Celebrity: (noun) 1. A well known person. 2. Fame, being famous. No doubt every simian tribe of hunter-gatherers had their local celebrities: the woman who gave birth to quintuplets, the boy who swallowed a porcupine and survived, the man who wrestled with a tyrannosaurus and... well, he probably would have died, but celebrity status would have been applied posthumously. If, however, the man wrestling with a Tyrannosaurus was a modern Hollywood celebrity, not only would he have lived, he would have pocketed something like $20 million for his efforts, and earned the adulation of several billion people. The global celebration of modern celebrity is partly a product of our pre-historic need for heroes. In a world where philosophers keep telling us that God is dead, the modern Hollywood celebrity also serves as a brittle substitute for both the post-Christian and pre-Christian need for deities. If, as is often claimed, Hollywood operates under the assumption that only eight different stories can be told, then all eight stories can be found in the Greek Myths, with the exception of the Christian ideal that the weak, not the strong, are blessed. Like the Greek Gods and Heroes, Hollywood celebrities rarely die on screen. They often possess superhuman powers and are gilded with either Herculean invincibility or Venetian beauty. If they do die, it either represents a martyrdom like Christ's death, or is due to an Achilles heel or a dark fate, serving to heighten the tragedy. Finally, the Hollywood celebrity manifests a god-like ubiquity both on and off the screen- they can be in many places at one time - acting on thousands of screens, smiling from thousand of billboards and photographed and interviewed in thousan... ... middle of paper ... ...t - the news was so utterly contrary to the image Ford had created, both on screen and in his private life, over two decades. Marcel Duchamp, arguably the most influential and iconoclastic artist of the 20th Century, once said `Success is just a brush fire, you have to keep finding wood to feed it.' Never is this more true than with the Hollywood celebrity. The hundreds of celebrity successes, burning like brush-fires of variable intensity throughout the Hollywood Hills, are ultimately meaningless and palpably destructive to the film industry. In most cases, it just seems to be a matter of keeping up with the Jones's. Works Cited: Paul McDonald: The Star System (Wallflower Press 2000) Clive James: Fame in the 20th Century (BBC Books 1993)
For many of us “regular folk”, we dream of visiting California and seeing celebrities or even being one. We see Hollywood as a heaven or even a holy bubble that we all want to be in. This is not true for all, but it is for most. We as a society do not generally think of the negative impacts Hollywood and fame has on an individual. Carrie Fisher, with her wit, humor, and extreme honesty, takes us inside her life and gives us her insight on Hollywood based her upbringing. After going through multiple triumphs, tragedies, and revelations Fisher writes about it all in her book, Wishful Drinking, along with three other novels she has written. Now you see why I used the term “regular folk,” because Fisher is the opposite of a “regular folk.” Even
It disclosed people’s despair, fears, cowardice, as well as other negative feelings in front of difficulties and challenges, and exposed their stupidity by illustrating their ugliness and laughter as they watched wrestlers sabotaging one another and good friends turning against each other. Chris Hedges depicted a pseudo-world where people tend to seek comfort from other people’s misfortunes and care about nothing but fame and money. Under the “enormous positivity” created by the spectacle, the reality is actually a dead end. As it is said, “The modern spectacle depicts what society can deliver, but within the depiction what is permitted is rigidly distinguished from what is possible.” In the celebrity culture, fame and money are the images, pursued by the public, forming numerous social networks among people engaged. People will get lost alongside the road, yet he/she may not notice, because as it is said, “the spectacle is both the outcome and the goal of the dominant mode of production.” Images are unlimited goals, coming with countless outcomes. The spectacle keeps developing itself, as more and more people need no realities but more detailed
“Posts.” Fame is a dangerous Drug: A Phenomenological Glimpse of Celebrity.” N.p. ,n.d. Web 15. Feb 2014
The Celebrity as a Commodity Hurst introduced the idea of a commodity in the text. By definition, a commodity is something that is of use, advantage, or value. More directly, Hurst showed how people by use of their skills, looks, or names, could be used as advantages in society. He uses the examples of celebrities, sports figures, and beautiful people to show that people can be commodities. All of these groups bring some sort of recognition or attraction that is beneficial to a company, firm, or individual.
