Salutations fellow readers and welcome to this weeks song suggestion. Our song today is “Celluloid Heroes” by The Kinks from their double album Everybody’s in Show-Biz. This song portrays how there are many differences between real life and television. The Kinks compare how many famous actors and singers known all across the world can live different lives from their on-screen appearances. The fellow celebrities mentioned include Greta Garbo, Rudolph Valentino, Bela Lugosi, Bette Davis, and more. The refrain of the song, one of the best parts of the song as I believe, goes, “Everybody’s a dreamer, and everybody’s a star. And everybody’s in movies, doesn’t matter who you are. There are stars in every city, in every house and on every street. And if you walk down Hollywood Boulevard, their names are written in concrete.” In this, The Kinks are referencing how many people dream of a life lived in stardom and fame. Young people often dream of appearing in movies and on talk shows even though they have ordinary lives. Ray and Dave (band creators) go on to talk about the various celebrities in the entertainment business. They describe people such as Marilyn Monroe who died tragic deaths and more successful people such as George Sanders and Mickey Rooney. These were, “people who worked and suffered and struggled for fame. Some who succeeded and some who suffered in vain.” The two have now commented on how fickle Hollywood is. People who have worked all their might for fame could have it gone in an instant if they make a bad move because of the media. Others will live on forever in the hearts of people all across the world. In this, Ray and Dave are saying that not everyone is destined to be a star. In the pre-chorus, the two sing, “I wish my life was non-stop Hollywood movie show. A fantasy world of celluloid villains and heroes. Because celluloid heroes never feel any pain. And celluloid heroes never really die.” In this statement, The Kinks are claiming that they too want to be Hollywood stars because they believe in the rich and fulfilling life celebrities seem to live. They want to go down in history as stars, not knowing of the cruel nature of Hollywood. In addition, they use celluloid as celluloid film was used in the movie making industry before it was abandoned because of the inconvenience it caused. Because of it’s high flammability and how costly it was, many movie makers stopped using it. This is ironic as The Kinks state that celluloid heroes will never die, but celluloid is easily destroyed. This can symbolize how sooner or later, dreams will die out. And with that, our song suggestion is done. I hope you enjoy this listen, “Celluloid Heroes.”
[Some Sort Of Songs Blog] 