Oscar Predictions

Anyone who knows me well knows that for me, the biggest night in television isn't the Superbowl.  Matter of fact, I pretty much hate the Super Bowl.  No, for me, it's Academy Awards, which of course are lovingly called "The Oscars" by most folks.  This year I've been living near Hollywood, and the buzz around this town come awards season is even more magnificent than it was back home or at college on the East Coast.  I love trying to predict the Academy Awards as well, so now with roughly 12 hours to go before the statues are handed out, I'm gonna post my final thoughts and predictions on most all of the categories.  I'm not even sure if you'll read this before the Awards actually do happen, but here goes: 

Best Picture

What the critics are saying: Slumdog Millionaire

What I'm saying: Slumdog Millionaire

I've only seen this film in theaters 7 times, so I may be biased, haha, but I'll be darned if there's a better film out there (that also got nominated for Best Picture).  If it had to go up against The Dark Knight or even Wall-E there might be some competition, but I don't see Benjamin Button, The Reader, Milk, or Frost/Nixon putting up much of a fight here.  Expect the "little film that could" to finally get it's due, I'm calling Slumdog by a landslide.  In the event that I'm wrong... Hmm... my second favorite of this bunch is actually Frost/Nixon, but I think if there's a film that could upset Slumdog, it would be Milk due to the political nature of the film and the awards.  And by the way, if that happens, I will be severely upset for some time, because I HATED Milk. 

Best Director

What the critics are saying: Danny Boyle

What I'm saying: Danny Boyle

By winning the DGA he's a safe lock in my opinion based on what little I know of the way the votes are cast.  Plus, he's got the best film of the year (Slumdog Millionaire), and while there are exceptions to every rule, more times than not the film that goes all the way goes hand-in-hand with best director too.  Kinda wish poor Christopher Nolan had been given a chance here... Dark Knight was awesome, and had much better directing than Milk and The Reader for sure...  

Best Actor

What the critics are saying: split between Sean Penn and Mickey Rourke

What I'm saying: Frank Langella

This is easily one of the closest calls in this category that we've ever seen... Call me crazy, but I have a hunch that Frank will get his due for his portrayal of a very unpopular president in Frost/Nixon.  I know the tables are stacked against me as Mickey won the Golden Globe for The Wrestler and Sean won the SAG award for Milk, but everyone thought I was crazy last year as well when I said I thought Marion Cotillard would win Best Actress too.  We'll see... I'm personally unmoved by Sean's performance, but I could easily see any of the three (Frank, Mickey, Sean) taking this one home.  All of this is a real shame for Richard Jenkins, who gave a great performance in The Visitor.  Oh well, it's nice to be nominated, right?

Best Actress

What the critics are saying: Kate Winslet

What I'm saying: Meryl Streep

I'll probably be wrong on this one, but quite simply put, I haven't seen The Reader (and I won't either, I've not heard good things from the majority of my friends whose opinions I trust).  Whenever Meryl is nominated, it's a safe bet to vote for her, and of the performances I've seen, she's the strongest for her role in Doubt.  I did like Changeling a lot, but I'm afraid this won't be Angelina's year. 

Best Supporting Actor

What the critics are saying: Heath Ledger

What I'm saying: Heath Ledger

Do I even need to explain this one?  He's the closest thing to a sure bet you're ever going to get at the Academy Awards for his portrayal of the Joker in The Dark Knight.  If he doesn't win, the world may very well be ending... 

Best Supporting Actress

What the critics are saying: Penelope Cruz

What I'm saying: Viola Davis

A lot has been said about how hard this category is to predict.  That being said, I'm not going to say Penelope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona and instead say that I thought Viola Davis gave the best one scene performance of any move this year in Doubt.  Will it be enough to get her the Oscar?  We'll see... she may always split votes with co-star Amy Adams and there's always the notorious Marisa Tomei upset for The Wrestler (in my book though, just prancing around in the nude as she does for 90% of her role doesn't equal acting, so she doesn't even deserve the nomination)

Screenplay - Original

What the critics are saying: Milk

What I'm saying: Wall-E

Screenplay - Adapted

What the critics are saying: Slumdog Millionaire

What I'm saying: Slumdog Millionaire

Best Animated Feature

What the critics are saying: Wall-E

What I'm saying: Wall-E

Best Foreign Language Film

What the critics are saying: Waltz With Bashir

What I'm saying: My heart still says Israel's Waltz With Bashir is probably gonna walk away with this one, but be on the lookout for a little film called Departures from Japan... I'm just saying, it could happen... Also, France has The Class to potentially spoil things

