Supposedly, the book is full of juicy tidbits about the unofficial queen of the United States. Written by famed celebrity profiler Kitty Kelley (nope, I don’t recall hearing of her before, but I refer you to the first sentence above), the sure-to-be-best-seller is ... drum roll, please ... “unauthorized.”
“Yes,” I can almost hear Oprah Winfrey exclaim, “I have truly arrived.”
You really know you’re somebody when a biographer puts in the effort to write a book about you without your consent or your help. To top it off, Kelley even has Oprah’s father saying he is disappointed with the course of his daughter’s life.
Another milestone for a superstar is having his or her photo on the cover of a supermarket tabloid along with a headline hinting at some abominable behavior.
Why? Because we the public love it and, when we love them, they keep adding to their obscene financial worth.
Baseball home run legend Mark McGwire finally admitted last winter that he used performance-enhancing drugs during his career.
Boo ... hiss. Right?
He returned Monday to the St. Louis Cardinals team as a coach and was greeted by a standing ovation. The fans apparently do not care that he cheated, that he marred the image of the game. He did it to help their team win and they’re OK with that.
Ben Roethlisberger’s story is more complicated and is yet to play out.
The Pittsburg Steelers quarterback learned this week he will not face criminal charges on allegations he sexually assaulted a woman at a Georgia bar. Prosecutors said there was not enough evidence to warrant a trial.
We have to allow the perfectly believable possibility he was the victim of a smear campaign, but his bosses and his fans also must look squarely into the fact he put himself into an undesirable situation. Someone concerned about his image would not be in found in such a setting.
However, what’s the incentive for walking the straight line? Too many superstars have ridden negative stories to great heights.
Elizabeth Taylor, she of eight marriages to seven husbands, denied rumors she is planning to marry manager Jason Winters.
Don’t you know they relished the opportunity to issue that denial? Watch the tabloids the next few weeks and see how often you find her photo on the cover. A superstar cannot buy that kind of publicity.
Heck, it might be a great business move on their part to deny, deny, deny and then actually get married ... and then get divorced.
What does this mean to us?
It’s hard to say. We choose where to spend our money and that is our ultimate power, but the greatest opportunity and challenge for us, I believe, is to work diligently to counter the message that misbehaving is all right.
That mission begins with making it clear to our children and grandchildren that it’s not OK to cheat on your spouse, even if you are an NBA superstar or even president.
It extends to how we interact with each other. Let’s face it, even adults are impressionable and are receptive to how others feel about things.
What am I saying?
It’s perfectly permissible to tell your friends you will not support this or that star any longer because of the way he or she disregards values you cherish.
And then follow through, even if it means missing a movie or sporting event.
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