Celebrity is what most people aspire to, thinking that fame is only about the click and whir of the camera lens. This is true, though it also allows television advertisers an avenue to sell their products. Old Navy and Gap are the old guard at this, since they have been using pretty himbos and models to sell their shirts and new designs of cargo pants since the early 1990s.
Isaac Mizrahi and David Bowie are the latest celebrities hoping to reach a wider audience through commercialism. Mizrahi has tag-teamed with Target (a US superstore chain) , hoping to sell his new label of housewife-couture; while Bowie has turned to advertising to sell his newest CD, Reality. Mizrahi has been one of the most popular denizens of fashion for the last ten years. However, where you would usually need to have the deep pockets of a celebrity to afford the more expensive pieces of his collection (some of which can run in the $1000?s range), apparently the pieces at Target are cheaper. In theory, this should allow them to be more accessible to the masses.
Bowies ad runs like a 45-second lesson in rock history: you first see him in this usual blondness walking through the house, heading out. As he passes various rooms, you see him as Aladdin Sane, The Thin White Duke and Ziggy Stardust—albeit with a few more bags under the eyes. This being Bowie, I was a bit more intrigued than normal. Though I didnt view this as him selling out necessarily, I do wonder whether he was trying to reach a wider fanbase through his sea of cash. (Though critically acclaimed by music critics and rabid fans alike since the 70s, his unique sound and lyrics have kept him from selling the millions of CDs as the current rash of pop beauties.
The fact that these are celebrities would not make me any more eager to part with my money than I was before. Knowing that I could get halfway decent clothes where the seams wont split for my $25-30 and will last longer than one wash matters more. Since it has been harder to find any of the Mizrahi collection lately than the Easter Bunny, his publicists must be doing something right. Seeing Reality flogged on the TV wont make it sound any better in my headphones; I already plan to pick it up by hook or crook. Still, if seeing the commercial opens up someones mind to his music….viva la media!