How We Got Here, Part 2

Ok, so now I know how America became receptive to the celebrity culture. I think that now it's important to understand how studios turned their clients into the superstars that they are today.

After the communications revolution and mass urbanization, personality became the way to distinguish the self from the masses. Celebrity was a measure of success - how much attention your personality could get you was what people valued.
At this time (1900's) the entertainment became centralized in New York City. This made perfect sense - Ellis Island was the port through which nearly every immigrant came through and Broadway was the entertainment hub of the elite. Because of this, a new, almost commercial industry evolved around the stars. Agents packaged their stars to attract an audience, which fueled the distribution of images, information, and money. Celebrities were able to branch all cultural levels: between 1901 and 1914, 74% of subjects in The Saturday Evening Post and Colliers were political, business, or other professional figures. After 1922, however, over half of the subjects came from the entertainment industry (TV, movies, music, and sports).
After the film industry moved out to Hollywood, celebrity culture became a national pastime, as celebrities were able to transcend all cultural levels. Celebrity gossip magazines like today's People or US Weekly, press agencies, and agents themselves gained more power and had more influence over the public's perception of celebrities. The image of the star is what the agents and studios were selling to the public, not the actual star. Studios had portrait studios to create the perfect image of larger-than-life celebrities. While Broadway's finances dwindled in the 1930's, radio and then TV made its stars virtual family members - nearly every household in America had one, and families gathered together to listen to it nightly. Radio and TV also created virtual family members out of politicians and greatly shaped the public's perception of them - FDR's fireside chats helped garner support amongst the American people, while the television of Joseph McCarthy's hearings instilled fear in the hearts of citizens.
Celebrity then lay in the power of possessing a microphone, camera, and an audience, not in actual merit or virtue. This has created simulacra - images with no real relevance to the average citizen's world. This is still relevant today - why do people feel the need to watch Brittney Spears trying to stage her umpteenth comeback when, at the same time, the economy is falling apart and a historic presidential election is taking place?
Andy Warhol declared that one day, everyone will have their 15 minutes of fame. This prophecy may actually come true one day with Perez Hilton, TMZ, and even YouTube always on the lookout for the next wave of "celebrities."

"A common complaint of modern celebrity culture is that the public, instead of seeking virtues or talents in celebrities, seek those who are the most willing to break ethical boundaries, or those who are most aggressive in self-promotion. In other words, infamy has replaced fame. The social role of the town drunk, the court jester, or the sexually indecent are not new, but arguably, the glorification of these individuals is."

Historical information found at:
Henderson, Amy
1992 Media and the Rise of Celebrity Culture. Organization of American Historians Magazine of History 6 (4).

Quote found at:
Wikipedia.com User
2007 Celebrity Culture. Electronic Document http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celebrity_culture, accessed November 28, 2008.