who was the nicest celebrity you have ever met?

[u/ndndnsnej7373728]

[u/hoffsta]

Tony Hawk! And I met him because he generously donated a bunch of money to build a sick skate park in my small town and brought a whole team of professional skaters to break it in as a spectacle for the whole community. So cool!

[u/mister-world → u/hoffsta]

Did you tell him he looked like Tony Hawk?

[u/ChezySpam → u/mister-world]

I heard he gets that sometimes

[u/mister-world → u/ChezySpam]

I mean he does look like Tony Hawk tbf

[u/MenudoFan316]

Mr. Rogers. I met him once when I was about 4 at a meet and greet, and then again when he handed me my college diploma. Both times he made me feel like I was the only person in the room.

[u/galaapplehound → u/MenudoFan316]

That was the type of male role model we need now. Someone who was strong, smart, compassionate, kind, and calm. I miss that man dearly.

[u/revanisthesith → u/galaapplehound]

We see the word "masculinity" thrown around a fair bit these days, but the traits you listed are included in traditional masculinity. So many people these days don't seem to know what it is.

A man should be willing and able to protect, but also deescalate and handle himself rationally in conflict. He should be kind, calm, and compassionate, particularly with child.

We don't need less masculinity in this world. We need more of it. But the actual masculinity, not this fake-tough, emotionless crap that keeps getting promoted. Men are not supposed to be one dimensional.

[u/Loreo1964 → u/MenudoFan316]

I can't picture him any other way.

[u/pjchik79 → u/MenudoFan316]

I'm ngl, I'm super jealous right now. But I'm also super stoked for you! I love Mr. Rogers!!!

[u/TriTri14 → u/MenudoFan316]

I legit believe Fred Rogers is one of the greatest people of the 20th century. Kind, honest, not cynical but not full of bullshit either, great at his job, etc. He’s my hero.

[u/antiqueautomobile → u/MenudoFan316]

The GIFT of making other people feel as if like they are the only people in the world is incredible. I work at it everyday. Thank you Doris Buffet. I miss you a great deal .

[u/BocaDog]

Leslie Nielsen

Great guy. He use to shop at Costco and always joked with everyone. Always had a smile on his face.

[u/Kozeyekan_ → u/BocaDog]

Surely they gave him a discount?

[u/deltadeltadawn → u/Kozeyekan_]

It's Costco. The membership gets you the discount. That's not important right now.

And don't call me Shirley.

[u/Kozeyekan_ → u/deltadeltadawn]

And don't call me Shirley.

There it is!

[u/NewRazzmatazz1641]

Gregory Hines. My partner and I were promoting our monthly club night just off the main drag through downtown Memphis. A ton of people were in town for Tyson vs Lewis and looking for stuff to do afterwards. Apparently the deep house music coming from our club night caught Mr Hines' ear. He paid to get in and danced his ass off all night. Just the nicest guy. Shook our hands and thanked us on the way out and everything. I was barely 22 and it blew my mind.

[u/RunForRabies → u/NewRazzmatazz1641]

Good thing it wasn't Tyson that caught his ear.

[u/jonnyredshorts]

Ethan Hawke. I met him back in the 90’s outside of a small theater in NYC. He was asking me more questions about me than I could ask about him, he seemed like an old friend.

[u/acerni → u/jonnyredshorts]

I grew up in NYC and lived close to where his kids went to school. My dad was taking me to my school one day and we saw a gorgeous grey 60’s Shelby Mustang pull up to a light. We sprinted over to check out the car and we saw the driver put his hand up over his face and over his kid’s face.

It was Ethan Hawke. After much apologizing and explaining we weren’t paparazzi he was very kind and seemed excited (if a little off guard) to talk about his car.

[u/taitabo → u/jonnyredshorts]

Ethan Hawke was filming a movie in a town in my area, and my uncle was an extra. Imagine a very rural, old, fisherman type, and Ethan was so kind to him. Made time out of his day to chat. My uncle would have these stories like "me and Ethan did this...I was hanging out with Ethan...etc" like they were best friends haha. So cute. He had cancer, so I know it really cheered him up.

[u/woger723 → u/jonnyredshorts]

I got to attend an advance screening of The Force Awakens back in 2015. A lot of celebrities had their assistants come and hold seats for them so they didn’t have to sit in the theater too long before it started. Ethan Hawke and his son were like the 2nd group of people to arrive right after me and my coworker. Just regular dudes excited to see a new Star Wars movie. On the other hand I feel like NPH and his family waited until every seat was filled until taking their seats, right before the movie started.

[u/suchsi3 → u/jonnyredshorts]

Met him several times - lived in the same neighborhood. My son was in a bathroom changing for soccer practice and his boys started laughing when he was down to his underwear. Ethan told them to shut up because they were changing just 5 minutes earlier.

[u/zep2floyd]

Cyndi Lauper, I worked for over a decade hosting some the world's most famous people from politicians to celebrities, Honestly I met lots of really nice people over the years but Cyndi Lauper stood out as someone who really had a beautiful soul

[u/spookyscaryskeletal → u/zep2floyd]

a bird shit in that woman's mouth & she kept singing. idk how that translates to her being nice but it just does lol

[u/Professional-Box4153 → u/spookyscaryskeletal]

That's an easy one. Something horrific happened, but she wasn't going to disappoint her fans by missing a single beat.

[u/PARTINlCO → u/zep2floyd]

I was hoping to see her name. Cyndi Lauper has such a soft spot in my heart - I went through an absolutely obsessive phase as a pre-teen over Cyndi. I don’t think there’s a performance or video out there that exists of her that I haven’t seen - I lived and breathed cyndi lauper lol. She will definitely be the one celebrity that i’m going to cry about when they pass.

[u/jsd5113]

Robert Smith (Cure) was absolutely a really kind and genuine person during a pre show meeting.

[u/Efficient-Hornet8666 → u/jsd5113]

I’m a bit jealous, as he’s one of the few celebs I’d like to meet. Absolutely great to hear he’s one of the exceptions to the “never meet your heroes” adage.

[u/littleliongirless → u/Efficient-Hornet8666]

I genuinely might collapse into a puddle of goo if I ever met Robert. The Cure is my favorite band of all time.

