Thursday, May 29, 2008

Always carry a little black book

Late one debauchery-filled, night when my sister and I both lived in nyc, we got to talking about all the famous people we'd seen in our lifetime...we actually started a list that night.
Sure, it was one of many lists we'd made over the years...
if you have a brother or a sister, you probably made a list at some point...
I'll leave it there.

Anyway, for me, this little list on a piece of scrap paper turned into a little spiral notebook. Which, for my sister, turned into the funniest joke ever.

Every time I'd say, "kaari, don't look now, but there's Grace Jones*", she would look all around, and try to whisper, "where? where? i don't see her...where?", her eyes would finally land on the iconic figure head and she'd deadpan back to me, "did you bring your little spiral notebook?"


Thing is, I didn't need to carry it with me. I had a photographic memory for those people. It was weird. No, is weird. I could get home after a big night out and get out my pen and write down everyone I saw and where I saw them, what they were doing, how they looked, what they said. So, now I have this little book and it's totally full up... and I'm not gonna start a new one...but I need to add in the following people from this trip. I've seen or met all my best famous people in new york (except Jimmy Stewart who I met in California and probably tops my best).

Zach Braff, waiting in will call line, at the theatre
John Pankow, standing around the actors exit door, at the theatre
Patti Smith, eating breakfast next to us, and writing in a book, at ino (2 days in a row)
Harvey Keitel, crossing the street right next to me, talking on his cel phone

All of whom I pointed out to kaari
and she said, "where? where?"
and then her eyes would land on them
and she'd deadpan back to me...
Well, you know the routine.


*full disclosure: i've never actually seen Grace Jones in person

6 comments:

Whist Shop said...

Oh, Molly, you've made me think of my 2 favorite star spottings from years ago! Tom Wolfe in full white regalia (w/baby blue accents) - complete w/cape & cane, up by the Met museum and Quentin Crisp, sitting in the window seat of that now-defunct diner on the corner of 2nd Ave & I think 6th St. I think I saw him a few times when I lived down there....
Great to see you in NYC! See you next time - Nora.

billy girl said...

i bet Grace looks exactly the same, an ageless wonder of androgeny, i'd love to spy her! coolio Mol, love it. Freddie Kruger, akaRobert England ordered coffee behing me at home in OC. I got so scared I left and lost my place!

Kaari Marie said...

I seem to recall A Ben Stiller run in on Crosby Street - where was my backup???

Anonymous said...

oh i love this. how cool. i NEVER see famous people. ok, i saw bjork in victoria's secret and actually foolishly tried to talk to her...ok, give me a break i was 21!

molly, i saw you on modern craft! you look SOOO cute!

Ellen Zachos said...

I was coming out of a client's on CPW on Thursday and stopped to talk w/the doorman. John Lithgow walked past and I pointed him out. Even after all these years, it still gives me a thrill. I'd love to see your notebook some day.

Ellen said...

That's a great keepsake. I've only been to NYC twice but always expect to see someone famous. One night my husband and I were sitting in a bar and he said, "look over there, it's Tim Robbins!" Except this 'Tim Robbins' turned out to be about 5'4" and only spoke German. We were so starstruck by the city, we weren't thinking straight.