1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:03,920 Speaker 1: If you're listening to the Jonesy and Demanda podcast, Hello. 2 00:00:03,720 --> 00:00:06,040 Speaker 2: How are we very well? I think you want to 3 00:00:06,080 --> 00:00:08,160 Speaker 2: talk about James Van der Beek today. 4 00:00:08,960 --> 00:00:11,400 Speaker 1: Yes, this story has taken a bit of a turn 5 00:00:11,680 --> 00:00:14,600 Speaker 1: this week. We had the very sad news last week 6 00:00:14,640 --> 00:00:17,680 Speaker 1: that actor James Van der Beek had passed away of 7 00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:21,240 Speaker 1: Dawson's Creek fame. You might also know him from Varsity Blues. 8 00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:24,360 Speaker 1: He sadly died at just age forty eight after a 9 00:00:24,400 --> 00:00:27,760 Speaker 1: battle with colorectal cancer. Now, he went public with that 10 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:30,920 Speaker 1: diagnosis in twenty twenty four, so we knew that he 11 00:00:30,960 --> 00:00:33,760 Speaker 1: had been really unwell for quite some time. He wasn't 12 00:00:33,800 --> 00:00:37,440 Speaker 1: involved in a Dawson's Creek reunion last year, but he 13 00:00:37,520 --> 00:00:40,879 Speaker 1: leaves behind his wife, Kimberly, and their six young children, 14 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:44,320 Speaker 1: so massive family. Now. In the days after he died, 15 00:00:44,479 --> 00:00:48,040 Speaker 1: his friends set up a go fund Me which explained 16 00:00:48,120 --> 00:00:51,400 Speaker 1: basically that his wife and their six kids were facing 17 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:56,760 Speaker 1: all of this uncertainty with financial insecurity because the ongoing 18 00:00:56,840 --> 00:01:00,000 Speaker 1: cancer treatment cost them so much money and essentially left 19 00:01:00,080 --> 00:01:02,600 Speaker 1: them out of funds. In the words of this GoFundMe, 20 00:01:03,280 --> 00:01:05,600 Speaker 1: so as I'm speaking to you, this page is sitting 21 00:01:05,600 --> 00:01:09,240 Speaker 1: on about two point seven million US dollars. That's nearly 22 00:01:09,400 --> 00:01:12,959 Speaker 1: three point eight million dossie dollars. And there have been 23 00:01:12,959 --> 00:01:16,400 Speaker 1: some pretty big donations from celebrity names. We've got Zoe 24 00:01:16,560 --> 00:01:19,679 Speaker 1: Saldana who's pledged two and a half grand per month 25 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:23,120 Speaker 1: to the family, so like an ongoing payment plan. Stephen 26 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:27,640 Speaker 1: Spielberg donated twenty five thousand dollars, and the director of Wicked, 27 00:01:27,840 --> 00:01:31,360 Speaker 1: John Chu also donated ten grand. Now, all of that's 28 00:01:31,400 --> 00:01:35,040 Speaker 1: well and good, but it's being reported that James Vanderbeek 29 00:01:35,160 --> 00:01:40,880 Speaker 1: purchased a multimillion dollar Texas ranch just weeks before he died, 30 00:01:41,280 --> 00:01:44,000 Speaker 1: So there's been a little bit of backlash about that 31 00:01:44,080 --> 00:01:46,760 Speaker 1: purchase and whether or not the money needed to be raised. 32 00:01:47,160 --> 00:01:49,720 Speaker 1: There's a website in the US called realtor dot com 33 00:01:49,760 --> 00:01:53,880 Speaker 1: and that indicates that Vanderbeek was renting the ranch initially 34 00:01:53,960 --> 00:01:58,040 Speaker 1: in twenty twenty before eventually purchasing it for six point 35 00:01:58,120 --> 00:02:02,400 Speaker 1: seven million dollars in January. Now, there was some backlash 36 00:02:02,480 --> 00:02:06,400 Speaker 1: to this, clearly, but representatives for the family have spoken out. 37 00:02:06,440 --> 00:02:10,160 Speaker 1: They released a statement to People magazine saying that James 38 00:02:10,200 --> 00:02:13,080 Speaker 1: secured a down payment for the ranch with the help 39 00:02:13,120 --> 00:02:16,480 Speaker 1: of friends through a trust so they could shift from 40 00:02:16,520 --> 00:02:20,560 Speaker 1: renting to having a mortgage. So a bit of clarity there, 41 00:02:20,600 --> 00:02:23,919 Speaker 1: but it hasn't stopped people from calling for a refund 42 00:02:24,000 --> 00:02:26,880 Speaker 1: for the go fundme fundraiser to be refunded to all 43 00:02:26,880 --> 00:02:29,480 Speaker 1: the people who pledged. Very complicated. 