Eulogies: When famous people die. A eulogy, whether a formal one in a church, or casual, but a no less heartfelt one on social media, remembers the human being.
People are famous for all sorts of reasons. Sometimes they achieved something, sometimes they are enjoying a bit of luck, or they’ve done something infamous or something horrible happened to them. How they became famous doesn’t define who they are. It’s only part of their story.
The best eulogies of famous people address their humanity. The eulogist, if space or time allows, acknowledges something about the person beyond their fame. Something personal. Not merely what they observed, but something unique about their relationship.
This is different from their legacy. With Matthew Perry, extraordinarily famous as Chandler Bing, you will hear a lot of people talk about how he was coming back through adversity. And you’ll hear how he persevered through his addiction. You’ll hear an oft-quoted piece from him about how he intended to use his fame and resources to help those with addictions. That’s all wonderful. Those are all legacy focused.
The best eulogies will tell you something about their friendship off screen. They’ll talk about love. They’ll talk about quirks. They’ll talk about things unseen not only by the public, but by other friends.
Those will be vulnerable, intimate, and completely real.
When a public figure dies, the fans among us will mourn what we’ve seen in interviews, their performances, and maybe even some sort of interaction we’ve had, if we’re lucky. Their friends and family will remember the same kinds of things you remember with your closest friends and loved ones.
Need a eulogy? We can help.
