We look to celebrities for inspiration, not just in their professional lives, but in their personal lives as well. Of course, they can shape their public persona into whatever image they would like to represent themselves, leaving certain details off the record. Some people were "fortunate" enough to learn what they are really like.
Ordinary people with extraordinary celebrity encounters shared the experience on Reddit. After reading these stories, found on Reddit and edited for clarity, you may never look at your favorite stars the same way ever again.
“He Was Staring Off Into The Distance And Ignoring Her”
“In early 2013, a female friend and I went to an after-party that Donald Glover (Childish Gambino) was DJing at after one of his concerts in Sydney. After his DJ set, we were smoking outside when Donald exited the venue through a side door. We looked over at him and he immediately approached us and introduced himself. Right from the get-go, my friend started flirting with him hard. He asked us if we had any weed. We did, and he invited us back to his hotel to smoke with him.
We ended up on the balcony of his hotel suite along with a couple of other guys smoking a blunt. My friend was all over him. I’ve never seen her try so hard to get with a guy. I could tell from pretty early on that he wasn’t into it at all. He was staring off into the distance and ignoring her or responding with one-word answers. After about half an hour, he stood up and said, ‘I’m going to bed.’ My friend asked him if she should come, to which he looked her dead in the eye and said, ‘I honestly don’t give care what you do’ and walked off. We left soon after that.
About a year later, I read an interview with him where he said that he tried to kill himself on that Australian tour. In hindsight the way he was acting definitely seemed like someone who was depressed.”
“He Looked At Her And Asked To Head To His Room”
“My mom was on her honeymoon in Hawaii when she bumped into OJ Simpson (this was in 1988, before he went crazy). He looked at her and asked to head to his room. She pointed at her ring finger and said, ‘Oh, I just got married.’
He took her hand and put it down, looked at her, and said, ‘That matters why?’
In the end, she called over my dad and he took a picture of her with OJ… which is now forever in her honeymoon album.”
“Papa John Has A Penchant For Ladies Of The Night”
“I know for a FACT that Papa John has a penchant for ladies of the night (even though he’s married with kids). I work in the private aviation industry and witnessed it first hand.
He was coming into town for a fundraiser one summer. His new helicopter flew in and the pilots told us he’d be arriving in his jet within a few minutes. He had two twenty-something females on call when he landed to meet him at his plane. They got in, drank for a while, got out, went into his helicopter (which we parked right next to his plane), flew around over the city I live for an hour or so, landed, and took a car to a hotel. Pretty sure they were working girls. The pilot told me he does this in almost every city he spends some time in. They all came back to my work late at night for another chopper ride and then that was it… until last Thursday night.
His plane came in again. He didn’t get out, but he dropped off this smoking hot girl. She was waiting for her ride, so the pilot came in to wait with her. I was at the front desk that day and took the call of someone at our gate wanting to get in. He said he was there to pick up his daughter. I asked what tail number he was waiting for. He said Papa John’s plane.
Yuck. Dude’s a devil dog.”
“He Asked What I Ate So That He Wouldn’t Do This To His Wife”
“I was in the bathroom of a restaurant in Vegas taking a massive dump. In walked someone who sat in the next stall. After a couple moments I heard, ‘What died over there?’
I apologized and, eventually, got up and washed my hands. As I was drying them the other stall flushes and out walked Ryan freaking Reynolds. He looked at me and just shook his head and asked what I ate so that he wouldn’t do this to his wife. I just muttered, ‘Subway.’
Anyways, we continued talking while he was drying his hands and he asked where my table was. I told him and, by the fate of God, he was sitting just a few over. Next thing I knew, my girlfriend and I are sitting at the same table as Reynolds & his wife, Blake Lively. Sitting across from him and Blake, I could tell that they really did love each other. Throughout our dinner, we never had an awkward silence because one of them would always be talking or answering our questions. There were a few people who came up to him durning dinner that had some connection to him but he told them that he was eating with friends and that they could get ahold of him later if they needed to. They made us feel like we were the center of attention, & that’s something that I wouldn’t expect in Hollywood or places like it.
