# Celebs you thought would never sell out but did. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 24, 2002, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518 "2002-11-24T19:59:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![clayton\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c57346/32.png) [@clayton\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clayton_e)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2002, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/1 "2002-11-24T19:59:22Z")
Don Mclean… It wasn’t all that bad when Madonna redid American Pie. At least that got people who wouldn’t have heard older music interested in it. But when I heard part of the origional American Pie in a Chevy commercial… Yeah. Cross Don off the list of stars that havn’t sold out. So… Who’s on your list of people you thought would never sell out but eventually did? ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2002, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/2 "2002-11-24T20:52:22Z")
Metallica. _sigh_ ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2002, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/3 "2002-11-24T20:58:27Z")
My definition of selling out is compromsing your art for the sake of money. Yours may be different, but I don’t believe what Don McLean did qualifies as selling out. ---
**Author:** ![reprise](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ea666f/32.png) [@reprise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/reprise)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2002, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/4 "2002-11-24T21:03:32Z")
A lot of artists don’t retain the rights to their works, so when you hear a popular song being used in an advertisement, it’s possible that someone other than the artist has licensed that use (although if the artist has a decent contract, they’ll still be benefitting from that use due to royalties). ---
**Author:** ![raisinbread](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8491ac/32.png) [@raisinbread](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raisinbread)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2002, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/5 "2002-11-24T22:39:18Z")
Metallica ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2002, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/6 "2002-11-24T23:17:57Z")
Henry Rollins, who for some inexplicable reason is doing a TV show called [Full Metal Challenge](http://www.ultimatemachinecombat.com/). I mean, I like the show and all, I just can’t see why Henry Rollins feels the need to be doing it. (Yeah, I know: money :rolleyes: that’s not the point I’m trying to make here. Why’d he choose something like this to make some spare cash with?) ---
**Author:** ![WSLer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a6a055/32.png) [@WSLer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WSLer)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/7 "2002-11-25T02:15:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tuckerfan \* > \*\*Henry Rollins, who for some inexplicable reason is doing a TV show called [Full Metal Challenge](http://www.ultimatemachinecombat.com/). I mean, I like the show and all, I just can’t see why Henry Rollins feels the need to be doing it. (Yeah, I know: money :rolleyes: that’s not the point I’m trying to make here. Why’d he choose something like this to make some spare cash with?) \*\* What else is he supposed to do to make spare cash, star in the sequel to **Johnny Mnemonic**? Be a presenter on the **Vogue/VH1 Fashion Awards**? Star in the sequel to **The Chase**? ---
**Author:** ![sleestak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sleestak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleestak)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/8 "2002-11-25T02:54:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by raisinbread \* > \*\*Metallica \*\* Why do you think Metallica sold out? Slee ---
**Author:** ![WSLer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a6a055/32.png) [@WSLer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WSLer)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/9 "2002-11-25T02:57:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by sleestak \* > \*\*Why do you think Metallica sold out? > > Slee \*\* **raisinbread** probably thinks metallica sold out when they sued Napster, thereby depriving **raisinbread** of his supposed inalieniable right to illegally download music.:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/10 "2002-11-25T03:07:06Z")
Why do you make that assertion **WSLer**? ---
**Author:** ![typhoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ed8c4c/32.png) [@typhoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typhoon)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/11 "2002-11-25T03:32:46Z")
Well, this is going well. ---
**Author:** ![SandWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8491ac/32.png) [@SandWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SandWriter)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/12 "2002-11-25T03:42:59Z")
jim rockford doing car commercial \>well, this is going well that was the funniest post so far! ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/13 "2002-11-25T03:44:52Z")
George Carlin in a 10-10-220 commercial. {Lewis Black] I beleive the next words out of your mouth were, “What the _fuck_!” [/LB] ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/14 "2002-11-25T03:52:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by WSLer \* > \*\*What else is he supposed to do to make spare cash, star in the sequel to **Johnny Mnemonic**? Be a presenter on the **Vogue/VH1 Fashion Awards**? Star in the sequel to **The Chase**? \*\* Dunno, but this just doesn’t strike me as the kind of thing Henry Rollins would do, ya know? Sort of like having Madonna doing PSA’s for the celibacy movement. ---
**Author:** ![SwimmingRiddles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@SwimmingRiddles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SwimmingRiddles)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/15 "2002-11-25T04:15:24Z")
Speaking of which, I heard that ole’ Black Flag himself is in the new Jackass movie. I’d go with Macy Grey singing in the new Mercury commercials. Not only is Macy surprising, but she’s singing a Dwight Yoakum song. Woah. Two sell-outs in one. ---
**Author:** ![Super\_Gnat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Super\_Gnat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Super_Gnat)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/16 "2002-11-25T04:40:26Z")
Busta Rhymes. Man, you used to be cool :(. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/17 "2002-11-25T04:50:28Z")
Ozzy. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/18 "2002-11-25T05:06:02Z")
As a good, Republican capitalist, I have nothing against “selling out.” If a rock musician is offered good money to let a big coporation use one of his songs in a commercial, I say “Go for it.” If a serious, Shakespearean actor is offered a pile of money to appear in a stupid sitcom, I don’t begrudge him the chance. So, “Selling out” doesn’t bother me, per se. It’s only when the sell-out is someone who’s always posed as being above all that. Good example: Bob “I Have No Talent, But Maybe If I SCREAM My Jokes People Will THink They’re Funny” Goldtwait. Look, it’s not so much that he starred in the “Police Academy” series. Even no-talent assholes have to make a living somehow, and if the money was too good to pass up, I don’t blame him for taking the paycheck. It’s just that this very same Bob Goldthwait can’t go 5 minutes without harping on all the crappy projects OTHER comics have done. Hey Goldthwait- on Bob Hope’s WORST day, he never made a movie as bad as “Police Academy 3,” and never gave a performance as pathetic as yours on “Tales From the Crypt.” And HE made a LOT more money than you did. So… I don’t loathe Goldthwait so much for selling out. It’s more that: 1. He’s such a nauseating hypocrite. 2. He’s not even that SUCCESSFUL at selling out. ---
**Author:** ![sleestak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sleestak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleestak)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/19 "2002-11-25T05:07:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Diogenes the Cynic \* > \*\*Ozzy. \*\* Again, how do you think Ozzy sold out? I am going to call you on this one. Ozzy released his best recording in years recently. Ozzy headlines one of the biggest tours in the world, OzzFest, which is the biggest Metal tour around. Ozzy brings the best bands he can find on tour and then he up stages them. If you think that the ‘Osbourne’ tv show makes Ozzy a sell out you really need to be smacked hard. Slee ---
**Author:** ![ElwoodCuse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/edb3f5/32.png) [@ElwoodCuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElwoodCuse)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2002, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518/20 "2002-11-25T05:18:53Z")
Led Zeppelin. For God’s sake, WHY are their songs in Cadillac commercials? Can Moby be a sell-out? Or was his entire career just writing songs for commercials? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/celebs-you-thought-would-never-sell-out-but-did/138518.md?page=2)