The Descent into Madness

The watch of celebrities spiraling into their own hand made version of Hell enthralls us all. I'm guessing that it's this age's form of freak show. And we can guarantee that celebrities will do it for us every time. James Dean dies young and becomes a legend. Marilyn Monroe gained a far higher status than her talent deserved but her story was one of tragedy. Judy Garland, Elvis Presley, Kurt Cobain, Heath Ledger. We love their talent and what they can give but we love the fact that fame is a poison chalice even more. The higher they climb, the more is at stake. So Brigette Bardot shunning fame and aging as women tend to do isn't gripping but Tom Cruise jumping on a sofa is. One is normal, the other is not.

The freak show unfortunately doesn't end. We could even debate whether the media has latched onto it for their own ends (Princess Diana anyone?) but they would only trot out the lame old line "Well if people didn't buy it, we wouldn't print it". It's with sadness (and to my shame, glee) that I've read about Britney Spears' descent into madness- literal madness. What a tragedy: a young mum of two, divorced from a man she must have loved very much, falling into erratic behaviour and substance use. Take away the millions, the record contract and the looks and we could be talking about Tracey on the Larkman estate. But it's precisely those things that escalate the whole sorry affair.

In many ways, I'm please for Britney because people have noticed and she is getting the help she needs (well according to this news report maybe not). My mind takes me to Michael Jackson however who definitely has been pushed to the extremes that Britney has but is still "at large". In the meantime, who wants to be famous for their breakdowns and not their talent? Maybe if you could engineer the two, you would be onto a very lucrative earner and be laughing (without straight jacket) all the way to the bank.