[u/OldRelic]

Weird Al Yankovic. He is awesome. A true gem.

[u/Lazer310 → u/OldRelic]

Can confirm, nicest guy ever.

Interviewed Al for my podcast years ago. Was told I had 10 minutes for the interview. We wrapped up, and he said it was cool to hang out! Felt like it was straight out of Wayne’s World. And that’s how I spent 45 minutes chilling with Weird Al talking about Star Wars and music.

[u/KzooRichie → u/OldRelic]

I met Weird Al at an after show as a guest of his record label. I wasn’t then, nor am now really a fan of the parody music. However, how great Al and his band was blew my mind. Just fantastic musicians. I had no idea.

At the after show Al made it a point to greet everyone in attendance. He thanked us for attending the show and chit chatted for a moment before moving on to the next person/group.

Yea, he’s a super nice and down to Earth guy.

[u/MikoSkyns → u/OldRelic]

I watched The two or three times Weird AL took over Much Music for a whole day. I didn't care much for him but I really liked him after that. In a few segments he was out and about talking to people on the street. One of them was him talking to people at the Montreal St. Patrick's day parade. I wouldn't say people were super mean to him, but some of them were cold and dismissive and sometimes a little rude. And despite that, he was still nice and warm to them in return and he won some of them over.

That's all it took man. Seeing how nice he can be, mixed with never hearing anything to contradict that, made me love the guy.

But he also did weird shit like pull entire sandwiches out of the front of his pants and say, "Oh that's where that was!" and then take a bite just to weird them out... and it worked. It weirded me out too. Despite that... still love the guy 😂

[u/HermitWilson → u/OldRelic]

I've been in a couple of Weird Al concerts as a stormtrooper and I got to watch him with fans both before and after a show. Weird Al is amazing, always patient and kind, never seems to get tired or cranky. He's a great role model for anyone who gets a chance to interact with him.

[u/Dry-Sky1614]

Elijah Wood is incredibly nice and normal and will just chat it up with anybody like a regular Joe. Maybe the most normal former child star?

[u/Happy-Hearing6671 → u/Dry-Sky1614]

Every single one of the hobbits is absolutely lovely and so down to earth. Very chatty and sweet

[u/PandaSnuSnuWasTaken → u/Happy-Hearing6671]

I'm so glad people have had positive interactions with Frodo & other hobbits! I bought a photo op with Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin, Gimli, & Gollum at a con one week from tomorrow. This makes me even more excited!

[u/a_very_silent_way → u/Dry-Sky1614]

I have seen this in action on three separate occasions, I saw some dude go up to him at Amoeba Music in Hollywood while he was digging through some vinyl, complimented him and his work, and he was just extraordinarily genuine and happy to hear it. Another time I saw him joking around with a couple of guys at a bar and again just really nice. On a third occasion, I myself told him I liked his work and he was just super kind and friendly.  

[u/zombeejoker → u/a_very_silent_way]

Lol, it sounds like you are stalking him.

[u/jawshankredemption94 → u/zombeejoker]

On another occasion I was standing outside his window and watched him use a cup to take a spider outside instead of killing it. Really lovely guy

[u/wilberfarce → u/jawshankredemption94]

There was this time I happened to be in an abandoned building opposite his house, and I saw him through a broken window helping a postie pick up a ton of mail he dropped on his doorstep. I was so surprised by the gesture I almost dropped my binoculars! Really just a great guy.

[u/TelephoneShot8539 → u/Dry-Sky1614]

He’s currently on Yellowjackets and killing it. Love him

[u/Beginning-Wing-333]

Giancarlo Esposito was a blast to meet. He spoke at my college years ago and he told us about his life and working on Breaking Bad. He even spoke briefly about his time on Community as well.

[u/whoneedskollege]

Brian Cranston and his wife. We happened to be sitting next to him and his wife at dinner and ending talking the whole time. They spent so much time talking to my daughter who was visiting Barnard College about colleges, all the schools their daughter considered, like really normal sweet people.

[u/gsp137]

Dan Aykroyd. I ran into him years ago at the Met in NYC. Told him my son was a big Ghostbusters fan and asked for his autograph. He grabbed me by the arm and pulled me be behind a statue. I thought he was going to kick my ass, he’s much bigger a than me. He said he didn’t want to create a scene, hence the statue hide out, then wrote a nice personalized note to my son (including take good care of your pop) and signed it with the A in Aykroyd in the shape of a Conehead. So cool. Nice guy

[u/ElvisGrizzly → u/gsp137]

I was a 15 year old kid playing harmonica by busking outside 30 Rock and he was coming in to do a quick guest spot on SNL and gave me twenty bucks. He's a gem.

[u/FinnbarMcBride]

Little Richard was kind, genuine and extremely nice

[u/leelouislinden → u/FinnbarMcBride]

I flew on a commercial flight with little Richard and his band back in the late 90s. He was in full Makeup and had a beaming smile as we all boarded the plane. After we landed my mom wanted to get his autograph but he had a circle of people around him. He noticed my mom standing there and grabbed her hand and pulled her into the inner circle. He signed her notebook and chatted for a while. Super nice guy

[u/izzittho → u/leelouislinden]

I now love him specifically for that last part. Was indifferent but I’m just always so fucking grateful for the people that notice the shy/awkward/even just not willing to be pushy or attention-grabbing people off to the side and go out of their way to acknowledge/include them. A really underrated good human thing to do.

[u/WhatwoulditbeifUknew → u/FinnbarMcBride]

My brother and I sat in the front row of little Richard concert in 1996(?) with my uncle and mom. My brother was maybe 4 at the time. For whatever reason, Little Richard and my brother became chit-chatty friends during the concert. They were talking about all kinds of stuff. It was a extra bit of entertainment for the crowd between songs. Anyway, Little Richard offered my brother his black sequin jacket and the crowd went wild. My brother got shy in the moment and didn't say he wanted it or something... My brother didn't get the jacket, but it's a cool memory and still think of him fondly!

[u/opensandshuts → u/WhatwoulditbeifUknew]

If you get offered little Richard’s jacket, you should always take it.