Honestly, the best three hour dinner I’ve ever had. I’ve meet other famous people before, but I’ve never meet anyone as genuine and down to earth as him. Probably the one time in life I’ll be happy that I produced mustard gas and almost killed my favorite celebrity.”
“He Smiled, Reached His Arm Out, And Pulled Me Close…”
“When I was 19 (mid 2000s), I was invited to a ‘guys only’ nighttime pool party in LA by a friend. He told me that it was at a nice house belonging to a gay celebrity. There was a ton of drinks, coke, and weed. My friend, who had been to a party at this house before, said the parties typically went all night and everyone in the pool ended up skinny dipping. The only rule was in order to be invited back, you had to bring a ‘hot’ friend, and not discuss who the celebrity was. So, being flattered that I was that ‘hot friend’ curious to see who the celebrity was, and a constantly randy gay teenager, I went.
We rolled up to an insane house with thumping trance music coming from the back. We walked along the driveway and around the back of the house to a gate and there was a massive security guy with a flashlight shining it into everyone’s faces and waving them through to the backyard. The scene we walked into: at least 30 young (teens and 20s) guys, some in tiny bathing suits, frolicking, making out, and splashing in a massive pool, with probably another 20-30 guys standing around the pool and backyard sipping drinks, some way older, dancing and checking out the action in the pool. There was not a female to be found anywhere.
I finally worked up the nerve and asked who the celebrity was, and my friend whispered, ‘Bryan Singer’ to me. We grabbed drinks, took off our shirts, and sat with our feet in the pool. I remember being hesitant to get in fully. Most of the young guys ignored us, but I remember a few of the older guys circling the pool introducing themselves. One old guy with a Hurley hat, in particular, was very handsy, and proceeded to sit next to me on the edge of the pool and run his hand up and down my thigh and into my board shorts. I remember being freaked out but enjoying the attention, and obviously wasted.
As he was talking to me, he stopped mid-sentence as someone came up behind us. He jumped up, excitedly greeting and hugging the guy. I finally realized that he was talking to Bryan Singer, fully dressed, probably wasted. As they talked, I remember being nervous that I’d actually have to talk to him. He leaned over to us and said, ‘Having fun?’ Being an idiot, I said, ‘Not yet,’ thinking I was clever and looking for attention. He said, ‘Do a shot, get in the pool!’ and was eventually distracted by something and wandered away.
At one point, I do remember using the bathroom in a guest house, and running into Bryan again, who had the skinniest twink Latino guy, inebriated and leaning on him, as he smoked a joint, and talked to an older guy. Bryan turned to me as I came out of the bathroom and said, ‘You get that shot yet?’ And I said yes, and he smiled, reached his arm out, pulled me close, and continued his conversation, all while aggressively rubbing my neck. He ended up walking away again, and I didn’t see him again. I continued to drink so the rest of the night got hazier.
No relations were had, but I do remember witnessing more and more shenanigans in the pool. My friend sobered up eventually and we left. Ten years later, there was a news story about Bryan Singer being accused of impropriety with a young guy and ultimately settling out of court, and this all came back to me.”
“I Certainly Knew Her Name After That Day”
“I went to a concert long ago at a river crab shack joint. It was my father, me, and my niece, and we arrived by motor boat. The crab restaurant had a shallow sandy bit of the river that attracted a lot of inebriated boaters. They had set up a two-story barge for the bands to play on and called it Aquapalooza.
My niece was excited about the young singer on stage, but I didn’t know the name or care. The two of us waded our way to the stage boat and ended up between the rowdy crowd and the barge since there was a natural gap, because who wants to look straight up at the band? Well, then, I was looking up the sundress of an 18-year-old Taylor Swift for about 30 minutes. I certainly knew her name after that day.”
What Do Channing Tatum And Freddy Krueger Have In Common?
“A buddy of Mine was a production assistant on a Channing Tatum movie. There was a scene that involved Tatum performing in very COLD water. As not to have his shrinkage immortalized on the silver screen, my pal’s job was to continuously bring Tatum a warm cup of water to pour directly on his junk.
