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Britney Spears - Source: Reuters -
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If there's one thing that Americans do better than anyone else, it's "obsess".
New Zealand has its obsessive quest for the Rugby World Cup every four years - but no one can compete with the appetite and vigour that this town chases after anything celebrity!
This has been brought to my attention and really emphasised in the last month with the supposed "comeback" of the one they call Britney Spears.
Firstly, there was the music: "Womaniser, Womaniser, Womaniser, Womaniser". It started as a bit of a joke, to see how much this song was played, a camp anthem that people couldn't get enough of - in the car, at the gym, on TV. The end result was the listener hating the very thought of its catchy chorus.
Britney is, I believe, the most interesting celebrity on the planet.
The paparazzi stalk her week in, week out for that shot of her bringing some of the crazy that has put her on the cover of so many gossip rags over the last year. It rarely has anything to do with her craft as a pop coated princess.
The thing is, I struggle to decide is whether Spears really is interesting at all, I mean she certainly has her obsessed fans - just check out YouTube for the evidence.
But with the relentless and ruthless pursuit of the singer, has she really become America's obsession?
Well for me, I read one quote that summed it up perfectly: "She is her own 24-hour reality television show." Some say this has come about as people tire of their old obsession with Paris Hilton. Yes, Paris at her height was popular, but as far as a moneymaking operation goes, with Britney, the paparazzi of LA have struck GOLD!
And the crazier she becomes, with the head shaving and her award performance early in the year, described as "a hot mess", the obsession only gets worse.
It seems there is a true excitement about almost anything that she does, what she buys, where she goes next... the ultimate water cooler conversation!
Although I must admit, Britney is easier than any to become obsessed with - her life, her husband, her potential comeback, the medicated sound grabs. It's all the stuff of legend... especially for a New Zealander, far, far away.
When people ask what it's like living in this part of the world, I always use the analogy it's like a Disneyland ride a lot of the time. You know it's not real, but it's fun to ride. I guess for some, that's not the case. The ride never seems to end and neither does the obsession, especially when there's money to be made.
But on another note - LA is having a terrible time at the moment with the fight against PROP 8, the ban of gay marriage.
A few years ago to emphasise a point, they had "Day without a Mexican". All Mexican workers didn't show up to work for one day to emphasise how this would affect Americans. It was a very publicised and some say effective way to make a point.
And today in Los Angeles, to make a very different point, is "Day without a gay", to help garner some attention for gay rights in LA.
As far as movies go this week, one of the best films that I cannot say enough good things about, in Forrest Gump proportions, is The Curious case of Benjamin Button. I was lucky enough to see the film last week and met the stars for a piece for Close Up in the next couple of weeks.
It's truly a great film and surely one to win a big haul at awards time.
Well, that wraps it up for another exciting week - until next time...
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