by Sara Rosett
You might not think it from the
title, but in my new book, Milkshakes,
Mermaids, and Murder, Ellie crosses paths with a celebrity paparazzi
photographer. The photographer was a hoot to write, using disguises, climbing
trees, and bribing hotel doormen to get the scoop on her celebrity quarry.
Personally, I’ve only had two
up-close celebrity sightings. I saw Al Franken in the security line at Reagan
National. He looked just as harried as everyone as he tried to get everything
ready to go through the scanner. That sighting was just a quick glimpse.
I was on another flight last year when
I noticed a lot of activity near the back aisle of first class. I wasn’t in
first class (would have been nice!) but I was seated on the first row of coach,
so I had a good view of people coming and going. In particular, several flight
attendants were very concerned that the passenger in the last row of first
class be comfortable.
It took me awhile to figure it out,
but when a young girl brought a phone, a piece of paper, and a pen with her and
shyly approached the row, I realized there was a “star” in first class. The
girl asked if she could take a picture. She took it and then the star autographed
the paper. The girl shyly congratulated the star on her recent grand slam wins,
and I finally realized it was Serena Williams.
I did a lot of research about
paparazzi as well as celebrities and their entourages while I wrote Milkshakes. Some celebrities employ
countless aides and experts: personal assistants, secretaries, hair and beauty
professionals, nannies (for kids and pets), exercise trainers, diet and
nutrition experts, and various consultants, like Anastasia Soare, who Oprah
called the “eyebrow guru” because celebrity
brows are her business. Some celebs don’t have time to do their own social
media and hire people to update their accounts. My favorite job title was celebrity
ghost tweeter. Nothing is too trivial to be outsourced, apparently: Ashton Kutchner hired someone to run his fantasy
football team. As I did the celebrity/paparazzi research, I concluded most
stars don’t live normal lives, despite the magazine spreads that claim
celebrities do normal things like pump their own gasoline and take their kids
to the park.
After watching the interaction on
the plane I was more convinced than ever that being a star results in an odd
life. It was interesting to watch the fawning interaction around the tennis
star, how the crew gave her special attention (which she really didn’t seem to
want), and how the other passengers either covertly watched her or openly
snapped her photo.
In the abstract, being a star
sounds great, but watching the reality of it firsthand made me glad that after
a long day of travel I could grab my bag and go home. No one cared or even
noticed, which was really nice.
Have you had a celebrity sighting?
~Sara
A native Texan, Sara is the author
of the Ellie Avery mystery series and the On The Run suspense series. Publishers Weekly called Sara’s books,
"satisfying," "well-executed," and "sparkling."
As a
military spouse, Sara has moved around the country (frequently!) and traveled
internationally, which inspired her latest suspense novels.
Sara loves all things bookish,
considers dark chocolate a daily requirement, and is on a quest for the best
bruschetta. Connect with Sara at www.SaraRosett.com.
You can also find her on Facebook,
Twitter, Pinterest, or Goodreads.
Sara,
ReplyDeleteWe've had only a couple of celebrity sightings, mostly involving Chicago-area athletes -- Bulls and Cubs players. My son is a HUGE Blackhawks fan, so he's hoping to run into Patrick Kane or Jonathan Toews someday :).
Never spotted an athlete, Marilyn. Interesting!
DeleteOne thing about being rich and famous is the people around; you pay all their bills so they very rarely disagree with you because they want you to pick up the check.
ReplyDeleteI took the pic you used of the paparazzi (you are free to use it, of course). It was in NYC at NBC.
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