eclectricity :: Catch A Rising Star

I coulda been the first Apprentice!

Last week, a friend and I had an interesting conversation where she revealed that one time back in the day she had actually once spent a half hour with Ben Savage, star of ABC's TGIF favorite Boy Meets World in an airport bar once. I couldn't believe I had known her for two years without her ever having divulged this fact, but after hearing her story, I had a weird reaction. I found myself strangely jealous. No, not because I'd ever in a million-years want to hang out with Ben Savage (although there was a point in my life I probably wouldn't have minded spending a half hour with the chick that played Topanga on that show...), but just the fact that she had a story about some actual one-on-one human interaction with a real life celebrity (I use that word as loosely as humanly possible...we are talking about Corey Matthews here...).

It did get me thinking though about how cool it would be hang out with someone really famous. I've always been somewhat celebrity obsessed. Probably ever since the point in my life, at around age 8 or so, where I made the switch from reading Highlights for Children to reading People while waiting in my pediatrician's office. Unfortunately though, I've never really had a really cool story to tell like that of any kind of personal connection with anyone famous. It's certainly not because of lack of opportunity though! I've had a number of brushes or near-brushes w/ the famous, but never really anything more than a few minutes or so. Thinking back though, I've combed my past for a timeline of some of my favorite somewhat brushes with celebrity:

I sign up for some sort of baseball seminar/autograph session featuring my childhood hero, Philadelphia Phillies Hall of Fame third basemen, Mike Schmidt. I look forward to the event for about a month, thinking about what I might say to him and what I'll do with the autograph he signs for me (I lean towards framing it, while illuminated by 3 table lamps). Unfortunately after we get to the event, I'm devastated to find out that Mike was unable to make it to the event, leaving me only with autographs of mediocre relief pitchers Tim Burke and (current Phillies color analyst) Larry Andersen. Neither one warrants a table lamp...I stick their autographs in the back of a drawer. My spirit is crushed.

Near the end of a tired and weary family trip to Atlantic City, a few of my aunts and cousins are waiting in the lobby of Donald Trump's new casino, the Taj Mahal, waiting for our dads/husbands to finish gambling. For some odd reason, about 85% of those at the casino seem to be Indian. Apparently, they all all feel some type of kinship to this particular casino because it's called the Taj Mahal (despite the fact that most of the decor is more Persian/Ali Baba and the Seven Thieves-esque than anything else). All of a sudden everyone starts getting up and pointing and taking pictures. It's the Donald himself! Walking through the lobby, with a number of body guards and even more attractive women around! The crowd whips up into a frenzy. I haven't seen this many Indians crowd around one person since I watched the film Gandhi. I get myself close enough to yell "HI MR. TRUMP!!!!" He ignores me and walks right past me to begin his night of fun, while I wait another 2 hours in the lobby.

My friend and I decide to hop on the ferry over to Camden, NJ to catch the Lilith Fair. The only (and I stress ONLY) reason I'd ever be caught dead at Lilith Fair is because my favorite singer of all time, Liz Phair, was playing the show and I had never seen her live before.. We have great seats near the front, and I'm right on one of the inner aisles. Liz is the first performer and the crowd could seem to care less. How dare they treat my Liz this way! My friend and I decide that we need to show her some support so we stand up and clap and cheer the whole short set long. After Liz, the next performer is Missy "Misdeameanor" Elliot. I guess the organizers wanted to try and get some diversity in the show this year with a few hip-hop artists playing at different shows, but again, sadly the crowd seems to be taking a nap until someone like Sarah McLaughlin comes on.

This angers me to no end, because Missy is putting on an UNBELIEVABLE set, complete with like 30 backup dancers, and a wardrobe change after every song. She even put on a replica of her famous "Michelin-man" get up while singing The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly). I couldn't believe it..the woman was wearing an inflated garbage bag in 100 degree heat and still nothing from the crowd!. I had enough. My friend and I decided she deserved more so again, we got up the whole time, hooting and hollering for her. At least someone had to give her some love. Then, during her last song, dressed up in a gangster-style pin stripe suit, she comes into the audience and stops at 2 or 3 seats and just starts dancing with people sitting on the aisles. Then I see her walking straight for me and stops right in front of me and my seat on the aisle. I don't know if she heard us cheering, or it was a random coincidence, but she starts dancing like crazy in front of me. Suddenly, I have as what could classify as an out of body experience, and start dancing. Dancing...like I've never DANCED before! With Missy Elliot! After about 30 seconds she wandered further into the crowd and I started laughing hysterically and screaming "CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT!!!". I'm usually not much of a dancer, but from what my friend later told me, at that moment..I looked like I could have been on The Grind. After her set, the Indigo Girls take the stage. The crowd goes insane.

My friend and I decide its time to take the ferry home.

Another Liz Phair concert at the TLA in Philly. This time, the first time I'd see her headlining! The concert was spectactular and afterwards me and a few people wait behind the TLA to try and get her autograph. We hear someone scream that she actually left out front and was headed to her tour bus. We sprint around the block to her bus and right before she gets on we catch her. Amazing. I'm standing right next to my favorite singer...a surreal moment for me. She was tired and just wanted to get home, so she only stayed for a few minutes and there wasn't really much interaction, although I DID get to exchange a few words with Liz, and she signs my CD cover of my favorite album of all time, Exile In Guyville. Immediately becomes the greatest night of my life (supplanting the night that the episode of Melrose Place aired when Marcia Cross took her wig off on the list.)

