OT - famous people you've randomly seen in public
My list....
John Elway: Hotel lobby of the Amway Grand in GR.
Bug Selig: Amongst a crowd of people while leaving UM at Wisky in 1999. He was incredibly nice and I was suprised that nobody else recognized him.
Nick Nolte: Just before 2 AM in a downtown Pittsburgh pizza joint. He looked rough.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:33 PM ^
Dr J at a bookstore on North U when his daughter was looking at going to U of M('95 or '96).
Politicians in DC including the Clintons when Bill was in office and Newt Gingrinch.
Bob Ryan from Sports Reporters, Around the Horn and the TK Show at Metro Airport.
Pete Rose at the Ice Bar in Mandalay Bay. He signs autographs near there and came in to watch the end of the Dolphins/Broncos game. Stormed out cussing when the Broncos didn't stop em late to cover. Old habits die hard?
Phil Ivey (poker player) walking into Bellagio. My brother turned and yelled "hey Phil Ivey....I could read you like a book!!". Good thing we were leaving.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:35 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 4:38 PM ^
Ricky Williams, Sandra Bullock, Jesse James in restaurants.
Dennis Rodman in a bar.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:38 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 4:39 PM ^
Went down to the Silverdome with a friend of mine to watch the Detroit Lions outdoor training camp practices that were open daily to the public.
Unbelievably they didn't have security back in those days so after practice we would hang out in the team parking lot area and wait for the players to walk out to their vehicles after practice. There were only a few fans out there and a couple of times we were the only two people.
We ended up doing this about 4 or 5 times that summer and got some cool pictures taken with Chris Spielman, Barry Sanders, Benny Blades, William White, Mel Gray, Rodney Peete, Bob Gagliano, Mike Utley (before injury), Wayne Fontes, Marc Spindler and many others.
I still enjoy looking back at those photos from time to time but nowadays when I do the first thing that I notice was my mullet haircut (with my 'Back to Back NBA champion Detroit Bad Boys' hat barely on top of my head) and a real chessy looking moustache also. Hey what can I say it was 1990, LOL.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:43 PM ^
I'd like to add Carrot Top to my list. He was right behind us going through security at LAX in the spring.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:43 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 4:44 PM ^
Jason Segel used to hang out at The Arena during shooting for The Five Year engagement. I was working next door at Blue Tractor at the time. I never got to talk to him, but one of the girls that worked there said he was nice but really boring.
/coolstorybro
Also when I was very young (10 or so) I THINK I saw George Lucas at some hotel in Chicago, but never was able to verify if it was actually him. My 10 year old brain probably wasn't spot-on for recognizing people at the time.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:45 PM ^
When I was a kid I met actor Montgomery clift. When I was 12 I played in a pickup game with Pete mahovlich. Met former piston James Edwards 2 years ago-man is he big! met red wings Alex delvecchio, Ted Lindsey, & Tim cheveldae plus some other former nhl players. Delvecchio appeared in a fundraiser game my wife put on and he couldn't have been nicer, stayed afterward to sign autographs for kids. Coached against Lindsey in a youth travel league hockey game and he was very competitive during the game but very gracious and complimentary aftward. While cruising the north channel we saw mel Gibson and family near drummond island on an 80 foot yacht maybe 15 or so years ago and they waved at us but no they didn't invite us aboard for drinks-lol. Met michigan congresswoman Candice Miller in a professional capacity and I have nothing but positive things to say about her.
August 16th, 2015 at 6:32 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 4:47 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 4:53 PM ^
Davie Grohl at Cake Bread Winery in Napa.
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August 16th, 2015 at 4:54 PM ^
Loads of UM and USC athletes from time on campus, but not so "random" I suppose.
Charles Martin Smith (Terry The Toad from "American Graffiti" and the IRS agent in "The Untouchables) at Cabo Cantina in LA. I was drunk as fuck and kept telling him how awesome "The Buddy Holly Story" is (he played one of the Crickets).
