My mom and her sisters don't talk to one another. Her older sister's daughter (my mother's niece) doesn't talk to her own sister or mother, but is very close to my mother. That same older sister's husband's sister didn't talk to that sister either, but was close to my mother. I could add many more examples. In-laws and Outlaws.
We had a crazy neighbor when I was a teenager. Long story short, she was obsessed by "getting" my mother, who did her best to ignore it. Things were complicated because while the woman did not live on my street, she was best friends with our next-door-neighbor, and when my mom would go to her own car, Arlene would shout obscenities at her from the steps. I thought it was pretty crappy of our next-door neighbor Gail to allow it. (Incidentally, Arlene turned on Gail years ago, and afterwards she sued the county for money because her house literally sank far into the earth, so there is some justice.) But at the time I thought my mom went too far in being nice. The Friday before hs graduation I had a big party, & my mom ordered a sheet cake. I went with her to pick it up. As we walked from the parking space to the bakery, a car FLEW into the lot at us. Had I not jumped and grabbed my mom with me, we would have been mowed down. The car veered into a spot right nearby. Out steps Arlene with a big smile along with her young daughter. (How healthy.) I was shaking with anger, but my mom just stepped into the bakery. In my stupid youth I wished immediately that I had let Arlene hit me just to show her up. To this day I've never understood completely why my mother bent so far in terms of never doing anything to defend herself, especially since my miother can be hell on wheels when other people have given her crap. I imagine she didn't want to escalate the situations, but when somebody goes after you and your kid & harasses you by your home, action is warranted, IMO.
Many people have heard of the Bette Davis-Joan Crawford feud, which I was reminded of by the recent mention here of What Ever Happened To Baby Jane. And some people have speculated on David Letterman and Oprah Winfrey.
In my own life, I try to avoid pissing contests - not always easy in my family and my workplace. There are certainly exes I'd prefer not to bump into, but I can't say I'm feuding with anybody.
Now the questions.
- Are there feuds in your life? (In all seriousness, let's nobody refer to any squabbles between posters.
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- Are there celebrity feuds you "follow?"
- What would somebody have to do to you to draw you into an ongoing feud?
- Jake