Celebrity Sclerosis ; Artistic Endeavors Inundated by Stars

Summary

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I already miss the Oscars. The Academy Awards are one of the few cultural activities left in America where celebrities do what they should be doing. Everywhere else, from children's books and instant memoirs to magazine articles and news programming to political events and commercial endorsements, celebrities are taking over. America's creative arteries are getting clogged because celebrities are dominating opportunities once shared with non-celebrity artists, writers and performers.

You may not know Tony Pope, who died last month after a long career as a voice artist. Mr. Pope was the voice of Goofy in the 1980s animation hit "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" From Woody the Woodpecker to Yosemite Sam to Elmer Fudd and Donald Duck, America's best-loved cartoon characters were the collaboration of animators and voice artists. Those days are gone. Now celebrities record their own voices for animated entertainment. The old voice artists were rewarded for their ingenuity in giving animated characters unique voices. In contrast, the celebrities are paid to sound like themselves. Artists like Mr. Pope are forced to shift their careers to doing voices for video games, elbowed aside as celebrities like Chris Rock and Ellen DeGeneres become the voices of animated characters.

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Celebrity Sclerosis ; Artistic Endeavors Inundated by Stars

Celebrity sclerosis is depriving America of a diversity of talent in every field of creative endeavor. Take children's books. Motivated no doubt by the success of J.K. Rowling, who just ...

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