PARIS — As Romeo said: “My bounty is as boundless as the sea … the more I give to thee, the more I have.” His modern-day counterparts — the kind with deep pockets — are going all out to offer extravagant, star-studded weddings to their own Juliets.
Hip-hop star Kanye West may uphold glam-set tradition this week with a wedding to TV reality star Kim Kardashian. The office of the mayor of Florence and the Chateau of Versailles say the couple will celebrate in palatial, centuries-old venues in Italy and France. The potential bride and groom, however, are staying mum. It would be the first marriage for him, the third for her.
Despite the hype preceding celebrity wedding vows, the special moment and the after-parties are often locked in secrecy, with photographs going exclusively to the highest bidder.
And love itself is often less immortal than Shakespeare had in mind. Kardashian’s second marriage to basketball star Kris Humphries lasted 72 days.