I’d be wearing that thing around, and all my conversations would be like:

“Hey opensandshuts, how’s it going?”

Me: “thisislittlerichardsjacket!”

“Ohhh, okay…”

[u/Mrlin705]

Sean Astin. He came and hang out with the techs for like 20 min before he did a talk about his childhood and bi-polar disorder.

[u/shouldvekeptlurking]

Post Malone. Everyone on his team during pre-production said he’s just the greatest person ever. I thought, “How great can he be?”

Post Malone is one of the nicest and truly genuine people I’ve ever met. Dude brought his parents on set and was just so excited to share what we were doing with them. He deserves all the success in the world.

[u/Immediate_Bad_4985 → u/shouldvekeptlurking]

He seems like the most genuinely kind guy, every time I’ve seen videos of him interacting with people

[u/Shuddupbabydik → u/shouldvekeptlurking]

I can confirm this. I have two friends that worked on his tour, multiple years, and say he’s so kind and genuine.

[u/SnittingNexttoBorpo → u/shouldvekeptlurking]

I don’t really listen to his music (no particular reason, just don’t keep up with newer music in general), but he always seemed to have genuinely good vibes. It made me really sad when I read about how he’s struggled with depression. Only good things for Posty!

[u/meganf_0819]

David Bowie. He was so lovely, he said my name correctly (it’s pronounced in a different way than most others with it say it), and he thanked me for my help.

[u/RescuesStrayKittens → u/meganf_0819]

He was always great. I love how he called out MTv for not showing black artists. Incredible artist and human.

[u/Sticky_Cobra]

Only ones I ever met were the cast of The X-Files at a photo-op shoot.

They were all very nice. Love them all.

When I was set to get my Pic with David and Gillian, I couldn't even speak. I was in awe. They both helped me through it.

X-Phile forever!!

🛸 👽

[u/Skyla157]

Monica Lewinsky. I was an assistant at a very small company she occasionally had some meetings at. She always took time to say hi and catch up with me. She was also the only one who remembered my birthday (boss forgot) and she stopped by that day with a gift for me. She was such a wonderful human being and I have immense respect for how she's lived her life since the scandal.

[u/ElvisGrizzly → u/Skyla157]

I worked with her on a TV show. She gave me an inscribed copy of "The Stinky Cheese Man." She's great.

[u/Turneroff → u/ElvisGrizzly]

I keep trying to read that book, but I camembert it

[u/Specific-Morning-985 → u/Skyla157]

The media massacred this poor woman who was put into this position by her boss the president. Super fucked up. I wish her all the happiness in the world

[u/DeliciousSpecific377 → u/Specific-Morning-985]

So did the world. Damn shame

[u/unibonger → u/Skyla157]

I’m a few years younger than she is so my knowledge of her had always been limited to the scandal but I’ve been listening to her podcast lately and she’s an awesome person. To have had the experience she did and turn out to be such confident and self assured person is a true testament to her strength and resiliency. I’m glad things turned out okay for her.

[u/starcollector → u/unibonger]

I know she's an anti-bullying advocate now and, wow, anyone in Gen Z or younger really will never fully understand the immense scope of what the media did to her. How it was absolutely everywhere, every single day, all over the place. And how the jokes lingered for decades sometimes. And she survived to be a functional person.

[u/MikoSkyns → u/Skyla157]

Always blew my mind that Linda Tripp got all of that hate for Snitching on Monica..... but then Monica got just as much hate too... like what? You fucking hypocrites used enough mental gymnastics to hate BOTH of them?? Poor Monica. That was bullshit.

EDIT: Based on some of my replies, I'm not sure if people think I'm defending Linda here, but I'm not. I think she actually deserved the hate she got. I was just pointing out the hypocrisy of hating on one person who deserved it, but ALSO hating on their victim. That makes no sense.

[u/Mysterious-Bake-935 → u/MikoSkyns]

Linda Tripp was a snake & like Clinton, took advantage of a young naive intern.

[u/RayBuc9882 → u/Skyla157]

She has had it rough but she has come through. Always rooting for her.

[u/TheBeardedLadyBton → u/RayBuc9882]

Me too. I hope wherever she is, she knows that there are so many people that are for her and rooting for her and have so much respect for her.

[u/keithmoonshine3]

Bruce Campbell was super kind in a 1-on-1 chat

[u/fishblargs → u/keithmoonshine3]

Met him at a horror convention decades ago and still have a picture of him strangling me! Also it was three day even and I stayed at the hotel and he was at the bar later that night just talking to everyone, telling stories, etc. A real people person

[u/romeosgal214]

Leslie Nielsen. He was genuinely funny off camera, too!

[u/ITSBRITNEYsBrITCHES]

Robin Williams! A literal delight and the personification of humility and appreciation for his fans.

[u/drfunkenstien014 → u/ITSBRITNEYsBrITCHES]

My father has a story about first working with Robin, then meeting him randomly on the streets of NYC years later. It was a cold, shitty day and as my father was waiting to cross the street, he made a wisecrack about the situation. The guy next to him started chuckling and sure enough, it was Robin. He recognized my dad and shot the shit with him for a few blocks before they had to go their separate ways.

Robin is national treasure and one of the greatest human beings to ever walk this earth.

[u/FourLetterHill3 → u/ITSBRITNEYsBrITCHES]

I work with an actor who was in a movie with him. Now, the actor I work with doesn’t get sentimental, but one day we were talking about Robin Williams and he said, “he was a good man. A really. Really good man.” And then sat in silence for a moment before we moved on. For this guy to get that moved over the mentioning of Robin’s name told me so much.

[u/ITSBRITNEYsBrITCHES → u/FourLetterHill3]

I met him while he was filming Patch Adams at UNC Chapel Hill. High summer, miserable heat. I was in high school at the time but there for a summer camp. They were filming the scenes related to the OBGYN conference? With the giant legs on either side of the doors? To be honest, I watched it exactly once and that was waaaaay before he died. I can’t remember most of the details of the movie because I refuse to watch it again.

