| te on celebrities because they are larger than life, | | | | form of entertainment for all layers of society in |
| more famous, more charismatic, and richer than us. It | | | | Shakespeare’s time. This may explain why |
| seems like our celebrity obsessed society cannot get | | | | Hamlet feels compelled to instruct the traveling Players |
| enough of the daily lives of such star celebrities. | | | | on the fine points of acting, urging them not “to |
| Newspapers boost their sales by splashing these | | | | split the ears of the groundlings,” nor |
| celebrities across their front pages, many magazines | | | | “speak no more than is set down for |
| feature celebrities within them. | | | | them.” |
| · How did celebrities become such an | | | | William Shakespeare's plays were popular because |
| important force in our culture? | | | | the stories are timeless and beautifully written. |
| · Have we always been so awestruck by the | | | | Shakespeare's plays are timeless in the lessons that |
| lifestyles of the rich and the famous? | | | | are learned from them. Think about what is learn from |
| · Does something larger than life always catch | | | | "Macbeth" |
| our attention? | | | | 1. Meddling in dark magic is dangerous. |
| · Is there a common theme throughout history? | | | | 2. Absolute power corrupts. |
| Perhaps we can find some of the answers by looking | | | | 3. Loyalty is a good thing...being so power-hungry that |
| at celebrity in history. First let us remind ourselves of | | | | you're willing to kill is a bad thing. |
| the importance of being awestruck. An old tale of a | | | | 4. "To thine own self be true." Don't let yourself be |
| mouse who boasts of her huge litter of babies to a | | | | influenced by other people - don't let their name-calling |
| lioness illustrates the point of why we find celebrities | | | | push you into doing things you're not comfortable with |
| fascinating. The mouse asks the Lioness proudly | | | | (Lady Macbeth and how she taunted her husband). |
| “how many young have you the great cat | | | | Shakespeare became a celebrity in his own time |
| given birth to? The Lioness replied "One, but he is a | | | | because he wrote plays about universal themes that |
| lion," | | | | are true for all humanity, regardless of time period, |
| The First Celebrities in History. | | | | gender, race, religion, or continent. We have all |
| The first celebrities of the ancient world were almighty | | | | experienced, love, hate, forgiveness and revenge. We |
| powerful Gods of the Greek and Roman pantheons. | | | | are all interested in the paranormal, salvation, ambition, |
| Citizens of these civilizations believed the Gods had a | | | | success and juicy gossip--why else would movies, |
| direct influence on their lives and it was, hence, | | | | sitcoms, reality TV and soap operas be such a huge |
| important to know all about the Gods’ own | | | | entertainment value? |
| lives. As people in the ancient world spread information | | | | These are all great reason why Shakespearean plays |
| about the Gods, myths were created. Such myths | | | | like Macbeth endured, they certainly have stories with |
| involved the Gods in ancient celebrity scandals that | | | | staying power. Shakespeare was also good with his |
| excited and teased the common people. We have all | | | | representations of imagery, alliteration, irony, analogy, |
| heard of how the ancient Greeks believed the Gods | | | | soliloquy, monologue, aside, figurative language like |
| were angered during some unexplainable event like a | | | | metaphors, extended metaphors, similes, |
| volcano erupting or an earthquake. | | | | personification, symbolism. But it was the plays that |
| Besides the ancient Gods monarchs and political | | | | made him a celebrity in his own time, not his writings. |
| leaders were also celebrities of the time, however their | | | | For the plays were attended by the vast populace |
| fame could not possibly compete with that of the | | | | and news of what they saw spread by word of |
| Gods. They could not move the earth or cause the | | | | mouth, and with the stories, Shakespeare’s |
| heavens to open. Thus the ancient Gods had | | | | name and fame was spread too. |
| exposure everywhere. There were statues and | | | | Celebrities in Print. |
| temples named after them, sacrifices and holidays in | | | | While the celebrities of the ancient world were able to |
| their honor. In other words the ancient Gods had lots | | | | achieve moderate and sometimes lasting fame, mass |
| of exposure. | | | | celebrity as we now know today would not begin until |
| The Celebrity Sportsmen of the Olympics. | | | | the invention of the printing and publishing industry in the |
| Another group of celebrities that had great exposure | | | | late eighteenth century. With the rise of printing a need |
| to the public were, in fact, winners in the ancient | | | | to learn to read was recognized. There was a huge |
| Olympic Games. These athletes were widely talked | | | | increase in the literacy rates of common people, |
| about, and were given the equivalent of modern day | | | | allowing printed celebrity news to reach a mass |
| red-carpet treatment. After a victory at the Olympics | | | | audience for the first time. Suddenly, the lives of |
| a winning athlete on returning to his city, part of the city | | | | authors, political figures, war heroes, and other |
| wall was demolished so they did not have to use the | | | | celebrities could now be read by people all around the |
| gates like "ordinary mortals". These athletes also won | | | | world. Print gave average people the chance to |
| the right to lifelong free meals, the equivalent of the | | | | become intimately knowledgeable about the celebrities |
| vast sums of money that modern celebrities earn | | | | they most admired. Charles Dickens first started |
| nowadays. | | | | serializing his books in newspapers as short stories. |
| The Celebrity Gladiators. | | | | The resulting media attention helped him become more |
| Ancient celebrities were known to the masses | | | | widely read celebrity of his time. |
