Celebrity in the GTA IV Era: Difference between revisions

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'''The Wave of Celebrity in the Grand Theft Auto IV Era '''is the term used to describe the sudden influx of celebrity and gossip media in the fictional [[Grand Theft Auto World]]
The [[Grand Theft Auto]] series has always strongly relied on satire of popular culture, but a strong influx of parodies of '''celebrity'''/gossip culture can be noticed from [[Grand Theft Auto IV]] onwards.
 
==Pop and Tabloid Culture==
GTA IV's media is sprinkled with references to its own fictional pop culture universe, which parodies the 2000s-era wave of [[wp:Reality television#2000s|reality television]] and [[wp:Famous for being famous|"famous for being famous"]] celebrities. Many of the celebrities have turbulent friendships or loose associations with each other, much like their real life counterparts; For example, Brody Jenner and Kim Kardashian are half-siblings, and many other celebrities are socially linked together via New York's [[wp:Covenant of the Sacred Heart (New York)|Covenant of the Sacred Heart]] Catholic school.




==Pop and Tabloid Culture==
GTA IV's media is sprinkled with references to its own fictional pop culture universe, which parodies the 2000s-era wave of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reality_television#2000s reality television] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Famous_for_being_famous "famous for being famous"] celebrities. Many of the celebrities have turbulent friendships or loose associations with each other, much like their real life counterparts; For example, Brody Jenner and Kim Kardashian are half-siblings, and many other celebrities are socially linked together via New York's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convent_of_the_Sacred_Heart_%28New_York%29 Covenant of the Sacred Heart] Catholic school.


'''Heirs and Heiresses:'''
'''Heirs and Heiresses:'''
*'''[[Cloe Parker]]:''' World-famous heiress to a near-trillion-dollar "produce import" fortune. At age 24, she has already been engaged twice, has an illegitimate baby as well as serious problems with alcohol and cocaine. She is engaged to [[Tyler Dixon]], a petty criminal and backup dancer. She is best friends with Jill Von Crastenburg. Elements of her character are drawn from Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie and Britney Spears (marriage history).
{| border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 600px;"
*'''[[Jill Von Crastenburg]]:''' Heiress to [[Von Crastenburg Family|an investment banking dynasty]] that owns half of [[The Exchange]]. She is supposedly only 13, but already has a sex tape, cocaine habit and broke off a pedophilic relationship with 27-year-old baseball player [[Ernesto Asaltacunas]]. She is best friends with Cloe Parker. She is partially inspired by Nicole Richie, the Olsen twins and Miley Cyrus among others.
|'''Name'''
*'''[[January Natasha Vasquez]]''' and '''[[Alfonso Vasquez Jr.]]''': Children of alleged drug lord [[Alfonso Vasquez]]. January is a famous 22-year-old reality TV personality, famous for how incredibly stupid she is. Alfonso Jr. is somewhat less well-known, but is famous for daredevil behavior and frequenting nightclubs with his sister. He is also suspected by some to be gay. They are somewhat based on Kim and Rob Kardashian.
|'''Occupation'''
*'''[[Kayla Paulo]]:''' 21 year old heiress to a [[Las Venturas]] casino fortune and star of her own reality show, described as extremely demanding and white trash. She was childhood friends with Jill Von Crastenburg. She is partially based on Kim Kardashian, while her father is a parody of Steve Wynn and Sheldon Adelson.
|'''Main Parody'''
*'''[[Lyle Cleethorpes|Lyle Cleethorpes V]]:''' 31 year old heir to a two century fortune, built on the slave trade and a monopoly of Liberty City real estate. He is a daredevil with a meth addiction, but is surprisingly skilled in business. He continues with real estate development and rumors exist that he still owns illegal Asian sweatshops. He is a parody of Josh Astor and David Mayer de Rothschild, with a few references to Donald and Ivanka Trump.
|-
|'''[[Cloe Parker]]'''
|Import/export heiress
|Paris Hilton, Britney Spears
|-
|'''[[Jill Von Crastenburg]]'''
|Banking heiress
|Nicole Richie, Mary-Kate Olsen
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''Unnamed British Prince'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Royalty
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Prince Harry
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[January Natasha Vasquez]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Drug heiress
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Kim Kardashian
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Alfonso Vasquez Jr.]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Drug heir
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Rob Kardashian
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Tyler Dixon]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Cloe Parker's fiance
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Kevin Federline
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Lyle Cleethorpes|Lyle Cleethorpes V]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Historic family heir
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Josh Astor, David Mayer de Rothschild
|}




