minor anecdotes about famous people that creep you out.

[Beadalin]

My high school psychology teacher got rear-ended by Bill Gates on the highway one time. My teacher didn’t realize who it was until Bill wrote down his insurance information. Ha!

Oh, and since we’ve had some Mao and Lenin stories, I am totally going to bring up Hitler in this thread:

My dad is German and was about 5 when WWII ended. His older sister, Heidi, participated in a nation-wide spelling bee in (I believe) 1939, and won for her age group. The prize was to personally meet Hitler and receive a medal from him. Hitler refused to give the medal to Heidi when he found out that my grandfather had refused to join the Nazi party.

SEMI-RELATED ASIDE: My grandfather was in the German army during the war, and was among the troops stranded by Hitler in Russia toward the end. They were provisioned only for a short summer stay, and as the winter rolled on, they were freezing and starving. He and a buddy stole a plane, flew to Turkey and managed to get clearance to land, and made it back home on foot by traveling at night and bartering cigarettes for food. This while German patrols were looking for deserters and immediately hanging any they found. Suffice it to say that my grandfather was no big fan of Hitler’s.

[vibrotronica]

When I was living in Seattle, I worked in Belltown and saw Peter Buck (guitarist for R.E.M.) out and about on a semi-regular basis…

My Peter Buck story:

I was at Lounge Ax in Chicago seeing Rocket from the Crypt back in the early 1990s. I went to the bathroom to take a leak, and when I glanced over at the urinal next to me, I saw Peter Buck pissing. I knew they were in town playing that night, so I said “Hey…uh…you’re Peter Buck!”

“Yeah,” he said.

“You’re…uh…really cool!”

“Yeah,” he said, zipping his fly.

When I got back to my date and her roommate, I told them what had happened. “How big was his dick?” my date asked.

“I didn’t really think to look.”

So, the moral of the story is, if you’re peeing next to a celebrity, check out the package.

[AHoosierMama]

@DMark

Back to the less-than-nice people stories: William Shatner was not a lot of fun, and did his best to piss off fans;

Shatner is a graduate of McGill University in Montreal. They named their student union building after him. He was a no-show at the ribbon cutting.

[Ghanima]

Shortly after graduating from college, I had an ex-boyfriend who was doing some tutoring to get some extra money. He started tutoring this kid who lived in a huge mansion. He asked the kid what his dad did for a living, and the kid vaguely said something to do with computers.

The day he got his first paycheck, he realized he was tutoring Steve Wozniak’s son!

Hmmm. Nothing creepy about this whatsoever. Sorry.

[Spice_Weasel]

I have a plethora of weird Nietzsche anecdotes gleaned from college courses on his work.

Nietzsche was, unsurprisingly, never very good with the ladies. He proposed marriage twice in his life, both times with a handwritten note, and both times delivered the note to the future husband of the women in question. Can you imagine how utterly clueless you’d have to be about common social interaction? ‘‘Um, hey there old buddy, you wouldn’t mind passing this marriage proposal along to your fiancée, would you?’’

He was turned down on both occasions.

In 1889, probably on account of his worsening syphilis, he caused a public spectacle when he was walking through the town square. There was a man whipping his horse, and overcome by compassion for the creature, Nietzsche threw himself between the horse and the whip, screaming half-incoherently. He deteriorated very soon thereafter into a permanent catatonic state.

His older sister, a rampant anti-semitist, used his helplessness by seizing his works and publishing them to her tastes, making it appear that he supported her movement. This is why his work was so propagated by Hitler during WWII.

But the creepiest anecdote about Nietzsche is thus:

His sister used to dress his limp, lifeless body in long, flowing robes and pose him so that passerby could pay to come in and gaze at him. One day, a prominent author of the time was chatting with her, and mentioned his new book.

Nietzsche broke his catatonic silence for the first and only time. He turned, gazed at the man, and wistfully replied, ‘‘I once wrote books.’’

[Sarahfeena]

@dnooman

I’ve been inside Metro exactly once, and I happened to be standing next to two of the guys from Urge Overkill. Hip place I guess.

That’s so funny! The only time I’ve ever seen them at Metro was when they were playing! (Although I’m not sure I would have recognized them if they were just standing around.)

And WhyNot…your encounter with Billy wasn’t at a Monaco concert, was it?

[MerryMagdalen]

@FriarTed

So did you meet Lisa Crystal Carver? I’d occasionally pick up Rollerderby when I visited L.A.'s AMOK bookstore.

No, this was years after that…probably in…2003?

