Famous For Nothing

When MTV's The Real World debuted almost 20 years ago, perhaps no-one could have predicted that the reality series would usher in an entirely new species of celebrity. What began quietly in the '90s and exploded in the Noughties – with "celebutantes" like Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie – is now the norm. American television has spawned a seemingly endless crop of "celebrities" with little discernible talent, and only the most tenuous claims to fame. And if the tabloids are any indication, we can't seem to get enough. Meet the Famous-For-Nothing Generation.

THE HILLS
Premise: Consummate California girl Lauren Conrad moves to Los Angeles to work on a fashion magazine. Lauren and her posse of attractive and inarticulate friends club hop, hook up and gossip about one another over sushi. Who needs to work?
Villain: The controlling – and quite possibly crazy – Spencer Pratt.
Supporting cast: Lauren's former best friend, Heidi Montag; Spencer's sister, Stephanie Pratt; dim-witted brunette Audrina Patridge; Johnny Depp-wannabe Justin "Bobby" Brescia.
Dress code: Fedoras, black nail polish.
Tabloid moment: Spencer and Heidi's elopement to Mexico.
Why they're famous: Before The Hills, Lauren was the star of another reality show, Laguna Beach.

THE CITY
Premise: Whitney Port moves to New York to launch her own clothing line.
Villain: Spoilt socialite and, oh yeah, Elle accessories editor, Olivia Palermo.
Supporting cast: Tough-as-nails publicist Kelly Cutrone; Whitney's high-school friend and coworker at Diane von Furstenberg, Roxy Olin; Jay Lyon, Australian rocker and Whitney's love interest; Erin Kaplan, frustrated Elle staffer.
Dress code: Stiletto booties.
Tabloid moment: With help from Kelly, easygoing Whitney finally musters up the strength to confront Olivia over her refusal to cover her fashion line in Elle.
Why they're famous: Whitney was one of the main cast members on The Hills in its first four seasons.

KEEPING UP WITH THE KARDASHIANS
Premise: Inside the lives of the three Kardashian sisters – Kourtney, Khloe and Kim (pictured below) – and their media-friendly family, who live in LA. Like The Brady Bunch only Dad has had more plastic surgery than Mum.
Villain: Kourtney's ne'er-do-well boyfriend, Scott Disick, a reformed alcoholic who dresses like he's auditioning for American Psycho.
Supporting Cast: Mum Kris Jenner; step-dad Bruce Jenner; half-sisters Kylie and Kendall; brother Rob.
Dress code: Eyeshadow and false eyelashes, no matter the time of day.
Tabloid moment: Mum Kris pressures Kim into posing for Playboy in 2007.
Why they're famous: Well, Bruce Jenner was an Olympic decathlon champ in the '70s and Kim used to be best friends with Paris Hilton. But really, it's all about Kim's 2007 sex tape.

The Kardashian sisters.

JERSEY SHORE
Premise: Eight flashy and overly self-confident young people share their summers drinking, fighting and "fist-pumping".
Villain: The "grenades" – aka ugly women – the boys frequently dodge while out at clubs.
Supporting cast: A duck phone.
Dress code: A tan the colour of a basketball; head-to-toe Ed Hardy.
Tabloid moment: Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi, decked out in a pair of green slippers and a shirt that says "SLUT", is arrested for public drunkenness – at 3.30 in the afternoon.
Why they're famous: Their tireless commitment to drinking in excess and having sex in hot tubs – and a knack for catchphrases.

THE REAL HOUSEWIVES
Premise: A real-life version of Desperate Housewives, this ever-expanding franchise follows groups of affluent, middle-aged women in cities throughout the US.
Stars: Kelly Bensimon, Jill Zarin, Kim Zolciak, NeNe Leakes, Teresa Giudice, Danielle Staub, Michaele Salahi and Cat Ommanney.
Villains: Ageing, foreclosure.
Supporting cast: Their husbands, children and plastic surgeons.
Dress code: Halter-neck tops, chandelier earrings, immobile foreheads.
Tabloid moment: Former best friends Jill Zarin and Bethenny Frankel's vicious – and tear-filled – falling-out in season three of The Real Housewives Of New York City.
Why they're famous: Having lots of money – or doing their best to look like they do.

