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Do celebrities and other wealthy people usually fly commercial?

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Old Jan 8, 2012, 10:41 am
  #61  
 
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There was a bit of buzz in the Chinese press after the new US ambassador to China was photographed in line at Starbucks during a layover in SEA. They noted that even a low-level Chinese official would not be (a) waiting in line, (b) getting his own coffee, or (c) carrying his own bag.
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Old Jan 8, 2012, 11:12 am
  #62  
 
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Excellent

Originally Posted by RobbieRunner
What was that line from the "Beverly Hilbillies" years ago?

Something like....Granny Clampett was making her own soap. Ellie Mae said "Granny, Uncle Jed's got millions and millions of dollars. Why are you still making our soap?"
Granny says, "Just how long do you think that money is going to last if we start buying soap?"
great quote!
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Old Jan 17, 2014, 4:38 pm
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Do airlines ever give away first class seats to celebrities for marketing purposes?
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Old Jan 17, 2014, 5:37 pm
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Originally Posted by michaelpowell44
Do airlines ever give away first class seats to celebrities for marketing purposes?
This kind of arrangement is double sided : freebees can be arranged, trough press agents usually, but come with a form of payment : pictures for the inflight/employee magazine, media or social network endorsements, etc.

It's not common, because the A-Listers value their time, privacy and anonymity on a flight more than the price of the ticket, and less known celebs are of little interest to the airlines.
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Old Jan 18, 2014, 1:47 pm
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Originally Posted by CBear

And we all know the DYKWIA types who pretend to be filthy rich but are up to their eyeballs in debt to maintain their lifestyles.
The latest term for some DYKWIA types that made me chuckle was "He/She is a 30K millionaire" (earning $30K year)
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Old Jan 19, 2014, 12:44 pm
  #66  
 
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I did not see this mention on any of the other pages, but I believe that Mitt Romney who is a 1/4 of a billionaire flies coach.
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Old Jan 19, 2014, 2:40 pm
  #67  
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when 3 hrs or less, we fly steerage.
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Old Jan 19, 2014, 3:08 pm
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Originally Posted by chgoeditor
3. Even a lot of celebs--particularly those who are hot but have only starred in a couple movies--don't have that much money when it comes down to it. Once you've paid your agent, manager, assistant, etc., you're not banking as much as people might expect on an annual basis.
This.

Originally Posted by frankmu
A friend who works for GE Capital once told me "There's no faster way to go bankrupt than owning a private jet", and notes some sports stars and celebrities became bankrupt because of their jet.
And this.

There are really only a handful of celebs who pull in tens of millions a year/picture. Then 20% goes to the agent. 10% to the business manager. Probably a 30-40% income tax rate. Assistants, household expenses, etc. I read an article that stated Jeremy Renner (of American Hustle, MI 4, Hurt Locker and ... Hansel and Gretel fame) makes more money flipping homes (huge, million dollar homes, but homes none the less) than he does acting.

It also isn't just the cost of the plane (which is huge). It is the cost of storing it, fueling it, maintaining it, and staffing it. For someone like Oprah, Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, no problem, but the vast number of actors, athletes, and celebutrash make far, far less than they do.
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Old Jan 21, 2014, 3:07 am
  #69  
 
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Bruce Willis flies private jets. Well he did when he filmed Die Hard 5 at BUD.

Mark Zuckerberg flies private jets also. He flew into Hungary with his wife to visit some Puli (dog) breeder in the country
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Old Jan 21, 2014, 10:32 am
  #70  
 
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"The latest term for some DYKWIA types that made me chuckle was "He/She is a 30K millionaire" (earning $30K year) "

That term's been around for 10+ years.

I sat next to John F. Kerry on a Delta flight about 10 years ago. I can't remember if it was before or after the 2004 election. He seemed kinda grumpy so it must have been after

He's worth well into the hundreds of millions.
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Old Jan 21, 2014, 11:34 am
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Celebrities, entertainers, actors/actresses & others are regularly sighted flying CX and CA on TPAC segments, usually in the forward cabin sections - sometimes discretely being the last to board - flying commercial, they earned elite status & perks, etc. just like the kettles .... One ex-HKG married actress ("artist," as they preferred to be called) whose US husband that used to brag about flying their entire family on private, corporate jet to Asia, is now, not so "wealthy" and one of their leased pre-owned jet has been repo'd for financing issues.
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Old Jan 21, 2014, 12:48 pm
  #72  
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Originally Posted by alanh
There was a bit of buzz in the Chinese press after the new US ambassador to China was photographed in line at Starbucks during a layover in SEA. They noted that even a low-level Chinese official would not be (a) waiting in line, (b) getting his own coffee, or (c) carrying his own bag.
Yes, because in first world countries, you do not get special privileges for being a government employee - the rules (including the line at Starbucks) apply to you.
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Old Jan 21, 2014, 2:46 pm
  #73  
 
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Just saw Jack McBrayer and Elijah Wood waiting at the DL terminal at SLC after Sundance so a) they are indeed flying commercial, and b) they aren't using lounge access. A good celeb watching spot is the airport lounge of anything in LAX for that matter.
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Old Jan 22, 2014, 2:15 am
  #74  
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Originally Posted by greggarious
Yes, because in first world countries, you do not get special privileges for being a government employee - the rules (including the line at Starbucks) apply to you.
Yes, some do. Even in Nordic/Scandinavian countries.

Originally Posted by KoKoBuddy
"The latest term for some DYKWIA types that made me chuckle was "He/She is a 30K millionaire" (earning $30K year) "

That term's been around for 10+ years.

I sat next to John F. Kerry on a Delta flight about 10 years ago. I can't remember if it was before or after the 2004 election. He seemed kinda grumpy so it must have been after

He's worth well into the hundreds of millions.
His wife's assets are ring-fenced in such a way that I doubt he has a net worth of hundreds of millions of dollars of his own. The joke in town was he was a gold-digger of a gold-digger who dug a grave -- and even that was an unfair characterization.
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Old Jan 23, 2014, 4:51 am
  #75  
 
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How do specific professions travel?

I have often wondered whether certain classes of "celebrity" travelers fly economy/premium/private. For example:

Catholic cardinals going to Rome for a conclave? I assume economy.

Crews for CNN, Al Jazeera, etc., who often seem to be hopping to far-flung parts of the world at a moment's notice. I guess a typical crew will have three people -- camera operator, producer, and on-air correspondent. The latter are often highly recognizable semi-celebrities, but I wonder if they fly premium classes?

Similarly, national or global newspaper reporters, who are less recognizable? I guess mostly economy.

Team sports figures taking individual trips, like coaches going for interviews or scouting trips, or players joining teams from the minors or on trades? I assume mostly premium/sometimes private/occasionally economy.

PGA golfers/pro tennis players/NASCAR drivers? Aside from the mega-stars who have access to private planes, these are independent contractors, so probably fly economy more than we think, although sometimes sponsors must spring for premium, even for journeyman players.
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