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Old 06-02-2006, 10:40 AM   #1
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I was wondering if anyone would be willing to recount their experience being near a "famous" personality. Perhaps it was in an airport, restaurant, whatever. I know many have had encounters with Lightfoot, so those are pretty well documented.

As an example....I can say I once delivered room service to Flip Wilson (obscure name now, but not then). Anyway, just an idea.

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Old 06-02-2006, 11:17 AM   #2
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Well, talk about obscurity, but I once worked for an upscale chocolate company and took orders from Gates McFadden (of Star Trek: The Next Generation fame) and Phoebe Cates (Mrs. Kevin Kline). And as I have mentioned previously here, Ken Burns (of PBS fame) lives in my town and we've rubbed elbows too many times (I am not a fan of his. His work is brilliant, but knowing the man personally kinda takes a little of the shine off of it.).

I remember Flip Wilson. Very funny man in his day.
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Old 06-02-2006, 11:46 AM   #3
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I flew to CA in the seat next to Jane Fonda. She really was very nice and wanted to talk about our children.
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Old 06-02-2006, 12:32 PM   #4
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Great post, why did I not think of it? In 1974, George Hamilton IV, was in concert in my hometown. After the show they stopped for lunch, in a Restaurant right across where I lived. I was outside the Take-Out, just as they arrived, he gave me his autograph, and talked a bit. Thanking me for being at the concert. My sister told him she was at the concert too, and I will never forget what he said, "Well thank-you Mamm, I preciate you comin." Nice southern accent, from a nice gentlemen. Also bicycle for 1 mile next to Terry Fox, in 1980. I remember him being kind and seemed very determined. He too that night was at the same restaurant. Also Tommy Hunter stopping by for one night, stayed in his Winnebago, at the local Beach campground.
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Old 06-02-2006, 01:13 PM   #5
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The posts thus far have been exactly what I was I was hoping for. It's very interesting.

However, to learn that Jane Fonda is likeable, and Ken Burns is not, is a bit disheartening. Oh well, it comes with the territory. Keep 'em coming.

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Old 06-02-2006, 01:59 PM   #6
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In the early 1970's, right before he moved his show to California, I was at a party in a very exclusive apartment building in NYC. The party was boring and someone made the mistake of telling us he lived on the so-and-so floor above. My friends, Bob Hess and Steve Coyle, and I went up the elevator and picked a random door. There were only 4 or 6 apartments per floor so the odds were in our favor. We had our cover story made up and ready and we knocked politely. In minutes, with his hair full of shampoo, he stuck his head around the door and demanded "Who are you"...cover story forgotten I managed to stutter and point and barely say “You, You, You, You’re Johnny Carson” to which he replied "who the hell did you think I'd be ?" He slammed the door shut and in moments security was in the elevator on the way to find us. They trapped us in the fire stairs and escorted us out - they also called our 'host' who ratted out the guy who had brought us there. Party over !!! The four of us were back in the car on the way to somewhere else, LOL.

We watched his monologue for weeks hoping to hear some mention of three crazy guys at his door but NO, NO mention ! And then he moved to California. Of the four of us I still see one of those guys some 30 + years later and I can have this story verified if needed, LOL.

Strange but true !

Bill
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Old 06-02-2006, 03:23 PM   #7
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Excellent BillW. !!!

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Old 06-02-2006, 04:56 PM   #8
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I knew someone would ask this eventually.
I was going to a long time ago but I thought,naaaahh!

Anyhow,every memeber of my family has met someone famous or been in their presence but not met them.

My Mother & Grandmother back in the '50s actually got a candid snap-shot of Jane Russell sitting at an outdoor cafe or such. That picture is still in our family album.

My grandmother,who was a member of the DAR (Daughters of theAmerican Revolution,that's people who have ancestors who fought in the war against Great Britain); in the early '40s,was in Washington one day at the White House (I forget why).

She just happened to turn around and see someone getting out of an elevator that was kind of hidden from public view. Accordingto what she told me,Elanor Roosevelt emerged from this elevator and walked somewhat of a distance past her.

