"A historic blizzard of celebrity" is how The New York Times famously referred to Kim Kardashian and Kanye West's 2014 Italian wedding. And when you consider the celebrity couples whose mythology has endured long after not only their marriages, but also their lives, have ended, it's the fascination with who they were and what they brought to the union that separates the ones we remember from the ones no one writes books about.
Glamour, sophistication, money, fame, talent and breeding are all aspects that have traditionally fed into successful marriage mythology.
But what if you were to also add a dollop of unabashed love of money, a teaspoon of sell-your-own-grandmother-for-fame, then sprinkle in a dash of modern fairy tale, before marinating in millions of social media followers and a 24-hour news cycle?
Then you'd have the recipe for the Kim-Kanye West marriage. A union that, despite having ended after six years as husband and wife, will impact how celebrities position themselves in the brand-marriage job market these days.
Here are four ways in which Kimye’s marriage has changed fame culture …
1. The unabashed pursuit and appreciation of fame
This might come as a surprise, but while there have always been those who would do anything for fame, it wasn’t until the Kardashians went hell for leather in their quest for global celebrity in full view of their own 24/7 camera crew, that it was seen as a legitimate path to success. Prior to that, the idea of pursuing fame for fame’s sake was considered, well, a little tacky.
Sure, Paris Hilton had done the whole "famous for being famous" thing in The Simple Life, but she was already born on third base thanks to that surname of hers.
When they met, Kardashian was already firmly ensconced in the "fame at all costs" lifestyle, but let us not forget, so too was West, whose "I am the greatest" declarations and stage-bombing of Taylor Swift showed him to be just as hungry as Kardashian.
Together, they melded West's old-school way of getting famous (possessing talent) with her modern approach (a willingness to do anything) and created a brand that was unapologetic in its thirst for more.
2. Pride in the side hustle
For the uninitiated, a side hustle is a money-making project that is separate from your day job. Best perfected by Gen Z, whose introduction into an oversaturated job market resulted in the "do anything" gig economy, the side hustle can be, for some, the difference between this month's rent and next month's eviction.
Prior to Kardashian and West, the Hollywood side hustle was Tinseltown’s dirty little secret. Why else do you think the A-list snuck off to Asia to make bank on their big-money adverts? The idea was that if you were discovered to have a side hustle, then it might be construed as your main gig not being very successful. Which, in a town as terrified of failure as Hollywood is, would smack of (whisper it) career death.
With their Yeezys and Skims, Kardashian and West didn't invent the concept of the family brand – after all, the Kennedys sold power and glamour just as hard as Brand Beckham sold his and hers fragrances – but they did completely destigmatise it by thumbing their noses at Hollywood and its snobby, unwritten rules about staying in your lane.
3. Perpetuating the (modern) fairy tale
Ever since Cinderella cast off her rags, slid her foot into the glass slipper and married her prince, the idea of the makeover has been fully ingrained in the concept of celebrity. After all, Hollywood thrives on tales of young ingenues being plucked from Nowheresville, America, and set on their path to the Oscars.
Since Keeping Up With the Kardashians premiered in October 2007, Kardashian's long slog from Hilton's sidekick to uber-influential multi-millionaire had always lacked one thing: cool.
Enter West and his Italy weddings and Givenchy wedding dresses. Not to mention his ability to call Anna Wintour and land the April 2014 Vogue cover, an image that led Time magazine to say what we were all thinking: "Yes, that's actually Kim Kardashian on the cover of Vogue."
With West very much in prince mode, Kardashian's transition from reality shows to social media princess didn't come about from a discarded Louboutin on the steps of the Met Gala ball, but rather in season seven of KUWTK when West brought along his personal stylist to gut her wardrobe in a makeover that would have an enduring legacy.
For not only did he make over Kardashian that day, but later down the line, he would be responsible for the entire family, including matriarch Kris Jenner and the couple’s four children, all but abandoning the concept of colour in their wardrobes, as West created his own family of wickedly neutrally attired stepsisters.
4. Fuelling the 'opposites attract' narrative
If John F Kennedy Jr had wed a similarly silver-spoon-fed trust fund baby with a surname, would we have been as in thrall to the enduring modern-day Cinderella story that his PR director wife Carolyn Bessette brought to the New York fairy tale romance?
