A funny coincidence came up when talking to CBS News about the 48 Hours|Mystery installment that just aired. I learned that the daughter of one of my father’s cousins is married to the nephew of CBS News veteran Morley Safer. This is her in September with Ron Howard, before he shaved for his video endorsing Barack Obama.
I would add that if somebody is always nice, and never difficult or surly, it’s possible if not likely that sometimes they’re putting on an act.
OK, granted, everyone has bad days. It’s just whenever someone mentions a nice time with a celebrity envariably someone comes along and says-well, I met this person and they were a total, fill in the blank, making your moment seem trivial. All I’m replying is I think I can tell when a person is honest and not putting on an act, and Rupert was genuinely nice to me.
Hey, everybody has off days. Unfortunately, if you happen to catch a performer one of those days, you’re left with a lasting impression, especially if they’re giving everybody the brush-off.
Before I saw Petula Clark live, Paul Howley told me he’d seen her last year, and he thought she wasn’t very good. I checked the concert information, and based on what Paul told me, I found out that he’d seen Petula’s second performance that day. She was 74, so I can understand why she may not have been at her best. When I saw Pet this past May, she was magical.
At my very first comic book convention, I approached one of the legends of the industry. The King, in fact. Jack Kirby. He was known for being considerate of fans, but when I walked up to say hi and thanks, he pushed me aside! Literally, he shoved me out of his way. Then I saw why. Another pro, another big name in the biz, Steranko, had been coming up behind me, and Jack got into a pretend fight stance like he was going to slug it out with Jim.
It was fun to see, but Kirby totally ignored me, and I was really put off by it. I harbored a small, lingering resentment for years, but later as I learned more about Kirby and his eccentricities, which in my opinion bordered on high functioning autism, I understood and accepted, and I came to realize that I’d been privileged to be witness to a great fanboy moment.
No, this was not an act. I’m not talking about a rock star with groupies hanging all over him and there was nothing dishonest going on. The ages are mentioned to show this was almost 30 years ago and I can’t see this mature man giving anyone a hard time and being nasty. He’s 61 now, for God’s sake and respected for his craft, not just a pop star living for the moment that can end too soon.
Joan wrote a nice story about Rupert Holmes, the man I met was not so nice, he was rude & nasty. Wouldn’t take a picture with me. It’s an act they put on.
Hi Jean! WOW! You have met alot of famous people! That’s cool! A celebrity I met was singer Rupert Holmes in 1980 at a concert in Lancaster when he was touring after his second hit “Him” was released behind “Escape (The Pina Colada Song)”. I was able to have my cousin, aunt, Mom and myself go backstage and meet him and his band. He was very nice, very approachable. I was able to get a picture with him and he signed a headshot photo and a record album cover for me and the ticket stubs that my mom and relatives had. I was 18 at the time and he was 33 and now he’s 61 and has had great success as a writer, playwright, composer and lyricist and has won I believe at least 2 Tony Awards. I’m happy for him and his success. Poor man did lose a daughter to a brain tumor, I believe. I apologize to Rupert if my memory is bad. I would have to check on his Wikipedia entry for the information to check on my accuracy. It’s cool though to meet celebrities who turn out to be the nicest people. 🙂
Don’t get me started, Joan! As I’ve said before, I’ve personally met five Nobel Laureates! It drives my husband and daughter crazy when I name-drop This year has certainly been fun, starting out with an unplanned trip to Bradenton, FL (business for Tom), and an unexpected walk on the beach in front of Stephen King’s winter home in the Florida Keys (I collected shells from the REAL “Duma Key” to put in from of my copy). Next up, shaking hands with Bill Clinton! Then, on June 1, none other than Ernest Borgnine woke me from a nap to thank me for sending him some photos of my late mother. I’ll stop there, but my celebrity connections go on forever! They are all true, but make me sound like that Jon Lovitz’s “compulsive liar” character. “Yeah, that’s the ticket!”
And Doug, in the spirit of Kevin Bacon’s commercial for Visa Check Card highlighting six degrees of separation, you could say you are related to Ron Howard through your Dad’s cousin’s daughter knowing him, and Morley Safer due to her marriage to his nephew. I jokingly say I’m related to Kevin Bacon because my best friend’s aunt used to babysit him! It would seem strange to say you changed Kevin Bacon’s diapers, but he may have been out of them when she babysat him. I can’t remember what June said his age was at the time. When you go thru your genealogy it can be surprising who you are related to because families used to be larger, and many people migrated through sea and air travel.