# Celebrities Destined For Obscurity **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 10, 2005, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184 "2005-05-10T05:13:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/21 "2005-05-10T18:54:54Z")
> [@wolf\_meister](#): > > Although quite famous now, I’d say **Nicolas Cage** will eventually trod the path from relative obscurity to total oblivion. > > Among other things, he’s made _many_ movie bombs. (“Windtalkers”, “Captain Corelli’s Mandolin”, “8 mm”, “Gone in 60 Seconds”, “National Treasre”, etc) > > What’s that you say? He won a Best Actor Oscar? Sure. So did Paul Scofield. (Who?) Lots of famous actors have made bombs. Richard Burton, for instance, made more bad movies than any actor alive today, and nobody’s forgotten him. Cage has made enough good movies to ensure at least a minor place in film history - a George Raft, for instance, or a Montgomery Clift. ---
**Author:** ![Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stark_Raven_Mad)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/22 "2005-05-10T19:05:17Z")
> [@Troy McClure SF](#): > > Hilary Duff… not that she’s a megastar now, but I don’t think anyone will remember her five years from now, except for when she finally poses in _Playboy_ and people go, “hey, it’s the Disney chick. She’s hot.” I can’t wait. I can’t wait either. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/23 "2005-05-10T19:13:35Z")
> [@Sam Stone](#): > > **Hayden Christensen** will be this generation’s Mark Hamill. Star in one movie series that guarantees he’ll be remembered forever, work steadily as an actor for 30 years, eventually moving into producing and directing, while keeping up his acting? Sounds like a sweet deal to me. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/24 "2005-05-10T19:27:22Z")
> [@wolf\_meister](#): > > Although quite famous now, I’d say **Nicolas Cage** will eventually trod the path from relative obscurity to total oblivion. > > Among other things, he’s made _many_ movie bombs. (“Windtalkers”, “Captain Corelli’s Mandolin”, “8 mm”, “Gone in 60 Seconds”, “National Treasre”, etc) > > **What’s that you say? He won a Best Actor Oscar? Sure. So did Paul Scofield**. (Who?) [\*\*Boldness \*\* added.] Paul Scofield is not really the best example you can cite. Even after winning an Oscar, he wasn’t interested in becoming a movie star and chose to concentrate primarily on the theater rather than film. However, he does an occasional movie now and then (e.g., **Quiz Show** and **The Crucible** ). As for Cage, he’ll continue to be visible as a working actor for awhile (barring any personal problems). He’s already been around for nearly 20 years. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/25 "2005-05-10T20:33:46Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > The entire cast of _Friends._ The entire cast of Seinfeld. Yes, even Jerry. In fact, I’ll go so far as to bet “the entire cast of every sitcom that was headed by a standup comedian with a supporting cast of actors who were all more talented than the star.” ---
**Author:** ![Notorious\_Nik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/858c86/32.png) [@Notorious\_Nik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Notorious_Nik)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/26 "2005-05-10T20:42:08Z")
Sadly, I don’t think any of these people will ever go away. Back in the old days, there weren’t shows like Entertainment Tonight and all those other celebrity gossip shows littering the televison landscape. Not to mention tabloids and paparazzi taking pictures all the time. A time like this is when oblivion is sorely needed for so many people, and I fear it will never come. We’ll be hearing about the likes of Britney and Ashlee and Ashton and all the other idiots untill they start dying off and and a new bunch of morons comes along to take their places. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/27 "2005-05-10T22:16:21Z")
I think (and hope and fervently pray to any god within earshot) that most of today’s pundits, shock-jocks and celebrity primetime journalists will be members of “Club Who?” in the near future. Al Franken and Michael Moore will probably be around a tad longer than others not because they’re left wing as much as their talent for showmanship and talent for self-promotion without seeming a totally evil uncaring prick (whether they are or not), but Limbaugh has already peaked, Ann Coulter is a freak act who is already beginning to fade (as conservative horndogs realize she’s aging and will never grow into her legs), Howard Stern has no power to shock anybody but the FCC anymore and I just think the entire “I’ll say anything” media-geek herd has reached Malthusian proportions and will begin thinning. I seriously doubt that any reality star celebrity will be a celebrity in even two years (some form of “inverse distancing” rule: they’re only famous for one thing and the further removed they are from that one thing the more “Velma Kelly” they become. Some of the hosts will remain a bit longer (Simon Cowell, Jeff Probst, etc.) but Justin Guarini, Richard Hatch, etc.- sell the stock for whatever you can get cause unless they kill some people in a particularly gruesome manner they’ll never see the front page again. ---
**Author:** ![supervenusfreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@supervenusfreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/supervenusfreak)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/28 "2005-05-10T23:23:10Z")
> [@Troy McClure SF](#): > > Hilary Duff… not that she’s a megastar now, but I don’t think anyone will remember her five years from now, except for when she finally poses in _Playboy_ and people go, “hey, it’s the Disney chick. She’s hot.” I can’t wait. Just like **Deborah Gibson** and **Tiffany**. Let me add **Christina Aguilara** , and just about every other breathy nasal singer that rappers add to their songs because they are hot looking. ---
