Author C. Leigh Purtill - Celebrity Sightings

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Celebrity Sightings (And I’m not going to include ones that were work-related, like seeing Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel at a Gilmore Girls party or Vin Diesel or Madonna on a set because that’s part of my job):

Gwen Stefani - Buddha's Belly restaurant, Los Angeles. The hip mama was keeping a low-profile at this mostly-neighborhood joint, with her cute little boy, his nanny and couple of male friends. Not a soul batted an eye or snapped a picture (I would have if I had gotten my cell phone out in time!) and there were no paparazzi to be seen. Dressed in a casual black cotton dress, with sandals on her feet and a stubby blond ponytail, Ms. Stefani was the picture of late-pregnancy grace - calm and Zen-like, yet with enough of an entourage to remind us all that she's a rocker chick. You go, girl!

Evan Handler - Book Expo America, LA Convention Center. Most people know him as Charlotte's husband Harry from Sex and the City, but HH and I loved him as Hurley's imaginary friend, Dave, from LOST (hope he makes another appearance!!). The actor recently fought leukemia and wrote a book about it called "It's Only Temporary." He also spoke at the LA Times Festival of Books a few months ago and although I didn't have time to stop to listen, I did hear a LOT of laughs coming from his session. Check out his extremely cool website...Evan Handler dot com.

Joel Stein - Somewhere over the United States between Atlanta and LA, Acting Flight Attendant. Not many people recognize writers in person; for one thing, we rarely look like our book jackets or byline photos and even if we did, who pays attention to them? I have often thought how cool it would be to pop my head next to someone reading my book and point out the odd similarity between the person who wrote it and me. Someday, someday...I digress. I knew who Joel Stein was when we got on the plane - and kudos to him for playing flight attendant in the coach section and not first class - and had to explain to HH (very funny guy, somewhat snarky, writes for Time magazine and the LA Times). He was gracious and funny, although very slow when it came to making drinks, and explained to us later that the airline had given him a day of intense training, including time on the water slide. My only complaint? He didn't have to wear the navy blue polyester uniforms the other attendants did.

William H. Macy - Chevalier's Books, Larchmont Village, LA. This was, to all of us at my signing, a major sighting! One reader even got her picture taken with him. I wish I had seen how she accomplished that but he is just soooo very cool, I'm sure he was extremely gracious about it. He walked in past my table, past all of us chatting about books 'n stuff, and proceeded to wander through the tables of books, browsing for gifts, we think. We really wanted to hear him talking to Liz, one of the employees there, and to see what books he picked up, but we didn't want to be TOO nosy. I kept trying to get HH to hand him a postcard for ALL ABOUT VEE but he wouldn't do it. Heck, if I could have done so and not looked a complete fool, I would have asked him to please take home a copy of VEE to his wife, the amazing Felicity Huffmann. Alas, all we did was watch from the sidelines. He is such a star.

Katherine Helmond - Broad Contemporary Art Museum, LA. At the gala patron opening for the new building at LACMA, who do we see but this glamorous actress? So petite! She looked radiant, her skin fairly glowed under the moonlight, as she exited the cocktail/jazz combo tent with a friend. Although most people nowadays know her as Raymond's mother-in-law, I have adored her since Terry Gilliam cast her in "Brazil," as Jonathan Pryce's mother. And of course, she was the fabulous Jessica in "Soap." Would it have been tacky to ask for an autograph at a museum opening? Should I have asked her to sign my LACMA invitation?

FLASHBACK SIGHTING

Laura Prepon and Christopher Masterson - neighborhood near Beverly Hilton, Beverly Hills. Back when these stars of "That 70s Show" and "Malcolm in the Middle" were dating, they arrived late one year to the Golden Globes. HH and I spotted them walking through a local neighborhood long after the red carpet lights were turned off and the paparazzi were on a coffee break. Now, either they lived in the area and were walking to the event or they parked their own car nearby and walked in. Either way, they....walked! Prepon was a redhead then - and simply gorgeous! Masterson was a cutie, too, although his scruffy beard made him look like he woke up late and just threw on his suit.