'''Self-Made:'''
'''Self-Made:'''
*'''[[Kerry McIntosh]]:''' A 23-year-old supermodel who is currently having the most reported-on breakdown in the country. In an emotional breakdown, she once ran naked down a highway. She has alcohol and cocaine problems that she went to rehab for, only to check out and crash her car into a fast-food restaurant while heavily intoxicated. She later chased a paparazzi away from her bathroom window with a kitchen knife. She is somewhat based on Kate Moss and Britney Spears (her breakdown).
{| border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 600px;"
*'''[[Samantha Muldoon]]: '''A 26 year old pop singer with a penchant for adopting babies from third-world countries, having accumulated 13 or 14 of them by 2008. She was married to hedge fund manager [[Kirk Simplex]] for only 20 minutes, and once switched religions 3 times in 1 week. She is inspired by Angelina Jolie, Madonna and Britney Spears (her 3-day marriage).
|'''Name'''
*'''[[Tony McTony]]:''' The creator of several social networking websites, a 29 year old black male. He is very short, which gives him inadequacy issues and causes him to be an over-compensating egomaniac. He has a concumbine-like flock of "spokeswhores" as well as 7 sons, and has a history of domestic violence. He is a more unique blend of Mark Zuckerburg, Sean "Diddy" Combs and other internet moguls, rap stars and athletes.
|'''Occupation'''
*'''[[Poppy Mitchell]]: '''A beloved child/young adult actress famous for romantic comedies. She and her manager are struggling to keep her extremely active sex life under wraps. She once had casual sex with nightclub bouncer Luis Lopez (protagonist of TBoGT). She is a parody of Lindsey Lohan.
|'''Main Parody'''
*'''[[Clay Jackson|Clay "Pain Giver" Jackson]]: '''An aggressive and misogynistic gangster rapper, with a homosexual secret life that's quickly becoming exposed. Accusations of homosexuality are frequently thrown between rappers, but none have ever advanced to any serious scandal. Clay's persona seems to be based on Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, possibly because enemies of his were involved with the game's soundtrack.
|-
*'''[[Bruce Spade]]:''' Currently the biggest movie star in the country, who has an almost pompous concern for social issues like global warming and poverty. He is a parody of Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn and Brad Pitt among others, also named after Bruce Willis and David Spade.
|'''[[Kerry McIntosh]]'''
*'''[[Diva Starr]]:''' The best-selling singer of the decade, a 34 year old black female. She is notorious for her extreme ego, heavy verbal abuse of low-level workers, and lavish spending habits. She is called the most hated celebrity in America by [[Fizz!]]. She is a parody of Naomi Campbell, Tyra Banks, Beyonce Knowles, Mariah Carey and others.
|Supermodel
|Kate Moss, Britney Spears
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Samantha Muldoon]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Singer
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Angelina Jolie, Madonna
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Tony McTony]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Social network founder
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Mark Zuckerberg, Sean "Diddy" Combs
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Ernesto Asaltacunas]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Baseball player
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Jose Canseco
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Richard Bastion]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Radio host
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage, Glenn Beck
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Poppy Mitchell]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Actress
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Lindsay Lohan
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Clay Jackson|Clay "Pain Giver" Jackson]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Rapper
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, Cam'Ron
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Bruce Spade]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Actor
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Sean Penn, Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Al Di Napoli]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Actor
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Sylvester Stallone, Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Blue Brothers]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Singers
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Jonas Brothers
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Wayne Tearson]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Actor
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Heath Ledger
|}
 
 
 
'''Carried over from GTA III Era:'''
{| border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 600px;"
|'''Name'''
|'''Occupation'''
|'''Main Parody'''
|-
|'''[[Jack Howitzer]]'''
|Actor
|Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Love Fist]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Rock band
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Motley Crue, Guns 'n' Roses, Iron Maiden
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Madd Dogg]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Rapper
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Ice-T, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[OG Loc]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Rapper
| style="vertical-align: top;"|MC Hammer, Vanilla Ice
|-
|'''[[Lazlow]]'''
|Radio host
|NA (as himself)
|}
 
 
 
 
'''Real-life celebrities: '''Considerably more famous people in real life agreed to portray themselves in GTA IV than any previous GTA game. Almost every in-game DJ is a prominent musician or personality in real life, Ricky Gervais and Katt Williams play themselves as comedians, and Busta Rhymes also appeared on the radio as himself to promote his new album (in-game and real life).


