The Hellish Life of a Celebrity Assistant

Of course, they do make good money...
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 7, 2013 10:03 AM CST
The Hellish Life of a Celebrity Assistant
In this Nov. 4, 2012 file photo, British supermodel Naomi Campbell arrives at Jodhpur, India.   (AP Photo/File)

How much money would you need to make in order to deal with laying out Lady Gaga's toothbrush and soap each day, carrying her luggage, sleeping in the same bed with her, and being "available 24/7"? Jennifer O'Neill, who is currently in the middle of an ugly lawsuit with Gaga, says she made $75,000 a year to do just that. Apparently inspired by the story, the New York Post talks to several current and former personal assistants to the stars—and their stories make the career path sound about as fun as you'd expect:

  • Naomi Campbell's former personal assistant, Rebecca White, had to make sure 25 lily-scented candles were placed in the correct spots around every hotel suite Campbell stayed in. And she had to move all of the alcohol from Campbell's minibar to her own, since Campbell didn't want others to think she was drinking. But the supermodel would soon "grab her two phones, grab me, and go into my room to start drinking."
  • White was also once Claire Danes' personal assistant, and she recalls driving the young star to college and kissing her goodbye. "My job was to be their best friend," she says. "It’s sad, but true."
  • The co-founder of a support organization for personal assistants (yes, really) says one of her counselees was awakened by her boss at 4am. "He was five hours ahead in London, and he was asking her to call the hotel because his bathroom was running out of toilet paper."
But don't feel too bad for these people: They make anywhere from $50,000 to six figures a year, and they get quite a few perks. While working for Danes, White got to live in her $5 million SoHo loft rent-free and made $2,000 per week plus expenses—while Danes was off attending Yale. (More Claire Danes stories.)

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