“He Was Like An Excited Labrador”: 30 People Share Real-Life Celebrity Encounters They’ve Had

I'm a helicopter pilot and had the displeasure of flying Justin Bieber, his father and a couple of his douchey friends. He lives up to his reputation and was incredibly rude.

I worked at a bar in a restaurant while in college and one night Kevin Hart came in to eat. He wasn't really that famous at the time. I didn't know who he was, but I was curious as I had to go to the stock room to get a $1000+ bottle of champagne that he ordered in addition to pouring a bunch of really expensive top top shelf shots. His bill ended being well over $2000. The girl who had his table (who also didnt know who he was) said he was by far the most demanding and rude person she had encountered while working there and that he was extremely demeaning.

He ended up leaving a $4 tip, all in crumpled up singles.

F**k Kevin Hart.

I've posted this before, but I once spilled a very large, very colorful, drink on Kate Hudson.

My girlfriend and I ended up in a VIP area at a music festival totally by accident. We weren't supposed to be there but walked right in not knowing it was restricted and since we were there we decided to stay.

We ended up in a corner as to not draw attention to ourselves and I would walk over to the bar occasionally to get us drinks and bring them back. A few hours and more than a few rounds later, my girlfriend decided she had to have one of the plastic yard glasses of Margaritas that they were selling, so I attempted to bring back one and a few beers on my next trip. I made it within ten feet of where we where stationed, when I sidestepped a dancing girl, tripped, and spilled the entire yard glass on a women. When she turned around, I realized that the women that I had just soaked was Kate Hudson. She was incredibly awesome about it, and luckily my girlfriend had an extra shirt with her that she could change into.

Met Keegan Michael Key backstage before a show once. I complemented him on his (at the time) new series. He took my one hand with both of his hands, asked my name, and gave the sincerest thank you. Such a nice guy.

On the rude side, Mariah Carey is a b***h. Talked about how much she loved her dog so much and ended up leaving it backstage after the show.

I worked at a gas station near a music venue and spotted Jimmy Buffett standing outside talking to a ticket scalper. I went out to say hello and he said that he was curious to see how much his tickets were going for. He was an incredibly nice guy and offered to buy one of the scalpers tickets for me!

Rob Lowe - met him at a kids party. He's related to a kid that was at my kids daycare. Awesome guy. Very friendly.

Jay Leno - I've met and observed him at the Rock Store many times. Always a nice guy. Friendly. Love the guy.

I used to work at Disney World and encountered many celebrities. I won't bore you with the whole list, but the notable ones: Snoop Dogg: Really nice to the guys, completely ignored the women. We were all gathered at the exit of the ride in between seating new people, and he went down the line and shook hands with/chatted to all of my male coworkers and didn't even spare any of us girls as a glance. Mariah Carey: Total divamonster. Firstly, she demanded that we not just hold the line out of sight while she and her party had a private go on the ride, she demanded that we completely cycle out both ride machines and the line, which took over an hour since I worked at a very busy attraction. Then when the kids in the party couldn't ride because they were too short, she threw a tantrum ("Do you know who I am??!!") as if it was a judgement call we were making, not literally a safety standard set by OSHA. Justin Bieber: Surprisingly not that bad, given that he was at the height of his public a**holery. He was with a group of like 20 people around his age, and they were no worse than the usual frat groups/bachelor parties we handled. Paul McCartney: Super low-key guy. He didn't even ask to go on the ride privately, just asked to be brought on the ride after the other passengers were already in their seats and had a row just for his group. Steven Tyler: By far my favorite celebrity encounter. I happened to be in the break room and he came in to use our bathroom- there was an audible gasp from all of us on break and we just openly gawked at him, and he just smiled and said "what's up". Like ten seconds later, one of my coworkers came out of the bathroom looking totally shellshocked and said "um... I just peed next to Steven Tyler." And then I was off break when Steven Tyler actually went on the ride, so I got to assist with that. His party was really friendly and jokey, and they were good-naturedly teasing us for getting starstruck. One of my coworkers was nervously starting every sentence to anyone in his earshot with "I'm sorry, I'm sorry", and Steven Tyler started yelling over at her "Hey, Sorry! Hey, have you ever played the board game SORRY? I think you'd really like it!"

I met Sacha Baron Cohen while picking up lunch for my office. I work in Film and TV production, so I'm not easily flustered by celebrities, but there are a few that transform me into a AAA battery trying to contain the power of the sun. I normally don't bother celebrities, but he is one of my all time comedy idols and I knew I might not ever have another opportunity. After loading up my car with my order and realizing he was finished with his meal, I worked up the courage to walk over and say something before quickly making what would likely be an undignified retreat. Very poorly holding it together, I told him I was an enormous fan and he stopped and talked to me for a few minutes; asked me about my life, what I do, etc. After telling him I was working on a show at one of the studios nearby, he introduced me to his producer who he was having lunch with and had me give him all my contact info in case they shot anything in Los Angeles. I honestly have never been more pumped about anything in my life. I was riding the biggest high and grinning like an absolute moron all day.

I've encountered a few celebrities from my days working at a popular casino.

Gordon Ramsay was very polite and very nice to talk to. I left that interaction thinking, what a cool guy. Quite the gentleman.

Ricki Lake is adorable! I didn't even realize it was her at first, but once we caught on she sat down with us to discuss her weight loss journey and stayed for a good half hour. She was witty and charming. Such a delight.

Charles Barkley was very down to earth. No entourage. No security. Just came in to our store to shop and very willing to chat and take pictures if you wanted.

Brad Garrett from Everybody Loves Raymond... what a miserable guy. Would not acknowledge anybody with eye contact. Specifically asked us not to talk to him. And if you approached him to see if he needed any help you got this death stare like you were the foulest piece of garbage.

Oh and as a bonus, the first celebrity I ever met was Liza Minnelli when I was a young boy. I remember she had a big furry coat and this little dog. The dog came over to play with me. She then came over and patted my head telling my dad "You have such a cute little boy". Very nice lady!

My first celebrity experience when I first moved to LA was meeting Weird Al Yankovich. He came in to eat at the restaurant I was hosting at and while his date was in the bathroom before they left he was was sitting in this lounging area we had. Being all of 18 and thinking I was playing it cool I asked "So, you working on anything new?" like I knew him personally or something.

He just kind of shrugged and said not really and was followed by another 40 seconds or so of awkward silence. He wasn't rude or nice; it was obvious he wasn't in the mood though. Which I totally get now nearly two decades later.