Speaking about talking to celebrities... I got some great advice once... that worked unbelievably well in practise.
When I was much younger, I was playing in an international cricket tournament for an invitational team. The tournament included an Australian representive team and the Aussie second team (called Australia A). Anyway... Australia A ended up winning the tournament... but I had the game of my life against them in the semi-finals and we nearly tied them on the final ball (pitch) of the match (oh how I have relived that life moment...
). Anyway... both Aussie teams kinda adopted me socially in the evenings (being an Aussie... and playing well in that game against them) which was unbelievably great... I got to experience clubbing with them, as one of the Australian team... even if I wasn't technically one of the team members.
I remember going to the restroom early on in the first evening out with them... and lamenting to this middle-aged local guy in there who was connected somehow to the tournament... that I found it real difficult to talk with the [celebrity cricketer] guys as the only thing I had in common with them was cricket and their well-known exploits. Anyway... he says... "The secret is not to talk about cricket... or whatever makes them famous... because that's what every punter talks to them about... and they:
1. Don't want to talk about work with someone outside their colleague circle... and:
2. Pigeon-hole you straight away as one of the thousand other fans that want a piece of them.
So I went back to the bar... and the difference was incredible. I asked them about their families, music, homes, anything but cricket... and these guys were talking and talking and then amazingly... bringing up cricket stories themselves and asking about my life etc. etc.
The lesson I learned... that has proven to work countless other times since... is that when you come into contact with a famous person... never talk about what makes them famous... and they won't put up the barriers... and will be very happy... or more likely to talk usually.
