So Much Ballyhoo About The Beckham's

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

14 Jul 2007 08:52 AM

In the course of my daughter's recent illness she has gotten into a pattern of wanting a full body massage at around 2 a.m. It's around this time that I switch on the news (mute it) and read the headlines that scrawl at the bottom of the screen. I have been shocked that for the past three nights one of the top stories has been David and Victoria Beckham's move to America. The British soccer star and his "Spice Girl" wife's move from England to California has been covered by all the major networks, the cable channels, and extensively by the print media. Am I the only one asking: "What's the big deal regarding the Beckham's?"

Let's break this down. David Beckham is a popular international athlete. He is handsome. (Some might classify him as drop dead gorgeous.) And, by all accounts, he is a very charming 32-year-old father of three young boys. Does this mean I shouldn't have been surprised that more than 600 journalists were accredited for David's press conference Friday, in which he was formally introduced as the newest player on the L.A. Galaxy soccer team? Or that more than 150 media outlets swarmed the Beckham's at LAX airport upon their arrival Thursday? Or that metal barriers had to be put up outside of a L.A. radio station to hold back the hordes of media and fans that showed up to catch sight of Victoria as she entered to speak with Ryan Seacrest on his KIIS-FM morning radio show?

All this for a pretty (and very skinny) "Spice Girl" and her dashing (and very muscular) soccer star husband... who are not movie stars... not royalty... not heads of state... not the people responsible for finding the cure for a life-threatening disease. Yet LAX, which reportedly doesn't make special arrangements for celebrities, had extra police and security guards standing by to deal with the crush of onlookers when the Beckham's arrived.

Sure, the couple has many super-celeb friends (BFFs Tom and Katie Cruise are reportedly hosting the Beckham's first housewarming party) and they do have an awesome $22 million house in the Hills. Also Victoria is starring in an NBC special highlighting her family's move to the states that hits airwaves Monday. And later she will be reuniting with her other spicy g-pals for an upcoming reunion tour. But, still, I can't help but ask: "What is all the ballyhoo about the Beckham's?"

What's your guess?

Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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