Best Documentary

What the critics are saying: Man on Wire

What I'm saying: Man on Wire

Best Art Direction

What the critics are saying: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

What I'm saying: The Dark Knight

Best Cinematography

What the critics are saying: Slumdog Millionaire

What I'm saying: Slumdog Millionaire

Best Costume Design

What the critics are saying: The Duchess

What I'm saying: The Duchess

Best Film Editing

What the critics are saying: Slumdog Millionaire

What I'm saying: Slumdog Millionaire

Best Make-Up

What the critics are saying: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

What I'm saying: Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (because I really want to one day tell someone they should watch "the Oscar winning film Hellboy 2: The Golden Army." Haha)

Best Original Score

What the critics are saying: Slumdog Millionaire

What I'm saying: Slumdog Millionaire

Best Original Song

What the critics are saying: "Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire

What I'm saying: "Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire

Best Sound Mixing

What the critics are saying: The Dark Knight

What I'm saying: Slumdog Millionaire

Best Sound Editing

What the critics are saying: Wall-E

What I'm saying: Wall-E

Best Visual Effects

What the critics are saying: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

What I'm saying: Iron Man or The Dark Knight

Best Documentary Short Subject

What the critics are saying: Smile Pinki

What I'm saying: I haven't seen any of these, so I have no clue

Best Live Action Short Subject

What the critics are saying: New Boy

What I'm saying: The Pig or Auf Der Strecke (On The Line)

Best Animated Short Subject

What the critics are saying: Presto

What I'm saying: Man, these were all excellent... I kinda lean towards La Maison en Petits Cubes, but also could easily see Lavatory - Lovestory and This Way Up taking it home. 

A Southern Boy's Adventures in LA: Ben vs. The Walt Disney Concert Hall

So I finally got the chance last week to visit the Walt Disney Concert Hall.  For the uninformed, it's the home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and also one of the most uniquely designed buildings in LA.  Envisioned by renowned architect Frank Gehry, the WDCH has been used in countless films and commercials (among them: Get Smart, Iron Man, Fracture, and the upcoming Robert Downey Jr./Jamie Foxx film The Soloist) and is a prominent land-mark here in Los Angeles.  It's no secret that I'm in no way a student of classical music, but I do appreciate it, and along with ballet, opera, art museums, and other such "high-brow" artistic endeavors, I seek to learn more about it, and so for the longest time since moving here I've wanted to attend a concert inside the Hall.  I only live a mile from this magnificent building, and after months of deliberation, I finally found myself presented with a free ticket to see a concert there.  This wasn't just any concert either.  Oh no.  This was Jazz vocalist Patti Austin singing the Gershwin songbook, and she would be flanked by a big jazz band, including a small string section and also the essential jazz quartet set of piano, upright bass, and percussion.  All in all, it was everything I could ask for.  

The interior of the WDCH is every bit as elaborate and imaginative as the exterior, and the main hall itself is a pleasing array of wood carved seating areas and a massive pipe organ that practically defies geometry the way it protrudes from the wall.  The acoustics are amazing, the seats are relatively comfortable (a little more leg room would have been nice) and all in all, it's an experience that every person who lives in LA or comes to visit for any amount of time should have at least once.  The concert was awesome, albeit Patti couldn't resist making some obligatory political comments about how her new black president was gonna protect her from racist white folks like me and how the whole nation is going to hell thanks to Bush and his economy.  Stick to the Gershwin Patti, that's what we're paying you for and what we came to see.  I don't give two cents about you (or any other celebrities) political views.  The best part of the evening (in my opinion) was when Patti was still back stage and the band opened with new version of the ever popular "Rhapsody in Blue".  Magnificent.  Music truly transcends all barriers... 

Anyway, yeah, I'm gonna put a few pics with this post so you can see the beautiful concert hall as I saw it, and hopefully on your next visit here I can take you to hear the LA Philharmonic.  Enjoy!    

