A follower on the cult-run Facebook forum, Mad About the Boy, asked adminion Simon Constable about our publication of the Jeanne De Recqueville biography of Valentino which Renato translated and I edited. The exchange is excerpted below.
Here we document Constable deterring a new follower on Mad About the Boy from even mentioning our book at all. This when I believe anyone interested sincerely in Valentino should own and know De Recqueville's book. It is unique in many ways and has been cited as a source in every Valentino biography since its original publication. Renato made it available in English for the first time.
Constable bans any mention of the book and accuses the follower of “promoting” the book as if that/reading a book was a sin. This while demanding a thank-you for censoring reading material so someone can form their own opinion.
I post these two excerpts of the exchange about us and one of our books on Mad About the Boy, to document the cult censoring and as proof they are doing exactly what I claim. And to call them out for having zero real interest in Valentino. Valentino for the “Valentino Studies Community” is an ego-driven fantasy game... like fantasy football.
And here follows, Constable censoring some literature on Valentino (which is a defining aspect of cult behavior) to a new follower and threatening their deletion from the group. I share these two excerpts under Fair Use permission guidelines to illustrate my point in this narrative.