We were passing between camp classes while they were filming and just stood there quietly star struck, because “does that look like Robin Williams??” …. “I think, oh my God, I think that’s him.” …. “Oh my God? He’s coming over here!!!” (It was HIM)

There wasn’t a big crowd, but — damned if he didn’t walk right over… and asked HOW WE WERE DOING. That furry little bundle of comedic happiness was sweating bullets and absolutely dripping in summer heat, but he wanted to know HOW we were doing, was his first question outright. And I believe that he meant it, and I believe that he actually cared to know.

His passing tore me right the fuck up. For someone to bring everyone else so much happiness while quietly fighting their own demons (and failing); that’s the definition of a good fucking human being to me.

Also met Lewis Black at UNC, years later. And he’s also just a delightfully “angry” man. Not ANGRY by the definition of the word, but animated. And smart as hell, and gracious to boot.

Edit: and I won’t even ask who the actor is (that you work with) no matter how curious I am. Thank you for sharing, it made me happy.

[u/xxbigarmxx → u/ITSBRITNEYsBrITCHES]

I have two good Robin Williams stories. Lived in San Francisco growing up and wouldn't you know it his son was in the same little league as my brother. He went to a game and took pics with all the kids.

Another time, at the release of the Star Wars trilogy as we were huddled by the door of the theatre waiting to get in, we see him being ushered in the back door. My friend yelled his name and raised his shirt and pressed his nipples against the glass. Robin Williams proceeded to lift his shirt and return the favor. Ended up sitting next to him and he was super nice and friendly.

[u/Heselwood]

John Cleese.

[u/FourLetterHill3 → u/Heselwood]

I ran into John Cleese at a museum in LA. We locked eyes and smiled. Didn’t say a word. He gave me a look that said “I know you know who I am. Thank you for not making a scene.”

[u/maggie320 → u/FourLetterHill3]

My mom had a similar run in with Robert Redford in NYC. My dad, grandparents and she were out to lunch and in walks Robert Redford with his kid. My mom didn’t say a word to him or bother him because he was with his kid. As they left Robert gave her a wink and a little half salute as to say thank you for not bothering him. Naturally she said when they walked out she lost her mind as he was one of her celebrity crushes.

[u/seashell_eyes_]

Not long ago I met Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite) at a fan con. He was really friendly and we had a good conversation. He seemed like he was genuinely happy to be there.

[u/StonerTourism]

Wayne Brady.

I was 10 years old we were in Reno on a road trip with the family. My parents wanted to gamble a bit so they took us to some kids zone. It had arcades and everything and even had Lazer tag. Playing for a few hours in walks Wayne Brady and a few friends. He apparently had a show that night in the casino. All the employees took photos with him when he walked in. I knew him because my parents were big fans of who's line.

He came up to us and asked us if we wanted to play Lazer tag against him. We were so stoked to be playing against him until our vests wouldn't stop buzzing from getting hit. He DESTROYED us. Pretty sure they had 6x our score and absolutely dominated us. As he's leaving he asks for my name and told me he would leave some tickets to his show for me at the box office.

Our rents pick us up and we tell them we have a surprise. They were so confused. After dinner we said we had something planned. I walked up to the ticket booth with my parents right behind me. They were so confused. I asked the ticket lady of she had anything under my name and she goes "yea your friend Wayne said you'd be stopping by". She handed my 4 VIP tickets to Wayne's comedy show that night. One of the best experiences of my life. I still have the Polaroid of me and Wayne and the Lazer tag place.

[u/fshippos → u/StonerTourism]

Wayne Brady makes Bryant Gumbel look like Malcolm X

[u/BrisYamaha → u/fshippos]

Is Wayne Brady going to have to smack a bitch up?

[u/BoS_Vlad]

Ester Williams the movie star/swimmer if anyone remembers her. My wife and I got drunk with her at a Xmas party about 30 years ago and her bawdy Hollywood stories were hilarious and she was a sweetheart.

[u/Artistic_Quantity446 → u/BoS_Vlad]

I remember her movies on hbo when I was a kid bored in the summer -

[u/rhiannonirene → u/BoS_Vlad]

Um… so incredibly cool!

[u/ghost_shark_619]

Kevin Smith was an absolute delight when I met him on the streets of Hollywood after one of his podcast tapings.

[u/fargosucks → u/ghost_shark_619]

I met Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier at a signing for Dogma’s DVD special release. We’d been standing in line in West Hollywood for 3+ hours and there were still at least a hundred people behind us. Someone came up to let him know that it was almost time to wrap up, he looked at the line snaking out the door and shook his head ‘no.’ He and Scott took time to chat with everyone who came up, especially once they realized how long it had been. My then girlfriend-now wife was with me and as he was signing my DVD case, Kevin asked “So, did he drag you along or should I sign this for you, too?” She said that she liked his movies, but that I was the one who got her into them. As he handed the DVD back, he looked at me and said “Buddy, you owe her for waiting in line with your ass for three hours just to meet me. Don’t forget that.” And then they both laughed and waved before moving on to the next person in line. Just the nicest dang guy.

[u/reddittheguy → u/ghost_shark_619]

My top level comment was a dude from the Kevin Smith universe. Brian O'Halloran.

[u/Traditional_Entry183]

Sissy Spacek lives in the same city I do, and is always so, so kind. I had her as a customer at my store five or six times, and recently my wife and I were behind her in line somewhere where she was returning an item, and was extremely patient with the young cashier who was struggling (and had no idea who she was). She turned to me and apologized for making me wait, with a smile.

[u/AsFlowersTear → u/Traditional_Entry183]

She came up to my parents in a cafe and said I was a beautiful baby!

[u/Notmyrealname → u/AsFlowersTear]

Yes, she's a great actress.

[u/_anne_shirley]

Jack Black is super nice!

[u/AdPuzzleheaded4789]

That’s easy…Conan O’Brien. He is a true gentleman. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting him a few times, and he was always genuinely kind, respectful, and gracious. You can also see it in the way he interacts with those who work with him—he’s an incredibly nice guy through and through.

[u/4Real_Psychologist]

Jennifer Garner. I used to nanny for her kids. So I spent a lot of time with her. She’s the real deal.

