Why do we have to worship celebrities?

Superman · Post by **Superman** » 2003-02-24 03:20am

I hate how our society makes everyone think that becoming a celebrity is the pinnacle of success. Why do we give more money to entertainers than say, a police officer or a teacher? At least those jobs MATTER. Entertainment is great, don't get me wrong, but celebrities do NOT deserve to be treated the way that we treat them. It's sickening.

Alferd Packer · Post by **Alferd Packer** » 2003-02-24 03:23am

Because celebrities are better people, fatso.

The above comment sums up the mentality of Hollywood.

Captain tycho · Post by **Captain tycho** » 2003-02-24 03:26am

They are so rich because their movies, TV shows, etc. generate lots of money. And the stars of thoses shows always get a small percentage of what their movies and shows make. Say, you get a penny for every dollar your movie makes. Your movie makes 100 million bucks. That's alot of pennies.

Superman · Post by **Superman** » 2003-02-24 03:27am

Oh, I am aware of the money behind all of it. I just can't stand how people lap it up.

By the way, I am NOT fat!

Post by **Dalton** » 2003-02-24 03:30am

Welcome to America

See, entertainers make more money because the better they are at drawing the crowds, the more money they make. The more money they make, the more people have to see the movie to make up for the studio's investment, which causes them to market the unholy fuck out of the movie, which causes more people to come to the movie etc. etc. etc. That's basic, but it gets more complicated. Bit of a vicious cycle.

Not only that, but the news media and tabloids LOVE to spew about celebrities since they know that they're instant hits. Most of the trend-zombies willingly shell out money for this crap because they either worship a celeb (and live vicariously through them since their life sucks) or despise them (so they know someone famous who's more fucked up than they are, aka Jacko, and feel better about themselves).

It's really fucking pointless. Most of the money should go to the crews who MAKE the films.

Cap'n Hector · Post by **Cap'n Hector** » 2003-02-24 03:46am

And then reporters hound the celebs and act suprised when the celebs don't like it...

Einhander Sn0m4n · Post by **Einhander Sn0m4n** » 2003-02-24 03:55am

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Superman · Post by **Superman** » 2003-02-24 03:55am

What the hell are you talking about?

Alferd Packer · Post by **Alferd Packer** » 2003-02-24 03:59am

Being a thief = fighting Hollywood, apparently.

Captain tycho · Post by **Captain tycho** » 2003-02-24 04:00am

Superman wrote:What the hell are you talking about?

Kaazaa. Get it or die.

Einhander Sn0m4n · Post by **Einhander Sn0m4n** » 2003-02-24 04:01am

Superman wrote:What the hell are you talking about?

Just answering your question and putting a lil extra lagniappe on it. New Orleans custom...

Einhander Sn0m4n · Post by **Einhander Sn0m4n** » 2003-02-24 04:03am

Alferd Packer wrote:Being a thief = fighting Hollywood, apparently.

You nailed it on the head Mr. Packer. LOL

Dahak · Post by **Dahak** » 2003-02-24 05:13am

MOst "common" people crave for Hollywood celeb news.
Since their lifes are, well, normal, to read about celebs gives them a piece of a life they perceive as better.

That's why such celeb magazines, or aristocracy tabloids have such huge sales.

The Great Unbearded One · Post by **The Great Unbearded One** » 2003-02-24 06:26am

As a wannabe director I'm all for the 'entertainers getting more money'

, but yes, I see your point.

I'm a great follower of football (what you Yanks named the goddamn awful word of soccer) but I dont happen to agree that our doctors and nurses are scrimping by while David Beckham gets paid £100,000 a week but it's just the nature of the beast, and no matter how much we complian thing wont change. Though, I bet if you were earning that much money for what you did, you wouldnt be complaining now would you?

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2003-02-24 09:01am

It's part of anti-intellectualism. Why doesn't Stephen Hawking draw the same kind of crowds as, say, Bruce Willis? Because we live in a society which actually prefers the dumb jock or entertainer over the genius.

Keevan_Colton · Post by **Keevan_Colton** » 2003-02-24 09:18am

Darth Wong wrote:It's part of anti-intellectualism. Why doesn't Stephen Hawking draw the same kind of crowds as, say, Bruce Willis? Because we live in a society which actually prefers the dumb jock or entertainer over the genius.

If your only marketable skill is kicking a bit of dead pig around a field you'll be rich....if you can help society better itself you'll need to get a second job to pay the bills.....

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2003-02-24 09:22am

Darth Wong wrote:It's part of anti-intellectualism. Why doesn't Stephen Hawking draw the same kind of crowds as, say, Bruce Willis? Because we live in a society which actually prefers the dumb jock or entertainer over the genius.

That makes me think of the Sliders episode where the geniuses are worshiped.

Patrick Degan · Post by **Patrick Degan** » 2003-02-24 10:27am

Why do we have to worship celebrities?

Probably because God's proven to be a big disappointment.

RedImperator · Post by **RedImperator** » 2003-02-24 10:51am

Now wait a minute here. Actors and atheletes make obscene amounts of money, but so do professional sports franchises and movie studios, and it's the actors and athletes who make it possible for team owners and studio heads to get rich. Now, if you're paying Adam Sandler $20 million to appear in some piece of shit like Little Nicky, then yeah, he's been overpaid, but only from a strictly economic standpoint. The same goes for how baseball salaries have gone so high nobody but the Yankees and the God damned shit sucking mall zombie Atlanta Braves can afford good players. But if Jeff Lurie is making a billion dollars running the Eagles, why SHOULDN'T Donovan McNabb get a $100 million dollar contract? Jeff Lurie would still be a third-rate Hollywood producer without the players, while the players would still be playing without Jeff Lurie.

