Meeting celebrities in random places

Newman at Road Atlanta during the 80s. As long as you wanted to talk about racing, instead of his movies..he'd talk your ear off. Just a club racer bench racing with the folks, and laughing with the Corner Workers about his lines.

Only exception was his donations to charity..he was always happy to talk about his food products, and the "Hole In The Wall" camps. He was really proud of the camps.

My brushes with and the kinds of celebrities I've met are not the kinds most wanna hear about, but I can tell you from first hand experience that Tiny Tim liked warm Schlitz beer and plump hookers, and that's one of my most innocent celebrity interactions.

And in reverse, I was once accused of being the bassist for GWAR... I neither confirmed or denied, but pretty girls bought me drinks all night.

In reply to friedgreencorrado:

I met him too. I was at his hospitality tent. I didn't really say much more than hello. It seemed like he had enough people bothering him and his tent was his place of solace. So I just left him alone while I drank free beer five feet away.

As for the OP - Poker players have fans? That is bizarre to me.

Met John Travolta on the beach in Ventura California when he was in town filming "Swordfish". My friends and I had just came back from surfing when he and his wife were walking down the beach. He is nice.

Almost. I almost made it. I think I could recognize travolta, but not sure why - nobody else on this thread so far would be recognizable to me. I think that's an excellent thing.

mtn wrote: Oh, I've met a half dozen famous bluegrass guys.

Friend of mine saw that I had a DelFest parking sticker on my car (they make you stick it to the windshield side of your rearview mirror, and I just haven't taken it off yet, even though it was in May) and he was like "Oh, sweet, Del McCoury's my great uncle." Random.

I probally have but got no idea who they are most of the time.. saw Regis from Regis and kathylee walking around campus a few times (ND) but i find him annoying so never bothered him. I was told I met Joe Montana but was to busy looking at his wife and daughter.

When I was 18, i worked at a hotel in GA (Chatue Elan near RoadATL) and have met a lot of drivers - but also got to drive down to ATL airport and drive Dan Gurney around - that was pretty badass - got to talk to him for a while.

Met a couple famous actors in a hotel in NY. While attending a Jeep school, during lunch, the president of the company came over and aked how the school as going and where I was from. Met a famous peson from Car and Driver magazine at Lime Rock during one of their SS races. Met John Firtch when he as running Lime Rock. He remembered me at a Corvair event many years later. All of these took place many years ago and I am terrible with names. Haven't met anybody famous lately.

I didn't actually meet him/them....but in the early '80s I saw a couple who I am reasonably certain were Kurt Russell and Season Hubley at UCLA Medical Center.

Not sure if they count as "celebrities," but i've met in passing a few UFC fighters, the most recent being Matt Mitrione, who frequents a little pancake house a quarter mile from my place. (So i can get there in 13.12 seconds.)

Not really a celeb - but ran into Chumlee from pawnstars in a bar in vegas.

Sat behind Cameron Diaz while watching the Broadway production of "My Fair Lady". Also in NYC I saw Richard Dryfuss while running around the reservoir in Central Park. Had lunch with Farrah Fawcett and friend at the Petroleum Club in Los Angeles. Was outside an Italian restaurant in LA when Pavarotti and friend staggered out in a celebrant mood and fell into his Jaguar then roared off.

I was in the side room of a cafeteria in a church in S.Korea where my wife's grandfather used to preach, and an older Korean celebrity (Who's name I never learned) walked in and everybody freaked out. I shook his hand, got a picture. I still don't know who he is, but I did see him on TV a couple days later on his current show. I've still never met an American celebrity, but I haven't been looking, either.

I do know someone who literally bumped into Johnny Depp once, spilling both of their shopping bags on the ground. She was so embarassed for bumping into someone she apologized profusely (so did he) and picked up her stuff and left before it clicked who he was.

When I was in high school around 1981 or so, I met George Thorogood at a party. Growing up in a small state like Delaware does that for you. He was pretty cool. Talked with him for a while and then he did a solo acoustic set.

At a cafe/bar in St. Louis (the wine garden in Union Station) in the early '90s, I met MacLean Stevenson and his wife. Said hello and told him we enjoyed his work, but left him alone after that.

Can't think of anybody else since then, though.

[edit]

Well, I was college roommates with the unfortunately-late Don Schroeder, Technical Editor of Car and Driver. That was, however, several years before he became famous.

I met Dorsey Schroeder while spectating at the ARRC; fun guy. This was the year before he started driving at the National level in SCCA club events. He flatly stated that he'd be back next year - on the track. Sure enough he was, racing in Formula B.

