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The source of Rob Ford’s celebrity: He’s just like us, only worse

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford laughs in City Hall in Toronto March 19, 2014. REUTERS/Mark Blinch

Society has always been fascinated by celebrities, but it's never been as central to our popular culture as it is now. And it seems the badder the behaviour, the more we're obsessed.

Which partly explains the continued presence of Rob Ford on the national landscape.

The larger-than-life mayor of Toronto has had his 15 minutes of fame and then some, thanks partly to an entertainment media geared almost exclusively to reporting stuff that in another era was left to the likes of the National Enquirer.

And 21st-century social media, which turns every smart phone-carrying citizen into a paparazzo, magnifies and extends that scrutiny.

It helps, of course, if the subject of all this attention is not, shall we say, coy about it.

This bit of chin-stroking has been prompted by the entirely predictable flutter Ford caused when he showed up at a Toronto Maple Leafs game Saturday night.

[ Related: Rob Ford poll shows 'Ford Nation' resilient amid scandals ]

This Instagram post shows Ford, clad in a Leafs jersy, surrounded by admirers – is that the right word? – signing autographs while smart phones wave around him.

"Rob is a bit of a rock star," Toronto Coun. Frank Di Giorgio, who accompanied Ford, told CBC News on Sunday. "People just congregate around him wherever he goes. This is a normal occurrence."

The throng was so large that security asked Ford to move off the concourse and take his seat, Di Giorgio said.

Ford also caused a flap when he tried to get into the arena's exclusive directors' lounge, only to be barred by security because there was a private function underway, CBC News reported.

Di Giorgio issued the now obligatory denial for Ford's public appearances that, no, he was not drunk.

"I didn't see him drink anything while I was with him," he told CBC News. "I met him before 6 p.m. I met him at City Hall [and] he wasn't drinking when he got there."

Last week, Ford showed up at Gravity Sound Bar, a Toronto nightclub, for a birthday party. Young revellers cheered and clapped as he passed out T-shirts and posed for photos, CTV News reported. Ford said he was campaigning for the youth vote in next fall's mayoral election.

Even on the West Coast, Ford can't escape. Turning up at a suburban Vancouver pub in February, Ford attracted a bevy of young people. Witnesses suggested he was intoxicated and CBC News reported last week the bar got its wrist slapped for serving Ford and his party after last call.

Toronto Sun city hall bureau chief Don Peat wondered why Ford, an admitted crack smoker, alcohol abuser and serial liar, gets the rock-star treatment after dozens lined up to be photographed with him at last month's Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee dinner.

That's a rhetorical question, right? But let's break it down.

There are two veins of popularity when it comes to Ford.

The first is largely political and defined by Ford Nation, diehard Toronto supporters who credit him with saving taxpayers money and responding personally when they have a problem. Allegations Ford was cozy with drug dealers and that one of his cronies may have used threats to try and acquire the infamous crack video roll off their backs.

[ Related: Rob Ford case at a crossroads: 5 questions ]

The second vein is wider but much shallower, interest excited almost entirely by the bizarre Ford circus.

Ford's notoriety, his appearance on that video (now in police hands) apparently smoking crack, his drunken public forays and his rambling rants caught on video, don't repel people. Just the opposite.

There is an element of schadenfreude, of course. But people also take some comfort in knowing the rich and famous can screw up just like they do. It's no surprise Ford was apparently approached about doing a reality show, according to the Globe and Mail.

For people outside the country, Ford's been a revelation. From the Daily Show's Jon Stewart to Jimmy Kimmel, the mayor is like no Canadian they've ever seen, exploding stereotypes of a polite, buttoned-down nation. Of course, Justin Bieber has helped reinforce that, but he's more in the conventional celebrity mould – a rich, overprivileged kid.

Former U.S. president Bill Clinton, no stranger to bad behaviour, summed it up on Kimmel last week, saying Ford "absolutely destroyed every stereotype people have about Canadians.

“You know, the Canadians are upbeat, optimistic, can-do, they are embracing, they are inclusive," said Clinton. "Everything I ever believed about Canadians, ol’ Rob has proved stereotypes are not good, positive or negative.”

There's another element to Ford's attraction: Few celebs are accessible as he is.

Sure, he has a beefy driver/bodyguard at his side these days but he lets people get more up close and personal than, say, you could get with Kim Kardashian or Lindsay Lohan might.

And people apparently want that experience, hopefully recording it for posterity. Why? It's not exactly a brush with greatness. Look son, here's a picture of me and Winston Churchill.

I'll let Toronto Coun. Adam Vaughan answer this one.

“People don’t take pictures of planes that land, they take pictures of planes that crash,” Vaughan told reporters last month, according to the Sun.

“You’ve got a limited time offer in terms of getting a picture with the guy — he’s only around for a few more months. So he shows up at an event and people are taking pictures, big deal."

It won't translate into votes in October, Vaughn insists.

We'll see.