What is the psychology behind people wanting fame?

Mental illness mostly personality disorders.

It allows you to pick and choose any penis you desire.

People want both more attention and more love, and think this will be a way to get a lot of both.

I used to dream of fame all the time as a child. I was an abused child. I think many have similar stories..

People want to be remembered by more than their family and friends and perhaps the children of those, who by then most likely aren't interested in family photos. Sad but I'm finding to be true.

If you get noticed for your talents as a child, you are likely to get addicted to fame.

R6 and fucked by pedophiles.

The ego is a greedy pig and its junk food of choice is attention, good or bad. That's really all there is to it.

I blame Debbie Allen.

In a word: narcissism. That combination of grandiosity, deep internal insecurity, and a resulting constant need for external affirmation,

Those are, of course, exactly the type of people for whom the entertainment industry, with its fickle alternation of adulation and ignoring, is most the most toxic environment possible.

Exhibit A: any actor with a substance abuse problem.

Nope, exactly the opposite R10. Most actors have some sort of inferiority complex as a result of childhood neglect, abuse, rejection, etc., so they turn to 'play acting' to become 'somebody' or someone ELSE. As long as they're playing someone besides themselves, they feel more relaxed, PLUS they get the attention they never got at home or in school.

And then, because they feel unworthy of the attention they thought would make them happy, they turn to drugs, booze, etc..

I know a kind and discreet actor who is a cokehead R10, Should I advise him to try something else in life?

He has become rich through this profession.

I don’t know, I used to see it as a way to become untouchable growing up in the 90s. And then I started seeing the emergence of things like tmz and of course now camera phones and it seems the complete opposite of being untouchable. It’s like you are owned by the public. I can’t think of much worse these days. I wonder if the lifestyle is even worth it anymore.

I think I realise now I just wanted to be fabulously wealthy and successful, I don’t want fame and people knowing who I am or thinking they know who I am and following me around. God that makes me depressed.

I don’t understand what makes people like Ivana and Jared tick. How much money do you really need and what’re you going to do with it? I mean, once you’re comfortable and have someone to love you you don’t really need billions. Is it to prove something? Do they really think their “friends” and associates respect, covet, or envy them? Do they think this is some kind of frogging legacy they leave to their children? Gross.

Decades ago, I read a story of how they pulled a age teen Sherpa off the Himalayans and put him in a public school system here in the US. Several counselors warned that it wasn’t a very good idea.

One day he walked past a broken window. Someone had to explain that another student had vandalized the school. He looked in bewilderment at the damage and couldn’t fathom the concept, as his entire village came together and built the school by hand in Nepal. Someone had to explain the concept of vandalism to him… THIS is sort of how I feel when I read about people seeking fame and fortune to no end.

I’d like to think perhaps civilization evolves past this mentality but really hope there are a lot of museums in the future so our children don’t ever forget this era and repeat it.

With money, I can understand the desire. Anything good that fame *might* provide...money would do it better in my mind, without the ability to love the house without a care.

The desire for fame or power I never understood except to a certain extent some occupations where it's a necessary evil: acting, politics; but even then it never appealed to me at all.

[quote]I don’t understand what makes people like Ivana and Jared tick

R15. I agree on that, and also with your befuddlement as to why after a certain number of hundreds of millions or now billions the ambition drive doesn't relax. Letting more money come to you when you're that rich is one thing, getting up early in the morning and making a whole day of chasing after yet more is absurd.

I think with those two, however, the smoke and mirrors factor plays a critical role. Both of them would do anything for the appearance of great and greater wealth in part because what they have, what they could actually put their hands on in a reasonable time is probably far less than their leveraged image.

In their case with great wealth comes great debt and the very real possibility of losing it all and being preposterously indebted. They will never have real respect, only access to slime balls and people who promise them things in order to get something bigger in return. So much of their "wealth" is so volatile, that they need to Always Be Grifting to keep the ball and appearances in motion.

Like a MLM scheme, the people at the top live well and dazzle with their model success, but when the machine it at risk, the whole fucking mess is at risk.

Some insider to old Hollywood once said it was full of very damaged people wanting to be loved. I had a neglectful, unloving childhood and often thought that if i were famous I'd be loved and never lonely.

