Why would anyone want to be famous?

[Golden_Rhino]

I have always wondered why a lot of people would like to be rich and famous. I can understand the rich part, but not the famous part. I would hate to have my privacy invaded, having people pester me for autographs everywhere I went, and the paranoia and obsession that probably comes from wanting to stay famous.

I guess I could sum up my attitude as I would rather get rich by winning the lottery than I would by being famous.

I would like to know why some of you want to be famous, or theories on why many people want this 'distinction'.

[7ontheline]

I suspect people who truly want "fame" and not necessarily wealth or achievement are extremely narcissistic.

[Go_Blue88]

Ha there are some very obvious answers to this question(especially if you're a guy).

I'm not sure what unique perspective you're looking for

[beta1607]

Fame is power and a lot of people like power. It's like why would someone worth millions of dollars want to be Senator or President? For the power and ego boost.

[nolanfan34]

I wanted to be famous, I think that's part of why I went into television. After being an on-air reporter/anchor for a few years, I can only offer a very small slice of perspective.

Basically though, I did find it weird once I started to be recognized out in public. Having people stare at you, or ask weird questions, becomes sort of uncomfortable. And I only had a VERY small slice of what that's like. It certainly made me think about what someone like Matt Lauer goes through, where you can pretty much never go out in public without being bothered.

So while it's certainly an ego boost in the short term, yeah, I think in some ways it made me appreciate how difficult being "famous" would be and that the tradeoff probably isn't worth it for a lot of people.

[guids]

Never having to wait in line is a good enough reason for me.

[lippy]

You feel you did something important.

You have a known legacy.

You get to have sex with a lot of beautiful women.

All sorts of fringe benefits (free tickets, best restaurants, etc).

Power and influence. You can get things for people, etc.

[Stagger_Lee]

You would have to be an idiot to desire fame. The evidence seems to back me up.

[IggyWH]

Fame only sucks in those brief moments where you want privacy.

I'd take fame anyday as I love people and love to make people I'm around happy. That's what I think is the coolest thing about fame. You saying hello to someone can turn one of their worst days ever into one of their best.

One of my best nights ever was bar hopping with Mark Cuban. Now, Cuban was a cool dude, but I know a ton of cool people. His fame and fortune is what made the night unforgettable though.

[hanimal]

Interesting....