[Elza_B]

@ladybug

I’m actually a little surprised to hear that. Many years ago, probably in the late '80s, Susan Lucci was a patient in the office where my mom worked as a nurse. Mom always had nothing but good things to say about her. (Not questioning you, Elza B, I’m just surprised.)

Yeah, she’s actually not a bad person, but I’ve been told of two different tantrums like the ones I mentioned by a friend who works at the show. I think it has more to do with insecurities about her career, not necessarily that she’s like that all the time.

[Elza_B]

@missbunny

So as Paul is saying, “Sure, happy to take the picture with you,” Rob said, “Oh here Paul, I’ll hold your stuff” - and he steps to the side, as in he didn’t expect that he was supposed to be in the shot, and my friends had to say, “Um no Rob, we wanted YOU to be in the picture too.” He was just stunned that anyone would want to take HIS picture.

I adore Rob Riggle. I’ve told my husband that he’s on my LIST, and I’m allowed to leave him at the drop of a hat for Rob Riggle.

Thing is, my adoration of him began on SNL, where he never really caught on.

[Miller]

@olivesmarch4th

But the creepiest anecdote about Nietzsche is thus:

His sister used to dress his limp, lifeless body in long, flowing robes and pose him so that passerby could pay to come in and gaze at him. One day, a prominent author of the time was chatting with her, and mentioned his new book.

Nietzsche broke his catatonic silence for the first and only time. He turned, gazed at the man, and wistfully replied, ‘‘I once wrote books.’’

Jesus. You win the thread.

[Ms_Macphisto]

@AHoosierMama

Shatner is a graduate of McGill University in Montreal. They named their student union building after him. He was a no-show at the ribbon cutting.

Not precisely. Students all call the student union building the Shatner building, and I believe there was a referendum on the name in the early '90s that won by a landslide, but it isn’t actually officially named after him, because he won’t give the university the money to re-name it. It’s kind of confusing for new students, because you’re told to meet up in Shatner for frosh, but it isn’t labelled as such on any campus maps.

[Max_Torque]

@Push You Down

The director William Friedkin is an easy-going friendly guy based on my interactions with him.

@cbawlmer

I met him once, and spent an evening with a group of five or six people including him, and he was completely charming…except I think he may have given me a subtle come-on. He’s married, and several decades older than I am. I wasn’t creeped out as much as surprised.

See, that’s interesting, because I’ve heard stories that would seem to indicate that a lot of people who work with him think he’s nuts. Ellen Burstyn, for example, blames him for the breaking of her coccyx during the filming of The Exorcist, because he had the crew yank her across the room way too hard (she was wearing a body harness attached to some sort of wire or rope) for a scene where her character is tossed across the room by demon-Regan. At least, from what I remember of the documentary where she talked about it, she was upset that he decided to use the footage of her landing on her tailbone and screaming in agony in the movie.

Something similar happened, as I recall, with Linda Blair, in the scene where she’s being shaken on the bed. You know, the one where she sits up and is thrown back down, repeatedly and violently? Friedkin had the people working on that rig slam her around with maximum force, too. Shook her up something fierce.

And there was the actor playing the priest in one of the final scenes, the one who gives Father Karras his last rites after his tumble down the stairs. Friedkin apparently didn’t like the performance he was giving, so he called the actor over and slapped him one, then sent him right back for another take. The actor is visibly shaking in the scene, and he says it’s because he was afraid Friedkin was a lunatic who was gonna beat the snot out of him.

I’m not saying that he can’t be a nice guy, just that it sounds like he gets really, um, intense when he’s directing.

[CateAyo]

@vibrotronica

My Peter Buck story:

I was at Lounge Ax in Chicago seeing Rocket from the Crypt back in the early 1990s. I went to the bathroom to take a leak, and when I glanced over at the urinal next to me, I saw Peter Buck pissing. I knew they were in town playing that night, so I said “Hey…uh…you’re Peter Buck!”

“Yeah,” he said.

“You’re…uh…really cool!”

“Yeah,” he said, zipping his fly.

When I got back to my date and her roommate, I told them what had happened. “How big was his dick?” my date asked.

“I didn’t really think to look.”

So, the moral of the story is, if you’re peeing next to a celebrity, check out the package.

A similar anecdote involving Buddy Guy, the blues guitarist. Buddy was playing at a place called Skipper’s Smokehouse in Tampa. A mutual friend and I went to see him. On a break between sets, Buddy and I go into the mens’ room to jettison some used beer. I am standing at a urinal to Buddy’s left, and another guy is on his right. The guy says, “Damn, Mr. Guy you’re incredible. You make it all looks so easy! How do you do it?” Buddy smirks at him and says, “Son, I just unzip, flip it out and let her rip!”

