A Case Study in the Paparazzi Industrial Complex - Secrets of the Heidi and Spencer Elopement

Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag ran in to a problem on the way to scoring the biggest photo payday of their lives....

They could have harvested a year long fortune leading up to a planned wedding - bachelor/bachlerette parties,showers, and an assembly line of photography partnerships to document finance each step of the publicized march to the altar. But The Hills producers and MTV would would have been a big problem-- they wanted to milk the story themselves - like Star Jones did, or Melrose Place, - and in the process drain all the value from their incremental paparazzi paydays.

So they HAD to elope. The show neatly acquits itself from not getting to make it a central story line ("we didnt know! See, the show is real") Mr. and Mrs. Montag get all their money up front...and they win the 2008 Battle for the US Weekly cover during a slow news week.

Winners: Pratts
Losers: The Hills

Oh, the scenes that could have been written ...
Did they just want to avoid the televised embarrassment two empty bridal parties? Would Bolthouse do the reception? Would Stephanie design her dress? Would Lauren casually be tanning at the same resort pool during the wedding? Would the photos end up in Teen Vogue?

P.S. While Mexican marriages are celebrated in US (the magazine) they are not recognized by the US (the country) so count on them to Pam Anderson it.