15 minutes of fame (or
famous for 15 minutes) is an expression which refers to the fleeting condition of
celebrity that grabs into an object of
media attention, then passes to some new object as soon as people's
attention spans are exhausted. It is often used in reference to figures in the
entertainment industry and other areas of
popular culture.
It was coined by the American artist
Andy Warhol.
Origin
The expression is a
paraphrase of
Andy Warhol's 1968 statement: "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." In 1979 Warhol reiterated his claim: "...my prediction from the
Sixties finally came true: In the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes."
Becoming bored with continually being asked about this particular statement, Warhol attempted to confuse interviewers by changing the statement variously to "In the future 15 people will be famous" and "In 15 minutes everybody will be famous."
Interpretation
Warhol's comment and the insight it expressed emerged from his own fascination with fame and celebrities. His view of the media was that they could enable any person to become famous. Warhol's own shifting entourage of otherwise undistinguished hangers-on in the '60s and '70s, whom he dubbed his "
Superstars," exemplified his idea of ephemeral, disposable celebrity.
The age of reality television has seen the comment wryly updated as: "In the future, everyone will be obscure for 15 minutes." The British artist
Banksy has made a sculpture of a TV that has, written on its screen, "In the future, everyone will be anonymous for 15 minutes."
A more recent adaptation of Warhol's quip, possibly prompted by the rise of
online social networking,
blogging, and similar
online phenomena, is the claim that "In the future, everyone will be famous to fifteen people" (or, in some renditions, "On the Web, everyone will be famous to fifteen people").
This quote, though attributed to
David Weinberger, was said
to have originated with the Scottish artist
Momus.
Use by Andy Warhol
Interview Magazine and Andy Warhol threw a "15 Minutes of Fame Party" in NYC in the mid '80s, attended by Blondie's
Debbie Harry, dance's
Lawrence Leritz, and many of Warhol's underground film stars.
In 1986, Warhol had a short-lived
MTV television series,
Andy Warhol's 15 Minutes.See also
