became the “Fedora Guy” / “m’lady” meme that Reddit and the wider internet have used for years.
The real person behind the meme has apparently had a very rough few years. In 2021, Jerry was hospitalized with COVID, spent time on a ventilator, and later spoke publicly about being partially paralyzed and unable to walk without assistance. There was an earlier medical fundraiser for his recovery, and now it looks like he's having some ongoing hardship.
I know the internet can be brutal with meme people, especially when someone’s face becomes shorthand for a stereotype. But in this case, there’s an actual person behind the joke, from a show a lot of us love, and he seems to be in a genuinely difficult situation.
If Jerry’s face has ever made the rounds on your feed, or if you remember him from Freaks and Geeks, let's do the good thing that the internet can do and send a little kindness in Jerry's direction!
GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/ed23ac016
Who gave the best / your favorite acting performance in Freaks and Geeks?
Vote here: https://strawpoll.com/poy9kKEa8gJ
Unfortunately the polls on reddit allow only six choices, so I made a strawpoll with all the performances. Enjoy and discuss : )