Famous People That Turned you off?

[grayhank]

And don't you just hate it when you've watched their houses for months (but stayed outside of the required 100 yard distance at all times) and you see them leave, so you innocently go into their houses ...(because if they really intended for you to stay out they would have more than five locks on their doors) ... and you just have a quick peek through all their dresser drawers and closets and you find that you are cold, so you put on their pajamas and you think "I'm really tired" so you just lay down in their beds for a little nap... maybe get up and make yourself a couple of sandwiches from their various leftovers in the fridge, so you decide well I might as well just sit down and look over some of their scripts while you eat, only to have them come home while you're there looking for stuff that looks like they were only gonna throw it out anyway and they yell put down my "Oscar" and they have the nerve to get MAD and chase you outta the house! What's up with that? Do you hear me BEN AFFLECK?!?

(was that perhaps a little too much information?)

[mitchedwards]

And don't you just hate it when you've watched their houses for months (but stayed outside of the required 100 yard distance at all times) and you see them leave, so you innocently go into their houses ...(because if they really intended for you to stay out they would have more than five locks on their doors) ... and you just have a quick peek through all their dresser drawers and closets and you find that you are cold, so you put on their pajamas and you think "I'm really tired" so you just lay down in their beds for a little nap... maybe get up and make yourself a couple of sandwiches from their various leftovers in the fridge, so you decide well I might as well just sit down and look over some of their scripts while you eat, only to have them come home while you're there looking for stuff that looks like they were only gonna throw it out anyway and they yell put down my "Oscar" and they have the nerve to get MAD and chase you outta the house! What's up with that? Do you hear me BEN AFFLECK?!?

(was that perhaps a little too much information?)

Thanks for the laugh

[namtab29]

i got to meet Margaret Cho because i did the art for her 2005 Revolution tour:



...i got tix to a show she did in Philly, and afterwards i got to meet her. i understand she was tired, having just come off stage about 15 mins before, but she could not have cared less about who i was, even after her manager excitedly told her i was the guy who did her tour art.

she barely cracked a smile and shook my hand, and then her manager awkwardly suggested someone take a pic of the two of us. so i sat next to her, and she looked like she wished i would just leave. ugh.

i didn't expect her to do handstands or anything, but it was a bit of a disappointment, since i thought i had done a good job and everyone was happy with my work(the t-shirt with my piece on it remained her best-selling shirt for years).

i've had the chance to do work involving famous people since, and a lot of the time part of the "bonus" offered to me is to get to maybe meet the famous person in person. i always politely pass and ask for more money instead.

rob!

[johnmiic]

And most don't like it when you walk up to them and say "hey, aren't you Steve Guttenberg?" (Even Steve Guttenburg won't admit that's who he is)

I used to get that from Roz Abrahms of Eyewitness news in NYC a lot. She would always shop in my store and say, I'm not her-I only look like Roz Abrahams! That's fine the first time but every time you shop in my store!?!?! You have a problem-get help lady. Wee - don't show her this post!

i got to meet Margaret Cho because i did the art for her 2005 Revolution tour:

she barely cracked a smile and shook my hand, and then her manager awkwardly suggested someone take a pic of the two of us. so i sat next to her, and she looked like she wished i would just leave. ugh.

rob!

Can you post that pic? I'd love to see that!

But alone at a table with exactly NO ONE asking for his autograpgh (and I do mean no one) was David Prowse. At one point the sponsors got on microphone and asked for fans who had a considerable wait for the other celebrities to take time to visit Mr. Prowse. That was the first and only time I've ever seen a guest at a convention completely ignored by a room filled to the brim with fans.

Prowse has a rep for having a bad temper at conventions. What he doesn't realize is when you act badly-word spreads and I guess nobody wants to deal with his BS. Someone else here once posted they also had a bad experience with him. Maybe the rep is un-deserved. It's possible he acts like that because he has himself been treated badly but I have yet to hear of anyone having a positive experience with him.