A Southern Boy's Adventures in LA: Ben vs. The $1000 Tow Truck

It's so cool to see how God works.  This past week I got to experience what grace looks like in a very tangible, practical way.  Living in LA you simply have to own an automobile.  I guess you could use public transportation if you really wanted to, but this place is so spread out it's pretty much a given that you have to have a vehicle to hold down any kind of job here.  As many of you know, I brought my old 1995 Nissan Maxima out here with me.  Handed down to me by my father, this vehicle has a little over 181,000 miles on it and has been taken very good care of all things considered.  As it so turns out, this past week was a trying one for the old Maxima.  

I had just checked the mail and got a check for a little over $500 for my last job.  Combined with the $200+ dollars I currently had stashed away, this would more than cover my rent for the month and also give me a little something to live off of for food and gas.  Needless to say, I was excited.  February has been rough, work has been nonexistent and the whole industry is slowing down like an overweight jogger who bit off more than he could chew by entering that marathon race.  Anyway, I was in route to the Wells Fargo bank in Chinatown, which is my favorite branch for two reasons: It's the closest one to where I live, and the tellers there are so friendly... I'm actually pretty sure they are all in love with me because every time I go there they all clamor for my attention to go to their window, and then when I get there they all blush and say things in hushed and hurried Chinese.  Back to the car: I was driving along, when I suddenly detected a shuddering sensation coursing through the frame of the vehicle.  I knew this wasn't good, and could tell I was in trouble when I stepped on the gas and nothing happened.  I started to involuntarily grind to a halt in the middle of the road, so I quickly turned off the iPod and AC to divert all remaining power from the battery to the engine to simply keep me running.  

I swerved into a CVS parking lot and made it into a parking spot before my car just died out right there.  I put it in park, pull out the key, count to ten, then try to crank it up again.  Nothing. Uh oh.  This isn't good.  I'm supposed to meet a friend for a movie later that evening, and this isn't a good situation to be in... I find a guy who's kind enough to jump me off with some jumper cables.  From there I'm off to the nearest mechanic, right?  Wrong.  I try to keep on rolling towards the library, where I have to return some materials before it's too late.  I end up in the center lane of a 5 lane road, right at the intersection of Broadway and Caesar E. Chavez Blvd.  (formerly Sunset Blvd.) trying to make a left turn on a green arrow.  Right there my car decides to die again.  Great.  It's rush hour, I'm in the middle of a huge intersection and traffic is surrounding me on all sides.  I'd like to especially thank the drivers at this point who speed by honking their horns, flipping my off, and cursing at me.  Gee, thanks so much fellas.  I sure do appreciate it, seeing as how I planned to do this you know... idiots.  Ah well, gotta love LA.    

I call my father and explain the situation, I'm upset because it's beginning to dawn on me that this will cost money to fix, and that's money I was about to deposit at the bank to pay my rent with.  I can't jump the car off again, (I try with the help of another kind soul who pulls up next to me), whatever the case is, the battery isn't holding the charge at all.  I can't push my car out of the intersection (I mean, I know I'm freakishly strong and all, but seriously, I'm one man and this is rush hour traffic on all sides here...) I'm going to have to get a tow truck either way, so I call a few different places.  I found out that the LAPD is apparently running a racket with the tow truck companies, because the first guy I talk to wants $1000 to put my car on the back of his flat-bed truck to take me about a mile to the mechanic.  Yes, there are three zeros after that one, and yes, I told him to forget about it and hung up on the fool.  I wasn't born yesterday you know... 

I end up finding a guy who will do it for $40.  Looks like that's the best deal I'm gonna get, so I hesitantly agree and he tows me to Radi's Mechanic Service right off of where I live on Sunset Blvd.  A few hours later I've walked home, leaving my precious vehicle in the clutches of a mechanic who I don't know for them to fix it.  The next morning I get a phone call and they inform me that this will cost about $400 to fix.  On one hand, I have the money.  On the other, that was my rent money.  This is one of those moments where you really want to wake up from a dream (more like a nightmare) but are troubled to find you are awake and this is reality.  I sigh and tell them to go ahead, I mean, after all, I need that car to live and work out here.  

