Famous People You Have Met

[Scooter]

A once-removed celeb encounter, also involving a very distinctive voice:

About ten years ago a friend of mine, who lives in what used to be called Hell's Kitchen in New York, rented "The Name of the Rose," the Sean Connery/Christian Slater movie based on the Umberto Eco novel about murders at a medieval monastery. In the movie, the part of the old, blind and venerable monk at the heart of the mystery was played by William Hickey, an old, wizened actor with a very distinctive, sinuously nasal voice. (He was in "Prizzi's Honor" and a lot of other movies.) The Blockbuster guy at the counter, making conversation, asked my friend what he thought of the movie and he replied, "I liked it, except for Bill Hickey. What a ham! They should give him the overactor of the year award."

No sooner had he said this than a voice came from the next person behind him on line--a very distinctive voice, a sinuously nasal voice. The voice said, "Oh, really?"

My friend turned around to see Bill Hickey standing behind him on line.

So he did the only thing he could think of. He burst out: "I knew you were there! That's why I said all those things! Ha, ha. Of course I didn't mean any of it, you were great."

Bill Hickey nodded and smiled thinly at him and my friend beat a very hasty retreat. And now, whenever he badmouths anyone famous, he always glances behind him.