[Brown Bear]

Two celeb encounters stand out for me. First was Mr Dressup (Ernie Coombs). I was seven and my Dad was working the show and I met him afterwards. Dream come true for a 7yr old Canadian boy.

He ripped a poster down and signed it and even taped feathers and stuff from the show to the poster. Very nice man.

My second encounter was with wrestler Big John Studd. I was 11yrs old and thought he was so cool b/c he swore. I gave him a drawing I did for him and he said "Thanks kid, I keep all this sh*t"

RIP both of them.

[Hulk]

Bea Arthur turns me off. I mean jeez, if she doesn't look like a man in drag, who does? No, I've never met her.

[Mikey]

Adolf Hitler....
I never met the guy, but I bet he was a real jerkbag when asked to sign an autograph.

[palitoy]

. Scores lined up for "Mr. Chekov" who didn't make any effort to disguise the fact he was bored and tired.

I've had a lot of experience with Walter Koenig oddly, you're right, he's not one to suffer fools gladly. I roomed next to him one weekend and he sure knows them swears!

At the first con I went to, he signed for free, people were really taking advantage of him, rolling up with 10-50 items. Eventually he mentioned he had a plane to chat and a group of handicapped people were trapped behind some dealers. He signed one thing out of a dealer's stack and said "That's all you get, now Go!"

I really admired that.

But alone at a table with exactly NO ONE asking for his autograpgh (and I do mean no one) was David Prowse.

Yeah, that's what was going on here. it was 1993 and he wasn't busy. My wife (at her first con no less) wanted to meet Darth Vader, he let her stand there for 20 minutes while he chatted with somebody about nothing and then signed the picture for her but never acknowledged her. She was never rude, all she said was "hi" and he scowled at her and handed back the picture. It was the first half hour of the show, nice guy.

[Mikey]

Yeah, that's what was going on here. it was 1993 and he wasn't busy. My wife (at her first con no less) wanted to meet Darth Vader, he let her stand there for 20 minutes while he chatted with somebody about nothing and then signed the picture for her but never acknowledged her. She was never rude, all she said was "hi" and he scowled at her and handed back the picture. It was the first half hour of the show, nice guy.

That was exactly my experience with classic WWF wrestler Bruno Samartino.
I guess I blocked it out earlier

[Earth 2 Chris]

I actually spent the day with Prowse at the comic shop I worked at in Morehead, KY back in college (around 96-97). He was in for a signing and while he was a bit aloof, he was polite and didn't mind my asking him some questions, although I didn't bother him too much. Of course I was essentially his gopher for the day, so constantly getting him bottled water and lunch may have made him more tolerable of me. I've heard from others he's generally Sith-like at cons.

I was at Motor City Con in Detroit one year as a "professional guest". Even if you run comics off a xerox machine, you're considered a "pro". Anyway, me and my buddy were about the only two people in the complimentary room at the time, getting a bowl of chili. An entourage worthy of secret service walked by about 4 times in black suits, shades and ear pieces. Who were they with? Number One himself, Jonathan Frakes was with them, clad in a huge Hawaiin print shirt, and you could tell they were scoping the room out to make sure Riker wouldn't get accosted by Trekkies. I just knew they were about to throw us out. They came on in, surrounding Frakes like he was "traveller". They gave us a few dirty looks but we stayed the whole time and just smiled at them. I wasn't about to bug a guy gettin' his grub on anyway. As we walked out my buddy Mitch (who has absolutely no tact) said something about Frake's big shoulder pads not hiding his gut, rather loudly.

As I've said before, even if the celebrity is cool, his "people" are usually dillholes.


Chris

[livnxxxl]

It sounds to me that David Prowse (Darth Vader) was actually born to fit the part of Darth Vader perfectly.

Although I have never actually met Jennifer Anniston yet I hear that she is not very fan friendly. I can only hope that this really is not the case as I still would like to meet her some day. Other wise I cannot think of anyone that I have actually met that was a bad experience.

