Seeing celebrities in real life is always a bit of a trip. Sometimes you wonder if you know them from your personal life, sometimes you just assume it's someone who looks like them, and sometimes you don't recognize them at all and strike up a perfectly normal conversation until you turn around and all your friends are making fun of you. Shout out to the time I carded the Jonas Brothers while bartending...
Anyone who has worked in the service industry in a major city has most likely dealt with celebrities. Sometimes they're very gracious and kind, other times they act like they own the Earth and treat everyone like festering, fiery trash. Thanks to the magic of the internet, it's harder for celebs these days to get away with treating their fans badly as one bad tip at a restaurant can go viral in an hour.
When a recent Reddit user asked the internet, "What's your 'I met a celebrity but didn't let on that I knew who they were' story?" people happily shared their favorite famous person moments. Stay alert, everyone, you never know when you might meet Daniel Radcliffe...
1. New friends, "Londonforce."
This doesn't count because it's about my father in law, and he legitimately didn't know who she was, but we were vacationing in Maine and spending a lot of time on the beach. My father in law would walk his dog early everyone morning. He met this lady and they would meet up and walk their dogs together then go their separate ways.
One morning I got up early to come with him, and to my surprise, we met up with Sigourney Weaver and went for a walk.
2. Aw, "Syntactic_Acrobatics."
I was 10 years old in 2002 when my mom took me to the Bronx Zoo for the first time. It was a rainy day so we practically had the whole place to ourselves except for 3 British kids running around, chaperoned by a woman. My mom quickly befriended the woman while I made like a kid and joined the hoard, looking at spiders and scorpians and sharing in the awe and excitement of the animals.
After about an hour when we said our goodbyes, my mother told me that the kid, Daniel, who I had been hanging out with had played Harry Potter in the movie that came out last year.
I had thought he looked familiar.
3. Oh my god this mom is a champion, "XANA12345."
My mom yelled at Pierce Brosnan. She and my dad were at a ski resort getting lunch. My mother gets quite hangry (an unfortunate trait I inherited) and was waiting in line to order. Right as she's about to order a guy tried to cut in front of her and interrupt her. She snapped and told him to go to the back of the line like everyone else. She got her food and went back to my dad sitting there mouth wide open in shock.
"Do you know who that was?"
"No?!"
"That was Pierce Brosnan. You just yelled at James bond"
"Well he shouldn't have tried to cut me"
4. Amazing, "wheregosdare."
One of my best friends doppelganger is Ethan Hawke. Like it's scary how much he resembles him, to the point that during those stupid facebook challenges he just changed his profile picture to him and nobody realized it. Also his favorite story was one time at San Diego Comic Con he actually confused Rosario Dawson at a hotel bar.
Anyway one night I'm walking home from work in NYC, and I see who I thought was my friend, John just walking on a kind of secluded part of of 9th ave around Hells Kitchen, and I yell "JOHN!"
He doesn't turn around.
So I decide to yell it again, and instead of responding his pace quickens. I decide the best thing to do is to run at him which seemed to terrify him as keep in mind it's late and there are very few people around. Anyway I catch up to him and say "Oh, you're not John" and then walk away from what was a very frightened Ethan Hawke.
5. Oh my god, "sarahm0ses."
I worked at a movie theater in Albuquerque at the time they we're filming the first avengers film. Captain America was about to come out, I remember because we had the huge standee of him in the lobby. I was reading in the box office when three people came up. Guy asked for 3 tickets to Bridesmaids. It was dark out and he had a green baseball cap and sunglasses. He paid with a credit card. Christopher Evans. I stared at the card after I swiped it. Handed it back. "I need you to sign the receipt" he did. And then he walked in.
6. Wow, "palexander_6."
My cousin rode a ski lift with Jack Black in Vail. Just the two of them. Her husband and I were in the lift behind them, freaking out. When we got off the lift they’d gone their separate ways. We made our way to her she was like “wow, that guy on my lift was so nice.” We were like NO SHIT THAT WAS JACK BLACK. She was like “THE SCHOOL OF ROCK GUY?!?!”
She was so embarrassed. She said she rambled on about living in Iowa for most of their conversation. We laughed our asses off.
7. Very jealous of this interaction, "ZOMBGiEF."
I used to be a server at a Mexican restaurant right outside LA in the late 90s. One day Leonardo DiCaprio came in with who I assume was his mom to have lunch. This would've been post Titanic so really at the peak of his breakthrough mega celeb status. He was wearing a ball cap, sunglasses and unshaven but I recognized him anyway. I didn't let anyone know and I wrote something like "your movies are awesome, I hope you liked our food" on his receipt when I dropped it off at the table.