| because they had their faces plastered all over the | | | | Celebrities in the 20th Century. |
| place, on sculptures and pictures. Julius Caesar also | | | | From the print media came the visual media of film and |
| realized this and was the first Roman to appear on a | | | | radio. In first part of the 1900s, movie stars began to |
| coin in his own lifetime, he became instantly | | | | be the true A-list celebrities. The bright lights and warm |
| recognizable and more powerful at the same time. | | | | sun of Hollywood became a perfect setting for the |
| Another group of people who were recognized were | | | | city of the stars. As radio began to make its way into |
| the Roman Gladiators, whose bloodthirsty contests | | | | the average home in the 1920s and 1930s, celebrities |
| drew thousands of spectators to the gladiatorial | | | | became more interesting to regular people. |
| battles. News of their battles spread by word of | | | | Professional athletes also began to take on star |
| mouth, and little boys idolized them, often asking for | | | | status, as their games and exploits could be also be |
| fighting lesson at gladiator schools. Many women were | | | | broadcast live over the air for an entirely new |
| also known to have illicit affairs with the muscle-bound | | | | audience. In the 1950s television only further promoted |
| fearless fighters. | | | | the premier celebrity that film stars, professional |
| Celebrities in The Middle Ages. | | | | athletes, and television actors of today shared. Not to |
| When we think of the middle ages most people think | | | | miss out, political and religious figures sought to take |
| of brave warriors and heroic knights in shining Armor, | | | | advantage of the new medium. Such celebrities would |
| killing dragons and rescuing damsels in distress. While | | | | still become famous but their fame was dwarfed in |
| this is the image that many of us think of when we | | | | comparison to the new Hollywood Celebrities of the |
| talk about knights in shining Armor the reality was a | | | | 20th Century. |
| little different. | | | | Technology and the modern Celebrity. |
| Thousands of years ago, one of the best ways to | | | | In the twenty-first century, the rise of the Internet has |
| gain fame was through the fortune of birth. The first | | | | only continued to nurture a culture |
| step to become famous was to become a squire. | | | | That is obsessed with celebrities. It is now possible to |
| Such squires were only drawn from the families of the | | | | know intimate details about a famous person’s |
| nobility, they might be sons of knights or lords or even | | | | life by simply entering a few keywords into an Internet |
| princes. Once a squire became a knight he was an | | | | search engine. In the late 1960s, Andy Warhol, an artist, |
| instant celebrity. He would be given a coat of arms | | | | filmmaker, and diarist fascinated by Hollywood culture, |
| which he could pass on down through the generations. | | | | claimed: “In the future everyone will be famous |
| Knights also became famous in their treatment of | | | | for 15 minutes.” That is now a fact with |
| women. In medieval Europe the idea was born that | | | | emerging reality television shows. These shows have |
| men should treat women not as a possession but as a | | | | made it possible for average people with little talent to |
| person to be admired. This idea led to the fashion that | | | | enjoy their 15 minutes of fame on the television reality |
| knights should do heroic deeds just to win a smile from | | | | shows. |
| a lady. The knights and squires were taught to worship | | | | Where we are and how we got here. |
| beautiful women and do brave things in her name. A | | | | One common theme throughout celebrity history is that |
| very public display of their bravery was seen at | | | | all the big celebrities were marked out to be famous |
| medieval tournaments. | | | | because they were part of a larger than life event. In |
| Medieval tournaments were originally a form of military | | | | Ancient times the event was the Olympics that made |
| training, but soon became popular public displays for | | | | winning athletes famous celebrities. The Romans gave |
| brave knights to win favor of a special lady, often a | | | | us the Gladiators who fought to the death in front of a |
| countess or even a princess. Jousting was the main | | | | bloodthirsty audience, another large event. In the middle |
| form of competition and many a knight could show off | | | | ages it was the Knights who again in front of large |
| in front of the large crowds at these public events. | | | | audiences won at Tournaments and became famous |
| Celebrity status was thus guaranteed, for the winner | | | | traveling warriors, again a large audience event. In |
| of these popular competitions. These competitions | | | | William Shakespeare’s time the event was live |
| were a way for Knights to win fame and fortune. Not | | | | theater where audiences could vicariously watch |
| only did they become popular with the masses, but the | | | | struggles of fictional but believable characters. Before |
| winners often took the losers horse and Armor and | | | | we knew it newspapers, radio, cinema, television and |
| even the lady who might be an heiress to some vast | | | | the Internet brought these live larger than life events |
| fortune. Over time a different kind of event became | | | | into our own living rooms. Whether we are watching a |
| popular. The play. | | | | live football match, or listening to a live concert on the |
| Rise of the Arts and William Shakespeare. | | | | radio. One thing is for sure while there are audiences |
| William Shakespeare began his career as an actor | | | | out there, thirsty for live larger than life events, then |
| with a London theatrical company—perhaps in | | | | there will be celebrities out there that seek to entertain |
| 1589—for he was already an actor and | | | | them. |
| playwright of some note in 1592. Plays were a popular | | | | |