They always say, don't meet your heroes. But here's the thing- sometimes your heroes are actually just chill, normal people. This can be refreshing in a world of egos.
A Quora user asked: Who's the nicest celebrity you've ever met?
What a nice person.
OK, the women of Quora are the nicest celebrities I have ever met on line.
But … face-to-face? That would be Priscilla Presley.
Now, I've met other influential people. Politicians, including one foreign president, and Generals, including briefing General Powell. Celebrities? Not really.
But Priscilla Presley???!!!
WOW!
She is one of the nicest, most decent, smartest and stunningly beautiful women I have ever met, and she is definitely a celebrity.
One of? That is to protect myself from the other nice and beautiful women I have met and will meet.
August 16 2007. Elvis's 30th Death Anniversary. Priscilla was a STUNNING 62. I was a younger 43. She had finished an interview with Larry King at Graceland.
Work … as usual. High pressure.
Finished the day at BB King's Place AKA Blues Club on Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee.
Beale Street puts the French Quarter in New Orleans, Old City Savannah Georgia, Duval Street Key West, and Fisherman's Wharf San Francisco on notice. Etc.
Having a beer at the bar.
A Big Guy sits down, and we start talking. Great Guy!
"Fred, I really enjoyed talking with you."
"John, I enjoyed talking with you. What did you say you do when you are not on Beale Street wasting your time with guys like me?"
He looked down. "Fred, I play football."
"Great! What college?"
"I'm a Pro." Very humble!
"Wow. Now that is interesting. Titans?"
"Yes. Let me do a favor for you, Fred. How'd you like to meet Priscilla Presley?"
"Your kidding! Of course. Thanks!"
"Fred, wait here."
Crowded place. Big place. Nice guy AKA Great guy. Loved talking to him. That's the last time I'll ever see him. Oh, well. C'Est la Vie.
I finished my beer and looked up. It was John. And I mean up. I'm 5′11″. He had to be 6′4″. "Let's go, Fred. She's upstairs in the VIP Room."
"John, upstairs? This is a one story tall building."
"VIP room on the roof. There is the entrance."
Three guys at the door in a far corner. Open collar shirts. Blazers. Clearly packing heat. We walked over. "Hi Mr. Schlimm. Mrs. Presley is looking forward to seeing you."
Door opens. Not searched. Is this real? And who the hell is John. More ESPN for me!!!
Landing. Two guys. "Hi Fred, she's upstairs." WTF!!!???
"Hi Fred." Door opened. John must have some serious juice. Silly me. More ESPN. He's got to be All Pro. NFL Pro doesn't get this with Priscilla on Elvis's 30th Death Anniversary near Graceland.
And as my eyes adjusted, I saw Lisa Marie, whatever she was married to at that time, other people, beautiful room, and the most beautiful creature I ever saw gliding towards me.
Took my hand. Other on my shoulder. Smile. "Hi Fred, John told us a lot about you. You look hungry. Join us for dinner."
WHO IS JOHN. WHY DID HE TALK TO ME. AND PRISCILLA PRESLEY!!!???
The rest of the evening was very decent and a bit foggy.
Got to Olive Branch, Mississippi. Typical 2.5 Star Hotel for expense account. Slept a few hours. Exhausted. Headed for work in Biloxi. I turned on the TV. Repeat of Larry King Live at Graceland. Yep. That was Priscilla before dinner. Lights. Makeup artists. Prepared questions.
She was better looking and charmingly spontaneous in person.
She was the nicest celebrity I ever met. More importantly, a wonderful person.
So was John. MORE ESPN FOR ME!!!
That's actually kind of surprising.
GiphyThe first celebrity I ever worked for was Joan Rivers. Fashion Police. Red Carpet Heckler. The original "Mean Girl!"
I was terrified. They said they needed someone who was really good. I was an OK seamstress at the time and probably far from being really good, but I decided I could fake it.
I went to the store and bought $100 worth of every random sewing supply I could find within my budget. I lamented over what I should wear. I arrived an hour early because I wanted to make sure I got to the venue on time.
It was pouring rain as it does in Florida, when Mrs Rivers came rolling in the back door of the theater with a giant umbrella, a soaking wet assistant and her luggage.
I was waiting for her in her dressing room. I had all my sewing stuff in a neat little pile, ready for any kind of wardrobe malfunction known to man.
She came in, and her assistant and I started getting her unpacked.
She was soooo kind and chatty I was floored. She asked me where I was from, did I have kids and all kinds of other very "interested in me" normal, conversational questions as we were unpacking her.
She had everything crammed into her little suitcase like a Mary Poppins bag.
She had giant cue cards with her jokes written on them, four or five fancy beaded and feathered stage and after-show outfits and an enormous hot pink feather coat that looked like big bird and Barney had a baby! It was barfing pink feathers everywhere, some I still have.
Then she pulled out an industrial size can of Lysol and started spraying it everywhere. All over her chair, table and then she went into the bathroom with it.
She came out and instructed me not to let anyone use her restroom including me! She was sweet, cute and funny and reminded me of my grandmother.
We set out all of her makeup, her glorious perfume, her Sharpie eyeliner, jewelry and so on.
We went through her outfits for the evening, which I steamed and hung on a Z rack.
Then we went to the stage so she could do her rehearsal.
