Article about Melbourne Cup celebs being paid for their appearances

[Livia]

http://www.smh.com.au/news/spike/hig...400353973.html

High life not always a bed of roses
By Andrew Hornery
October 29, 2005

An all expenses paid, champagne-fuelled day at Australia's most glamorous racing carnival complete with limos, adoring fans, limitless prawns and your choice of designer outfits. Oh, and a cool $US200,000 ($264,000) for your troubles. Sound tempting?

As petite Hollywood star and Desperate Housewife Eva Longoria will no doubt know after Derby Day today when she finally steps down from her towering stilettos, you should be careful for what you wish for.

On the outside the life of a celebrity heading to the races during the Melbourne Cup carnival looks like a charmed lot, but digging into the complicated contracts and never-ending negotiations between agents, publicists, journalists, editors, photographers and marketing executives, the gleam soon starts to rub off.

Longoria is heading for Flemington today where she will the guest of Myer. She is the first of many celebrities headed for the races in Melbourne over the coming week including Carson Kressley, Stevie Nicks, Ron Moss, Kelly Clarkson and Luciano Pavarotti.

Depending on how hot they rate on the fame radar and how clever their agents are, each of the celebrities will be paid handsomely for their appearances, either in contra or cash. But there's a catch. The further up the celebrity fame tree they live, the more complicated their day becomes.

"We are certainly very happy with what we are getting from Eva. She and Myer are a really good fit," Myer's spokesman John Gillman explained.

"Eva has been bombarded with requests from various media and invitations to go to a lot of marquees. She will only be at Flemington for six or so hours, there simply isn't enough time for her to oblige the invitations. She will only be in the Myer marquee."

Needless to say, Longoria, like the other celebrities with their respective marquees, is contractually obliged not to enter any other marquees besides their host's. Emirates and Motorola are both touting exclusive celebrities in their tents, while the traditional celeb hot spot, Moet, is taking a more demure approach this year, banning soap stars from the guest list in favour of home grown socialites such as Penne Peacock, Erica Baxter and Louise Daniel, who will even be dressed by their hosts in the latest threads from Christian Dior.

Over at Myer, Gillman admitted Longoria's crammed itinerary had been planned down to the last minute, including where she should be seen and who she should be seen talking to.

"Those celebrities are given a road map, told 'do not pass go' and kept on a very tight leash," said one marquee organiser, who asked to remain anonymous as she was still trying to build her guestlist. "Sometimes you can pull it off and get them in, other times it's just too difficult. The minders are like pitbulls, they jealously guard their guests because of the amount of money they have spent getting exclusivity."

Last year Myer's key guest was Kressley, who arrives in Sydney tomorrow for a couple of days before heading to the cup again. There's been no word if John Laws will be looking up Kressley. Laws ignited an ugly row when he called the TV fashion guru a "pillow biter". Golden Tonsils claimed it had all been intended as a joke, later publishing an apology in the gay press.

Heh. "pillow biter."

[dissention]

Originally Posted by Livia

Depending on how hot they rate on the fame radar and how clever their agents are, each of the celebrities will be paid handsomely for their appearances, either in contra or cash. But there's a catch. The further up the celebrity fame tree they live, the more complicated their day becomes.

Excuse me while I vomit into my hat.

"The more complicated their day becomes"? Yeah, they sure are busting their asses to earn over a quarter of a million dollars. It's hard work to extend one's hand to lift a glass of bubbly, dontcha know? Fecking disgusting.

[Livia]

Don't hate the playa, sweetie, hate the game.

[SapphireSister]

Originally Posted by Livia

Don't hate the playa, sweetie, hate the game.

Right on sista, you took the words out of my mouth .

[Livia]

Well, look at the heading of the article...

Show me the hiiiiigh life!

It says they're being paid "either in contra or cash." So if you opted for the contra- would that be accommodations in a 5-star hotel? With your own masseuse, hair and makeup peeps? A goody bag of La Mer products? Can you just make a $200,000 wish list of stuff?

The diva needs L'Occitane candles, Nag ChampRa and a cheeseburger sent up to her suite! Stat!

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by dissention

Excuse me while I vomit into my hat.

"The more complicated their day becomes"? Yeah, they sure are busting their asses to earn over a quarter of a million dollars. It's hard work to extend one's hand to lift a glass of bubbly, dontcha know? Fecking disgusting.

Well, they do not get that in cash dear. They have to pay out to their agent and Uncle Sam (and perhaps Australian tax as well). Moreover, depending on their contract, they have to fly themselves and their crew out and buy the wardrobe (though some contracts include this) - so of that $250,000, she may see $50,000-$75,000 - which still ain't bad but is hardly the whole $250,000. And - before you judge too harshly, remember, if you had the chance, you would sell $500 a yard fabric at how much an hour to your clients I am sure many would vomit over that.

[dissention]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

Well, they do not get that in cash dear.

Yeah, silly me, I thought they got one lump sum.

Christ.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by dissention

Yeah, silly me, I thought they got one lump sum.

Christ.

Well, you implied it - but and in any event - do you lecture your rich clients this way?

[dissention]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

Well, you implied it - but and in any event - do you lecture your rich clients this way?

Of course I don't, but that doesn't mean that I don't get disgusted by the ways some people treat money sometimes. Heaven forbid if I find it silly that Ms. Stevie and Miss Longoria have their already rich asses pampered even more just for going to a bloody race.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by dissention

Of course I don't, but that doesn't mean that I don't get disgusted by the ways some people treat money sometimes. Heaven forbid if I find it silly that Ms. Stevie and Miss Longoria have their already rich asses pampered even more just for going to a bloody race.

LOL - you sound more jealous than disgusted

Also, have you ever done anything like that? I have and it is exhausting, though the pay more than compensates for that. But, you make it sound like they just show up and the "hard work" is "extend[ing] one's hand to lift a glass of bubbly" - it is way more than that "dontcha know?"

[dissention]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

LOL - you sound more jealous than disgusted

As if I give two squirts of duck ****.

Also, have you ever done anything like that? I have and it is exhausting, though the pay more than compensates for that. But, you make it sound like they just show up and the "hard work" is "extend[ing] one's hand to lift a glass of bubbly" - it is way more than that "dontcha know?"

Exhausting? Tell that to people who work for a living and don't get a booty of $50-$75,000 plus perks for a couple days of "work."

Exhausting. Ha.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by dissention

. . . Exhausting? Tell that to people who work for a living and don't get a booty of $50-$75,000 plus perks for a couple days of "work."

Exhausting. Ha.

It is exhausting, I have done it. But, you will never admit that because you hate rich people unless you are earning you living off of them.

[dissention]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

It is exhausting, I have done it.

I don't care how "exhausting" it is, they're overpaid and overpampered for doing such "exhausting" work.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by dissention

I don't care how "exhausting" it is, they're overpaid and overpampered for doing such "exhausting" work.

At least you now apparently concede it is exhausting - which it is.

As for being overpaid - I think no one including you, wants that subjective test applied to them by others not making that kind of money.

[Jyqm]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

Also, have you ever done anything like that? I have and it is exhausting,

Have you ever worked in a coal mine or a steel mill or an auto plant?