"Celebrity" is a catchall term for someone who is famous, or at least notable. Usually there is a reason for their fame, some accomplishment in movies, TV, sports, music, politics, business, or even crime. In our modern media-obsessed culture, there are also people who are just famous for being famous. We call them celebrities because there's no other way to describe them, except maybe "influencer."
But the phenomena is not new. Giacomo Casanova was born in 1725 in Venice and was neither fabulously wealthy, nor powerful, nor all that talented in any one area. Yet he was definitely a celebrity, always appearing in the news and in gossip. He cultivated that reputation because his greatest goal in life was to be famous. We remember Casanova today mostly because of all the women he was associated with- in fact, his name became a term for a womanizer. He would have appreciated that. But in his time, he was noted for simply being noticed. Read the story of Giacomo Casanova's self-made fame at Jstor Daily. -via Strange Company
(Image credit: Francesco Narici)