A few close encounters:

I kinda met Darby Hinton (from the old Daniel Boone tv series) while vacationing with the family in Jamaica. He was plinking at the local fauna with an air gun; highly illegal even then.

We came across Greg Allman and Bob Hope (different occasion) during late-night carousing in the old Hartsfield Airport terminal. I always wished I had approached Hope for an autograph and faked disappointment that he wasn't Bing Crosby. That might have been fun.

Shared the fence at Rd Atlanta next to Vic Elford at a vintage race. He was pre-occupied entertaining an attractive lady friend, but it was interesting just to hear him chat away.

darkbuddha wrote: My brushes with and the kinds of celebrities I've met are not the kinds most wanna hear about, but I can tell you from first hand experience that Tiny Tim liked warm Schlitz beer and plump hookers, and that's one of my most innocent celebrity interactions.

R u kidding me? Those are EXACTLY the type of things we want to hear about.

Bumped into Jay Leno going out of a Chicago hotel when he was going in. Yes, he does wear those cheap denim shirts all. the. time.

Ran into Doug Henning on a street in Manhattan in the 80's. Most folks probably don't remember him, but he was pretty famous then.

Got up close to both the Bushes when one was Governor and the other was Ex at various events, but security was tight both times.

Wow, Chum Lee? We are really dumbing celebrity down, here, aren't we?

In reply to pigeon:

Oh thanks.

I have eaten breakfast with Johnny and June Carter Cash, dinner with Michael Jordan, Lee Iacoca, and Jamie Fox and drinks with the subway guy from ghost. (they were at a different table of course, but they did say hello)

I sat across from Tony Little (Gazelle fitness infomercial guy) on a plane as he downed bloody mary's like water, swam right into Oliver North in the Caribbean, and bumped into Michael Jackson in a resort once.

I have also met Paul Sr. and Arlen Ness at trade shows.

I was volunteering at VIR when they had the first GT Live event there. Got to meet Tarzan Yamada and he was friendly and happy to take a photo. Meet might be a bit of a stretch as I dont speak japanese and he doesnt speak english.....and It wasnt really random because he was supposed to be there that weekend.

I remember they were having a time attack on the inner circuit, and they did some thing where Tarzan would drive your car with you as a passenger. Understandably, he beat everyone's times with their own car, except for one guy. I dont remember much other than it was an early Sentra SER.

Chatted with Bobby Unser at a Daytona 24, had a drink with Shaq at Atlantis (well, he was two tables away, but still...), have partied with David Grohl and his bands. Met Courtney Love at a concert in Miami. Said "Hi" to Newman at Road America. Dorsey Schroeder was in our pits at Mosport for a while, apparently had the hots for one of the girls hanging with us. Not too much lately, though.

ran into Cory Morrow on 6th street when out for my 21st, saw Eddie Griffin at El Arroyo once around the time "undercover brother" was out, and two years ago we saw Adam Sandler at a greek restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale, but he was holding his kid waiting for his take-out order, so i didn't bother him.

other than that, i usually don't recognize celebrities until someone says something or they're already gone.

My soon to be daughter in law was at an Islanders game and chatted up the guy next to her. "Oh look, we're on the big screen there. Are you famous or something, cause I'm not".

Keanu Reeves said no, just a hockey fan.

To a woman looking in a shop window here in town: "What the hell? Is that Clive Owen shopping in there?"

"I hope so. I'm his wife."

I LOL'd.

The first that I remember was when I was 6-7 years old. My dad was at a meeting of race track promoters at Daytona the week of the 500. The 1st or second night there mom, my younger brother and I got on the elevator at the Hilton with AJ Foyt. We said hi and he talked with us. We saw him almost every day that week and always acknowledged his 2 little fans. It has made a lasting impression on how to treat people.

I ran spotlight for Conway Twitty. I think that is the best I can do. I hung with the guys from I Fight Dragons (if that counts). Not a big band but they are an awesome nerdy band.

Edit: Oh yeah. I have met Kenny Perry a few times. He has some cool drag cars.

darkbuddha wrote: And in reverse, I was once accused of being the bassist for GWAR... I neither confirmed or denied, but pretty girls bought me drinks all night.

I've met and talked to GWAR several times, so if you are Casey Orr, or the next bass player after that, I've probably met you.

I saw Jerad from the Subway commercials in a Mexican restaurant in LA.

I talked in length with a couple of members of KORN before I had ever heard of them. They were opening for Danzig, and I just went to the show because I thought it would be funny to see Danzig.

My girlfriend and her sister almost literally ran into Willem Dafoe walking down the street in NYC.

I know there's more, I just can't think of them right now.