Celebrity: How Entertainers Took Over The World and Why We Need an Exit Strategy

by Marina Hyde

A brilliant, hilarious thinking person's guide to a world obsessed to the point of lunacy by a guide to our times and a classic piece of comic writing.Do you wonder where it's all going to end? Does the word 'celebrity' sound like a great name for a fifth horseman of the apocalypse? Do you doubt there's even time to build a fallout shelter? Then this book is for an invaluable primer to the celebriscape, a world expanding twice as fast as the universe it inhabits.Celebrity is a coruscating, hilarious, thinking person's guide to a world in which it is considered reasonable that Angelina Jolie advises on the Iraqi reconstruction effort, Charlie Sheen analyses 9/11, and in which Jude Law's views on the Taliban are taken seriously. Anatomising every aspect of our crazed world, Celebrity tackles the big topics, including 'Celebrity Activism -- when celebrities care', 'Celebrities and the Middle a troubled region's brightest hope?', and 'Celebrity

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor, Journalism, Politics

256 pages, Paperback

First published May 19, 2009

Reviews

[L.R. Lam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Background/Synopsis:

Marina Hyde, like many of us, has become increasingly disgusted with how celebrities are stepping far outside their role of mere entertainers, waltzing into the UN as delegates with no ambassador training, making proclamations how they can singlehandedly create peace in the middle east, using charity as a means to promote their films and various products to make money, and generally their overflated sense of self-importance. She scathingly examines how many celebrities believe that their lives and wants are more important than a country's entire government.

Strengths:

Marina Hyde writes regular columns for The Guardian, which I've read, and she's a very good, intelligent, humourous writer. I chuckled several times while reading this. She peppers the book with little footnotes, and it's very easy and pleasurable to read. It's obviously well-researched.

Weaknesses:

Hyde could have gone into more detail about why celebrities have evolved this and why the general public has allowed it. She could have brought it back to us more.

Verdict:

A good satire on the amazing amount of power celebrities have accumulated. Recommended to those who are as bemused as I am as to why people love celebs so much. Most of the ones in this book strike me as rather stupid. Why worship them?

[Alan Hughes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review

"This hilarious romp through modern culture by the Guardian columnist highlights the bizarre reach of hollow fame these days... Shudder-inducingly funny." --_The Big Issue_

Product Description

A brilliant, hilarious thinking person's guide to a world obsessed to the point of lunacy by celebrity: a guide to our times and a classic piece of comic writing.

Do you wonder where it's all going to end? Does the word 'celebrity' sound like a great name for a fifth horseman of the apocalypse? Do you doubt there's even time to build a fallout shelter? Then this book is for you: an invaluable primer to the celebriscape, a world expanding twice as fast as the universe it inhabits.

Celebrity is a coruscating, hilarious, thinking person's guide to a world in which it is considered reasonable that Angelina Jolie advises on the Iraqi reconstruction effort, Charlie Sheen analyses 9/11, and in which Jude Law's views on the Taliban are taken seriously. Anatomising every aspect of our crazed world, Celebrity tackles the big topics, including 'Celebrity Activism -- when celebrities care', 'Celebrities and the Middle East: a troubled region's brightest hope?', and 'Celebrity Religions: who do the worshipped worship?'.

Celebrity also provides indispensible resources: a glossary of common words or expressions -- such as 'She's suffering from exhaustion' (She has a prescription painkiller problem), 'She has a prescription painkiller problem' (She has a coke problem) and so on -- and a diagram of a generic celebrity entourage, clearly explaining the precise role of every nutritionist, lawyer and canine beautician.

Celebrity is a roadmap, a survivalist's guide, a Rosetta Stone for our times: you are not equipped to engage with the world without a copy.

[Derek Baldwin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I only half read this: Marina Hyde's acerbic style works pretty well in newspaper column mode, but it palls quickly at' greater length. I struggled along for a dozen or so pages at a time, and while her basic case is very sound, and her criticisms of Scientology and kabbalah are well done (though hardly very original), this is over-egged. The arch little footnotes on most of the pages become particularly wearying, and the kerboom-tish of a punchline every paragraph or three is just ten-a-penny these days, let's be honest. Like Charlie Brooker (witness his way OTT recent TV series Dark Mirror), Ms Hyde should stick to what she's good at.

[Aura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Agreed with her views on celebrities taking over politics and our lives in general , if we’re not careful we will have movie stars writing foreign policy...oh wait. Didn’t agree with some of her ‘own’ political/ personal opinions on the political issues brought up in the book, maybe she needs to do some research of her own.

[Hela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Celebrity craze is partly the reason that a charlatan has landed the white house gig.

Marina, as always, nailed this beautifully. The public desperately needs an exit strategy from celebrity quackery.

This book was written nearly a decade ago and the craze it describes has only intensified. Marina's incisive acerbic humor and laser-guided wit drive home the point. The book appears to be well researched and presents the facts on the absurdity of the so-called world of entertainment.