CA

[Chimera]

@Max Torque

Ellen Burstyn, for example, blames him for the breaking of her coccyx during the filming of The Exorcist, because he had the crew yank her across the room way too hard (she was wearing a body harness attached to some sort of wire or rope) for a scene where her character is tossed across the room by demon-Regan. At least, from what I remember of the documentary where she talked about it, she was upset that he decided to use the footage of her landing on her tailbone and screaming in agony in the movie.

I won’t defend his use of force, but on this one I have to ask; What was he supposed to do? Ask for another take? :dubious:

[WhyNot]

@Sarahfeena

And WhyNot…your encounter with Billy wasn’t at a Monaco concert, was it?

EEP! :eek: Yes, it was! I couldn’t remember who the heck it was, because it was a band that didn’t “go” anywhere, and I was only there 'cause I got in for free ‘cause a friend of mine worked for the record label. It was like a premier release party thing of some sort. Monoco! That was it! Ohmigod, were you actually there too? Friggin’ small world!

[cbawlmer]

Max Torque: that sounds like him! Friedkin tells fantastic stories on himself and the people he’s worked with, and the insane stuff that’s gone on during his shoots. He doesn’t make any bones about his own intensity and perfectionism and what he’s willing to do to get the shot. I think he’s mellowed somewhat in the decades since *The French Connection * and The Exorcist, but I don’t doubt he could get nuts when he’s “on the clock,” so to speak.

[Robot_Arm]

@CateAyo

A similar anecdote involving Buddy Guy, the blues guitarist. Buddy was playing at a place called Skipper’s Smokehouse in Tampa. A mutual friend and I went to see him. On a break between sets, Buddy and I go into the mens’ room to jettison some used beer. I am standing at a urinal to Buddy’s left, and another guy is on his right. The guy says, “Damn, Mr. Guy you’re incredible. You make it all looks so easy! How do you do it?” Buddy smirks at him and says, “Son, I just unzip, flip it out and let her rip!”

Sounds like the story of off-road racer Ivan “Ironman” Stewart. For a long race, like the Baja 1000, he’d wear a catheter attached to a hose that ran down the pantleg of his suit, then out through a hole in the bottom of his truck. So, before the race, he’s all suited up and goes to the bathroom, and rather than undo everything he just puts his foot on the edge of the urinal.

A guy walks in, takes one look, and says “now I know why they call you ‘Ironman’.”

[MovieMogul]

@SNenc

No problem:

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/e/a/1995/06/05/STYLE537.dtl

:dubious: Not much of a “cite”. One vague rumor, and a google search yields zilchola as corroboration.

[MovieMogul]

@Elendil's Heir

According to Kitty Kelley, Frank Sinatra once ate scrambled eggs off a Vegas showgirl’s belly on a dare. Bada bing!

Honestly, I don’t find anything too weird about this, especially given that it was Frankie. Howard Hughes & a Vegas showgirl? Not that would be unusual.

[MovieMogul]

@Walloon

Best not to “suppose” on subjects such as this.

Richard Corliss interviewed Depardieu in 1991 for Time magazine, and brought up a 1978 interview in which Depardieu talked about his gun-toting, car-stealing childhood. “What of his story that at 9 he participated in his first rape?” Corliss asked. “‘Yes,’ he [Depardieu] admits. And after that, there were many rapes? ‘Yes,’ he admits, ‘but it was absolutely normal in those circumstances. That was part of my childhood.’”

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,972253-1,00.html

In the 1978 interview, Depardieu said there were “too many [rapes] to count. . . . There was nothing wrong with it. The girls wanted to be raped. I mean, there’s no such thing as rape. It’s only a matter of a girl putting herself in a situation where she wants to be.”

Was he talking about statutory rape, i.e., sex with a girl below the age of consent? Or was he talking about forcible rape? He could have been more clear, but it stirred up a mini-storm of controversy in the U.S.

Not among the French, though. When Jay Leno mentioned the flap to guest Catherine Deneuve on the Tonight Show, the actress, who had co-starred in several films with Depardieu, gave a show of gallic indifference and instead asked Leno what he thought of it all.

Depardieu claimed it to be a translation distortion (asserting he witnessed rapes but never participated) and felt that the error was responsible for his losing the Oscar that year. Although he was a dark horse, his film was favored in the Foreign Film race and it lost, too. Time always refused to retract the statement (which apparently hinged on the verb “assister”–which can mean both “assist” or “witness”, depending on the circumstance). Here’s a thread that covers the topic, including Time’s follow-up pseudo-defense.