Brushes with Fame
Submissions 1 - 10
Tom Waits Growled at Me
I work in a hotel in San Francisco. Tom Waits's son (also kind of cool as people go) was staying with us.
One evening, around eight o'clock or so, the son ran past me at full tilt. I didn't think much of it. By and by, I guess two minutes later, a white SUV the size of an aircraft carrier somehow squeezed into the loading zone. Once again, I didn't think anything of it—people park humongous SUV's all the time.
I heard the door shut, and g-damn my eyes if it wasn't Tom Waits striding up the stairs. He stood … Read more
My Dinner with Tommy
My stepmother and I were getting horrible service in a restaurant, simply because we were wearing jeans. After we we sat down, a young couple was seated next to us—so they could get terrible service, too.
Well, my stepmother and the young man were soon up in arms, standing next to each other and screaming at the maître d' a number of expletives not really fit for print. I'm actually surprised we weren't all given the bum's rush, if you get my meaning.
Anyway, I had my young son with me, and the young lady was soon sitting with us at our … Read more
Hey, 19
I couldn't stop staring at his hand. The hand that had thrown so many touchdown passes—the hand that had passed the Colts to victory in the Greatest Game Ever Played—was a mangled claw. He held the Sharpie in his closed fist, yet still managed to scratch out one perfect autograph after another. He was presented with all manner of memorabilia and other objects to sign, and did so with grace and patience. One man sheepishly handed over a white cap with the words Indianapolis Colts. Despite having denounced the Colts' midnight move and the entire franchise, Johnny Unitas signed the … Read more
Unforgettable
Every time I hear the remastered duet of Natalie and Nat King Cole singing "Unforgettable," I think of what a cool guy Nat was.
The year was 1959. There I was, 19 years old, not quite star-struck and cursed with the inability to recognize anyone famous. Great skills for the receptionist at a theatrical business manager's office.
One of the clients was Nat King Cole. He frequently came in with little Natalie in tow. One day, while he was waiting to see my boss, we had a great conversation. I was really impressed, because he was so nice and friendly. Not only … Read more
Mr. Big Head
It was summer, hot and steamy, and we were in the second-level bleachers watching a Reds game. There was a commotion, hard to describe, but the word Dustin was coming out of many mouths and heads looking over the balcony.
Of course, curiosity gets the best of us, and I looked, too—just in time to see a tiny little leathery-tanned man with a huge head and messy black hair climbing the steps under us. That's Dustin Hoffman? He looked like a freaky doll. I guess a big head must be a prerequisite for becoming a movie actor. The camera loves the … Read more
I'm a Q-lister
My sense of fame is off-kilter. I worked at The Tonight Show and got this close to Halle Berry, Hillary Clinton, Tom Cruise, Denzel Washington, Tom Petty, Steve Carell, and a slew of others. But I was never totally amazed by any of it. You walk by someone that famous and you sorta feel like there's nothing to it because it's a setup—it's staged, this Hollywood thing.
I was always more fascinated by the F-listers and the notorious. When you're able to talk to the original Hamburglar in the McDonald's ads or the midget from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, … Read more
Almost a Brush
Everyone has their moment with someone famous—well, almost everyone. True to type, I remain the paradigm for Murphy's Law, a legacy I lay at the feet of my grandmother, Maggie O'Guin.
While I was living and working many years ago in Bloomington, Indiana, my coworkers had various brushes. One, for instance, was having ice cream at a local shop, where he was able to meet and talk with John Cougar (now using his original name, John Mellencamp) and even get Cougar to sign an album for him. Lucky.
I, on the other hand, had a close brush with the same … Read more
Sorry I Puked on Opening Night, Mr. Shawn
I'd never seen a famous person up close in my life, and I had tickets to the opening night at the Woolly Mammoth of The Fever, a play written by Wally Shawn. I know. Inconceivable!
The night of the play, I went out for a beer and a meal, and cut down to the theater. It's a small place where everyone is seated close together, and I was so excited to see Mr. Shawn in the audience. My first encounter with the famous!
The Fever is a one-man play—the protagonist is visiting another country and gets a fever. He … Read more
She's Still Making It After All
I don't get to big-name concerts much (still on the to-do list: see Prince, Madonna, and Tina Turner). But when Joan Jett came to Webster Hall, I jumped at the chance. I'd loved her when I was in grade school and had rediscovered the joys of her music as an adult when she did a cover of the theme song to The Mary Tyler Moore Show a few years ago.
I was able to push up close to the stage, and when she threw a pick into the audience, it landed on and then bounced off my head. … Read more
Apocalyptica Now
May 11, 2008—I remember it just like yesterday. My grandmother and I went to a concert I thought she would like...and I ended up bonding with her most of the time after the show.
Apocalyptica is a Finnish cello metal band, as in they play heavy metal on cellos—very awesome. I'm obsessed with every Finnish band I listen to, because to me they make some radical music!
Back to the story: My grandmother and I decide to arrive at the concert two hours early, because the doors open at 8 and the show starts at 9pm. As it happens, we have to … Read more
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