This isn't so much an answer to Ellmyruh as some thoughts on a related aspect of fame.

As far as I've seen, most of the people who achieve this sort of fame have accomplished nothing of any great value. They're famous for being on a TV show, or because they're the most photogenic member of the football team, or because they read the news off an autocue every night. These people may be good at their job, but that's not *why* they're famous in that sense of making the public swoon in their presence. The reason why that happens is so complicated it's beyond me, but it seems to be entirely separated from any realistic value that can be placed on what they actually *do*. I don't want to be famous under those terms.

On a few occasions I've met people who are rightly famous for staggering achievements throughout their lives, and this is an experience I enjoy. I wish I could spend days talking to such people, find out what motivates them, how they did it, what has made them the person they are. But even these people deserve only my respect, not my worship. Respect is something you have to earn, and damned if I'm going to extend it to a 15 year old who's made two appearances on a bad soap opera. And I'm getting sick of my co-workers throwing fits of shock because I neither recognise nor care about such people, let alone discuss them in hushed and reverent tones after they've left.

Brunnen-"it doesn't take a lot to become famous in a country this size"G