September 14, 2007
Up Close and Personal
Written by Kimberly Logan in Jaunty Post
About ten years ago, I attended a concert with a good friend of mine at the Louisville Motor Speedway. It was a spur of the moment thing, one of those free concerts where no tickets are required. You just show up and the early birds get the best seats. It turned out to be one of the more memorable concerts of my life. Why? Not only was the headliner my very favorite singer at the time, country music star Bryan White, but we were right up front, next to the stage. So close I could have reached out and touched him. Or at least, it felt that way, as you can see from the pics above. Sigh… The only way the day could have been any better was if I’d had the chance to meet him personally.
Unfortunately, that was my one and only close brush with a real celebrity, LOL. But I know people who claim they’ve had a bit more luck in that area than I have. One of my friends still waxes poetic about the time she met Donny Wahlberg backstage at a New Kids on the Block concert. She can describe in great detail exactly what he looked like that night, from the way he fixed his hair, to what clothes he was wearing, to how he smelled. Believe me, I’ve heard the tale more times than I can count. Another friend of mine swears he met actress Kirsten Dunst at a local convenience store when she was in the area shooting Elizabethtown a few years ago. (Yeah, I didn’t believe him either. It kind of ruined his credibility when he swore up and down that she asked for his phone number.)
So have you ever had the chance to meet anyone famous? Rubbed elbows with a celeb or shook hands with someone you admired? And if not, who would you like to meet if you could?
7:38 am | Share This
AndreaW Says:
Do my favorite authors count as celebrities? Because I think they do. I’ve met most of you Jaunty Quills ladies, but I’ve yet to meet you, Kim! Hopefully someday soon.
RobynDeHart Says:
I’ve been about as close to Martina McBride (my favorite) as you were to Bryan White. And when my mom and I were traveling home from the LA National (in 98) then we were on a waiting list for first class (she was a travel agent back then and got us an upgrade) but they waited to board us to see if these people would arrive and sure enough here comes Brooks and Dunn. We had to sit in coach, but hey, we got to see them up close and personal and I can say that Brooks and Dunn kicked me out of first class.
My mom, though, has the best story EVER. Back in the 80’s she and my dad used to go to Vegas at least once a year and one time she was in the gift shop waiting in line behind this guy who was talking to the sales clerk. The clerk went to look to see if something he wanted was in the back and so he turns to my mom and asks her if she’s tried these certain potato chips cause they’re his favorite and he orders them by the box and yada, yada, yada. So she’s chatting with him and (my mom is like that, gets a strangers family history in line at Hobby Lobby) and after a while he moves on and it’s her turn to check out. The cashier looks at her and says, “Do you even know who that was?” My mom says, “Nope.” And the cashier laughes. “THAT was Michael Jackson.”
Millie Bullock Says:
Favorite authors should definitely count, Andrea. I met a ton of them in Dallas this summer and it was a wonderful experience. My only other brush with celebrity was that I met James Marsters of Buffy fame at a fan convention near Chicago a few years ago. I was a hugh Buffy fan and I flew to visit my daughter and she drove me to the convention. Since I had driven her to a few concerts when she was a teenager, it was a total role reversal which gave us both a good laugh. James Marsters was utterly charming, polite and friendly to the fans, drop dead gorgeous and smelled really really good. {{Sigh}}
brownone Says:
Lets see…I grew up in California and the only two celebrities I ever saw was Benny Hill and Todd Bridges. Didn’t actually meet them, but I saw Benny Hill walking on Hollywood Boulevard and we saw Todd Bridges at a gas station.
Now, my husband and brother in law are always laughing at me. They say if Johnny Depp ever saw me he should run the other way! (I always get a mental picture of that scene in “Dead Man’s Chest” when he is running from the savages)
Shana Galen Says:
I’ve never really met anyone famous. Like Andrea, I wonder, do my favorite authors count?
You know, there’s no one I’m dying to meet. I don’t get all that excited about celebrities.
Christy H. Says:
Several years ago I was on a escalator going up when Donny Osmond was on the other side going down.
