Brush with greatness

[PeppyGPhiB]

Well, going to college in Malibu meant I had many brushes with the famous.

- Waved at Axl Rose while we were sitting next to each other at a traffic light on PCH - he waved back.
- When wildfires came into town in '96 and many of us evacuated from campus, ARNOLD was out directing traffic on PCH, his Hummer parked on the side of the road.
- I once had a conversation with Gabrielle Reece while in line at Blockbuster.
- I stood in line behind Pierce Brosnan at Sav-On - he was buying cat food, on sale.
- I saw Matt Leblanc (Joey from Friends) shopping at Ralphs, and he was putting a ton of those treated fire logs into his cart.
- I walked right past (seriously, inches away from) Kurt Russell, who was in our student center with his teen son and arguing with him over what he wanted out of the vending machine.
- Pam Anderson is a big Pepperdine Waves baseball fan and came to most of the home games.
- Madonna used to sometimes jog around our track - I have a photo of her from far away.
- Some friends and I ate breakfast at one of our favorite cafes, Marmalade, at the table next to Jane Krakowsky and Melina Kanakaredes.
- Tia and Tamara Mowery (Sister Sister) were in a couple of my college classes.
- I went to college with Fabian B. (Filthy Rich Cattle Drive) and a number of girls in my chapter were good friends of his, so he was around a lot.
- I went to high school with a girl from Survivor who was the first one to be kicked off her season.
- I met A-Rod and a number of other Seattle Mariners back when they still played here.
- Since Ken Starr is now the Pepperdine law school dean, I met him at a talk he gave up here in Seattle recently.
- Tom Selleck was my graduation speaker!

Those are the ones I can think of right now, though I think very few of these can be called "great"

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by AKA_Monet

My grandfather was "semi famous" during his time.

He shook the hand of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and met Eleanor Roosevelt
He worked for Mary McLeod Bethune
He has a picture of President Gerald Ford and him together.
I was told Aretha Franklin sang what is now BCU...

Yes, he spoke to MLK and that whole crew...

As for me... Let's up that ante a little, who have you seriously kissed that's famous...

At the time, he was on his way "down", lol... Stanley Richard, FS, broke a UT Austin record, was called the Sheriff...

Yeah, I use to roll like that...

Damn..I forgot to add in:

- Sam Cassell and I lived in the same neighborhood and went to Dunbar Sr. High. We both graduated in 88.

- before he went to the School of the Arts, Tupac Shakur attended Dunbar in 86, he and my cousin were in the same homeroom, and no...he wasn't the deep thinking 'intelligent thug' that most people know and love...if you ever saw Juice, you can almost get an idea of how we was minus the toughness....hehe just imagine he ran around with a Gumby high top fade and a rat tail.

- Curly Neal from teh harlem Globetrotters also visted our school and gave a pep rally speech to our basketball team.

- I met Al Gore back in 1992 when he was still a senator as he stopped at Morgan State Univ. I got his pics some of which were published in our yearbook and I still have his autograph

[SWTXBelle]

I was on in 1992 - OUCH. My game sometimes shows on the gameshow network (if you see a blonde in a blue wool dress with Gamma Phi and Sigma Chi pins on - that's me!) - my WBSM episode was apparently on last month. As to dish, Tippie - I took the test in Houston. Out of 300 people, 12 passed the test. The Jeopardy! people then had us play mock games with bells. Out of those 12, 3 eventually were on the show.

They do NOT fly you out (because that would qualify as a prize), so my parents got me tickets with their frequent flier miles. We stayed with a friend for most of the time - stayed at a hotel (not paid for by the show) the night before. Had a great time at Disneyland with then-2 yr. old gypsyboots. THE SHOW - went into make-up, and were prepped. The studio is FREEZING. The pen to write your name with weighs a ton - that's why everyone's name looks so odd. I played against a Californian and a Floridian. I got two daily doubles - missed one, got the other. It films in real time, so when it is time for a commercial, studio goons come and stare at you so you won't cheat. Alex was over in the corner getting primped and practicing being condescending. The difference between playing along at home and being in the studio is that at home if you know the answer you shout it out. In the game, even if you know it, if you don't time your buzzer just right you are TOL. It's very frustrating. Final Jeopardy - I'm leading, but not by enough to win for sure. Category - Business and Industry. Answer - "This Montreal-based company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange as VO". Cue music - the other two players got it - Seagram's (no longer true, though). I did not. I studied in college instead of drinking. Watching at home, the husband of one of my sorority sisters said "She'll get it." Lisa wisely said, "No, she won't." Someone in the studio said "I was mentally sending you the answer!" I replied "There's my problem - I was asking God!". Sony security hustles you out of the studio - I had to beg to be allowed to make a phone call to get my husband to come pick me up. (He stayed in the hotel with gypsboots). Guy who won later was arrested for embezzling, and the Californian who was super nice gave me Universal Studios tickets which I gave to our Californian friend since we had to return home.

