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35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life

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We’re told to never meet our heroes, right? Many of us tend to build up our favorite stars in our heads, imagining them to be these ‘perfect’ people who are as charismatic as they are kind. But putting them on a pedestal can lead to a shock when you do meet them and the reality of who they are clashes against your sky-high expectations. However, some folks really do live up to the hype in the best possible way!
Members of the super popular r/AskReddit online community shared some of their most positive celebrity encounters ever, from meeting Robin Williams to having a friendly chat with Adam Driver. Check out their wholesome stories below.
We got in touch with the author of the viral thread, redditor u/Former-Tadpole, and they were happy to share their thoughts about fan and celebrity interactions. Check out Bored Panda's interview with them below!

#1

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Dolly Parton.
She’s an incredible person. When I was a kid, my grandma was an in home care nurse for a sweet paralyzed man. He loved Dolly. She was in town for a concert and someone had reached out to her, she came to the house and sat with him and my grandma for two hours. My grandma cooked and she ate every bite and sat around with them acting like anyone else who was visiting would.
She’s just really a lovely person.
205points

#2

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
I've told the story before, but Robin Williams.
When I got out of the Army, I was working as a security guard. I was guarding one of those $500/plate rubber chicken dinner charity events, when I noticed a little hairy guy on the other side of the velvet rope about 10' away. It was Robin Williams. I didn't stare or say anything, I just went back to watching the crowd.
When he got up next to me, he struck up a conversation. I was absolutely nobody and he was very kind.
188points

#3

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Mr. Rogers. I lived in his neighborhood during the summers (I really did live in Mr. Rogers’ neighborhood!). He and his family were authentically lovely people.
163points

Psychotherapist and executive coach Moshe Ratson explains on Psychology Today that our unrealistic expectations can lead to disappointment and frustration. “There is a gap between the reality we face and the way we think it should be, and frustration and disappointment highlight the discrepancy. Unmet expectations are quite common, and they are a major internal trigger for anger,” he writes.

According to Ratson, though it’s natural to have expectations in life, if we’re too attached to them, it leads to suffering. Meanwhile, realistic expectations are fine because they’re grounded in experience and logic. But when they become detached from reality, they can sabotage our sense of happiness.

#4

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Michael Keaton- he was filming a movie in our neighborhood. While all the other actors would run to their trailers between scenes, he would sit on the curb and BS with anyone who wanted to. Very down to earth guy.
145points

#5

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Stephen King. Ran into him at a gas station as I was pulling in to gas up, he pointed to one of the pumps and said “that one’s out of order”.
It is not a thrilling tale, just a hero author saving me a few minutes of time going to a gas pump that wasn’t working. Everyone who has lived in maine probably has an identical story. King is always in random places being a solidly normal and decent dude.
136points

#6

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Never met him, but Steve Carrell has a video where he explains why he hates Ryan Gosling.
It's because in his free time Gosling spends a lot of time doing charity work. No cameras, not social media posts, no reporters. He doesn't do it for clout, he does it because he's a genuinely good person who recognizes how fortunate he is and wants to help others.
Ryan Gosling is the type of incredibly wholesome person that makes you feel like you feel like s**t because you see him and feel like you need to do more to follow his example.
And that's why Steve Carrell hates Ryan gosling.
116points

It really does help to go through life with realistic expectations that keep you grounded. If your expectations are too high, you risk being disappointed when you finally meet that person, see that movie, or try that product you’ve been daydreaming about for ages. If there’s a large gap between what you expected/wanted and what you got, it’s only going to ruin an experience that might otherwise have been pretty decent.

On the flip side, if you’re always cynical and pessimistic about the future, you might miss out on truly spectacular opportunities in life. So, it’s often best to keep your expectations in check as much as possible and to allow life to surprise you if things take an unexpectedly positive turn. Meanwhile, any disappointments that will come your way won’t hit as hard because you’re letting your life experiences, not your imagination, guide you.

#7

Encountered Robin Williams in an airport years ago. He was every bit as funny and kind as you’d hope, making jokes and genuinely asking about my day. That encounter still brings a smile to my face.
110points

#8

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Terry Prachett on one his new book signing tours at a small bookstore. Really nice talk and meet and greet during the signing.
Gahan Wilson, cartoonist, at a Comicon. He took time to draw something for everyone in line. He talked with both my daughters and I have a drawing of them by him. Really genuine and nice person.
104points

#9

Meeting Sir Ian McKellen after a stage performance was a dream come true. He was gracious, witty, and incredibly humble, taking time to sign autographs and speak with fans. It was a magical experience.
99points

It helps to remember that celebrities—no matter how talented, rich, and charismatic they might be—are human beings. Just like you and us, they’re anxious about the future, worried about how others see them. They have flaws, insecurities, and worries like their fans, even if they might be better at hiding them.