I could imagine the four horsemen galloping in the distance to only be overrun by a fifth horseman leading a cavalry of the bewitched consisting of the paparazzi, publicists, an assortment of media types, and the out-to-make-a-quick-buck crowd.

Some golden quotes and points from the book:

- Celebrities as the planet spokesmodel: An expanding job description like negotiating with the Taliban, getting out the vote in Palestine, fixing the Iraqi refugee crisis as well as getting photographed in a manner of unsolicited gynecology examination.

- A giant human barometer which tracks celebrities' box-office smash, rehab visits, unforced fashion errors and immaculate plastic surgery undetectably good enough to advertise miracle face cream, which you duly purchase at a nosebleed price, because you are powerless to combat the assault by the joint forces of celebrity and marketing villans.

- Celebrity religions:
* How do the worshipped worship?
* "Where the hell is the VIP room?"
* competitively priced faith
* the spiritual velvet rope
* leave your prejudices with the coat-check girl along with your bank details
* There is nothing odd about a religion whose most famous church is called the Celebrity Center.

- Celebrities and the Middle East: Sharon Stone would lock lips with anyone for peace in the Middle East ... although this one is never going to be solved by air-kissing. Planting a peace tree with her bare hands in Jerusalem, she explained "I do this for love. You can tell I am a farm girl"
* "Oh, I was having a really tough time working out which of the many stalling global peace processes to back. I was going to go with those guys in Banda Aceh, but now Leo's endorsing that one in the Middle East, I'm so in! Titanic's, like, my favorite movie of all time"

- Celebrity Activism: celebrity victim mentality -> "You shouldn't be discredited because you work in Hollywood. No one would stand up and say that because people work in the food industry, their opinions aren't worthwhile." When was the last time anyone heard from someone in the food service industry on anything - including the food service industry?
* This gem from one Texan woman on the topic of celebrities 'speaking out': "Their profession is acting. That doesn't make them any more qualified to comment on war than I am. As a matter of fact, I think that I am more qualified. I am married to a soldier, live on an army base and have a lot more at stake than they do if war does break out. They spend most of their adult lives pretending to be someone they are not."

- Celebrities and Africa: Ah, Africa ... Sometimes you get the feeling it only exists to help celebrities put all their crap behind them.

- Celebrities and Nuclear pseudoscience: Alas, there is some positive humor. Madonna Vs. Downing Street. Madonna calling No.10 directly and explaining she was "working with a group of scientists" who had solved the problem of nuclear waste (apparently, they'd poured some £4-a-bottle Kabbalah water into a lake within the Chernobyl exclusion zone and it had neutralized all the radiation).
Thankfully, there was still a Sir Humphrey Appleby type at Whitehall( yes the irony of mocking celebrities with a fictional character is not lost on me. justs roll with it), who judged the issue of the magic water to be a matter for the Department of Trade and Industry, and from there she was expertly shunted from department to department in a strategy designed to prove that while the liquid could cure radiation, it has no chance against Whitehall bureaucracy. "It was a case of pass the parcel," the civil servant revealed directly. I could imagine Sir Humphrey saying this with a wry smile.

To sum up, this book is what the situation deserves. A sharp mockery of all the absurdity written in an exquisite style. Marina has only gone on to call out the bs in an even finer manner and her weekly columns reflect that.
As for the celebrity types, maybe it is time to retire the quack goes Hollywood routine and stick to the professional lane. For the general public, it may be time to stop being an enabler. The world does not need a fifth horseman, the other four are already enough trouble.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hyde is genuinely one of my favourite writers, whether that's covering sport, politics or celebrity in her Guardian columns, so this seemed like a guaranteed win. But in book form I felt it was a little bit flat, not being as funny as her columns tend to be, but written in the same punchy style that only works if it raises the laughs.

To be fair to Hyde, there was a serious point behind the book, and the longer form allowed her to make a serious point without eating into her word count. The ridiculousness of celebrity was grounded in a conclusion of "how has this become acceptable?" whether that was regarding the press coverage, Madonna's trip to space being debated in Russian parliament, or Jolie and Pitt having the power to allow or veto visiting journalists to Namibia. But her style was quite similar throughout, and could have done with a method Frankie Boyle used in Scotland's Jesus, namely to write the jokes and the critiques in separate registers.

Because, let's face it, we enjoy Hyde's work. There's a lot of chatty words and phrases, and who doesn't enjoy a hypothetical question? When it's funny it's great, but apart from a mockery of how celeb magazines are written, I didn't think this was Hyde at her funniest, and it isn't that easy to read either. A 250 page book seemed too long as a result, even if I hadn't come across a lot of the ludicrous stories before, and 3 stars is pretty generous, lifted only because she did make me laugh out loud when taking shots at the magazine editors .

[MH · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hyde can be very funny and quite insightful as she eviscerates the low-hanging fruit of celebrity culture, and she's at her best when she takes on the unearned arrogance of stars who see themselves as authorities on geopolitics and global crises. There's a lot that doesn't quite work, though - she strains for the joke often, she makes some unpleasant choices ('comic' writing involving child cancer patients at Neverland Ranch is probably best avoided), and after a dozen chapters mocking dimwitted celebrities she waits until the last chapters to really write much about the media (and by then her concern for, say, the mental health of Britney Spears rings pretty hollow).

