Walk Among The Stars

Having a stroll among the stars might sound like a dream come true as it doesn’t only symbolize one’s ability to rub elbows with celebrities but take a walk along memory-lane.

Not much is known about the origin of the Hollywood Walk of Fame which is a sidewalk baring stars monuments for the icons of the entertainment industry such as the names of  musicians, actors, directors, producers, musical and theatrical groups, fictional characters, and others. 

Rumors has it that Hollywood Walk of Fame was inspired by the iconic Hollywood Hotel‘s dining room ceiling which marked the favorite tables of its most famous celebrity guests. Others reports state, that Sugarman’s restaurant, inspired the concept because it featured on its drinks menu celebrity photos framed in gold stars.

The first star prototype was unveiled February 1956, featuring a caricature of John Wayne, inside a blue star on a brown background but due to the expensiveness of such concept, they decided to neither use caricatures nor the color blue.

In 1978, for the first time in its history, a star was appointed to an animated character Mickey Mouse.

If you happen to visit Hollywood Walk of Fame, you will remark that while more than 2500 brass stars are humbly embedded in the sidewalk, only one star hangs vertically. In 2002, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce broke tradition following Muhammad Ali’s request as he did not want people to walk on his name, citing prophet Muhammad.

Legendary entertainer Gene Autry is the only celebrity to have a star in all five Walk of Fame categories.

To celebrate Hollywood Walk of Fame’s 50th anniversary in 2010, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce buried a time capsule where it was first conceived. The ceremony was hosted by presenter Bob Barker, it included various items  to be opened in 2060.

Emmanuel Macron The Overachiever

Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron, President of the French Republic has been the center of many controversies and stipulations. But one can’t deny the allure of this over-achiever with fascination.

Hereby are some interesting facts to know about the French President:

1. Emmanuel Macron’s parents, Jean-Michel Macron, a professor of neurology and Françoise, a physician, were not religious. At age 12, he was baptized at his own request. He has two siblings Laurent and Estelle.
2. Macron studied at the Jesuit Lycée la Providence in Amiens where he met his current wife Brigitte. He was sent-off to Paris to finish his last year of school at the elite Lycée Henri-IV when his parents found-out about his infatuation with Brigitte Auzière, a married teacher with three children. Macron married, 24 years his senior, Brigitte Trogneux in 2007, after she divorced her husband in 2016.   Macron planned to give his wife an official role within the government, but didn’t following an online petition of nearly 290,000 signatures on change.org.
3. He studied philosophy at the University of Paris-Ouest Nanterre La Défense, and obtained his DEA degree with a thesis on Machiavelli and Hegel.
4. In 2008, he became a highly-paid investment banker at Rothschild & Cie Banque. After two years, he became a member of the Attali Commission.
5. Macron was the youngest Minister of Economy, since the period of Valéry Giscard d’Estaing in 1962. In 2014, he assumed that role but later on resigned to devote himself to his political party En Marche!.
6. In 2016, he founded a progressive movement, called En Marche!, a centrist, liberal and social-liberal political party in France, which has the same initials as “Emmanuel Macron.”
7. In the history of French Presidential Election, Macron is the youngest president.
8. He was nominated as one of the “Hottest Heads of State Through History: French Presidents” in 2017.
9. Macron is a talented pianist, he studied piano for 10 years.  He is an avid fan of football and attended the 2018 World Cup semi-final and final.
10. In 2016, he published a best-seller titled “Revolution”. His alleged unpublished novel is an epistolary love story about a pianist that plays with time.
11. Brigitte and Macron own a black Labrador Retriever-Griffon dog, Nemo, who lives with them in the Elysée Palace.

One might not agree with Macron’s ways of dealing with things or his political choices, however one has to give credit where credit is due. It takes a hell of a character to achieve greatness at such a young age. Only a great soul would defy the world for love. He has the looks, the money, the power, the status, and the youth to have any woman he desires. With gorgeous women throwing themselves at him on a daily basis, he could have easily replaced his 24 years senior wife with a trophy-wife that would bear his children, however he didn’t. He opted instead to endure the ridicule of peers and brave the world, never taking the easy-way out. Who would have thought that a dedicated ambitious man would be so romantically fearless?! One has to confess that this is something rare, noble and admirable.