My grandmother also was a nurse and in a hospitasl she worked in once,she discovered a man who was admitted there,was none other than mob- man Diamond Jim Brady! Almost as notorious as Al Capone! He was sick though.

My dad saw Johnny Cash at a small club setting and got to talk to him for a moment,that is waaaay cool!
--------------------------------------------------
My oldest brother,who's a musician himself,played in clubs in Tempe,AZ with the group The Gin Blossoms who were nationally famous in the '90s. He knw founding member Doug Hopkins who killed himself before the group acheived their success. He's also met Ozzy Osbourne.

My second oldest brother has met Alice Cooper (as have I & 1/2 of Phoenix! :D ). He and I saw KISS at a now defunct Tempe club in 1992 and were a mere 10 ft. from the stage! He was ecstatic that night,they're his favorite.
--------------------------------------------------

Myself,aside from Gordon in 2002,I met Fred "Re-run" Berry of the '70s sitcom "What's Happening". It was April 4th,1994 and I was at work at a store then called,"Smitty's" and it was 9am. I was on a 15 min. break and there he was at the Cinnabon area.

I couldn't place him for a bit but I knew he was "somebody" because he was wearing a green suit and had a few gold rings on his hand. (I thought he was a singer! )
I asked,"Aren't you a famous person"? He said yes,and had I ever seen "W.H."? Then I knew who he was. I talked to him for a few and he autographed the back of my paycheck! :D

I still have it along with Alice Cooper's autograph,which I got when I worked at the country club he's a member of. (He actually plays golf! LOL! )
--------------------------------------------------

Last,but not least,I met the 1995 line-up of Little River band after their show and,surprisingly,I was the only one who brought an LP to be signed! I had to wait for my ride and was the last one to leave that night,so I got to talk to them for a bit.

I also met a few members of George Clinton's Parliament/Funkadelic in '01 and on July 3rd,2002 saw Little Richard in concert and ended up standing a few feet away from him when he waited for his limo,but I was told by one of his musicians that he doesn't talk to people after his shows.

I "almost",met the '80s group "The Jets" in '88. Missed 'em by 10 mins. at a business grand opening. Othrwise,I've only seen famous acts in concert.

Thanks for reading.
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Old 06-02-2006, 05:06 PM   #9
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I apoloizefor making this longer than i should but when I went to edit the above message it only displayed 1/2 of what I had typed,so I backed otu of it to make this message.

I only wanted to say that in '83 I saw my favorite group Men At Work in concert and lead singer Colin Hay,noticed a cardboard/paper sign I had made with a hand drawn rendering of their album cover. He saw it and smiled and basically ackowleged me from the stage! That was the first connection I ever had to a famous person.

Okay! All done,I promise! :D
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Old 06-02-2006, 05:26 PM   #10
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Never met anyone famous but I came across this posting on the PBS message boards about somebody who knew Julia Child years before she was well known. http://discussions.pbs.org/viewtopic.pbs?t=7800
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Old 06-02-2006, 06:35 PM   #11
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mainly just a few musicians over the years after shows or at instore appearances..

jeff tweedy, andrea corr, nelly furtado, weird al yankovic, ed kuepper, chris bailey come to mind right now.
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Old 06-02-2006, 06:54 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally posted by Jessi -Joe:
Also bicycle for 1 mile next to Terry Fox, in 1980. I remember him being kind and seemed very determined.
Now THAT is one person I would like to spend time with if I could get that wish granted. Even just to say "Thank you" would be enough.

He is the epitome of couragious and heroic and always will be. I love that kid and always will.

He died too young, with so much to accomplish. And we are the poorer for his loss.

My daughter wore her 25th anniversary Terry Fox Marathon T-Shirt to school yesterday!!.

http://www.terryfoxrun.org/english/home/default.asp?s=1

and

http://www.cbc.ca/greatest/top_ten/n...fox-terry.html
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Old 06-02-2006, 09:47 PM   #13
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Well, having grown up in Studio City, California, just going to the grocery store or drug store I would run into movie stars all the time, and still do. Too numerous to mention, but, I'll do my best to remember. First off, let me say that Herb Alpert (of Tijuana Brass fame) is a cousin of mine. I remember when I was very small, my parents going out to a party celebrating his first album coming out. They asked us what we wanted and we (my brother and I) asked for an autographed picture. I kept it up until I moved into my first apartment when I was 19, then pitched it. Ah, well...

