Fame and the Celebrity Culture

th (6)Back in the 1980s I worked at an exclusive residential club in London. Its status was such that many of the world’s most famous and influential stars were frequent visitors and often stayed for months at a time. It was, as they say, “the place to be seen”. From that experience I was able to observe both sides of the fame game – the glamorous and the sordid. The spectrum of fame and celebrity ranges from the media personality to the superstars of film and the music industry. Between these extremes, celebrities illuminate the world like a galaxy of stars to entertain and delight us.

The stars have always symbolised the zenith of human potential. In ancient myth a man or woman deemed worthy by the gods could be awarded immortality in recognition for their heroism and virtue; their reward was a place amongst the pantheon of the gods as a star or constellation. The appeal of fame is that it appears to be a fast track to win the approval of the people and secure immortality in a place such as the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The fascination with humanity’s mythic origins has continued throughout the generations and it’s no surprise that they still provide the inspiration for many of our popular films today.

A star radiates power through lines of gravity, extracting intelligence from orbital or planetary matter. The Sun, our nearest star, was the source of power that initiated life on Earth. The desire for fame replicates this cosmic process as the impulse to radiate in the mirror of the world. Space dust and matter gravitates to the nucleus of a potential star and begins to gather mass. Initially the light can be dim or barely existent. In a similar fashion, a rising star looking to get established must generate enough light to retain a foothold on the ladder to success. With recognition by fans and their waves of emotional energy, the celebrity’s light receives a surge of illumination. The light is sustained by the interest and adoration of the masses but fluctuates with the success or failure of the career. In the same way that a star is born according to the evolutionary needs of the cosmos, new stars appear on the world stage in response to the fashions of the times. Stars, of course, also fade and die when obsolete, both in the heavens and in the fickle world of showbiz.

There is a distinction between the light of a famous person and the light of self-knowledge of the spiritually orientated man or woman. The light emitted from the former is sustained by an external force generated by the focus of others. For an individual in the spotlight who is continually subjected to the scrutiny of the masses, the effect can be extremely disorientating. The psychic intensity can cause a reflex action in the subconscious and polarise the personality, resulting in mood swings and erratic behaviour (a common symptom in celebrities). Behind the scenes alcohol, sex and drugs are the usual palliatives to offset personal insecurities arising from loss of identity with their original nature. In contrast, spiritual light is a self-sustaining power that is enlightened in accordance with the responsibility taken by an individual for life on earth. The aspiring celebrity is gathering experience in the world, supporting a career in the public eye; someone turning inwards is focused the other way and involved in a process of negation of their past, and the realisation of their own inner star.

Elvis Presley, probably the most famous entertainer who ever lived, was worshipped by millions all over the world. From a worldly perspective his fame brought him everything money could buy. Although his death at 42 is largely attributed to obesity and a poor health regime, these were merely effects of the continual psychic emanation of billions of people around the world. Just as stars are perceived in the cosmos to explode or disintegrate, so many famous celebrities replicate the process of decay and decomposition of their original splendour. Elvis, unable to support the expectations of his legions of fans, put on physical weight to offset the emotional projection of those who craved more of the excitement and delirium they experienced at the start of his career. The King was no longer able to deliver – he was starving for reality and, having taken fame and stardom as far as anyone could, took his final bow and died.

After death the continual interest and fascination with any famous celebrity establishes a discernable presence within the human psyche, a sort of immortality that enables the world of the living to connect subconsciously with the psychic imprint of the dead star. The established psychic presence can intensify or fade, just as in the external world, through the interest and appeal to each new generation. The hidden influence of the psychic realm arises to human awareness through the global obsession with glamour. Glamour is the lifeblood of the celebrity culture, using magical illusion and the power of suggestion to hypnotise the unsuspecting audience. The sordidness that often permeates the celebrity culture is the shadow that attaches itself wherever extremes of emotional energy are generated.

But where is it all going? Coming soon, as the new wave of entertainment, is an interactive experience that will enable the viewer to participate, through feeling, with the actuality of what is being seen. Popular shows will become more extreme to satisfy the demand for the viewers’ appetite for graphic sexual content and violence. Sporting contests resembling gladiator bouts will be ‘must see’ viewing. Reality entertainment shows all over the world will merge and the winners will be instant global superstars. The movie experience will be revolutionised through four-dimensional holographs that enable the audience to enter the environment of the film. However, the most radical invention will be the introduction of human flesh robots; these will be indistinguishable in appearance from ordinary people. Some robots will be designed in the image of the famous stars of the day or, alternatively, models of stars from the past. The distinction between the male and female genders will gradually fade to produce a unisex culture. Flesh robots will provide most of the services and entertainment as sexual slaves and as an outlet for the violence engendered through sexual union with the robotic energy source.

Fame and the celebrity culture have now engulfed the world and serve to provide a comforting sense of continuity to offset the pain and unhappiness of our times. Singers and entertainers serve the evolution of the human race by virtue of their devotion to their art. An artist’s struggle to overcome adversity to reach the pinnacle of success is often more edifying than the creative talent expressed. The desire for fame is a part of an individual’s task towards completion. Once a desire is fulfilled the energetic force that held the desire patterns together is released. This means a part of human ignorance has been rectified and resolved through the living experience of that individual.

Not everybody can be famous or a star in the entertainment industry but every man or woman has a place in the great body of mankind; we are all gathering stars. Each one of us has the potential to be unique and creatively self-expressive; whether this is recognised in the world or not is really of no consequence.

 Lance Kelly 2014