Have you encountered famous people where you work?

Who / what is considered famous?

I was once at a conference (in Vail, Colorado) and one of the keynote speakers needed a ride down to Denver airport (the old one). He was a big shot in our field – well published author, been on TV a lot, known as an intellectual—and we had a great time talking on the way down the mountain. But – you would never have heard of him. In my field, he was royalty, but not to the rest of the world.

I ran into Newt Gingrich twice – once at an Outlet mall in North Georgia – he was waiting for his wife to finish Christmas shopping. The second time was in hotel, waiting for the elevator, in the middle of nowhere Wisconsin.

I shook Jimmy Carter’s hand once at a rally when he was running for president.

I used to be the graphic designer for an event design company in Boston. I got to meet Elton John, David Copperfield, Nancy Kerrigan and some others. All very nice folks.

Outside of work I’ve met Mike Tyson, Joe Perry, Richard Belzer, and a few others. Again, all very nice.

Just people really.

@elbanditoroso That’s great! It’s cool to meet someone big in your field and get to spend time with them.

Ha! That’s cool. I saw Newt Gingrich on my 8th grade trip to DC and I met Jimmy Carter in a Cracker Barrel once.

@cookieman Yes! It’s crazy meeting these hugely famous people and realizing they’re just so polite and (mostly) normal.

Back in the 80’s I drew blood from Mrs. Pointer (the Mother of the Pointer Sisters) in the hospital that I worked in San Francisco.

Yes, I’ve met several, mostly actors and singers and comedians.
Screech still owes me for a soda btw, waiting on that .50.

I’m pretty sure I met Paul Hogan once, well twice.
I worked fast food in a town where several celebrities used to go for a rest. I called him Dundee. He looked funny for a moment, then brushed it off with a joke.
I saw him again later at a park. I waved him over to sit with me for a bit. He did, and we had a pleasant conversation. He claimed to have worked with Hogan before he was famous.
I figured if that were true, then the story was cool enough if itself. However, this was not a town accustomed to international visitors, so figuring it was Hogan, I could see he wanted to be away from celebrity attention, and I let him have it.
Whoever it was, I enjoyed the accent. He talked about what Australia was like, and told me an antidote about working with Hogan.
We both had a fine time, and enjoyed the lovely day together for a bit.

I met To Herman at a backstage meet and greet. My two year old daughter stole his attention. He kissed her three times, and she can still point to each spot.
I got autographs from Britanny Fox when they opened for Joan Jett. She had the flu, so even though she still performed, she didn’t come for the signing.
I saw Richard Simmons at a distance.

I met some Navy celebrities once, but their very existence is secret, so I can’t say more on that.

Yes. I met Joe DiMaggio

I worked in a coffee shop the actors from Walking Dead would frequent the first couple seasons of the show so I got to hang out with them some, all incredibly nice, fun people.

I worked for Zac Brown’s company for a while and met him several times at work parties and stuff.

I worked at another coffee shop near a movie studio so actors would come through every now and again, Shia Lebeouf, Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hardy, Jason Clarke… served them but only really talked to Mia. She was precious. I was off that day and noticed she ordered a drink and it got lost in the shuffle of orders and she was too polite/shy/whatever to say anything so I asked what she ordered and got her drink for her while she talked to my then 4 year old daughter who was coated in chocolate.

Famous? You mean other than former governors, legislators, local TV personalities, etc.?

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a celebrity where I worked.

However, I live in the Los Angeles area and I’ve seen a few of them around town, Chicago, and Central Park, NYC.

In December, 1956 Elvis Presley appeared at our Cub Scouts’ function and signed an 8X10 color glossy of himself for me.

I posed with Jayne Mansfield when I was 15, which was 2 years before baby Mariska was born.

In December, 1967 we saw the Animals at the Whiskey A GoGo.
After their gig, the bassist and major Jimi Hendrix advocate, Chas Chandler, rushed up to where I was sitting and shook my hand.
I didn’t know him then and I still don’t personally know Chas, so the only explanation I can give for that is that I emanated such strong “I love Hendrix” vibes that they drew him to me like some majorly strong stoner tractor beams.

Sometime in the middle 70’s I was at a laundromat.
Somebody grasped my hand and started shaking it.
I looked up and it was Jon Voight asking me to vote for I don’t remember whom.
I said, “I’ll vote for him if you read my screenplay about a paralyzed Vietnam war vet”. ;~)

I was shopping at a Whole Foods in Sherman Oaks. I saw this guy wearing a hat that caught my attention.
I forgot what I asked him and what he replied, but Geena Davis joined our conversation.
Either she was fascinated with our conversation or she was with him; probably the latter. ;-)
I wound up asking her if there was going to be a “Thelma and Louise” sequel. She replied, “No, they were pretty much squished”.

I saw James Cromwell at a local health food store.
He was wearing a t-shirt advocating a Native American cause.
I said, “I like your t-shirt. I think the de facto genocide committed against Native Americans is shameful.”
He replied, “It wasn’t de facto, it IS genocide.”
I stood corrected and about 8 inches shorter than him.

I saw Jay Leno at the aforementioned Whole Foods in 2007(?).
I asked him if it was true that Conan was going to take over the Tonight Show in 2009.
He mumbled something as he made his escape.

