A To D List - The Hierarchy

This is part one of a continuing series this weekend that will set to define A-D list and the people in the public eye and how they should be defined. Before getting to specific individuals this is a general overview on lists.

Trying to define A to D list is hard, but not impossible. The big problem is that careers are always in flux and things that hold true when a blind is written or a description of an actor might not be the case when it is read years later. Back in 2008 I wrote Kirsten Dunst was an A lister. Is she now? Nope. I think since the site started there have been changes in television with the advent of sites like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon  producing original content. Should those be given less weight because they are not on network television?

There has also been an increase in reality shows to the point where I consider them a genre unto their own. If I call someone an A list reality star it does not mean they are an A lister in the true sense of the word. There is a hierarchy and what I wrote back in 2008 about the true A listers is still what I believe today.

“In my mind, A list is someone who can open a mainstream film all by themselves. When I say mainstream, I mean a film that opens in the 1000+ screen category. I think that is the one true measurement of whether someone is A list or not. The question should be, am I interested in going to see this movie because so and so is in it and I don't care what the movie is about.”

CATEGORIES IN ORDER OF HIERARCHY:

MOVIES

NETWORK TELEVISION

CABLE TELEVISION

OTHER PROVIDER TELEVISION

REALITY

CELEBRITY

There is already a flaw within this list though. You can be Jay-Z, who is an A+ list celebrity and should not be at the bottom of the list. You could refer to him as a musician and because that is a talent should be moved higher in the list and leave celebrities to someone like Paris Hilton or Courtney Stodden.

Where would you place Jay-Z though? Movies are highest on the list because they generally get paid the most. Brad Pitt makes more per movie than Ashton Kutcher gets for an entire season on Two And A Half Men. It’s close, but Brad wins. Plus, the Academy Awards are watched by people all over the world and Emmy Awards, not so much. A popular television show in the US might not be popular in the rest of the world but a movie generally has more appeal worldwide.

Taylor Swift made more money than all but a handful of entertainment people last year. She is known worldwide and has a skill other than just being famous. You might not like her or her music, but that is not the point when defining the list. There are lots of people I dislike, but you have to recognize where they rank in things.

What I want to do is to create a new category called Entertainer. This would cover people in the musical fields some stand up comedians and even DJ’s like Tiesto and athletes. They are all entertainers. In the hierarchy I would still place them beneath movies but above network television. The actors on television shows who make as much as the highest paid entertainers are few and far between.

That would mean that the designation of celebrity would be reserved for those who are not a participant in any of the other categories. Kevin Federline is a great example. With the exception of a couple of visits to reality shows he is someone who is famous because he is famous. He married Britney Spears and has been famous since. Other than producing babies at a prolific rate he has no other skill so makes the perfect “celebrity.” So, you ask, how would you classify Paris Hilton? She has been an entertainer. She has been in movies. She has been on reality shows.

I would describe her as a former A list reality star who appeared on multiple reality shows and is currently a B list celebrity we all love to hate. I would skip the singing part because I like to forget about it and the more narrow you make a description, the easier the blind is to figure out. There has to be some guessing.

So, the new hierarchy looks like this:

MOVIES

ENTERTAINERS

NETWORK TELEVISION

CABLE TELEVISION

OTHER PROVIDER TELEVISION

REALITY

CELEBRITY

Now that the hierarchy has been established I want to take a brief look at each of the categories and break them down further.

MOVIES

General Release

Horror

Limited Release/Art House

Straight to On Demand

ENTERTAINERS

NETWORK TELEVISION

CBS, ABC, FOX, NBC

CW

CABLE TELEVISION

Pay Cable (HBO/SHOWTIME/STARZ)

Free Cable (A&E/TLC/AMC/HIST)

OTHER PROVIDER TELEVISON

(NETFLIX/AMAZON/HULU/CRACKLE)

REALITY

Network Reality

Cable Reality

Online Reality

CELEBRITY