Evelyn Barge
A&E Editor
Saturday night, I had a dream that I met John Travolta while browsing the shelves of the public library in Santa Barbara.
To be honest, the whole dream experience was a lot more exciting than I thought it would be. Travolta, while undeniably a major superstar, is not on my list of celebrities I’d be star-struck over seeing.
I tend to be very selective about which celebs qualify for ranking on my list. Living in Malibu, I find this rule an absolute necessity. I simply won’t stand for people who go gaga over every famous person who crosses their path.
That being said, I will admit there are some celebrities even a stuck-up film snob like myself would be excited to see. And my list of celebrities worth getting googly-eyed over is constantly evolving. Despite the massive lack of good films at this time of the year, it is Oscar season, and that means my star-struck list is chock-full of celebrities worth mentioning, and that is exactly what I intend to do in this column.
Heading up my list is Don Cheadle, the single most gush-worthy star in Hollywood at this moment. The man is simply amazing. After seeing “Hotel Rwanda,” quite possibly the most powerful and emotional film of the year, there is no way you can avoid having admiration for Cheadle. As an actor, he has accomplished a lot — his roles in “Traffic,” “Boogie Nights” and “Devil in a Blue Dress” are all equally memorable performances.
Next up is Natalie Portman, the Hollywood-gone-indie girl of the moment. And trust me, Portman had to work hard to climb her way back up my must-see celebs list. I couldn’t really hold it against her for being close friends with Britney Spears (although I wanted to). But after she took on the role of Queen Amidala in the new “Star Wars” films, I decided she wasn’t the classy young actress for whom I had hoped. I am so glad she proved me wrong.
Portman’s character in “Garden State” was an excellent indie breakout role, and her role as Alice in “Closer” proved she could carry an entire film.
My final selection is almost painful to admit, considering I’ve hated this actor since he came on the scene with “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape.” And while he definitely still grates on my nerves, Leonardo DiCaprio is slowly creeping his way onto my list of sighting-worthy celebrities. It started when he became director Martin Scorsese’s it-boy in “Gangs of New York” and recently appeared in Scorsese’s latest, “The Aviator.” How can you dislike an actor on whom Scorsese relies and trusts? There must be something admirable about him.
I could take this opportunity to reveal some of the more embarrassing names on my celebrity-sightings wish list, but I think I’ve revealed enough potentially humiliating information in the Graphic this semester.
Although, seeing Elizabeth Berkeley (“Saved By the Bell” anyone?) at the Grove in Los Angeles was a true highlight of my adult life. After watching the edited-for-TV version of “Showgirls” on VH1 several hundred times, celebrity sightings just don’t reach a higher echelon.
02-24-2005
