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By 5 years ago Never Throw Down
I grew up in Nashville raised around musicians, which I have often said roughly equates to being raised by wolves. My childhood was colorful, to say the least.When I was 12, I was a big fan of what's now considered classic rock, and I was pretty well versed in the musicians of the era. My uncle had been hanging out with Levon Helm of the Band pretty frequently. … Read more »
Chris Webber—Yum!
One night after attending a local advertising awards show, my husband wanted to grab something to eat. It was after 11 p.m., I was drunk, and I had eaten hors d'oeuvres at the event. We went anyway—me with a puss on my face, sitting in one of those way too loud, trendy restaurant/bars, him eating a meal while purposely ignoring my attitude.Toward the end of his meal, with … Read more »
By niabonds 5 years ago I May Have Killed Jimi Hendrix
Isle of Wight Music Festival, England, 11 p.m., August 30, 1970. Working the backstage catering, I had handed soup and cheese sandwiches to the Doors the day before, and I had personally buttered Jim Morrison's bread. I had a stinking cold and was consuming regular doses of a medication called Beecham's Powders, which came in folded wraps of plain white paper.It was hard work feeding legends. I was … Read more »
Woody Has a Woody for My Dog, Who Has a Woody for Wood
I had seen his stout performance in _No Country for Old Men_ just the night before. I was watching my dog Berlin jump up into a tree in Manhattan's Lafayette Park when a guy in a ski cap came by and started marveling aloud at my dog's athletic feats (he jumps and climbs quite high into trees). It was Woody Harrelson!Alas, having lived in New York City for … Read more »
A Brush with Royalty
After college, I shared a railroad flat on East 10th St. with two struggling actors. We worked for a temp service that paid theater people eight dollars an hour. I lied about being an actor, and the money was just enough to pay the rent and buy food.One of my clients was a wealthy art dealer who lived in the eighties off Central Park West. The lady … Read more »
I Could Have Eaten with Jimmy Durante
We landed in a helicopter on a pier in the Hudson, took a taxi to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, scribbled some notes for an art class assignment, headed over to Broadway to get something to eat at a deli, saw Jimmy Durante sitting at a table, gawked, and asked for his autograph."C'mon, girls. Sit down and have a bite with us."
We were 16 and victims … Read more »
By Beryl_Singleton_Bissell 5 years ago I'm Not a Bloody Cab
It was the mid-1990s, and I was living in West London at the time. I was in Hammersmith one evening. I think it was spring, because though it was bright I didn't have the car windows rolled down.I was driving west along King Street to drop off my then girlfriend, who needed to run into a shop there and pick something up quickly. Because she was going … Read more »
I Stepped on Yoko's Toe
It was at a crowded art opening in a small bookstore. She was dressed in black and wearing the signature sunglasses. They function as an optical barricade; it's as if she's within a dark-glassed limousine at all times, even when she isn't. I wanted to tell her how much I liked her work. I wasn't even going to talk about her husband, the second one, who was part of that … Read more »
By MeGo_Melissa_Gould 5 years ago I Shook Hands with the Butcher of Beijing
I was teaching English in China back in 1985/86, three years before the Tiananmen massacre in 1989. China had only recently opened up to foreign influences after its experiment with a closed-door policy. Foreign "experts" were honored once a year with a huge banquet for their contributions to modernizing China. There were not many foreigners there back then, so such an event was manageable.The one I attended was … Read more »
Honest Mistake or Clever Plot?
Nineteen ninety-five was a year for adventure. Signing with an O.C. casting agency, I was able to work on a film in L.A. Part of the movie was being shot in LAX's international wing. My part as an extra was one of four airport security people. We were outfitted with official uniforms and badges. Before the filming began, the assistant director told me to go to one of the trailers … Read more »In the Clouds with a Star, Almost...
I once sat next to actress Phoebe Cates's half-brother on an airplane. He probably was not on her payroll, given his cud-chewing presence with me in the cattle-car section. We were flying NYC/JFK to Berlin. I think he lived in Los Angeles. That was the last I saw of him, Mr. Seat 26B. We are not getting married.My Chilean Desert Adventure with Montel Williams
On a small LAN Chile flight from Santiago to Arica, for someone slightly nervous about flying, really the only two things on one's mind are: Where would be the worst place in this incredibly dry desert to crash an airplane? And: Would it be worse to crash or to bear the incredible panic attack I will most likely have when the turbulence begins? As I boarded the plane that hot … Read more »Tony Randall at LAX
I was waiting for a plane to Buffalo, New York. He was standing in a circular area where the escalators ran into and out of the tiled floor. He was waiting and watching for someone. People were moving around him, parting around him, flowing around him. Many passed by without a glance. Somebody stopped and said something to him. He continued to wait and watch. Finally, he said something in … Read more »Robert Plant Gave My Sister a Noogie
So my sister and I and my boyfriend at the time were in a Peabody Hotel elevator in Memphis when my sister decided to hit every elevator button on the way down. We were stopping at every floor, and on the 12th in walked Robert Plant.I froze up for a minute and then said, "You look familiar—are you in a band?" He said, "Yes, I play with Lawrence … Read more »
"Of Course, That's Just My Opinion—I Could Be Wrong"
I must be clear: I'm a Dennis fan—saw him do stand-up in college, bought a few of his shows on CD, and have even tried to quote him when his intellectual sarcasm seemed to fit. I'm one of the scant few who liked his tenure on _Monday Night Football._I have not one but two Dennis Miller encounters, both in Santa Barbara, California, where I think he still … Read more »
By Ben_Hess 5 years ago The Big Ragoo
Working as a waiter for ten years, I had met a few celebrities—none more memorable than Eddie Mekka, the Big Ragoo of _Laverne and Shirley_ fame. He was working dinner theater at our hotel, and I happened to serve him almost every day.You get to know people pretty quickly. He found out from someone that our wedding anniversary was fast approaching, and I remember him asking me what … Read more »
What's for Dinner?
It was 20 years ago. We were working the day shift out of Homicide downtown....Oops!It was 20 years ago. I was working the night shift at a convention center in Texas, in charge of dinner for 2,000 7-Eleven employees at their annual rah-rah Christmas party. Guest speaker: Jerry Lewis. The banquet was set up with a stage on the west end of the room. There were any number … Read more »
You Never Know Whom You’ll Meet in the Morning
Milwaukee, July 1989. My dad, mom, and I were staying at Milwaukee’s nicest hotel, the Pfister, in search of Minnesota Twins. We were baseball nuts. Our yearly vacations took us to Major League Midwestern ballparks. We always stayed in the same hotel as the Twins, and Dad and I collected autographs. I rode in elevators with Kirby Puckett, Kent Hrbek, Frank Viola. But they are not the celebrities of this … Read more »Ping-Pong with Kim Novak
In high school, I worked part-time at a miniature-golf course on La Cienega Boulevard in West Los Angeles. One winter evening, an aspiring young actress named Kim Novak, accompanied by the Ritz Brothers, arrived. Without question, the most beautiful woman I had ever seen close up.We had indoor Ping-Pong tables and mechanical coin-operated games available. Ms. Novak wanted to play Ping-Pong but couldn’t get either of … Read more »
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