Sunday, May 9, 2010

Wow, those Hollywood Walk of Fame "stars" on the sidewalk there are actually PAID PR by the studios: cost US$25,00 per star. Who knew?

So for example, a  recent New York Times obit should have read: "In 2007, Mr. Raabe was on hand when a PAID star -- US$25,000 is the fee the studi paid -- collectively honoring the Munchkins was unveiled on the Hollywood Walk of Fame."

And all future news stories about this "stars" on the Walk of Fame should mention that the star was paid for by the star or his or her studio. Damn, all these years I thought they were real awards of honor and merit. Sheesh. Is nothing genuine anynore?

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce Walk of Fame Committee is responsible for selecting a new group of entertainers each year to receive stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. New recipients are announced each June for the following year.

In order for a person to get a star on the Walk of Fame, he or she must agree to attend a presentation ceremony within five years of selection, and a fee (currently $25,000, up from $15,000) must be paid to the Trust; some of it ($5,000 of $15,000 in December 2003) is set aside for maintenance and repair, with the rest going towards the installation, security, publicity, and staging costs.[11]

The fee is often paid by sponsors such as film studios and record companies, as part of the publicity for a release with which the honoree is involved;[11] as Johnny Grant pointed out in 2006: "These studios, when they want a star and they've got a picture opening, they'd give you $100,000".[2] On other occasions, the fee is paid by a fan club.[2]