Celebrities

[ssullivan]

Originally Posted by Ex-Calif

Seriously I don't get the whole "celebrity" thing.

Me either.

It's pretty weird when you see people all excited to meet celebrities. I mean when I used to see them in Manhattan, they were just like everyone else and I never even recognized them. They were also usually not very good looking in real life.

Funny story - I was at a club once and was laughing at some guy. He was a big guy, and he looked out of place and weird with a beard (remember - this is NYC in the ultra hip lounges of the Lower East Side around 1999 to 2002 - snobbery abounded). He had a huge gut and I pointed him out and laughed, joking to some girl I was with.

Turns out it was some famous Mets hitter guy. Can't remember his name.
Oh yeah... and Jeter used to live in my building on 86th st.

[GordMay]

Mick Jagger's first wife, Bianca Jagger dined at Club Thunderball (Staniel Cay, Exuma, Bahamas) in the mid-nineties. She was a guest on a crewed mega-yacht (charter?).
She solicited a game of pool - and beat me.
When she and her party departed, she returned briefly to thank me for the game, and ask if I new who she was. I didn’t, so she introduced herself.
She appeared a little disappointed that I recognized neither her face, nor her name ...

[Mustang Sally]

Eric Clapton on his yacht Blue Guitar was down a lot during winter 07 and anchored next to us numerous times. Michael Douglas and Katherine Z also visit Saba Rock and Bitter End lots.

[Alan Wheeler]

Me either.

It's pretty weird when you see people all excited to meet celebrities

I don't care who they are either. They all put there pants on one leg at a time. To me, if someone goes gargar over some celeb, I think that person must be somewhat unstable.
Interestingly, we often get Holywood Celebs down here in NZ. I think they like being here, cause they don't get mobbed by wackos when out and around. They can actually walk down the street here in NZ, as if they are just another normal citizen.

[Ex-Calif]

Originally Posted by Alan Wheeler

They all put there pants on one leg at a time.

Except Brittney who apparently goes commando

I won't drop names but I have seen a couple of the "macho" hunks in girlie bars in the Philippines and Thailand.

One in particular, who now flogs ab-crunchers on late night tv, likes 'em real young.

And don't even get me started on the party crowd, Hilton, Downey, et al.
Real role models for our youth, eh?

The only one I'd like to meet is Jimmy Buffet. Not because he's a celebrity but because he flies a Grumman and would be fun at parties!

[brian and clare]

Here we are (me and my bro, me on left) in Bocas Del Toro Panama drinking booze with Jimmy Buffett. He played some tunes on a barstool for about 25 cruisers hanging out in the marinas cabana bar. He was there for surfing with his boat continental drifter, and his wife and kids were all there. The day before, Kev and I and one other boat were alone in a really nice anchorage and the big boat came in, and then a floatplane circled a couple of times and landed. We joked "oh thats Jimmy", then a day later we anchored off the local marina to drink at their cabanna bar and guess who was there shooting the sh-t and strumming some tunes.

He had charted the boat I worked on years ago (schooner western union)to go to cuba and we talked about if for a bit. Jimmy is no spring chicken, but the man is physically Solid, which surprised me. Must be all the surfing. He actually hung out for quite a long while and joked that he had to fly back to "go to work" in a couple of days. (concert for like a zillion people). My best brush with fame and I made a goofy face in the photo. Sheesh!

Brian

[Alan Wheeler]

I supplied sound for an airshow here a few years back. I was talking to this scrufy looking guy that had black curly hair that looked like a brush had never been put near it, he wore a short sleave shirt, shorts and jandels (Ozy's call them Thongs). He owned some old WW1 plane that was flying at the time. I was talking to him about his plane, having absolutely no idea who he was. (The first famouse film hadn't been released at this stage) Really nice guy and we had a great time. I found out later it was Peter Jackson.

[Ex-Calif]

Well pilots are not celebrities - they are just cool guys. My dad was sorta big on the California airshow circuit and I got to hang out with lot's of the airshow guys. Chuck Yeager, Bob Hoover Duane Cole. Also some of the Reno air race guys - Steve Hinton etc..

We used to put out a sky dive team called pieces of eight. They were all vietnam era vets with various amputations. The lead was missing a leg and I think one arm IIRC. He would land, hop around on one leg and his girlfriend would run out with his leg and stick it on - LOL. Good fun.

We also used to do a sailplane, towplane ballet with smoke and all ala Jonathan Livingston Seagull. Being part of the airshow circuit was really cool.

