The Danger of Chasing Fame
What “celebritization” is doing to everyone with a smart phone.
When you watch an actor on screen, you see at least 3 people.
- The character being played
- The public persona they wear “off-screen”
- The person they really are
That’s the sort of bizarre reality worth keeping in mind while watching something like the Academy Awards. Most of these people aren’t “people” per se. Even when they aren’t on set, they’re acting.
Is the “real” Glenn Close the one who did “Da Butt” on national television a few weeks, or is she Cruella DeVille? Does the “real” Frances McDormand howl in front of Hollywood’s elite?
It’s a puzzle. One that we’ve been staring at for some time.
John Wayne (whose actual name was Marion Morrison) worked on “the Wayne thing” for a decade before being cast in westerns. Also, the cowboy grew up in a ritzy L.A. suburb.
Contrary to what we might believe, most of us don’t actually remember Charlie Chaplin. We remember The Tramp — a character with big shoes, a cane, and a weird hat. There is also Charlie Chaplin the person who couldn’t literally conceive of his fame and Charlie Chaplin the four-time husband.
