Encounters With Celebrities/Eli Davidson

Eli Davidson is a blogger for the Huffington Post as well as a motivational speaker. I met her yesterday while walking in the Grove mall and while she was looking for a Michael Kors store. I thought that I would be helpful so I directed her towards the store while discovering who she was for I failed to recognize her. It was one of those moments when you are caught with your pants down..... so to speak.

She has a book out called Funky To Fabulous that has won numerous awards and has sold quite a few copies. It's a book about helping yourself in times when everything has come to pass and the challenges seem evident. That's the kind of thinking that I encompass. I'll take on a challenge at any time and I'm the type of person who turns a bad situation into a good one....if you know what I mean....but with perspective as well as a good perception of what is going on around me.

Part of success is being prepared with the tools as well as the information that a person might need while taking on the task at hand. I've always like to be organized so that when things are flipped around then I can stand up to the challenge...but sometimes it's good to just become neutral....sort of like being in a meditative state.....as things just might be a bit out your control....and then a storm of ideas or whatever it is that the person is waiting for....comes through. I guess it's like quieting your mind.

Her blog features helpful tips for women and is fun to read. It can be a ruthless world out there if you're not prepared and people most certainly have to take the bull by the horns only to swing it around a few times so that it becomes dizzy. I absolutely love it when people take charge but loathe when people use that ability to make other people's lives nearly impossible to live.....but that's part of the process of evolution.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eli-davidson/why-women-dont-get-what-t_b_847656.html

Encounters With Celebrities/Andre' Leon Talley

Andre' Leon Talley is a contributing editor for Vogue magazine and I met him when he was going to Joan's On Third in Southern California. He was with his tennis coach and as soon as I saw him was when I rushed over to say hi. I recognized him because I do follow fashion and he is well-known in the fashion industry.

He is currently a judge on America's Top Model...which is a talent show featuring women who compete against each other for a lucrative modeling contract. I was excited to meet him because he always is seen as dressing in top form..... which is something that I admire in someone....style is important.

Fashion is important to me and I adore people in fashion for their tenacity as well as scrutiny. Some people in fashion can be ruthless but it is an extraordinarily competitive industry where emotions run high like water rushing through a city to flood everything.

I would sometimes crash parties and shows that were being put on during the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in New York City. It is put on twice a year there as well as other metropolitan places throughout the world where fashion is prevalent.

I did attend fashion school for two weeks after being dropped from a culinary arts program and after losing my job at a brassiere due to the World Trade Center Tragedy but I quickly found out that going to that fashion school was not for me.  It takes a tremendous amount of skill with good eye and hand coordination. It's kind of like cooking.

Encounters With Celebrities/Will Smith

Will Smith was filming a movie when I met him.... although...I forget which one he was doing. It was in the Meat-packing District in New York City a few years ago and he was pretty much by himself with one bodyguard with him.

He was approachable and nice while sitting in front of his two story trailer that he takes with him everywhere whenever he is shooting. The trailer is huge! I have no idea how they lug it around when necessary. I said hi to him as he was taking a break from shooting the movie that he was doing.

I had forgotten to ask him what movie it was that he was doing but I guess it was because I was a bit starstruck. I grew up watching him on television as the Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air which was a great show. I am also a fan of him movies as well. My favorite is Six Degrees Of Separation in which he plays a hustler or con man-type who needles his way into people's homes. I also liked watching Men In Black and the sequel to it as well.

He seems to be the quintessential movie star who everybody likes because he does have huge box-office draw. Independence Day was another fantastic movie in which he plays someone from the military who is assigned to go after the aliens after they have attacked the world and want to take it over.

He is currently working on the third sequel for Men In Black.... which will be filmed in 3-D. His daughter is garnering success now as a performer and is known as Willow Smith as well as his son who is Jaden Smith. He starred in the revision of the Karate Kid and I am sure that there will be sequels to come.

Encounters With Celebrities/Robert Downey Junior

Robert Downey Jr. is one of my more favorite celebrities...partly because of his enigmatic screen presence ....but also because he one of those people who rocked out in the '90's. I met him a few years ago in Santa Monica while he was talking on his cell phone.....so it was a bit weird because I got excited when I saw him and he didn't want to be disturbed while he was on his phone. I was surprised that he was tall because the screen makes him seem short. My favorite film of his is the Oliver Stone movie called Natural Born Killers that came out in the '90's when he played a spastic journalist who was covering the antics of Mickey and Mallory Knox.

