Where did he say that he thought this didn’t happen in other countries?
I once waited on Jerome Bettis of the Pittsburgh Steelers at Kmart. It was the morning of the big playoff game (the Steeler lost, unfortunately).
That was pretty cool. He seemed kind of shy and uncomfortable-but he was very nice and polite. I think it was just the stress of the big game that day.
Well, yeah, but it’s IOWA for goodness sake. I’ve been to Des Moines (my company’s corporate offices are there - the big brick buildings way up on Locust Street…they print magazines) you can’t fool me - the town rolls up the sidewalks promptly at 5:45 PM on Weekdays. 
Seriously, though, this is cool - and it’s America at her best. I’ve run into both of my senators on airplanes coming and going to and from Portland. Both riding in coach, as they should. Most other notable people that I’ve met over the years have been too important not to have massive security present (or the events they’s been attending have been too big not to), so I don’t get much of a chance to see folks in a ‘natural’ setting.
However, the day Buzz Aldrin came to visit, signed my moon landing poster and just sat and talked about nothing in particular for a good half hour? THAT was cool.