==Politicians==
==Politicians==
The political atmosphere of the game has a very strong sense of post-9/11 hysteria. Surprisingly, there are no references or parodies whatsoever to Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, which was arguably the largest media frenzy of 2008.
The political atmosphere of the game has a very strong sense of post-9/11 hysteria. Surprisingly, there are no references or parodies whatsoever to Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, which was arguably the largest media frenzy of 2008, likely because the majority of GTA IV was completed before 2008, and well before Obama was considered a viable candidate for President.
*'''[[Joe Lawton]]: '''US president who created the [[Jingoism Act]] to combat terrorism, supposedly at the cost of some constitutional rights to privacy. His father was once president as well. Surprisingly little else is mentioned about him. He is a parody of George W. Bush.
{| border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 600px;"
*'''[[Michael Graves]]: '''Right-wing candidate for Liberty State Governor. He is accused by John Hunter of pedophilia with his employees' children, and using $400,000 in campaign funds to buy a home in the Philippines where he also molests little boys.
|'''Name'''
*'''[[John Hunter]]:''' Left-wing candidate for Liberty State Governor. He was once an actor, and is criticized by Graves for cutting funding to schools and trying to police the internet, also mocking him as a "fat, bald prick" and saying "that comb-over's not fooling anyone".
|'''Occupation'''
*'''[[Thomas Stubbs III]]: '''A Liberty State House Representative, who comes from a wealthy yet turbulent Kennedy-like family of investment bankers. He is a major character in The Lost and Damned, where it's revealed that he cheats on his wife, ordered people killed including his own uncle, and successfully keeps it all under wraps.
|'''Main Parody'''
*'''[[Julio Ochoa]]: '''Mayor of Liberty City who favors lowering crime with gun control, which has not been effective. He secretly protects aging mob boss [[Jon Gravelli]], in a combined effort to bring down crime from immigrated crime rings.
|-
*'''[[Bryce Dawkins]]: '''Deputy Mayor of Liberty City, a far-right winger who is hypocritically secretly gay and spends city funds on gifts for his boyfriend [[Bernie Crane]]. He does not appear in any game, but plays a notable role in GTA IV's plot.
|[[Joe Lawton|'''Joe Lawton''' ]]
|US President
|George W. Bush
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Charles Martin]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Alderney Senator
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Duke Cunningham, James Traficant, Webster Hubbell
|-
|'''[[Michael Graves]]'''
|Liberty Gubernational candidate
|Mark Foley
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[John Hunter]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Liberty Gubernational candidate
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Al Franken, Fred Thompson, Jesse Ventura
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Thomas Stubbs III]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Liberty House Representative
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Kennedy family
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Julio Ochoa]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Liberty Mayor
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Fernando "Freddy" Ferrer
|-
| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''[[Bryce Dawkins]]'''
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Liberty Deputy Mayor
| style="vertical-align: top;"|Larry Craig, Richard Curtis, Bob Allen
|}
[[Category:GTA IV Era]]
[[Category:GTA IV Era]]

Latest revision as of 20:40, 5 July 2014

The Grand Theft Auto series has always strongly relied on satire of popular culture, but a strong influx of parodies of celebrity/gossip culture can be noticed from Grand Theft Auto IV onwards.

Pop and Tabloid Culture

GTA IV's media is sprinkled with references to its own fictional pop culture universe, which parodies the 2000s-era wave of reality television and "famous for being famous" celebrities. Many of the celebrities have turbulent friendships or loose associations with each other, much like their real life counterparts; For example, Brody Jenner and Kim Kardashian are half-siblings, and many other celebrities are socially linked together via New York's Covenant of the Sacred Heart Catholic school.


Heirs and Heiresses:

Name Occupation Main Parody
Cloe Parker Import/export heiress Paris Hilton, Britney Spears
Jill Von Crastenburg Banking heiress Nicole Richie, Mary-Kate Olsen
Unnamed British Prince Royalty Prince Harry
January Natasha Vasquez Drug heiress Kim Kardashian
Alfonso Vasquez Jr. Drug heir Rob Kardashian
Tyler Dixon Cloe Parker's fiance Kevin Federline
Lyle Cleethorpes V Historic family heir Josh Astor, David Mayer de Rothschild


Self-Made:

Name Occupation Main Parody
Kerry McIntosh Supermodel Kate Moss, Britney Spears
Samantha Muldoon Singer Angelina Jolie, Madonna
Tony McTony Social network founder Mark Zuckerberg, Sean "Diddy" Combs
Ernesto Asaltacunas Baseball player Jose Canseco
Richard Bastion Radio host Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage, Glenn Beck
Poppy Mitchell Actress Lindsay Lohan
Clay "Pain Giver" Jackson Rapper Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, Cam'Ron
Bruce Spade Actor Sean Penn, Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio
Al Di Napoli Actor Sylvester Stallone, Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino
Blue Brothers Singers Jonas Brothers
Wayne Tearson Actor Heath Ledger


Carried over from GTA III Era:

Name Occupation Main Parody
Jack Howitzer Actor Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone
Love Fist Rock band Motley Crue, Guns 'n' Roses, Iron Maiden
Madd Dogg Rapper Ice-T, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube
OG Loc Rapper MC Hammer, Vanilla Ice
Lazlow Radio host NA (as himself)



Real-life celebrities: Considerably more famous people in real life agreed to portray themselves in GTA IV than any previous GTA game. Almost every in-game DJ is a prominent musician or personality in real life, Ricky Gervais and Katt Williams play themselves as comedians, and Busta Rhymes also appeared on the radio as himself to promote his new album (in-game and real life).

Politicians

The political atmosphere of the game has a very strong sense of post-9/11 hysteria. Surprisingly, there are no references or parodies whatsoever to Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, which was arguably the largest media frenzy of 2008, likely because the majority of GTA IV was completed before 2008, and well before Obama was considered a viable candidate for President.

Name Occupation Main Parody
Joe Lawton US President George W. Bush
Charles Martin Alderney Senator Duke Cunningham, James Traficant, Webster Hubbell
Michael Graves Liberty Gubernational candidate Mark Foley
John Hunter Liberty Gubernational candidate Al Franken, Fred Thompson, Jesse Ventura
Thomas Stubbs III Liberty House Representative Kennedy family
Julio Ochoa Liberty Mayor Fernando "Freddy" Ferrer
Bryce Dawkins Liberty Deputy Mayor Larry Craig, Richard Curtis, Bob Allen
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