44 00:02:29,919 --> 00:02:32,280 Speaker 2: It's interesting that I saw some of the dialogue around 45 00:02:32,360 --> 00:02:34,760 Speaker 2: this was he was in Dawson's Creek and that was 46 00:02:34,760 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 2: when he was much younger, as you say, Varsity Blues. 47 00:02:37,480 --> 00:02:39,880 Speaker 2: It wasn't like he was in a series of Marvel 48 00:02:39,960 --> 00:02:43,359 Speaker 2: films or anything. But at the same time, why was 49 00:02:43,400 --> 00:02:48,560 Speaker 2: he so broke? And yet, as you say, in the States, 50 00:02:48,760 --> 00:02:51,760 Speaker 2: the cost of cancer treatment is extraordinary. 51 00:02:52,600 --> 00:02:55,000 Speaker 1: Yeah, I think the missing piece maybe from the conversation 52 00:02:55,120 --> 00:02:57,960 Speaker 1: is exactly what you're saying, Amanda. It would cost so 53 00:02:58,160 --> 00:03:01,000 Speaker 1: much money to receive treatment care for this kind of 54 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:04,560 Speaker 1: cancer in Australia, but so lucky with our system. You've 55 00:03:04,560 --> 00:03:08,040 Speaker 1: got to remember that the US health system is entirely privatized. 56 00:03:08,440 --> 00:03:11,560 Speaker 1: Just a trip to the emergency department can cost families, 57 00:03:11,800 --> 00:03:14,520 Speaker 1: you know, upwards of fifty thousand dollars. Families end up 58 00:03:14,560 --> 00:03:17,320 Speaker 1: paying stuff back for their entire lives, just for the 59 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:20,000 Speaker 1: bare minimum kind of treatments. So I'm sure those hospital 60 00:03:20,040 --> 00:03:22,760 Speaker 1: bills were enormous. And as you said, it's not like 61 00:03:22,880 --> 00:03:25,960 Speaker 1: he was, you know, working as a big Hollywood star. 62 00:03:26,360 --> 00:03:28,560 Speaker 1: He was a massive star of the nineties and the 63 00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:33,079 Speaker 1: early two thousands, and with six kids, christ that would. 64 00:03:32,880 --> 00:03:35,600 Speaker 2: Have been again, yeah, now, what do you buy a 65 00:03:35,600 --> 00:03:36,680 Speaker 2: little house on the prairie? 66 00:03:37,440 --> 00:03:39,440 Speaker 1: What's that joint is that they're going to be their 67 00:03:39,480 --> 00:03:42,760 Speaker 1: new residence. It's a sprawling Texas ranch, I'll have you know. 68 00:03:43,080 --> 00:03:45,040 Speaker 2: But also when he was in Dawson's Creek, I don't 69 00:03:45,040 --> 00:03:47,560 Speaker 2: think they get paid for residuals. So it's not right 70 00:03:47,720 --> 00:03:49,880 Speaker 2: that would have set him up for life. That's not 71 00:03:50,000 --> 00:03:50,600 Speaker 2: that story. 72 00:03:50,880 --> 00:03:52,720 Speaker 1: And who could have known at the start of Dawson's 73 00:03:52,720 --> 00:03:55,280 Speaker 1: Creek how successful that show would have been. And he 74 00:03:55,360 --> 00:03:57,280 Speaker 1: was very very young at the time and may not 75 00:03:57,320 --> 00:04:00,680 Speaker 1: have negotiated a lucrative contract for himself. Yeah. 76 00:04:00,960 --> 00:04:03,360 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's no dukes, it hazard, that's for sure. Well 77 00:04:03,560 --> 00:04:06,560 Speaker 2: on any level, what is what does equate with dukes 78 00:04:06,560 --> 00:04:07,400 Speaker 2: of ham Thank 79 00:04:07,440 --> 00:04:08,840 Speaker 1: You for bringing us up to speed.