I have met a few in passing but the longest interaction with one was Tom Green, and was actually sparked by him. We got on an elevator at a hotel in Ottawa and there was another couple and a man. We were just doing the 'stare at the numbers quietly' thing and the man started making small talk...'where are you folks from, what are you up to while in Ottawa' and I started asking the same type of questions of him - not really looking - just being polite. He was talking about living in LA, being home to visit family and my husband laughingly said 'I guess she doesn't recognize you'. Once I looked closer I immediately said 'TOM!' He had a full beard, baseball cap etc. so in my periphery glance I hadn't pieced it together but was quite clear once I actually paid attention! He was so friendly and gracious, and it was such a lovely experience to meet him.

Marcello Mastroiani, Italian heart-throb movie actor, now deceased. Shook hands with us when a member of our table let him know we were his fans. The most memorable part of our art appreciation tour!

No. Only well known authors at signing events.

Yes I met a few of the Hamilton Tiger Cats Football team in an elevator when I attended Mac in the early 70s And I had the privilege of meeting Jack Layton NDP leader at a campaign stop in Thunder Bay. What an impressive man.

Met Wayne Gretzky on flight from LA to Toronto in 1999. Actually it was my wife & 2 kids that met him, they were doing a visit to the cockpit (it was before 9/11) and Gretz was sitting in one of the chairs up there chatting w the kids. He’d just announced his retirement from the NHL.

We still have 2 the autographed Air Canada sheets framed on a wall. They didn’t even think to come back to let me know Gretz was up there so I could meet him as well.

I met him yrs later and thanked him for making the kids’ day back in 1999.

When you travel a lot, you meet some celebrities in captive places like departure lounges and on flights. Most will endure brief greetings but clearly some want to be left alone. Some of the most gracious were Rick Mercer, Chris Hatfield, Chelsea Handler. Most grumpy, well I ought not say by name, but 'Mr Wonderful' comes to mind.

Back in the eighties, I had the privilege of attending a national Status of Women Conference in Ottawa. There I was one of three women who were given the opportunity to meet Prime Minister Joe Clark and ask him questions. I was surprised at how tall and good looking he was!

Yes, fortunate to work in hospitality for many years and meet celebrities.....actors, athletes, world leaders, activists. Hospitality is an amazing way to gain other perspectives and actually communicate with people. All pre-social media!

Yep! Family friend :)

I've come close to many celebrities, but I'd have to say I've never met one. That would require they be as aware of me as I am of them. And you might guess- I'm not a celebrity.

Nick Carter from Backstreet Boys!!!!

Darryl Sittler. I had the opportunity to golf with him at a charity tournament.

Yes, several years ago, I visited the charming Port Isaac in Cornwall's north coast hoping to see the area that the winning comedy Doc Martin was filmed. Imagine my surprise, when in fact they were in the middle of filming a scene for the upcoming episode. I got to see how they trained the little dog to have the door slammed in his face (this was not the celeb) and later watched the finished version when it was distributed to the public. While watching the filming, there was a break, and Martin Clunes, the star, came out and began talking to the crowd that had gathered to watch. I was lucky enough to be beckoned by him, a few words, a photo op , and it was all over. My friends were sufficiently impressed as they had visited a few weeks earlier, hoping for a glimpse of Martin, but no such luck, they were not filming. I was just lucky, the timing was perfect, a great end to my English holiday.

About 15 years ago I encountered Bruce Willis in a Bulk Barn. He was wandering around eating candy from different bins. I thought it was very strange. No one seemed to notice him. I did find out that he was in the area shooting a movie.

Having met some politicians, I checked the dictionary definition of celebrity, and realized the answer was, No.

Lord Olivier. The funny thing was that I didn't know it was him. He was my next door neighbour in Brighton, UK.

I have met John de Lancie (Q) and Robert Picardo (The Doctor) and the original Three Stooges when they appeared at the CNE, in the last century.

No.

Sir Alec Jeffereys, founder of DNA profiling. Based at Leicester University

About 15 years ago while walking in London, England my wife and I saw someone walking towards us who was being hounded by paparazzi. It turned out to be Russel Crowe and we at least said hello and he responded but unfortunately the guy could not be a break from all the picture takers.