The first one I remember meeting (I was about 10) was Ray Danton -- an old movie star from the 50's and 60's, I believe) -- VERY good looking. I spotted him at Thrifty Drug Store. He, at first, denied who he was, but, a few of them did that -- they don't want to be bothered all the time and probably especially not by a kid.

Next, I was about 11 and my girlfriend and I were hanging out by a old ski shop in Studio City. It was a very cool place for a kid bcause it had an outside practice ramp with Astroturf on it. When you turned on the motor and put on your boots and skis, you could practice skiing on its movable ramp!! Anyway, we were hanging around there and Eddie Albert (yes, of Green Acres fame) showed up. I asked for his autograph and he, VERY crankily, said to me, "Do you have a pen? I don't!" I went and got one from the store and he signed it. Very rude. I never liked him after that.

Around the same time, I was in Ralphs grocery store with my mom and as we turned a corner 'round an aisle, who should I see but Mickey Dolenz (of The Monkees), with his wife. He had long, bushy brown hair and his wife wore one of those long, flowing dresses, very hippy-ish. I talked to him -- he was very nice! Since then, I have run into Mickey four more times. Three of them in Ralphs!! The second to the last time I did was about 11 years ago, we'd gone to eat at an Indian restaurant. My oldest was a baby in a carrier. We were in the parking garage together and he held open the elevator door for the three of us. He had a long ponytail. Old rockers never die... heh heh heh. The last time I saw him was, yes, at a Ralphs grocery store (but in Encino, California). I spoke to him this time and he was very gracious. I always keep it very short when I run into them, but, I tell them, "I like your work." It's sort of "movie-speak."

I ran into Kevin McCarthy (from the old movie "Invasion of the Body Snatchers") and the 80's TV show, "Flamingo Road." We were both walking down Ventura Blvd. (very well-known main street in the San Fernando Valley) with our kids. I told him how much I admired his work. He looked just the same!! He was VERY gracious and nice!! I ran into him again about four years ago at the Los Angeles County Fair in Pomona, California. They had an exhibit booth set up about 50's movie/TV stars. We got his autograph this time.

He was sitting next to Butch Patrick ("Eddie" from The Munsters) and other people whom I remembered from TV, but, don't recall now. I also took a seminar back in the 80's with Al Lewis' ("Grandpa" from The Munsters) ex-wife.

I ran into the guy who played Lt. Fancy on the original Law & Order TV show when my oldest was a toddler. I was walking into a grocery store and saw him using the pay phone in front. I called out, "I LOVE YOU!" He started laughing and waved at me. I also ran into Gordon... oh, what was his last name... from that show. He played the red-headed cop. I ran into him twice at Ralphs. You guys gotta start shopping there, ha!

There are many, many more guys. Do you want to hear more? That's what happens when you grow up in Los Angeles!!

o.k., I was sitting here thinking and here are some more names (without the how and where) of who else I can remember at this moment:

Carol Lawrence (famous singer)
Chita Rivera (of Broadway fame)
Phil Brown (was oldest child on Doris Day show)
Tom Kennedy (game show host from the 70's)
Robert Romanus (small part actor)
another cast member from Law & Order
Jack Coleman, the second Steven from Dynasty
David Hasselhoff
Laura San Giacomo (from Just Shoot Me)
Larry Miller (comedian)
Mark Walberg (of TV reality show "Temptation Island" and sometime host of Antiques Roadshow)
Fred Goss (Comedy Central)
David Hartman (from TV series "The Bold Ones")
Marlyn Mason (Bold Ones)
E.G. Marshall (Bold Ones)
Avery Schreiber (comedian)
Paul Winchell (who doesn't know him??!)
Nicholas Brendon (“Xander” from Buffy)
Peter Strauss ("Rich Man, Poor Man")
Ed Asner (Mary Tyler Moore show)
Ed Begley, Jr. (actor and ecology activist)
Mary Tyler Moore's folks/sister
Cliff Robertson (met him at Costco!!)
Leslie Nielsen (also met at Costco!!)

