hag6:
That Charles Gross video fulfills like the actual real definition of camp: not the action of the video but the actions he is describing doing in the video. Having very good taste and knowing it (being an admirer of expertly-prepared espresso) and yet liking something that is in poor taste (burnt gas station coffee, black or with a packet of sugar) in earnest KNOWING that other people think it’s bad is what camp appreciation is like exactly. And on top of that he has this beautiful, descriptive account of drinking that black coffee that takes it to the level of camp appreciation.
And Charles gross being extremely wealthy and having this super-calm yet uncanny internet presence just adds to it. The truest definition of camp is the one outlined by Mark Booth in his book Camp (which was a critique of Notes on Camp), in which Booth argues that camp is an ACTION not an adjective. Meaning, there are camp PEOPLE who like things in a camp way instead of there being camp things. Charles Gross is certainly acting like one of those camp people in a very specific way.
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