Later that afternoon I pray.  I pray hard.  I need money to pay for this AND get me through the month, not one or the other.  I hop on everyone's favorite social networking website (facebook!) and chat with a few friends.  Within about 20 minutes I'm humbled to learn that God has provided someone who want to pay for my mechanic bill.  Wow.  You really can't begin to know how I feel.  I mean, here I am, simply telling someone what I've been through when they ask me "what's up" and within a few minutes, they've offered to foot the bill for my frustrations.  I never even asked them to or expected them to.  Talk about a clear picture of grace.  They didn't want me to pay them back - ever - they wanted to give me the money as a gift and cover all my expenses for me.  Wow.  God sure is awesome in the way He answers prayer.  This one He happened to answer quickly, and I'm forever grateful for His providence and provision to meet my needs.  

And to my secret benefactor, whose name remains a secret per their request, I hope the Lord continues to use you to bless others.  Thank you so much for letting Him use you to bless me.  I now have the car back and money in the bank just like the whole incident never happened.  Talk about the goodness of the Lord... I feel that this is a little picture of what the gospel is like.  We're given something we don't deserve from someone who certainly doesn't have to give it to us, and yet He does.  We can't pay Him back, otherwise it ceases to be a gift.  The struggle is to live freely in that grace, and not become a slave to the feeling of indebtedness and try to work our way to a point of paying back our benefactor.  Once again, when that happens, it ceases to be a gift.  We just have to realize that we're not in control of the giving, but must be obedient and grateful with a heart of praise in the receiving of such a gift.  It's beautiful really.  God used this individual to express His love and provision to me in a small way, in order to help me better grasp the big picture of just how great of a debt He has paid for us.  Thanks be to God for his faithfulness...

To My Valentine...

I struggled whether to post this yesterday or not, but decided to go ahead and put this up here anyway.  Let my friends judge me if they want.  I don't care.  I'm not sure who you are, or even if you are.  There are times when I feel that I'm called to a life of singleness, that perhaps the marriage train is just gonna pass me by, they I'll spend my days consumed with other things and never know the fellowship of an earthly helper suited for me.  Part of me actually wants this, since by all accounts it may make certain stages and decisions in life a little easier if I didn't have you and your well-being to worry about.  Truth is I feel more often that the opposite is true; that you do exist, and that's when things get freaky.  I start asking myself if I've even met you yet, what you look like, and how our lives are going to intersect according to God's timing and purposes.  

I'm not the kind of guy who gushes all of his insides out concerning relationships.  I have my views that I express to those who are interested, sure, but I have a deeper level too, a reservoir of feelings and expressions of myself reserved just for you.  One day I'll allow you inside that reservoir, but as I said, I'm not about to talk about some of that stuff here where the world can read it.  That's special and only reserved for you.  

I hope I can be the man I ought to be to win your heart.  In fact, please don't settle for less.  I know it won't be easy, but there are very few times in life that I have found that the right thing to do and the easy thing to do are the same thing.  I'm scared to let you see my faults and weaknesses, even though I'm fully aware that I have them just like everyone else does.  I like to appear like I have all the answers and everything together, so please bare with my stubbornness.  I've still got a lot of growing pains to go through in the area of sacrificial love, to learn to care about someone or something more than myself.  I humbly pray that I can be the man I know I'm called to be Biblically, to be there to serve, to protect, to provide, and to lead you in our relationship.  

I pray for you all the time.  Like I said, I'm not sure if you're someone I already know that I'll eventually discover I've fallen in love with or perhaps you're on the other side of the planet and we've not even met yet.  Regardless, I pray for your purity.  I want you to be attractive to me, and not because of your clothing or body or anything else that draws attention to yourself, but by your reputation and good works as a Godly woman.  I realize that this is a tall order, but I'm swinging for the fences here.  If you're that kind of woman, it will be a long hard road for me to win your heart, I realize that.  But that's the kind of woman that's worth pursuing.  One that doesn't attract the attention she deserves but instead she deflects it back to the source that gave it to her in the first place: the Lord.

As I said, I know I have miles to go before I'm qualified to handle your heart.  In many ways I think I'm wise enough to know that at this point in my life, I'd be a terrible person to handle anyone's heart.  Perhaps that's why I've stayed single my whole life up to now.  Perhaps I'm still punishing myself for the mistakes of my past.  Whatever the case, I know it's only by God's grace that every morning I'm able to wake up and claim that which I know to be true.  I'm not even sure if any of this makes any sense or why you're still reading it.  I guess I'm struggling to put into words what I imagine it will take a lifetime to express to you, both by words and actions.  I fully acknowledge that we're going to have our ups and downs.  I only pray for God to grant me the wisdom and understanding to properly handle those tough situations when they arise, and also to acknowledge the giver of life in those times when the going is good and we are blessed with plenty.  