The star text of a celebrity can help to decipher their image and transitions they may undergo. In order to better understand these transitions, one must know the definition of a star text. A star text is the sum of everything we affiliate with celebrities, which includes their body of work, promotion, publicity, and audience participation (Jackson, 08/09/16). One must note that “celebrity doesn 't happen because someone has extraordinary qualities – it is discursively constructed by the way in which the person is publicised and meanings about them circulate” (O 'Shaughnessy and Stadler 424). Destiny Hope Cyrus, “an American singer and actress, became a sensation in the television series
The use of religion to shape the story, actions, and beliefs of new and twisted characters is not a new craze or sensation in the literary world. Greek mythology for century has inspired similar works like “Gladiator” (2000), Disney’s “Hercules” (1997), and even the newest movie “Mother!” (2017), all use religions or mythologies to shape the world around them. While this can create new and dynamic characteristics for characters made to retell the same tales or lessons as the original; the overall use of religion as a theme can lead to the generalizations of how some characters are portrayed. Archetypes and stereotypes presented by religious or mythological text limit the view of some and completely erase the identity of others.
A celebrity is not a person known for his/her talent or achievement, but an individual recognized for his/her reputation created by the media. The phase of stardom is slippery, and media may choose to represent celebrities varying from exaggerated admiration to mockery. The three texts chosen, movie "Sunset Boulevard", feature article "Over the Hilton" and television show "Celebrity Uncensored Six" are texts presenting different perception of celebrities than their usual images - either corrupted by the encircling media, overloads oneself with self-indulgence, or just mocks celebrity in a broad spectrum. Such media items empower and impresses the audience by perceiving celebrities as people who pay the price of privacy to gain well knowness, signifying the vanity of stardom from the commonly accepted images.
A new edition to the course lineup, this week's film classic, Sunset Boulevard. This film will focus on the culture and environment of the Hollywood studio system that produces the kind of motion pictures that the whole world recognizes as "Hollywood movies." There have been many movies from the silent era to the present that either glamorize or vilify the culture of Hollywood, typically focusing on the celebrities (both in front of and behind the camera) who populate the "dream factories" of Hollywood. But we cannot completely understand the culture of Hollywood unless we recognize that motion pictures are big business as well as entertainment, and that Hollywood necessarily includes both creative and commercial
Since ancient Greek times, the stories of heroes seemed to take the world by storm. Tales of these half-human half- gods intrigued many people and endured for centuries. This mythology has created one of the most successful movie genres in the world, making millions of dollars in box offices and sales in merchandise. The popularity of heroes did not go away over time, but rather it increased to a point where they are placed on a pedestal. Their stories and movies not only discuss important attributes people should have, but reflect the type of “savior” needed to fix the societal problems we face. The causes of their popularity are quite simple, people love entertainment and their ability to relate to the character. However, upon closer examination
In his article Stars as a Cinematic Phenomenon, he used the ‘photo effect’ conception of Roland Barthes to examine the present/ absent paradox of stars. He proposed influential qualitative distinctions in between stardom in films and television. He argued that ‘Stars are incomplete images outside the cinema: the performance of the film is the moment of completion of images in subsidiary circulation, in newspapers, fanzines, etc. Further, a paradox is present in these subsidiary forms. The star is at once ordinary and extraordinary, available for desire and unattainable. This paradox is repeated and intensified in cinema by the regime of presence-yet-absence that is the filmic image’(1992). Therefore, the impractical mode of ‘this is was’ on nature of stardom ‘awakens a series of psychic mechanisms which involve various impossible images’, such as ‘the narcissistic experience of the mirror phase’(1992). Ellis then continued to indicate televisual stardom, which is more current or ‘immediate’ than cinematic fame. He argued that ‘What television does present is the “personality”. The personality is someone who is famous for being famous and is famous only in so far as he or she makes frequent television appearances… In some ways, they are the opposite of stars, agreeable voids rather than sites of conflicting meanings’. Ellis’ thesis definitely points out the differences between cinema and television fame, due to the multimedia and transmedia of current era implies a much more diverse and unpredictable relationship in between stars’ images in any kind of