Consider how dull history would have been had King Edward VIII married a nice, homely countess instead of the scandalously twice-divorced American socialite Wallis Simpson. Or if Prince Harry had settled down with Cressida Bonas rather than Meghan Markle.
What Kardashian, the face of being famous for being famous, and West, the award-winning rapper and lyricist, gave us, students of celebrity culture should note, was another opportunity to remind ourselves that fame, celebrity, life, is a million dollars more interesting when opposites attract.
"Get thee a good husband, and use him as he uses thee," Shakespeare wrote in All's Well That Ends Well.
He could have been writing the book of a modern money-making celebrity marriage.
Results
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (Turf) 1,400m. Winner: Al Ajeeb W’Rsan, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Jaci Wickham (trainer).
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 (T) 1,400m racing. Winner: Mujeeb, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel.
6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 90,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Onward, Connor Beasley, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
6.30pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown Prep Rated Conditions (PA) Dh 125,000 (T) 2,200m. Winner: Somoud, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roualle.
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (T) 1,600m. Winner: AF Arrab, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 90,000 (T) 1,400m. Winner: Irish Freedom, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
In the Restaurant: Society in Four Courses
Christoph Ribbat
Translated by Jamie Searle Romanelli
Pushkin Press
Mobile phone packages comparison
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THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
Favorite place to travel: Lebanon
Favorite movie: Braveheart
ABU%20DHABI%20CARD
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Company%20profile
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Poland Statement
All people fleeing from Ukraine before the armed conflict are allowed to enter Poland. Our country shelters every person whose life is in danger - regardless of their nationality.
The dominant group of refugees in Poland are citizens of Ukraine, but among the people checked by the Border Guard are also citizens of the USA, Nigeria, India, Georgia and other countries.
All persons admitted to Poland are verified by the Border Guard. In relation to those who are in doubt, e.g. do not have documents, Border Guard officers apply appropriate checking procedures.
No person who has received refuge in Poland will be sent back to a country torn by war.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Iran's dirty tricks to dodge sanctions
There’s increased scrutiny on the tricks being used to keep commodities flowing to and from blacklisted countries. Here’s a description of how some work.
1 Going Dark
A common method to transport Iranian oil with stealth is to turn off the Automatic Identification System, an electronic device that pinpoints a ship’s location. Known as going dark, a vessel flicks the switch before berthing and typically reappears days later, masking the location of its load or discharge port.
2. Ship-to-Ship Transfers
A first vessel will take its clandestine cargo away from the country in question before transferring it to a waiting ship, all of this happening out of sight. The vessels will then sail in different directions. For about a third of Iranian exports, more than one tanker typically handles a load before it’s delivered to its final destination, analysts say.
3. Fake Destinations
Signaling the wrong destination to load or unload is another technique. Ships that intend to take cargo from Iran may indicate their loading ports in sanction-free places like Iraq. Ships can keep changing their destinations and end up not berthing at any of them.
4. Rebranded Barrels
Iranian barrels can also be rebranded as oil from a nation free from sanctions such as Iraq. The countries share fields along their border and the crude has similar characteristics. Oil from these deposits can be trucked out to another port and documents forged to hide Iran as the origin.
* Bloomberg
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:
Ajax 2-3 Tottenham
Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate
Final: June 1, Madrid
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
England ODI squad
Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Tom Curran, Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.
Jumanji: The Next Level
Director: Jake Kasdan
Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Nick Jonas
Two out of five stars
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
THREE
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Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
TRAINING FOR TOKYO
A typical week's training for Sebastian, who is competing at the ITU Abu Dhabi World Triathlon on March 8-9:
- Four swim sessions (14km)
- Three bike sessions (200km)
- Four run sessions (45km)
- Two strength and conditioning session (two hours)
- One session therapy session at DISC Dubai
- Two-three hours of stretching and self-maintenance of the body
ITU Abu Dhabi World Triathlon
For more information go to www.abudhabi.triathlon.org.
World Test Championship table
1 India 71 per cent
2 New Zealand 70 per cent
3 Australia 69.2 per cent
4 England 64.1 per cent
5 Pakistan 43.3 per cent
6 West Indies 33.3 per cent
7 South Africa 30 per cent
8 Sri Lanka 16.7 per cent
9 Bangladesh 0
