Post#176 » by tsirigoj » Thu Jun 10, 2021 4:27 pm
I had several celebrity encounters (and a few noteworthy ones from friends/families):
Shaq -- My dad owned a restaurant that the occasional celebrity would come to (we were right by a major mall). When Shaq was with the Magic, he and a couple of teammates came through. My dad is an immigrant, didn't watch must basketball, so he had no idea who Shaq was (but realized that this man was, of course, huge). Shaq got the sense from my dad's demeanor (and accent) that he didn't know who he was, so apparently, Shaq laughed it off, gave him some photos he was carrying, and said something like "give this to your kids. They'll know who I am."
Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka -- This also happened at my dad's restaurant. I was a kid (maybe 6 years old), and Superfly came in. My dad told me who he was, although I never watched wrestling. I just remember his frame and massive hands. He said something like, "one day, kid, you'll grow up to be as big as me. Just keep drinking your milk!" This was around the time that his legal trouble was starting.
Jason Kidd -- a family friend of ours has a radio talk show, interviews a bunch of celebrities. He said that after interviewing Kidd, he felt like he had to wash his hands (this was not the first time I heard that Kidd was god awful).
Scottie Pippen -- YEARS ago, my aunt was at a jewelry store, and apparently Pippen was picking out a ring. My aunt said she didn't want to bother him, but he was smiling a lot asking a lot of questions. Just seemed like an overall positive guy.
Darryl Dawkins -- I was a really good basketball player in middle school and in high school until I got myself injured (at my best, I was averaging 22/12. I was an undersized big man, but was too quick for other bigs and had a nice shot. Also, I took pride in my rebounding). I was "invited" to go to a Darryl Dawkins camp, but didn't want to. One evening, I got a phone call, and it was Dawkins telling me how he wanted me at his camp. It was surreal.
Ryan Anderson -- I was in New Orleans in a well known restaurant for an interview for business school. There I was, acting all professional, when all of a sudden, Ryan Anderson walks in! I screamed across the restaurant "oh damn, that's Ryan Anderson." He just looked over at me and smiled.
CJ McCollum -- I went to CJ's rival school and we were a part of the same class year. Freshman year, he was already the best ever in the conference. I was pretty gone during our spring concert, and McCollum was standing right next to me at one point! In my drunk stupor, I just started booing him. He just gave me a funny look and moved along.
Lupe Fiasco -- this is my favorite celebrity story. I was at Mardi Gras, and after a few drinks, I notice Lupe is on one of the floats! I start yelling "oh sh*t! That's Lupe Fiasco!" He points at me, smiles, and starts throwing things (plastic cups) at me. I'm catching them all, so he shouts to me, "you've got good hands, kid!"