Here is where the publicly known Joan Rivers character emerged. It was like two different people. She was playing a role, being rude, cracking jokes and had everyone rolling.
She laid out her cue cards on the floor across the front of the stage.
We went through all of her costume changes and then we took a long break before the show.
She ate some dinner, met with some VIP guests and then we got her ready.
During the show (now on Netflix of this exact tour) she got her heel stuck in the back of her dress. I stood in the wings watching in horror as it began to unfold… when she realized what was going on, aggressively just ripped the shit out of the back of her fancy dress to get herself unstuck and just made a joke about it. I was dying.
We made her quick change into her Libery Costume and took her bows.
After the show we vodka-sprayed all her clothing and shoved it back into her Mary Poppins suit case.
Then, this happened.
The first and only photo I have of me with any of the now 50+ celebrities I've worked for since that day.
The lesson I learned from Joan Rivers has stuck with me. I have never since been nervous about working for anyone famous. She cured me for life of judging people from the public characters they play or perceptions we may have about them.
RIP, Joan. Thanks for the rest of the vodka, sunglasses and Fashion Police badge. I wear them proudly.
Soft hands.
Chris Pratt.
He is one of the only celebrities I have ever met. I've bumped into Misha Collins and I've met the members of All Time Low. But out of all of them, Chris Pratt was definitely the nicest.
Here's the story:
It was the 4th of July. My friends and I were walking in the parade with our local community theatre float and we noticed a familiar face in the crowd. After we had gotten to our drop off location, one of my friends ran over to me and told me that she had seen Chris Pratt. This wasn't too much of a surprise because he had been to our town several times since he and his wife are wanting to move here with their son. We were still very excited, however. We've been dying to meet him.
Sadly, through several attempts, there was no way to reach him in the crowd and we watched with defeat as he and Anna walked away. We eventually gave up looking for him and started to make our way back to the community theatre to change out of our costumes. On our way there one of my friends saw Chris and Anna walking towards us. Well, not towards us, but in the same general direction. We ended up running into them on the corner of the street and upon seeing us, he exclaimed, "hey there, community theatre!"
It was overwhelming. He knew who we were! We got to talk to him for a few minutes and it was so crazy. He asked if we had any upcoming shows that they could go see (we are all actors) and what there was to do around town. We told him our whole schedule for the dramatic arts and he said he'd try to attend a performance. Then, the craziest thing of all, he asked us for a photo! You can view that below.
(I'm the one in the red, curly wig)
He and Anna were so sweet to us. They never even looked displeased like several famous people do. You could really tell they enjoy being around their fans and talking with them! It was such an amazing experience and I am so thankful that it happened. It's a young, aspiring actor's dream to meet other actors/actresses and the fact that we got to is mind blowing!
Overall, Chris and Anna are two of the nicest people I have ever met. (Not to mention he has really soft hands).
An interesting person.
This was around summer last year, I had gone back to visit my hometown- St. Petersburg, Russia. We were on a tour bus sightseeing different places and museums. We made real good friends with the people in our tour bus as they were really friendly and all. But there was this one woman sitting way at the front who wasn't talking to anybody.
Weird. I thought.
Anyways, we went to different museums and I got a chance to notice what she was wearing. She was wearing all black tights, t-shirt, leather jacket and combat boots. She looked really intimidating and a little off to me, because while people were taking pictures of the Russia painting and Faberge egg; she was taking pictures of tiny descriptions instead of the actual priceless possession.
So I concluded that she was a thief or a con artist. Now bear with me here.
Then the entire group including me went to a Russian restaurant to sit down and eat food, they were all sitting and taking (and mind you, I was the only teenager in this group) so I decided to chat with the lady cus she seems bored.
Once I started talking to her, she told me she was an actress. I had a little panic moment (you know the general one when you meet a celebrity) but I couldn't quite pin point who she was. So I asked her about her works.
She replied, "Are you interested in any DC comic book shows or any Vampire related TV shows?"
And then I said, "Yeah, I watch Arrow and Vampire Diaries."
"Bingo, I've played a minor role in those two shows."
Then realisation hit me like a wave.
She was Kelly Hu.
For those who don't know who Kelly Hu is: She played China White in Arrow.
Much to say I was fangirling over her and all the adults in the group were looking at me like I was crazy.
Overall she seems a bit reserved but she opens up to you once she knows that you've seen her in the big/ small screen and appreciate her work. Plus she is aware that most teenagers would know who she is and hence she is really nice to them. We had lunch together and we talked about how it felt like working beside actors such as Hugh Jackman (Wolverine) and Stephen Amell (Oliver Queen a.k.a Green Arrow).
I felt really bad for thinking that she was a thief. (Gotta tone down all those Mission Impossible movies haha!)
The experience was great, she even took a picture with me and followed me on Instagram.
BEST DAY OF MY LIFE.
Malibu is the place to be.
GiphySo living in Malibu I've met many celebrities and had a couple conversations with them.
I'll start with Adam Sandler. This guy is the best. So my younger brother was about 1 at the time and barely walking and we were in a crowded mall. My parents suddenly noticed that my brother Scott was gone. They were freaking out but they had written their phone number on Scott's arm just in case this happened. They new he probably was back in one of the prior toy stores and were hoping someone would call. Soon enough someone did, we told the guy where we were, and guess who shows up holding my little brother, Adam Sandler himself. He was such a nice guy to go out of his way to help being my brother back.