I partnered with Mac alumni Martin Short in a game of trivial pursuit one time. We won.

Is a politician a celebrity? If so I have met a few famous Canadian politicians such as Ellen Fairclough, John Diefenbaker and Roland Mitchener. I met Ian Tyson and Glen Yarborough. I also met Bobby Hull a number of times when he was playing in Winnipeg with the Jets.

Yes my friend organized Bollywood concert and I was one of the volunteers met several Bollywood celebrities.

I met Sam Elliott while working on a movie in Rome and he invited me out for dinner (before he was married to Katharine Ross). I turned him down because I was 'in love' with someone else!!! :-( Is it too late to say I've changed my mind??

Met Herb Alpert, Anne Murray, Liberace, Oliver Jones (pianist), musicians working for Tony Bennett, Rob McConnell orchestra leader and recording artist, Matt Dusk backstage, Ernestine Anderson a jazz singer in the Billie Holiday era, Sonny James country singer in 1950's and Diana Krall in 1990's. Music has been my soul since birth. I graduated from Mac in 1972, part of the 50yr celebrations so I also met IVAN REITMAN and DAVE THOMAS while at Mac!!

Being a Sound of Music fan, I was thrilled to meet Julie Andrews after she gave a lecture at the Unique Lives Lecture Series in Toronto about 20 years ago.

Yes. Many Book authors and a well known comic from Hamilton who attended McMaster…Marty Short

Its amazing to me when I hear about people running into famous people in restaurants or traveling in airports, planes etc... that has never happened to me. I have met members of the royal family: Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip, Prince Charles, Prince Edward, Sophie, Countess of Wessex and the former President of Ireland, Mary McAleese. Those are all pretty memorable to me.

Depends on what you mean by “met”. I had a brief encounter with Dr Vivian Fuchs before he left for the Trans Antarctic expedition in 1956 and I was looking at his ship down by the river Thames. He patted me on the shoulder as I was in his way and he didn’t want to knock me into the river.

I met Ron McLean from Hockey Night in Canada at Winnipeg airport many years ago. He was very nice.

I had the great opportunity to learn about neutron scattering techniques for studies of condensed matter under Dr Bertram Brockhouse at McMaster University about 15 years before he was awarded the Nobel prize in Physics.

Yes - Debbie Reynolds - she was really nice, my parents were thrilled
Also Mickey Mouse several times!

I owned a Limousine business in SoCal for 10 years. I drove all the VIP's.
Consequently, I met way more than my share of Movie, TV, Rock, Sports, and just popular figures from Sen. John Glenn to Flava Flav, from Pink! to Dave Chappelle.
Some were awesome. With others, I had to clean up their vomit. Kinda like driving anybody else. There's good and bad in every group.

Yes, Peter Mayhew for one -- in the Silhouette office at McMaster. The original Chewbacca on Star Wars. Very tall and gracious.

Yes, many. I worked at CHCH-TV and miced many celebs, including PM Trudeau.

Yes, it was a pleasure to meet two of my favourite people, Steve Smith aka Red Green and the Mag Ruffman aka The Tool Girl at a book signing.

Define met. Does sitting in the bleachers or nose-bleed seats watching someone like Cher count as meeting? Or Peter Ustinov or Meatloaf or hundreds of other celebrities over the years?

I met David Hasselhoff once.

I met Eric Braeden who plays Victor Newman on The Young and the Restless, which I have watched for 40 yrs. Also Farrah Fawcett when she was filming a movie in Whitby.

The only real celebrities I have ever met were Hamilton Tiger Cat football players.

Yes, Pete Seeger. Spent the better part of a day and evening with him when he was into the Toronto area to perform. A warmer personality you will not ever meet.

Yes! When I was at a play in NYC I spotted an actor from Coronation Street at intermission in the audience. I don't think anyone else knew who he was. Upon leaving I went up to him & asked him if he was a character on Corrie, & he said he was. I said how much I love the show & that I am from TO, Canada. He never said much, but his mother spoke to me for a while & was so sweet & friendly! It was very exciting!