[ June 02, 2006, 23:16: Message edited by: Sheryl ]
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Old 06-02-2006, 11:36 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally posted by charlene:
Now THAT is one person I would like to spend time with if I could get that wish granted. Even just to say "Thank you" would be enough.


My daughter wore her 25th anniversary Terry Fox Marathon T-Shirt to school yesterday!!.

I wore mine in Reno - Rick (? somebody did) mentioned that his son had a t-shirt like it. I remember a movie about him and was very taken with the story.

[ June 03, 2006, 11:06: Message edited by: brink- ]
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Old 06-02-2006, 11:50 PM   #15
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I met the late actor Darren McGavin in a bar years ago in San Jose, CA. We chatted for a few minutes but what caught my attention was he was wearing the same rumpled white linen suit he wore on his then current TV show, "The Night Stalker". So I had a beer with Kolchak! lol :D
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Old 06-03-2006, 12:22 AM   #16
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These have been great posts. I especially like the ones where the "mood" of the celebrity is conveyed. My goodness Sheryl....you're a goldmine of stories. You asked if we would like to hear more, and from the list you presented I would vote for Leslie Nielsen.

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Old 06-03-2006, 12:59 AM   #17
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Well, we saw him in line at Costco and were so daunted by him we just stared (from afar). So, that's all!!
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Old 06-03-2006, 07:48 AM   #18
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Quote:
Originally posted by charlene:
quote:Originally posted by Jessi -Joe:
Also bicycle for 1 mile next to Terry Fox, in 1980. I remember him being kind and seemed very determined.
Now THAT is one person I would like to spend time with if I could get that wish granted. Even just to say "Thank you" would be enough.

He is the epitome of couragious and heroic and always will be. I love that kid and always will.

He died too young, with so much to accomplish. And we are the poorer for his loss.

My daughter wore her 25th anniversary Terry Fox Marathon T-Shirt to school yesterday!!.

http://www.terryfoxrun.org/english/home/default.asp?s=1

and

http://www.cbc.ca/greatest/top_ten/n...fox-terry.html
[/QUOTE]I agree with you 100% Char. At that time the TCH highway # 15, was going in front of my parents home. I was coming home from the town about 1 mile from my home, and peddled my bike besides him, the last word he said to me was THANKS. I turned in the driveway and he continued on, for another 1/2 mile. They stayed at the motel that night, an he gaved a speech at the town hall. Next morning before sun up, he was already on the road, heading west of course.{TRUE CANADIAN HERO!}
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Old 06-03-2006, 09:20 AM   #19
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I saw Jay Leno at a gas station about ten years ago. He was pumping his own gas no less! I got out of my car, and I glanced over and thought "that guy looks like Jay Leno", never thinking it was really him.

When I went in to pay, the guy at the register said, "That was Jay Leno pumping his gas right next to you! He kept looking over at you waiting for you to recognize him."

I read sometime afterward that Jay owns a lot of antique cars and goes to car shows in Valley Forge, PA, which would explain why he was on Rt. 202. I do like Jay, and I think he's really funny, but I wouldn't have had anything to say to him anyway.

Great topic, by the way...
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Old 06-04-2006, 11:07 PM   #20
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I was invited to meet news anchor Harry Reasoner at his "60 Minutes" Manhatten office in 1977 after he liked my fan letter and wrote back. It was the only one I had ever written. I had a crush on him for as long as I can remember. Anyway, while waiting for Mr. Reasoner Mike Wallace walked by & my 5 yr old daughter squealed, "Look Mommy!! There's the man from "60 Minutes!!" and he chuckled. I think he was shocked that a 5 yr old knew who he was. Sadly, Harry Reasoner passed away in 1991.

I met Justin Hayward of The Moody Blues at a concert. (YIKES! He must be the most gorgeous man in the entire history of mankind. He's charming, as well.)

OH! I knew Gordon for a while! I forgot all about that!! LoL! unbelievable....... geez... And Terry and Barry Keane who are awesome men and complete & total gentlemen. Both are devoted, rock-solid family men. Any woman who knows Terry would have to have a little, tiny innocent crush on him. What a delightful man! And Barry is one of the nicest, most caring, concerned persons I have ever met. Does everyone know that he's doing drums on most of Anne Murray's albums?