I got a home version of the game which no one would play with me, a case of Rice A Roni (all the same flavour!), a stereo system, cold medicine, and Silver Centrum which I refused because I didn't want to pay the taxes on vitamins I couldn't take. I came home and discovered I was pregnant with daughter #2 - yes, her middle name is Alexandra, but it has nothing to do with Alex, I swear!

[WinniBug]

I don't have many, but let's see....
Summer of 1994, on a school trip to DC, I met Heath Shuler in the airport (had no idea who he was, but all the guys wanted his autograph, so I got it too)
In 1996, I met Luke Perry; he had a house in Dickson and my dad was his vet. (Met him once at Dad's clinic, then went on a farm call to his house and met his wife)
In summer of 1999, I "tagged along" on my sister's high school French Club trip to Europe, and when we were in Paris, I saw Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen walk past, but no one believed me. After our tour of Notre Dame, we ended up out back, where they were actually filming a scene from their film, "Passport to Paris"
Then, 2 years ago, I saw Ty Pennington in the Chicago airport.

[SWTXBelle]

Oooo - Disney World - rode the Haunted Mansion elevator with the 3 kids from "8 Simple Rules", and saw Steve Irving's widow Terri and two kids at the Brown Derby Restaurant and walking down Main Street. I was impressed on Main Street - Bindi had OBVIOUSLY dressed herself and was blithely skipping.

[ISUKappa]

I got a kiss from a very drunk Dave Matthews when I was in college. That's about the only one.

[DolphinChicaDDD]

My latest brush with greatness: Flava Flav. At the Sydney Airport earlier this month. You should have seen him trying to get through security.

[AOII Angel]

I saw quite a few famous people on my first trip to NYC. We sat next to KORN at Nobu Next Door. Dining across from us were Natalie Portman and Gael Garcia Bernal as well as, Stephen Cojocaru at another table. I'm the only one who recognized any of them. Two nights later, I was standing outside my friends apartment building waiting for everyone else to come out when Julia Stiles walked right past me and made eye contact. I swear, she had a look on her face like, "Please don't recognize me!" I smiled and looked down the street.

[Benzgirl]

A lot of racecar drivers:

All of the Andrettis and Unsers,
Juan Pablo Montoya
Jimmy Vasser
Bobby Rahal
Alex Zinardi
Helio Castro-Neves
Gil de Ferran
Dario Franchitti
Paul Tracy
many others

Talked to Paul Newman several times at the track
Was in the restroom with Mary Kate Olson at Chateau Marmont
Bumped into Lara Flynn Boyle at Fred Segal
Was yelled at by Donald Sutherland for laughing too loud on the beach
Use to date a current US Senator when he was single (I'll keep mum on that one)
Brittney Spears father got us tickets to the OSU/USC Football game (he was BFF with my cousin at the time)
Having lunch when Zadrunis Ilgauskis walked in to pick up a cake (Cavalier's center)
Luke Perry and I were born at the same hospital (does that count?)

I'm sure I have a few more, but those are the only ones that I can remember in recent years.

[ADqtPiMel]

Originally Posted by Benzgirl

Use to date a current US Senator when he was single (I'll keep mum on that one)

If it's who I think it is based on your location, you're a lucky lady...

[Benzgirl]

I've known him since we were kids.

[ADqtPiMel]

Originally Posted by Benzgirl

I've known him since we were kids.

He's a dreamboat. Every female reporter I know has a thing for him (myself included).

[Benzgirl]

I never thought of him as a dreamboat, but he is quite charismatic.

[luv n tpa]

Hm let's see ...

Sarah Jessica Parker at the meet and greet for her line at Steve & Barry's in Manhattan Mall.

Bruce Springsteen brought his daughter to one of my performances of The Nutcracker at the Asbury Park Paramount Theatre/Convention Hall. They came back stage so she could meet the dancers.

The first year Hairspray was open, I saw it for my 16th birthday, and apparently it was a big charity night. After the show, they kept us all around for bidding to go backstage. Names like Oprah, Tom Cruise, and Rudy Giuliani were called out during bidding. We ran into Adam Sandler outside the theatre.

Summer 08, my then-boyfriend and I went to SoHo for a day. Walking there, we passed a movie shoot, but thought nothing of it. On our way back, a very tall, brunette and disheveled-looking woman and I accidentally hit each other as we walked past the shoot. For a half second, I thought it could have been Uma Thurman, but I thought she looked more like part of the crew than someone on screen. Lo and behold, a few days later, I was perusing trash magazines and there was a photograph of Uma Thurman, looking like she did, on the set of Motherhood.

I also briefly worked on a Jersey Shore beach this summer. Susan Sarandon and Pierce Brosnan were shooting a movie in a rented house at my walkway. Pierce must be extremely photogenic - he looks about 10 years older in person. He was nice, we took a picture, but was rather irritable at my friend for being star-struck yelling "OMG I JUST MET JAMES BOND!" I was embarrassed for myself and for her.

[PANTHERTEKE]

Um.... I went to high school with one of those annoying Cuban girls on My Super Sweet Sixteen.