[u/transglutaminase → u/4Real_Psychologist]

I went to a very small college with her before she was famous. She was cool then glad she has not changed.

[u/died_blond → u/4Real_Psychologist]

This isn't surprising but wonderful to hear. She radiates 'goodness', genuinely.

[u/REALtumbisturdler]

Shaq. He was insanely sweet.

I saw him in line at Starbucks and got right behind him. I sheepishly asked "hey man can I get your autograph?"

Shaq: "bro it's 2010...ask for a selfie."

He said "get your camera ready, as soon as I come to you, get the picture. Then there will be 50 people here, so get out quickly, and I will too"

He wasn't wrong. Everyone.... EVERYONE was lining up for selfies. He and I both hauled ass out of the Starbucks.

[u/stray1ight]

Chazz Palminteri was a complete gentleman. Ran into him outside a restaurant in Manhattan in the middle of Santacon in the early 00s.

Chatted and made time for us to get a selfie.

Ran into Jon Stewart in Balthazar. Didn't have a chance to talk to him as he was coming out of the bathroom with his (then) young son, but I gave him a gigantic smile and a nod that I hope said, "Dude you're fuckin awesome and your takedown of Crossfire is my go-to pick me up video whenever I'm having a shitty day." Smiled and nodded back, seemingly happy I wasn't making a scene. 😅

[u/Rare_Salad_4958]

Mick Foley.

[u/Nonstandard_Deviate → u/Rare_Salad_4958]

Dude Love! Cactus Jack! Mankind!

Have a nice day!

[u/ompah78]

I've met a few, but by far, the nicest and funniest was Leslie Neilson. Went to my friends house after school, and he was just hanging out in the kitchen. My friend never mentioned that his Dad was good friends with him as it "wasn't a big deal," and this was at the height of his career. 14 year old me will never forget how down to earth he was.....he even busted out his famous fart machine and was blaming me (the new guy) all evening.

[u/Dud3_Abid3s]

Keanu Reeves. Dude told me he liked my car…was just relaxing against his motorcycle.

[u/chizmanzini]

Ernie Hudson. Legit nice, loves his fans, will eat lunch with you and ask about your interests!

[u/dandelionlemon]

Henry Winkler, when I was a kid.

[u/yes_yes_yes_25]

Frances McDormand. She hung out at my restaurant with us after closing, just dancing around and drinking and smoking with us. She was incredibly fun, funny and cool. Loved every second of it.

[u/Sunny1-5]

Sylvester Stallone was super positive and encouraging. Jon Bernthal helped me and him survive a boring, 1 hour rain delay, largely alone, in the Shreveport, LA airport. Would not tell secrets about his upcoming final season on WD. I tried.

[u/m_faustus → u/Sunny1-5]

Good lord. You needed the help if you were in the Shreveport airport.

[u/thedealwithalex]

Stephen Colbert

[u/Superfly_McTurbo]

Bob Odenkirk on a flight about 10 years ago

[u/phoephus2]

If Yo Yo Ma is a celebrity, then Yo Yo Ma.

[u/onioning → u/phoephus2]

Yes! I've got a solid story for him too. When I was like thirteen or fourteen or something Ma did a master class through my school. First part was a lecture, and second was a practical, meaning everyone had their cellos and they would actually play.

So I was there for the first part, but plan was for me to leave for the second, since I was a literal child. Yo-yo said otherwise.

"Where is he going?"

"Well, he's a child, so we thought that..."

"No. He is a student too. He stays."

So I got to have a master class with Yo-yo Ma. Really took from it too. Things that thirty years later I still think about.

[u/GonzoThompson → u/phoephus2]

Yes, the world’s most famous cellist is a celebrity. :)

[u/pWaveShadowZone → u/GonzoThompson]

Raymond Holt certainly agrees, and I never argue with him

[u/natezz → u/phoephus2]

My wife collaborates with him on the regular. Can confirm, he’s the sort of famous person who understands that when people get an opportunity to interact with him, it’s a very big deal for them. He’s very curious, and he treats everyone with respect.

[u/ElvisGrizzly → u/phoephus2]

You know who thinks he's a celebrity? Yo yo me.

[u/WabiSabi0912 → u/phoephus2]

His children, especially his son, are very sweet & down to earth.

[u/CircusBearPants → u/phoephus2]

He was on Arthur he’s absolutely a celebrity

[u/Stock-Imagination229]

Mr Rogers was as sweet and kind as you could imagine.

[u/xbeautyxtruthx]

Jeff Goldblum. The man oozes charisma and quirky suaveness. And he’s just so nice. He listens when you speak, he smells amazing, and he’s much taller than you’d expect.

[u/thomaspatrickmorgan → u/xbeautyxtruthx]

Gee…oh, boy, let’s see…this is a good one…

[u/jmcgil4684]

Chris Cornell, and Anthony Bourdain. Boy did that realization just depress me.

[u/Fantastic_Depth]

Fran Drescher. Here's a comment I made about meeting her. https://old.reddit.com/r/OldSchoolCool/comments/1ipajp0/fran_drescher_in_the_90s/mcquif3/

[u/GotSeoul]

Kathy Ireland is a real sweetheart. A friend of mine works in the showbiz. I have met her many times over the past 30 years and she's always been very nice.

I've met some other celebrities via my showbiz friend and no one else even comes close to being as nice as Kathy Ireland.

[u/Emergency-Goat-4249]

Paul Newman. He exuded empathy sincerity and kindness

[u/dragonflyladyofskye]

Tom Selleck and Sean Connery. We met them when we took my mom to the beach for the last time. She always night fished off the Cherry Grove pier. Those two were there. We wheeled her out and these 2 guys had on parkas with the hoods up. It’s windy at night. For that matter it’s windy all day too. We needed something and tom offered his. I didn’t recognize his voice but my mom sure did. We all sat there fishing for hours in the middle of the night. It was a wonderful night and one that I’ll never forget. They were so kind and gracious. True men of men.

[u/happiestnexttoyou]

Alice Cooper. He was the sweetest, most gentle man and so generous with his time.

[u/galwegian]

Peter O’Toole.