Willie McGinest at Mandalay Bay in Vegas. After the 2009 game against Iowa he yelled "Michigan sucks" at me before boarding an elevator.
Hugh Hefner at Disneyland. Was with about 6-8 stunners. Nice enough to take a picture with me and my stoned high school buddies. Did not let us near the girls.
Ron Jeremy at Hard Rock in Vegas. Again, nice enough to take picture. Declined to go to strip club with us. Went to titty bar with my buddy (with fake ID at the time) and slept through Jan. 1, 2003 bowl win over Florida.
Jaromir Jagr at MGM Grand sportsbook. He was just hanging out smoking menthols by himself and we didn't bother him.
TL:DR, I need to go to Vegas more often.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:58 PM ^
Give a heads up before you go....
August 16th, 2015 at 5:07 PM ^
Been going every year for March Madness since 2007, but haven't run across any celebs other than Pete Rose signing autographs at Mandalay Bay. He is awesome though. Always watching horse racing on his phone and trying to get tips on which b-ball teams to bet heavy.
August 16th, 2015 at 4:58 PM ^
Bo: Feb 1987 when he spoke at my school - US Naval Academy honoring our former coach Eliott Uzelac
Bo again: at DTW after the ND game where we crushed them 38-zippy. Bo said that was smallest, slowest and weakest ND team ever. Great convo with him. His wife had to usher him to his plane cuz he just kept talking. Awesome experience!
Jack Harbaugh: Gave a motivational speech at our office.
Arnold: smoking a cigar getting into a rick-shaw in Hawaii.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:04 PM ^
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August 16th, 2015 at 5:05 PM ^
Gene Hackman at a small grocery store in Santa Fe, NM.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:08 PM ^
I attended Miami (NTM) and met Wally Szczerbiak and Ben Roethlisberger.
Bronson Arroyo and Kevin Youkilis in bars in Cincinnati.
Rusty Staub (Expos/Mets baseball player from the late 60's to early 80's) golfing in Ireland in 2006.
Gene Simmons at Mardi Gras in 2003 I think.
Steve-O of Jackass fame in Cancun, 2002.
Former baseball player Tim Belcher multiple times (he's from a small-town in central Ohio).
And the most famous (infamous?)...Dog the Bounty Hunter and his crew in Albuquerque.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:06 PM ^
Howard Stern in a bathroom at a restaurant in NYC. He was at the urinal next to me. I had him sign a paper towel.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:07 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 5:07 PM ^
I was about ten feet away from him and couldn't get over how small he looked. It probably didn't help that he was standing next to a few very large bodyguards also.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:07 PM ^
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August 16th, 2015 at 5:07 PM ^
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August 16th, 2015 at 5:08 PM ^
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August 16th, 2015 at 5:09 PM ^
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August 16th, 2015 at 5:09 PM ^
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August 16th, 2015 at 5:09 PM ^
Jesse Ventura at 4 a.m. in the Cleveland Amtrax station. He was dressed in army fatigues and talking about not flying anymore because 9/11 was a huge conspiracy.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:13 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 5:43 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 5:13 PM ^
My list:
I met Jeff Blashill (New Red Wings coach) at a co-workers daughter's open house last year. Super nice guy and talked with him for about 15 minutes while my daughters played with his daughter. It was right after he signed his new contract with the organization and it was a good talking point to start off with him.
I saw Mike Pizza at a restarurant in Vero Beach, Florida during Spring training many years ago. He had 2 hot females at his table so I just let him be.
I went to the same high school as former UM basketball player James Voskuil. I was in the 5th and 6th grade when he was on the varsity. I always found it cool during the summer basketball camps when he would work with us little mites that he would come into the gym and put on a nice dunking exhibition. As a little kid I would always high five him after a big win or a nice dunk he had during a game. I am not sure if he fits celebrity status, but I thought it would be a cool story.
Also, my wife went to horse camp with Tim Allen's daughter in Traverse City when she was a little girl and got to see him. She wanted me to add this into the post.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:14 PM ^
Will Smith during filming of a scene from I Am Legend in TriBeCa. Was super nice and took pics with the crowd in between takes.
