Leave Celebrities Alone at Shows

[Kelly2]

It seems like some people in this thread have a loose definition of celebrity. Theatre "celebs" are famous in about 20 blocks of Manhattan and nowhere else and bothering them when you see them outside a show (or outside the theatre district) is rude, for sure, as they're people and they're not at work so they have no obligation to be "on" because you want them to be. However, if you stop Sutton Foster at the Time Warner Center, it's unlikely to cause a massive disturbance.

However, if you stop someone like Julia Roberts or Morgan Freeman and other people begin to notice them, it can escalate and create and unsafe situation very quickly. I think it's in incredibly poor taste to do that. Celebrities who are comfortable with interaction with fans often do things like book signings, come out after shows and sign, etc. and celebrities who are not generally prefer to be left alone. No matter how they make their money, they are still people and it's pretty lame and gauche to demand an autograph when someone's trying to do their laundry.

Oh, and if you stop every celeb you see on the street, you are DEFINITELY from out of town.

[GavestonPS]

Good point, Kelly2. A star of the wattage of a Julia Roberts attracting public attention is quite different from my brief conversation with Conchata Ferrill in the FOLLIES mezzanine. (No offense to Miss Ferrill. I have loved her work for 4 decades and she could not have been nicer.)

That's why PalJoey's system is so clever. You get to make brief contact ("Nice to see you, Miss Roberts") but you don't create a situation that is likely to spin out of control.

Speaking of which, I would NEVER address a celebrity I don't know personally with anything but Mr./Mrs. ________ or Miss _________ (for professional names). If nothing else, the use of the more formal address signals the celebrity that you know enough to be respectful and keep a little distance.

[robinycus2]

me neither

[robinycus2]

I highly doubt Angela Lansbury knows who Lea Michelle is... thank God.

[jv92]

Even better!

Barbra Streisand should say the following to Lea Michele, "Excuse me? Who are you?"

THEN what would happen?

[Damiensta]

Favorite Faye dunway moment happened this summer on 9 th ave on weekend her yelling at someone "new Yorkers ae the rudest" I wanted to yell " no more wire hanger" when I realized it was her.

[Jordan Catalano]

Faye likes when people quote MOMMIE DEAREST to her. Trust me.

[Wynbish]

"Are you mad at the dirt, Faye? I bet you're mad at it. The dirty dirt."

[jv92]

I might have to seek her out and tell her, "Don't fvck with me fellas! This ain't my first time at the rodeo!" if you say so Jordan.

[Lavieboheme3090]

I once heard Julie Benz, who while not certainly a household name is someone whose work I have always enjoyed, tell a story about how she and her boyfriend were flying home from France and her boyfriend caught the flu. She was running around the airplane asking people for airsick bags to give her boyfriend, just as an episode on Desperate Housewives she had guest stared on came. So she was running around the airplane nursing her poor sick boyfriend while posing for pictures and signing autographs for people on the plane.

[Kad]

I was at the Book of Mormon the same night Sandra Bullock was, last spring. I felt bad for the woman- not because of fans, but because of a crowd of paparazzi that had learned of her presence and were waiting for her outside.

A lot of people don't realize that tweeting about a celebrity's presence at a location could tip off the paparazzi. Thanks to the Internet, they don't need inside sources- just social networks.

[Playbilly]

Poor stars bothered by the fans who keep them working. BAH! If they wanted obscurity then should have been accountants.

Beaty in NASHVILLE : "That's the price of success."

[Kelly2]

"Poor stars bothered by the fans who keep them working. BAH! If they wanted obscurity then should have been accountants."

So they've now forfeited their right to be human beings and to want to be safe? New York is a dense city that is constantly full of people, creating a disturbance is not always the best idea depending on the location and situation. Also, seriously, your selfish desire to improve your autograph collection is not the chief concern of everyone's life, nor should it be.

[ClumsyDude15]

I am reluctant to interrupt the Lea Michelle hate, but, ClumsyDude, isn't the point of your story that when she realized you weren't just interrupting her conversation to demand a favor and you actually needed to get by, she was not only accommodating but apologetic? Forgive me, but I think she comes off rather well in that tale.

Oh, absolutely - she did come off well, but it initially began with her having the usual Lea Michele attitude because she simply believes that everyone is looking at her.

I only said it was the flip side, because unlike my previous story about Sarah Jessica, Ms. Rachel Berry copped an attitude from the get-go.

[Wee Thomas2]

We bumped into Sutton Foster and Joel Grey at one of the final performances of Follies. We were walking to them and I said to Sutton, "I'm sorry to bother you, but wondered whether you really did keep the boots from "Trust" like you said you were going to". She laughed (Grey looked confused) and said she had, and we continued our separate ways.

