A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame represents the greatest aspiration of a global celebrity who has already accumulated success, fame and fortune in his life. As in these times nothing is free, this consecration also has a high price that at the time had to be paid by the only two Chileans who have that eternal distinction: the singer Lucho Gatica and entertainer Don Francisco.
The immortal Marilyn Monroe, Steven Spielberg, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jackson, Lenny Kravitz, William Dafoe and even the controversial Shakira once paraded along that walk, in a mirror of the diversity of celebrities who met the requirements to win that award. equivalent to Nobel Prize for artists, communicators and athletes (and perhaps, vanity).
The Walk of Fame originated in 1958 on the sidewalks of Vine Street on Hollywood Boulevard and to date 2,782 stars have been awarded. The initiative was born from the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, which has just announced a new boost to the event that brings together the jet set. The original goal was to “maintain the glory of a community whose name means glamor and excitement to the four corners of the world,” according to the official Hollywood Walk of the Fame site.
Perhaps with a desire for democratization, there will now be an important novelty: starting in 2025, another thirty-six famous names will be immortalized on the floor of the boulevard, as reported a few days ago by the president of the Chamber of Commerce, Steve Nissen.
Among the characters who will receive this honor, some names stand out, such as those of the winners of the Oscar Jane Fonda and Jessica Chastain, Colin Farrell, Emilio Estevez and Robert Englund, as well as dancer Misty Copeland, journalist Chris Wallace and host Sherri Sheperd. In music they include Prince, The Bukis, Temptation, Depeche Mode, Green Day, among others, and in sports entertainment it corresponds to the former English star and owner of the Inter Miami club, David Beckham.
In any case, this Thursday, June 27, star 2,783 will be unveiled, to posthumously distinguish the Spanish-Mexican singer Jenni Rivera, who died in 2012 after a small plane accident.
The value of eternal fame
The great melodic singer and king of the bolero Lucho Gatica, born in Rancagua and consecrated in Mexico in the sixties, he received his star in 2008, becoming a legend for his interpretation of Bésame mucho and El Reloj, among his countless record hits.
And Don Francisco had already spent more than five decades as host of Sábados Gigantes and was a standard bearer of Latin television when in 2001 he obtained the same recognition.
To reach that memorable moment, however, both had to meet all the requirements of the application, which each year exceeds 200 celebrities interested in formally graduating from such.
The initial application costs $250 and requires some documents. To overcome this basic stage, the applicant needs to comply with a list of requirements that considers prestige, career, recognition and some participation in social works. Once the preselection is reached, The organization demands a payment of 75 thousand dollars. According to the Chamber of Commerce commission, this high sum is usually paid for by sponsors, producers or some company and is used to finance the creation and installation of the star, the maintenance of that seat and the cost of the respective ceremony.
While all the stars They are installed on the sidewalk so that people walk on them and take photographs, there is one that cannot be stepped on: the mythical boxing champion Muhammad Ali He received his tribute in 2002, but demanded that no one walk on his star and so it was installed on the wall of the Dolby Theater. And there are more recent curiosities. The West Hollywood city council demanded in 2018 to eliminate former President Donald Trump’s name for disgracing minorities, immigrants and Muslims with his criticism. But the power of history shows that a star cannot be touched…