Yes, Prince Phillip at the Canadian Embassy in Washington DC, 1950's. And then.....my husband met the World Dance Figure Skating Champions Marie France Dubrei and Patrice Lauzon at the Halifax Airport. That was exciting.

If meeting means being formally introduced then no I have never met a celebrity.

Yes, several. They were entertainers/performers at an arena venue at the university where I was a vice-president.

Serena Williams, seemed difficult to deal with....

If you think that politicians are celebrities, then I have met several prime ministers and premiers and recognized authors due to my line of work.

Yes: a few pro golfers, CFL QB and an Order of Canada recipient.

When our company had an event a few years ago, Rick Hansen, the Man in Motion was involved. Because of my role with the company, I helped organize the event. Rick was wonderful to work with, very engaging and personable. As a result of other roles in life, I've also met Roger Jackson, Bruce Kidd, and Helen Kelesi.

Back in 1969, when the O'keefe Centre in Toronto still was in operation, my wife and I went to the back door to get to see Harry Belafonte. I was amazed at how gentlemanly, polite and absolutely gracious this man was. He struck up a short conversation with the two of us, and autographed our program, and we were thrilled. As well, because I was a canvasser for a political party, I met with persons who would later become famous and important in Canadian history. Most of these people were polite and gracious too. One of them even became a prime minister.

No celebrities met.

I have had the pleasure of meeting several former members of the Expos and Canadiens. Classy players like the late Guy Lafleur, Shayne Corson. Guy Carbonneau, Chris Nilan and more. All of them friendly and gentlemen. Former ball players include Ellis Valentine, Steve Roger's, Ken Singleton to name a few.
But the real celebrities are the folks in my neighbourhood who volunteer their time to assist at places that are trying to help the less fortunate.

I AM a celebrity

Many, many years ago I played hookey to spend a morning at the Royal Connaught where the Detroit Red Wings were staying during playoffs with the Leafs. This permitted me to get autographs of Abel, Lindsay and Howe; Sawchuck, Pronovost, Goldham, Pavelich and Leswick, along with all the other members of the team; and an unforgettable conversation with Gordie Howe.

Yes. My daughter and I went to a play on London and met Arthur Darvill who played Rory Williams, the husband of Amy Pond in Doctor Who. He spoke with us after the show at the exit of the theater. Very generous with his time.

Brigitte Bardot

John Diefenbaker, Paul Martin (the PM not his father), Gillian Anderson, Telly Savalas plus a few more. Saw John Paul II in a quick drive by in the Popemobile in downtown Winnipeg in 1984 but did talk to all of the others.

I met Suzanne Somers back stage at the Royal York Hotel Imperial Room. Got an 8x10 Glossy signed - made my day has a young teenager!

I have met a few very minor celebrities. If I mentioned their names more than half of the people wouldn’t know who they were. They’re just people like you and me.

In the early 80’s in Ottawa for a conference, a small group of us stopped to see the Parliament buildings. There were limos & men in dark suits standing around. They were PM Pierre Trudeau’s security detail. We asked if we could meet him. After waiting several minutes one of them came back & said yes. We lined up outside by the door. I was first in line. A few minutes later he came out with his red rose in his lapel looked directly at me & asked what I was doing there. We had a nice little chat & he moved on to the next person. It was really exciting to meet the PM. After we left the people I was with asked if we had met before because of how casual the conversation was. I honestly said no we hadn’t ever met but since I was blocking the door he was exiting he had to say something. We all just laughed.

I shook hands with Linus Pauling. He was a delightful man. We talked for a while.

I had a half hour private audience with Vigdis Finnbogadottir when she was the leader of Iceland. We walked through the arboretum at Guelph University. She was more delightful than Linus.

Several, from eclectic situations:
As a waitress in a small city hosting a folk festival - Gordon Lightfoot and Bruce Cockburn, who were both lovely, soft-spoken gentlemen. I have met and followed several other Canadian musicians at home concerts. Prior to attending a Billy Connolly concert, he had helped my boyfriend pick out a birthday card in the nearby Hallmark store, then, seeing us in the lounge, came over to wish me a Happy Birthday!

Queen Elizabeth, President George Bush Snr, and Sir Paul McCartney.

