Where Is Kerri Strug Now?

One of my favorite games I used to play in grad school was called “Where is Kerri Strug Now?” As far as games go, it wasn’t really that exciting. The main premise was simply for me to find out what Kerri Strug has been up to since the 1996 Summer Olympics. We all remember her gold-clinching, one-foot landing vault. No one expected her to come out of the games with the level of notoriety she achieved, but she was one of the biggest stories of the summer…and definitely the biggest story coming out of those games.

Since 1996, we don’t really hear anything about Kerri Strug anymore. It’s not unusual; there are plenty of people who do notable things without ever intending to stay in the public eye. Many never even wanted to be in the public eye in the first place. Regardless, these are often the people I am most eager to hear an update about.

I love “Where Are They Nows” in general. Maybe it’s because people from the past are just that until they have some modern day context. I’m sure there are times when people should just stay in the past; maybe we should all just remember them for what they are known for. But I will always want to know where people are now in their lives. And I say ‘people’ and not ‘celebrities’ because I apply this idea to public and private people that I know from the past. It’s one of my favorite things about facebook, getting to know what old friends are up to now.

This article from April helped me to see Kerri Strug as an adult. While her voice may still not have changed (can’t tell from reading), I can see that she has moved on in her career and grown into an adult. Of course this happens to everyone, but when you don’t see them it is often hard to grasp that. Reading that article reminded how much I want to see a “Where Are They Now” series for obscure celebrities or public figures who only remained famous for a brief time. Today, I read this article about Elian Gonzales and it reminded me how great such a show would be.

Whether it takes the form of a TV series, or a feature series in a magazine, or any other form, I would love a program that would allow me to see where my favorite obscure celebrities are now. It’s something I think should exist.

What obscure or briefly famous public figures would you like to have an update on? What would like to find out about them? Is this something that already exists in some form?