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Ah, Los Angeles! Birthplace of the barbeque chicken pizza, the bikini, and the glorious Internet. Oh, and there's celebrities too. Up the yin-yang. They can't seem to keep to themselves. When they're not tying up traffic and hogging parking with their movie premieres, they're making me move my car to film the dang things. And sometimes, they even try to kill you. Mind you, their doings will be posted here after they've occurred so don't go hanging around these places expecting to see me there yelling at Jason Priestley (damn Canadians, grumble, grumble).
To qualify as a true "celebrity sighting" the celebrity must be observed in his or her unnatural state, i.e. just going about normal business and not celebritizing or anything.
Chad Lowe crossing the street on the corner of Westwood Blvd. and Kinross. And he had a female friend accompanying him. Whoo,whoo! (August 16, 1998)
Danica McKeller (sp?) near the corner of Gayley and Weyburn (see also Ted Danson below) jaywalking
across the road (led by a boyfriend--he was the culprit!)
Laura House at the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf in Westwood Village (the one on Westwood Blvd., not the hideous one on Gayley). As I am a HUGE fan of MTV's "Austin Stories" I was thrilled to the gills to see her there. I even struck up a conversation. And yes, she does in fact live in Austin where the show is actually filmed. (Dec. 1997)
Ted Danson on the corner of Gayley and Weyburn (where the other Coffee Bean is). He was in his car and he tried to run Marty over as she tried to cross the street (She had the light, Ted!)
Gil Garcetti at the Faculty Center at UCLA. OK, this was more of a staged setting since he was hosting a dinner for a bunch of law students, myself among them, but I think it's worth mentioning. He was telling us all about his hobby, which was photographing old men. "You know why I like to photograph them?" he asked. I replied, "Is it because they can't run away?" and then he tried to stab me with his fork. No kidding. He may say he was in jest, but what he actually said was "Grrrrrrr!" as he lunged at me. (Spring 1997)
Della Reese at the Thrifty's/Rite-Aid on Westwood. She appeared to be very pissed off at the pharmacist. (1997)
Al Pacino. Attica! Attica! He was seen on the Fourth of July at Shutters on the Beach, a beachside restaurant in Santa Monica. Like all good Amerikaners, Marty and I were escorting a Scot (a representative from the defeated kingdom of ol' King George) around town. Like all good hostesses, we took him to a restaurant whose pasta deeply offended him. On that down note, we were all leaving, when a squat homeless-looking man in sunglasses shuffled past us. Marty and I ignored him, but the Scot whirled around and said "Thas' Al Pacino! Thas' him, innit?" and so on and so on. He was very impressed and couldn't believe it was him and lurked in the shrubbery to take his picture. (July 4, 1998)
Well besides the celebrities which enter the Valley only in a state of insane delusion (Margot Kidder was there rooting through someone's garbage, Robert Downey was asleep in someone else's bed, and the guy from Iron Butterfly went missing there), there are the few odd ducks who actually live there or go there to shop for bargains.
Heather Locklear at the god-forsaken Nordstrom Rack in Woodland Hills. I was there working. She came in to look for a coat for something or other she was working on. Also at the Rack, at various times, were Estelle Getty, who didn't speak but merely pointed at what she wanted; and Morris Day, whom I almost kicked out of the store because he was there so late and I wanted to go home. (1990-1991)
Location: Westwood Village
Jack Palance, as he was ambling by the newsstand on the corner of Westwood and Kinross. His sighting was accompanied by some highly amusing commentary by the newsstand cashier. Can anyone verify whether it's pronounced PA-lance or PAL-ance? (October 7, 1998)
Location: Santa Monica
Ted Danson II (see also Westwood Village). He was waiting in line to buy tickets to see a movie on Third Street Promenade AND he was accompanied by his wife Mary Steeenburgen. AND he was also seen chatting amicably with my Constitutional Law professor! My sister, although a native Angeleno, went right up to him and said "You're so tall! I loved 'Cheers'!" while I watched from a safe distance and felt embarrassed for her. Later, Marty chastised me for my failure to collect damages for her emotional distress, which she suffered when he tried to kill her in Westwood. (November 28, 1998)
Location: San Fernando Valley
Mickey Dolenz at the Robinson's-May in the Sherman Oaks Galleria. I was working in the children's department (go ahead and laugh, hogs) and he came in with one of his daughters to buy her some underpants. I was fortunate enough to hear him say "What size knickers do you wear?" and see him scratch his backside. And I got his autograph for Marty. (Summer 1995)
Location: Century City
Jodie Foster in line at the Century 14 Theater in Century City. She didn't appear to be with anyone and she was wearing eyeglasses thick as Cola bottles. Viva Jodie! (June 1998)
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