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2003-02-24 10:59am

RedImperator wrote:Now wait a minute here. Actors and atheletes make obscene amounts of money, but so do professional sports franchises and movie studios, and it's the actors and athletes who make it possible for team owners and studio heads to get rich.

Right, none of the other people involved in the entire enterprise contribute anything, right? You can make a movie without cinematographers, script writers, cameramen, etc?

Now, if you're paying Adam Sandler $20 million to appear in some piece of shit like Little Nicky, then yeah, he's been overpaid, but only from a strictly economic standpoint. The same goes for how baseball salaries have gone so high nobody but the Yankees and the God damned shit sucking mall zombie Atlanta Braves can afford good players. But if Jeff Lurie is making a billion dollars running the Eagles, why SHOULDN'T Donovan McNabb get a $100 million dollar contract? Jeff Lurie would still be a third-rate Hollywood producer without the players, while the players would still be playing without Jeff Lurie.

The laws of supply and demand supposedly explain all of this, but I would be very curious to know what would change if the sports players weren't unionized. They routinely do things like "renegotiate contracts in mid-term" after a good season, etc. And this doesn't change the fact that for our society, this worship of morons is a bad thing.

RedImperator · Post by **RedImperator** » 2003-02-24 01:18pm

Darth Wong wrote:Right, none of the other people involved in the entire enterprise contribute anything, right? You can make a movie without cinematographers, script writers, cameramen, etc?

When did I say that? Script writers with proven track records get paid over $1 million per script, with no gurantee that script will ever be produced. A freelance television writer can get paid $20,000 for one 30 minute sitcom script (first time). Directors get paid millions as well if they're not financing the project themselves, and if they do finance it, they get a cut of the profits as the producer. Actor, director, writer. You can make a movie with a camcorder, three desk lamps, and two VCRs, but without those three, you don't have a film (or theatrical play, which is what you'd have if you took away the camera entirely). Cinematographers, editors, sound engineers, FX guys, boom operators, cameramen, composers, and all the rest are important, but not fundamental to the movie. And while we're on the subject, every last member of the crew is paid union wages, probably better than most of the people on this board, so it's not like they're being screwed. There's no such thing as the working poor in Hollywood.

The laws of supply and demand supposedly explain all of this, but I would be very curious to know what would change if the sports players weren't unionized. They routinely do things like "renegotiate contracts in mid-term" after a good season, etc.

It depends on the union. The baseball player's union has gotten so powerful it's running the entire sport into the ground, but the other major unions are considerably less powerful. NFL players can be cut at any time by their team, irregardless of the state of the contract, and NFL contracts are routinely inflated with huge bonuses that the players never recieve because they're cut before they're eligible to collect. And the fact of the matter is, the money from the TV contracts and gate reciepts is going to go somewhere (baseball, again, is the exception because salaries have gotten so out of line with economics that clubs have to trade good players to avoid bankrupcy), and I'd rather see the players get it than the owners. I don't give up three hours of my week every week for five months to see Jeff Lurie on television.

And this doesn't change the fact that for our society, this worship of morons is a bad thing.

I never commented on this issue. I was just trying to shoot down the "the players/actors/musicians are paid too much!" nonsense before it really got going. It would be nice if Stephen Hawking drew a bigger crowd than Britney Spears, but more people went to watch the chariot races than to hear public readings of Virgil, too.

The Great Unbearded One · Post by **The Great Unbearded One** » 2003-02-24 02:53pm

RedImperator wrote:Cinematographers, editors, sound engineers, FX guys, boom operators, cameramen, composers, and all the rest are important, but not fundamental to the movie. And while we're on the subject, every last member of the crew is paid union wages, probably better than most of the people on this board, so it's not like they're being screwed. There's no such thing as the working poor in Hollywood.

What fucking bullshit is that?!? Cinematogrpahers, editors, sound engineers, boom ops, cameramen and so on ARE essential to the movie! Right, role of cinematographer - (working with the director) decides camera angles and lighting of the picture. The editor- MONUMENTAL part of the film making process. You watch any single movie, it has been edited. Shots clipped together to keep the pace of the movie going is all the work of the editor. Sound engineers - imagine The Matrix without the sound of bullets in the bullet-time roof sequence. Imagine any sounds, explosions, doors shutting and so on, all work of the sound engineers. Boom ops get the sound of voices on set, and then, in collaberation with sound engineers, wrok in a studio to get the voice clarity almost perfect. So stop talking out your ass, please!

TrailerParkJawa · Post by **TrailerParkJawa** » 2003-02-24 02:58pm

Ive never understood the people, especially girls, that scream like crazy when they see a celebrity.

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2003-02-24 03:26pm

TrailerParkJawa wrote:Ive never understood the people, especially girls, that scream like crazy when they see a celebrity.

For the girls i think the majority would want to be fucked by these celebrities the attraction to the rich and famous.

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2003-02-24 03:40pm

TrailerParkJawa wrote:Ive never understood the people, especially girls, that scream like crazy when they see a celebrity.

Me neither. Maybe it's similar to why they scream at spiders and snakes even
when they've never had a bad experience with them?