celebrity worship at its worst

1 Police have arrested six people, mostly teens, on suspicion of breaking into the homes of Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom, Lindsay Lohan and other Hollywood figures to satisfy a celebrity obsession and steal from them

2 In the past, British people had a fascination for details about the Royal Family, as there was limited information available. By the time the life and death of Diana, Princess of Wales (from marrying Prince Charles in 1981 to her death in 1997), the media coverage led to a national obsession.

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John Lennon caused a huge stir when he said that The Beatles were more popular than Jesus. He was, perhaps unknowingly, tapping into the idea that personality-adoration is a kind of religion. In December 1980, Mark David Chapman shot him dead, having asked for his autograph earlier that day. For many, Lennon's assassination served as a reminder of both the hazards of celebrity status, and that the word ‘fan’ is a shortened version of the term 'fanatic'.

Read more at Suite101: Celebrity Worship Syndrome: the New Religion for Many People http://personalitymooddisorders.suite101.com/article.cfm/celebrity-worship-syndrome-the-new-religion-for-many-people#ixzz0oBvORXrM

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Paula Goodspeed confessed her obsession with American Idol judge Paula Abdul before reportedly committing suicide in 2008. Halle Berry, Uma Thurman,Tyra Banks, Janet Jackson are among others in the public eye who have been targeted by unwelcome fanatic attention. Britney Spears' Circus Show at the Mohegan Sun was interrupted by fan Kyle King, who said that he simply wanted to dance with her. Intruders have been also been caught on Spears' property.

5 It’s not only female celebrities who are targeted by obsessed fans. Justin Timberlake got a temporary restraining order against a woman described by his attorney as ‘a mentally unstable celebrity stalker’. A 49-year=old man was taken into custody after allegedly breaking into Jamie Fox’s Philadelphia hotel room. Whether the stalker is male or female, the effect is described as terrifying, particularly when the stalker's mental state can verge on the psychotic.