After he left, I swung by and picked up his payment and he had left me a note back that said "thank you so much for not blowing my cover" with a $100 tip. Shit was awesome I was only like 19, I went and got some Playstation games with it after my shift ended.
8. This is so cute, "mojomann128."
This happened yesterday! My wife took my son to the zoo, and he wanted to read every little plaque in the reptile area. My wife was distracted for a moment, so he asked the nearest stranger to read the plaque for him. My wife turned around to see Scarlett Johansson happily reading the info to him
9. A+, "quarkspbt."
In the Mid 90's I was a cab driver. Our service was like a cross between a limo and a taxi, and we serviced some fancy resorts. As I dropped off my passenger at a resort, another guy asks if I'm a taxi, and I say yes, so he tells his friend their cab is here.
His friend got in the car and said "this ain't no cab, smells too good to be a cab" in that unmistakable Chris Rock voice.
He and his friend just bullshitted with each other for the ~15 minute drive to a local night club. There was a white kid trying to talk to a yellow-cab driver ahead of us in the parking lot and Chris Rock started imitating the kid, like "I need a ride, yeah, I'm drunk, but I need a ride", and I was trying really hard not to laugh out loud.
He wasn't nearly as famous yet at the time, but I had seen his stand up routines on Comedy Central and knew exactly who he was, but didn't go fan-boy on him.
10/10 would drive Chris Rock again.
10. Robin was an angel, "skitch885."
My dad met Robin Williams in an elevator. He got in and they rode a few floors in silence. They stopped on a floor and s bunch of fans ran in and started getting pics with Robin. My dad said he was gracious and took pics with everyone. The doors closed and they rode a few more floors and my dad turned and said “does that ever get old?” and Robin smiled and said “Nope. Never.” Then my dad got off on his floor and they nodded to one another and my dad went on with his day.
11. This is so good, "tastefulsidebutthole."
My mom is a big sports fan. One time she was shopping at and saw a really large, fit looking man who she didn't immediately recognize but seemed familiar. She thought it must of been a professional football player or something, so she went up to the only other person in the shop, who was this smaller wierd-looking guy, and asked him if he knew who the athletic looking man was. The short guy looked at my mom and said "That's my bodyguard, I'm Elton John.
12. Dream role, "AdamHR."
I helped Steven Spielberg move his daughter's bags into her college dorm.
I was working a shift helping first-years move in and I see a guy in a hat and sunglasses who is unmistakably Spielberg. I strike up a conversation, ask if he needs help with the bags, etc. First names only -- "We're from CA. My wife, Kate, and I sent all our kids to East Coast schools though." Stuff like that.
Later, when his daughter opened the door for the first time, he whipped out a camcorder and, wearing the biggest Dad grin, recorded the whole thing before turning the camera on my friend and me to ask us about the city.
So, I have a supporting (the luggage), speaking role in a limited release (home movie) film shot by Steven Spielberg.
13. This is so sweet, "Siidewinder."
I had the fortune of being on the same plane as Stan Lee. We were being shuttled to another part of the airport. I whispered to what I assumed to be his bodyguard that I didn’t want to lead others on who he was so please just let him know that I appreciate his work. He nodded then whispered into Stan Lee’s ear. He then smiled and put his head down in acknowledgement.
Rest In Peace big guy. You were a big part of my childhood.
14. Ha, "montaukmindcontrol."
Jerry Seinfeld tried coming into my coffee shop but I told him we are closing so we can’t help him. Didn’t realize it was him till I turned around. Sorry Jerry!
15. Well done, "base698."
Met Elon Musk in a Tesla store in LA. Really wanted to meet him but didn't want to be that guy. Decided I had a plan, so walked up to him and said, "Excuse me, do you work here?"
He replied, "I mean yeah kind of".
I say, "Ah what can you tell me about the entertainment console of the Model S?"
He says, "let me see if I can find someone to help you."
To which I say, "nah I'm just fucking with you"
He laughed and shook my hand and walked off.
16. Daniel is everywhere, "JustAbove_Average."
I served Daniel Radcliffe brunch one time. All the other servers were freaking the hell out that he was in our restaurant, so, given I don’t care much about actors and would remain professional, I was chosen to take care of him. He ordered the eggs Benedict, no sides, extra Benedict. I dubbed it “The Quad Benny”. He was incredibly polite and appreciative, tipped well, and his accent was downright intoxicating. After that experience, I became a big Radcliffe fan.