actually, this is fun!

[electricland]

Inspired by a comment I made in lawgeekgurl's journal, I hereby decree Wednesday, February 9th to be Marginal Brushes with Fame Day. Had an insignificant encounter with a celebrity? Sold a chocolate bar to Britney Spears and been wondering who you could tell? Your mother went to kindergarten with Elizabeth Taylor but you thought nobody would care? Well, I care! Boast about your brushes with fame, here or in your own journal! The more marginal, insignificant and meaningless, the better! (Official Celebrity Appearances probably don't count, which is why I won't count getting Lauren Bacall's autograph at the stage door... although that was cool.)

I'll get the party started:

I interviewed Neil Gaiman for a magazine. I still cringe at the recollection, because I did a truly horrible job.

My grandfather worked for Leonard Cohen's family's garment factory and used to hang out with him in the lunchroom when he (Leonard) was working there in the summer.

One of my cousins ran around naked (OK, at the age of 3) in front of Prince Andrew.

Comments

[metawidget]

My great grandmother was Kate "Mrs. A" Aitken, definitive Canadian homemaker, radio host, newspaper columnist and cookbook authoress (back when "authoress" was probably more accepted).

[monkeycommando.livejournal.com]

Although "professional" these were pretty marginal

-Phone interview with Mariah Carey, also, chick from the Cardigans, also Todd McFarlane
-In person with:
Mila Kunis (Jackie, that '70s show)--when she was 15!!!
Robbie Williams (hi-larious!)
Aqua, minus the chick (leni)

Unprofessional
Quiet beer with Pinhead from Hellraiser. (after celebrity appearance)
In same room with Asia Argento (chick from Vin Diesel's XXX)
Phone call with Keith Giffen (accidental, and probably the biggest personal thrill).

I would answer this one...

[claris.livejournal.com]

...but I don't know if you have enough bandwidth.

Pick a story, I'll retell it fer ya. *g*

[elissa-carey.livejournal.com]

Official Celebrity Appearances probably don't count
Shucks. There goes my one encounter with Neil Gaiman. :) Although he did post one of my questions to his blog, and I once got to ask him a question or two during an "official" chat at an online convention.

Let's see:
1.) I'm acquainted with Drew Curtis (Fark.com), who is apparently a good acquaintance of Wil Wheaton's.
2.) A long time ago, when there was some celebrity golfing happening in Houston (TX), my mother dragged me along and I saw Bob Hope there. (OK, that one shouldn't count, but...)
3.) When my husband was singing, along with a Barbershop Quartet choir (SPEBSQSA), at an event commemorating the attack on Pearl Harbor, he saw Bob Hope come on stage in front of their choir. He also met the last surviving member of the Andrews Sisters later.
4.) I once sang on the radio (horribly, of course) in an effort to "audition" as a back-up singer for Andy Taylor (then former, now current, member of Duran Duran). I got to talk to him... sort of.
5.) 2-3 years ago, I sat not far away from John Rhys-Davies at the Origins Awards. He was enthused to be there, let me tell you. (I mean that sarcastically. He clapped with all the joy of someone bored out of his mind.)

Can't think of any other incidents off the top of my head, but I can add them later if I think of them.

[fairoriana.livejournal.com]

I formally met celebrity Bobby McFerrin when he was conducting an orchestra rehearsal I watched. He was really nice.

The next day, I met a barefooted black man in dreads walking down the street, looking mellow.

He remembered me, and my name, from the previous day.

Very much a highlight!

Re: I would answer this one...

[electricland.livejournal.com]

Actually I was thinking I'd have to limit you or give you some kind of VIP Pass. ;)

OK, I pick... George Clooney? Or didja ever meet Russell Crowe?

[wanderingaengus.livejournal.com]

I had lunch with Richard Powers (and about a half dozen other people).

[wanderingaengus.livejournal.com]

I've also shaken hands with three Nobel prize winners.

[keyef.livejournal.com]

So if meeting them outside a theatre after seeing them in a play doesn't count, there goes Hugh Jackman (The Boy From Oz, Whoopi Goldberg (A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum), and Mel B (Spice girl) (Rent.

None of the others are me personally..

