To Drop Or Not To Drop?

The Dilemma of Notable Behind-The-Scenesters When They Publicly Share Their Memories

There is a broadly general consensus - whether fair or unfair - that the mentioning in casual conversation of the names of people with a high public profile such as celebrities and stars is unseemly.  So that the act of speaking or writing such names invariably attracts the pejorative term "name-dropping".  

The clear implication being that the mentions are self-serving. Incorporated into speech or print by people aiming to elevate their importance or make an ordinary life seem more glamorous by association with famous folk.

And there's some merit to that perception.

Persons who refer by name to high-profile individuals who may have been briefly encountered in terms that imply familiarity or a friendship are tiresome. 

Like all those selfies that appear in social media of stars photo-bombed by nonentities.

Selfies are the present-day incarnation of that equally pointless artifact of bygone days - the autograph. The obsession to pursue autographs and selfies is borderline moronic.

However the blanket condemnation of those who insert celebrity names into dialogue or dissertations ought to have a carve-out.

There are people who frequently interact with high-profile individuals in every sphere of a professional endeavor.  Journalists, managers, publicists, agents, producers, directors etc. etc.  And if such people choose to write or speak of their personal experiences in a written or oral memoir it is entirely natural that they will have multiple references to familiar names.

Should they have to make a special apology at the outset of their reminiscences for the fact that they will be "naming names"?

Should they artificially limit or minimize the number of high-profile mentions?

Or should there be a blanket caveat than protects such memoir-ists from unfair snarky comments about "name-dropping"?

We have Justifiable Homicide.   Why not Justifiable Name-Dropping?!

I subscribe to the latter suggestion.

I think there should be the following wording attached to any such written or spoken memoirs.

"WARNING!  Contains multiple instances of Justifiable Name-Dropping!"

I know this is fair because I got a sympathetic vote of support for this idea from my good pals Robert De Niro, George Clooney, Tom Cruise and Barack Obama…

Written by Martin Lewis

(Yes I really know myself!)