Post your interesting/funny brushes with fame here

[72gmc]

Occupational hazard in a former occupation. Two that stick with me:

Diane Ladd. I got to sit and chat with most of the guests while they were queued up to go on the show, and she was such a great person. So unassuming she was spectacular. Made me a bigger fan of her and her daughter.

Sweetness. He was the game ball celebrity for game 2 of the (in)famous Sonics/Nuggets series. Hot pink sport coat, black jeans, all smiles and warmth. In the locker room after the game he invited me, a reporter, to go clubbing. I believe he was serious. Detlef Schrempf vetoed me. Still a bit grumpy with Det for that.

[dogrange]

Did you play in Columbus Ohio or Dayton Ohio at any point? I would have seen you.

Unfortunately not. All dates were in the South, NC, SC, GA, AL. We did play at RFK stadium in DC, which was pretty cool.

[taz]

I see me every day!

Seriously, though - I'll walk up to & talk to anyone.

... told Kenny Rodgers to fuck off...

- Garro.

Thank you! That guy is an ass. During college, I was helping a friend deliver some plants to his place outside Athens for a party. Friend worked for local florist/nursery. Kenny shows up and starts bossing us around, directing where to hang stuff, pretty much treating us like the 'help'. We were suppose to just drop the stuff off at door and leave. I started to say something when my friend gave me an elbow in the ribs meaning 'I want to keep my job', so I held off. Fortunately, when I went to work at the same place I never had to see him but delivered flowers to his mother in law a few times. Sweet woman.

- Taz

[echelon_john]

I met him at a wedding in Philadelphia. He had a circle of very old, very waspy admirers around him at all times.

^^ I am 100% sure I saw Plimpton walk out of a 7/11 in Wolfeboro, NH in the late 90's Absolutely sure.

[Mabouya]

Once years and years ago Chuck Berry was ahead of me in line while paying for gas at a St Louis station.

That's all I got.

(unless you want to count shaking Walter Mondale's hand before he was to take part in a debate back in 1979/80 and a few other similar encounters when i was in college - guys like Kurt Vonnegut and Michel Foucault)

[Vlad Luskin]

Snip:

(unless you want to count shaking Walter Mondale's hand before he was to take part in a debate back in 1979/80 and a few other similar encounters when i was in college - guys like Kurt Vonnegut and Michel Foucault)

Man, Foucault and Vonnegut are giants. No one listed in this thread before them can hold a candle.

[Matthew Strongin]

Man, Foucault and Vonnegut are giants. No one listed in this thread before them can hold a candle.

Agreed...I would have loved to have met Vonnegut. I got a chance to meet Allen Ginsberg at a poetry event in NYC shortly before his death. That was pretty wild.

[Bud_E]

I live in a town where you can't spit without hitting someone famous but I remember once riding through Topanga Canyon and Laurence Fishburne pulled up next to me in a Mercedes convertible to ask directions to a local restaurant.

[ldamelio]

- Ray Charles randomly sitting in a waiting area at O'Hare about 15 years ago. Very nice; chatted with everyone.

- One well known sportscaster as a patient - not so nice. HIPAA and all that precludes more detail.

- Cycling-related: hanging out in a group with Magnus Backstedt at the Roubaix velodrome two weeks ago. Couldn't have been nicer.

- Ray Romano has house on LBI and often seen (about 2-3 x/year by me) in local restaurants, mini-golf, etc. Also nice guy.

[xjoex]

I had dinner with Amine Gameyel the former president of Lebanon and Suheil Bushrui the Bahá'í Chair for World Peace.


-Joe

[robin3mj]

Around my folks old beach house we used to bump into Joe Pesci, Mad Dog Russo, Tony Siragusa, and James Gandolfini. Not all at once.

[nrs5000]

I did a moot court in law school before Jim Thompson, former Illinois governor, arguing that the Lt Gov was not entitled to immunity. He asked some tough questions and afterward told me that based on his experience he agreed as it was a rather useless office.

[ElvisMerckx]

Got in a bar brawl with Guns N Roses back in '91 or '92.

[jscott]

Mine involves he-who-shall-not-be-named, then-Senator Kerry, and bikes.