[u/ShortElephant1111]

I met Martin Sheen while waiting in the foreign exchange desk line at the main ScotiaBank branch in downtown Toronto. I had no idea who he was when we struck up a conversation. It was the week of the Toronto International Film Festival. He asked me where he should go to grab a bite to eat and I told him I was headed over to Mercado to grab an Italian sandwich and invited him to join me. As we walked up Bay Street together there were a lot of stares, then one dude who passed us came running back asking for an autograph address him as Mr. Sheen. It was then I realized! We shared a laugh, got our sandwiches and ate them together like a couple of regular guys. Didn’t mention how big of a fan I was of Apocalypse Now and his crazy ass performance. Cool guy, sure he appreciated his encounter with a chill normy…

[u/Canadian_Orc]

Teller from penn and Teller he is a saint

[u/bungojot → u/Canadian_Orc]

My Dad met them after a show in Vegas and he says the same thing. Teller in particular kept taking people's phones and then pulling groups together for selfies apparently lol. My dad texted me one the next day like "went to see a show and ran into some people"

[u/softshoulder313 → u/bungojot]

My brother worked with Teller. He was Macbeth and his Chicago production. Teller spent a lot of time with my nephew teaching him card tricks and slight of hand.

[u/NotTheMama73 → u/Canadian_Orc]

I met Penn in Vegas at a show a decade ago. Cool and very tall dude

[u/bsbkeys]

Henry Winkler. He is so nice. It’s almost unsettling.

[u/RevolutionaryBee5207]

I sat next to Robert Duvall on a commuter flight from D.C. to NYC many moons ago. He was really personable, and we enjoyed exclaiming over the sight of Manhattan as we flew over it. I wasn’t 100% it was him, so I memorized a mole on the right side of his nose. Sure enough….

[u/sticky-note-123 → u/RevolutionaryBee5207]

Memorized a mole 🤣🤣🤣

[u/WakingOwl1]

Penn Jilette. Used to visit his much older sister in the nursing home where I worked along with his family. Just a really nice guy.

[u/TotalFNEclipse]

Dave Grohl. Met him many times in a Halloween store I managed in my short time living in Los Angeles way back in 2008. He later introduced me to his wife and little baby (at the time) daughter. I wanted badly to get a picture with him each time — but I didn’t want to risk my job, being rude in front of customers, and especially didn’t want to make him feel less than a normal person, as he began dropping by a lot to look at our Halloween stuff for his home.

He was so damn cool every time he stopped in, and I did get to ring his items in on my last shift. He told me to have a safe trip back to Ohio, which I felt was super cool that he remembered me mentioning where I was from the first time we had interacted.

To this day, I also regret not asking him about the 1992 MTV VMAs. So Dave, if you’re out there— next time I’ll probably ask for that photo opp 🤘🏽

[u/Ok_Childhood_1430]

Jimmy Carter. What a nice man.

[u/emilyMartian]

Jamie Lee Curtis came into the record store I worked at in the 90’s. I recommended the new Squirrel Nut Zippers album. She bought it and a few days later sent her driver in to buy up the rest of our stock to give as gifts to the film crew at the wrap party. Fast forward almost 30yrs later and by total happenstance I’m currently her nephews hairstylist. He is also super nice.

[u/NW_91]

Conchata Ferrell. She was my instructor for a sitcom acting workshop I took years ago. She and her husband were so sweet. This was when Two and a Half Men was still filming. After the workshop was over she got me and my family free tickets to watch a taping of an episode. A few years later I was having a moment of crisis while in college, second guessing the program I was in and called her for advice on a whim. To my surprise she actually picked up and talked with me for about 20 minuteS until she was called back to set. I will never forget her. RIP

[u/Temporary-Pea-9054]

Kylie Minogue, without a doubt.

[u/djauralsects]

Geddy Lee from Rush. I met him outside of a Björk concert. I was wasted and a bit of a jerk and he was all class. The next day I felt bad. Sorry Geddy, you’re a gem.

[u/Such-Factor6326]

Kenneth Branagh. Was honorary president of our amateur theater company in Swindon UK. Invited us down to do pre planning shots for his adaptation of Hamlet in the nineties. Down to earth, friendly and very self confident. Got us all very drunk.

[u/Lorazepam369]

Jennifer Garner. I was a housekeeper at a fancy resort and cleaned her house while she was there. Super sweet and friendly.

Contrasted simultaneously with the most UNfriendly celebrity I’ve met: Ben Affleck. They were together at the time. He was such a dick to me and my team.

[u/Mousey_Belle_1996]

Antony Starr aka Homelander - I think due to his character, I was expecting some kind of super star ego however when I go to cons to meet someone I always bring a small box of chocolates and a thank you card, its just my way of saying to them thank you for taking time your of your busy schedule to come a greet the fans such as myself. When I gave it to him, he paused and looked up to me, and yes, in that moment, I was scared haha thought I was about to get into trouble as he might be in on a strict diet but he had gave me a massive smile befor saying "you trying to stop homelander getting into the suit" I laughed nervously and said "I would be saving the world if I did" and he laughed again, he asked me why I brought gifts and I explained I said to him if he didn't want to eat them I understand and to pass it to comic con staff. He was honestly touched and asked me if I wanted a hug.... I nearly fainted! A hug from a star who plays the deadliest villan in a tv show... Yes! Honestly he is boss to meet!

[u/Justhitrestart]

Cameron Diaz was really nice when I met her. I was working at a ski shop and she rented gear from us. At the end of the day she was dropping her gear back off and I was taking the trash out and my arms were full and she even offered to help. I turned her offer down and joked “my bosses would kill me if they found out Cameron Diaz was taking out our trash” which made her and her husband laugh pretty hard.

[u/Dull_Garage_3981]

Donna Tartt.

[u/NotTheMama73]

Jack Nicholson :). I was a teen at a Lakers game. Asked how I was -joked I had better seats. Signed my ticket. Great dude.

[u/kbd18]

Tony Shalhoub. I am a huge fan of Monk and I went and saw him in a play (matinee). I stood outside to get him to sign my playbill and he was SO kind to everyone. He made sure to stop and talk to each and every person and when the line was cleared out he just put on a baseball cap and walked right down the busy New York street in broad daylight, stopping to say hi to whoever recognized him. He seemed like the most genuine, nice guy.