Next, and this one might surprise you, but Charlie Sheen. So this guy has a bad reputation but his daughter was in my class for a couple years and I new her, I had seen her dad around the school at her volleyball games and things but had never actually met him until this time after I had preformed the lead in a school play, Charlie Sheen comes up to me and holds out his hand to shake mine and says "Hi, I'm Charlie" like all humbly as if we didn't know who he was. Anyways he was really sweet and he said he was really impressed by my performance and said he couldn't have acted that well at my age. He really is a sweet and down to earth guy.
Yes in his past he's made some mistakes but haven't we all. His past doesn't affect who he is as a person. I also respect him because he is turning his life around. He's really there for his kids, going to their shows and sports and dance events and such. He's a really devoted dad and I can tell his kids love him a lot. Don't judge people by their reputations or past, not until you get to see how they are as people, such as Bruce Willis is an ABSOLUTE AHOLE.
Also Kourtney Kardashian is pretty sweet. My dad happens to be her doctor (he was on their tv show) so I got to meet her.
We love a humble star.
Although I haven't had many encounters with any celebrities, the few I've had a chance to meet, have been very pleasant and respectful. The most down to earth, humble, and normal celebrity I've met, is Ed Sheeran. I got to meet him at a private radio show, and not only is he a superb musician, but an outstanding individual, as well. I met him after he had become a huge success in the UK and Canada, but was just getting started in the US.
We were allowed one picture with him, no autographs, but I wanted to try for one anyway. When I got up there to meet him, he gave me a smile, a genuine hug, and told me how glad he was that I came. He told me he loved my shirt, which had song lyrics on it, and offered to sign my stuff anyway. Unfortunately I didn't have a pen, and neither did he, but he wanted to break the rules for me, anyway, which made me admire him even more at what he would do for a fan.
I got to tell him how wonderful his music is, how much he inspires me as a singer, and how much I appreciate his love for his fans and the respect he has for us. He then, smiling really big, pulled me in to a huge hug again and thanked me for my support of his music. I've had several friends meet him, and they've also said how genuine he is.
Seeing as he is my absolute favorite singer songwriter, I am so glad he did not disappoint me. I am so glad to see that his rise to success here in the US has not diminished that laid back humble attitude he has. I've never heard of another fan complain about him.
While honeymooning on a shoestring at the Turtle Bay Hilton on Oahu (we lived in Honolulu) as they had advertised some cheap midweek rates. I mentioned at the front desk that we were kama'aina's (Hawaii residents) and that it was our honeymoon and we got an upgraded room and some other privileges (which we didn't have time to do), making it possible to have a very nice, late meal in their dining room.
There were very few people having dinner that night and we had the full attention of the wait staff. The cast and crew of "Joe vs. The Volcano" was filming in the area and Abe Vigoda, Tom Hanks and some other actors were at a big table in the corner behind us. We tried our best not to stare. To our left, Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan were laughing and eating with a young boy who was trying to eat a lobster and making a mess of it, which Ms. Ryan thought was the funniest thing ever. Mr. Quaid kept smiling at us whenever I peeked in their direction (her laughter was wonderful) and asked the waiter who we were. I guess the waiter knew we had just gotten married and passed along the information to their table.
When they were leaving, both of them stopped at our table and gave us their congratulations and well wishes. Before we were done eating, the waiter came up with the dessert cart, and asked if there was anything else we would like, and to be sure to pick out whatever we wanted of the cake and pastries, as the cart had been paid for by the Quaid's for us as a wedding present.
The next morning, since we had to be up early to get the groom back to work, I decided to order breakfast in the room. We were brought six serving platters heaped with everything 'breakfast' - pancakes, bacon, ham, sausages, eggs, toast, French toast, croissants, orange juice, milk, coffee and all the extras. Enough for a dozen people and tucked into the payment folder, with no bill, there was a coupon to get a beach picnic with a whole chicken, sandwiches, wine, soda and side salads for later (which, I regret, we did not use), all 'compliments' of the film cast & crew.
We didn't get to see any of the cast or crew to thank them, but the desk said that they were all the best guests. Certainly a class act to us!
A good childhood memory.
This goes way back to when I was 10 years old. A production of the musical "Show Boat" was being offered at the 1953 Season First Production at the Carter Barron Amphitheater in Washington DC. I was chosen to be one of small group of children who would take part in the group segments of the story. For me, it was a magical experience. The huge outdoor theater in beautiful surroundings, the music, the songs, the dancing, the actors, everything was like living in a fantasy.
It was during the summer and my mother would take me there with a little lunch and snacks in a paper bag. All of the children, when we weren't needed, would explore the backstage, the tunnels and dressing rooms under the stage, the costume room, just everything. This was a world you would never know about sitting in the audience watching the show. It was always very, very busy with stage hands and actors always on the move.
The playbill states that "Showboat" was "Produced under the personal direction of Constance Bennett". She was a well known Hollywood actress at that time and, to me, she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. I remember she spoke with confidence when telling us what to do and she always carried her little dog under her arm. She was always nice to the kids.
Now, to the nicest celebrity I have ever met. Fred Kelly, brother of Gene Kelly, was the choreographer so the kids all spent quite a bit of time with him. We all worked hard and were treated with discipline and gentleness. I was one of the youngest and smallest kids and he always had me in the front of the group. In one of the big scenes, I think it was when the Showboat was either arriving or leaving. There was lots of excitement and waving. I rode on the shoulders of one of the dancers at the end of that scene.