Much of today’s society seems obsessed on what actors/actress, athletes, and music artist are wearing, eating, who they are marrying, dating, where they are vacationing, what affairs they are having or have had, and how they live their everyday lives. What’s so interesting about this obsession is as a society we are implacable and often place celebrities on a pedestal, only to destroy them when they are illusive or promiscuous. Media outlets are swift to report when celebrities are in trouble but quickly forget all their accomplishments. It’s as if we want them to be perfect but once they are associated with a scandal we embark on destroying their reputation and character. Should society hold celebrities to higher standards just because they are paid millions for endorsements and a craft they worked hard to perfect? Do we as a society have the right to castigate celebrities when they misbehave? Do celebrities have the right to become livid when they are focused on for their immoral behavior? Do they love the media attention only when it benefits them? Before we can answer the above questions, would we, furthermore, can we live our life as a celebrity if given the opportunity?
When Brittany Murphy died, when Lindsay Lohan was jailed, when Britney Spears shaved off her hair, the question was asked – what have we done to these kids? We all love rags to riches stories, but it seems that the people are almost as fond of riches to rags – or let’s say, stardom to failure. What happens when a successful young performer becomes a has-been star? The high-profile troubles of celebs like Michael Jackson and Gary Coleman reinforces the truth that nearly every kid who has worked in the entertainment industry has struggled as an adult. Although some may argue that several child stars have gone on to have stable and successful careers as adults, our contention here is that a lot of celebrities who were exposed to the limelight at a young age become scarred for life by their early success and fame and tend to compensate for the childhood they were deprived of during their later years in life.
It seems as if sppome people just can’t get enough of the exploratory tabloids of their favorite celebrities, some people still take an interest in celebrities that aren't even around anymore . Throughout Americas Hollywood History the views of women actresses has changed drastically, two very good examples are Elizabeth Taylor and Lindsay Lohan.The contrast between these two women show a difference in class,culture and time. By researching actresses Elizabeth Taylor and Lindsay Lohan one would discover the tragic and destructive toll Hollywood glamor that would eventually come to overrun their lives.
When celebrities make the choice to become famous, they take on a big job of becoming a role model. Most children across America believe and rely on athletes to be their good examples. Ian Mendes states that, “Athletes may have money, fame
Movie stars. They are celebrated. They are perfect. They are larger than life. The ideas that we have formed in our minds centered on the stars that we idolize make these people seem inhuman. We know everything about them and we know nothing about them; it is this conflicting concept that leaves audiences thirsty for a drink of insight into the lifestyles of the icons that dominate movie theater screens across the nation. This fascination and desire for connection with celebrities whom we have never met stems from a concept elaborated on by Richard Dyer. He speculates about stardom in terms of appearances; those that are representations of reality, and those that are manufactured constructs. Stardom is a result of these appearances—we actually know nothing about them beyond what we see and hear from the information presented to us. The media’s construction of stars encourages us to question these appearances in terms of “really”—what is that actor really like (Dyer, 2)? This enduring query is what keeps audiences coming back for more, in an attempt to decipher which construction of a star is “real”. Is it the character he played in his most recent film? Is it the version of him that graced the latest tabloid cover? Is it a hidden self that we do not know about? Each of these varied and fluctuating presentations of stars that we are forced to analyze create different meanings and effects that frame audience’s opinions about a star and ignite cultural conversations.