Island of Misfit Toys: Days 4 & 5: Celebrity encounters of the second kind

Posted on August 1st, 2009 – 5:22 PM
By Neal Justin

I don’t tend to set starstruck when I’m on the job. After all, I’m only running into celebs because I have a notebook to fill and they have a show to plug. But when you run across a familiar face accidentally, it’s still a treat. That’s what happened twice the other day while I was visiting sets. After a stop at the very impressive set for CBS’s upcoming medical show, “Three Rivers” (the hospital looks like a spa), I spotted Dr. Phil tooling around in a golf cart (Hey, doc, next time walk. It’s good for the heart). At least he didn’t run me over, like Steven Spielberg nearly did a few years ago when I was strolling through Universal Studios. Later at Fox, cruising slowly by on a motorcycle was a sullen Hugh Laurie. Hey, Hugh! Hugh!! Hugh?? No response. Maybe he was in character.

A visit to the resilient “Dollhouse” set was nice, but I don’t get the appeal of that show - or why Fox renewed it. Creator Joss Whedon seemed to be equally puzzled. “Welcome to the biggest surprise of my career - season 2,” he said. At least star Eliza Dushku didn’t bum a cigarette off me, something she’s done almost every other time I’ve seen her. By my calculation, I’ve “lent” her six smokes over the past five years.

We also stopped by the set of “NCIS: LA,” a guaranteed hit if only because of the first four letters of the title. I challenged Hartford Courant critic Roger Catlin to ask star LL Cool J if he would call this role a comeback. “Don’t call it a comeback.” Get it? Mr. J did and was a good sport about it. When Roger said he didn’t really have to answer the question, the rapper replied: “So I shouldn’t have to go into the whole, ‘Momma said knock you out’ with my shirt ripping off and sweating profusely on the crowd?”

As for panels,  it was hard to beat the cast from “Bored to Death” for laughs as Ted Danson, Jason Schwartzman and Zach Galifianakis traded hilarious one-liners. If only the show was as funny. I’m a fan of “Hung” but the panel turned into a double-entendre contest that, at times, got ugly. The show is about a well-endowed guy. I’ll let your imagination flow.

Hey, somebody tell Larry David not to chew gum when he’s on stage. It’s rude. I’d like to think the fictional LD on “Curb Your Enthusiasm” would agree.

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