Akademik

(suh.LEB.ree.al.uh.tee)

n.

The real life of a celebrity; a TV show format in which one or more celebrities participate in real-life situations. Also: celeb-reality, celeb reality.

Celebreality, the junk genre du jour, turns the notion of reality TV upside down. Instead of real people acting like celebrities on shows like "Survivor," "Big Brother" and "The Bachelor," celebreality gives us celebrities acting like real people on shows like "The Osbournes," "The Anna Nicole Show" and "Celebrity Boot Camp." I'm using the term "celebrity" loosely here — we're not talking about Russell Crowe, Julia Roberts and Dame Judi Dench eating bugs and scrubbing latrines.

No, the celebrities of celebreality are a motlier crew, like, well, Motley Crue's Vince Neil, the former rap superstar M. C. Hammer and the wee ex-Michael Jackson ornament Emmanuel ("Webster") Lewis. Those three will be setting up housekeeping together on Thursday in "The Surreal Life" on WB, a celebreality spin on MTV's "Real World." Not to be outdone, ABC sends a Baldwin brother (Stephen), a supermodel (Frederique) and a former "L.A. Law" star (Corbin Bernsen) to Hawaii for "Celebrity Mole Hawaii," beginning Wednesday.

— Joyce Millman, "Celebreality: The 'Stars' Are Elbowing Their Way In," The New York Times, January 5, 2003

You could see the new celeb-reality on display at this year's Oscars. It is Kathy Bates and Whoopi Goldberg, not Kim Basinger and Michelle Pfeiffer.

It is Jeremy Irons in black tie and the sneakers he says keep his feet on the ground. It is Kevin Costner, fighting small, important battles, winning big, but reacting with modesty and going off to party privately.

The new celebrities are human first, famous second.

— Michael Gross, "Celebrity's new face," The Toronto Star, May 12, 1991