The scenes were hilarious because here was a journalist who was in the midst of a riot and chugging along while dodging the two emphatic serial killers. Robert Downey Jr. was going through a difficult time in the '90's when he was arrested numerous times for his rebellious attitude which was well publicized.....along with Johnny Depp's. The '90's were a time for trashing hotel rooms and being the rock star or any type of star....for that matter. It seems as if those days have lingered away. Where are those rebellious people?

Encounters With Celebrities/Tracy Chapman

Tracy Chapman recorded in the Sony Music Studios as well....and along with Jennifer Lopez...among others. The clients who recorded there were high-profile so I had to do my best to cater to them.....but all that Tracy Chapman wanted was some popcorn.

That was easy to come up with. I guess that she was there to work on a new album and this was back in 2000. I just simply heated up the popcorn in a microwave oven and placed the bag unopened into a black container so that it would still be hot when she got it. I wouldn't want her to eat cold popcorn!

She eventually left.... but the limo driver was not prepared for her because he was not in front of the building when it was raining outside! She refused to leave the building until the limo was parked directly in front of it. I wouldn't have either....know what I'm sayin'? The facility had numerous recording studios along with a sound stage as well as mastering rooms. It was a huge place!

Encounters With Celebrities/Domenico Dolce

He had a private party once in a place called the Whiskey Bar.... which is in New York City .... and I crashed the place by expressing to the gorgeous doorman that I was already inside. The staff inside didn't seem to notice that I was an outsider....in fact.... they seemed to have loved it.

It was a great experience for me to be able to get inside because I do admire Domenico Dolce's work.... but I had no idea that he was inside.....which made the experience even better.....know what I'm sayin'? It's always cool to be surprised....uh... no...wait a minute...it's not.... because it could be a surprise like the police showing up at your door step with a search warrant while you're taking a shit on the toilet in your bathroom. Ewwww.

I got to meet Domenico once I was inside and once I received a bottle of beer from the open bar...but I was wearing a Junior Versace jacket! Oy! How funny is that?! It was insanely fucken funny! I was dancing right in front of the DJ while Domenico was watching me....sans bodyguards....and I showed him the patch that was on the jacket with the Junior Versace insignia on it. He did not seem disappointed though.... because I guess that he was a fan of Gianni Versace as well.

He didn't stay for long...though... and eventually made it into his Turtle Top....which is a plush vehicle that is customized.....know what I'm sayin'? It's the only way to ride. I stayed for a bit longer but eventually got thrown out when the manager chick realized that I wasn't invited. I have no idea what she meant when she asked me if I needed anything..... except maybe that she was referring to coke..... which is popular at those types of parties.

Encounters With Celebrities/Benicio Del Toro

I was sitting on a bench that was in front of the Mercer Hotel which is on Mercer Street in New York City so that I could rest my feet when I see a man who is sitting in this Lincoln Town car. I instantly recognized him because Benicio Del Toro has a distinctive face but what was funny was that he was looking at me too. What was also funny was the way he was looking at me... as if he was concentrating on my face. Isn't that funny? One of my favorite movies that featured him is Traffic. It's about drugs and cops in Mexico.

I didn't want to say anything to him while he was looking at me because I just wasn't in the mood but I guess that I could've. I guess that it was another encounter that would be similar to Lauryn Hill's encounter... and I do catch people while they are staring at me from time to time. It doesn't bother me but what I find funny is the fact that some girls seem annoyed when I'm staring at them. I'll always look at a woman if I find her attractive. I'll look at her body from the front to the back and from head to toe...... know what I'm sayin'?

Encounters With Celebrities/Elliot Smith And Rick Allen Of Def Leppard

Yes... you read it right... I've had encounters with members of Def Leppard...... but on two separate occasions! Rock stars seem to like Santa Monica because I've met or have seen a lot of them there.... maybe it's because they were on their way to Malibu. I was sitting on a bench in Santa Monica that was along side a street on Santa Monica Boulevard when I met Joe Elliot.