At one point, there was a miscommunication, and another P.A. was told that Channing wanted a cup of coffee. Being a celebrity and not knowing one P.A. from another, Tatum took the boiling hot cup of coffee then proceeded to pour it down the front of his pants. He was immediately rushed to the hospital with third degree burns.
So next time you feel insecure about yourself or hear others fawning over Channing Tatum, just remember that beef cake has Fred Krueger’s member.”
“Obnoxious And His Breath Smelled Terrible”
“I was prepping the green room at a comedy club and John Oliver was doing a 30-minute set in Canada long before he was famous. I guess I said something to him and he took it the wrong way because he was on me the rest of the night, just messing with me. He proceeded to pick through all the food in the green room. He was just touching everything for some reason, I assume, just to be rude. Other comics were there, bigger names then, and it was just awkward.
He keeps ordering drinks and leaving them around the room after taking one sip, or spilling them and complaining about the place while I cleaned it up, constantly asking me for drinks and my co-worker working backstage. Well, the bartender was ticked off because he kept ordering complex different mixed drinks and stated that he thought he was getting way too wasted after the eight within half an hour, but he wasn’t that messed up at all. He was doing it on purpose. So, I told him he needed to chill for a bit. He flipped out on me, yelling and screaming.
Oh, and he was blowing lines with other comics in the bathroom and asked a staff member where to score more blow.
He complained to the manager and we started shipping drinks his way again and every time I delivered a drink or came close to the seating area, he would stoop talking if he was and gave me a dirty stare. The dude was coked out of his mind.
Just obnoxious and his breath smelled terrible and he smelled terrible, like he showered once a month. He looks like he smells. I don’t get how anyone married him. His teeth are jacked up. He was nice to the other comics and nice to the crowed.
After the show was over, I was outside having a smoke and I saw him leave. I was with two other co-workers. I just stared at him (shouldn’t have done that) and he went to walk away, but turned around a comes toward me.
He asked what the heck my problem was. I was not going to roll over, but I didn’t want to get fired. I just blew smoke in his face. He turned red in the face, and threatened to get me fired. Then he said, and I will never forget it, ‘It’s 2012 and idiots like you are still smoking. How freaking stupid are you? Freaking plonk,’ and after a few more words he walked off, got in a Land Rover, and drove away, coked up and wasted off his balls.”
“Her Actions Told Me There Was Definitely Something Weird In There”
“Years ago I was a concierge at a very upscale resort and I had stories for days about various celebrities, but most of them would just be not-that-funny gossip. One day, a financially failing boxer star/face tattoo aficionado stayed at the resort for the weekend as he often did. He would show up in his Continental GT flying down the front drive at 30 mph acting like a total butthead, but then be super nice to everyone he saw. He sometimes didn’t pay his bill at the hotel, but they would call him the next day and his agent would square it away. Whatever, no big deal. He lived locally so it wasn’t a huge deal.
Well, on this particular stay, he hung out in the lobby shaking hands with fans who would tell him who he is – ‘You’re ‘tattoo/boxer guy!” and he’d say, ‘Yeah, nice to meet you,’ and shake their hand. He disappeared for the remainder of the evening and I went home at 10 p.m. not thinking anything would happen, but one of my friends was an over-night bellman who texted me at 5 a.m. as he was heading home saying, ‘Tattoo/boxer guy had, like, three or four little Asian guys come over in the middle of the night for a couple of hours and then they just left. No sight of tattoo/boxer guy.’
So, I got to work the next morning at 11 right in time to see him leave in his Continental GT at the speed of light. Not long after I got to my desk, the housekeeping manager called me and said, ‘I have some lost and found items from tattoo/boxer guy’s room. Do you want me to bring them down? I don’t know what they are.’