KENDRA
Premise: Wild child Kendra Wilkinson settles into life outside the Playboy Mansion with new hubby Hank Baskett.
Villain: Baby weight.
Supporting cast: Kendra's mum, Patty; former co-girlfriends Bridget Marquardt and Holly Madison; Playmates Tiffany Fallon and Brittany Binger.
Dress code: Nothing. Kendra is all too happy to appear naked on camera.
Tabloid moment: Kendra struggles to reclaim her once killer body after giving birth to baby Hank IV.
Why they're famous: Kendra was one of Hugh Hefner's three girlfriends, featured on The Girls Next Door.

BETHENNY GETTING MARRIED?
Premise: Sharp-tongued and self-promotional Real Housewives Of New York star Bethenny Frankel (left) settles down with even-keeled fiancé Jason Hoppy.
Villain: The demons of Bethenny's tough childhood.
Supporting cast: Bethenny's cute male assistant, Max, and her dog, Cookie.
Dress code: Yoga pants, Skinnygirl margarita T-shirt (her own brand).
Tabloid moment: Seven months pregnant, Bethenny marries Jason in a lavish ceremony at the Four Seasons Hotel in New York – and ex-best friend Jill Zarin isn't on the guest list.
Why they're famous: Bethenny first plugged her work as a "natural foods chef" on The Apprentice: Martha Stewart.

Reality TV Stars Building Their Brands

Kelly Cutrone
Publicist Cutrone was planning fashion shows for the likes of Vivienne Westwood long before she became famous for berating interns on The Hills, The City and her own reality series, Kell On Earth.

Patti Stranger
Stanger formed her company, The Millionaire's Club, in 2000. On her show Millionaire Matchmaker, she doles out brutally honest advice to her clients, claiming a 99 per cent success rate.

Rachel Zoe
Celebrity stylist Zoe's reality show, The Rachel Zoe Project, has inspired women worldwide to wear enormous sunglasses and flowy kaftans. She will launch a clothing line later this year.

Rachel Zoe.

Top 10 Reality TV scandals

1 D.C. Housewife Michaele Salahi and husband Tareq crash US President Barack Obama's first state dinner at the White House.
2 The Hills's Heidi Montag, 23, undergoes 10 plastic surgery procedures in a day.
3 New Jersey Housewife Teresa Giudice and her husband, Joe, file for bankruptcy, claiming to be $11 million in debt despite a yearly income of just $79,000.
4 The Hills's Spencer Pratt spreads a rumour about a sex tape featuring Lauren Conrad and her ex-boyfriend, Jason Wahler.
5 On a drug-and-alcohol-fuelled rampage, Scott Disick punches a hole in the wall of Kourtney's apartment in Kourtney & Khloe Take Miami.
6 The New Jersey housewives confront Danielle Staub about allegations made against her in a book called Cop Without A Badge: alleged crimes include kidnapping, drug possession and extortion.
7 Jersey Shore star Snooki is sucker-punched by a drunk bar patron; after a public outcry, the scene is later dropped.
8 On a girls-only trip to the Virgin Islands, New York Housewife Kelly Bensimon becomes unhinged and verbally assaults her castmates in memorable fashion. She later claims to have been the victim of "systematic bullying".
9 After Spencer Pratt attacks a female producer of The Hills, both he and wife Heidi are dropped from the show.
10 The Kardashian sisters launch a branded debit card aimed at young women. The card, which charges exorbitant fees, draws criticism from politicians and is withdrawn three weeks later.

The Biggest Earners

- Kim Kardashian has managed to parlay sex tape infamy into a series of lucrative endorsements and product deals. She's endorsed everything from Quick Trim diet aids to Kim Kardashian Vanilla Cupcake mix and, inevitably, her own perfume.
- Before she left The Hills, Lauren Conrad was making $125,000 an episode. The starlet has since sold almost two million copies of her books and her LC Lauren Conrad clothing line is sold in 300 discount stores across the US.
- Heidi Montag was paid $375,000 for her 2009 Playboy pictorial and earns $20,000 for appearances – which is a good thing, since her album, Superficial, flopped and she's no longer making $65,000 an episode for The Hills.
- Bethenny Frankel isn't afraid of Kardashian levels of aggressive self-promotion, and the shamelessness is working. Her two cookbooks, Naturally Thin and The Skinnygirl Dish, have become bestsellers in the US.
- Believe it or not, there's more to The Situation than chiselled abs: he's also a savvy businessman. Though his Jersey Shore salary is relatively modest – about $10,000 an episode – his fitness video, The Situation Workout, was a big hit.