There have been threads about this before, and as a lifetime native New Yorker I've seen more than my share of celebs, but this is a good one...

My GF and I had dinner tonite at one of the top restaurants in New York, ATELIER, located in the Ritz Carlton Hotel on Central Park South.

Just outside the restaurant, and off the hotel lobby is a little piano bar. When we're done eating, I go out for a smoke, and whoi's sitting there goofing around on the piano? Billy Joel!

I wasn't really sure it was him, so when I get back to our table after my cigarette, I tell my GF, half kiddingly, that Billy Joel is outside playing the piano, so she says "yeah, right"

We linger for another 10-15 minutes, pay the check, and leave. When we get outside, there's Billy Joel, still playing. Only now the room is packed.

He does another 45 minutes, and plays a load of Beatles songs along with a few bars of most of his big hits.

For free. Amazing. Only in NYC.

That's great, PL! Billy is one of my favorites, of course... must've been great!

Geez, what a great story, plawrence! But, considering what you probably paid for dinner, the hotel should have thrown in Pavarotti to sing along with The Piano Man.

Don't ask But very good.

That is cool!

In NYC I saw Roger Moore and all he did was sneer at me for stopping the elevator.

That's so cool P. Lawrence. I love Billy Joel!! I'm sure you won't forget that anytime soon.

Great story!!!


TIS

You must be makin' book on the BB League (and doin' well at it!)

Great story, plawrence. You're right, though. ONLY in New York.

No, the Nets. Covered 13 of their last 16

I believe Paul McCartney had done something similar recently in a British club; he just sat down at a piano with Heather Mills and started playing his tunes...

Anyways, that's awesome man! Congrats on a celeb sighting plawrence!

Diana Ross has the rep of being Bitchy/bossy. In '82 or '83 I was on the Harlem side of Central Park and two of my friends and I saw Diana. My female friend called out "MISS ROSS!" She turned around with a big smile.

I'd seen and met many "stars" in NY (not a good one like PLaw) and I never choked. But Diana Ross's big smile had star quality. She was checking out locations for her free concert, and I managed to make her laugh (reference to the "Projects" where she grew up).

She even pulled down her limo window and waved. Very Nice. She was the complete antithesis of "bitch".

pl - a truly New York State of Mind. I've seen a dozen or so celebs on the street; Alan King, Ron Silver, Don Adams, Howard Cosell, off the top of my head. But a truly impressive sight was seeing Pres. Bush - twice - ride by - in front of my building on Broad St. Once in October, after 9/11 and last May. Both times to address the NY Stock Exchange. The incredible thing about it is the amount of security. At least 50 motorcycle police, dozens of black vans, police cars, two black, stretch limo (which one is he in?) and cops lining the route. The Pres. lands at the heliport near the foot of Broad St and drives the three blocks up Broad St. The other cool thing about it was the Air Force One helicopters - 3 of them, plus 2 military copters. Quite impressive.

Another celeb sighting that was unique: I was in London on business. We were in a small office building and one of the locals told us that the restaurant next door was owned by Michael Caine. When we left for the day, outside a limo pulls up and out steps Mike himself. Cool Coincidence.

I love to hear about celebrity sightings in NYC.

Here are a couple of mine:

Ron Silver (gosh, he does seem to get around!)
Bernadette Peters
Kenny Rogers
James Taylor
Susan Sarandon & Tim Robbins

Barbra Streisand (though technically, she doesn't count as a 'sighting' because my friend & I went to her building to seek her out - Barbra was not too thrilled about this)

But my favorite ever was a local newscaster named John Johnson. He'd been on CBS for many years & several months earlier I'd heard that he left his job to care for his elderly father, ailing with Alzheimer's. I found this quite admirable (since my mother had done virtually the same for our grandmother) and vowed to myself if I ever happened to see Mr. Johnson on a NYC street I would go right over & shake his hand. Well one day on the way to visit my friend on the Upper West Side - guess who was waiting to cross at a light!! Gotta tell you, I almost chickened out, but thought that if I didn't do this I would NEVER forgive myself. So I walked over and shook his hand and told him why. He was very appreciative and friendly, then each of us went out own way.

Can't tell you how thrilled I get whenever I that story!!

Best,
AppleOnYa

Mr. Johnson now lives next door to my mother-in-law. He made her life hell this winter. They live on a private road and all the residents share the cost of a private plow to clean up the snow. Whenever the plow was late or didn't clean the road to his satisfaction, he'd call my mother-in-law to piss and moan.

Although my celebrity sightings are few and far between, I have shaken hands at several events with Governor Pataki and Sen. Clinton. Also, I did stay at the same hotel as Mickey Dolenz and Davey Jones last summer. Since I grew up having a huge crush on various Monkees (although Davey was always #1), I was in a swoon the entire time. I felt like Marcia Brady

I met the late British Bulldog, Davey Boy Smith, at Busch Gardens, Florida in about 1992. That is about the most famous, I would imagine. Does it count?

This isn't a NY sighting, but years ago when they were still married Jack Cassidy and Shirley Jones did a cabaret act at an arena in Maryland. They were not very popular, to say the least. Maybe 1000 people there tops. Their show isn't catered towards kids but I really liked them, so my 2 sisters took me. Mind you Jack Cassidy's been dead many years, I couldn't have been more then 10. They were into their act when as a stint Shirley did something to Jack that I just cracked up laughing, nearly rolling on the floors. Well, as maybe only 1 of 2 kids in the whole show this was something that caught their attention. After the show most people went to the dressing rooms to try to get a glimpse of the couple. Me and my 2 sisters are walking across the parking lot, when this stretch limo pulls up beside us, rolls down the window and it's Shirley and Jack. Jack said thanks for being a fan and they were tickled pink at my "outburst". Then autographed our programs. I was giddy all the way home. I lived Jack since the Phantom of the Opera. I cried like a baby when he died.

Jack Cassidy's was one of those tragic lives & deaths that is the stuff of which showbiz legends are made.

Very talented but never quite achieving true star status, being eclipsed by both his wife AND his son David, and his ego not being able to deal with it (especially with David)...literally losing his mind & having a nervous breakdown during that tour Beth E referred to, and then dying all alone that way in that terrible apartment fire.

I've always felt sorry for Jack Cassidy.

Apple

not in NY but here in Cincinnati in a place called Willie's Sports Bar, Dick Vitalle (not sure on spelling)was there. i think he is a college basketball announcer guy (i'm not a big sports fan) yeah but they were giving out little masks of him. it was pretty cool.

I've saw Liz taylor in the early 1990's. She is incredible beautiful. She looked as though she was in her mid 30's. She is very short. But when she got up from her seat, she walked every bit of a 65 plus year old woman

Yeah, and Busta Rhymes out of the goodness in his heart gave a free performance at a bar he was at and got mauled by a groupie, and since he burhsed the groupie off he can get up to 9 months in jail. Celebrities cant even perform without getting sued.