Good luck, Fred Kelly
Ol' Man River was my favorite song. It was so sad that one time I cried. The actor who played "Joe" and sang it was a black man (no black face!) named William Smith who saw that I cried in a rehearsal and told me it was just a song but it told a true story of the south. He signed his picture in my program: To Ann, With Best Wishes, Ol' Man River.
This production was born when the composer, Jerome Kern, bought a copy of Edna Ferber's book "Show Boat" in 1926. About halfway through reading it, he asked Edna Ferber for the stage rights and asked Ziegfeld if he would like to produce it. Oscar Hammerstein II, who had collaborated with Kern to mount other famous plays on Broadway would write the the script and lyrics. So, then it began.
I apologize for going on so long. Once I began remembering and retrieved my old program it was all so clear in my mind. "Show Boat" was the beginning of my education about the old south literally on a visceral level. The actors, the songs, the story…a true learning opportunity. Thank you for reading.
A genuinely good person.
GiphyI was a reporter for The Wall Street Journal for more than a decade, and interviewed a number of celebrities, CEOs and other big-shots—called in the trade "bold-faced names."
Most were courteous, professional and even humble. But one stood out: Garrison Keillor, the host of the long-running radio program A Prairie Home Companion.
During the height of his fame, he gave a speaking tour around the country. I went to one of these events at Lisner Auditorium in D.C., and went backstage afterwards to meet him.
Because he'd just made the cover of Time magazine, he'd been in great demand that day. He'd even been taken around Congress to meet various politicians who wanted to have their pictures taken with HIM.
That night, he'd given a one-man reading of one of his books, which went on for over an hour.
So he must have been exhausted by the time I met him. But the area backstage was full of various VIPs and their families who were standing in line to meet him.
He greeted them all cordially and asked them questions about themselves.
That made the line move slowly, and some people got impatient, particularly when the young man right in front of me was introduced to Keillor.
The young man, about 15, was in a wheelchair, and had a disability that made his speech very slow.
It took him a long time—more than a minute— to stammer out, "It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Keillor."
Keillor just stood there smiling as the young man struggled to get out the words, then reached out his hand and said in his honey baritone, "No, it's an honor to meet YOU!"
I just about burst into tears, he was so warm and genuinely kind.
On another occasion, I had the opportunity to interview him one-on-one during one of his book tours, and can attest that he's a cagey interview subject—deflects any question he doesn't want to answer—but his intelligence and quick wit shone through. He also was unfailingly polite and didn't hurry the interview, as many celebs do.
All in all, I think if Americans had a list of artists designated "national treasures," as Japan does, he should be on it.
Employees At Fancy Hotels Divulge Their Best Secrets
Reddit user akumamatata8080 asked: 'People who work at super fancy hotels, what kind of stuff happens that management doesn’t want people to know about?'
Most of us who have not worked in hospitality have dreamed of having a nice getaway for a weekend, or staying in a top-rated hotel, and relaxing in one of its best suites.
But those who have worked in hospitality are ready to point out some of the unexpected features and oddities that circulate around these fancier accommodations.
Redditor akumamatata8080 asked:
"People who work at super fancy hotels, what kind of stuff happens that management doesn't want people to know about?"
Cross-Contamination
"During housekeeping, hotels use different colored cloths to wipe your drinking glasses, cutlery, toilets, and sinks to avoid contamination. They just didn’t bother separating these cloths after wiping and moving to the next room."
- curry-sauce
The Secret Lives of Guests
"I did valet at an upscale hotel in Southern Florida, and the number of times I parked luxury vehicles with drugs haphazardly or precariously stowed in obvious places always blew me away."
"Not surprisingly, those guests were great tippers as they learned who to trust."
- lazerayfraser
Attention to Detail
"We take notes on your reservation profile. Everything from anniversary information to favorite cocktails and foods. We add notes to pass along to other staff."
- dez_navi
Four-Legged Stowaways
"$2k per night and this place has a serious rat problem."
- prof_dynamite
"Could be worse. My hotel has silly rats."
- snapwillow
What in the Mortuary
"It's pretty common to have a dead guest. There's a standard procedure for it and we take care of it quietly."
- Why_am_I_here033
Casino Funds
"I have a pretty interesting one. We know criminal enterprises have funded casinos in the past. I worked at Revel Casino (now Ocean) in Atlantic City before and after its opening."
"One thing they kept mentioning in our onboarding was that the triads were funding the casino. I thought it was super strange that these execs were just openly telling brand new hires."
- hornet_Critical
Like-New Beds
"I only work as a housekeeper at a regular four-star Hotel, but probably about 25% of people either bleed or leave s**t stains on the beds. It's truly atrocious how disgusting people are, especially when they know someone else is cleaning it up. Even the wealthier guests."
"And the best tippers are the cleanest people."
"If someone fully s**t on the bed and used towels to wipe, drank heavily and puked on the carpet in multiple places, and clogged the toilet, that person will not tip at all."
"But the person who barely used the full bed and didn't use the shower at all and was super clean and polite, now that's a good tipper."