I truly feel like every day since my salvation has been a gift, and God willing, it will be a gift that I can one day share with you.  For what it's worth, I can promise you that so long as God gives me the strength to do so, I will fight for you and for your love.  

And yet, believe me when I claim that some of the hardest words I'll ever say are "I love you" since by all accounts I can never fully grapple and understand the source of such love, as much as I long to do so.  

I believe in the sovereignty of God, and so until I get more comfortable sharing these kinds of thoughts, I'll just have to keep trusting that He's got all the strings in his hands, and He's weaving a masterful tapestry with our lives.  Will our threads cross soon?  Have they already begun to be woven together?  Are they never destined to intersect?  These are questions for which I do not yet have the answers.  But I know the one who does, and so I will keep my eyes and heart fixed upon Him, in so much as he enables me to do so.  I pray you will too.  May He alone bring us together according to His plans and purposes, for the glory of His name and renown to the ends of the earth... 

With my whole heart, found only in Christ,

Ben

A Southern Boy's Adventures in LA: Ben vs. Elevator Celebrity Sightings

Man, what day is it today?  Valentine's Day?  It's been waaaaay too long since I updated this blog.  I have no idea how many of you have been reading this, but if you're reading it now, thanks for sticking with me through the long dry spells there.  I've been meaning to write more often, but for one reason or another haven't got around to it until now.  So yeah, what's happened over the past month?  Well... many of my friends constantly write and ask me if I've bumped into some celebrities around LA.  I'm here today to tell you that I do, and it's always at the weirdest places.  Like in elevators for example.  Allow me to elaborate with a few examples: 

A few weeks ago I was on a commercial shoot promoting the new Passport ID cards they (the Customs and Border Patrol people) are going to be issuing soon.  It was a pretty cool shoot, we were up at a lodge in Calabasas (north of Malibu, a good way out of the way actually... haha) and we were making the place look like Canada, because that's what the script called for.  So the art department guys are laying down all the fake snow and frosting up the windows.  The actors were wearing heavy winter clothing (which is awesome in the warm temperatures of sunny California... more than once one of them reminded us how much they loved the layers they were wearing by using the most descriptive and colorful language possible.  Gotta love these low-budget commercial actors.  So civil, so polite all the time... )  Anyway, yours truly got the call to return a bunch of this clothing at the end of the shoot, and so I loaded up my Nissan Maxima (14 years running and still going strong!) and headed off to Warner Brothers to drop off the winter wardrobe.  Seriously, my backseat was so full of overcoats and parkas that I'm pretty sure if you trying to crawl back there underneath it all you might end up in Narnia.  

I pull up to the main gate and have to go through crazy security measures to get admitted (because you know, everyone wants to break into Warner Brothers Studios)  and I drive onto the lot.  Actually kinda a cool experience, not gonna lie, kinda geeked out a little bit and took a wrong turn on purpose so I'd drove around and see more of the place.  Anyway, I find the costume and wardrobe department and pull into the parking garage.  I take the elevator down to ground level and go all the way down to 24 hour pick-up to inform them that I have a bunch of returns.  This place is like the biggest warehouse of clothing you could ever imagine.  Girls, seriously, stop reading, close your eyes and imagine as many clothes as you possibly can... OK, now open your eyes and be very very jealous, because that's where I was.  I got lost in the stacks of hangers and clothes everywhere... I felt my manhood slipping away with every step I took taking me deeper and deeper into this man-made (actually it had to be woman-made) hell.   

