Maclean’s Interview: Perez Hilton

Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr. is the 30-year-old Los Angeles-based blogger, radio host and television personality behind the popular, brash celebrity gossip website PerezHilton.com, written under the pseudonym Perez Hilton. The site gained fame in 2005 when it was the first to post a photograph of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie on an African beach, thus confirming their rumoured relationship. Hilton’s first book, Red Carpet Suicide: A Survival Guide on Keeping Up With the Hiltons, will be published in Canada this week.

Q: You’ve written a satiric how-to, or as you call it, a “bible to fame whoredom,” offering advice on how to become a “hilton” spelled with a small “h.” Define “hilton.”

A: By “hilton” I don’t mean Paris or Nicky or her parents. I mean this group of people who are famous for being famous—who don’t have much, if any, talent. There seems to be a lot of them these days.

Q: The strategies you lay out are pretty extreme—adopting an eating disorder, getting charged with DUI, staging a public meltdown, even early death. Is there any line the wannabe celebrity shouldn’t cross?

A: Obviously the book is meant to make you laugh. You shouldn’t really follow all these 12 steps unless you really, really want to be famous that badly. And there are some people who want it that badly. Having said that, there is some truth in humour; these 12 steps are based on reality. And I guess it’s a cautionary tale: be careful what you wish for because you can get it and it’s not always what it seems.

Q: True, you describe Anna Nicole Smith as the ideal “hilton.” Not many would want her as a role model.

A: [Laughs.] Maybe Britney Spears would. But that’s the old Britney. The new Britney is on track and hopefully will do a lot better this year.

Q: Is there any story you won’t touch?

A: Absolutely. For example, after the death of John Travolta’s son, the paparazzi were camped outside of his home. They even had helicopters taking aerial pictures of the property and the funeral. I refuse to run those pictures. I don’t think they’re appropriate because they don’t illustrate a story. There’s nothing newsworthy about it and it’s really making that painful time for John Travolta and his wife even more painful. That’s not to say I will treat the issue with kid gloves; if there is something new I will report it. For example, I did touch on the issue of [Travolta’s son’s] caretaker and talk about whether his son was taking medication or not because it’s newsworthy if John Travolta was neglecting the health of his own child.

Q: You reference Andy Warhol in the book’s foreword and afterword. Do you view yourself as the inheritor of his mantle?

A: Yes. He was interested in pop culture and celebrity in the same way I am. He manifested that curiosity in his art. Mine finds its way onto my website and my new book. He talked about the 15 minutes of fame. I talk about the 15 seconds everyone wants these days. Fame is a lot more attainable today, even for those without any real talent.

Q: You write about gossip as a form of viral marketing, saying publicists will trade information about an A-list celebrity if you mention a product or a C-list celebrity in return. Do you see yourself as part of that machine?

A: Absolutely. It’s just as much a game as it is a machine. And like any sport you need to play the game or you’ll be in the dugout. It’s all in good fun, as any sport should be; I don’t want to hurt anyone and I don’t want to get hurt either. I like to be biting but I don’t want to draw blood. There’s a difference.

Q: David Denby’s new book Snark accuses you, along with newspaper columnist Maureen Dowd and the website Gawker.com, of contributing to the current sarcastic tone that permeates public discourse. Any comment?

A: I haven’t read Denby’s book, nor do I know who he is, but I thank him for the mention.

Q: You’re openly gay and you support gay rights. Yet you’ve received a lot of heat for outing celebrities on your site. What’s your thinking?

A: Anyone that chooses to be an actor or politician is making a choice to lead their life in the public eye. And I don’t call what I do “outing.” I call it reporting, because if I’m saying someone is gay it’s because I know for a fact they are. However, just because I report on the private life of a public figure doesn’t mean that person is going to come out. Yes Lance Bass came out, yes T.R. Knight came out, yes Neil Patrick Harris came out.

Q: In your book you write that you believe the rumour that Oprah Winfrey is a lesbian. Do you have evidence?

A: Do I have evidence that she’s gay? No. Do I have evidence she’s not gay? No.