I think it relates to the very human fear of being forgotten. As children, we experience this fear at a smaller level. We want friends. We want to be important to someone. We want to be remembered on our birthday. We want to know we mean something in the world, and that if we were removed from it, we would be missed. Radiohead captured this desire in their lyric, "I want you to notice when I'm not around."

When we're young, fame seems like the perfect antidote to this anxiety. We don't yet understand the downsides of fame, and the value of privacy.

As we get older, the stark truth sets in: people are not remembered after death. In a generation or two, you'll be nothing more than a name in a family tree, or an occupied plot in a cemetery. Your identity will succumb to that most terrible fate: anonymity.

Thus, fame acts as protection against being forgotten, even in death. Shakespeare understood this phenomenon, and it's a frequent theme in his sonnets to the young man: "Let me immortalize you in my poetry."

At the most basic level, then, I think desire for fame stems from anxiety about personal mortality.

There are ways of always being remembered

I didn't want to be famous for the sake of being famous, but I wanted to make it as a popular writer and though I'd read enough celebrity biographies to know being famous wasn't that great, I figured I'd just handle it because I'd be doing what I wanted to do.

This thread makes me think of that line in the Counting Crows song " when everybody loves you you can never be lonely....."

The idea of being famous sounded good before the advent of social media, but now it sounds like a nightmare.

Though this number from "Little Me' is meant to be somewhat tongue in cheek, it still makes some points about the perils of fame.

If they are males they want Cock,lots of cock!

That's why tinseltown is full of bottoms everywhere.

Pretty much all actors and actresses are damaged in some way. Acting and being famous is a form of therapy. They also want to feel special and be remembered by the public.

Psyochopaths want fame because it represents power over others. Imagine a Putin staying behind the scenes. Not going to happen

Because of the internet and the speed at which information is diffused, the nature of fame has changed. In the past, celebrities and royalty could conceal unsavoury aspects of their private lives by various means no longer available t them. So fame has become very much a double sword.

Of course, if increased wealth is attached to fame, people will always pursue it despite the drawbacks.

Two reasons.

1. Ego fulfillment. Ego drives all of us, and becoming known to the greatest number of people is the primary want of the ego. Donald Trump is nothing but ego, nothing else, and he demonstrates ego's interests with every aspect of his being.

2. Opportunities. Whether you're selling ideas, songs, stories or products, you'll have the greatest chance of selling them to the greatest numbers of people when you're known to the greatest numbers of people. They don't have to like you or what you are selling; they only have to know of you and hear others talk about you to buy what you are selling.

To illustrate point two above, I learned last year from a book agent that the "big five" publishers award nonfiction book deals almost exclusively nowadays based on platform—proven reach to networks of people. She said that no one likes to disclose numbers and most will not admit it, but the "magic number" is 20,000 followers on any single social media platform; if you have that following and anything to say, you'll get a book deal. (And being a published author is ego fulfilling.) She said anyone with over 100,000 followers on any platform is virtually guaranteed a book deal even if they have nothing to say and don't know how to write; the publisher will hire a ghostwriter and put the person's name on the book because they know it will sell to followers. It's solely about profit, not ideas, and profits come to those who are known to many.

Many cultures, including ancient Egyptians, believed that immortality is possible if your name and likeness are never forgotten. Simply being known, whether positively or negatively doesn't matter at all. Regardless of damages they caused and regardless of how their lives end, the egos of people like Hitler are satisfied because they are known to everyone throughout history by name and appearance.

Young white men who feel they have no power, no influence, no name recognition in the US and no hope to get those things now are taking to becoming mass shooters to get their names and faces in the press—one desperate action taken to become known on the way out.

I like to be in the background, observing other people. Being the center of attention was never comfortable for me. I'm too self conscious and don't have a lot of confidence. I'd rather be a fly on the wall...watching the world.

What would be ideal would be to be very famous in your profession and moderately wealthy thereby, and just about unknown otherwise. That would be the best of both worlds - fame and privacy. You'd be lauded at conferences, you'd be considered an authority and referred to in books, you'd get a knighthood if British, you'd get to meet royalty and top politicians, you'd get your choice of sexual partners within your field, and more. But walking down the street, you'd be anonymous..

R28

Most normal people would rather be successful and rich rather than have fame and wealth.

My definition of success can be explained as being able to make a very decent living doing something you love. If it involves fame, for me, that's the negative. This is true for most people who don't crave that sort of attention.

