Kardashians and real housewives

This week, we keep up with America’s infamous reality family, enjoy the luxuries of some real housewives — and escape more into reality.

In the film To Die For, there’s an interesting quote, “You aren’t really anybody in America if you’re not on TV … ’cause what’s the point of doing anything worthwhile if there’s nobody watching?”

Well, ‘anybody’ can be a ‘somebody’ these days, and not just in America.

There are many people out there on the search for fame and fortune. The easiest way, if you have no actual talent, is participating in a reality TV show or perhaps a sex tape — whichever comes first.

I’m sure that if Kim Kardashian didn’t show the world her ‘private’ bedroom romp in February 2007, there wouldn’t be a reality television show about her and her family. In late 2007, Keeping up with the Kardashians came firmly to our screens.

Now in its sixth season, the dramas keep on coming for Kim, Khloe, Kourtney, Kris, Kendall and also Kylie — what is it with the letter K? Oh, and don’t forget Bruce Jenner and the other men in their lives you just want to slap.

Keeping up with the Kardashians is a show many people watch but don’t often own up to. For some, it’s so entertaining they can’t get enough of their antics.

The three main sisters (Kim, Khloe and Kourtney) have spin-off shows and various products under their name. The Kardashians should be a corporation. They have nail polish, dieting products, bags, shoes, fashion, and fragrances. I’m surprised there aren’t Kardashian condoms — to stop them from multiplying.

The main star has to be Kim Kardashian, which leads me to think the sex tape was a publicity stunt. Maybe a sex tape is a good career move for anyone wishing for fame, fortune and a reality TV show, which then in turn can lead to fame and fortune.

What is it about the Kardashians that makes them so fascinating? Mad Men’s Jon Hamm called Kim Kardashian “a [expletive deleted] idiot” in an interview to be published in Elle UK.

“Whether it’s Kim Kardashian or Paris Hilton or whoever, stupidity is certainly celebrated. Being a [expletive deleted] idiot is a valuable commodity in this culture because you’re rewarded significantly,” he said.

I guess they are rewarded by their network, E Entertainment, and many other companies across the world. But who knows how many more spin-offs are on the cards for the Kardashians before we are sick of them, unless their popularity is starting to wane after the theatrical Kim Kardashian wedding and now upcoming divorce (after only 72 days of marriage). Was it a sham or was it that Kim didn’t want to see herself on the Real Housewives of Minnesota?

At the same time, Kourtney and Khloe are dealing with their own ‘real’ marriages and the prospects of more children into the family fold. The Kardashian condoms could be a help at this point.

However, what makes Keeping up with the Kardashians so enjoyable — as well as their spin-offs — is seeing a bunch of people making arses of themselves about issues that really seem insignificant. But that is the joy – to sit on the couch and zone out.

But with the Real Housewives of whatever American location, it’s all the same — women botoxed to the hilt sporting expensive jewellery and driving around in flash cars while desperately trying to belong. It’s a pleasure to watch these ‘ladies who lunch’ have tiffs over something so petty while making idiots of themselves, which they are also rewarded for.
Perhaps Jon Hamm was right after all.

The new versions are the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and the other in New Jersey. What I hear is there could be a Real Housewives of Sydney, Melbourne or Perth. The US producers are looking for locations and talent to grace our screens. The Australian version would be a catalyst for others worldwide, which would create more famous people for no reason.
However, there has been one successful housewife, Bethany Frankel, from Real Housewives of New York. She has spun off into a reality show about her own marriage, motherhood and her ‘normal life’. She has even written books. Now she wants to become an actress, a normal spin-off from reality TV.

Something the female participants of Australia’s newish reality TV show Please Marry My Boy may want to do instead. Some may want to become bikini models, not marry someone they just met on a reality television show.

I thought marriage was an important institution. Apparently if done right on TV, it could make you famous or at least wealthier, as I’m sure there is some prize money.

Please Marry My Boy is pleasant to watch. The boys offering their ‘love’ are cute and are definitely ‘mummy’s boys’. According to psychologists, boys who grow up too close to their mothers can become psychopathic or gay. Maybe that’s why they can’t find a girl, and have to resort to the embarrassment of reality television. Okay, reality television is not always embarrassing.

But when it’s about ‘finding love’ and searching for the ‘one’, well it’s questionable. Maybe the boys are not looking for love at all, but a career in the entertainment industry. It worked well for Blair McDonough, who was in Big Brother, then starred in Neighbours, and is now in Winners & Losers. Sophie Monk did the reality TV show Popstars. She then went off to LA and became an actress.

Does reality television still have a place? Some executives in Hollywood think so. The next family to charm us on reality TV are the Eastwoods. Clint Eastwood and co will be coming to television screens everywhere and show us just how normal they really are. It will be a breath of fresh air after having to deal with the Kardashians and Real Housewives.

As Ab Fab’s Edina Monsoon said recently, “Who are these people?”

By TIMOTHY CONNELL