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The rise of the celebrity bitch.

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Tila Tequila.

Meanwhile, those that try to stay sweet illicit the most gleeful headlines from Us Weekly and coterie when the facade eventually breaks. The “good-girl-goes-bad” storyline moves a lot of magazines because no one really believed that their idols were so good in the first place, and everyone likes to see a hypocrite get their comeuppance.  We’ve seen woman after woman cultivate that nice-girl image only to have it shattered by a hair-thin chink in the armor. Gweneth Paltrow was demonized for the pretentious GOOP, Tila Tequila is a “disgusting little girl” according to Gawker for her behavior since the death of a loved one, New York Magazine giddily prints an excerpt from Game Change that paints the once-untouchable Elizabeth Edwards as a crazy shrew. Once again the double standard wears thin and woman are perennially held to a higher standard because no one wants to believe their mother or sister isn’t still a virgin…

It’s the golden age of the celebrity bitch. Maybe that’s not so bad. The antics of our distaff idols have launched a thousand blogs, but who has ever really explained why those in the limelight are so prone to behaving badly? We all know the obvious excuses: Some got in the business too young to know better. Others are trying to fill some early void with attention. Most get away with arrogance and bad behavior simply because they can- wouldn’t you, when society only responds to this behavior with greater reward? It’s easy to see that absolute fame corrupts absolutely, but shouldn’t someone out there be immune?

In short, no. Because there’s a hidden reason why famous women so often seem standoffish, arrogant, and pretentious. Women in America are socialized very quickly to react with hostility to those that invade their personal space. Of course every child is warned about “stranger danger,” but young girls keep learning this lesson long after boys have turned their attention elsewhere, for obvious reasons. Famous or not, most females are sexualized years before they’re ready by the leering stares and low comments of older men. And so, girls learn that the only way to deal with this unwanted attention harden their expressions, turn up their noses, and sneer. They put on the bitch face.

Does anyone doubt that the life of the paparazzi-hounded celeb is akin to living in a world of neverending catcalls? Men haven’t been socialized to adopt this steely facade and therefore often seem more comfortable in the public eye. Then again men are allowed and even expected to be louts and boorish- it comes with the territory of being a hunter and the supposed heir to the empire. Take Sarah Jessica Parker who looks brittle next to the jovial Matthew Broderick. Maggie Gylenhaal looks stuck up next to the laid back Peter Saarsgard. Angelina Jolie looks the ice queen next to the warm Brad Pitt. It’s hardly fair,

What is a famous femme fatale to do? Since everyone is going to get trashed in the tabloids eventually, I say the starlets should get it done on their own terms. Take one from Megan Fox’s playbook and snub the moon-faced boy handing you a rose- it didn’t hurt her career one bit.

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