He's the lead singer and was driving a gorgeous metallic-colored Ferrari convertible.... which is what I would be driving if I had that kind of money.... but what struck me as odd was the fact that some dude was sitting in the passenger seat with him. He looked kind of gay... perhaps like a twink... but with a beard. Joe Elliot looked at me and I was looking at the both of them while trying to sum things up.... because it was kind of weird. I guess that rock stars have their quirks... I mean... they have to... since they lead such interesting lives.

The other member of Def Leppard was Rick Allen. He had an unfortunate motorcycle accident ....a few years back...that left him with just one arm and it's amazing that he can still play the drums! They designed a special drum kit for him that would allow him to use the snare drum... but I don't know how he does it. I met him on Wishire Boulevard in Santa Monica when he was with his girlfriend and I think that his girlfriend plays guitar because she was carrying one. I can't imagine Rick Allen playing one.

Encounters With Celebrities/Howard Stern/Robin Quivers

Howard Stern always does things to the maximum.... so to speak... so a few years ago... he had a promotion for his new show. His idea was....uh.... to give a way...... ten.... thousand..... radios... of good quality...mind you...with one year of Sirius service... for free! Wow! It was all done in Union Square which is in New York City. I think that about 15,000 people showed up instead so not everyone got a radio but....... I got one! 

It was a fantastic radio and I absolutely love Sirius... which is now SiriusXm. I didn't like Xm radio for some reason. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the different channels that were available. The encounter only lasted for about two minutes and I was grateful for receiving such a gift.... how generous of him... but the actual reason why I showed up to get the radio was because.... I absolutely love his show! 

I've listened to his show every morning for a few years when he was on terrestrial radio.... how hilarious it is! I would simply laugh myself into a tizzy. The crowd was fairly tame despite the frenzy. It seemed like the give-a-way was organized well. Howard Stern stood on a stage and quipped with the crowd as his staff helped to hand out the radios. I'm sure that people were thankful and that the promotion garnered numerous subscriptions.... know what I'm sayin'?

Encounters With Celebrities/David Duchovny

I met him back a few years ago when he had just started doing Californication on HBO which they are filming all over Hollywood now. I needed a cup of coffee so I asked him for seventy-five cents and he said no! Ugh.... it sucks when people with money don't help out but I was mad for just a minute. Besides..... he wasn't obligated to help me out. He was with some guy and they were both waiting outside on a bench for a table. Can you believe that? What celebrity do you know who waits for a table? I'm not a celebrity and I wouldn't wait for a fucken table.... fuck that! I guess that he was pissed about waiting and maybe that's why he wouldn't give me seventy-five cents..... who knows. I got the coffee anyway.... so pooh!

Encounters With Celebrities/Ron Welty

Ron Welty was the drummer for the Offspring for a few years before starting his own band called Steady Ground after being booted by the other members of the Offspring. I've actually met all the members of the band when someone invited me to one of their concerts in San Francisco back when they were steaming hot. I got to meet them backstage after the show. The singer is tall and the show was fantastic.

Little did I know that I would be auditioning for Steady Ground a few years later. I got an email response to my craigslist.org ad that expressed their interest in bringing me in to audition but the audition went bust when I was attacked three weeks prior and left with a sprained knee. The song that I had to sing was alright but it was difficult to sing with all the pain that I was feeling which made me feel rather insecure in front of one of the biggest drummers in the world. The Offspring have sold millions of records.

I did not get to join the band called Steady Ground but I did get to meet the drummer. It was cool to stand in front of him as he pounded away on his drum set. I think back about that audition and think about the oddities of life. Part of the reason why I'm mentioning these encounters is because of how I think of life and happenstances of it. I just love it when two and two go together.

Encounters With Celebrities/Bryan Singer

This one happened in West Hollywood a few years back. I had a great night out and was leaving someone's apartment when I see a plant that's on the street without a pot. My first instinct is to rescue it so I pick it up while attempting to keep it intact. I make a pit stop at a Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf cafe and sit down at an outside table with a cup of coffee as well as the plant to think about what I should do with the poor plant when I realize that Bryan Singer is one table away from me with his staff of people.