[Adam West]

Adolf Hitler....
I never met the guy, but I bet he was a real jerkbag when asked to sign an autograph.

Actually, I think he was so full of himself that he enjoyed signing autographs.

Remember when Indiana Jones unknowingly received his autograph in the last Indy flick? I think I remember reading somewhere that he enjoyed giving away autographs.

One of my most recent bad experiences occurred during Major League Soccer last year.

Attendance is not huge at games (with the exception of David Beckham last year), and there is definitely a fan/player interaction that exists that I think makes the MLS really enjoyable. I took my kids to a bunch of D.C. United Games last year and players would hang out after the game and sign autographs and chat with you for a few minutes.

Same thing with the opposing team. There really aren't a lot of fans trying to obtain autographs from the opposing teams players but there is a section to stand before the game starts and the players almost always come over and sign autographs.

My kids were trying to get Jozy Altidore's autograph before a Red Bull's game. He was standing 10 ft. from me and when I asked for an autograph for the kids (who were standing right by me), he wouldn't even look up at me and just walked back in the locker room. By contrast, Juan Paoblo Angel who is their star player walked right over without being beckoned and graciously signed autographs for anyone who wanted one.

[csstuba]

Magic Johnson-Sat next to him at a seafood house on Virginia Beach in July of 84. Seemed like a good dude, but tried his best not to be Magic Johnson.

Ken Foree-This guy rocks. Nice as could be, and is WGZK.

Best "celebrity" ever has to be former Cubs manager and 1979 AL MVP Don Baylor. I ran into him at a downtown STL mall during the opening week of the 2000 season. We stood and shot the sh&t for about 20 minutes. He would have stood there longer, but I was going to be late for work and I told him as much. Really nice laid back guy.

I saw Mark "Beastmaster" Singer at the 2004 San Diego Con, sitting all by his lonesome. Nobody around, looked really sad. Maybe even sleepy. So I didn't bother him.

Biggest D-Bag ever-Bob Gibson. I sat a row behind him on a flight a few years back, and the lady sitting the next seat over (he purchased 2 seats so that nobody would be right next to him) innocently asked him what he did for a living. Big mistake. If looks could kill......

[GreenLantern9999]

For me it was Lou Ferrigno, I always saw him at Wizard World Chicago sitting there all alone and I was always like "Holy man it is the HULK! One of these days I will go talk to him." Last year I decide I am totally gonna talk to Lou I bring my hulk DVD set to get singed and I go up there before the show even opened and he was sitting there looking board as hell so I go up and say hi and he kind of rolls his eye at me and I attempt striking up a short normal conversation with him and he just looks at me and goes "*SIGH* did you want something signed?" and i show him the DVD and he goes, "Fifty bucks." My jaw nearly hit the floor and I said I didn't have that kind of cash on me, and he sighs and looks away from me and ignors me the rest of the time I am standing there. So I walk away saddened and have not had the urge to watch my Hulk DVD ever since.

[Earth 2 Chris]

For me it was Lou Ferrigno, I always saw him at Wizard World Chicago sitting there all alone and I was always like "Holy man it is the HULK! One of these days I will go talk to him." Last year I decide I am totally gonna talk to Lou I bring my hulk DVD set to get singed and I go up there before the show even opened and he was sitting there looking board as hell so I go up and say hi and he kind of rolls his eye at me and I attempt striking up a short normal conversation with him and he just looks at me and goes "*SIGH* did you want something signed?" and i show him the DVD and he goes, "Fifty bucks." My jaw nearly hit the floor and I said I didn't have that kind of cash on me, and he sighs and looks away from me and ignors me the rest of the time I am standing there. So I walk away saddened and have not had the urge to watch my Hulk DVD ever since.

Man, that's too bad. You've got to kind of wonder why these guys go through with this if they personally detest it so much. They are sitting there gathering cobwebs, yet they shun the few fans who actually go out of their way to talk to them. Sad.

Chris