I have a close friend who was incredibly handsome in his youth, he would always tell me, "Do people want to be my friend or date me because of my looks or because I'm a good decent person with talent and a good personality?"

My friend is extremely intelligent, talented and has a great career, but there's no denying his good looks and charm played a huge part in his success. He works behind the scenes in the music field.

Same, R30. I work in communications, inclulding a whole career of writing executives' and board members' thoughts for them in letters, speeches and public quotes.

It took many years before I came to terms with my own ego and realized that I am not egoless and I do get off to some extent on having influence over others—I just do not like or want the public attention that comes with it. So I get the satisfaction of being something of a puppeteer while others get the satisfaction of being awarded for thoughts that are partially their own. It works out for me.

I'd rather have the infleunce to work like Dick Cheney than the public recognition of being a George W. Bush type. I don't want to travel around constantly, to stand on a stage and have to shake hands and exchange bullshit small talk about inane topics like sports, blah blah blah. I want to plant seeds and be the gardener and control growth, not to be the actual sunflowers that people ogle and cut down.

The term is éminance grise.

I think a childhood full of belittling and abuse is a big factor for some. That need for attention and adoration. Fill that giant empty hole inside.

Not enough love and attention in the home as a child during your formative years, those are the people who thrive on showing off and making a spectacle of themselves. Watch the British documentary series Seven Up about interviewing various children at age 7, and in later years at age 14, 21, 28 etc. As they get older, you can look back at age 7, and see the Adult they evolved into was there all along, it's uncanny. A happy child grows into a "normal productive" adult, the unhappy child has multiple "issues" as an adult and not very accomplished. Celebrities crave the attention adoration and attention their families never gave them.

A gaping hole in the ego that cannot and will not ever be filled by adoration from strangers.

Sometimes not enough love and attention can go the other way. One could end up feeling so deflated and hurt, they become a wallflower. They feel unworthy and unlovable. That sort of vibe puts people off, reinforcing their beliefs.

As a child I hated any attention paid to me. I'm still like that as an adult. But the more I back off, the more I am asked to step up in my (tiny) field. One day soon, I'll get what I wish for and become invisible.

To me, there are two different kinds of fame: people like reality TV stars, or Instagram Influencers who are famous just...because. That's definitely a damaged, "you must love me" kind of thing. But then there is wanting to fame to be recognized within the top tier of your profession since talent alone isn't enough to make a living as an artist. There's also an element of neediness too, but let's face it - most of us toil away in obscurity and can still make a living. If we needed to be recognized to work as project managers or engineers, for example, we'd desire fame too. But most people don't really need it, or want it.

Fascinating thread.

I can understand completely and always could why people want money -- and by that I mean beyond a comfortable standard of living.

I can't understand and never could why people want fame. Actors, artists, writers, performers can all benefit from professional recognition, as can a conservator of paintings, a ruthless divorce lawyer, a company that makes custom wrought iron, or an unusual type of swimming pool, or someone who can supply pastries the likes of which no one else is the city offers. Recognition in that sense isn't bad. But wanting to be famous? I never saw the point, only the burden.

For me it's more odd than nice to go somewhere with a famous friend and see everyone's eye and attention turn to him, to see people scurry to attend to him or say what a pleasure it is to meet him or ask to take a photo (or not ask but just snap away.) Of course there are perks with that: getting a hotel upgrade, having heavy chairs brought to you, being offered luxurious freebies and behind the scenes tours, having people wait until you are finished speaking, people who think it would be their luckiest day ever if you fucked them... But for me that's also a burden. To forget that these people are treating you specially is to be impatient and callous toward what they only see as natural gestures of appreciation; but to look up from your restaurant table to see half the people with a piece of paper and pen at the ready and/or a phone poised for a photo takes something away from the subject of attention. For me it would be a huge pain in the ass not to be able to wander about the streets without crowds gathering and every head turning to watch as if I were doing something special, to be always treated with deference by people who don't know who I am but know my name or my face or know that I'm famous because someone nudged them and said, "Look! That's whatshisname."

Being famous offers far more burdens than benefits. Being stinking rich shifts the benefits upfront and erases any significant burdens.

We shall always be remembered fondly.

Fame is validating, R41, and it's natural for most people to be attracted to it. Being famous to the general public is just a broader version of being the popular person in a high school, big man on campus, or the only person in a workplace who everyone actually likes. Popularity is validating. People admire it. (People also resent it.) And there's power in it.

