Music. Film. Sports. Literature. Politics. Any of these can give fame and create a pop icon out of an ordinary person and give them the status of a celebrity.
Along with the celebrity title, there is also a greater price to pay.
Few celebrities leave a lasting impression, while others resort to drugs as an escape.
Little do they know, their crutch would turn into a bad addiction.
“The Harder They Fall,” by Gary Stromberg and Jane Merrill, reveals the untold story of musicians, actors, athletes, writers and politicians who rise and fall due to bad habits. In the book there are familiar names of those who allowed fame to get the best of them.
A memorable name such as Richard Pryor brings back laughter from the past. He has been part of American pop culture over decades and made a strong impact in the way we appreciate comedy today.
“You can’t tell nobody not to snort no cocaine,” Pryor wrote. “Motherfucker’s gonna snort it anyway. It took me a long time to learn that shit’ll kill you. Once a big booger came out my nose. A motherfucking black one this long. Scared the shit out of me. I said ‘Goddamn, please, I’ll quit. Just let it stop.'”
For other less recognizable names such as writer Anne Lamott, the addiction was a chance to taste freedom and to experience a different world.
“I love it. It sort of gave me a chance at a real life. A feeling like I wasn’t a piece of shit. Those first couple of sips felt like the oxygen tube had been untangled, and I can breathe again,” she said.
Throughout the book, readers experience the different hardship each key player went through.
Stromberg and Merrill brought a difficult subject to the public with an ease that we all can accept and appreciate.
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