I’m not shy about the fact that I love TV. But when it comes to the reality category, I’m not incredibly well-versed. I like reality shows with competitions—The Biggest Loser, Survivor, Top Chef—but get bored and, quite honestly, kind of depressed when I watch the “documentary” style series. (Documentary is in quotes because this category includes The Hills.)
Jersey Shore, Real Housewives, Millionaire Matchmaker, 16 and Pregnant. They just don’t do it for me. (The exception here, I will admit, is The Rachel Zoe project which I love having on in the background when I’m cleaning my room. Shut. The Front. Door.)
All this to say, I don’t watch Keeping Up with The Kardashians. Or any Kardashian-related entertainment. So I was entirely unaware that Kim’s wedding was going to be aired on E! on Sunday and Monday in a two part four-hour special. That is, until my BFF Sara asked me on five separate occasions to tape it for her, and then got into a detailed analysis of the entire Kardashian family with another friend of ours.
Why bring up the Kardashians on a blog about best friendship? Because Kim the uber-Kardashian has built a entire big-bootied E! empire all on the foundation of once being a BFF. That’s right folks. In case you forget, the very first seed of Kardashian daughter fame came from Kim’s best friendship with Paris Hilton. That’s when I learned her name. And, more importantly, when Us Weekly learned her name.
In the age of reality TV, best friend has become a career path. Aside from the new Mrs. Humphries, it’s also how Nicole Richie became famous. And Kimberly Stewart. Being Paris’ BFF-of-the-moment really is a fast track to stardom. Hence Paris Hilton’s My New BFF. It’s a wonder that show didn’t survive.
There’s also, of course, the most famous BFF, Gayle King. She’s a journalist and a career-woman (she and the big O met while working together at a news station) so she doesn’t belong in the company of Kim and Nicole, but she’ll always be best known as Oprah’s Best Friend Gayle.
As more celebrities take on reality shows, more best friends get the spotlight. Rachel Zoe’s friend Joey. Jessica Simpson’s friend Casey Cobb. And I know I’m forgetting some others.
It’s a fascinating choice of career. If the opportunity arose, I’m not sure it’s one I could get on board with. I’d like to succeed on my own accomplishments. But, then, if Sara became uber-famous, we’d still be best friends. If residual success fell my way, I don’t know that I would reject it out of hand.
What do you think about these semi-celebrities who are famous solely for being a BFF? Fascinating? Or pathetic? Do you hold their famous-for-being-famous-ness against them? And who am I forgetting? I know there is someone!
MWF Seeking BFF 
I always wonder how strange it must be if your best friend becomes famous (and something I will soon be grappling with when you become uber-famous Rach!). I can imagine it can be hard for those friendships to survive and maybe only the ones that do are the ones where the non-famous BFF fully embraces the fame (so many of them WORK for their BFF …Joey and Casey both do). In some ways being famous seems very lonely (i.e. in Never Say Never, thousands of screaming fans lusting after Justin Bieber outside his concerts juxtaposed with him surrounded by only middle-aged adults most of the time). There are lots of stories out there about how Lady Gaga totally dropped a lot of the people who she was friends with once she got to the top…Clearly this is a topic I could discuss for hours!
Another great lesson learned from Never Say Never. Now THERE is a documentary worth watching!