Cringe: Lady Gaga is expected to sing the national anthem
Credit: Kevin Lamarque
Presidential inaugurations have long been about showing off. With parades, marches, shows and dances, presidents have taken the chance to bask in the glory of their victories (and occasionally rub salt in the wounds of the defeated).
Neither is it uncommon for such events to take on the glitz and glamour of a Hollywood premiere. In January 1949, at the first televised presidential inauguration, Harry S Truman posed with the likes of Jane Powell, Gene Kelly and Phil Regan who had sung the national anthem earlier that day. Sometimes celebrity appearances were political.