The art(ifice) of staying relevant
Overnight the news came through that Hungarian actress and socialite Zsa Zsa Gabor had died at the age of 99 from heart-related issues. In the public consciousness she seemed to rank in what might be described as the second division of pneumatic movie blonde actresses from the 1940s to 1960s: I’m thinking the class of Carole Lombard, Veronica Lake, Kim Novak, Jayne Mansfield, Anita Ekberg and similar. You could stretch it to Diana Dors if you like (only because she was British) but perhaps not to Marilyn Monroe because of the latter’s enduring iconic global sex symbol status and the perception of some that, for all her diva behaviour and vulnerability, she really could act quite well – her cross to bear being that ‘all that other stuff’ kept getting in the way.
In the 21st Century we often think in terms of ‘sell by dates’ and for these ladies, as they moved beyond the first flush of youth, there were inevitable complications and issues. Most of them, if they lived long enough, put on a bit of timber. Some passed into semi-retirement, forced or chosen; others hung on by becoming near-parodies of their former selves and/or shifting to panto and television work; and a few, possibly possessed of either greater self-awareness or intelligence and personality, became long-term celebrities by dint of hard work and a capacity for ‘working the system’.
Gabor’s was an interesting case in point. As I sit here, resolutely refusing to Google her to research the alleged facts, I cannot name a single Hollywood movie she appeared in during her heyday and have a vague feeling that she kept herself in the public eye only via cameos in films or appearances on television (chat shows and documentaries). One report upon her death mentioned that she was married nine times – presumably she was either a glutton for punishment or some of these were career moves.
I once asked a well-known television producer what was his greatest achievement. He thought for a moment and replied “I think probably managing to stay in business for thirty years” which I thought had a certain profundity to it.
Perhaps Zsa Zsa Gabor’s crowning equivalent was simply managing to stay in the public eye for seventy years or so pretty much without a break. Maybe she was a one-woman pioneer of the ‘celebrity culture’ that so dominates the media today and in which the timeless “There’s no such thing as bad publicity” watchword seems to hold sway (as long as you get paid, that is). Whilst no Mae West in terms of wit and quips, she could certainly be relied upon to come up with the occasional ‘bon mot’ that immediately made people smile and/or recognise it as something she might well have said, even if she hadn’t.
For the potential benefit of Rust readers – and in tribute – I therefore have no hesitation in providing this link to a piece listing some of Gabor’s ‘quotes’ that appears today on the website of – THE GUARDIAN
