# minor anecdotes about famous people that creep you out. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 31, 2007, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620 "2007-08-31T14:59:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![DiggitCamara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df788c/32.png) [@DiggitCamara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiggitCamara)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/141 "2007-09-03T21:55:54Z")
[QUOTE=cbawlmer] Before. I think the column was one of the reasons he won the 1988 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary. _I remember thinking about that when we wrote his 9/11 column._ [/QUOTE] Underlining + italicizing mine. So… who are the people who comprise Dave Barry? Why would this committee simultaneously remember that episode yet still write that column? Inquiring minds want to know. (Hi, **Gaudere**!) ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/142 "2007-09-03T22:29:07Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] She ran a stop sign and killed somebody and the cops treated her like she was the victim. She should have at least been drunk tested. Defend her all you want, the bottom line is she’s the only First Lady who’s known to have taken a human life, and it occurred through her own negligence, not through some unfortunate fluke of circumstance. That’s creepy. If HRC had ever killed someone, it’s all conservatives would ever talk about. [/QUOTE] Whatever. And if she wasn’t married to someone you hate you wouldn’t think twice about it. Like I said most fatal accidents do not end in manslaughter charges. Because they are not manslaughter. Refute me if you can. How many fatal accidents have you investigated? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/143 "2007-09-03T22:34:43Z")
[QUOTE=Loach] Whatever. And if she wasn’t married to someone you hate you wouldn’t think twice about it. Like I said most fatal accidents do not end in manslaughter charges. Because they are not manslaughter. Refute me if you can. How many fatal accidents have you investigated? [/QUOTE] I didn’t say it was manslaughter, I said she killed somebody by her own negligence. You are welcome to call it whatever you want. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/144 "2007-09-03T22:40:58Z")
Guess you weren’t reading the other posts about it in this thread very carefully. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2007, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/145 "2007-09-03T23:08:55Z")
[QUOTE=Loach] Guess you weren’t reading the other posts about it in this thread very carefully. [/QUOTE] The other posts contradict nothing I’ve said. She killed somebody by her own negligence. Those facts are not in dispute. ---
**Author:** ![Martha\_Medea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@Martha\_Medea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martha_Medea)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/146 "2007-09-04T02:13:31Z")
John Lee Anderson’s biography of Che Guevara describes the teenage revolutionary hero having his way with the domestic help - on the kitchen table. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/147 "2007-09-04T02:45:28Z")
[QUOTE=Martha] John Lee Anderson’s biography of Che Guevara describes the teenage revolutionary hero having his way with the domestic help - on the kitchen table. :eek: [/QUOTE] That’s the least of the things about him that creep me out. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/148 "2007-09-04T04:27:18Z")
Interesting how Reeve’s private persona (along with several others in this thread) was 180 degrees from his public one. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/149 "2007-09-04T10:15:03Z")
While nothing’s been proven/he’s not been found guilty of anything, all of the anecdotes about wildly inappropriate behavior (specifically drugging & fondling) about Bill Cosby in recent years cast a pall when I see him (as do his shades [is there a medical reason he always wears them?] and increasing bitterness [he’s gone from curmudgeon to ‘old horse’s ass’ in recent years- perhaps a reaction to his son’s murder, but annoying nonetheless]). Of course Cosby idolized Groucho and when I see Groucho I think of him as an old man with an abusive young girlfriend who may have been the worst or best thing that ever happened to him- juries not out (it ruled against her) but some (including his brother) claimed she was good for him. John Wayne’s racist and misogynistic _Playboy_ interview (in which among other things he didn’t believe women and non-whites should have the right to vote) also flavors his movies (particularly when combined with the fact that for all his bluster and hatred against draft dodgers he filed for exemption from the armed forces). According to Dennis Hopper and other interviewees who worked with him, the quotes were not taken out of context (or at least they were indicative of the Wayne they knew). ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/150 "2007-09-04T10:38:37Z")