Oh. Yeah. I met Rick, too. *yawn*.....

I met singer/songwriter John Hartford and we had a nice long visit before a show at a coffee house in the late 1980's. Eveyone else was just "way too cool" to approach him. He looked so lonely just sitting there all by himself so I just plopped myself down next to him & told him that I was so in love with him in high school that I wanted to marry him... He was cracking up. He was super shy but very nice! He kept smiling & winking at me during the entire show. Hubby was all "WHAT did you SAY to that man???" Does anyone else remeber John playng banjo on "The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour"? I think he was also on "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour". Sadly, John passed away in 2001 at the age of 63 of non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. Six months later his wife, Marie, also passed away. John is perhaps best remembered for writing "Gentle On My Mind."

Pat Moraz - the former keyboard player of The Moody Blues - sat next to me at a Moody Blues concert. I kept thinking he looked familiar but couldn't place him because he had such short hair! I realized who he was when the band introduced him and he stood up. I loved the sound he brought to the band. I still miss him.

I met Elvis once. My boyfriend's best friends were the music reporters for a big newspaper & they were interviewing him so we went along to his hotel room. I just wasn't impressed.

I met Santana at a party given by their record company. I was with the same guy who had the reporter friends. I've never liked Santana or parties so I was bored silly. Besides, I was obsessed with Mason Williams, Harry Reasoner & Neil Diamond at the time. I've never been accused of being "cool." But that's OK.

I sat at a really long traffic light at some multi-street intersection in LA next to Michael McDonald. He's at least a million times more gorgeous in person so when we locked eyes I nearly had a heart attack. He has THE MOST AMAZING EYES! My daughter was ready to scream. We had a huge Mother/Daughter cross country adventure when she was 15. (over 8,000 miles) What a blast that was! BTW - he was driving a beat up 280-Z with grey primer all over it.

I was also at a red light with Robert Duvall. I think he was in a silver or white Mercedez.

I passed Don Johnson in a white Corvette in a quiet neighborhood...

We saw McKensie Phillips speeding on Mulholland
Drive. She appeared to be absolutely FURIOUS. (what a face!) Not a good road to speed on... unless you're trying to kill yourself. She was in a small red convertible.

We saw Swoozie Kurtz in Annapolis, MD not too long ago.

One of my life-long friends is a playwright & although I've never met him - one of his other best friends is the guy who wrote "The Prince Of Tides". (Pat Conroy) I love that film. Also, His niece is Margaret Reed who was a big soap opera star. She played the evil vamp, "Shannon" on "As The World Turns" from 1985-1990. More recently she's appeared on "Law and Order". I used to get all the big news before it hit the tabloids during her soap opera days. Juicy. lol... (I've never seen any of her performances, however.)

He was also close to legendary columnnist Herb Caen. (who would occassionally write about my dear friend in his column.) He was the first boss I ever had. We're still close 37 years later. Most of my friends are of the "Life-Long" variety.

In 1998 we saw Jo Beth Williams filming at the Minneapolis airport. It was called "A Chance Of Snow". The camera just doesn't do her justice. She's DDG. While I was busy raiding the shops my hubby managed to be filmed as part of a crowd in the film. LoL. So we had to get a copy. I think we saw Michael Onkean, too. He was also in it.

My sister was stuck in a traffic jam on a Calif. freeway once next to Farrah Fawcett & Ryan O'Neil. They were having a huge knock-down-drag-out fight. She was winning - hands down. Poor Ryan!

Hubby saw Chubby Checker putting gas in his T-Bird in Delaware. It was a strange car with tassels and fringe and fuzzy dice, etc...

We had a very famous neighbor for 11 years. Drew Lewis was a member of Ronald Reagan's cabinet as The Secretary Of Transportation. He had an incredible estate with an airport and Reagan would fly in & out in a helicopter and eat at Drew's lovely restaurant "The Bay Pony Inn" across the street from our house. He was incredibly handsome & very nice. Very well respected & admired by all who knew him. His wife, Marilyn, was in the State Legislature for many years. He was the man who made a success of Kelly Services. He was/is on the Board of Directors for:

American Express
AT&T
Lucent
Ford Motors
Union Pacific Railroad (Chairman & CEO)
Campbell Soup
Gannet Press

It's great to see a genuinely nice person in a position of power but I get the impression it stresses him out...

