As if we weren't on wits end dealing with the constant media barrage of Anna Nicole Smith's death, we are now witness to the shearing of Britney Spears' hair becoming front-page tabloid news.
I've listened to various psychologists try to explain what may be going through Britney's mind. Simply put, it's likely the price of fame that is bringing so much pressure to these people. Pressure to perform, be noticed, sell albums or movies, and out-do the competition with outrageous stories & relationships that will grace magazine covers and make them the talk of a nation burnt-out on celebrity gossip.
CNN Headline News devoted parts of two hour-long news shows to this yesterday, and all we saw was the same four photos and video footage of Spears shearing her hair off. An argument with her mother, her divorce from Kevin Federline, the possibility of losing custody of her kids, checking into and out of rehab within 24 hours... it's no wonder the stress is there.
Is the stress even worth the price of fame? I'm not noted for anything other than my past work in television, with the gap between then & now growing larger by the day. I prefer to be a typical working-class Joe, out only to make myself better than I am today. Do I want those outrageous mansions that they buy & sell at the snap of a finger? Hardly; I have trouble maintaining the 800 square-foot house I'm in now.
My print exposure in life has been limited to eight news columns about high school; five op-ed blurbs, and two small articles on TV shows I've done. It's been gratifying to see my name in print, even though I won't do something outrageous to be front-page headlines. I don't need to grace magazine covers in check-out stands to know I'm trying to do something with my life. My heart will tell me when I've accomplished something good, and that accomplishment comes through stone-stepping and gradually meeting that goal.
There is a sin to getting something way too fast. I never figured out where the pressures could come from until recently. If things happen so fast, they start spinning around, dividing the mind at will to where a secretary is needed just to keep your mind focused. When things spiral out of control, you can go mad or nuts. And this is as likely without media coverage as it is with.
Britney is probably wondering why she bothered getting into the "glamorous" route. She is very talented, but perhaps going into the pressure cooker of "mainstream" hurt her more than anything. Her behavior is erratic to say the least, but being erratic is a sure sign the brain is on overload, and is a cry for help. So to the psychologists who say she's crying for help, it's a most accurate assessment.
While allowing for new issues to pop up with her autopsy, Anna Nicole was likely a victim of the same self-made expectations that crashed her down as quickly as she was built up. In this day & age and with the media on stars like a hound, the victims have every right to wish for a simpler time in life, where not every move was analyzed in detail.
For them, it may have paid off not to be known. The price they paid, or are paying, is their souls.
Those cannot be replaced.