If you're the most popular kid in high school, you likely have the option to be class president if you want to be, to be prom king or queen if you want to be, etc. Everyone knowing you gives you access to what you want.

If you're the most popular person in a workplace, then you have advantages that come with it. You have access to all people at all levels. You can do yourself favors through that access, you probably at least have job security, and you can do favors for others at your own discretion. I held this position at past jobs, including my first "grown up" office job of 10 years, and I was "the golden child" in a very dysfunctional environment. I was the only person who was not abused in some way, and while my coworkers resented me for it, they also liked me and they exploited me to broker things for them with the fucked up boss, who respected me. I had a stable job for as long as I wanted it, but I also was a "shock absorber" for other people's problems.

Being famous, I think, is the same but with higher stakes. The more famous you are to more people, the more people's appreciation of you is exaggerated. They admire you, but they also have wonky ideas about your power and influence, and they want access to you with a dream of benefiting from your perceived powers. They also harbor resentment that you hold a position they don't, and part of them wants to bring you down to their level.

Ultimately, all famous people are is a central place at which people project their aspirations for themselves. We have an innate idolization inclination, and we assume famous people are powerful and can share their powers at will, and we resent them for having such special privileges. I would not want it.

We also see how fame is corruptive. Look no further than the Lord of the Rings to see how 'wearing the ring of power' is a burden, and certain people do have some level of power to withstand the corruptive force of it but most do not, and they end up victims of their own power in some ways, whether they are taken down by someone who wants what they have, or they buy the hype about themselves and end up totally out of touch with reality.

Earrings

Caftans!

I don't get it, for what it's worth.

Sure, I am famous the world over. But my whole life os dedicated to artistry. I've never been affected by fame and I pity those who do desperate things and mutilate their bodies seeking eternal youth and attention. Fools.

It's either narcissism or delusion. Sometimes even schizophrenia. But it depends on your look, your wealth, and your brain as well.

I'm coming to the conclusion that lacking attention as a child is not a good idea.

What a bunch of drips in this post.

Just listen to the great Human Sexual Response song, "Jackie Onassis": "I'm ready for the world to get a good look at ME!"

Because people want other people to envy them. It makes them feel superior or more important.

Ask any comedian. Getting laughs is a drug.

Milton Berle tells a story when George Burns won his Oscar for "Sunshine Boys" and the first thing he said was the exact number of laughs his speech got.

Tinkerbell only exists when people believe in her and applaud her.

Gods only exist when people believe in them.

You can be an ordinary, anonymous, hardworking person without anyone believing in you, but you can only be "great" when people say your name away from your presence and applaud you simply for being.

Many people believe life only holds value for those whose names are recorded and spoken after they are dead, and ordinary people are never recorded in history books.

Worst of all, the people whose names are remembered most and spoken of the most when they are gone are villains responsible for the greatest corruption and destruction of human beings like Hitler, Mussolini, Satan, God and Jesus Christ. Trump's ego accomplished its goal. The Kardashians probably have not, at least until they have atrocities committed in their names.

They say that we die twice - first, when our physical body dies, and second, the last time someone says our name.

I want to be Jackie Onassis

I want to wear a pair of dark sunglasses

I want to be Jackie Onassis, oh yeah

I want bodyguards all around

I'm anxious to avoid an autograph hound

Just let me be Jackie Onassis, oh yeah

I'm ready for the world to take a good look at me

Photographers can snap my picture, I'll pose for free

Tabloids can make my name a household word

I'll belong to millions but be free as a bird

I want my portrait done by Andy Warhol

I'll let them market a Jackie O doll

Just let me be Jackie Onassis, oh yeah...

First the world will call me Bouvier, hey

Then I'll change to Jackie K

After my date with tragedy

I'll let Aristotle take care of me

I want to be Jackie Onassis, oh yeah

I said, I'd be happy to be Jackie

Oh yeah, oh yeah...

I'd be so happy, then I'd be pleased!

I'd make Harry go down on his knees!

I have a good friend who was happy at being able to make a living as a writer, and had basically given up on a long-ago attempt at writing for television. Then he got hired on a show that became a hit and he won some Emmys. Now you cannot get him to stop begging for attention at every moment of the day. You can tell he's irritating himself sometimes, getting exasperated at his own behavior, but also he can't help himself. He'll post on social media about huge expensive purchases and then moments later ask everyone to sign up for his subscription-only mailing lists, Patreons, and Substacks. He starts to scold me for not subscribing to his lists, then he catches himself, but I don't know how long that's going to last. Eventually he's going to say "If you were really my friend, you'd pay $18 a month to read my newsletter!" and that'll be the end of it. It's nerve-wracking.