[Charlie]

My 9 year old son is good friends with Richard Roundtree's (the original Shaft)son. Great guy. Didn't know who he was then one day I go to pick up my son at his house and they are sitting around watching a movie on a DVD so I started watching it with them. Took ahile but I realized that the movie was still in theaters. I aksed how they got it and they said that Richard was a member of the academy of motion pictures or some such group that votes on the academy awards. So I aked how you joined th eacademy of .... and they said you have to be a working actor. So I told my brother and he new right away that he was "Shaft." Invited him to go sailing some time and then never followed up on it. Then they got divorced and I don't see Richard anymore. Really interesting guy to talk to. Maybe when I take the boat down to So Cal I'll call him up and see if he wants to go over to Catalina Island for a weekend.

[TaoJones]

Originally Posted by Charlie

they said that Richard was a member of the academy of motion pictures or some such group that votes on the academy awards. So I aked how you joined th eacademy of .... and they said you have to be a working actor.

Not exactly, Charlie.

Tha Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is composed of the following branches:

• Actors
• Art Directors
• Cinematographers
• Directors
• Documentary
• Executives
• Film Editors
• Makeup
• Music
• Producers
• Public Relations
• Short Films and Feature Animation
• Sound
• Visual Effects
• Writers

(Please note that the above branches are listed alphabetically, not by the order of their respective importance.)

Membership is by invitation of the Board of Govenors. Here is how it is spelled out at Wikipedia:

"All members must be invited to join. Invitation comes from the Board of Governors. Membership eligibility may be achieved by a competitive nomination or a member may submit a name based on other significant contribution to the field of motion pictures.

New membership proposals are considered annually. The Academy does not publicly disclose its membership, although past press releases have announced the names of those who have been invited to join.

Academy membership is divided into 15 Branches, representing different disciplines in motion pictures. Members may not belong to more than one Branch. Members whose work does not fall within one of the Branches may belong to a group known as "Members At Large."

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There are more than 6000 members of the Academy, and they come from many different countries (36 in 2004, according to the Wikipedia entry). Actors are but one branch, albeit one of the more high-profile branches, so most non-professionals seem to assign them elevated status. I assure you that, within the industry, they are regarded as but one component in a highly complex, creative enterprise. Among professionals, actors are admired by some, resented by others, tolerated by most.

Your use of the term "working actor," reminds me of an old joke:

Q: How do you get an actor's attention in LA?

A: "Oh, waiter!"

TaoJones

[LtBrett]

<Begin vent> I am absolutely sick of celebrity chasers. I have a summer home in an area full of celebrities (Hamptons). Every time I get a guest who is unaccustomed to being around celebrities, I get incessant requests to go meet them, see thier homes, or otherwise make an uncomfortable situation. My wife, who grew up in the midwest, plays right along. Most of the famous folks who live near me do so for privacy. Puff Daddy, or whatever he calls himself lately, craves attention. He throws loud parties and creates traffic jams. Most locals don't appreciate his presence. I just played the 'I know that famous person" game today, so I'm venting a little. <end vent.> Ok. I feel better now.

Brett

[TaoJones]

Here's a sad commentary on the reality of being a celebrity:

"Santa Monica police officials went to the home of actor Owen Wilson on Sunday after receiving a call about an "attempted suicide," according to police logs."

For the full story, see:

Police logs confirm attempted suicide call in Wilson case - Los Angeles Times

Those looking in from the outside, whether they gullibly fawn on the celebrities they admire or they harbor unfounded resentment, are equally clueless about the reality of living a celebrated life. I sincerely hope Owen Wilson, a really funny guy and a talented actor, can put his life back together.

What a shame.

TaoJones

[Pura Vida]

Richard Corey

45. Richard Corey. Edwin Arlington Robinson. Modern American Poetry

[dana-tenacity]

As a treat I took the family to have pizza by the pool at Las Hadas in Mexico. They went for a walk around the complex and the current Miss World (from trinidad?) came and got in the pool, we had a chat then she went off to do a photo shoot. The family came back later and to this day don't believe me.

[TaoJones]

At the risk of turning Cruisers Forum into People Magazine, I wanted to update my post # 27, above, so that no one is left with the false impression that it's all over for Owen Wilson.

He attended the LA premiere of The Darjeeling Limited last night at the AMPAS headquarters, looking as good as new.

Excite News - Wilson at LA Premiere of His New Film

Happy ending? Let's hope.

TaoJones