Many of us have someone we idolize, whether that’s a person in our line of work or somebody who has celebrity status. We tend to put them on such a high pedestal that it often doesn’t register with us that we could meet them, let alone get to know them on a personal level. But on a rare occasion, it happens, just like people win the lottery, and the stories they get to tell range from amazing to absolutely regrettable.
#1
Steve Irwin. My best friends mum worked at Australia Zoo as a ranger. We would get free passes every weekend and sometimes you’d see Steve walking around in the background, talking into his walkie talkie.
I remember one time there was a distraught lost child. Steve took him to the food court and told him that he could order anything he wanted. He really made that little kid feel safe.
The guy just had a heart of gold.
I remember one time there was a distraught lost child. Steve took him to the food court and told him that he could order anything he wanted. He really made that little kid feel safe.
The guy just had a heart of gold.
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67points
#2
I’ve shared this story before but here it is again: back in 2016 I flew from Melbourne, Aus, to London to meet Carrie Fisher at a convention.
Growing up as a young, mentally ill woman, it was amazing to see someone as famous as her be so open about her struggles. I openly cry in front of her as I tell her how important she is to me, and she says “don’t cry sweetheart, you have such pretty eyes” which naturally, sets me off more.
I thank her profusely, head off to do some shopping, and return like 6 hours later to get my photo with her. She holds my hand again and says “you still have such pretty eyes” and it makes my entire life.
I miss her terribly.
Growing up as a young, mentally ill woman, it was amazing to see someone as famous as her be so open about her struggles. I openly cry in front of her as I tell her how important she is to me, and she says “don’t cry sweetheart, you have such pretty eyes” which naturally, sets me off more.
I thank her profusely, head off to do some shopping, and return like 6 hours later to get my photo with her. She holds my hand again and says “you still have such pretty eyes” and it makes my entire life.
I miss her terribly.
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54points
#3
I met Jonathan Banks in a hotel lobby and I told him Mike Ehrmentrout was my spirit animal. We shared an elevator, had a brief conversation and he could not have been any nicer (I do realize this thread is about famous people being jerks but I decided to rep some positive Johnny Banks energy instead).
41points
‘Never meet your heroes’ has become a well-known adage nowadays, suggesting that meeting the people we admire might not live up to the idolized image we’ve created in our minds. The original quote that many believe this proverb refers to comes from the French “Il ne faut pas toucher aux idoles: la dorure en reste aux mains.” It roughly translates to: “Don’t touch your idols: a little gold always rubs off.”
This phrase is believed to have first appeared in the French novel Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. In short, the story focused on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who had affairs and lived beyond her means to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life. The book has become a bestseller and a seminal work of realism, becoming one of the most influential novels ever written.
#4
Many years ago my mom worked at restaurant near a little airport. I was waiting for her to get off work and knocked over a bunch of crayons (for kids coloring books) and this older guy helped me pick them up. I blurted out “You look like an older Indiana Jones!” He took a beat and said “That’s because I am,” and then walked away. Apparently it was actually Harrison Ford, which I didn’t find out until later that evening when my mom and I walked home.
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38points
#5
When I was a teenager I was really into MASH and Alan Alda. I read all his books and thought he was the coolest. On a family vacation to New York I ran into him in a bookstore! I think he was a bit confused to have such a young person be into his stuff, but he kindly shook my hand. Lovely guy.
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38points
#6
Met Robin Williams once. Suuuuper nice and so funny. Went out of his way to joke around with volunteers and will forever be one of my heroes.
38points
In the 21st century, the phrase has become widespread, as fans often share stories of them meeting their heroes and being let down. It’s a piece of advice that reminds people that heroes are no different from ordinary folks.
That said, meeting your idol can be a positive experience, despite the negative stories people have shared. For example, Johnny Depp has said, ‘They tell you to be careful because maybe you don’t want to meet your heroes. I’ve met pretty much everyone, and I’ve never been let down.’
#7
My aunt met Orlando Bloom back when they were filming the 2nd/3rd POTC movies. She knew I was absolutely obsessed with him so she approached him at the bar of the hotel that they were both staying at in the Bahamas (him to film the movies, her for family vacation) and asked for an autograph. As she tells it he was very sweet, chatted with her for a while, happily signed a cocktail napkin addressed to me (“To [name] ❤️ Orlando Bloom”), and even encouraged her to keep the pen he’d signed it with for me to have as a funny keepsake, it absolutely blew my middle school mind when she called me up to tell me about it. I still have that autograph (and the pen!!!).
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36points
#8
I met Muhammad Ali when I was seven years old (I was a white girl with gappy teeth an pigtails) and he made jokes when I told him that Ken Norton should have won their third fight (I was a brat but I still think that). He was so sweet to me. What made him the greatest was everything he did outside of the ring. He will always be the greatest to me.
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33points
#9
I met Emma Thompson in a bar, one of the few people on earth I would call an idol. I was so nervous my hands were evidently shaking because she reached out and held them, smiled directly into my eyes the whole time we spoke, and gave me a big hug at the end. I was 35, an age where it’s not cute to be so awkward!, but she was an absolute class act of kindness and graciousness, I’ll never forget it.
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29points
Who knows? You might just get lucky and meet your favorite actor and talk about your favorite books and recommend them to each other, casually conversing for 30 minutes. It might sound like a piece of fanfiction, but (if folks online can be trusted) it's totally true! If you’re interested in reading more of such heartwarming stories, make sure to check our previous piece on the nicest celebrity encounters people have ever had.
#10
My idol turned out to be a groomer so here’s a positive story…. She’s not my idol but the most famous person I’ve come in contact with was Scarlett Johansen while working at Disney. She was actually pretty nice. I didn’t even notice it was ScarJo until midway thru serving her. We joked about ppl not being able to read signs and follow simple directions.
