Celebrity encounter: fact or fiction?

[Anonymous]

Almost bumped into (literally) Dennis Miller walking down M Street.

Saw Jared Leto eating at Tryst in Adams Morgan (kind of greasy looking...but still very arractive!)

[Anonymous]

I went to see Alan Rickman play Hamlet in London, and Garrison Keillor sat next to my husband, and Roman Polanski was behind me.

[Anonymous]

I had backstage passes at an Adam Sandler show in the '90s (my date had connections). So I saw Jon Lovitz, Dustin Hoffman, and Andy Dick.

We asked Dustin Hoffman for an autograph (my friend was obnoxious about it, actually: "Yo Rainman!" as he was waiting for the valet parker -- I almost died). He was nice enough to sign but clearly wasn't thrilled (can't blame him).

And Andy Dick was clearly high and staggered/shoved his way past the bathroom line, literally pushing me and some other people out of the way, ranting about how he had to piss. I thought of that whenever he was in the news with his drug problems. I think he's cleaned up now -- good for him -- bathroom lines are safer, ha!

[Anonymous]

We were trapped in Cabo during Snowmageddeon (could there be a more obnoxious intro phrase?!) and ended up swimming in a pool with Maggie Gyllenhaal, Peter Saarsgaard and their 3yo Ramona, who was totally cute and introduced everyone. She was hilarious and wanted us to "watch her dance!" in the water. They were sweet with their child, friendly and normal with us, and we (my DH and our 2 kids and I) hung out with them playing in the pool for 30 minutes or so (they took turns going to exercise) until a crowd of drunk older moms (in bikinis! with completely hot bodies! playing volleyball! I can't make this stuff up) mobbed them. Gyllenhaal = lovely looking, enchanting voice, so calm... Saarsgard = very direct and intense. Both very down to earth and nice.

[Anonymous]

I saw Shaq at a book store soon after he started playing for the Orlando Magic. I was looking at books and then there is HUGE dude next to me. I felt very short. I gave him a sort of nod as I passed and he nodded back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to summer camp with Seth Green as a child. He was not famous then but was in some movies and commercials and thus was a big deal at camp. Totally cocky and annoying, and ridiculously short.

Was he much shorter as a kid than all the other kids?

Yup. He went there until around age 15 or 16, so definitely during the teen years. He was a couple of years ahead of me but it was a close-knit Jewish sleepaway camp where everyone went back year after year, so we all knew each other.

[Anonymous]

I forget where I saw her now, but I saw Kim Basinger about 10 years ago and she is *tiny*! And so very lovely. I think it was in Union Station....

[Anonymous]

Saw Puck from the Real World SF in an airport. He was asking people to pay him in exchange for an autograph. I guess he wasn't really acting on the show!

[Anonymous]

I've met a few but my favorite all time was Dave Matthews at the airport on his way to a Dead Show in Vegas. It was just after Under The Table and Dreaming came out and we were chatting about our mutual excitement for the Vegas show. He was super super cool and at one point mentioned that "someone" was paying for his trip. I FINALLY figured out who he was and he was not just going to the show he was opening for The Dead.

[Anonymous]

I have to decent ones:
First, the local one: I was limping out of a party at the Four Seasons in the world's most uncomfortable shoes when I looked up and saw Andre Agassi walking into the hotel. He was a bit shorter than expected, but totally handsome. I tried to walk normally so as not to look like a tool, and at the same time, met eyes with him and gave him the "nod," like "I know you're Andre Agassi but I'll be cool about it."

And he gave me a look back that said, "Yeah, um, you're like the 5000th person to give me 'the nod' today. Whatevs."

***
About 15 years ago, when I was REALLY, REALLY super poor, I was at a fashion show--it was a benefit that tied into the opening of Valentino's NYC boutique. Oprah was the mistress of ceremonies, and I was psyched just to be in the same gimungo tent with her and like 500 other people.

I was with an influential person, so we got invited back to the boutique for a private party afterward. I was in a borrowed Chanel suit, was then making $8.50 an hour as an editorial assistant, and was completely out of place. But, I faked it, grabbed a biscotti and iced tea with mint sprig and started maneuving through the crowd.

I was at a counter, looking at scarves in a glass case that literally cost more than I made in a two-week paycheck, when the person I was with looked up and turned sheet white (and she's fearless-no one intimidates her). It was Oprah herself, standing right next to me.

I turned to her and blurted out, "Holyohmygod--I skipped EVERY 4pm college class because of you!". She was incredibly nice, chatted us up for like 15 minutes--we got our picture taken with her--was more than lovely.

There are two endings to this story.

1.) After that at the party, I felt really supercool---like I actually belonged there or something. So I'm strutting through in my borrowed clothes and borrowed life, sipping my iced tea with mint, when *POOF!* Valentino himself appears in front of me. I stop sipping my tea and part my lips to say something witty, when I realize that the sprig of mint was stuck inside of my lip, wrapped around, and just about inserted inside of my nose. Valentino looked at me with absolute disgust, turned his head, and kept walking.

2.) A year later, pluckily determined to hit my life's goal of being published in a major magazine by the age of 25, I sent in the above story to Glamour. Which they ran with the picture, but edited the tale down to "I met Oprah. She was nice." Oh, and it's also possibly the worst picture of me ever taken, and it was during Oprah's first skinny phase.

The end.

[Anonymous]

two. two decent ones. Sorry for the typo (though I'm sure in all of my blathering, it's not the only one).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to see Alan Rickman play Hamlet in London, and Garrison Keillor sat next to my husband, and Roman Polanski was behind me.

Oh, Alan Rickman, be still my heart!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I had backstage passes at an Adam Sandler show in the '90s (my date had connections). So I saw Jon Lovitz, Dustin Hoffman, and Andy Dick.

We asked Dustin Hoffman for an autograph (my friend was obnoxious about it, actually: "Yo Rainman!" as he was waiting for the valet parker -- I almost died). He was nice enough to sign but clearly wasn't thrilled (can't blame him).

And Andy Dick was clearly high and staggered/shoved his way past the bathroom line, literally pushing me and some other people out of the way, ranting about how he had to piss. I thought of that whenever he was in the news with his drug problems. I think he's cleaned up now -- good for him -- bathroom lines are safer, ha!

I think he has been struggling with it off and on. He was in Celebrity Rehab last season and said something about having been to rehab 10 times. He really seemed to be trying though -- he seemed sincere and so completely unlike his stage persona of being an obnoxious smart mouth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Almost bumped into (literally) Dennis Miller walking down M Street.

Saw Jared Leto eating at Tryst in Adams Morgan (kind of greasy looking...but still very arractive!)

Saw Jared Leto in person as well... while dressed like an idiot, he was REALLY hot. Saw Jimmy Fallon once in NYC - looks exactly like he does on television, surprise surprise. Saw Debra Messing on the same NYC trip - maybe it was the outfit but she was pretty frumpy looking when not gussied up. Saw Ali Larter (Heroes) at a Starbucks in NYC years ago and she was really pretty.

[Anonymous]

I "dated" a football player in college who has had a very long and successful professional career. He will remain nameless, but I will say he is/was a QB.

I say "dated" because hello it was college. We were basically friends with benefits.