The Kim Kardashian debacle
UNLESS YOU’VE BEEN living under a rock for the past two weeks, you’ve heard about Kim Kardashian’s marriage, the 72-day affair that cost $10 million—and grossed the Kardashian family $17 million. This, coupled with Zooey Deschanel and Ben Gibbard divorcing after two short years, makes this a month that begs the question: Why don’t Hollywood marriages last?
This isn’t the first time a marriage has had an incredibly short run. Drew Barrymore and Tom Green were only married six months before he filed for divorce in 2001. Carmen Electra and Dennis Rodman were married for nine days in November 1998. Renee Zellweger and Chad Michael Murray both had marriages that lasted less than seven months. And now, Kim Kardashian’s union lasts only 72 days.
Personally, I don’t believe the naysayers who claim Kim Kardashian got married all for the publicity and money she gained from the wedding. Good friends of mine who watch her television show, Keeping Up With The Kardashians, tell me she professes that she wants a husband and family. Would she really put on such a ruse for something she legitimately desires?
I think Kim’s problem was she let the wedding— as opposed to the actual marriage—become the important part of the union. Three Vera Wang dresses? A televised broadcast? Celebrity VIP guests? If that doesn’t spell “hype,” I don’t know what does.
There’s a saying in my family: The bigger the wedding, she shorter the marriage. It looks like this holds true. Isn’t the more important factor—more than beautiful dresses and huge guest list—the idea you’ll be together forever? That you’re committing to someone for the rest of your life?
I don’t think anyone can go into a wedding with no clue their relationship is on the rocks. So maybe Kim should have thought twice, but picture this: Let’s say you’ve got an overbearing grandma—someone you love, who you know you’d be nothing without—who gets excited for your wedding even though you’re having doubts about it. You’re not sure if you’ve made the right choice, but grandma’s getting caught in the hype of the dress, the hair, the makeup, and the groom.
Now, imagine that instead of a grandma, you have thousands and thousands of fans, all of whom are buying into this fairy-tale wedding you’ve planned. Magazines want to cover the story, People wants to do a multi-page spread, and viewers are tuning into your show more than ever—everyone wants to see you get your happily ever after. It would be so much harder to turn away from a planned union after all that.
I’m not professing myself as a Kardashian fan, but for everyone who says the wedding was staged and that she just wanted the money: Maybe be a little less harsh. No one wants their relationship to fall apart—even less so, their marriage—and being subjected to thousands of staring eyes while it does must be a hard thing to deal with. Hopefully, next time, Kim will choose more wisely.
—Charlotte Bailey
