You don't have to be good to be famous anymore.
“Generally the whole entertainment business now is bland. It depends so much on gadgetry and flash now. You don’t have to have talent to be in the business today.”
A quote from the late multi-talented star Eartha Kitt, who was best known as the sexy Catwoman in the popular, late 60s TV series Batman. It’s sad to say but the legendary star was right.
It’s true that talent in Hollywood is becoming a rare but precious commodity for some celebrities.
Going back 50 even 20 years ago, for a struggling actor to make it in Hollywood sometimes having acting talent alone wasn’t enough. Actors needed to have a variety of talent, such as knowing how to dance, sing, model, and in some cases knowing how to tap dance was a requirement for some. Even with having all of this talent an actor could still have a difficult chance of making it in the business.
Now thanks to the internet, mainly the website YouTube, the chance of becoming an overnight sensation seems to be much easier than ever, regardless if you even have talent or not.
Back then if a person wanted to become famous they only had their “15 minutes of fame” and then afterwards were long forgotten.
Currently, people who see themselves in the limelight can now have their fame last much longer than before. Some can receive notoriety, which can make them even more popular or maybe during the aftermath of fame they can create a lucrative business out of it.
There are several examples of people that have done this in Hollywood. One that comes to mind is reality star Kim Kardashian.
She currently stars, along with her family, on the reality show Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Ever since the success of the show she has been working in movies, done guest appearances on other TV shows, modeling, released a workout DVD, and is even planning her own perfume line.
Her career in Hollywood all started after appearing in a sex tape a few years ago with her then boyfriend, singer Ray J.
Is she considered a talented star? Well, just because a person is popular and is working on a variety of projects doesn’t make them a true talent. Though she's only been in a couple of films, critics have made negative comments about her acting. Last year she won a Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress in the 2008 film Disaster Movie. America didn’t consider her to be a good dancer either. In 2008, during the third episode of the show Dancing with the Stars she had been voted off. Though Kardashian has had some success in modeling, she can’t really be a professional model because her height is only 5’2.”
Some might ask, if she is not really that talented why is she still popular? Oh, that’s right it’s because of her big ass! But seriously she is a mediocre star at best, yet she is treated like a trendy Hollywood star. That is the main reason why she is in all the popular celebrity magazines.
Some might argue back that the only reason why she was able to become famous is because she came from a privileged family. Her father, Robert Kardashian, was a high profile attorney that was part of the defense team during the O.J. Simpson trial. She grew up around celebrities and was even a stylist and personal shopper for certain stars, such as singer Brandy and Lindsay Lohan.
In some cases that is true, but not always. You don’t have to come from a rich family to make it in Hollywood. Look at the example of “Bikini Girl”, also known as Katrina Darrell, who became the main highlight of the 8th season on American Idol.
Even after the judges had voted her off the show weeks ago, people still talked about her. She has gained enough recognition that she has her own website dedicated to her fans, hoping that her current fame will help her further pursue a career in modeling and singing.
Another example is of "Octomom", Nadya Suleman, who is treated like a celebrity that is constantly chased around by the paparazzi. It’s a shame that her 14 children are involved in this media frenzy. So far the single mother has been making a profit from magazines for shamelessly promoting the recent birth of her newborn octuplets.
These are just a few examples that gives hope to people that want to be apart of the Hollywood limelight. It shows that you really don’t need talent to make it in Hollywood. As long as you have a look and/or a catchy gimmick attached to it (preferably having both is best) and can milk it for all it’s worth, you could definitely make it. Who knows maybe you can start your own clothing line or better yet get your own reality show!
Written by Bridget Campos
Originally posted on February 23, 2009
Link: http://thecelebritycafe.com/features/24986.html
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