I found out something odd today. I went to school with Jackie Chan.
Jackie’s parents have, for years, run a suburban Chinese restaurant in Canberra, where I grew up. Everyone knew they were his parents because Jackie would come and stay in Canberra several times a year. He’d hang out at the restaurant and indulge all the kids who pestered him.
Recently Lee-Lee, Jackies mother died, and the funeral received lots of coverage in the Canberra Times. My mother sent me the piece because it revealed that Jackie had gone to school for a while and worked as a labourer in Canberra.
So, even though I don’t remember Jackie at Dickson, like mum says “how many people can say they went to school with a big star?”
I went to school with Tim Watson (Essendon AFL player). He was two years behind me in school - his sister Sharron was in my class, and they lived a few doors dow the road from us. His brother Larry also played for Essendon, as did Merv Neagle, who lived in the street behind ours.
My brother went to school with Doug Wade (another AFL player).
You lived in Dickson d_a? We lived in Ainslie for 10 years.
One of my classmates, Rowanne Brewer, became famous very briefly for dating Donald Trump during one of his many breakups with Marla before they got married.
She was I think 2 years ahead of me. I don’t believe I ever saw her on campus, since at the time she was working on the show “227”. But her picture was in the yearbook, along with those little ads and dedications in the back that you can buy.
I hear ya. I fear my classmates are more likely to become infamous than famous. I understand at least two of them have been frequently serving time for the last 7 years.
I went to college with Liz Phair; she was two years ahead of me at Oberlin. Didn’t know her at the time, but still.
I went to high school with Eric Heinberg, who is now one of the writer-directors of Sex in the City.
I went to college with David Moran, who is widely considered to be the best hammer dulcimer player in the world (obscure, I know).
And I went to junior high and high school with someone who could have been a famous basketball player, but he got seriously mixed up with drugs. His name was Richard Dumas, and I understand he actually did play a couple of seasons with Phoenix.
Lastly, a couple of “close encounters”: I was a year or two early to go to high school with Wayman Tisdale, who was a big basketball star in college (he played in the Olympics), and also played in the NBA for several seasons (not a big star there, more of a role player).
Also, I went to school with the younger brothers of Heather Langenkamp, who starred in the first Nightmare on Elm Street movie.
I went to the same high school as Darius Rucker of Hootie and the Blowfish. (Our school’s only claim to fame.) He graduated 10 years before me, though.
I also went to elementary school with Ashley Scott, who is apparently a model/actress now. Her brother was in class in 5th grade and she used to have to come sit with him until the bus came. She also used to date a very good friend of mine, but she’s moved on to dating Ashton Kutcher.
I went to high school with country music’s most over-inflated ego, Alan Jackson. He came back home to this small town last year and played a concert at the high school stadium so all the locals could gather to kiss his ass. His Mom and Dad went to his custom bus after the show…he wouldn’t let them in.
I went to grade school and high school with Ed Solomon, who wrote Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure and Men in Black, and with Lance Guest, star of The Last Starfighter. Steven Spielberg also attended my high school for a year.
You forgot to post about our classmate Michelle Wood, who also is apparently a model/actress now. Currently, she’s “starring” in the new Mickey D’s commercial. She’s the one with EXTREMELY fake looking blond hair who appears to be having an orgasm over her new chicken strips while the Spice Girls sing.
Not to sound overly bitter, but she used to copy off me during 8th grade history exams – where’s MY commercial?!
And you forgot to mention that we did attend school with Darius Rucker’s little brother who was pinched, and later expelled, for pushing drugs! CRACKed Rear View, indeed.
When I was a sophomore in high school, Nancy Reichert was a senior. She went on to become a Rockette, then a Golddigger in 1971. I heard that she did some bit parts on TV, but obviously she’s not a big name. And she wouldn’t know me from the man in the moon…
(Our school’s only claim to fame.) He graduated 10 years before me, though.