Well I get down there and learn that I'm in the wrong location, so I have to find my way out of this ridiculous labyrinth of clothing and back to the ground level.  From there I hop on an elevator to go back up and move my car around to where they told me to bring the returns, and I'm suddenly aware of a very large presence next to me on the elevator.  I look over and have one of those "You've got to be kidding me" kinda moments.  Standing next to me is Ken Davitian.  If you're not familiar with the name, you're probably familiar with the roles: the guy is a character actor, and if you've seen Borat you'll instantly know that when I say he's the big fat guy named Azamat Bagatov who wrestles naked with Sacha Baron Cohen, you can't mistake this guy for anyone else.  He's also in Get Smart as the dim-witted accomplice Shtarker who works for Terence Stamp's KAOS agent Siegfried.  Needless to say, the guy is instantly recognizable, and I'm on an elevator with him.  We make fleeting eye contact and ride in silence.  When the doors open for the 3rd floor of the parking deck, he steps halfway out, looks around, then steps back in and shrugs.  "I thought I was parked here" he says.  I laugh and nervously reply "Yeah, I guess it's just one of those days huh?" He smiles.  We strike up conversation as he tries to find his car, stopping at the next two floors and repeating his little exercise of poking his head out and not finding his vehicle.  I never ask him for a photo or autograph, don't even tell him I know who he is, and he's a really normal, down to earth kinda guy in the end.  Very cool.  That was moment number 1 with a celebrity on an elevator, and it was just kinda awkward in retrospect because all I could think while talking to him is "Man, I've seen you naked on a giant screen before, and it's not pretty at all!"  (And if you've never seen Borat, then steer clear unless you are prepared to see him naked.)

I leave Warner Brothers and go to the bank, and end up standing in line behind JJ Abrams, the guy who created Lost, Alias, and Fringe and the director of Mission Impossible 3 and this summer's upcoming Star Trek.  I didn't know it was him for sure until he walked out and the teller said "Have a great day Mr. Abrams"  Ahhh!! Curses!  If I had known earlier, I would have totally tapped him on the shoulder and found out what the smoke monster really was, (which for those of you who don't watch Lost, you wouldn't believe me if I tried to explain it).  Anyway, that story doesn't take place in an elevator, but hey why not include it here?  And that's the simplest and shortest one, because it really doesn't involve any interaction with the "celebrity" in question anyway... 

My final celebrity sighting on an elevator goes as follows: This time I'm in Target, everyone's favorite place to go and get everything.  I'm picking up some bottled water, toilet paper, and soap (only the essentials folks!).  I go to check out and stand in line behind a very slender, tiny girl.  She has her back to me, and a knit cap pulled down over her head, but I can clearly see some curls of red hair coming out from beneath it.  I get a quick glimpse at the side of her face and can make out the profile of a small little cute nose and large engaging doe-eyes.  Her phone starts to ring in her purse, she answers it and starts to talk with a voice that has a little Avril Lavigne accented-edge to it.  Before long, my mind is racing, I know I've seen this face and heard this voice somewhere.  Then it hits me, I know exactly who she is.  I check out and walk away, and yet - what are the odds? - end up on the same elevator as her (if I said I didn't orchestrate that I would be guilty of lying) as we take our purchases down to the parking garage beneath the Target.  

It's a very slow elevator, and so I hesitantly make eye contact and she gives me a little smile, those beautiful light brown eyes flashing in my direction.  I open my mouth and start to talk before I can think of what exactly to say, but it comes out sounding something like: "Hey, you're that girl from those movies... We Are Marshall and Shooter... Are you the same girl?  Your name is Kate Mara, right?"  She smiles and actually lets out a little laugh, in hindsight she couldn't have been more friendly or polite, considering she's alone on an elevator with a strange guy like me.  She nods and says "Yes, that's me." I kinda stumble through saying something like "Oh well, I don't wanna bother you, but I think you're a good actress and I look forward to seeing more of your work in the future."  She smiles and says "Aww, thank you.  So nice to meet a fan." I'm not sure how many seconds passed before the doors opened, (It felt like a lot... her gaze was hypnotizing), but they did, and off we go to our respective vehicles to return home.  It was kinda neat, I realized that she's the same as anyone else, does her shopping at Target just like the rest of humanity, and is pretty down to earth.  I didn't ask either for their autograph or a picture, and I have a suspicion that they probably are nicer and just prefer talking to fans like me when they can as opposed to doing such fan-crazed activities like pictures and autographs.  Both of them really were polite, down to earth, seemingly normal people. 

I guess that's what it comes down to: both instances were almost identical.  Both actors were polite, friendly, even courteous.  I got to speak to both of them.  Both encounters happened on elevators in parking structures.  They're both normal people.  A friend I told these stories to later pointed out that the only difference is that I've seen one of them naked on-screen and it's not the one you would guess that most people would want to see naked either, but hey, I'm not gonna go there... better to smile and walk away than open my mouth and get into trouble here on the world wide web where everyone can read it, haha.  

All in all, just a typical sighting in a very un-typical town.  That's the kinda situations I find myself in out here in crazy Hollywood land.