My Brushes with Fame

Everyone has what they call a brush with fame.  Once in a great while, you come across someone notable or famous, maybe some more than others depending on your job or the circles you run in.  I worked early in my career in hotels and restaurants, and every now and again, you were able to spy someone with star status.

The first one that I can recall is me!  When I was growing up there was a show called Dancin' on Air that was similar to the old American Bandstand show.  It was based in Philly, but I happened to be on vacation in Wildwood, NJ, when they took their show on the road.  I had brought a good friend of mine on vacation with me, and we decided to head over to where they were shooting and see if we could get in.  We were thrilled to have made the cut and managed to be famous for all of an hour while they were filming the show.  It was a hoot to watch everyone dancing and to be on TV so that you could watch yourself.  We had a ball and it was definitely one for the memory books.  Of course, I thought I was dancing fabulously as well!

As I was saying earlier, I worked in hotels and restaurants and managed to spy a few notable personalities in my tenure in hospitality. I used to work at a place called the Palace Hotel, and I can remember chatting briefly with Mr. Redd Foxx one day.  I don't remember too much other than I recognized him, and he had an incredibly raspy voice and a really wild hat. I also remember from rumors of the staff that he was quite the flirtatious fellow.

Another time, I remember that the front of the hotel was packed with undying fans for David Lee Roth.  It was rumored that he was in checking in and a crowd of groupies had assembled to try and catch sight of the Van Halen singer.  It kind of created a bit of the buzz amongst the staff because there was such anticipation from all the folks hanging out front--no other way to describe it other than infectious.  I happened to be there when he arrived, and he came in some kind of costume, but as he was walking in the hotel, he lifted  his disguise, which I believe was a hat and a wig, and winked and waved to the folks at the desk.  I thought it was awesome that he managed to slip by the huge crowd of fans out front.  I also found it amusing that they were rolling in huge amounts of liquor and beer on the luggage carts as well.  Guess these guys really did party hard.

Ann Jillian was another famous face that made her way through the doors.  She had just been battling with breast cancer, and I remember that she was very stunning and just seemed to imbue an air of class.  I never really got to have a personal interaction with most of these people, but it was still really fun to be a part of the vibe and catch a glimpse of them strolling by.

Star power doesn't always attract positive vibes. One situation I vividly remember began with someone who wasn't actually a guest.  Our hotel used to be situated across the street from the Four Seasons hotel.  The staff in our hotel were noting the tell tale sign of the Secret Service:  dark shades, dark suits and the obvious coiled wire behind their ears that may as well been a neon sign that indicated who they were. There was a team of guys that had checked into the hotel for about a week, and then the following week an entire crew took over an entire floor.  The phone bills alone that these guys racked up blew me away. We are talking thousands of dollars in incidentals like phones and meals--and that doesn't even count their own wiring and phone system that they brought along as well.  

As they neared the end of their tenure, we found that the reason for their stay was that President Elect Bush--not even the president for god's sakes!--was not staying in our hotel, but EATING LUNCH with a dignitary across the street in the Four Seasons.  I could barely wrap my head around the implications of that--as I could only imagine what kind of tax dollars the ACTUAL president was spending on this protection, then quantify it by all of the senators, representatives and other individuals that are serving our country must certainly be racking up on their protection detail.  Although I am all for having security for those in public office, as evidenced by such freak incidents as Gabrielle Giffords, the overkill of such security boggles my mind.

My last memory of my brush with fame, actually did involve bodily contact.  I was working for the Hyatt Hotels in Hilton Head as a banquet manager at the time, and there was an event running called the Renaissance that was billed as a gathering of the great minds coming together to discuss world wide issues.  The men with glasses, dark suits and coiled wires behind their ears had made their appearance again.  This time it was because Bill Clinton and his family had come to join this meeting of the minds.  I had a special warmth in my heart for Chelsea that week, because I distinctly remember that she had somehow managed to ditch her protection detail, no doubt to catch some rays somewhere unencumbered.  This earned her a certain amount of respect in my book--both because she wanted some privacy and because she actually managed to elude them.  

As the week came to an end, a huge banquet with all of the attendees was coming down to the ballroom to meet together.  It was somewhere in the area of 1,000 people if I remember correctly.  I was stationed by one of the doors for crowd control, when low and behold who should be strolling through my door but good old Clinton himself.  There was such huge wave of people, they were just kind of slithering into the entrance.  As I was holding the door, and Bill was making his way through the crowd, he stepped on my foot on the way by.  Not exactly the most envious way to come in contact with a public figure, but a notable one if nothing less.  I can say I was stepped on by none other than Bill Clinton.  How many people can say that?

So, even though I've had a couple brushes with fame, I'm one of those folks that believe that we are all made of the same stuff, and oddly enough we all need to eat, breathe and excrement in the same way regardless of how much fame or fortune befalls us.  So, yes, I've enjoyed my brushes with fame, but they really are just like you and me. Even if they might not be able to admit that to themselves, I know it for a fact, and don't know that I'd really treat someone famous all that much different than I try to treat everyone else.

Certainly you must have some brushes with fame that you'd like to share....