I told her, ‘That’s fine. I’ll hold on to them and call him to see when he can pick them up.’ It sounded like a good opportunity for me to meet the guy. A maid brought the box down with a beet red face and handed it to me, sheepishly. Her actions told me there was definitely something weird in there, so I took it back to the office behind my desk. Well, the girls at the front desk just HAD to open the box apparently, because I heard shrieking followed by dead silence, then a lot of laugher and ‘Ewwww.’ I went back to look and there was a box of whips and other inappropriate toys and stuff.
I have never noped out of a room so fast, I never did call iron tattoo/boxer guy to tell him his things were there and his bill was paid, so we just left well enough alone. Oddly, I tell this story to other people who have worked in the hospitality industry and they seem to always have a similar story about the same guy. He’s nice…. maybe too nice?”
“Can’t Decide If I Should’ve Been Grossed Out Or Should Have Never Washed That Hand”
“I worked for the student TV station at USC when George Lucas donated a ton of money to build a new film school. The day of the groundbreaking, they had a little press junket for student media and I was on the crew managing sound. Usually when we would mic up interview subjects, I would hand them the cord to run under their shirt themselves, then I’d clip the mic to their shirt/collar myself.
George, however, plopped down in his chair, and just pulled the bottom of his sweater vest out and away from his shirt, leaving me to run the mic cord myself. So, I had to stick my hand up his sweater vest and out the top to attach the mic. It was warm in there and definitely close enough quarters that I had to graze some of his chest (luckily not bare, but still).
To this day, can’t tell if he was that accustomed to or comfortable with a stranger on a video crew, was too stuck up to pull the cord under his shirt himself, wanted a female college student to invade his personal space, or all of the above. I also still can’t decide if I should’ve been grossed out or should have never washed that hand.”
Show Me The Ladies!
“My sister was at a get together with her friends preparing for an upcoming wedding at a bar in LA. Cuba Gooding Jr. came in, who, I guess, was a regular there and played in some kind of hockey league or something. That last part was less clear in the story she told me, and you will get why soon.
Anyway, he got really wasted and started hanging around my sister and her friends. Some of my sister’s friends are really hot. My sister is chubby with a really big chest and very blonde hair. He took a liking to her and was kinda flirty. She is married. She said to him: ‘Aren’t you married?’
His response? He totally motorboated her. Being the super cool sis she is, she just kinda laughed and went with it. Fast forward a few hours and I was picking her up at the airport. I said, ‘You will not believe what just happened to me. I got rear ended by a cop on the way here!’
She said, ‘Cuba Gooding, Jr. motorboated me.’
No one likes to lose to their little sister. In this case, I nodded slowly and admitted defeat.”
“I Still Liked Him In ‘Whiplash'”
“I was riding my bike home from work. I was on a four lane road (two lanes each way). I’m very courteous when I ride. I was all the way on the right side, literally riding in the gutter (the ‘gutter’ in the San Fernando Valley is just kind of a slanted area right by the curb). The point is, I was over literally as far over as I could go.
An Audi 7/8 series roared past me, speeding and super close. There were no other cars around. This happens all the time so I just thought, whatever. There was traffic up ahead so I ended up passing the car. The road ended up becoming two lanes with a suicide lane in the middle. We stopped at a light and the lane up ahead was a shared bike lane. Being a shared bike lane, I can legally take the full lane to be safe, which I did because there was traffic and cars parked on the side of the road. Mind you, it was only shared for one block past the traffic light. Then, the road opened up.
You can guess what happened. The Audi sped past me again, driving through the middle suicide lane to do so. This ticked me off to end. It was stupid, put my life, the driver’s life, and other driver’s lives in danger. And for what reason? To save two seconds? I saw the car parked at a gas station further down the road. I thought I’d ride past and cuss the driver out.
‘Freaking rude,’ I said to the driver as he got out. That was when I saw it was J.K. Simmons.
‘Does it make you feel better to say that?’ he asked.
‘Yeah. Actually, it does,’ I replied. ‘What were doing back there? Do you want to kill me? Is that worth it?’
He just shrugged me off. So, I rode away and yelled, ‘FREAKING IDIOT!’
And he yelled back, ‘GO STUFF YOURSELF!’
