Married at First Sight

[wdfifteen]

I had not heard of this reality tv show before I had dinner with Jason and Courtney Carrion. I knew Jason through our vintage fire apparatus magazine. He is a totally dedicated NY firefighter and is deeply interested in the history and lore of firefighting. We really hit it off and he entertained my wife and I with great stories of what it is like to work at House 10 in lower Manhattan. It was his dream since he was a kid and he is so excited about it. It was kind of a shock to find out that he was a celebrity of sorts.
Jason never mentioned the couple's celebrity, but Courtney seemed to be a little nervous the whole time. It turned out she was annoyed that my wife and I had no idea they had been on a tv show.
I still think the show is total BS, but I know there is at least one person on it who is not a complete narcissist and is genuine and sincere about life.

Bustle

[MRM]

I can tell that the words you used are English, but I have no idea what you are talking about. (Excuse the preposition.) Somehow I am comforted by this fact.

[pavulon]

Sounds like Courtney will be a problem.

[aigel]

And you drank a few and just got back?

That certainly doesn't make you a celebrity, having been on some BS TV show. Who watches this? I mean, I could have dinner with every winner of these talent shows, reailty TV shows etc. and never know any of them were a "celebrity". I barely keep up with who is a Hollywood star unless they are a true superstar.

G

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by aigel

And you drank a few and just got back?

G

No, Did that a couple months ago. I was flipping through channels trying to get away from wall to wall coverage of the Paris attack and came across a rerun of the show and it reminded me.

[unclebilly]

What is a celebrity these days?

How did they become 'famous'?
1. Genuine talent / best in their field - I think this is how it worked 20 years ago.
A. Sports
B. Arts
2. Self promotion - think politicians / Magnus / Kardashians / Donald Trump types
3. Reality TV flavour of the day - William Hung (need I say more?)
4. 1 + 3 think Susan Boyle

I think too many North Americans put too much importance on #2 and #3 because of their addiction to TV and Social Media. Note that there is no 1 C for science and technology or a 1 D for business acumen.

[billh1963]

Originally Posted by unclebilly

What is a celebrity these days?

How did they become 'famous'?
1. Genuine talent / best in their field - I think this is how it worked 20 years ago.
A. Sports
B. Arts
2. Self promotion - think politicians / Magnus / Kardashians / Donald Trump types
3. Reality TV flavour of the day - William Hung (need I say more?)
4. 1 + 3 think Susan Boyle

I think too many North Americans put too much importance on #2 and #3 because of their addiction to TV and Social Media. Note that there is no 1 C for science and technology or a 1 D for business acumen.

Amen.

I hear this all the time, "Jane (or John) Doe, television star". I'm left wondering who the hell these people are. Never seen them or heard of their show. They used to be called actors and actresses...not stars or celebrities. Those terms were reserved for BIG names

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by unclebilly

What is a celebrity these days?

The dictionary says, "a famous our well-known person." It doesn't say a celebrity needs to have accomplished anything worthwhile. If a guy walks into a room and you know who he is even if you've never met him, he's a celebrity.
I don't recall there being "professional celebrities" until recently though. Unless I was just unaware, I don't remember there being people like Paris Hilton, the Kardashians, etc who are famous because they are famous 20 years ago - maybe Andy Warhol was.