‘We do not measure a culture by its output of undisguised trivialities, but by what it claims as significant.’ Neal Postman, Amusing ourselves to Death, 1985.
With the recent news that Whitney Houston died, I thought it appropriate to update this post.
At some point in our recent history, ‘celebrity’ replaced ‘hero’ in the American pop-culture lexicon. Now in America, being famous trumps doing something noble and the cult of personality is the ultimate measure of success. The death of Michael Jackson on June 25th, 2009, brought an unprecedented amount of 24/7 news coverage and an endless parade of talking heads, associates and parasites, each one positioning themselves as a unique conveyor of Jackson tidbits.
With the recent news that Whitney Houston died, I thought it appropriate to update this post.
At some point in our recent history, ‘celebrity’ replaced ‘hero’ in the American pop-culture lexicon. Now in America, being famous trumps doing something noble and the cult of personality is the ultimate measure of success. The death of Michael Jackson on June 25th, 2009, brought an unprecedented amount of 24/7 news coverage and an endless parade of talking heads, associates and parasites, each one positioning themselves as a unique conveyor of Jackson tidbits.
In witnessing this depressing spectacle unfold; I’ve realized that 'American Celebrities' follow a unique lifecycle.
1st Stage: Create. We create the myth of celebrity by hoisting undue praise and print: witness the check-out rags breathless photos, or the advent of tabloid ‘news’ shows. Whether or not we physically purchase some item related to the celebrity doesn’t matter, for we are still giving mental space to them. People with no vested interest still have opinions on Brittany’s shaved head rampage, or Brad Pitt’s latest appearance. Most celebrities’ careers end at this stage: just too many interlopers and only so much cultural bandwidth.
1st Stage: Create. We create the myth of celebrity by hoisting undue praise and print: witness the check-out rags breathless photos, or the advent of tabloid ‘news’ shows. Whether or not we physically purchase some item related to the celebrity doesn’t matter, for we are still giving mental space to them. People with no vested interest still have opinions on Brittany’s shaved head rampage, or Brad Pitt’s latest appearance. Most celebrities’ careers end at this stage: just too many interlopers and only so much cultural bandwidth.
2nd Stage: Feed. In this stage the celebrity acts in ways that are appropriate to them, but improper to everyone else. Celebrities become caricatures of themselves, trapping themselves within their personas and roles. Sports stars’ sexual assaults, DUI mug shots, Domestic Abuse allegations, leaked video tapes, etc… All are necessary evils and necessary steps on the road to American Celebrity.
3rd Stage: Kill. At some point the myth implodes under its own weight. Jimmy Hendrix, Kurt Cobain, Elvis, Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe, Heath Ledger, Anna Nicole Smith, et al… Pressure, whether internal or external, causes the celebrity to act self-destructively as the weight of excess is too much to bear. Whether their life ended well before it should -like Michael Jackson, or at a more natural point -like Marlon Brando, each left a mess that outlived them.
4th Stage: Mourn. We cry and mourn as if we had a personal connection to the celebrity. Indeed a bond exists, albeit a vicarious connection bereft of intimacy and closeness. We substitute our information of the celebrity for actual knowledge, and grieve like we’ve lost a friend. Public displays of sorrow allow us to cement our relationship, thus immortalizing the figure in our cultural mind and validating our feelings towards the recently deceased.
4 comments:
Fascinating analysis! I love the way you broke celebrity evolution into stages.
It's a good lesson that celebrity often breaks under its own weight. Jim Collins says that celebrity and leadership effectiveness are inversely related. Your post gives people one more reason to avoid the pursuit of fame.
It is ridiculous to see how much Britney trivia I was familiar with, despite having no vested interest, as you say. Indeed, I would be interested in knowing far less of this information. I took some comfort in, like you, not knowing how to spell her name.
Nice photo.
"A while ago" is a relative term, but as far as I know 'celebrity' has been with us since the founding fathers. From the 'celebrities' of the Wild West, to the 'celebrities' of Prohibition, and now most prominently from the 1950s onward, usually coming from the movie and music business, as you have pointed out. The names unlisted from the examples given probably came to mind when reading the above statement; simply reiterating the point of your blog, and bringing me full-circle to my original point: "a while ago" is a relative point, humans have been fascinated by celebrities; but every once a while school textbooks make them heroes. Good article though.
How did you sneak into my house and get that picture of my dining room centerpiece?
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