I received an email today from a friend—all it said was "Dude you are a superstar." I'm assuming it was about the HSBC commercial.
Emails like that—and all sorts of acquaintances bringing up that they saw me on TV (or in the TVs that are in cabs! And even on movie screens!) have softened the blow of the fact that my superstardom is coming to an end. I learned yesterday by calling Talent Partners—the payroll company that administers my residuals—that I have most likely received my last check. "Once it goes to Internet and industrial [cabs, supermarkets, etc.], it's over," said Linda, the Talent Partner representative who kindly broke the news to me with zero sugarcoating. In fact, she explained it to me twice. "I get it," I said. "Thanks."
For a few minutes, I felt like Ben Curtis.
It was a good ride, though, and while I've done a bit of TV as a "travel expert," there was something about being in a commercial that really impressed people. In some ways, as odd as it seems, I think it's more legitimate than, say, being on CNN. While the money was good—let's just say it was enough to make me forget sweating all day in an unairconditioned Serbian church—the most satisfying thing about the entire experience was hearing people express how shocked they were to be going about their lives and there I'd be, magically appearing, like a leprechaun, helping them become more comfortable with the changes brought by technology.
At some point, I suppose, I had no choice but to realize what everybody already knows: There's only room for one superstar in this family.
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