Yes
Burt Reynolds
Tom Jones
Jack Jones

Burt Reynolds was exciting to meet just because I was a teenager in Manhattan and I bumped into him going into a restaurant on 42nd street.

I have met only one or two, at a comic convention with my son - Joe Flanigan (Stargate Atlantis) and John Barrowman (Torchwood). My husband likes to ask this question at business functions, as an ice breaker. Once he was at a table with someone who had a key role in a presidential campaign and was invited to sit with the president at the Inauguration Ball. Another was room-mates with Brad Pitt in college. Trumps me - no pun intended!

The celebrity I met was Gary Lautens. He wrote a lovely column in the Toronto Star. I met him while taking a tour of the TorStar building at 1 Yonge Street in Toronto. He was as interesting and entertaining in person as he was in his columns. He was also a McMaster Alumni. I also met a couple of the d.j.s from CFTR back in the 1980s.

Too many to count; literally hundreds. I've been a professional in the arts industry my entire life. So at a young at heart 56, I've met/worked with a plethora. Though, I can very definitely say that those I truly enjoyed working with number less than 10 digits on both hands. Outside the arts, I've met many politicians, and industry leaders.
But the one outstanding chance meeting was with the great Billy Connelly - in The Papery in Yorkville. I was at the back of the store, and heard a lovely Scots brogue ask the clerk, I'm looking for a fine pen to scribe with. For the first time in my life, I was literally star-struck. He was so handsome in his lovely custom-made Oliver jacket - in true Bohemian fashion, it was plastered with artsy logos, and peace signs. So once we were both in the cashier line-up, I asked gingerly, Are you by chance, Billy Connelly? He responded in that awesome brogue Indeed, I am! I swooned and nearly hit the carpet!

I met and insulted Pierre Berton - what can I say, I was a teenager at this time. I then met and ultimately stalked Gabriel Byrne - after telling my girlfriend at the time that I had met and talked with Mr Byrne, she wanted to meet him too, so we followed him off the set of Little Women until we realized that we were stalking him and probably shouldn't be.

I remember meeting John Varley - I do not know who was more embarassed me or him. I also shared an elevator with Larry Niven. And I have met Bruce Cockburn....

Yes too many to mention they are just normal human beings like the rest of us

I met Walter Gretzky in the grocery store one day. He was such a down to earth kind person, and did so much for the city of Brantford where I'm from.

Yes, H. M. the Queen Mother presented my first degree.

I have met authors which to me is more important than celebrities but VIP like Carol Burnette and others I have brushed by on street.

In my early 20's I rented a room in a house with 2 other women in Toronto near Avenue Rd. and Dupont. The house was on a side street and my housemate and I saw Hugh Grant walk by in a baseball cap with his head down low (as if not wanting to be recognized). That's it. it's the closest to a celebrity I've ever been.

Through my job I have met several but probably my favourite was Christopher Plummer! I was thrilled to talk to him several times before meeting in person. Both he and his wife were lovely. As for the others some celebrities, others who are famous. My job came with perks!

Jerry Springer! He was very nice and allowed me to take a picture with him. It was right before the Jewish holidays so we wished one another a happy new year and went our separate ways.

I have met a celebrity and it was before she was famous...Malin Akerman...Other than that, I've been to many social events, business meetings and attended University where many celebrities both minor and major were present.

Depends on how you define celebrity. I met Lynn Johnston when she came to Mac for a book signing and I've met Timothy Findley, Jean Little and Robert Munsch, also at book signings. I once shook Jack Layton's hand. But the most memorable one was when I passed Mike Harris on the street during the days of his worst excesses. Unfortunately for me (and possibly fortunately for him) I didn't realize it was him until he had passed me (I would have tripped him up!)

I met John Candy at a friends house back in the seventies. He was already a huge star with both TV and film credits. After we were introduced, I expected him to turn away and ignore me. He did not. He continued a long conversation with me asking about my life and my interests. The nicest, sweetest person.

I’ve met a few, but my most memorable was Christine Baranski in New York City. So kind!

I've met Rick Mercer.

Mac friends and I were taking a pic at the Eaton centre. We grabbed the 1st guy we saw going by to take the pic, and it was William H Macy! He kindly got into the picture with us!