My dad is a dermatologist and he saw Shania Twain in his office. However, she used her real name (Eileen Lange) so he had no idea who she was until later.

Also, when he was doing his residency in New York, he treated Son of Sam's cell mate. Apparently, Sam was completely out of it, staring at a television screen.

He also plays hockey with some former NHLers and has treated a few current NHLers in his office. (Perhaps not exciting to non-hockey fans, but I think that it is really cool.)

My great grandfather worked for William Notman (the photographer).

Oh, and my mom met Oprah Winfrey at Disney World.




Who ran around naked and when was this opportunity had?

Re: I would answer this one...

[raithen.livejournal.com]

LOl. I saw Miss Ells post and thought of you. And cringed....

[kendokamel.livejournal.com]

Interesting that this should come up. I'm doing a literature review of research on celebrity worship. (;

I never really got too excited over meeting "famous people", because I guess fame is really relative, anyway. But back to the topic at hand... when I worked as an arts presenter, I met up with Andy Richter and Michael Moore, and almost got Mark Hamill to come and speak. In my research, I met up with a handful of folks who, when put together, have been on all of the various incarnations of Star Trek. I also have two books that were inscribed and given to me by the author as gifts.

I also sat next to Paul Giamatti in the makeup trailer during shooting for American Splendor... though I didn't know who he was, and was about to make some comment about how dedicated he must've been to have let them cut his hair into a circa-1983 'do just for a non-paying extra role, when the makeup lady attacked me with a lipstick brush...

[electricland.livejournal.com]

Cool! Hey, didn't they just reprint her book? or one of her books?

[raithen.livejournal.com]

ya know, I can think of nothing for this, though my sister recently worked with Sir Ian Mackellan, and he liked her singing.... But me and celebrity? don't tend to run in the same circles :D.

[electricland.livejournal.com]

Didn't Gary once pretend to be Pinhead from Hellraiser? Or am I (a) totally making that up or (b) transposing the recollection from someone else?

and, er, will I lose geek cred if I ask who Keith Giffen is and why it was a thrill?

and are we seeing you for Alias tonight?

[fairoriana.livejournal.com]

Oh, I also had lunch with Peter Schikele. With about 2000 other people...

[electricland.livejournal.com]

Hey, those are cool!

And fine marginal encounters most of them are too!

[electricland.livejournal.com]

hee! that's awesome!

[electricland.livejournal.com]

cool! I've met only one (although there is a funny story associated with him, involving my dad, as such stories tend to).

[calebbullen.livejournal.com]

I've made food for Ice T, Gene Siskel, Chris O'Donnell, and Black Jack McDowell. Although the last two shouldn't count since I didn't know who the hell they were until afterwards.

I also made food for and later hung out with Seka. She's a very nice lady.

[metawidget]

Yup... Whitecap Books just reprinted Kate Aitken's Canadian Cook Book, 1945 edition (available here). All us descendants got complimentary copies, I've tried out a couple of the recipes with good results.

[rolypolypony.livejournal.com]

Well, aside from the usual meeting an author at a signing event, I've never met anyone (well, I did meet 3 day eventer David O'Connor but that may only be exciting to me!)

My husband went to summer camp w/ Michael Pitt (he's an acot - he was in Hedwig and the Amazing Inch, and Murder by Numbers among others. )

And his friend's dad was roommate in college w/ James Earl Jones!!

[electricland.livejournal.com]

Those totally count!

I forget which cousin it was. Not one you've met -- but he or she (see, I can't even remember what sex) would be about 6-8 years younger than me. One of my second cousins anyway.

and this would've been about, oh, 20 years ago now.

how it came about: one of my mother's cousins used to be the principal of Lakefield when Prince A. went there (they farmed the princes out all over the colonies for some reason) and some time later he came to stay at their cottage (which is 3 up from our cottage, and you've probably passed it). All the cousins were invited to meet him but me, because they didn't know I was back from Kenya. NOT THAT I'M BITTER. Ahem.

[electricland.livejournal.com]

Cool!

Did the makeup lady sense you were about to put your foot in your mouth, or was this coincidental?

[electricland.livejournal.com]

hey, that counts! relatives totally count!

and if you think of something for yourself, you can always come back.

[electricland.livejournal.com]

that counts too!