The setting: Day 1 of the 2011 Pan-Mass Challenge, a fundraising ride that doesn't quite go border-to-border in MA. The Day 1 route is 110-miles-ish from Sturbridge to Bourne. It's pretty well-know regionally and usually attracts a few MA politicos. That particular year (before TSHTF, remember that?), Mr. LIVESTRONG showed up, too.

A little more than 20 miles into the ride, my little paceline passed a group of 20 riders or so. My buddy noticed LA in there, and we just kept riding. Kerry was in there, too. I had no desire to get caught up in that particular rolling circus. But then gruppo LA caught up to us. This happened two or three times. We'd ease away, they'd come back.

A few minutes later we started climbing a moderate hill. LA was maybe third wheel in the group, I was a few bikes behind him. About halfway up, another guy passed me, rode up beside le boss and made the universal palm-down “slow down” gesture. Our man immediately backed off. I didn’t get it at first, but as I passed him, the pieces fell into place and I looked over at him. “So was that the ‘slow down, you’re blowing up Senator Kerry' signal?” I asked. “Yeah, but it’s not me!” he said, tossing his head mock-defensively at the riders up the road.

I chuckled as I rode on. And God willing, that's the last time I'll bump into him.

Scott Brown was on the ride that year, too. He was pretty easy to pick out with his Trek tri bike and aero helmet.

[jmgorman]

I was tailgating with some friends before a University of Memphis football game in 2004 or 2005 when some guy with a Duke sweatshirt walked past. I really only saw the sweatshirt and let him know that "Duke sucks." Everyone within earshot fell silent as Shane Battier stopped in his tracks. He didn't say anything, just kind of half turned and gave a "come on, man, really?" kind of shrug and then kept walking.

Turns out he had a house nearby and for the next two years I saw him everywhere: the bank, the grocery store, the pharmacy, fedex - everywhere. And he was *always* wearing something with Duke on it. Naturally, I let him know nearly every time, that Duke sucks. I went a while without seeing him until early 2007 at my son's baptism. The priest invited everyone to stay after mass if they liked - no one did, but just before we got started, Battier came over, addressed me as "Hey, 'Duke Sucks'" and congratulated us.

Total class act and a hell of a ball player.

[robin3mj]

Another Duke story- not very interesting but timely.

I had to go to Raleigh and back today, and Jahlil Okafor was on my flight down there from O'Hare this morning.

[Christian Fox]

Oh yeah, I didn't talk to him, but Juan Montoya was seen a few times at our local trails in west Broward. He's into MTB'ing.

Funny you mention that. We were at a race in Ocala last month and I saw a really nice orange carbon MTB (santa cruz? ibis?) with Enve wheels. It was tossed up against a fence. I went over to look at it...JP Montoya name sticker on it.

[theflashunc]

I was tailgating with some friends before a University of Memphis football game in 2004 or 2005 when some guy with a Duke sweatshirt walked past. I really only saw the sweatshirt and let him know that "Duke sucks." Everyone within earshot fell silent as Shane Battier stopped in his tracks. He didn't say anything, just kind of half turned and gave a "come on, man, really?" kind of shrug and then kept walking.

Turns out he had a house nearby and for the next two years I saw him everywhere: the bank, the grocery store, the pharmacy, fedex - everywhere. And he was *always* wearing something with Duke on it. Naturally, I let him know nearly every time, that Duke sucks. I went a while without seeing him until early 2007 at my son's baptism. The priest invited everyone to stay after mass if they liked - no one did, but just before we got started, Battier came over, addressed me as "Hey, 'Duke Sucks'" and congratulated us.

Total class act and a hell of a ball player.

You're not wrong. Dook sucks.

[chasea]

I'm not putting any of this shit in writing, and I'm certainly not spilling the beans without you buying me some drinks.

[MarkC]

Does performing genetic analysis of famous dead athletes count? I mean, you can't get closer to someone than having their DNA in your freezer right? Will claim HIPPA as Lou did and not name names.

How about hanging with the chairman of the Nobel Assembly in Stockholm. I keep lobbying for a prize and he keeps telling me to try harder (kid).

-Mark