Here's a good one. I went to high school with Rocky ("Rock") Pamplin who was one of the more famous PlayGirl magazine foldouts. I think he was also "Man Of The Decade". (and rightly so) He was also the dark haired "Marlboro Man" back in the 1970s. And he was drafted by the Saints at one point. Then he was with The Beach Boys for a few years... kind of as a "keeper" of sorts to keep Brian Wilson off drugs. He had a steamy affair with Brian's wife in Brian's house. (not nice) There's a book called "Heros & Villains" by Steven Gaines about The Beach Boys and Rocky is discussed there. He once beat the stuffing out of Dennis Wilson for bringing drugs around Brian.

I have got to learn how to post pictures. Will check it out soon. He was really good looking. And he was very nice in high school even though he was THE Big Man On Campus.

[ June 05, 2006, 04:33: Message edited by: MistyMoppens ]

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Old 06-05-2006, 02:01 AM   #21
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Holy smokes, MistyMoppens,

You and Sheryl have amazing stories. They're appreciated.

The John Hartford recollection was especially noteworthy, since "Gentle On My Mind" is my favorite song of all time. Thanks for taking the time to pass the memories along.

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Old 06-05-2006, 04:40 AM   #22
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Quote:
Originally posted by &lt;Reminder&gt;:


The John Hartford recollection was especially noteworthy, since "Gentle On My Mind" is my favorite song of all time. Thanks for taking the time to pass the memories along.

RMD
I know what you mean... the melody and lyrics are really, really beautiful... Very stirring.

I just thought of another "brush" with a famous person. A few years ago I was shopping in the jewelry dept. in Harrod's at the same time with Christopher Dean of the world renowed figure skating duo "Torvill and Dean". We kept getting in each other's way trying to look at the same items. He didn't buy anything for me.


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Old 06-05-2006, 08:30 AM   #23
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My first story falls more in the category of “I knew him when” than it does “a brush with the famous.” In 1986/87, I was living in Lafayette, Louisiana and supplemented my day job tending bar at this little neighborhood joint that I had been hanging out in for years. One of the main attractions of this little bar was that they had live music - of the country-rock persuasion - 6 nights a week. One of the local bands that played there had this adorable lead singer with brooding eyes, long hair, a cowboy hat that shadowed most of his face and a great voice reminiscent of George Jones - that lead singer was Sammy Kershaw. In the fall of 1987, I moved to New Hampshire and lost track of Sammy – I don’t mean to imply that we were friends; we were just acquaintances who worked at the same place, I mean that I lost track of him musically – and found out a year or so later that he had given up music entirely.

Jump forward to 1990…..I’m working in a doctor’s office in New Hampshire and one of my friends/coworkers shared my enjoyment of country music, so we had the radio in our space tuned to a country station. One day a song caught my attention – the voice sounded very familiar, but I couldn’t place it. So I listened until the end of the song, hoping that the DJ would offer the singer’s name. Sure enough, the DJ said it was Sammy Kershaw singing Cadillac Style. Well I was stunned and proceeded to tell my friend/coworker that I knew this guy. She didn’t believe me until I came in the next day with some pictures. By then he had cut off the hair, lost the hat, and went on to be quite popular throughout the 90s with several hits.

Ironically, a few years later, my mom was on her way back to Louisiana after visiting me in New Hampshire and was on the same plane as Sammy Kershaw between Nashville and Lafayette. Lafayette has a very small airport and really not a very busy one, at that. While waiting for the baggage, she happened to be standing right next to him and so she said hi and went on to say that she was sure he wouldn’t remember her from his Checkmate (that was the name of the bar) days, but that he might remember her daughter, Janice. He said he did remember me and asked how I was doing (she claimed that he couldn’t have been just being polite, because he described me and some accurate memories of our time at the Checkmate). Their conversation went on as they walked out of the terminal. He walked up to this Limo that was waiting for him and asked Mom if she needed a ride. She of course already had a ride, so he told her to make sure and tell me hello and they went their separate ways.