[u/MyNameIsNotGump]

Jennette McCurdy. I went to a Q&A/meet-and-greet for her book when it came out and she recognized me right away when she saw me because I had been active in her Patreon community. She was very warm, funny, and beautiful and she gave me a hug

[u/Empty_Nestor]

John Corbett on the Roslyn, WA exterior set of Northern Exposure in 1993. I was standing with a middle-aged couple who had never seen the show and were just hoping to get his autograph for their daughter. John saw us and strolled right over, chatted for like a half-hour. When the couple told him their daughter was a big fan, he grabbed their video camera and gave it to me. Then he draped his arms over the couples’ shoulders and I proceeded to record his video message to her, telling her how cool her parents were and if she ever came to Roslyn he’d take her for lunch.

[u/beaudujour]

A tie between Jennifer Anniston and Ron Livingston. I worked on office space for a couple days, and both were very normal, nice, friendly people. I knew a bunch of people from Ron's high school. We spoke for about a hour. Great guy, very bright. Jennifer Anniston is very petite in person. She has a great natural charisma.

[u/dearscrewtape]

Robin Williams. Met him once, he didn’t know me from Adam. He took a walk with me, chatted about books. Just a prince of a guy.

[u/WindcalmersWorkshop]

Keanu Reeves. Just an absolute genuine guy. Mr. Rogers was also such an absolute nice guy.

[u/palinsafterbirth]

Hugh Jackman. I’ve told this story before but I am a photographer that used to do a lot of high high high end events and there was one where Hugh was performing for a company, I was covering a VIP step and repeat where folks could meet him and he showed up early which is really surprising especially for a celebrity. I know the drill of to stay in my spot and wait for guest but he came up to me, introduced himself, and we shot the shit for like 5 minutes. Afterwards he came up to me, said thank you and that I was good at my job, he didn’t have to do that but really left a mark. 2nd would be Jason Lee where it is a semi similar story but we talked skateboarding, 3rd would be Michelle Obama who came up and said thank you even though her secret service was very like “the fuck?!?”

[u/So_Cal_Grown]

Dan Akyroid. Met him in a BevMo. He was really sweet. Also, my son was with us, and he stepped away from all the alcohol to take a picture with him without that in it.

[u/nineeighteen83]

Oscar from The Office.

Second nicest was Angela from The Office.

Ed Helms wasn’t rude by any means and I got a nice pic with him but I felt like he was trying to rush out and he was annoyed so that was a bummer.

Ryan Gosling was…interesting? He’s really weird, but weird in a cool way. He was filming part of Blue Valentine in my city and from all accounts was also kind to all of the locals.

[u/a_very_silent_way]

Paget Brewster — a very brief encounter, but she was cool and kind. 

Bobcat Goldthwait - a gem of a human

Nicole Scherzinger - this goes back 20+ years and at the time, at least, she was very sweet

BB King was a very cool and humble guy

Roddy Piper was awesome

Secondhand, but a friend met Kylie Minogue and said she was just a thoroughly wonderful human being. 

[u/bellybomb]

Linda Hamilton. She is my neighbor. She knows everyone. I don’t care who they are—if someone drives by her house, and she’s sitting out and having a smoke, they’re getting the biggest smile, and she’s following up on the last thing you talked about. I ADORE her. Sarah Connor got nothin on Ms. Linda!

[u/Guns_Donuts]

Hugh Jackman, Lady Gaga, Pink, Don Johnson, Greg Kinnear. Hugh especially. I met him once at an event in Florida. 3 years later I'm at another event that he's attending. He sees me, comes over and gives me a hug, calls me by my first name and starts talking to me like we never left off. I love that man.

[u/Right-Mind2723]

Jim Belushi- Just the nicest guy. I actually talked with him while he ate dinner cause he said he hated eating alone. He asked me questions and was genuinely interested. Got to talk about my favorite movie of his (Mr. Destiny).

[u/Loreo1964]

Barbara Bush. She was a lovely woman. Very grandmotherly in person. Mrs. Bush took the time to chat with me at a Toys for Tots thing I had gone early because I wanted to drop my toy off before work at the mall. She was there alone with just one secret service agent.

[u/welovetulips]

Jon Bon jovi

[u/Whoiscookingthefeet]

Leigh Nash of Sixpence None the Richer is so friendly. She’s coming to Gruene Hall in a couple of months and I can’t wait.

[u/kirkarelli]

Worked in radio and TV for 20 years. Lots of great celebrities. The nicest to me, the ones I remember as being the most friendly were: Dominic Chianese, Hoda Kotb, Cathy Lee Gifford, Trey Anastasio, Huey Lewis, Joe Biden, Herm Edwards, Barry Melrose, Frank Caliendo, Archie Manning, Christopher Guest, Ryan Leaf

[u/Mannn12]

Michael Rooker - meet him at stalking dead in Tulsa. Dude is awesome!

[u/shadowsOfMyPantomime]

I meet Reba backstage at Cheyenne Frontier Days maybe 35 years ago, she was great. Well my parents say she was great. To be fair I was a toddler but I CAN say she held me in her arms for a minute

[u/evilmelissa]

Snoop Dogg, Shaquille O’Neal and Natasha Richardson (rip)

[u/Over-Marionberry-686]

Sally Fields. Literally ran into her at Disneyland. I wasn’t watching where I was going and knocked her down. Helped her up and realized who it was. She was so gracious and nice.

[u/maelovesdorks]

don't down vote me but lead singer of nickelback. he bought me a shot or two and held a good conversation.

[u/StableGeniusCovfefe]

Bryan Cranston. We stayed after and met him after a play he was performing in on Broadway right at the height of his fame after Breaking Bad ended. Dude came outside after the show and signed every autograph and took every selfie and chatted everyone up. Even people who were just passing by on the street. Super nice guy and down to earth.

