A large proportion of the population in developed countries devotes their reading and television watching time to following the lives and antics of celebrities. Whether you're an executive recruiter or a janitor, chances are you've heard about the babies Angelina Jolie has adopted and that Michael Jackson once held a baby off of a balcony. For normal people such events are quickly forgotten, but with celebrities, every move is of national interest. Why? What makes celebrities different? And how do they obtain celebrity status in the first place? This article aims to answer some of those questions.

The easy definition of "celebrity" is "a person who is famous." But the reality is more complicated than that. Fidel Castro is famous, but does that make him a celebrity? No. In order to be a celebrity, your fame must arise from something frivolous and generally related to the entertainment industry, such as starring in films, releasing records, or being the spoiled, cavorting child of a magnate who owns the worldwide chain the salon and spa in Edmonton belongs to.

That is not to say that anyone who is a spoiled heiress, rap artist, or film actor is a celebrity. The additional factor of media attention is necessary to attain celebrity status, which often requires outlandish, eccentric, or just plain bad behavior. For example, a novelist who hires a Mississauga limousine to take him to the airport is of no interest. He remains an "artist," known for his work, not his private life. A novelist who hires a limo to take him to a party and hangs out the sun roof drunk and shouting racist slurs will almost certainly make the news.

Because celebrity status is largely influenced by a person's behavior, there is a spectrum of celebrity-dom that ranges from the dark (such as a football player who forces himself on female fans in their Toronto Beach homes and is sent to trial) to light (such as a prominent actor who publicly devotes time and money to charitable causes). Therefore, a celebrity's public "image" is not necessarily created by the media's portrayal (though embellishments do occur) but has its roots in the person's behavior.

So how does a person transition from artist to celebrity? It can happen several ways. By accident, such as a TV actor laying into a trademark agent in Canada and his tirade being caught on cell phone video and uploaded to YouTube, or consciously, such as when a rap artist cavorts in public or gives press releases and interviews in which he answers questions about his private habits and love life, which opens the door for further digging. Some people cultivate celebrity status, only to find that it is very difficult to get rid of when they decide later that they want their privacy back.