Although if my wife hadn't been there with me I may have continued to follow her until this very day and then some.

[Patash]

My favorite celebrity at the theatre story -- Bob Hope and his wife were at a matinee performance of City of Angels. They were seated on the aisle, we were across the aisle and a couple rows back from them. After they were seated, Mr. Hope stood back up and sort of "paraded" in the aisle. He waved to people in the mezzanine. He walked over and shook hands with people seated near him. Some people came to him for autographs and he happily signed them. It all seemed like he was inviting the entire thing and he certainly was the center of attention.
But the weirdest part? After the intermission they never returned.

[yankeefan7]

ChiChi - His wife's name is Rita Wilson

[yankeefan7]

Many years ago, my wife and I were seeing "Phantom of the Opera" and it was before the invention of cell phones. It was our fisrt night out alone after our oldest daughter was born and my wife was calling home to check on how she did at home. Anyway, it turns out that the person on the pay phone before her was Martina Navritolova. She looked up and saw my wife waiting and said to her she will only be another minute and sorry my wife had to wait. My wife told her no problem and appreciated her thoughtfulness and let her go to her seat without bothering her.

[frogs_fan85]

One horrible incident I recall was closing night of Spamalot where poor David Hyde Pierce had a LINE of people going up the aisle to see him as he sat in his seat during intermission patiently signing autographs for people.

[GavestonPS]

Oh, absolutely - she did come off well, but it initially began with her having the usual Lea Michele attitude because she simply believes that everyone is looking at her.

Fair enough. It's hard for me to imagine what it would be like to try to have any semblance of a normal life when every stranger may feel entitled to take some of your time. I don't know how often Miss Michelle is stopped, but I'm guessing she is more popular in the outside world than she is here.

[Jane2]

One night, Richard Gere attended a play, and was conversing with the playwright and lead actor in the lobby after the play. Some rabid fan ran over to Gere, ignoring the fact that he was in conversation, and started gushing over him. Well, kudos to Gere for saying to the woman "Excuse me, this is the playwright and actor, it's their night, why not praise them?"

[ClumsyDude15]

Fair enough. It's hard for me to imagine what it would be like to try to have any semblance of a normal life when every stranger may feel entitled to take some of your time. I don't know how often Miss Michelle is stopped, but I'm guessing she is more popular in the outside world than she is here.

It's insane for her, I'm sure. A different night, she was at American Idiot, and her then boyfriend basically had to walk her through the theater to get her out without any kind of interruption from people. I don't generally like her, but everyone deserves their privacy. I'd say it's a toss up - it depends on where she is, but I'd say she's fairly well known in most circles.

[GavestonPS]

Makes sense to me, Dude. And I've already said it comes with the territory to some extent and I don't care to hear celebrities tell Jay Leno how difficult their lives are.

But as others have pointed out above, celebrities almost have to develop some set of defense mechanisms.

Many years ago when he was a big TV star, I got the "death stare" from Jack Klugman. This surprised me because while we weren't close friends, we were working at the same theater at the time. And while Klugman wasn't exactly warm and fuzzy, I had gone out of my way to help the man and his relatives who needed tickets.

Then I realized there was a crowd of patrons nearby and my saying "Good afternoon, Mr. Klugman" might well have meant that he would have to stop and chat with the paying customers. So I assumed he was in a hurry and had no other way of warning me not to say his name out loud. I mean, he couldn't exactly wave his arms or shout, "Don't talk to me!" without attracting the same attention he was trying to avoid.

As I said, he wasn't the nicest celebrity I ever worked with, but I decided he deserved a pass on the "death stare". (I will say it was one of the scariest faces I have ever seen. The man could act.)

[ClumsyDude15]

Oh, absolutely - I think there's a way to sort of balance it in a way - sort of a have your cake and eat it type thing, but they absolutely know and should be aware of what they're getting themselves into.

[showchoirguy]

I recently saw Michael McGrath outside the Imperial while waiting for my friends who were walking to the box office. Once I recognized it was him, I got up and congratulated him on his recent Tony Award win and I mentioned that I played the role of Chicago of "is He Dead? which he originated on Broadway'. He was so kind! After the show, he personalized my Playbill and wished me luck in the future. Undoubtedly one of the most nicest men I have ever met.

[GavestonPS]

True, ClumsyDude. And again at the risk of seeming to defend Michelle, she's had a lot of success at a very young age. She may still be trying to learn gracious ways to handle her fame.