Celebrities elicit an emotional response, similar to going to a place that has meaning to you. If you've spent twenty hours watching that person's work, and seeing them reminds you of the joy you had watching them, it makes sense that seeing them say your name would elicit a greater response.
Thanks, but I don't really grok the analogy - does anyone have as their special place a fictional place created on a film lot by landscapers and set designers.
It all makes people happy, and I'm definitely for that, but it's a lie built on a lie - living vicariously through celebrities, and constructing lies in which we choose to rest our notions of self-worth .. I don't know about that.
Now, excuse me whilst I go tell my children that Jedberg responded to me online ;o)
It's not an analogy. It's just psychology. Your brain is wired to activate areas that are attached to each other. A smell from your childhood evokes a physical response in the brain that makes you happy (or sad, depending on the childhood).
It's the same with a celebrity. You physically feel good when you see that celebrity because in the past you felt good when you saw that celebrity.
