The Horror Host as a Localebrity - Article Review

 The article "Localebrities, adopted residents, and local characters: audience and celebrity in a small nation" by Rebecca Williams (2015) provides a useful basis for understanding how local celebrity (referred to here as Localebrity) differs in influence and response from international celebrity in the context of smaller communities. The author specifically spoke with people from South East Wales about their interactions with celebrities and their opinions about them, to understand "how the meanings of celebrity figures are constructed and negotiated by local people" (p. 155). With Wales having recently received a BBC studio, the author observed multiple 'levels' of Welsh fame that functioned in different ways, depending on the type of media they are involved in, how unexpected interaction with the celebrities would be in a local context, and how 'untouchable' or approachable they are perceived as being (pp. 160-161). Williams borrows McElroy and Williams's definition of localebrity "which recognises the ‘conditions that limit the possibility of celebrity making in small nations" (2010, p. 11). As opposed to international celebrities, localebrities "did not, and could not, fully translate beyond the country’s borders and have meaning even for those who had not viewed the show" (p. 13) despite having some level of local fame and recognition. Williams' focus groups in Wales outlined different types of these 'localebrities' including those who were famous for appearing in Welsh media specifically, such as a well-known weatherman, participants in television shows screened exclusively in Wales, such as participants in Welsh reality shows, adopted celebrities who are not from Wales but chose to live there and participate in/represent local culture, and local 'characters' who have no media fame or significance outside the community, but are still well known, such as a local 'tramp' or diner waitress. (2015, pp. 163-166)  Williams analyzes how these different factors and levels of localebrity and celebrity offer the figures different levels of cultural value and symbolic recognition, and how local celebrities may grant value or legitimacy to a space. Overall, Williams argues that celebrity has an important local dimension that is culturally specific, even in the context of global stars (p. 166).

I found this article very useful in helping me understand how 'localebrity' functions and the response to these figures by local communities. Although I'm sure it differs a lot by both area and program type, it was interesting to hear about the different things that imbued the local celebrities with value to the people Williams spoke to. Williams also spoke about how the media type the celebrities were involved in was a factor, as television was generally seen as less valuable than film despite having more local significance (p. 160). In my research thus far, I've been interested in how some horror hosts were able to bridge into mainstream media and become international stars with their own film series. In this context, film being more 'valuable' is interesting and makes sense. Williams also discusses the level of 'untouchability' or 'approachability' that local celebrities may possess, and how celebrities whose presence is viewed as unusual in local contexts are generally given more value (p. 161). This familiarity and intimacy with local celebrities can subject them to higher levels of scrutiny, Williams observes, as she gives an example of an interaction that a participant had with a local weatherman in a grocery store where he described him as looking 'miserable' (p. 163). I found this dynamic interesting, that whether a sighting or interaction is viewed as special changed the cultural value and scrutiny. It also made me wonder whether this intimacy and approachability can work in a celebrity's favor to grant them greater levels of connection with their audiences. I also wondered whether seeing a horror host out of costume/character would impact this. Would they be unrecognizable to the average person out of costume? Would seeing them out of costume be the 'special sighting' that gave them value, or would it break the illusion? Since the horror hosts could go to the supermarket out of costume and slip under the radar, does it give their appearances in character extra value? These are all questions that would be specific to my area of study. 

Overall, I can apply Williams' analysis of local celebrity to horror hosts to understand how the factors, context and level of their fame would impact their value and interaction with local communities. I am left with quite a few questions on how persona factors into this relationship, so I may read about that topic next to see if I can build an understanding of how it impacts fame. For my purposes, I can view horror hosts as 'localebrities' who have their own unique cultural and media context, so Williams' findings can help me understand my primary research question of how they impact and interact with local communities. 

This week I have done some research preparation to survey and compile information is accessible to me on different aspects of my topic. I have been collecting sources on different topics through Zotero and tagging them accordingly to see what is most important and relevant. I have also made a lot of progress on my 'horror host database' spreadsheet, sourced primarily from this website, where I have put information on hundreds of horror hosts into once place for easier analysis. I plan to translate this into a map of horror hosts and other information/analysis about demographic and content. As I go, I have been taking note of what horror hosts I find most interesting and which ones I think would be best suited to my research and interviews. I also reached out to three potential committee members this week. Next week I hope to finish my database spreadsheet, begin analyzing/visualizing the data and making some decisions about horror hosts I would be most interested in studying. I also want to start chipping away at my source list by reading and taking notes on each article. 

References

McElroy, R., & Williams, R. (2010). Remembering ourselves, viewing the others: Historical reality television and celebrity in the small nation. Television & New Media, 12(3), 187–206. https://doi.org/10.1177/1527476410372093

Simple List of TV Horror Hosts (with Links). E-Gor’s Chamber of TV Horror Hosts. (n.d.). https://egorschamber.com/tvhorrorhosts/hostlist.html

Williams, R. (2015). Localebrities, adopted residents, and local characters: Audience and celebrity in a small nation. Celebrity Studies, 7(2), 154–168. https://doi.org/10.1080/19392397.2015.1045303