Dr. Morbius (Bill Weber) RIP

Did Morbs post on music threads? I knew him for film, politics, and baseball, and I find myself wondering today what he liked musically.

I only remember him really loving Stephin Merritt/The Magnetic Fields.

As a long time reader/occasional poster, Morbs is one of those folks (like so many of you on here) who I pay attention to with interest when he talks about subjects close to his heart. Film, in this case, I know nothing about Baseball.

I would follow up on things he brought to light and without having any direct exchange with Morbs, he tangibly expanded my appreciation of certain corners of that world. He was a pillar of ILX. So, thanks Bill, and go gently.

Dan Petersen, one of the more remarkable things about him hanging out with me at DJ gigs was that I was often playing Ableton techno/house sets to crowds of drunk 20-somethings like myself, and he didn't care much for the music I was playing...but he hung out with me anyway.

iirc he was a Replacements fan and would post about them and other 80s US underground bands, no doubt others will know a lot more though

Absolutely a foundational ILX figure for me and though I've never met anyone here irl near the top of my list of posters with whom I would want to have a drink.

I only tangled with him once here when his constant withering political fury drove me over the line and the short exchange taught me how smart he was and not to tug on superman's cape.

RIP, Dr. Morbius. When our Mets finally win the World Series again I will be thinking of you.

RIP

Beautiful picture, and lovely words from j0rdan where I heard about this on twitter. Thx Jordan

i hate to hear this. loved him so much. he was the ilxor for me whose in person personality seemed to differ the most from his online one - he seemed so fun and loveable in person, but then after meeting him i realized that's what he was like online too, i'd just been reading him wrong. learned a lot from him about such diverse things.

I’m so sad. This thread is beautiful. Bill was an essential part of NYC visits to me, even if we only chatted for a few minutes or were in the same space for a few hours. I haven’t been to NYC is about 7 years, sadly, bc life. I’m glad I got to see a baseball game with him once, and sad we never got the Expos back here in Montreal because I would definitely have gone to games at the big O if he’d come up for them. He was a grounding presence to me, always smart, always kind. I wish he could’ve met my kid; I think he would have made him laugh. He had a good laugh. Sigh. Rest In Peace, Morbs.

RIP, Dr. Morbius. When our Mets finally win the World Series again I will be thinking of you.

― He was very mean to Mr. Chamillionaire (PBKR), Thursday, October 22, 2020 8:18 AM (thirteen minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

my baseball fandom is waning a bit but this..
always valued his film posts and loved reading yall's remembrances

terrible, terrible news. RIP Dr Morbius

He was one of the first people to engage with me on here, in a film results thread, haha
We were scathing about each other’s opinions but I could have been anyone and his engagement was a type of generosity. Later we were left-liberal or left of liberal in the Obama years, a somewhat lonely position. now all of witter is dsa, ml or anarcho-communist ofc. I always felt a bond with him in threads from jean simmons to Louis Malle. fondly remembered

count me among those who occasionally butted heads with him and didnt have the pleasure of making his acquaintance. but seeing everyone -- including some very missed old regulars -- and their stories of shared experiences and passions...it enhances the myth and legend of dr morbius for me. this board and this world are lesser for his absence.

Very sad news but glad to hear how well loved he was, condolences to all who knew him. This place won't be the same without him.

If we can draw a lesson here, it's to meet as many ILXors irl as possible.

Despite what you're reading, we're all still figments of your imagination, Ned.

It is (or at least was) easy to do if you live in a big city that attracts tourists and have a social life that's built around cultural events, and it certainly sounds like Morbs had that.

It's also astonishing to think that you can post on the same message board as someone for 15-20 years and still miss aspects of their character that are there plain to see, I had no idea he was one of ILX's go-to baseball experts, for example.

Very sad news. You all who knew him off the board have my sincere sympathies--I'm also jealous, these stories about him are deeply touching and we shared a lot of interests (we also clearly read many of the same blogs during the W years--e.g., I had actually heard of Perrin before ilx). As many have said, he was a pillar around here and, due to my habit of reading old threads after watching classic movies, I may have read more from him than almost any other poster. I doubt I registered much as a poster for him, but I will miss him.

Did Morbs post on music threads?

I can't think of any specific examples, but sometimes in his very infrequent appearances on ILM, I think you saw a bit more clearly the gentleness others have been giving such wonderful testimony to.

Despite what you're reading, we're all still figments of your imagination, Ned.

I have met Ned in person, and let me tell you, you never forget how lovely and luxurious that mane is once you witness it

Essential to understanding Bill was his coming of age in every sense at the dawn of the Reagan era. The Democratic Party he read about and experienced -- the union-strong FDR coalition -- was in its death throes. Then AIDS happened. There's no way around the fact that he came across as a irascible curmudgeon because he grew tired of having to repeat himself as the consequences of those death throes and Reagan's influence spiraled past the GOP and into younger Dems and liberals. That's why I keep coming back to my definition of a cynic: a closet sentimentalist frustrated by the stubbornness with which life doesn't match one's ideals. Lord knows we fought in person and on this board: we shared a sensibility but not taste. But I know he respected and loved me, and part of those things means annoyance that I couldn't see things his way lol.

To his immense credit, Bill's passion for film and baseball kept him alive in every sense until his body couldn't anymore.

