by Jake Halpern
First published 2007
Jake Halpern investigates America's celebrity fixation by traveling to unusual places across the country. He visits Hollywood facilities where children train to become actors and enrolls in programs that teach people to work as celebrity assistants. His journey takes him to US Weekly's editorial offices and a research laboratory where monkeys abandon food to look at photos of high-status group members. Halpern interviews celebrities like Rod Stewart alongside addiction specialists and other experts. He combines these field experiences with new research, including results from his original fame survey. The book examines how psychology, technology, evolution, and financial incentives work together to make celebrity culture irresistible. Halpern reveals the mechanisms behind our collective fascination with red carpets and exclusive venues, offering readers insight into a nation obsessed with visibility and recognition.
Genres: psychology, american, sociology, non-fiction, 21st-century, academic
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: investigative-journalism, social-commentary
Setting: Hollywood, US Weekly
Period: 21st-century
226 pages · Hardcover · Houghton Mifflin Harcourt