**Author:** ![supervenusfreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@supervenusfreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/supervenusfreak)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/29 "2005-05-10T23:27:42Z")
> [@supervenusfreak](#): > > Just like **Deborah Gibson** and **Tiffany**. > > Let me add **Christina Aguilara** , and just about every other breathy nasal singer that rappers add to their songs because they are hot looking. Cancel the “other” in the last sentence. Christina may be many things, but she certainly does have great pipes. ---
**Author:** ![Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stark_Raven_Mad)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/30 "2005-05-10T23:31:02Z")
I have a great dislike for **Christina Aguilera** ’s flavor of pop, but I assure you she’s one of the least untalented ones out there. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2005, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/31 "2005-05-10T23:32:54Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > I think (and hope and fervently pray to any god within earshot) that most of today’s pundits, shock-jocks and celebrity primetime journalists will be members of “Club Who?” in the near future. Ah yes, as they say “This too shall pass.” It reminds me of the late 1980’s when stand-up comedy was reaching the saturation point. Every medium sized town opened up a comedy club and every cable channel had a “comedy mix” show. Pretty soon, anyone who could string 5 jokes together was on TV, at least for a minute or two. Then, thank OG, it all started to dry up…we can only hope we’re so lucky with the political pundit trend we’re suffering through now. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/32 "2005-05-11T02:35:32Z")
> [@](#): > > Cage is actually a very good (and versatile) actor, who just doesn’t seem to have the best track record of picking projects. See also Travolta, John and Walken, Christopher. And their patron saint: Caine, Michael. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/33 "2005-05-11T02:43:46Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > I think (and hope and fervently pray to any god within earshot) that most of today’s pundits, shock-jocks and celebrity primetime journalists will be members of “Club Who?” in the near future. Al Franken and Michael Moore will probably be around a tad longer than others not because they’re left wing as much as their talent for showmanship and talent for self-promotion without seeming a totally evil uncaring prick (whether they are or not), but Limbaugh has already peaked, Ann Coulter is a freak act who is already beginning to fade (as conservative horndogs realize she’s aging and will never grow into her legs), Howard Stern has no power to shock anybody but the FCC anymore and I just think the entire “I’ll say anything” media-geek herd has reached Malthusian proportions and will begin thinning. All of the people who you mentioned, except for Coulter, have made a long-lasting name for themselves. If Limbaugh has ‘already peaked’, it’s only after spending what, 20 years at the pinnacle of radio? The man almost singlehandedly invented the whole talk radio thing. Like him or hate him, he is perhaps the most well-known, most influential personality in radio history. His place in history is assured. They’ll still be talking about him 100 years from now, at least in the context of radio history and punditry. Likewise Howard Stern. There’s no way he’ll fade to obscurity, because his impact on radio was too large. Franken has had a long career, but much of it has been as a writer which tends to fade into obscurity. So his name may not be around. Ann Coulter would be my pick for obscurity, and well deserved. She’s a one-trick pony who’s only talent is knowing how to exploit the current partisan divide. Once the particular passions that drive the current partisanship fade, no one will remember who she was. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/34 "2005-05-11T06:32:28Z")
Of course “will be remembered” is a relative term. Arthur Godfrey was quite possibly the most famous celebrity in America outside of Hollywood for many years. If he mentioned enjoying a cruise, cruise ticket sales quadrupled and the same if he mentioned a particular restaurant, hotel, movie, etc.; if he criticized a cigarette or a dog breed or a car, sales nosedived. He de-stigmatized vaesectomies to millions of men and made and destroyed careers almost as a hobby (and that was just Julius Larosa’s) and had a much larger market share than Oprah or Regis & [Blonde Co-Host] or anybody else today will ever dream of, generally being the Norma Desmond of Talk Shows. Ask 500 people under 30 today to identify him, I seriously doubt that 10 could do it. Even in his own lifetime he was reduced to hawking supplemental insurance and vitamins on afternoon and late-night commercials (not, ironically, for the money- he was loaded- but he was so desperate for airtime and so obnoxious nobody would give him a comeback after he retired from his show in a huff). Media memory is incredibly short. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Kenneth\_Noisewater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@Dr.Kenneth\_Noisewater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Kenneth_Noisewater)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/35 "2005-05-11T06:48:29Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Cage has made enough good movies to ensure at least a minor place in film history - a George Raft, for instance, or a Montgomery Clift. See _Adaptation_. no seriously go see it ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2005, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184/36 "2005-05-11T07:10:22Z")
> [@](#): > > The entire cast of Seinfeld. Yes, even Jerry. No, bad choice. _Seinfeld_ will be in syndication for decades; it’s like expecting Alan Alda or George Wendt to be obscure 20 years after their shows ended. > [@](#): > > Carrot Top – once he stops appearing on the occasional talk show, and stops touring his show, he will fade from memory. I’m not so sure. I think he might have enough momentum purely as a punchline to keep his name out there for a long time. Think Tiny Tim. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebrities-destined-for-obscurity/303184.md?page=1)