At first I want to go to his table to say hello but feel like it's not a good idea to disturb him so I just sit at the table with the plant and cup of coffee to listen in on the conversation instead. It was hard to hear anything and I kept on glancing at him so I guess that I kind of freaked him out. Here's a guy who can make someone famous overnight..... know what I mean? They love to watch people and if they see someone who they think that they can turn into a star.... then believe me.... they'll approach you. It's usually not a good idea to approach them. I get the impression that they don't appreciate that..... but some successful people in the industry have done exactly that.

I guess that the group of people at the other table were kind of curious about the plant since it didn't have  a pot and I kept on pouring water onto it to keep it from drying up. Bryan Singer finally got up to get into his car when I hear one of his staff telling him that he has a new stalker and I had no idea of what they were talking about but I guess that's how some of those industry type think. I then got up and took the plant over to a supermarket that sold plants to give it to them. I told them to take care of it. Isn't that nice?

Encounters With Celebrities/Brian May

This encounter occurred a few years ago in Book Soup after a book discussion and signing. The signing was over by the time I had arrived but I still got to meet Brian May.......... while he was haggling with the store's employees about getting paid for the sales from the books. How funny is that? He stands at about six feet and three inches. He's also thin or waif-like and he still has those long curls.

Brian May recently obtained a degree in astrophysics and is a chancellor for a university in England. How cool is that? Most musicians have a high I.Q. because it's not easy to play the guitar so a high I.Q. is basically essential to the musician. I love Queen's music but it took me a while to warm up to them and it is unfortunate that Freddy Mercury did die but the man did live his life to the fullest extent. I'm sure that the band was devastated by the death.

Encounters With Celebrities/Benjamin Bratt

I walked into a store called R.E.I. a few years ago that is located in Santa Monica and the first thing that I see is this tall man who was dressed in synthetic fibers so I asked him if he worked there. I then realized that the tall man was Benjamin Bratt! He looked a bit annoyed when I asked him the question so I then apologized after realizing who he was. He was with his wife and kids.

How funny is that? I've had funny encounters like that before and sometimes I like to just play around with people. I'll ask a guy who works for UPS if he likes working for Fed Ex and vice versa. People can be touchy so I'm careful at times when talking to people on the street because you never know but they just might blow off their top on you. Ouch! I certainly don't want to be attacked by some crazed person.

Encounters With Celebrities/Heidi Fleiss

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Encounters With Celebrities/Erykah Badu

This particular encounter was exciting because of the way that I approached her.... which was from behind. The minute that I saw the wrap on her head was when I knew that it was her. She was sitting at a bar in West Hollywood on Sunset Boulevard and having a drink with a friend. I walked in and saw her and placed my arms around her waist while whispering her name softly to her into her ear. She didn't resist because she didn't sense any danger. I didn't think twice about approaching her and walked away after giving her a hug from behind.

Maybe I should have stayed.... who knows what might have happened .....but I figured that the hug was good enough. I go to the Sunset Strip from time to time but it's not what it used to be. There's the Viper Room which was bought from Johnny Depp and it kind of sucks now. Back then was when the place was alive and well with drum and bass nights that were attended by a snazzy crowd while the nights are filled with indie crowds now. They just don't excite me because to me me they seem contrived.

That sounds harsh but it's true. I was kicked out of the House Of Blues that's on the Sunset Strip for head banging. Someone complained because they thought that it was out of place when there was a rock band playing and I was enjoying myself to the fullest extent. Why should I hold myself back? Those types of instances are the reasons why I won't go to the Sunset Strip anymore but it was cool back in the '90's... before the World Trade Center tragedy.

Everything has changed since that day but maybe things will go back to the way they were now that the Al Qaeda leader has been assassinated. It seems to me that people are content with that military action and they also seem relieved. Maybe it's the music scene that's being micro-managed and causing people to act guarded in public but who knows. All I know is that I got to meet Erykah Badu in a sensual way. How many people can do that?

Encounters With Celebrities/Oksana Grigorieva

I met Mel Gibson's former girlfriend in Hollywood in a Subway store. I didn't recognize her at first so my reaction was subtle but there was a reaction from me because of her beauty. She was constantly in the news at that time and was holding their baby while ordering a sandwich. I held the door open for her thus encountering her..... but I would pretty much hold the door for anybody.... if I'm in a good mood and I was on that day.