- kpo987
Endless Supply of Gossip
"We turn a blind eye to drug dealers more often than you think. They hardly complain and usually pre-pay huge bonds happily. Also, we don't give a s**t if you're having an affair."
- NotTheGary_JustGary
Odd Celebrity Stories
"I worked cooking at an ultra-exclusive resort in Utah ($3k-$12k/night)."
"Nothing that exciting happened in my year there. I found a bottle in the tallboy (large fridge) labeled 'Kristen Belle's Breastmilk. DO NOT USE.'"
"I had put in my two weeks' notice and was really drunk on a day off, and made a post on Facebook about how Gordon Ramsay was coming and I hoped he wasn't filming 'Kitchen Nightmares' with us. I was fired within 24 hours, lol (laughing out loud). I did get to cook fish tacos for him and his family, though, and I heard he complimented the dinner kitchen crew directly (partially open kitchen), which is cool."
- OM3N1R
Poor Cruise Care
"A good friend of mine is a pilot. It's his first professional job. He flies an air ambulance. It's not typically picking up unstable patients in need of urgent care. More like repositioning stable patients."
"The vast majority of people he flies come from the cruise ship industry. If you get sick or injured on a cruise ship, they will dump you at the next port. It doesn't matter if the port doesn't have the kind of medical help you need. They just need you off the ship."
"It very well is up to you to arrange a private flight with medical crew to reposition you from Tobago to Tampa to get the medical help you really need."
- DoctFaustus
Collecting Stories
"We had an entire wing of the hotel infested with bedbugs. They just move through the walls from one room to the next. We waged a war of attrition that took years, and cost a lot of money, but we never stopped renting the rooms."
"We had one old guy though who was rich, divorced several times over, he just retired in the hotel. He had a room on the ground level right around the corner from the hotel bar. I don't know what he paid for it, but it wasn't cheap, and he furnished his own room."
"Everyone on staff knew his habits, knew his drink, knew when to leave him alone or when he wanted to chat. The funniest thing was, after he passed, he'd pre-booked his memorial at a totally different hotel. He liked his privacy, I guess. RIP, Hal."
- machuitzil
Bed Bug Horror Stories
"I worked cheap hotels and this is super common; even heat treating rooms professionally and quarantining nearby rooms they would always pop up somewhere weeks later through an air duct."
"When I check in to any motel or hotel, the first thing I do before bringing my bag in is lift the mattress and check the seams for bed bugs or blood spots. You can learn how from Youtube if you don't get first-hand experience."
"The crazy thing is if they spent a few thousand to bag every mattress they'd cut down on it significantly."
- galkasmash
Wild Stories
"I worked in room service at a very chic hotel in Miami. One guest requested that a specific waitress (not a room service worker) always deliver him food. Not exactly sure what went on in there, but he tipped her with a big bag of weed each time, which she would promptly bring back to share with the room service staff."
"I can confirm that the concierge will get you WHATEVER you want..."
"We had a local couple, who were staying with us to avoid being served for a lawsuit. We weren't allowed to say that they were staying there. The police eventually showed up for them."
"There were several times when guests would come to the front desk claiming the maids had stolen something from their room. They would be irate, demanding we call the police. Every. Single. Time. They found the item either in their luggage or car or their travel companions had moved/packed the item."
"One gentleman claimed that he forgot his very expensive camera in his room. My manager pulled up a video that showed him packing up his car, placing the camera on top of the car, and driving off without realizing it."
- SnarkyVamp
Questionable Christmas Bonus
"I used to work in accounts receivable for a couple of luxury hotels that were owned by the same LLC. We would open blocks of rooms for GENERIC SPORTS SEASON about eight months in advance."
"Due to high demand, these reservations had to be a two-day FRI, SAT stay. The payment was made in full (450-800 depending on room type). Refunds were available only if you canceled a month before the arrival date."
"When I first started in the position, I discovered $63,000 worth of reservations that had been canceled on time but were never refunded."
"I showed it to my manager, an absolutely incompetent woman who couldn't check in a guest if she needed to, she got back to me after discussing it with one of the owners."
"I can't remember how exactly she put it but I was told to just forget the matter and not to mention it to anyone. I got a $500 dollar cash Christmas bonus that year."
- Weirda**mustache
Secret Security
"Not a hotel employee, but associated with a popular convention that everyone would recognize."
"The convention attendees get so out of control that the hotel will only host the convention if they have a private security force."
"Since the private security isn't law enforcement or licensed, they do pretty much whatever it takes to keep trouble out of the public eye. Mostly it's locking people up in rooms or escorting them out of town, but they can get rough at times."
"But none of the convention attendees know they are there and the hotel staff pretends they don't see them. Even those who run afoul of them don't know exactly who it was that grabbed them."
- rusty0123
While everyone might think that staying at a fancy hotel would be great fun, it may not be such an enjoyable experience for those who work there. With all kinds of questionable behaviors performed by guests, not to mention the messes that need to be cleaned up, that fancy hotel may not feel so fancy for very long.
While we may not all enjoy studying history, we all have certain types of stories that interest us, and one that seems to catch everyone's attention are the hard-to-believe, almost far-fetched tales.
Interestingly enough, history is full of these stories, leaving many to believe that reality is truly stranger than fiction.
Redditor ThrowAwayMyLife2341 asked:
"What are some events in recorded history that are extremely hard to believe, but without a doubt actually happened?"