Me and my husband met William H. Macy at a theatre in London. He was there with a friend watching a play, sitting a couple of rows ahead of us. When we walked out we introduced ourselves and told him what big fans we were. He was very gracious and it was really nice to have met him.

Yes! We have actually met a few! Jay Leno was at the Las Vegas Barrett Jackson auction. He’s a big car guy and we chatted with him for a bit about cars. He’s extremely nice and fun to talk to. We’ve met Jaime Pressly from My Name is Earl & Mom & the cast of My Name is Earl at that shows DVD release party at the NBC Studios in NYC. She had questions about Canada, which was fun. Our friends are related to Josh Anderson, now of the Montreal Canadiens so we’ve been able to meet him several times at games. He is a very nice guy.

We’ve met Danica Patrick & James Hincliffe at the Toronto Indy, Jeff Gordon, Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart & Rick Hendrick at NASCAR Races- Jeff, Rick & Kasey were awesome. Tony was grumpy but maybe he was having a bad day. We’ve also met John & Courtney Force. Wow- John is a firecracker. He loves his fans and would have stayed all day to chat if he didn’t have to go racing!

One of the most fun things about car racing is the accessibility the fans have to the drivers. I don’t think that’s possible in any other sport!

Yes, I was staying at the same motel as Wayne Gretzky. My husband and I and our girls were having dinner in the motel dining room and Wayne and some of his team mates came into the dining room and sat at the next table. He graciously said Hello, and gave my girls his autograph. We said thanks and everyone carried on with dinner.

I saw Clara Hughes, the amazing Canadian Olympian, in an airport one time, and expressed how my admiration for her. It was not in Canada, and I think she was surprised to have been recognized. But she was very gracious about it.

I volunteer as the coordinator of an Indigenous storytelling festival and we have hosted Indigenous storytellers (authors, poets, musicians, performers, filmmakers, etc.) from across Canada. It has been a great honour to meet, spend time with, and learn from these wonderfully talented people. Some of our guests have included Eden Robinson, Cherie Dimaline, Richard Van Camp, Garry Gottfriedson, January Rogers, Leela Gilday, Waub Rice, Tomson Highway, Kym Gouchie, Lee Maracle, Marcel Gagnon, and Richard Wagamese. They may not be Hollywood celebrities, but I see them as celebrities of storytelling.

Not any household name celebrities, but I've met some of the stars in my field (book publishing) like Brandon Sanderson and Canadian powerhouse Kelley Armstrong.

Several…Lewis Black, Akshay Kumar, The Trews will be staying at my hotel on Labour Day weekend, Allen Iverson, Rob Gronkowski…the list goes on!

I spoke once with Brian Linehan (Host of City Lights and Hamilton born). What an interesting man. Also, many moons ago, I came face to face with Charleton Heston as we were passing through the same doorway. I did not speak to him (shy teenager at the time).

I have!! I’ve met many athletes! I met The Big Show, Curtis Joseph, some guys from The Guess Who! And I most recently met Nick Nurse in 2019 and Masai Ujiri in 2015!

I've met and hugged a couple professional musicians. Picked one up, even!

When I worked in a Chinese buffet, one of the other busboys called me to the front because he remembered I liked Alexisonfire. I didn't get why that was a relevant detail until I got to the front and George Pettit was standing there waiting to be seated. I immediately yelped and turned around on a dime. Just imagine this dweeby little 15 year old Chinese kid with too much hair turning as white as a ghost and trying their best to run away from their favourite artist while carrying a bucket full of dirty dishes and beer bottles. Hilarious, I think. Met is perhaps too generous a word here.

Yes, meaningful to me, but relatively minor: Rick Green (Prisoners of Gravity, The Red Green Show, and History Bites). I met him at a famous Toronto salad bar just as History Bites was appearing on the new History Channel. Kept it low-key, as he was out with his family, trying to have a nice evening out.

I consider a lot of my academic mentors as celebrities. They are well known nationally and internationally for their excellent work on research on aging.

Yes...Rick Mercer!

I've met Toronto Argos legend Jude St. John. Amazing football player and an amazing man!

Met a Toronto Maple Leafs captain at his son's hockey game. Cute kid!