How to Meet Celebrities in New York City

There are many different ways to meet celebrities, and it's not always as hard as it seems. If you visit NYC and you make a point of looking for a celebrity it is pretty much guaranteed. However, it does help to have some prior knowledge. If all you want to do is catch a glimpse of someone find out who is going to be on MTV and stand on the street with the crowds. Or around the corner from MTV on 44th Street is the Good Morning America studios where someone may be exiting the door. I worked around the corner and saw Tom Hanks and M. Night Shyamalan that way. Other actors I have walked by and only noticed because someone I was with recognized them.

Chances are if you are that interested in meeting celebrities you probably follow them in magazines or on tv. You may be an actor or singer and just aspiring to be like that person. In that case my suggestion would to be to try and find a job where you can get experience as well as meet some celebrities. I have been fortunate to have a couple internships at theatres where I was able to meet people who came into the theatre. One celebrity just happened to be filming a commercial in our theatre's building, and I deliberately did not want to seem nosy so I didn't peak in where they were filming as I walked straight to the bathroom, go in, and see the person applying makeup. I actually got to talk to that person. Sometimes you aren't so lucky.
My roomate wanted to meet a particular actor who happened to be starring in a Broadway play. She got tickets to the show and arrived that night only to find out the actress was not performing that night. Not to be defeated she got tickets for another night, and yet again the actress was not playing. Apparently the theatre hadn't officially announced it, but the actress had left the show. My friend really looked up to this person and got motivation from them so she wrote a letter and had the person at the stage door give it to the actress. People at stage doors are typically really nice.

Unless you are waiting for Julia Roberts to come out. I happened to be in Manhattan seeing a different show and knew the show Julia Roberts was in was getting out around the same time, wanting to make my little cousin's trip to see her first Broadway play memorable I suggested we try and see her. The crowd was insane and the hoards of people pushing was just obnoxious and disgusting. Yet there I was in the midst of it. Her bodyguards were not the nicest people, but for good reason. She came out, signed a few autographs, but never said a word. A few minutes later in the theatre next to her we saw David Schwimmer and Tim Daly come out, they were much friendlier, more personable, but their fans were also a lot less obnoxious. If you ever decide to see a Broadway play you can always check and see what famous people are in other ones, check how long they are and plan accordingly. It may be a little wait, but it's worth it sometimes to go home and brag to people about who you saw.

A roomate of mine works at a more pricey restaurant, Angus, and sees celebrities almost every day. She could give you the scoop on everyone's personality. Who probably cheats on their wives, who is really a nice person, who is really creepy, and all that. If you don't mind paying a price you can ask around and find out what restaurants different stars go to, or even what Starbucks some of them stop at every day. But in that case if you see a celebrity leave them alone and let them go about their life in peace.

If you find out a movie is being filmed near you leave those people in peace as well. It may be ok to walk near the set and try and get a glimpse of actors, or see how a movie is actually made, but it will be blocked off. I was walking by a movie being filmed once and one of the actors saw us watching and stopped to talk to us. I think he probably saw us high schoolers exclaiming over everything, but he was really nice and made that trip to the city worth penny.

Do I have tips for seeing one specific celebrity? Not really. I am not a stalker. Be careful how obsessive you are. At one show where I was waiting at the stage door a security guard yelled at someone to leave because he had been there the last five days in a row and was creeping a particular actress out. In my couple years in New York I've seen a number of famous people, some by accident, some because I planned it. Just keep your eyes and ears out because you never know who the next person who walks into your restaurant may be.