Second Chance Flight
"My colleague was on the plane to Hawaii where the entire top of the plane ripped off… they flew the rest of the way without any overhead."
"They landed and everyone walked off. It's absolutely insane to see the pictures. Talk about being given a second chance."
- SkydivingSquid
Running Late for the Olympics
"In 1908, Russia showed up 12 days late to the Olympics because the world switched calendars while they did not."
- drailCA
"To accommodate the Russian team, some events were rescheduled so that the Russian athletes could participate. This led to a longer duration for those Olympics, which lasted from April 27 to October 31, making it the longest Olympic Games in history."
- parkerjh
An Inescapable War
"The Battle of Bull Run, one of the first battles of the US Civil War, occurred on and around Wilmer McClean's farm in Northern Virginia. Not wanting to live surrounded by war, McClean and his family moved to Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia."
"The Battle of Appomattox Courthouse was the last significant battle between Union and Confederate forces. The Confederates signed the surrender order in Wilmer's sitting room."
"It is said that the Civil War started on Wilmer's farm and ended in his sitting room."
- csudebate
History of Bombings
"There was a Japanese man called Tsutomu Yamaguchi who was on his way to work in Hiroshima in 1945, when he saw falling through the sky, two miles from where he stood, what ultimately turned out to be the atomic bomb."
"He had just enough time to take cover in a ditch as the bomb detonated and miraculously he survived. Somehow the Hiroshima train station was still operational and so Yamaguchi, battered, bombed and bruised, decided to board a train to his family home so he could recover... in Nagasaki."
"Three days later, Yamaguchi was called into work to explain what he saw, which he did. At work, as he began to tell the story of what happened, the second bomb dropped."
"It was the reinforced concrete walls around him that saved him this time, and Yamaguchi quickly ran to find his wife and son. Ground temperatures in the city reached 4,000°C and radioactive rain poured down."
"The family's home was destroyed, but Yamaguchi's wife and son had thankfully been out shopping - looking for burn ointment for Yamaguchi, when the bomb fell, and they'd survived."
"Despite this ordeal of having survived two nuclear explosions and subsequent radiation exposure, Yamaguchi went on to live till 93 yrs of age. He died in 2010 after being recognized by the Japanese government as a 'nijyuu hibakusha,' or 'twice-bombed person.'"
- Voodizzy_
A Monumental Fall
"Nicholas Alkemade fell 18,000 feet without a parachute from a burning plane in 1944 and suffered no serious injury."
- hazps
"I see how the snow cover helped but how he didn’t get skewered by pine trees or break a single bone is shocking."
- switchbladeeatworld
"Imagine what he was thinking when he got up from that fall. What kind of crazy thoughts were running through his head."
- Lankey_Craig
"'Yeah, no one is gonna believe this one.'"
- Pennywise626
"Germans almost didn't, after finding him in just a flight suit but no parachute. They initially pegged him as a spy who'd been dropped behind their lines and had stashed his chute and gear. As such, he was likely to be executed."
"Except Alkemade was so insistent his captors went and found the wreckage of his aircraft, with the burnt remains of his chute stashed behind his gun position. Germans told him the news and shared vodka with him to celebrate."
- JohnnyJohnCowboyMan
Mass Dance in France
"That time everyone died of a dancing sickness where they danced themselves to death in France. Mass hysteria."
- DavinaCole
"St. Vitus’ Dance, as it is called, still doesn’t have a definitely known cause."
"New research as of 2021 shows Sydenham chorea as the most likely cause."
- ENFJPLinguaphile
The Return of the Sun
"The Battle of Halys."
"In roughly 6th century BC, the Medes and the Lydians were at war. The war had lasted for six years and climaxed at the Battle of Halys."
"During the battle, a solar eclipse began. Both sides believed that the Gods were angry at their long and bloody war, and were taking the sun away from them."
"They declared peace that day, and the sun was returned. But yeah, a war ended because of a solar eclipse."
- TheRogueBear
A Spicy Battle
"The Nutmeg Wars. The Dutch and the English went to war THREE times over nutmeg, which at the time was only known to grow on one South Pacific island."
- missoularedhead
Entertaining Prisoners
"Theodore Roosevelt found his boat was stolen. So he built a new boat, tracked the thieves down, and arrested them."
"He then proceeded to walk them multiple days, without sleeping, so they could receive a trial instead of just shooting them on the spot."
"It was in the middle of a harsh winter so he didn’t handcuff them (for fear they’d get frostbite), so instead, he just kept himself awake by reading Tolstoy with a gun trained on them the whole trek."
- Another_Road
"That's only the twenty-second most Teddy thing I've ever read, but a new one, which makes me love it."
- Beard_of_Valor
"I am always half convinced that Teddy Roosevelt was not a real person. No one could have been that absolutely wild and done that many things, but there is just too much overwhelming proof."
- LeSilverKitsune
Christmas Day 1914
"Christmas day 1914. The truce on the WW1 battlefields."
"It shows the humanity inside everyone, but they were able to wake up the next day and go straight back to war, kill the men that they’d spent a sincere day with."
- PotterWhoLock01
Honoring Everyone's Dead
"I can't remember where I saw/heard the story of Christmas Day 1914 (I think from the BBC), but I believe from one of the last-living Tommys, who said that whilst they were forced to start shooting at each other, the majority of shots intentionally missed, from both sides of no man's land."
