by David P. Greisman - We are a society obsessed with celebrity. Talent and accomplishment are generally not enough to attain publicity. True stardom often requires an outsized personality.
Look to the headlines. Look to Terrell Owens and Manny Ramirez. Look to their multimillion-dollar contracts – controversy, as always, creates cash.
Floyd Mayweather Jr. had pound-for-pound talent for years before he saw pay-per-view paychecks. Only after he began to play the villain did he get the attention he long deserved. “Pretty Boy Floyd” became “Money Mayweather,” and for good reason.
“You need people like me,” Tony Montana, the classic character played by Al Pacino, said in the movie Scarface. “You need people like me so you can point your … fingers and say, ‘That’s the bad guy.’ ”
Every hero has his foil, an antagonist whom the audience wants to see get his comeuppance. In professional wrestling, a good bad guy sells tickets. But a great good guy will bring in the fans no matter whom he faces.
Manny Pacquiao and Ricky Hatton are two fighters with celebrity and personality, two hometown heroes who inspire loyalty. When they face each other May 2 in Las Vegas, they will bring thousands of supporters that will fill the MGM Grand with dueling chants in boxing’s version of the Clash of the Titans, Hulk Hogan versus The Ultimate Warrior on a smaller scale, in a squared circle, without the steroids. [details]
Look to the headlines. Look to Terrell Owens and Manny Ramirez. Look to their multimillion-dollar contracts – controversy, as always, creates cash.
Floyd Mayweather Jr. had pound-for-pound talent for years before he saw pay-per-view paychecks. Only after he began to play the villain did he get the attention he long deserved. “Pretty Boy Floyd” became “Money Mayweather,” and for good reason.
“You need people like me,” Tony Montana, the classic character played by Al Pacino, said in the movie Scarface. “You need people like me so you can point your … fingers and say, ‘That’s the bad guy.’ ”
Every hero has his foil, an antagonist whom the audience wants to see get his comeuppance. In professional wrestling, a good bad guy sells tickets. But a great good guy will bring in the fans no matter whom he faces.
Manny Pacquiao and Ricky Hatton are two fighters with celebrity and personality, two hometown heroes who inspire loyalty. When they face each other May 2 in Las Vegas, they will bring thousands of supporters that will fill the MGM Grand with dueling chants in boxing’s version of the Clash of the Titans, Hulk Hogan versus The Ultimate Warrior on a smaller scale, in a squared circle, without the steroids. [details]
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