Friends and acquaintances I know who’ve gone to Trek & Sci/Fi Cons have never said one nice thing about Harlan Ellison (apparently one of the most obnoxious creatures in creation but won’t pass up a check for a Star Trek convention) with Dennis Koenig being a close second on the assholameter. OTOH, they had great things to say about George Takei (only bad thing I heard was that he gives the same speech at every convention), James Doohan, or Deforrest Kelley. Speak of the devil- googled up [this 1976 interview](http://trekmovie.com/2007/05/24/star-trek-interview-from-1976/) from Tom Snyder’s _Tomorrow_- 1976 where several Trek stars groan while Ellison bitches. (And damn, Doc McCoy smokes like a Rijel 5 Congo-bull mating with an Omicron XII Sela Moose.) ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/151 "2007-09-04T11:14:45Z")
During World War II, Selective Service Class III-A protected men with dependents from induction. John Wayne had as dependents his wife, his four children, and his mother. And he was 34 when the U.S. entered the war in December 1941. The Selective Service, which predicted that there would be a shortage of almost 450,000 in filling calls if fathers were not considered, abolished Class III-A as of October 1, 1943. Wayne was eligible to be drafted from that date until he turned 38 in May 1945. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/152 "2007-09-04T11:47:59Z")
[QUOTE=Walloon] During World War II, Selective Service Class III-A protected men with dependents from induction. John Wayne had as dependents his wife, his four children, and his mother. And he was 34 when the U.S. entered the war in December 1941. The Selective Service, which predicted that there would be a shortage of almost 450,000 in filling calls if fathers were not considered, abolished Class III-A as of October 1, 1943. Wayne was eligible to be drafted from that date until he turned 38 in May 1945. [/QUOTE] Henry Fonda enlisted at 37 with a wife and three kids. Wayne obtained 2-A classification, “deferred in support of [the] national . . . interest” after the 3-A classification was abolished. When the selective service revoked this classification his studio appealed and got it reinstated. [Cite.](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_004.html) ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/153 "2007-09-04T13:21:49Z")
> [@](#): > > Please tell me you’re joking. I don’t think anything bad happened in Las Vegas on September 11, did it? (Apart from the usual.) I’m with you. This whole, “The world must stop because of 9/11”, attitude bothers me. Sure, we talked about it. We were in awe of what was going on on the other side of the country, but unless you had a flight that day, your life was hardly affected. I understand that comedians such as Jay Leno and David Letterman did not want to be funny in the days after it. That was a potent gesture. For most of us though, life just went on as it had before. I paid money to see the concert I saw that day, and I wasn’t about to miss it, because they weren’t coming back anytime soon. It was one of the best concerts I’ve ever seen. ---
**Author:** ![cbawlmer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@cbawlmer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cbawlmer)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/154 "2007-09-04T15:01:02Z")
[QUOTE=DiggitCamara] So… who are the people who comprise Dave Barry? Why would this committee simultaneously remember that episode yet still write that column? [/QUOTE] Sorry about that. I meant to say, “I remember thinking about that when **he** wrote that column.” I suppose Barry didn’t think 15-year-old hate mail from douchebags was relevant to the situation at hand, so he went ahead and wrote another unfunny column. ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/155 "2007-09-04T15:08:30Z")
I’ve said it before, but: > [@Sampiro](#): > > I’ll never not be able to think “lived with one of the world’s most gorgeous women and cheated on her with a cheap street whore- boy has issues”. The guys around the office think that says more about Elizabeth Hurley puttin’ out than Hugh Grant being faithful. Kind of a ‘no matter how good lookin’ they are, there’s some guy out there sick of her Sh\*t.’ ---
**Author:** ![Elza\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Elza\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elza_B)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/156 "2007-09-04T15:12:19Z")
[QUOTE=DMark] However, beware of the the soap stars (egos the size of Montana) [/QUOTE] A few of 'em, yeah. Susan Lucci, for one. She’s locked herself in her dressing room while screaming ultimatums several times. Eileen Fulton is another one with an overinflated sense of her own talent - she’s dug her own grave when it comes to her character. But Kim Zimmer is one of the nicest, most down-to-earth women you’ll ever meet. I adore her and I’m pretty sure the feeling’s a standard one in the soap industry. The majority of soap stars aren’t that bad. But the ones that are can be horribly bad. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/157 "2007-09-04T16:44:18Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] The other posts contradict nothing I’ve said. She killed somebody by her own negligence. Those facts are not in dispute. [/QUOTE] Of course they are in dispute. The whole discussion here was about the fact that someone said she commited a crime and was never charged with it (not sure what your point might be if you weren’t trying to agree with that). Negligence has a very specific legal definition. It does not just mean “it was her fault”. Motor vehicle collisions occur because someone made an error. Most of the time that error does not rise to the level of criminal negligence. Most of the time the person at fault is not charged with a crime because they are not guilty of a crime. It seems to be the case here. I have never seen anything to refute that. Here is the part of the Wiki entry dealing with it: > [@](#): > > In 1963 Laura was involved in a car accident when she ran a stop sign and crashed into another car, killing a friend and classmate, Michael Dutton Douglas, who was driving the other car. According to the two-page accident report released by the city of Midland, neither driver was drinking, and no charges were filed.[1] An inexperienced driver (17) has an accident and kills a friend. A horrible tragedy. Anything more that you are reading into it comes from your own prejudice due to who she is married to. The incident certainly doesn’t rise to Ted Kennedy levels. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/158 "2007-09-04T16:52:48Z")
[QUOTE=Loach] Of course they are in dispute. The whole discussion here was about the fact that someone said she commited a crime and was never charged with it (not sure what your point might be if you weren’t trying to agree with that). Negligence has a very specific legal definition. It does not just mean “it was her fault”. Motor vehicle collisions occur because someone made an error. Most of the time that error does not rise to the level of criminal negligence. Most of the time the person at fault is not charged with a crime because they are not guilty of a crime. It seems to be the case here. I have never seen anything to refute that. Here is the part of the Wiki entry dealing with it: An inexperienced driver (17) has an accident and kills a friend. A horrible tragedy. Anything more that you are reading into it comes from your own prejudice due to who she is married to. The incident certainly doesn’t rise to Ted Kennedy levels. [/QUOTE] This totally supports my contention. There is no dispute whatsoever that she a.) ran a stop sign (which is negligent) and b.) killed somebody as a result. So, as I said THERE IS NO DISPUTE that Laura Bush killed somebody as result of her own negligence. And not that Ted Kennedy is relevant to this conversation but, FYI, there is no evdience that his accident was the result of any negligence on his part. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/159 "2007-09-04T17:21:11Z")
FWIW, I had the opportunity to meet Carol Channing a couple of times and she was very pleasant and not at all a bitch. I can’t speak to how she likes her food cooked. Jerry Garcia, while a charming guy, was a complete mess when I met him. Rumpled, dirty, smelly, and just a trainwreck in the hygiene department. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2007, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620/160 "2007-09-04T17:24:35Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] This totally supports my contention. There is no dispute whatsoever that she a.) ran a stop sign (which is negligent) and b.) killed somebody as a result. So, as I said THERE IS NO DISPUTE that Laura Bush killed somebody as result of her own negligence. And not that Ted Kennedy is relevant to this conversation but, FYI, there is no evdience that his accident was the result of any negligence on his part. [/QUOTE] But what is your point? Some one said she commited manslaughter and never was charged. Others (such as me) said that manslaughter is a big jump to take and there is no evidence for it. Then you say she ran a stop sign and someone died in the accident. Something no claimed didn’t happen. What is your point? And again negligence has a very specfic legal definition. If her fault was at the level of criminal negligence she should have been charged with a crime. Just going through a red light is not reason enough. Do you really want to defend Ted Kennedy? It was a one car accident which he didn’t report for many hours. Whose fault was it? (Or negligence as you insist on putting it) He didn’t get charged with anything criminal because nothing could be proved that long after the accident. Someone implied earlier that Laura Bush was drunk at the time of the accident. There was a police report stating she wasn’t. It is a much smaller leap to think that Teddy was drunk due to his history. Can’t be proved of course cause he covered his tracks. I don’t think his whole life and career should be defined by this one incident but you are lying to me or yourself if you think his situation was not much worse than Laura Bush’s. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minor-anecdotes-about-famous-people-that-creep-you-out/417620.md?page=9)