FLASHBACK SIGHTING

Shirley Jones and Marty Ingels - West Hollywood strip mall. Sing it with me: "I think I love you so what am I so afraid of, I'm afraid that I'm not sure of, a love there is no cure for." Were truer words ever spoken or sung by a bubblegum fake television family/band? Right on. You dig it. Shirley Jones, a/k/a Shirley Partridge, real-life mom to Keith and (swoon) Shawn Cassidy, and her husband, actor Marty Ingels, were holding a garage sale in an empty storefront in West Hollywood and we happened to find it. No big signs, no kleig lights or paparazzi. It felt weird to be combing through their personal items but we figured the really good stuff was back at their house and ahem, they obviously didn't want just any old riff-raff trampling their lawn so they held the sale in a strip mall. Sigh. We bought nothing but did walk out singing, "C'mon get happy!" Yeah, you're digging the scene.

Michael Moloney - Whole Foods Market, West Hollywood. This designer from "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" (one of our fave reality shows) is super tall (at least 6' 2") and super handsome (at least a 9) and instantly recognizable although he does have an Everystar air of, "Where have I seen that guy before?" I have no idea what he was buying on Christmas Eve Eve (HH turned down the snack aisle before I could get a look into his basket) but I liked that he was doing his thing at the grocery store and not off skiing in Aspen. And I love the good work that he does (check out his TV Guide blog where he gives us insight into the backgrounds of some of the families they design houses for.)

Doug Savant - The Grove, West Hollywood. As HH and I exit the "I am Legend" screening into a wonderland of Christmas cheer and twinkly lights, who do we spot standing in line to see Santa but Lynnette's husband Tom from "Desperate Housewives"? Major score! This guy is so handsome he would turn heads even if he wasn't on a major TV show. First of all, there's the hair: a pro coif with just the right amount of product that totally screams, "STAR"! Then there were the laid-back cas khakis and suede jacket that fit him like an expensive glove. Only big-time TV stars wear clothes like they stepped out of a catalog. We had to assume he was with kids and possibly a wife or girlfriend but who even noticed? Did I mention his gorgeosity?

John Landis - Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Raise your hand if the words, "Wanna see something really scary?" freak you out. I've got both of mine up! That's right, that's the man who directed "Twilight Zone: the Movie," and I saw him at the Salvador Dali exhibit which, if you've been reading my blog, you know that was a way cool show and was all about Dali's involvement in film. I saw him on his cell as soon as he left the building. Could he have been telling his agent he wants to do a new movie, something about melting watches and bicyclists with loaves of bread on their heads perhaps? Raise your hand if you'd go see it. Me, me me!

Ian Kennedy - Romaine Street, West Hollywood. Who is Ian Kennedy? Only the New York Yankee's first round draft choice and one of their starting pitchers. And a great guy! Upstairs Neighbor was selling all sorts of things on Craigslist and who shows up to check one of the items out but Ian Kennedy! A newlywed, Ian told us all about his wedding and his fantastic wife and it was only when we bugged him - PLEASE TELL US ABOUT PITCHING IN YANKEE STADIUM - that he broke down and confessed it was indeed very cool. Hey Mom! I met a real live Yankee! Wow, that was so cool.

John Watson - Chico, CA. Who's John Watson, you ask? Why, he was the chief stunt pilot in the 1989 movie, "The Experts," starring John Travolta and Kelly Preston. He even got a credit! He happens to be the father-in-law of my very good friend CG Watson and he and his lovely wife Carol had dinner with us on Friday night. He regaled us with tales from the Vancouver set (and Carol told us all about the fantastic hotel they were put up in!). So now I am a mere 2 degrees of separation from John Travolta! Awesome!

Janeane Garafalo - Starbucks, Fairfax and Santa Monica Boulevard. This girl's got serious tats! And fantastic sunglasses! She was striding very purposefully past us lurkers on the smog-choked patio where a drunk homeless guy kept calling out, "You're killing me, Larry!" which is the catch phrase for Sit-n-Sleep mattresses, a horrible commercial. She was wearing tight raspberry-colored pants and a tank top which totally showed off her multi-colored tattoos. Black hair down and loosely styled - she looked amazing! Inside, I saw her peruse the musical selections while she waited for her drink, head down, very low-key. My companion called her "so counterculture." I love that! Funny AND smart!

Conchata Ferrell - Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood. The recent Emmy nominee for "Two and a Half Men" was in line behind us for popcorn. She's one of those actresses you look at and think, where do I know her from? And the truth is you know her from everywhere! Movies like "Erin Brockovich" and "Edward Scissorhands" and "Mystic Pizza" and loads and loads of TV. She's very cool and down-to-earth and waited in line just like the rest of us.