I still liked him in Whiplash.”
“I Was So Shocked I Didn’t Say Anything And Just Walked Away”
“It was Birmingham, Alabama, at a place called Sloss Furnace. Back in the early 2000s, I went to a concert to see one of my favorite bands (at the time), Emery. Hawthorne Heights was there too. I liked some of their songs, but not enough to really call myself a fan. The concert was awesome, but there was a band that played that was weird, but I liked their music.
The band’s name was From First to Last. Now, I don’t know if you know this, but From First to Last’s lead singer was a guy named Sonny Moore. Sonny Moore is also known by the name Skrillex nowadays. After the show, FFTL stuck around to sign stuff and I told myself I would get something signed due to the fact that they made a fan out of me during the show. Mind you, it was 2 a.m. and I’m black as night, so it was hard to see me unless I smiled.
At the time, I had long black hair. It was either in a scene haircut due to my brother who loves doing hair but could only do scene hairstyles due to his own liking, or in corn rows because my mom always liked braiding my hair. That night, I was scene as heck. I probably looked like a girl due to the hairstyle and not being able to see me.
I finally got the courage to go up to them and ask him (Skrillex) to sign my wallet. He happily fulfilled my request, while also writing down his number and kissing me on the lips, then putting a heart on my wallet next to the signature. I was so shocked I didn’t say anything and just walked away. I didn’t really tell anyone about the kissing part. I just told them I got my wallet signed and he was a cool guy.”
“Discussing Shakespeare with Leslie Nielsen”
“I had a rather amusing moment discussing Shakespeare with Leslie Nielsen.
I was in Stratford watching a production of Hamlet starring one of his friends. He was sitting somewhere above us, in a private section. After the applause died, I made a beeline for the door. I was starving, having had to skip the requisite pre-theatre meal and leveled the head of his entourage/bodyguard with my shoulder when he stepped out into the aisle. I still don’t know if the guy was protection per se, but he was modestly big and dressed like one. Mild commotion ensued, with lots of Canadian apologizing all around. Nielsen threw a karate stance and then started laughing his butt off.
We happened to end up in the same restaurant later that evening. I hit the washroom, and as I was about to take a pee, in strolled Nielsen. He noticed me and then, as awkwardly as possible, chose the urinal directly next to me.
Zip.
He started telling me, in classic Nielsen deadpan, how he fired the guy one week away from retirement, how his kids were going to go hungry, he did not enough money to buy his wife clothes, which is fine because she’s pretty good looking for an amputee, etc. I just kind of defaulted into listening mode because it was hilariously weird. After a bit he looked over at me, as drolly as possible, and said, ‘Kid, I’m three-quarters of a century old. This takes a while. You gonna say something?’
So, I asked him about the play, and how he felt his friend had handled a couple of notoriously tricky scenes. Our conversation, willies in hands, was largely confined to the comic aspects of playing Hamlet, as you’d expect, but while brief, it was illuminating. Eventually, decorum allowed his zip to dictate my zip. We washed our hands, still chatting, and then headed back out. Outside the washroom, he extended his hand and says, rather conventionally, ‘Well, it was a pleasure,’ and, impulsively, I shook it. He held on just a little too too long, and then started grinning lewdly at me, and repeated, ‘a pleasure. I freaking lost it. He walked back to his table.
RIP, you glorious son of a bee sting.”
“All Grandpa Could Say Was, ‘They’re Pretty Nice!'”
“Back in the ’80s, my grandparents lived in Cape Cod and went to see a play at The Cape Play House and Cloris Leachman was performing. They ended up bumping into her afterwards and invited her back with some of their friends to their place. They went back to my grandparents’ place, had a few drinks, grandpa called my mom, and my mother was beside herself because she was soon talking to Cloris Freaking Leachman – who she said was a very sweet woman.
She handed the phone back to grandpa and suddenly heard a commotion. Her stepmom screamed, ‘OH MY GOD!’ and grandpa told my mom that Cloris just flashed him. My mom was stunned and all grandpa could say was, ‘They’re pretty nice!'”