As a kid, I lusted for fame so that anyone who was mean to me or didn't believe in me would see that I made something of myself and did better than they did, but that desire went away by my 20s., especially as social media started to creep into the equation. Suddenly, any picture from high school with a problematic person could get you into trouble and ripped to shreds for nothing.

The perfect amount of fame is just enough to have a pleasant cult following to keep you supported throughout the years so that you can do what you love. Someone like John Waters probably has close to the right amount of fame. He never went Hollywood and stayed mostly in his hometown.

The best actors have usually said that the fame wasn't something they wanted, but it was something that came along and they had to find a way to deal with it. The Meryl Streeps of the world are like this. It's the joy of the work.

The worst actors are usually the ones who only get into it for the fame. They can be on top of the world for a decade or two if they're lucky, but then they have to go to desperate lengths to stay in the public eye. These are usually the ones getting the horrific plastic surgery and attending the opening of an envelope just to have their picture taken and be seen. This strikes me as more than a little bit sad. They're not going to be noticed for their good acting work, so they resort to that stuff. I imagine this is why so many of these untalented has been actors suddenly come out as MAGA people. It's good for attention and they can at least get a Fox News guest spot out of it. To them, any attention is good attention.

I just want to point out that the desire for fame isn't new, that long before the modern age young men would supposedly say things like "I shall be such a mighty hero that the Bards shall sing of my deeds forever! Every mud hut in the Tigris Valley shall know my name!".

I honestly believe that the desire for high status, and fame is a form of status, is deep in our social mammal's DNA, to some extent we are literally born to be "aspirational" by the standards of whatever society we live in. And the fact that the mass media and social media has made fame seem much more accessible than it's ever been, has made our natural desire for status within our social group take the form of desiring fame.

R55 I used to do freelance LGBT and entertainment writing and one day I wrote a personal essay about something very personal and got a huge response. I wrote more and more about that topic and realized that a lot of people are looking for someone to give voice to it. But it got weird. I spoke at and attended some conferences and developed a cult following, and the way people clamored to speak to me made me very uncomfortable. I didn't like it at all. Some part of me felt "special" because of the attention and I did feel like I was doing something to bring attention to something that isn't attended to well enough, but I ultimately was made to feel uncomfortable and let it peter out. Part of me misses both the attention and doing something that I think I did well and was important, but I don't like being any level of 'famous' or very popular to the point people speak to me like I am superior or should be thanked just for being me. It made me want more anonymity, not less.

Does this apply to French and Italian film industries, too? Actors in these countries seem more grounded.

I recall Spanish super star singer Rocio Jurado said as she was dying of pancreatic cancer "I often wonder now if I did the right thing. Perhaps I should have stayed in my village and led a simple life."

[quote] I don’t understand what makes people like Ivana and Jared tick

I don't know about Jared, because I don;t know about his upbringing.

I would guess with Ivana much has to do with the fact that her father is capable of loving his children except as they reflect on him, which means they have to be:

a) loyal;

b) successful;

c) contemptuous of little people;

d) attractive.

She's internalized all that, just as her (full-)brothers have.

I wonder if Post 54 is referring to Mike White?

A big empty hole where parental love should have been.

I'm a star.

And the audience loves me, and I love them.

And they love me for loving them.

And I love them for loving me.

And we love each other.

And that's 'cause none of us got enough love in our childhoods.

And that's show biz, kid.

Being wealthy without the fame seems much easier. It's great being anonymous.

Imagine people 'loving' you and not really knowing you, celerity worship seems so warped.

Keith Richards said that his long descent into heroin addiction was to cocoon himself from the toxic effects of fame.

Fame is obscurity biding its time----Carrie Fisher

Many cultures believe that when the last person who remembers you dies you die in perpetuity too. Fame is hedging the bet that you will be immortal by always being remembered by someone.

OP, I recently found actor/.musical theatre Kevin James Thornton who shares his fame-chasing journey from his childhood dreams to later in life struggles. He's so honest about his life it's endearing, plus he's reallyfunny. He also talks about growing up in the Midwest within a fundamentalist church.

