Many people dream of living the lifestyle of the rich and famous and they wonder what they would have to do to get there. Well, there are some people who get to the top, virtually over night, by doing nothing more than being themselves.

The stars of “Jersey Shore,” “Honey Boo Boo,” and “Bad Girl’s Club” are just some of the many everyday people who have become famous for nothing more than allowing cameras into their strange, funny, and sometimes macabre lives.

Some of these otherwise everyday people may have good qualities or may be good people at heart, but their fame isn’t based on what they have done in life; it is a result of luck and of being in the right place at the right time to capture the attention and imagination of the American public.

According to a 2009 article posted on The New York Times.com, “In the last decade reality television has changed both the economics of prime-time programming and the aspirations of those looking to break into the industry.”

The cast of “Jersey Shore” was paid a whopping $2.55 million dollars their first season, that included all episodes and dramatic reunions. So, all that partying they do on camera does pay off because according to The Times, reality television is where the jobs are and the money.  “Jersey Shore” gathered record ratings for MTV, and became the network’s most viewed series telecast ever.

The show came to life when VH1 producer Anthony Beltempo proposed the idea of a show that would focus in on the “guido” lifestyle—a slang term for an Italian American who conducts himself in a thuggish, overtly macho manner. Executive producer SallyAnn Salsano devised the concept, inspired by her summers at the Jersey shore, and told Casting Director Doron Ofir to find the cast. MTV President, President Van Toffler, felt that the series was more suitable for MTV and not VH1, so it was aired on MTV for the first time on December 3, 2009.

The “Jersey Shore” cast includes Paul DelVecchio, “Pauly D.” Nicole Poilzzi, “Snooki,” Michael Sorrentino, “The Situation,” Jennifer Farley, “J Woww,” Ronnie Ortiz-Margo, Samantha Giancola “Sweetheart,” Vinny Guadagnino, Angelina Pivarnick and Deena Nicole Cortese.

This October, “Jersey Shore” will conclude it’s controversial influence on the American youth.

The cast of another reality television show, “Honey Boo Boo,” consists of the southern hillbilly Thompson family. Alana Thompson, the star of the show who is also known as “Honey Boo Boo,” uttered, “A dollar makes me holler, Honey Boo Boo,” and that one line scored her, and her not-so-normal family, a reality television show on TLC. The Times said reality series often take only a month or two to shoot a full season of 10 to 15 episodes, but the cameras film seven days a week in order to get enough footage.

The “Honey Boo Boo” family earns between 2,000 and 4,000 dollars per episode for letting cameras invade their private lives and make them famous. Want to know what they are famous for? Absolutely nothing.

Before “Honey Boo Boo” became a television show Alana was a big star on a hit television show “Toddlers and Tiaras” and now her family is making millions for just being their odd selves. In America today there is no such thing as a “normal family,” but the Thompson family is far from being anything but typical.

“The Bad Girl’s Club” is a reality television series that features seven new girls every season. The girls party constantly and frequently cause conflict to determine the biggest and baddest of them all. The television show was created by Jonathon Murray, a producer for Oxygen and premiered in December of 2006.

Although these reality television shows are obviously widely watched, the people who star in them have done nothing significant to earn the notoriety that they enjoy. However, according to The Times, these shows aren’t going away, in fact, there will likely be far more of them considering their popularity and profitability.