The Power of Celebrity

Hey, another sighting last night of a celebrity (sort of). I went to the Writers Guild to see a panel on writing for videogames. I noticed one of the guys in the audience and thought, Hey, I know that guy. It’s the computer geek henchman from Mission Impossible 2. He left shortly before the end of the panel. Later, I was talking to another writer, and I said, “Hey, did you notice the guy sitting to our right?” And the writer said, “Yeah, it was him. I was texting my girlfriend and being like, ‘Hey, I’m sitting next to Ethan from Lost.’ Tom Hank’s brother.” I said, “I thought he was Tom Cruise’s cousin.” The writer said, “Yeah, maybe. I’m not sure.” I said, “I’m not sure either.” Neither of knew his name. Wow, it’s like a Zen koan: Is a celebrity still a celebrity if nobody knows who he is?