Last night was that Orgy of Opulence, The Celebration of Self Importance, The Oscars. I didn’t watch it because I don’t give a flying fuck who won for what. What it does mean is that it’s time for my 4th annual bitch about all the free crap that the “stars” get to take home. Every year presenters, performers, and nominees get these “gift bags” with truckloads of free swag. Last years gift bags ran in excess of $110,000 each. Last year around 125 of these gift bags were given out totaling in price around $13 MIllion. This year’s gift bags are rumored to have been in excess of $150,000 each. Here are some of the contents…
• A Krups kitchen set. Not just a coffeemaker, either. This year’s gift includes a toaster, an electric kettle and a year’s supply of coffee and tea ($700)
• A two-night stay at The Carlyle hotel in New York ($2,300)
• A red leather case filled with Shu Uemura cosmetics, including mink eyelashes ($600)
• A year’s supply of Vonage broadband phone service ($500)
• A three-night stay for two at Palmetto Bluff in South Carolina ($3,600)
• A two-night stay for two at Bernardus Lodge in Carmel Valley (Calif.) wine country ($2,500)
• A three-night stay for two (plus a “personal surf-butler”) at St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort & Spa in Dana Point, Calif. ($5,900)
• A dinner party at any Morton’s, The Steakhouse ($1,500)
annual
• Kay Unger cashmere pajama bottoms ($500)• An assortment of Manni Oils’ extra virgin olive oil ($540)
• An unlimited day of services at Cornelia Day Resort, which just opened this month on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue ($3,500)
• A three-night stay at San Ysidro Ranch, a popular celebrity honeymoon spot in Montecito, Calif. ($3,000)
What the fuck is a “personal surf-butler”? And again people, they get this all for free. Some celebrities even get offended if the free stuff isn’t good enough. These people could easily afford to buy this crap. Why do they feel like they deserve free stuff that’s worth more than most families make in a year? They’re just entertainers. In the grand scheme of things, they don’t really contribute all that much to society. And for the most part, these are the people who complain that the government should be spending more money on education and other social programs. If all these Hollywood elites got together and pooled all their free crap together and the cost of all the awards ceremonies and banquets they could probably wipe out homelessness in this country. Alas, that is not to be as they would rather have their massive egos stroked by receiving stuff for free that most of us will never be able to afford…or need for that matter. One good thing I have gotten out of this is that according to this article Keanu Reeves and Michael Keaton actually turned down their $50,000 gift bags at the Sundance film festival. I can’t believe I would ever type these words but I now actually have a little bit of respect for Keanu Reeves.
The Trench Reynolds Report 