I saw Leno’s band leader, Kevin Eubanks at a health food restaurant in West Hills.
I said, “I remember Jay making fun of your gesture of shooting a basketball. Where does he get off making fun of you? I mean, how strong is Jay’s game?”
He LHAO so I LMAO too. :-D

Rude jerk that I was in January, 1978, I cut in front of whom I thought was just some “big fat guy” at a food counter in O’Hare airport, near Chicago. After I got my dog, I looked at the guy’s fist as it was resting on the counter and I thought, “Wow, his first is as big as my whole head!” I looked at him, and I thought he looked familiar. I later realized that it was Dick Butkus.

I was in Central Park one day in 1971. I heard some commotion in the distance. I looked over and saw Richard Benjamin and Karen Black doing a scene from Portnoy’s Complaint.

@kritiper not necessarily, famous or well known I guess

@Brian1946 Those are great stories!!! Pleeeeease tell me you still have the Elvis picture! Your James Cromwell story makes me like him even more. Your Jon Voight encounter is random and awesome as hell haha

@ellespark

I’m way hungry now and I hear my comida calling, but I’ll get back to you about the Elvis pic and my encounter with Asston Butcher and Mila Kunis. ;-p

@Brian1946 I can’t wait!

I’ll add another story about my accidental invitation to the wedding and reception of George Carlin’s daughter, Kelly.

I have met a lot of famous people, but I can only think of one at work.
That was Willie McCovey.
I was installing telephone cable into his restaurant in Walnut Creek. I was invited in, and met him. He signed an autograph on his business card, which gave me his phone number. I was super jazzed about that for days.

When I used to work as Head of Security at several large music venues, I met plenty. I almost never interacted with them, as I was focused on my job.

I met Dave Chapelle once. I was surprised, because everyone told us not to attempt to talk to him. But after his last show, he met with our security team. He looked much older than from far away. I could tell that he was exhausted, but he spoke with us for a while. He was a nice guy. Most performers sneak out as soon as their set is done…

I just thought of someone who might be considered somewhat famous. Or as famous as I can get. A great guy and a good friend! We worked together for a short time before he moved to Portland, OR.
His name is/was Sky Larson, the former bassist of a early 60’s band named “Every Mother’s Son,” a band who had at least one hit, “Come On Down to My Boat, Baby.”
He was the one who first told me about some movie called “Star Wars.” I went to see it with him and his wife.

The closest I’ve come is waiting on Drew Carey’s mom at my first bank job.

That reminds me^...
I saw Tom Arnold’s mom naked when she was at the YWCA in Ottumwa. She was putting on her one piece swimsuit. I think it was senior swim time.

No. But my sister went to a KISS concert and one of the band members threw his hotel key to her. She saw them in an elevator without their make up.

She also took a class at WSU and Xavier McDaniel was in her class.

She also played basket ball in high school against Lynette Woodard, who became the first female Harlem Globe Trotter. My folks were ALWAYS on had to see those games. They watched Lynette.

She and her husband actually ran into Kevn Costner in an elevator at a hotel in Wichita where they were having some baseball conference or something. She was on crutches and Costner said to her, “Hey…take care of yourself.”

Damn. I guess I knew my sister and that’s all I needed.

@Dutchess_III Um, did she go to the hotel room? ha!

Oh wait! I had This kid in my Real Estate class. I sat next to him. When I learned he had played pro ball I googled him.
The next day in class I demanded to see his hand.
He showed me the long scar where he had mostly cut his fingers off with a table saw. I looked and said, “Dumb ass.”
He turned to the girl on his left and said, “Did she just call me a dumb ass?”
It’s a fascinating story, really. He asked the doc to sew them back on in such a way that he could still catch a ball, and he did.
Turns out, I went to a specialist for my entrapped ulnar nerve and lo’, there was a picture of Koye in the waiting room. He had done the surgery.
I really liked him.

No, of course not @KNOWITALL. She took some friends and they did meet them, but declined to party. Neither of us were ever quite that brazen.
Not long after I got married, and when my sister was living with her future husband, my hair stylist girlfriend asked if she could sign us up for a hair stylist convention. We said, “Sure.”
It was at a hotel, and it was a huge convention.
We walked in…my sister is 5’ 11” slender and drop dead gorgeous. She is often asked if she’s Native American.
I’m exactly the opposite, blond, blue eyed. 5’ 7” but also slender and in great physical shape. I was told constantly that I was a dead ringer for Farrah Fawcett.
We were easily the best looking women in the place, and we got MOBBED. Some guy, the director or somebody, shoved his key at us and told us his room number and to help ourselves to his wet bar and to just wait for him.
My sister and I looked at each other, turned around as one and walked out.
It just felt so dirty, and it was so weird how he just assumed we would do that. :(

I would have accepted the key, and passed it on to someone of my choosing.

@ellespark

It took me awhile to find my post about the Elvis pic. ;-o

Prepare yourself for the following tale of one of the most myopic moves in musical history:

In 1968 I was fanatically involved with psychedelic and English blues-rock, such as Cream, Hendrix, and Jeff Beck. As a result of that I became somewhat of a music snob. One day while in the grip of my aesthetic arrogance, I looked at my Elvis pic with disdain and thought, “This greaser and his music are so lame.”

Hopefully our trash collector saw it and used it to send his kid to Stanford. ;-)

I think the same thing about all the Micheal Jackson posters I used to have @Brian1946.