[Andreas Tovefalk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marina Hyde got on my radar when I started to listen to the podcast The rest is Entertainment. It was Richard Osman who lead me there, but from the start I became a huge fan of Marina. She is so sharp, funny and have a deep knowledge about media, entertainment, politics and popculture. Marina is never mean for the sake of it, there is always an anlysis and thought behind it. This book did not disappoint, it was so funny and sharp, Hyde is seeing all the details and nouanses of the concept of fame. I enjoyed the book very much and will start reading here other book this evening.

[Nabiba · Rating 1 out of 5]

A lot of topics covered however no real substance to the book.

The topic of this book is fascinating and offers much scope however it felt like a listicle in book form as Hyde didn’t explore past the surface. Her writing style is witty and acerbic however not suited for a sustained book form since it felt formulaic and repetitive. After reading the first three chapters I was no longer interested since I felt like I knew what it was going to be and thus could not bring myself to finish it.

[Evelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Marina Hyde's journalism so I felt compelled to pick this up in a second-hand bookshop recently. Celebrity is a funny, almost satirical, look at how celebrities have invaded almost every aspect of the average person's life by getting involved in current affairs and politics across the globe. It's the kind of book that you take on holiday for a quick read, and leaves you laughing and crying (in despair at the state of the world).

[Andy Moss · Rating 2 out of 5]

Probably best sampled in small chunks. I really like Hyde writing style but her targets are fairly easy prey and its unlikely most people reading this will be enlighten that celebrities are oft vacuous and with a strong sense of entitlement.

[Kalle Wescott · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read /Celebrity: How Entertainers Took Over the World and Why We Need an Exit Strategy/, by Marina Hyde.

[Bryan Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading Marina's entries in the Guardian's Lost in Showbiz column since my community college years, and still do. With this election cycle's "elephant in the room", Celebrity is not only a nice personal throwback, but also some well-needed humor. She knows how to roast her subjects, covering everything from Cruise's obsession with Scientology and Madonna's fixation on the Kabbalah--even going through their respective histories--to their impact on foreign policy, "medicine", and politics . Hyde even ridicules their own lifestyles that are perceived as glamorous but ultimately egregious after she's done with them.

While I never cared about celebrity culture much, if not at all, Hyde makes it matter, even if it's to point out how ridiculous they are in utilizing their wealth and privilege. The reality of it is depressing, but this book makes it funny and, for those just as cynical about them as I am, is reassuring.

[Mark Farley · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who both loves and loathes the culture of celebrity in equal parts and finds a fascination with their assault on the book industry in particular, I was immensely eager to read this and absolutely loved every cringe-worthy section. Marina is to the world of celebrity what Michael Moore is to politics, she expertly points out the ludicrous absurdity of what celebrities both get away with and what important matters they are given access, opinion and decision making towards. From religion to their interference in wars and activism, it's just a hilarious and maddening portrait of lunacy as it is an important stance that makes you want to insist that you have had enough with the nepotism and the insane things the famous get away with. Enough is enough.

[Godzilla · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this up on a whim, and it's one I wish I hadn't had.
As a confirmed avoider of gossip magazines and the shallow world of celebrity, there were a lot of things in here which shocked me, as to the brazenness of celebrities.
That said, they're an easy target, and the hypocrisy doesn't really need any comment from the author.
What is missing from all this is the response or justification from organisations who use celebs to raise awareness of issues. Is it worth their spouting of crap to get the issue onto people's lips and round the water cooler?
Whilst there is some highlighting of outrageous celeb statements and beliefs, it's only the masses' consumption of their words which give them power and status.
Overall a sad and disappointing book, in various ways.....

[Argya Budihandojo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bought this book at clearance, and to be honest I wasn’t expecting much. Surprisingly, the book was quite entertaining, with occasional chuckles being blurted around while reading the author’s view on “modern-day” celebrities. Even though I read this book more than a decade after its initial publishing, the material has not aged terribly, and has overall been a good read.

[Neil Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hilarious and thought provoking, but somewhat lightweight.In this instance, it is rather like many of the worlds so called "celebrities" seem to consistently inhabit. Its constantly amazes me what these people get away with, and the levels of hypocrisy that surround them

[Dan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was so impressed by one of her Guardian columns that I immediately bought her book. I hope she publishes a second one, because she can clearly do better than being the 10,000th writer to make fun of Madonna and Tom Cruise. I may finish reading it, I may not. UPDATE: I didn't.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sharp, witty, merciless critique of celebrity culture. Loved every minute of it.

[Ketan Shah]

Funny yet sad account of how obsessed we are with celebrity culture ,and how celebrities end up making statements and taking positions they are totally unqualified to justify. Highly recommended.

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite so good as I exacted it to be but still an interesting look on deluded celebrities.