The Walk of Fame Selection Committee of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce has selected thirty individuals to receive stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2015. Here's the list…
MOTION PICTURES: Raymond Chandler (posthumous), Eugenio Derbez, Will Ferrell, Jennifer Garner, Peter Jackson, Bob Kane (posthumous), Daniel Radcliffe, Paul Rudd, Snoopy, Melissa McCarthy and Christoph Waltz.
TELEVISION: James L. Brooks, Ken Ehrlich, Bobby Flay, Seth MacFarlane, Julianna Margulies, Chris O'Donnell, Jim Parsons, Amy Poehler, Kelly Ripa and Sofia Vergara.
RECORDING: Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald, Kool & The Gang, Pitbull, Al Schmitt and Pharrell Williams.
RADIO: Larry Elder.
LIVE THEATRE/LIVE PERFORMANCE: Kristin Chenoweth, Dick Gregory and Ennio Morricone.
Well, that's not a bad list. I think Larry Elder's one of those guys who makes Libertarianism sound like a philosophical cover for not caring about anyone in the world but yourself, and it does bother me a bit when they honor fictional characters. How many human beings in the entertainment industry who deserve but will never get that kind of recognition will look down on the sidewalk, see the name of Snoopy and think, "They could give a star to a cartoon dog and not to me?" But it's not a bad list and —
Hey! I just noticed! They're giving one to Bob Kane? Bob Kane, the contractual sole creator of Batman?
We're talking about Bob Kane, the man who in his autobiography, regretted that he never put the name of his collaborator Bill Finger on the comics…but who never somehow got around to rectifying that and allowing it.
Hmm. Someone has to put up the $30,000 fee and do a lot of lobbying to get someone a star. Usually, it's done by a studio's public relations people…like maybe Time-Warner pressed to get Kane this star so they could stage a media event and promote some new Batman project. (The dedication ceremony will take place some time in 2015 but on a date of mutual agreement. This helps it to be timed in order to publicize some opening or release.)
Did Time-Warner get Kane this star? Or did Mr. Kane's family put up the money and crusade for it?
And will there be protesters at the dedication ceremony with big signs that say WHAT ABOUT BILL FINGER? It wouldn't surprise me.