This more human perspective can help you keep your expectations in check before you meet up with your beloved star. It should also help you keep at least some of your nerves in check. After all, you’ll be talking to another person, not a deity. Be polite. Be civil. Be authentic. And the odds are that they’ll return your kindness with more kindness.

Reputation is something that celebrities live by. Being kind, nice, well-mannered, and learning to get along with others isn't just the 'right' thing to do, it's also the smartest strategy.

The entertainment industry is quite tight-knit. If someone has a reputation for being rude or hard to work with, they might not get to work on high-profile projects much longer. On the flip side, someone who's got a magnetic personality, is a team player, and treats others with respect is going to quickly become an industry favorite, no matter what part of the industry they're in.

#10

Eddie the Dog from Frasier (real name Moose). I helped put on a giant dog festival in Seattle in 2000 and Eddie was a special guest. He was so god damned chill; even with hundreds of people wanting to pet him. Not sure why I thought he might be high strung but not at all. Later we went up the space needle with his handler and had a lovely dinner.
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95points

#11

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Neil Gaiman was utterly lovely. It was supposed to be a signing only, no personalization, but he personalized both my books and my friend’s without us asking and was overall just very nice.
85points

#12

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Dave Grohl. Ran into him at the Northridge mall all by himself and he totally stopped for a minute while I gushed like a star struck 9 year old. Super cool guy! Chino Moreno also. Hung out at the pool in Vegas before thier set and he totally just talked with me like nothing for a hlaf hour. Both bad a*s singers and super cool guys!
80points

"It's very easy for celebrities to become complacent and even frustrated with the amount of attention they get on a day-to-day basis, and it’s a constant battle to keep the smiles coming," u/Former-Tadpole, who sparked the positive topic online, told Bored Panda.

"When you meet a celebrity, you’re seeing a tiny 5-minute window of who they are as a person. They could be having a bad day, they could be exhausted from meeting people for 8 hours earlier on. But to you, that meeting is all you’ve got to go on. So if it goes badly, naturally you might assume they’re just a bad person in general and that isn’t always the case," they shared why it's so important to set realistic expectations for yourself before you meet your fave stars.

"I think one of the cool things about the thread is that there are some celebrities in there where people had a really great encounter with their idol, and then someone replies saying they had an awful encounter with the same celebrity! And I think that really hammers home the point. Celebrities should always think about this in the back of their minds, and vice versa, we should try not to judge people on their worst mistakes!"

#13

I got to interview Dick Van Dyke once, having admired his work for years, and he was every inch as charming, friendly, voluble, and modest as you could hope.
79points

#14

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Willie Nelson. After a long show in a big honkytonk bar, he stayed after to meet anyone who wanted to meet him.
77points

#15

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Rick Astley. He is the kindest, most lovely guy. I got to meet him backstage as I had a connection with one of his team at the time and I hung out together with him and his band, he gave me wine and offered me toast!
10/10 would recommend meeting Rick Astley.
73points

The OP opened up to us that it was actually someone from their social circle who inspired them to start the thread. "My roommate told me a story about a few negative encounters with celebrities while working door security for their events," they shared.

"The media tends to focus on these negative encounters, the scandals, and I figured Reddit would be the perfect place to hear some stories from the other side of the coin," u/Former-Tadpole said that it's refreshing to talk about wholesome encounters, instead of someone's drawbacks. 

#16

Saw Michelle Obama at a book signing, and she was every bit as elegant and insightful in person. She made time to have a real conversation with each person, making the experience unforgettable.
72points

#17

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Stan Lee he was so humble and loved every single one of his fans. He used to call me She-Hulk whenever he saw me.
71points

#18

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Adam Driver came to see us when I was stationed in Korea. Nicest dude, made sure to meet and talk with each of us that showed up.
69points

The thread actually got so much attention that the OP eventually became a tad overwhelmed. "For the first day or two, I really tried to reply to everyone who shared a story, but the post just got bigger and bigger and eventually I had to switch the notifications off!" they told Bored Panda.

"I guess there is a ‘stigma’ about celebrities being snobby, but in the vast majority of cases it simply isn’t true! And I think people are eager to share their stories as it’s something that goes against the norm."

#19

35 Nice Celebrities These People Have Met In Real Life
Keanu Reeves in a jam packed subway car. Who almost knocked me over as we were climbing the steps to the exit.
69points

#20

Betty White. Who’d of thunk it, right? /s
Met here at a charity fundraiser for a guide dog school and she couldn’t have been more gracious. Took time to speak with most everyone in the room.
Oh yeah, Charles Barkley is a pretty good dude also.
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68points
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