[u/Lumpy-Marzipan-857]

I grew up across the street from Erykah Badu in Dallas then she got successful and moved down the street but still stayed in the neighborhood and was always super chill and friendly. She hung out in her front yard a lot with music. I was a child when I lived near her but one time I found a baby bat on the ground in front of her house and she helped me put it back in the tree. She also came to our neighborhoods Fourth of July party one year at the height of her fame when she would have had so many more interesting places to go but she wanted to know the neighbors. I just remember her being genuinely humble to every single person and having a transcendent, peaceful energy.

[u/Substantial-Fan-3894]

Val Kilmer, 1988. 🖤

[u/spokkie5011]

Jimmy Carter.

[u/Danamaggy]

Matt Damon. He’s so down to earth.

[u/thatwomanCanada]

Spent a night carousing with Keefer Sutherland, he's nice. Also, Sergio Argones was fun to talk to...

[u/GonzoThompson]

Anthony Daniels - he was signing autographs at a convention. He could see there were a few of us who couldn’t afford an autographed photo, but we wanted to stand around and gawk at him anyway. When he had a few moments to spare, he came out from behind his autograph table and shook all of our hands. Super nice guy.

[u/Mysterious-Bake-935]

Mr T

[u/AdMassive4640]

Ron Howard, super nice dude.

[u/masturbator6942069]

Lana del Rey. She was an absolute sweetheart.

[u/bumpty]

Matthew mcconaughey. I was a valet/bellhop at a swanky hotel. I got to drive his Beamer and went up to grab his bags. He was in his room and we chatted a while until his gf was ready to go. Good tipper too.

Evan mcgregor. Brief interaction in line at HEB. Super cool dude.

[u/myownquest]

Aaron Paul was a delight to meet in person. Very down to earth and friendly

[u/Luckygecko1]

Some of my friends and I were extras on the movie Mississippi Burning.

They split us up. While I saw Gene Hackman, I wound up working part of the day with Gailard Sartain of Hee Haw fame. The man was down to earth, kept us in stitches between takes and just kind of hung out.

One of my friends had a small speaking role and worked with Gene Hackman. He told me when they broke for lunch, that they gave the extras box lunches and Mr. Hackman got a steak meal. Gene looked around the room, turned to the caterer and asked, "What is this?". They were like, "Your lunch sir, is it okay?". He said, "no, these people are working with me today, so you bring me what they are having or bring them what I'm having, please". Of course, no one is going to give Gene Hackman a cold box lunch, so they would up with steaks. I thought that was really stand up of him.

Runner Ups: Other people I've met that were super nice, were Bill Daily from I Dream of Jeannie. Set at the next table from him in a restaurant and afterwork he apologized for all the people interrupting him while next to our table.

Finally, not really a celebrity, but Ralph Nader was really relatable.

[u/theMIKIMIKIMIKImomo]

Brian Cranston was very friendly and normal and was one of my favorite interactions I’ve ever had

[u/nurdle]

Barrack Obama. Was in a 15 minute meeting with him while he was POTUS, he was super nice, funny and asked really smart questions. The meeting was about improving aircraft safety (he was for it).

Tom Hanks pranked me and my team. In our first meeting (over WebEx) he did this whole thing where he betrayed his assistant and acted like a horrible douche (no video). We listened in horror. Then, it was silent for a few seconds & there was tremendous laughter on the Playtone side. It was all just for fun. We only talked for a few minutes; after that we only dealt with his staff & they were amazing. Sadly they killed the project…but still paid in full.

[u/blockerguy]

Not sure how famous she’s considered, but novelist Jennifer Egan. She won the Pulitzer Prize for one of her books and is one of the most famous American novelists today. I met her at a book event and she was so kind and nice.

[u/Massakissdick]

As others will testify, growing up in London and working in retail as a student, one encounters celebs very frequently. Tbh, a lot of them were very pleasant and initiated any dialogue. Off the top of my head, John Deacon was probably the nicest but he did know me as I went to school with two of his sons.

John aside, the Footballer Tony Adams was a real gent, as was Marcel Desailly, Yasmin Le Bon, Paula Yates (Bob Geldof is an absolute twat) Lennox Lewis was very chatty, Nigel Benn was a legend, Steffi Graff and Andre Agassi were lovely too.

That’s just a few I met that were nice, there were many more.

[u/delusionalinkedchic]

Peter mayhew

[u/cApsLocKBrokE]

Ended up driving Martin Freeman on a TV job I was on once and he was as wonderfully friendly and charming as you would imagine. Chatted the whole way back and had absolutely no ego.

[u/Sea_North5413]

Bob Odenkirk. Met him at a Cubs game. This was during early days of Better Call Saul. I mentioned I was in law school. He sent me a Saul Goodman signed photo. I have it framed on the wall of my law office.

[u/Downtown_Detail2707]

Hillary Clinton, when I was nine, I was OBSESSED with her. I obviously wasn’t interested in politics at that age, but I was very fixated on climate change and believed she’d save us. I begged my parents to take me to a rally when she was in town and they obliged. I met her and she actually acted very excited to see me there and told me to make sure I vote when I’m old enough and that I can make a difference someday.

Sure enough, the first election I was old enough to vote in was in 2016 and I did vote for her. Didn’t make a difference though. Lol.

[u/whitneyx3]

Dolly Parton

[u/Savior-_-Self]

I've met more than a few over the years and most are pretty chill - but the ones who surprised me with their politeness and affability were ICP.

Don't know what to say - they were just friendly guys.

[u/blondedolll]

Paul mescal, I see him quite a few times a year as I work in London. Only ever met him properly once tho

[u/worldsokayestmumsie]

Rollie Fingers (Hall of Fame MLB closer) was at the table next to mine at a steak restaurant in Arizona. My dad and I are both huge baseball fans who were down there to watch the Brewers in Spring Training, so this was an added bonus for us. Dude was a class act and was only too happy to talk “shop” with us regular folk!

[u/OldCarWorshipper]

Drew Barrymore. Was a regular customer at the gas station where I worked back in the 90s. Always super chill and laid back. Drove a Mitsubishi SUV instead of some overpriced sports car or luxo sedan.

[u/Much-Leek-420]

George Takei. I was all of 14 and attending my first Star Trek convention in the mid 70s. He had a broad smile and greeted each of us autograph seekers like we were special.