The idea of paparazzi originated from Italy. The word paparazzi comes from Fellini’s film La Dolce Vita, which came out in 1960. It is on most lists of the top films of all time – whether it should be is another question. In the film there is a photographer “Paparazzo”, whose exact job was to hound celebrities. One paparazzo, two paparazzi. In fact the name is a surname in Italy – it even appeared in a travel book published by Gissing in 19o1. But the restaurant owner Paparazzo only appears on two pages and in not aggressive at all. Nor does he take pictures. But the travelogue was translated into Italian just beforte the film was made, and so perhaps someone on the crew though the name sounded good.
What is certain is that it was quickly taken up into common use with Time in 1961 reporting about paparazzi and who there were “a ravenous pack of freelance photographers who stalk big names for a living and fire with flash guns at point-blank range”.
If you have the personality and stamina, joining the paparazzi can be quite lucrative. It is a life of boredom, interrupted by minutes of excitement. For a staff photographer there is a fixed salary which can run into several figures. But most of the top paparazzi are freelancers which means like many professions feast or famine.