Geoffrey Rush - Pirates!!! Sunset and Crescent Heights, West Hollywood. Walking with his son and daughter (they looked exactly like him!), this star of the blockbuster movies must have been in town for the premiere of the third POTC. We saw him and the kids coming out of Virgin Records from the top floor where the movies and games are, not the music floor. He might have been staying at the Chateau Marmont, since he was walking down the street from that direction. Typically and Britishly-rumpled, he was casually strolling as if he were on a country road in Leisterchestyorkshire beside a bonny meadow and not one of the busiest corners of West Hollywood. He stood RIGHT NEXT to us at the light, talking to…

Gabriel Byrne - star of one of my fave movies of all time, “The Usual Suspects.” Who knew they were buds? Like Geoffrey, Gabriel was also looking rumpled and classy (how do the Brits do that?), wearing sneakers with his slacks and sport jacket, which is a look I totally favor on men. Now, if you’re a real fan, you’ll know sexy Gabe was in a pirate movie of his own…can you name it?

Rob Schneider - Central Park West, Manhattan. On a Thanksgiving Eve, after Maurice and I watched crews inflate the giant Macy's Day balloons, we came across Rob Schneider, walking alone, bundled up against the cold. I wanted to believe he was on his way to celebrate the holidays with a boisterous group of family and friends. Maurice, however, was convinced he was sad and all by his lonesome in the big bad city. Poor little Deuce Bigelow!

Tim Russ - What does a Vulcan do on his day off? He scarfs down sausage and pepper sandwiches at LA’s San Gennaro Festival! The former Tuvok from Star Trek fame was sitting with a woman (Wife? Sister? Klingon?), out of the way of foot traffic, keeping a low human-like profile but he couldn’t fool me! Even without the pointy ears, I recognized him (remember me? Former geekette?).

Dom DeLuise - Again with the San Gennaro Festival. Different year, different locale. And this time, Dom was the king of the fest, riding in on a golf cart like the Pope, waving to his Italian-American minions. I’ve loved Dom since his days with Burt and Sally, with Burt and Loni, with Burt and his Trans Am. Want a good Dom flick? Netflix “Fatso,” written and directed by the late great Anne Bancroft. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll eat a cannoli.

Ted Raimi - Trader Joe’s, West Hollywood (Ah, which one? I’ll let you guess). Ted, brother of Sam, star of the syndies, is one of those actors you see and think, “Were you my high school chemistry teacher? Calculus? Computers? Something in the engineering range?” Dude bumped into me - literally - twice in the space of twenty minutes. Once near the olive oils, again in frozen foods. Said “pardon me” both times. Nice guy.

Josh Lucas – Mexicali Restaurant, Studio City. He was wearing a baseball cap, sitting at a booth with friends for lunch. Kind of scruffy but definitely movie star handsome, not regular guy handsome.

Sandra Bullock – Beverly Boulevard, Hollywood. Outside a Starbucks carrying a tray of coffees. We wanted to follow her to see where she was bringing the drinks – to friends? Co-workers? Or did she need a major caffeine fix?

Ewan McGregor – Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills. Driving a convertible, of course. He was stopped at a light near Wilshire and he probably wished he wasn’t because his little car was swarmed by tourists. Politely. This was the same summer as the first Star Wars movie he was in so the general public finally recognized him.

Edward Norton – Jones Café, Hollywood. At lunch with a couple of male friends, they kept looking at our table, as if they expected us to accost them for an autograph. Uh, no, we’re a lot cooler than that, thanks very much. But then, a few days later…

Edward Norton – Egyptian Theater, Hollywood. He showed up with Salma Hayek, whom he was dating at the time and who is gorgeous! She was wearing very high heels and a clingy dress and no one even noticed him, but we did because we seemed to be following him. Not into the theater, though, since we got there late and didn’t get tickets.

Bruce Willis – Beverly Hills street corner. He was wearing a light windbreaker and jeans and a baseball cap and he grinned at me with that Bruce Willis smirk and I knew it was him! My husband insists it was not Bruce, that stars of that caliber are not standing on street corners. But I know it was him. It was.

Besides, it was Beverly Hills.

Courtney Cox Arquette and David Arquette – The WB Ranch lot, Burbank. Okay, this may not count because it was work-related but they don’t work there. I was on my way out to lunch when I walked by them. She is really tiny. Tiny, tiny and shiny, shiny hair.

