I’ve had the good fortune to work in some really interesting places that might draw famous people out. For a number of years, I worked in a venue that did concerts, an 850 seat space with a little stage which shared a building with a popular comedy club. For a different number of years, I worked in radio. My degree is actually in radio/television, and I’m utilizing it in the fine, fine world of Internet technologies, because radio is a difficult space in which to make a career.
But I digress- this post isn’t about careers in broadcasting, it’s about famous people, and who I may or may not have met. I’ll list some of the fun ones, without getting into the details of where or when I met them. Mostly. And I’ll leave out convention meet-and-greets, because I’d be here all night writing more.
- Ben Folds – This was in the early days of his band, Ben Folds Five, and I didn’t know who he was yet. I’m the sort of weirdo who will sometimes talk to people in whatever space I find myself, and he was good natured about idle chit-chat from some random dude in the men’s room. I have more than one story about meeting famous people in rest-rooms, and this was the first one.
- Jimmy Buffett – I met this man twice, once when he was just going about his business, and the other time when he was doing a grand opening of one of his restaurants with a requisite live show. I did not find him to be charming or kind, and since it’s generally considered impolite to speak ill of the dead, I’ll just leave it there.
- Michael Winslow – You know, the guy who did all the sound effects in the Police Academy movies. In Spaceballs, he lost “the bleeps, the sweeps, and the creeps.” He was in town to do a comedy show, and he was making his noises even while offstage. He’s a very funny man.
- BB King – What a nice, nice man. He was meeting people after his concert, sitting in the front seat of the tour bus, and he took the time to chat a bit. Just a really nice guy.
- Weird Al Yankovic – Another meet-and-greet after one of his shows. He was exhausted from putting on one of his very frenetic concerts, but nice to everyone who lined up to meet him.
- Sugar Ray Leonard – I bumped into him in the hallway. That’s it, that’s the story.
- John Hodgman – This is the second “met him in the restroom” story. It was in a pub. In Edinburgh, Scotland. He was much less chill about being talked to in the restroom than Ben Folds, and honestly I don’t blame him. Americans abroad are a risky bunch.
- Lisa Loeb – Another one who was also very nice – she talked to the people working the venue for her show and took a genuine interest in them. And she made little abstract doodles on a notepad while she was on the phone.
- Marsha Warfield – Also while she was in town to do a comedy show. A lot of the comedians who I met during this gig were really genuinely nice people.
- Paulie Shore – He was not genuinely nice. Maybe he is now. Maybe I caught him on a bad night. This was the 1990s, so he was in peak The Weasel fame, so maybe that was a factor. Some people say he’s kind to his fans, but that wasn’t my impression.
- Dennis Wolfberg – This one is kind of a deep cut. Dennis is known for playing Dr. Irving “Gooshie” Gushman on the original Quantum Leap series, but he was also a stand-up comedian. And before that, he was a teacher. When Dennis came to town to do comedy, I was sent to pick him up from the hotel and bring him to the venue, and we chatted a little bit on the drive over. At the time, I was thinking I might wind up being a teacher, and he was enthusiastic about me going in that direction. Sadly, he passed away from cancer about two years later, at the age of 48. I hope I didn’t disappoint him too badly.
- Three fifths of N’Sync – The year was 1999. It was a special event run by Lucasfilm to do a media preview of the BRAND NEW Star Wars prequel movie, The Phantom Menace. Our tickets had holograms on them. I didn’t know who the individual members of N’Sync were, so I couldn’t even tell you which three members were in the restroom with me. And oh yeah, it was another “famous people in the restroom” story. Just this once, I did NOT try to strike up a conversation.
There have been more than this list contains. I’ve led a fairly weird and interesting life.
Whimsy. Tacos. The DMV. 