Post #248731 by WenikiTiki on Sun, Aug 13, 2006 1:33 PM

Wow! Great thread to bring back. I just spent all morning reading. What fun a lot of you have had. Considering how much I have traveled, I haven't had many brushes with greatness.

My first and best accidental encounter was in 1978 when I was being tossed out of the MGM Grand in Reno. I was 19 and looked 16... Anyway as security was escorting me and my 21 year old boyfriend out, my boyfriend said "Look behind you." I did and there was Gabe Kaplan of "Welcome Back Kotter" fame. He was walking backwards and waving at me. He had passed us in the corridor, but as I was looking at my feet due to the embarrassment of having two security guards escorting me I hadn't seen him! He had three bodyguards with him. I think he was there for a blackjack tournament.

In 1980 I was working at a MacDonald's in Fresno. We had been closed 15 minutes when a limo pulled up to my drive-thru window. I opened the window and told the driver we were closed. He told me he had Pat and Debbie Boone in the back. I suggested he take them to Denney's. Then he pulled the limo up further and Pat sweet-talked the manager into opening. I took their order, burgers and fries. I didn't ask for autographs because I was in college full-time, working too many hours and I only wanted to go home on time. We ended up being open an extra hour to make their order, because all the machines had been turned off and we had to wait for everything to heat back up.

In the late 90's I was a real estate agent in Tampa. My boss had Nick Carter of the Backstreet boys as a customer. Nick would show up randomly and usually have to wait for my boss to come in. Nick was very sweet and would wander around our office asking us what we were doing. We were not allowed to talk to him unless he spoke to us first. Then Nick's mother and younger sister and brother (Angel and Aaron) moved into my neighborhood, a few houses away. Aaron told us he was going to be famous and we laughed at him. He brought over a CD and we actually laid on the floor laughing at the chipmunk like vocals on his version of "Surfin'USA". ( we did this when he wasn't there...who is laughing now?) He was part of the neighborhood group that liked to play football in our front yard. He brought me beanie babies that had been thrown on stage for his brother, because he didn't think I had enough. True, I only had three.... Anyway, he was also a sweetie, like his big brother.

Also while working there I met "Manny the Shark Guy" of Jackass fame. He went to high school with my other bosses husband. He dropped by for a few minutes. He seemed like an old hippie.

Flying out of Tampa once there was a commotion in the airport because of Randy Savage, WWF being there. Turned out he was on our flight. We were right behind first class. He settled in his two blond travelling companions and then couldn't fit all their stuff in the overheads. So he came back and rearranged ours! I was on the aisle and he leaned on me as he was moving stuff around. That man is solid muscle, and he smelled pretty good, too! My boys were mad I didn't get his autograph. But I was seriously fighting the giggles and the urge to tell him to be careful with my stuff!

I've seen Wayne Brady, of "Whose Line is it Anyway", a few times here in Kaneohe, but since his second home is 2 houses away from mine, that would be normal. He isn't here much, I heard he is building a new home closer to the beach. I've never gotten past saying "Hi" because people buy in our neighborhood for privacy.