Jay Leno – Hollywood Way and Barham Boulevard, Burbank. He works at NBC, which is in the neighborhood, so it’s not uncommon to see him tooling around in one of his fancy cars. He has a huge car collection and they’re all unique.

David Schwimmer – Rockefeller Center area, New York City. It was winter and I had just started watching this new show called “Friends” and I was crossing the street and I bumped headfirst into this guy in a dark overcoat and I looked up and it was David Schwimmer, that guy from that new show that I loved! He was a lot taller than I thought he’d be and wicked cute and he said, “Excuse me,” very politely when clearly it was my fault. That should count extra, since I actually touched him.

Harvey Keitel – Outside Bubby’s Restaurant, Tribeca, New York. Bubby’s was a big hangout for Harvey Keitel and Robert DeNiro, both of whom live in the neighborhood (or they did when I was there). DeNiro had a partial ownership of the fancy sushi restaurant Nobu which was right across the street and Tribeca Grill which was around the corner. This was the same area I saw--

Christina Applegate - Nobu, Tribeca. For our anniversary celebration, we went to this very chi-chi Japanese restaurant in Manhattan frequented by local and visiting celebs - often locals with visiting celebs. And who do we run into as we are walking in and she is walking out? Miss Kelly Bundy herself! Very blonde and very petite but also very commanding. She definitely steered the ship with whomever she was with that night. My husband has a naughty story about her but I’m not sure whether to believe him or not. My instinct is…not.

John F. Kennedy, Jr. – Tribeca. John-John was known for riding his bike around the city and for acting like a regular guy when he was, in fact, JFK Jr.! Up close, he was taller, handsomer and sexier than you’d ever get from a magazine. I loved that people in NYC respected him so much they just left him alone.

Dan Castalleneta – Melrose Avenue, Hollywood. “The Simpsons” is one of my favorite shows ever so I was thrilled when we walked past the Voice of Homer who was strolling along the sidewalk all by himself. My husband was struck dumb and he’s never star-struck. I kept saying, let’s go around the corner and just say hello and how much we admire his work and so on, but M wouldn’t do it. He was afraid of looking silly. I was like, dude, the guy is Homer Simpson, he practically invented silly.

Portia DiRossi – ballet class, Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood. Skinny, skinny, skinny. Oh my god, she is skinny. This was before Ellen and during her “Ally McBeal” days and I had just moved to LA and I had no idea who she was except that she was an actor. And she had fantastic clothes! Now, of course, she’s been on “Arrested Development” which was my favorite show of all time so I would have bowed down to her comedic greatness.

Tyra Banks – Japanese restaurant, Beverly Hills. Statuesque is the only word to describe this gorgeous model, even when she is sitting down. We sat 2 tables from her in this small restaurant and no one took notice of her. Very cool and respectful they are in the 90210. This was pre-America’s Next Top Model and pre-talk show, so Tyra did not have her entourage with her, just a single woman, older, who ate while Tyra talked on the phone during the entire meal. I also saw her in the lobby of my office building as she was arriving for a meeting for ANTM with the head of the network. Still statuesque, still gorgeous but with 4 or 5 people buzzing around her. Ah, how a successful television show changes people.

John Malkovich – Japanese restaurant, Beverly Hills. With his family and a couple of friends - on the same night as Tyra! How lucky were we! Malkovich et al were sitting on the opposite side of us. In fact, if I had wiggled myself just the slightest bit to my left, I would have touched the Oscar winner’s butt with my own. No one paid him the slightest attention, either, and at the time, he was bigger than Tyra. He was very casual, wearing a pair of long board shorts and a cotton sweater; I would have called it a little too casual for dinner out but hey, this is wacky California with its wacky celebrities.

Betty White - LAX, Los Angeles - Something on my person made the alarm go off at Security. Beep, bep, beep! There was nothing in my pockets and I wore no jewelry, no belt, no shoes (seriously, we should travel naked and avoid all of these problems)...so they had me step aside to be patted down. I was feeling so nervous, having never been patted down in my life (!) when I saw Betty White - former Golden Girl, Miss Sue Ann Nivens - in the same area putting on her shoes. She was smiling and laughing - this at 10PM on a Friday night. I was so flabbergasted - Betty White was putting on her tennies three feet away from me! I was about to be patted down by the same security guard who patted down Betty White! It made the whole ordeal worthwhile. "Oh, Lou!"