It wasn't until a few minutes afterwards when I did a double take and finally recognized who she was. My immediate thought was to take a photo so that I could make a couple of hundred or thousand dollars....no... just kidding..... my immediate thought was that of sympathy rather. It's always unfortunate when a union is broken between a man and a woman with the child in the middle. Their baby's arms must be stretched out like Gumby's by now because of the tug-a-war for him.... I think the baby is a boy but I'm not sure.

I'm a fan of Mel Gibson's work and especially so ever since he came out with The Passion Of The Christ which was an incredible movie that he made a rightfully so fortune out of. Oksana Grigorieva is a musician and singer so my guess is that her career was helped by Mel Gibson since one of her songs was produced by him. She's rather tall and beautiful. If I was Mel Gibson then I wouldn't have any other way.

Encounters With Celebrities/Stevie Wonder

I was just leaving a Whole Foods supermarket in Beverly Hills today when I saw a man who had long hair that was braided with another man who was holding Stevie Wonder's hand. I instantly recognized the music artist because of the hair. His appearance just made people stop what they were doing to admire the man who wrote songs like Castles In The Sky.

I restrained myself from approaching him because it looked as if Stevie Wonder and his assistant were concentrating on walking through the parking lot to get to their Range Rover but I stopped myself to watch. It was kind of like an event because it's not everyday that you see a guy like Stevie Wonder out in public. I would imagine that he doesn't venture out much because of his stature and his blindness. He's also probably busy either making music or producing it.

He will be performing in the Monte Carlo Sporting Summer Music Festival http://www.rttnews.com/Content/EntertainmentNews.aspx?Section=2&Id=1614584&SM=1 along with Janet Jackson and Sting. His latest album was released about two years ago.... although I didn't like it much. He performed with John Legend after Michael Jackson died and stopped for a minute to cry in response the the late artist's death.

I would've too if I had did a song with Michael Jackson. They both did one that was called Just Good Friends and it was released in the eighties. I remember watching them perform it on Don Cornelius's Soul Train show which aired on Saturday mornings.

Encounters With Celebrities/Andy Dick

Yup.... I've met him as well... and I'm sure that a lot of people have. He's quite the character. Maybe he should do a show that's similar to what Charlie Sheen is doing and take it on tour. He was recently arrested for public intoxication but when I met him was when he seemed fine.

It was a few years ago when I was in a bar called Trunks in West Hollywood. It's one of those run of the mill types of places where regulars go to drink and to play pool.... but..... it's also the place where Sheryl Crow wrote her first hit song called All I Wanna Do. I can see why she wrote that song back in the nineties.

The bar was about to close when in walks Andy Dick. He then sits down at the bar and orders drinks for everybody...... how generous! I hugged him from behind because of that gesture. How many celebrities can you hug from behind?! Not many! I sort of followed him after the bar closed to see what else that he was going to do. He was social and just got into a car that took off.

Encounters With Celebrities/Jerry Seinfeld- Shoshanna Lonstein

This was one of more stranger encounters that I've had. It happened in 1996... I think..... in front of a Noah's Bagels in West Hollywood on a sunny day. I saw a gray Porsche and for some reason knew that it was Jerry Seinfeld who was driving it.... I guess it was instinct or something..... maybe it's a gift of some sort.... who knows.

I then left the place before I could actually see Jerry Seinfeld but came back a few minutes later because I guess that I wanted to get something from the place.... their bagels are delicious. As I was walking into the cafe..... him and his then girlfriend were sitting at a table and gave me the strangest look. I didn't know what to do but I got the impression that they were having a good time. They both looked at me as if they admired the way I looked... or something....I can't necessarily describe the look but it was a funny one nevertheless.

It was interesting time back in those days and it was also a time when Seinfeld was on television and doing extraordinarily well. It was an excellent show and I pretty much got the humor most of the time but what made it funny was the fact that the characters were vulnerable. The creator of the show who is Larry David will be in the new Three Stooges movie and he is playing a nun! Jerry Seinfeld went on to create an advertising agency and also produced an animated film about bees.... which I liked.

The movie made me like bees! How about that? Have you ever had a bee fly into your eye before.... though? I have had one fly into mine.... not fun. Ironically...... the restaurant where Jerry Seinfeld proposed to his current wife is the same restaurant where I ended up getting a job a few years later! Now..... I just need a show on television and it needs to be syndicated.