Celebrity Weddings:
Extravagant and Always Newsworthy

by Sandy Miller

The rich and famous are not usually known for understatement. This principle applies to celebrity weddings, the bread and butter of the show business magazines. These affairs are big news, with publishers fighting each other for exclusive rights to the official celebrity photographs. Some ceremonies are tasteful and elegant and some are less so.

Any bride and groom will know that a wedding needs good organization, something along the lines of a military operation. When your guests happen to be household names flying in from all over the world, it complicates things further. Keeping it quiet is almost impossible. Details of the date and venue have a habit of leaking out. Even marrying in a remote Tibetan village would not keep the paparazzi at bay.

Beyond Chivalry?

The recent trend is to get married in a castle. Paul McCartney, Madonna, Christina Aguilera and Tom Cruise have all had their celebrity weddings behind high castle walls. Long ago, castle walls were security against medieval sieges, now they act as a fortress against the world's press.

Paul and Heather Mills married in a castle in Ireland, owned by an elderly gentleman who let the cat out of the bag. They still got hitched away from the media. Madonna and Guy Ritchie chose a Scottish pile and Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes recently tied the knot in an Italian castle. Their wedding was a Scientology ceremony, of course. The excited population of the small village picked for the venue was disappointed when the couple did not pose for them. No celebrity photos there!

With This Ring, I Thee Wed

Every aspect of the wedding proceedings carries a certain pizzazz. It starts with the engagement ring. Jennifer Lopez caused a stir with her pink diamond. The most famous ring however, is the one given to Elizabeth Taylor by Richard Burton. It was practically visible from the moon. Brad Pitt had one made for Jennifer Aniston and he designed both wedding bands himself.

But What Will She Wear?

There is always great excitement over the wedding dress at celebrity weddings. There was a collective gasp when spectators saw Princess Diana's dress, as the taffeta creation seemed to stretch forever. The famous can easily get the top designers to create something unique for them. It pays to know people in high places, as when Madonna asked her buddy Stella McCartney to create her dress. Sandra Bullock combined her dress with cowboy boots, in keeping with the western theme she had.

The Weirdest Marriage

The most bizarre show business wedding of all has to be the one that Pamela Anderson organized for her dogs. Her golden retriever and chihuahua took part in a moving ceremony on the beach in front of invited guests. As celebrity weddings go, that will probably never be topped.