"I believe it was also the same man who said, in reference to Remembrance Day, to also remember the Germans. That stuck with me. They were like our lads; sent out to fight a war for war's sake, forced to do unspeakable things to other men because some higher-up told them they had to."
- The_Gene_Genie
"Australia is a bit like this with regard to the Turks on ANZAC Day."
"One of the main ceremonies is reading the letter from Turkish commander and later founder of modern Turkey, Kemal Atatürk:"
"'Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives... you are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore, rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side here in this country of ours...'"
"'You, the mothers who sent their sons from far away countries wipe away your tears. Your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons, as well.'"
- Zebidee
The Medical Church
"In 1944, during the allied invasion of France, 2 American paramedics, Ken Moore and Robert Wright, 101st Airborne, saved around 80 soldiers of both sides, allied and axis. They set themselves up in a church, had only what was in their first aid kits and medic bags, and had a strict no-gun policy."
"The church was almost destroyed by a mortar shell, but it didn’t go off. It was almost destroyed again, due to friendly fire. Ken Moore would risk his life by venturing out of the church and finding injured soldiers, and both medics stayed behind at the church, even though the rest of their forces had to retreat. Wright took on the responsibility of looking after the soldiers."
"The church still stands in Angoville-au-Plain, France, the blood-stained pews are still there, and a broken tile from the mortar shell was never fixed, to honor the legacy of these men."
"This is very simplified, and probably inaccurate in a few ways, but it is still an incredible story."
- JustACanadianGuy07
A Lack of Perspective
"In 1903, The New York Times published an article about flying machines. They stated that it would take the combined efforts of all Mathematicians and mechanics 1-to-10 million years for powered flight to be achieved."
"Anyway, about nine weeks later, the Wright brothers achieved powered flight for the first time."
"They were also overly cynical after. In 1910 they said that flight would only ever be for billionaires, of course, we had commercial flights by around the 60s achievable for many."
- Joe_PM2804
The Year Without Summer
"1816, The Year Without Summer."
- theassassintherapist
"I'm a big classic horror fan, so I'm kinda glad this happened. Indirectly lead to Mary Shelley writing 'Frankenstein.'"
- UniversalHammer71
An Astronomical Life Cycle
"Halley's Comet appeared in the sky when Mark Twain was born in 1835."
"The comet moves in a seventy-five or seventy-six-year orbit, and, as it neared Earth once again, Twain said, 'I came in with Halley’s Comet and I expect to go out with it.'"
"Sure enough, he died on April 21, 1910, just as the comet made its next pass within sight of Earth."
- SuvenPan
While history may not be everyone's favorite subject, it'd be really hard to believe if someone didn't find at least one of these hard-to-believe occurrences interesting.
Anyone raising children can attest to the difficult challenges involved with being a parent.
And despite every intention of getting it right by doing the best job they can, not everyone is a perfect at being mom or dad.
Hopefully, people will be able to look back on their childhood and recognize that everything their folks did for them was all out of love.
If only that was the case.
Unfortunately, there are those who were never meant to be parents and have scarred their children with bad memories.
Curious to hear from strangers about their experiences growing up, Redditor Deviant55 asked:
"What is something that your parents did that you will never forgive them for?"
Emotional scars run deep for the Redditors here sharing their horrific stories.
Staged Christmas Robbery
"Close to Christmas when I was around 10/11 years old, I was home alone when there was a knock on the door. I answered and it was one of my mum's acquaintances."
"He told me that he'd spoken to my mum and needed to come in to pick some stuff up, so off he went upstairs and proceeded to steal all of the Christmas presents that were destined to be placed under the tree for my brother, sister and I on Christmas morning."
"I was oblivious to what the stuff that needed to be picked up was."
"Mum comes home 30 minutes later, asks if anybody came round whilst she was out."
"Proud as punch I say 'yup, Craig came round and picked the stuff up you told him about.'"
"YOU LET HIM IN THE HOUSE?!?"
'oh crap'
"Mum runs upstairs...."
'he's stolen all of your Christmas presents, you'll have nothing for Christmas now!'
"High drama, anger and profound guilt filled the entire house for the remainder of the night and a while after."
"About 6 months later I overheard a conversation I shouldn't have and figured out that there were no Christmas presents to start with, the whole thing was a setup."
"The household budget didn't stretch to maintaining existence, sating a rampaging heroin addiction AND Christmas presents."
"So yeah, my mum concocted a perfect plan to hide the lack of Christmas presents, remove herself from any perceived blame and let a 10 year old boy think that he had ruined Christmas."
"Those were the days!"
– greenear_1
Losing A Pet
"My mum sold my dog while I was at work. When I came home and was looking for them she told me that someone came to see him today and that they loved and took him. He went to a good home, but I never got to even say goodbye."
– Fenrizian
A Recurring Ailmemt
"My mom left my bro and I behind to go be a methhead while lying to people about having cancer. I've confronted her, told her to show proof of the cancer. Nothing. She gets cancer every five to ten years without going to the doctors."
– ShazBishop
Forced To Referee
"Probably that I ended up being the mediator between my mom and dad as they went through a divorce and one side was being frustrating to communicate with than the other."
"So I in part had to act as a go between information and nagging them to communicate for stuff like medical bills and insurance and school payment stuff from 7-15 or so."