My other brush with the famous happened in 1967. We were living in Tucson, Arizona, next door to a man who worked at Old Tucson as a stunt man. For those of you not familiar, Old Tucson is a movie studio/theme park, where many western movies and TV shows were/are filmed. One of those TV shows was the High Chaparral – it was one of my favorite shows. We used to go out there with our neighbor and watch the filming.

On one occasion we attended a rodeo where the stars of the show were appearing. We sat in the VIP area with them. Leif Erickson (Big John Cannon) and Linda Cristal (Victoria) didn’t have much to do with us beyond the introduction pleasantries, but Cameron Mitchell (Buck), Mark Slade (Billy Blue) and Henry Darrow (Manolito) sat with us and chatted.

I had the biggest crush on "Manolito" – which some might find odd since Mark Slade was the teen idol of the show – I guess even at five years old, I was a nonconformist. And even then, I knew what I liked…..tall, dark and handsome (Mark was not so tall, dirty blonde and handsome) :D

Well, as our Jenney would say, “If it’s not one thing, it’s your mother!” – Yes, my mom embarrassed the heck out of me by telling Henry that he was my favorite. He spent the rest of the day teasing me, buying me cotton candy and just giving me a lot of attention, which I adored, but that didn’t remove the embarrassment! Mark Slade was very nice, too. Come to find out, he was the same age as my dad (27, at the time) and they grew up in the same town of Danvers, Massachusetts. Their paths never crossed as youngsters, but they were able to reminisce about places and things and had a great time with that. And Cameron?…..Cameron was just funny – he kept us all in stitches.

Times out at Old Tucson were definitely fun times – hmmm, wonder if the curtains my mom made for the saloon are still there. No, I’m sure they’re probably long gone
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Old 06-05-2006, 11:49 AM   #24
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Janice,

I remember seeing Cameron Mitchell at a bar in Flagstaff, AZ. I never spoke with him but I can say that there was a large group of people around his table and each and every one of them wore a smile.

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Old 06-05-2006, 12:03 PM   #25
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I've been luckier than most in running in to celebrities. I do a very large antique show in Brimfield Mass, for the last 18 years, and get to see lots of people that way. Susan St. James is a regular in my booth, and Martha Stewart, Mary Travers, Katie Couric, Penny Marshall, and lots of others have all been in. The most unusal person though was John Malkovitz, didn't expect to see him there! I've never asked anyone for an autograph though, unless they were writing a check!
I saw Stephen King at a rest stop on the Maine Turnpike, and just happened to have a book of his in the car. I ran back to get it while he was in the men's room, and asked him to sign it after he picked up some food. He was exceptionally gracious, as I had to hold his pizza and soda while he signed it.
I had the pleasure of bringing Dave Mallett backstage to GL's concert in Portland Maine last year, somewhere around here I have the picture. If I can find it, I'll post it. Getting a picture with my two favorite mucians was a thrill for me and something I'd looked forward to for years.
I've made glasses for Paul Newman, but didn't get to see him. I met Morley Safer when he broke his glasses, I was almost worried I was being investigated! Got to fix Andrew McCarthy's glasses once too. I was out the day Steven Tyler came in with a contact lens problem! Harve Presnell (from Annie) got an eye exam, he walked around singing the whole time he was waiting.

I was once eating dinner at a place in Florida and there was a nice woman who kept smiling at me and finally waved. I knew she looked familiar, and about two weeks later realized that she was Dee Wallace Stone, the mom from ET.

My former father in law owned an entertainment agency, so we got to see lots of people. Glen Campbell was extremely pleasent, a real nice guy, and I have a nice picture of my youngest daughter on his lap. Helen Reddy was very professional, the polar opposite of Sarah Vaughan! I didn't think much of her.
I've had the opportunity to meet several ice skaters, Dorothy Hamill, Janet Lynn and several others when my friend competed in the Nationals. There are a lot of ice skaters that live around here too, so spotting them is not that unusual.

I know I'll think of a dozen more later, but sure can't right now!
Jenney
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