Getting off the subway at Broad and Olney in Philly on Election Day, I'm spot Philadelphia Mayoral Candidate John F. Street (D) taking polaroid pictures with the crowd and trying to get out the vote. Thinking it might be cool to have a picture with the future mayor of the city, I wait in line for a picture. The line takes for forever, I become bitter and decide not to vote for him. When I finally get up to the front of the line, I decide to rib him a little bit. He greets me with a big smile and handshake and says "Hi there, I'm trying to make sure that I can count on your vote today!" Right before the camera flashes, I tell him "What a coincidence! I only came over here to ask if I could count on your vote for Sam Katz (his opponent) today!" FLASH! He laughs awkwardly. His handlers quickly whisk him away. He got the last last laugh though, winning the election in a close race.

Getting off the subway at Broad and Olney (AGAIN!) in Philly on Election Day, I'm spot Philadelphia Mayor John F. Street taking polaroid pictures with the crowd and trying to get out the vote (AGAIN!). Talk about going to the well! Well if he was going to the well, so would I! I waited in line again for my picture. He greets me with a big smile and handshake and says "Well son, I'm trying to make sure that we have your support with voting for Vice President Gore today!" Right before the camera flashes, I tell him "What a coincidence Mr. Mayor, I just came over here to make sure I had YOUR support in voting for Governor Bush today!" FLASH! He laughs awkwardly. His handlers quickly whisk him away. We all know how the rest of that night ended.

I take the last exam of my college career, for a Political Science class with my favorite professor of all time, John DiIulio (who would in a few months get hired by the White House as the head of their office of Faith-Based Initiatives only to later resign.) When I hand in my exam, I tell him to make sure he checks out the last page of my blue book, where I had written a small note thanking him for being such a great professor and that it was wonderful knowing that my last exam would be for a class by the best teacher I've ever had. I get an A on the exam. If they gave out grades for ass-kissing, I likely would have gotten an A on that too.

Being the huge Food Network fan that I am, I was tremendously excited to hear that Stephen Starr was actually opening a restaurant in Philly with Iron Chef, Masahuru Morimoto! I was able to score an elusive reservation 9 days after opening, and was crossing my fingers hoping to actually meet Morimoto himself! The meal was transcendent. To this date it remains the best (and most expensive) meal I've ever had...but it was worth every single penny! While my girlfriend at the time and I we were finishing up dessert we noticed Morimoto walking around greeting some patrons! Would we be lucky enough to be graced with his presence? Why yes we would! It was him! The man himself! Right in front of us! MORIMOTO! He stopped at our table, long ponytail and all and still seemed a little uncomfortable making the social rounds, but was very pleasant. I was practically beaming when he asked in somewhat broken English "You like dinnah?" to which I replied "Oh my God, it was the most fantastic meal of my life! Thank you!" He smiled and nodded and said "Ahhhhh, thank you, thank you." My girlfriend excitedly threw in "We're really big fans of yours!" to which he smiled and nodded and said "Ahhhhh, thank you, thank you!" I kind of wanted to find some kind of personal connection with him though..something I could say other than the typical starstruck dinner patron, and then I noticed his pants that had red and green bell peppers all over them, so I said "I love your pants! Verrrry cool! Where can I get a pair like those?" to which he finally broke out and laughed and said "Ahhhhh, peppah! PEPPAH!!" and an employee standing behind him cheerfully chimed in "They're Ralph Lauren!" Who knew Ralph made clothes w/ vegetables on them (or are they fruit?). In any case a very cool night!

In another Food Network related meeting, I found out that super-perky host Rachael Ray was going to be signing her new cookbook right around the block from my office in downtown Philadelphia. She was signing from 12 to 1, and I had been desperately trying to get off the phone with a client but wasn't able to until around 12:55. I jetted downstairs and around the block into the store where she was and was crushed to see her packing up! I saw she had some kind of manager type person who was wandering around and asked her "Um, is it too late for Racheal to sign a cookbook for me?" Then amazingly, Rachael, who had been listening to the conversation said "Sure! Come on over! I always have time for a fan!" I was so happy. And the fact that everyone else was gone might mean this could finally be my chance to have some one on one time with an actual star (well Food Network star anyways) and an actual conversation! I started to think about all the interesting banter and lines I could regale her with. I started mentally sifting through all the great restaurants in Philly I could recommend she check out while she's here. And maybe she'd even invite me along! Unfortunately my plan unraveled after I became distracted thinking "Wow, she's a lot less stocky and a lot hotter than she is on TV!" After that thought entered my head, I really lost the ability to say much. She did sign my cookbook ("To Matt, Keep your pots hot!" which I'm sure she wrote about 137 times that day) and gave me a hug and took a picture with me which was nice. But before I knew it, I was out the door and back to work!

Another opporuntiy to hang out w/ a celebrity blown! Ugh! Well, actually now after typing that all and having some time to reflect and look back on that list, maybe I haven't done so bad after all. So maybe I haven't had a beer and a heart to heart with a sitcom star, but I do have a couple stories to tell of my near-misses. And at any rate, I'm getting closer...maybe this year will finally be my year to pal up w/ a celeb! And even if it doesn't happen, I guess thats's OK too. At least I'll never forget how to keep my pots.