RIP to the good Dr Morbius. Condolences to those who knew him. Will miss him here, especially on baseball threads. He got me to dip my toe into sabermetrics, before i found myself overwhelmed and dipped out again. So many great reminiscences itt. Thanks especially to j0rdan for his.

I think his presence on ILM is more focussed than infrequent - 36 posts on the 2020 WFMU Fundraising thread.

I think you saw a bit more clearly the gentleness others have been giving such wonderful testimony to.

Yeah, up to a point: Regis Philbin "When You're Smiling"

I just meant he was obviously less invested in ILM. And while Regis Philbin isn't really the kind of ILM thread I had in mind, I did say "sometimes" :)

rip morbz!

Believe there will be an WFMU tribute early next month. I can say no more.

It's no exaggeration to say that I've slowly come to take those scratchy, juddering, old-timey no-color films more seriously in part due to his needling. I doubt I would have so much pre-WWII film in my collection without his influence.

I love when I go to log some obscure '30s short subject on Letterboxd and see that Bill was among the single-digit number of people who've done likewise. It happens a lot. And I hope it continues to happen a lot.

When it comes to Jerry Lewis there's only the French left now :(

Did a Gmail search and found an 2008 email from Bill, subject line "Indie Juno crap," with a link to an article about what "indie" means in the context of the movie Juno (a very 2008 topic and one I was especially interested in at the time). "Wow John," he wrote, "better your interests than mine..."

It's a small thing, but I think it says a lot about him: He couldn't help being dismissive, but I'm touched that he saw something and thought to send it to me.

Gutted. I've got nothing more to say other than The King of Comedy is as great as he promised.

Heartbroken

He also seemed to have more than a passing familiarity with and affection for pre-rock modes of popular music and cabaret culture. I remember him once praising the lyrical stylings of Alan and Marilyn Bergman.

This is very sad, I will miss Dr. Morbius very much.

thanks to everyone who knew him irl for your posts, he always seemed the curmudgeon with a heart of gold and i'm glad to hear that he was.

don't have anything to add other than he will be greatly missed, i consider him one of the handful of real ilx legendary posters and the few times i sparred with him sufficiently in a politics thread to have him snap back at me i was secretly kind of thrilled to be on the receiving end one of his volleys.

RIP morbs the internet won't be the same without you.

Sad to hear this. It's really nice to read all of these beautiful remembrances.

Oh, Bill. He let me like my dumb martial arts movies and even took me to a kung-fu film fest once--pearls before swine, given my ignorance about any kind of film. Another time, we saw "Kiss Me, Kate" in 3-D at the Lincoln Center Theater just because we could, on a week day when everyone else was working and the other 5 people in the theater were obvious retirees.

I skated over his most venomous posts because they just didn't register as coming from the gentle, affable friend I knew, who knew everyone, it seemed, and knew a lot about everything. His lifelong rejection of cell phones and his perambulations around NYC while he waited for the rest of us to show up to places are just a small piece of the legend.

before then I don't think I'd appreciated the obvious and visible love and affection in which he was held by a group of people much younger than him

Bill met all of us where we were and whatever we were interested in, generously sharing everything he knew on a variety of subjects, and never foregrounding himself. It was years before I realized, as someone whose gay friends were mostly much younger, that Bill had lived through AIDS in NYC when a generation was lost, and what that meant to who he became.

As always, he's gone down the road a little ahead of us and will no doubt have some caustic observations to share when we catch up.

I think I think of "how fast could i k.o. this chickenshit hillbilly?" about once a month

RIP Morbs
In honor should post some Dennis Perrin tweets

wow in orbit thank you for writing that ;_;

RIP. Dr. Morbius. A legend of ILX.

Damn, this thread makes me misty all over again every time I open it.

I think I think of "how fast could i k.o. this chickenshit hillbilly?" about once a month

― Blues Guitar Solo Heatmap (Free Download) (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Thursday, October 22, 2020 11:00 AM (six minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

It only grows more relevant with time. That and "you *will* sequentially meet me and Brooklyn pavement" are evergreen.

may some of y'all's consciences be very heavy on you for a bit.

― Three Word Username, Thursday, October 22, 2020 7:36 AM (three hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

one of the things that made Morbz great is he would never post something this smarmy

Agreed.

For real. Morbs was not afraid of conflict and he was always 100% himself whether people liked it or not. He wasn’t some wilting flower people should feel guilty about arguing with.

We mourn the loss of Bill Weber, a beloved member of the WFMU family. His sister wrote: "A champion of the oppressed, Bill fought for the rights of all people 'othered' - LGBTQ+, Black, Brown, disabled, imprisoned, asylum seeking. Bill loved his NY Mets, WFMU, SABR, & film." 1/2. pic.twitter.com/QxlldOWvBN

— WFMU (@WFMU) October 22, 2020

Bill was a dedicated WFMU supporter and volunteer for decades, and a welcome presence at our Record Fairs and fundraising marathons. He was also a big part of the ILX community, and we share in their sorrow over his passing after facing a challenging illness for many years. RIP.

— WFMU (@WFMU) October 22, 2020

<3

just donated $20 to WFMU

$20 that won't go to Joe Biden, no better tribute.

This is heartbreaking. And there’s so many lovely posts in this thread.

I thought of Morbs frequently while reading the compilation of NY Press movie reviews, musing that Morbs really seemed like the best kind of synthesis of '90s-era Cheshire and White sensibilities.