This may help you understand actors/model or creatives. Enjoy!

Here's Kevin's story on his views on fame and "making it.".

Working link

R31 Why would I -- or anyone else for that matter -- want to meet "royalty and top politicians"? What is the possible appeal? Is anyone here eager to meet Charles and Camillia. Or Joe and the "doctor"? Particularly given that any meeting would be stilted from start to very quick finish.

This thread is rape!

Better parking spots.

In my will, I will donate some benches to be placed around my city. There will be a plaque with my name on them, and when weary people sit down on them, they will appreciate my gift.

Working in Hollywood I know or have come into contact with many famous actors and their hangers-on, politicians. It's hard to generalize about them, as it is with any large group -- some are greedy, some mean, some sweet, some genuinely down to earth, but the one thing that almost all of them have in common is self-absorption. It's next to impossible to become a figure in the public eye without constantly thinking about how you look, how others look at you, etc, as well as becoming used to having your needs met before anyone else's, as it is on sets -- and everywhere else they go. But I don't think that most of these people start this way: it's a kind of conditioning; if everyone always caters to your needs, you accept it first as a gift, then it becomes a habit, and then it becomes a fact of your life. It's not, for many, an innate desire.

Fame is a kind of Pavlovian conditioning -- the more you have it and its accoutrements, the more you want it until eventually you need it.

The saddest people I've ever met are the former stars who've had fame and lost it. They are, indeed, lost.

R76 Tina Louise?

Dammit, OP! Let a DL icon explain it to you...

R72 A couple of friends went nuts over two celebrities, one a Hollywood A-lister and the other who almost became president. They had come over. I remembered thinking how weird it was.

Yes, I would like to meet Prince Charles; would have liked to meet QEll or Princess Diana. No personal desire to meet the Bidens, but other politicians would offer interesting conversation, at least. Certain artists, writers, musicians and scientists would be a pleasure to meet.

R31

It makes sense evolutionarily, obviously social popularity is highly conducive to reproductive success. What's surprising?

I've learned a few things overtime and one of those is that fame is so fleeting. Very few have it for the majority of their lives. People like Betty White do, but I never thought of her as the fame-hungry type. She appeared to enjoy her work and got something deeper out of it besides just a paycheck. That's why the good, talented ones do it. It's like a calling to make people feel something. Maybe it stems from childhoods where they wanted to find a way to perk up their families or make their parents proud, but it's an innate drive that's found in these kinds of people.

The ones who are just in it for the fame or money will always end up disappointed, because those things can be so mercurial. Most people aren't famous for more than 5 or 10 years and those are the lucky ones. We've all seen hard-working character actors who have been toiling away, giving great performances for years, who have never become household names or gotten all the awards. Their tradeoff for not having fame seems to be the ability to work their whole life and not have to worry about employment. If you ask me, that's the way to do it.

It has something to do with living forever...

Well, the hope of it was enough for Irene Cara to show off those pancake titties.

Irene Cara is DEAD and you’re joking about her titties?

Lol, I guess that killed her cause I posted that yesterday.

"The term is éminance grise."

Well, smell her! And oh, dear!

It's a way to live forever, OP.

That whole idea about your second and final death being when your name is spoken or written for the last time.

Just seems like life would be easier, more comfortable & interesting.

But people are never satisfied. Plus we get old…every high has a low. I’m sure there’s a lot of pain involved (per Elvis, Judy, Marilyn, Cobain, etc.)

For me, true luxury is equanimity.

And we never know how things end up. I’m sure Vincent Van Gogh never imagined in his wildest dreams he would ever achieve this success.

It must be like a drug. I know someone who was on a hit TV show in her early twenties. She seems obsessed with getting the notoriety back.

Her husband is desperate to have children but she keeps putting it off to preserve her figure.

If you think about it most people from hit shows fade away.

I was watching The Handmaid's Tale and Gil Bellows was in it in a small roll. I was thinking he used to be the male lead on Ally McBeal now he's just put in guest spots.

The ones who stick around beyond the average tend to have a few things in common. They're easy to work with, pleasant, professional, and have legitimate talent. If you're incredibly beautiful, that's a plus as well, but it doesn't last forever, so it's important to at least be easy to work with if you're beautiful but not that talented. You'll at least book some Hallmark movies a few times a year so you won't starve.