ABSTRACT
There is no such thing as a star without rumors. A star already has a public, that of his or her admirers, venerators, and idolizers. In the eyes of this public, the star is the most important person around: their involvement with him or her is total. The star does not possess his public: it is rather the other way around. The star has obligations to his public: to remain its star is a daily job. The star's private life is public: a few patches are carefully exposed at the right moment by press agents and managers. Overzealous journalists take it upon themselves to uncover other facets of the star's private life. Rumors intervene at this point. To remain a star, one must manage one's secrets, engineer their timely leakage, and instill confidence. Negative rumors are a sign of a break: the star is deviating further and further from the terms of the tacit contract.