Mathew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker on the subway. This was a while back even before Sex in the City
Jon Stewart walking with his kid in TriBeCa 5 or 6 years ago.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:16 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 5:17 PM ^
Jimmy Fallon at a bar, really cool guy
Seth Green playing ping pong
Ben Kingsley, Will Smith just walking down the street
Ben Stiller while directing night at the museum somewhere on the upper west side in New York.
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August 16th, 2015 at 5:17 PM ^
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August 16th, 2015 at 5:46 PM ^
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August 16th, 2015 at 5:18 PM ^
Jerry Rice is my idol and I was lucky enough to run into him after a high school football game I had in the RCA dome in Indianapolis when he was playing for the Raiders. He actually talked to me a good 20 minutes. I had 2 TD receptions so I challenged him to match me but he only had 1. Pretty neat experience.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:20 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 5:21 PM ^
Bill Laimbeer in checkout line at grocery story in Bloomfield Hills. Was buying a gallon of vinegar. That's it, just vinegar. I actually commented: "You drink a glass to get mean before games?" He just smiled.
Sting, walking down the street in NYC. Leather pants, leather jacket, sunglasses. Not many, but a few people on the street were recognizing him and surreptitiously pointing at him.
Touch me, I'm famous.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:22 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 5:22 PM ^
Scottie Pippen - sat with him in a suite at a bulls game. Really nice guy
Julia Louis-Dreyfus - in a hotel lobby in Chicago
DMX - on my plane flying from Frankfurt to Detroit
Jim Gaffigan - just hanging out on the sidewalk in Manhattan
Donald Trump - sat at table next to him for dinner in Manhattan
August 16th, 2015 at 5:30 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 5:23 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 5:30 PM ^
While I was living in NYC:
-Hope Davis while walking around in TriBeCa
-Rooney Mara at a subway station in Brooklyn
-Hillary Clinton in Central Park
-Ricky Gervais in the his SUV (stopped at a light while I was waiting at the crosswalk)
-Martin Scorsese on the Wolf of Wall Street film set
-Katherine Moennig in Brooklyn
-My next door neighbors: Jonathan Safron Foer and Jack Davenport (they lived in separate buildings)
While I was living in DC:
-Newt Gingrich giving an interview at 7 am on a street corner across from the Capitol Building
While I was living in London:
-Orlando Bloom regularly shopped at my grocery store in Chelsea
While living in Ann Arbor:
-Most of the football and basketball team because they all lived at West Quad while I was living there
-Howard Dean, John Kerry and John Edwards before a debate in Detroit during the '04 Democratic primaries
In Los Angeles:
-Jesse Eisenberg at LAX
August 16th, 2015 at 5:34 PM ^
Lyle Lovett on Capitol Hill - nice guy to talk to. Numerous Congressmen - some more famous then others. NYC always produces sightings: Eddie George at 30 Rock in NYC - one large fellow. Tom Cruise on the Upper West Side in NYC, walking by alone. John McEnroe hailed a cab right before I did by Penn Station.
August 16th, 2015 at 6:37 PM ^
August 16th, 2015 at 7:58 PM ^
Never met him.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:30 PM ^
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Flew into LAX w/him back in mid 90's.
Bruce Willis: Caesers Palace, when we had our Marine Corps ball there.
Tesla, the band not the inventor. While on leave in Sacramento (my bud's house) they stopped by to say hey. My friend went to school with them and knew them when they were a garage band.
August 16th, 2015 at 5:35 PM ^
Taylor
August 16th, 2015 at 5:38 PM ^
Stevie Van Zant: Stage deli in NYC
Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon: Restaurant in Hana, HI
Don King: Airport, Mexico City
Ever wonder why people give Don King money? I could never figure it out until I met him. He has a totally infectious personality.
Little Steven spent about 5 minutes talking to me and my Michigan housemate who was from NJ. Great guy!
We did not bother Yoko and Sean, who was about 10 at the time (1985).