Celebrities like Paris Hilton cash in on notoriety

NOTORIETY rather than talent has become a hot asset, with a growing demand for washed-up Hollywood stars and wannabes to appear around the world.

The so-called celebrities are cashing in big-time, charging exorbitant fees to keep up their lavish lifestyles.

A chocolate commercial here, a perfume launch there, jewellery store openings, award ceremonies, sometimes just a big party -- and organisers seem only too happy to line their pockets.

The new fame game is led by notorious party girl Paris Hilton and her sister, Nicky, who are said to be asking more than $500,000 to show up at a club this New Year's Eve.

"Paris and Nicky are shopping their partying ways to Vegas," an insider said. "Only they have the guts to ask for that kind of money.

"Paris will party at a few spots and Nicky will bless the lucky host with a fashion show of her wares."

It wasn't always so for the Hilton sisters. When they were brought to the Melbourne Cup by Channel 7 in 2003, they were largely unknown in the US -- let alone in Australia.

According to a Seven source, they were not paid a fee but were happy to attend the Spring Carnival on an all-expenses-paid basis.

That's not cheap, with first-class air tickets, five-star accommodation, limousine service and designer clothes.

The Hiltons were also promised a Gold Coast holiday at Palazzo Versace as an added incentive.

"Their phone bill was astronomical," the Seven source said. "Everybody wanted to give them clothes, and there were problems when many of them were not returned."

When Paris Hilton returned to Australia for New Year 2006 for the launch of Pure Blonde beer, her fee was a cool $250,000 -- on top of other sundry expenses.

And that fee continues to rise with her jail farce this year.

The Chinese lavished attention on Hilton when she attended the MTV awards in Shanghai.

And just last week, she was in Berlin, earning thousands to launch a sparkling wine and open a department store.

Pamela Anderson might go through husbands as frequently as she changed swimsuits in her Baywatch days, but she doesn't need the alimony.

Her asking price has taken a leap. The busty blonde wants almost $300,000 to turn up, compared with less than $100,000 last year.

When she appeared in Melbourne last year to launch green M&Ms, sources said it cost organisers well under $200,000, including expenses.

They said that she was "very good value for money. She was great and went overboard to promote the commodity".

That included wearing a dress in the same green as the M&M.

Australia is becoming increasingly popular as a lucrative destination for Hollywood party girls.

This month, Tara Reid trekked to Darwin to host a hooker's ball. She is believed to have asked, and received, $25,000 for the gig.

When she demanded a similar fee for numerous other appearances in Sydney and elsewhere, organisers said no way. Reid's management quickly dropped the fee to $3500.

Insiders say the price fell dramatically because her agent noticed a sharp decline in her bookings.

But the American Pie star's flights, accommodation and entourage were all taken care of.

Max Markson, who organised a Reid appearance at the Ed Hardy store in Sydney, said you could not put a price on the publicity she created, with photos of her shopping at the store appearing everywhere from the New York Post to the London Sun.

"Ed Hardy received millions of dollars worth of free publicity when the photos of Tara were shown worldwide," he said.

"That kind of publicity justifies the price you're paying her."

Australian Consolidated Press editorial director Louisa Hatfield has brought out stars such as Anna-Nicole Smith for the annual NW Oscar's party.

While she wouldn't go into figures, she said it was worth every cent.

"(Smith's) visit to Australia and at the NW Oscars party is still talked about today -- that literally is the point," Ms Hatfield said.

"It means the magazine gets noticed and talked about."

She says it's not essential to hire a celebrity for a party, but it is the icing on the cake.

"It gives a party a touch of glam," Ms Hatfield said.

"We are all fascinated by the UK and US celebrities, so the idea you could be sipping a cocktail with them is unbeatable -- even for diehard cynics."

According to Ms Hatfield, it is now much easier to bring celebs out to Australia because overseas stars are much more aware of Australia than they used to be.

"A few years ago, for my weekly titles, I wouldn't have dreamed of bringing out an overseas star," she said. "But now it's relatively easy to pull off because the stars are willing and able."

Mr Markson, who is negotiating to bring out Lindsay Lohan and Anderson for $500,000 each, agrees the publicity a brand generates by having a celebrity attached is priceless, if not a little ridiculous.

"It's definitely crazy to spend half a million on an appearance, which is what many of the celebs charge," he said. "But the publicity you generate for your brand around the world is priceless.

"We charged $1000 a seat when Al Gore was in Melbourne."

As the trend becomes more popular, the price goes up.

While, last year, Mariah Carey's asking price for a private appearance was more than $1 million, that figure had reportedly now increased to more than $3 million.

Aussie performers and celebrities may not be raking in the kind of money as their US counterparts, but they are not doing too badly either.

According to an insider, girl band the Young Divas and Anthony Callea can earn up to $10,000 for a nightclub performance.

A source said that former Hunters and Collectors singer Mark Seymour made $10,000 for singing three songs at an event just last week, while Jon Stevens made $7000 at the same event last year.

Melbourne nightclub publicist Adam Beaupart says while clubs and bars are happy to pay for performances, unlike the US they won't pay for appearances.

"Nightclubs are prepared to pay up to $10,000 for a performer, but they won't pay any money for an appearance," he said.

"Clubs and bars in the city don't need to, they will come anyway because the name of a bar speaks for itself."

Beaupart says that bars and clubs in the suburbs will pay for famous faces such as those from Big Brother and Neighbours because they will attract crowds.

Brooke Campbell
December 21, 2007