Marcie Lucas, Fifteen years as a celebrity blogger
“It’s hard to say something you’ve done has been a happy time in all that you do, but it hasn’t.”
Hi, my name is Marcie Lucas owner of the Simply line: Simply Daniel Radcliffe, Simply Dane DeHaan, Simply Elijah Wood, Simply Leonardo DiCaprio, Simply James McAvoy and Simply Mitchell Kummen. Years back you probably wouldn’t have known who I was. My first website was based on James Cameron’s Titanic back in 1999. I was lousy at websites I didn’t know what html was or php and I couldn’t even do a graphic. I had to use free graphics from other websites. When people started complaining that I was claiming something that wasn’t mine. I said to hell with it. I am gonna learn on my own. It was hard, as I didn’t know anything at all. My first graphics were horrible. That’s the honest truth.
My boyfriend, Anthony Lucas who is now my husband taught me so much, made me learn the hard way to learn html code through Netscape composer. He got frustrated and got mad at me several times. Yes, I can be stubborn. But after that long time of trying. I’ve finally began to understand. From there I went off on my own and I can’t believe I’ve done it for so long, what started as a side hobby began to be much more. The realness of it hit me, when I received a email from Steven Rea, Film critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer . I remember the call that morning, hearing everything at the newspaper in the background it was exciting for me to be interviewed on Leonardo DiCaprio’s coffee venture. But things did not stop there. Graham Norton, a television show in the UK emailed me one morning. I was dead tired, stood up all night and replied. The email had been blank so contacting whomever it was as I did, I waited. They mentioned that they wanted to use Simply Daniel Radcliffe for their show to show to Dan. I was saying to myself, “Sure why not.” I didn’t think anything of it and I didn’t know what they were going to use until after. I was blushing when their recording was aired. I was like, “Oh no, not my writing. Daniel was never meant to see that.” But I got to see the reaction on Dan’s face. God to think of what he might think of me personally. I don’t even wanna know. And to think of all the autographs he’s done for me without never knowing who I was. He’s special to me for many reasons. He’s helped me through my darkest times.
I’ve gotten lucky to promote films for my favorite actors and all the companies and promoters out there for giving me a chance to do this for them is a wonderful privilege. I’ve worked very hard sometimes not eating, staying up all hours of the night and sometimes not sleeping at all with being a full time mom to three children. You can see all of my work was not in vain. People might think I got it easy, that’s not the case because ten years ago I didn’t have any of this. I tried so hard. But it was the fans who made me a better person, the fans at Simply Daniel Radcliffe for caring about me. Who since the incident in 2012 have been a pleasure to know. Suicide for me has been with me since I was fifteen. I think about it all the time even now. But something changed after the fans showed me I am more than a website. The people at the Trevor Project whom I wanna thank for being so kind. I would say more, but its personal so I’ll end it on that.
I’ve learned so much since 1999. The first time I worked on a new actor, Dane DeHaan. I liked his personality and his acting. While working on him I started a process. A process I now do for all actors I work on. I’m not telling you what my process is, but it gives me firsthand knowledge of who they are and why they chose to become an actor.
The newest site I’ve worked on is Mitchell Kummen. Horns for me is special not just cause of Daniel Radcliffe, but because of Joe Hill. I’ve been a fan of his father, Stephen King for so long. It gave me the love of horror movies and to be a writer. Yes I love writing, Dane DeHaan acting out my writing on Comedy Central was a total laugh. I can’t begin to tell you how thrilled I was I was like, “Oh no not again.” But he did good playing the Dane I pictured in my writing. Thank you, Dane for having the courage to pull off my crazy writing.
Mitchell Kummen was a new start for me, the youngest actor I ever worked on was Daniel Radcliffe during Potter. Since then no one else that young has been in my life. For those of you that don’t know Mitchell, he’s a wonderful young actor in Horns as the young Ig Perrish. Mitchell was a project I took up because he impressed me with his acting in Horns. I don’t do websites just for anyone. I have to connect with an actor to do a website in the first place. He reminded me a lot about my own children. My daughter who is his age and my son. He needed to be known to people. That’s what I felt in my heart. He will probably be the last I ever do and I wish the best for him. He has talent, I see it. Just like I did with Dane DeHaan. And that’s why I built my websites, the men who gave their talent for us to see and made me who I become. A devoted fan, graphic designer, and web designer. A person who didn’t know a thing and learned so much.
Thank you to all the people out there who have followed me, gave their support and believed I could do this. It’s been a pleasure. Thank you. Today, I celebrate fifteen years!
Marcie Lucas