Core Response #5: Who's King is it anyway? - Benjamin Noble

When we become interested in a celebrity, from the very moment we first see them, we begin making judgements, and attach these judgements, as well as values, to said celebrity. From that point onwards, the celebrity, in our minds, is viewed in a very specific way; they mean something to us that nobody else would understand. Both of the readings this week, by Sweeney and Doss, touched on how the celebrity becomes unique and personal to the person(s) that they have an effect on.

Sweeney is more particular in looking at the scope of this divide in celebrity within the culture of race and class in America, specifically relating to the divide between upper class and “Carnival” which he refers to as “the place of laughter, bad taste, loud and irreverent music, parody, free speech, bodily functions, eating and feasting…” (Sweeney, 254). When we tie in this concept into the film we saw last week, Viva Las Vegas, it’s full of the “big, bright, and excessive” elements that Sweeney believes is embodied in the persona of Elvis and thereby “White Trash” culture (250). The film celebrates being over the top and full of excessive detail, while also showing us a clear divide between the world of Lucky, a humble, poor mechanic engaged in often crazy activities, and Count Elmo Mancini, an established, suave, and more-gentlemanly European Driver and celebrity. The tension between this lower and upper class is so apparent that, at the end of the film, Elmo dies (unless he was miraculously not crushed by multi-ton car), showing how Elvis’ character, the embodiment of what Sweeney refers to as “White Trash”, triumphs over the upper, richer class.

While not being as critical of class, Doss does touch on the divides of interpretations of celebrity, more specifically with the various faces that Elvis took on. It’s fascinating, seeing how he was seen by so many different people as being poor, rich, humble, in pain, pure, sexy, fat, thin, etc.; they defined the image of him for their own (Doss, 9). We see this throughout his career and beyond, becoming a staple of American culture, so much so that people will defend their views of them with words and warnings; Doss recounts how some fans he interviewed were hostile to his views and ostracized him (Doss, 14). In any case, when we examine all of these arguments in context with Elvis, we come across a broad notion of the uniqueness of celebrity to individuals and cultures, and how their significance solidifies a position that they may have, and will defend with all of their might.