Pamela Prati dal Bagaglino a Mark Caltagirone. Televisione, desiderio e tempo che passa

The chapter focuses on the specificities of television celebrity, dividing the field into three distinct categories (the amplification of former stardom, the intermediate space of fiction, and the “proper” televisual personality), and highlights both the emphasis of these traits for female performers and the strong connection between aging characters and aging audiences in an everyday medium. It explores then the relevant case history of Italian showgirl Pamela Prati: in the Nineties, as the prima donna of many variety shows; in the 2000s, as a contestant and judge in many reality and talent shows; in the 2010s, starring in a huge scandal involving her fake wedding to a non-existent entrepreneur, mainly narrated through television talk shows. This example helps to show the complexities, compromises and failures of an aging female television celebrity, as she struggles to maintain her fame and recognition.