– Hellsoul0
Warning: These involve stories of abuse.
Step-parent get a bad rap because of these unfit parental figures.
Fake Public Persona
"Similar situation. Mom remarried a verbally and physically abusive DBag. The real kicker is him being a teacher at the local High School and loved by the community. He would choke us and throw us around and tell us we would amount to nothing. Even his own children."
"My mom wouldn’t really do anything about it and we complained to my dad. It really messed me and my brother up mentally. Drove us both into deep depression and anxiety as we got into high school. I ended up being a lot bigger than my step dad and he eventually stopped acting that way because I started standing up to him. Now he is pretty chill but I’ll never forgive him for that, or my Mom. My Mom denies denies denies that it was her fault."
– yaboymilky
These examples only reflect a small number of traumatic experiences contributed by Redditors who were brave enough to share their stories.
There were several hundred more examples, showing that it was not uncommon for people to grow up in unloving households.
Hopefully, they have each found a way to find peace and recognize their courage as they realized they were not alone in their trauma based on this emotional thread.
Be it for clothes, household appliances, or food, sometimes you know you can be one hundred percent confident with certain brands or companies when shopping that you will be getting a quality product.
Unfortunately, this goes both ways.
Some companies have a reputation for exclusively selling and manufacturing low-quality products.
One would think that these companies might reflect on poor sales and bad customer feedback, and attempt to improve their brand with each passing year.
Unfortunately, even if they still get items on the shelf, reviews on Amazon and elsewhere still seem to remain at two stars or less.
"What companies shamelessly make sh*t products, year after year?"
False Advertising
"Holiday gift basket companies."
"I once felt obliged to buy one from a lady I worked with and it cost around fifty dollars."
"She had a brochure with various baskets and I chose one that was assorted candies and had a decorative wooden rocking horse."
"When it arrived it was just a bag of candy that I could have paid 35 cents for at a gas station."- Artai55a
30 rock gift basket GIFGiphySave A Few Cents For Inferior Quality
"It’s a throwback, but rose art for sure."
"They just decided their destiny was to sit on the shelf next to Crayola and get purchased by folks who are balling on a budget or cheap."
"No goals for product improvement at all."
"Just 'hey, wanna save three bucks?'"- Lucetti
Improvements Unlikely In This Digital Age
"Any printer manufacturer."- gbeegz
"HP printers."
"I have a $600 fancy laser HP printer we got six or seven years ago, and they have succeeded in updating the software to the point that nothing works anymore."
"I used to be able to print over Wi-Fi easily, scan over Wi-Fi, etc and now none of it works."
"I haven't changed any of my network hardware, things are hardwired."
"Also, I used to be able to use aftermarket ink cartridges and the printer has started giving me sh*t about it."
"I really like HP's computers, but their printers are a bunch of bullsh*t."
"Oh and their auto-update software won't go away even though I keep disabling/ removing it, and it installs software updates that breaks the current functions."- Bazirker
It's The Customer Service You Pay For...
"Oracle."
"Products intentionally sh*tty so they can make most of their money selling consulting just to make it, sort of, work."- s-starr
One Reason Sports Should Always Be Played Outside
"EA sports titles."- Stitches_Ito
Even Carrie Bradshaw Doesn't Like Shoe Shopping THAT Much...
"Doc Martens."
"My old pair from 20 years ago are still going strong, any new pair I get craps out after a year."- korar67
Doc Martens Shoes GIF by SORANGiphyScreaming For Ice Cream... And Not In A Good Way...
"Breyers and their 'Frozen Dairy Dessert' nonsense."
"Before 2006, Breyers ice cream was really good!"
"I loved their coffee ice cream!"
"And then they changed their formula and made the mess they have now to the point that they can't even legally call it ice cream anymore."
"Does anyone remember those old Breyers commercials where the kid tries to read the ingredients on an inferior product and struggles to pronounce things like 'mono & diglycerides' and then easily reads Breyers ingredients as 'milk, sugar, and cream?'"
"What a joke."
"Unilever loves to buy brands people trust for quality products and use that trusted brand name to get people to buy lower quality for higher prices."
"It seriously has the same consistency as Cool Whip now."
"And Unilever has the audacity to say that this is what customers asked for!"- akittyafterus
Who Exactly Is His Audience?
"If lockpickinglawyer is anything to go on its lock-companies."- knatten555
Literally Selling Sh*t...
"Home Depot has been selling manure since its founding in 1978."
"In fact, a quick search of the website found they proudly sell over 178 manure products."- atomicscateboard
The Original "Catfishers"...
"Mad Catz got away with murder for years."- Einar_47
Apple Is Listening...
"Samsung appliances."
"F*CK YOUR FIRMWARE UPDATE ON THE FRIDGE!"
"Also those plastic trays keep breaking and are sh*t quality."
"My 1987 Maytag is still cranking the coldest brews on earth and hasn't been serviced ever in its life and sits in a dark room in my basement since he was demoted from the kitchen for being out of fashion by my wife."- zendor666
Customers Weren't Looking For An Authentic "Frontier" Experience...
"Frontier Airlines."
"Sh*t experience, customer service, quality, reliability, comfort, convenience and fees."- Micklikesmonkeys
There are those who always like to give second chances whenever possible.
When it comes to spending a little more money for a more reliable product, however, customers should rightfully be one and done.