26points
#11
Britney twice and she was the sweetest both times.
24points
#12
Woody Harrelson was visiting relatives and came into the library I work in. He was very funny and talked with everyone. Wanted to know what was going on in town. No one asked for photos or autographs - maybe that's why he stayed so long to chat with everyone. Not the experience that you asked for since it was so positive, but there it is.
24points
#13
I served Will Ferrell and Adam Sandler on separate occasions at a bar in Mammoth Lakes, California. They were both incredibly nice and bought drinks for the entire staff and gave incredible tips.
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23points
#14
I worked San Diego comic con in my early twenties with a press pass. Ray Bradbury was there and I was so longing to meet him. I wanted to meet my hero so badly that I felt like I didn’t deserve to cut the line for him. I waited. I waited rightfully in line for four hours. I had my well-worn and notated copy of Fahrenheit with me, and the guy behind me bullied the s**t out of me because I wrote in the book; I listened to him make fun of me for the hours we waited in line. When I got to Ray Bradbury I was so out of sorts from the guy behind me talking s**t that I forgot the planned lines I was going to tell Ray Bradbury. When it is was my turn, I held out the notated copy of Fahrenheit and started to cry while saying “you don’t know what this means to me” (not the rehearsed dialogue I had in my head) and he took my hands in his and squeezed. It was the nicest moment that I could have captured from my hero.
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19points
#15
Spent some time with Gaga on a small set. She went around and introduced herself to all of the crew. (Maybe 10 people.) This was peak Gaga and she couldn’t have been nicer.
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18points
#16
I wouldn't say "idol" but "hero" definitely - and I had the exact opposite experience.
I do some writing professionally, both as a journalist and in the entertainment world (book/film/theatre type stuff), and there's one particular writer who I've looked up to since I was a kid. She's one of the two people who inspired me to get into my niche, and I've studied her work to hone my own.
She was working on a new project a few years back, and I wound up interviewing her for a profile (sidebar: I'm not refusing to name her to try to be coy or get a "guessing game" going, but because there have only been a few interviews with her in the last few years, so saying who she is would be traceable to my real identity very quickly, lol). Just as we were starting the interview, she cut in before I could start asking questions and insisted on telling me that she had read a recent piece I'd written, how much she enjoyed my observations on a specific point, and how very talented she thought I was. I'm pretty sure I was a stammering mess at that point, but managed to tell her how her work is such an inspiration to mine, too. It was a very kind and generous moment. And she's actually kept in touch with me since then!
I do some writing professionally, both as a journalist and in the entertainment world (book/film/theatre type stuff), and there's one particular writer who I've looked up to since I was a kid. She's one of the two people who inspired me to get into my niche, and I've studied her work to hone my own.
She was working on a new project a few years back, and I wound up interviewing her for a profile (sidebar: I'm not refusing to name her to try to be coy or get a "guessing game" going, but because there have only been a few interviews with her in the last few years, so saying who she is would be traceable to my real identity very quickly, lol). Just as we were starting the interview, she cut in before I could start asking questions and insisted on telling me that she had read a recent piece I'd written, how much she enjoyed my observations on a specific point, and how very talented she thought I was. I'm pretty sure I was a stammering mess at that point, but managed to tell her how her work is such an inspiration to mine, too. It was a very kind and generous moment. And she's actually kept in touch with me since then!
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17points
#17
A very minor "meeting" experience but I'll share anyway. A few years ago I went to a (fantastic) talk by Jane Fonda, who is the closest thing to my "idol", and then waited afterwards with a group of people. Unfortunately those people were lunatics who, from listening to them, appeared to wait at any sort of celebrity event for autographs etc (genuinely, it seemed like a bizarre cult) and they were absolute bulldogs about getting her attention. I asked Jane for a photo, and she basically ignored me, but I think she was trying to get though those idiots as quickly as possible. Then she made a joke, and she heard me laugh so she looked right at me and smiled. Honestly, that made me happy enough!
In an ideal world she would've also taken a photo, but I'm rational enough to know I wasn't anyone special to her and she was doing the best she could. She didn't need to stop at all, she could've walked straight past us and gone home. I was mainly annoyed that the people who weren't specific fans got priority, but there's no way she could've known that.
In an ideal world she would've also taken a photo, but I'm rational enough to know I wasn't anyone special to her and she was doing the best she could. She didn't need to stop at all, she could've walked straight past us and gone home. I was mainly annoyed that the people who weren't specific fans got priority, but there's no way she could've known that.
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17points
#18
Some cast members from The X-Files, and Arrow are a bit up their own [butts]. I won't say who, but it disappointed me a bit.
Not Scully though, she's just very professional.
Not Scully though, she's just very professional.
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17points
#19
I was staying at a hotel in Orlando about 8 years ago and Tracy Morgan was apparently staying at the same hotel. He was in one of the common areas of the hotel with his family. This was about a year after his horrific crash with the Walmart truck. I went up to him and let him know that I was so glad he was ok and that I was so sorry for the loss of his friend. He was so very sweet and introduced me to his family. You could tell he was still recovering physically from the crash. He chatted with me for about 10 minutes and happily obliged when I asked to take a picture. I’ll never forget what he said to me that day. In regards to the crash he said. “I’m afraid I’m not going to be funny anymore.” That statement really broke my heart, but I’ll tell you something: I saw his show two years after that and he was hilarious! He has a fan for life.
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15points
#20
2018 Allen Iverson, I was his cocktail server, he looked at me. And someone from his posse said “we don’t tip darkskins”. it was the most embarrassing day of my life still till this day… I cried.
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13points