And, I was an extra on Touched By An Angel and I got to see Roma Downey and Della Reese (from afar). lol
Haven Rich Says:
I agree with Andrea, romance authors are more celebrity than most actor/ess are to me.
Anyhow, my husband has met Joey Lauren Adams (Big Daddy) and trust me, he LOVES sharing the story.
I’ve seen, from afar, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie…they live in New Orleans. Or rather, they have a house here they visit on occasion.
ladydawgfan Says:
Lemme see . . . I’ve met and shaken the hand of President Bush, have the autograph of Chubby Checker, have met Laurie Hickson-Smith from Trading Spaces, and met Sela Ward when she was working on a project with our Architecture school.
As for celeb spottings, I have spotted Meistro Seiji Ozawa in The Signiture Room at the top of the Hancock Building in Chicago, watched Judge Reinhold and a very young Fred Savage shoot a scene from “Vice Versa” in Chicago, and also, more recently, Jim Carey shot scenes from “Me, Myself, and Irene” at a motel just down the street from my home.
My favorite celeb story, though, is when I was sitting in a local mall in the late 80’s reading a Stephen King novel. Who should sit down next to me but Stephen King himself!!! We ended up having quite a long conversation about what I liked about the book, etc. The book was “The Eyes of the Dragon,” a real shift from what he usually wrote, and I think that he was trying to test the waters, so to speak.
Kimberly Logan Says:
Aww, that’s sweet, ladies. I’ve never really considered myself to be a celebrity, but I know I used to think of writers like Teresa Medeiros and Lisa Kleypas that way back before I was published myself.
Wow, Ladydawgfan! Stephen King himself? I’m impressed. I’ve always thought he was a marvelous writer, though I admit I’ve gotten away from reading him. I just haven’t liked his more recent work as much as his older books. I used to have an urge to see his house in Maine back when everyone used to talk about how his family always had it all decorated up and looking ghoulish. He must be a hoot at Halloween.
Helen Says:
I have met Anna Campbell and Stephanie Laurens and that is so awesome for me they are really nice Ladies very easy to talk to and made me feel at ease.
Have Fun
Helen
Shirley Karr Says:
My first author encounter was in a Denver airport waiting area in ‘96, on the way to my first RWA conference in Dallas. The poised woman across from me seemed familiar but I couldn’t quite place her. When she caught me looking she had a polite “Yes, I am who you think I am” smile but I was too nervous to approach. Later found out I could have chatted with Mary Balogh.
As I teen I got 20 feet from the stage when Ricky Nelson sang at the Douglas County Fair. It’s especially memorable because he died in a plane crash not long after.
Two high school friends worked at a gas station just off the freeway in Canyonville. They swore one night that a limo pulled in and out stepped Dan Ackroyd to stretch his legs. Moments later Dan’s wife, Donna Dixon, asked for the key to the ladies room. (Bosom Buddies was on TV at the time.)
For weeks after, the guys spent almost as much time rapsodizing about the limo (the headlights had wipers!) as they did the blonde bombshell. Dan who?
RobynDeHart Says:
Well, if we’re bragging about authors we’ve met, then I’ve met Johanna Lindsey and have an autograph to prove it. She’s painfully shy, but man was that ever cool!
Lacey Says:
I sold Casey Affleck a computer when I worked at Best Buy. He’s cute.
Kimberly Logan Says:
I’m appropriately impressed, Robyn. I’ve heard that sightings of the great JL are very rare.
Now, if I could choose who I would like to meet, you know Hugh Jackman would be very high on the list. Surprising, I know, LOL. You probably imagined I would want to meet someone important, like the president. Nah, just give me my Hugh and I would be happy.
I also admit to having a burning desire to attend the Supernatural/Buffy/Angel/Smallville convention in Chicago to meet Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, and Nicholas Brendan. And not just cause they’re good-looking either. I swear. Really.
Naomi Campbell Says:
Hi there…Man i love reading your blog, interesting posts ! it was a great Friday .