THE US REPORT

Soon I’m sure you’ll be seeing news clips of Joan Rivers appearing on the British show Loose Women,  a near cousin to The View in the US, calling Russell Crowe some pretty bad names, including dropping the f-bomb,  resulting in her being censored (commonly known as bleeped.) After the break Rivers didn’t return to the show. She seemed surprised she got booted. Well, it just so happens I’ve met Russell Crowe, via an event arranged by Jacksonville Axemen coach Spinner Howland (photo below) and Rivers' description of the actor is so far off I can’t help but wonder what she did wrong when she met him. And I didn't exactly make a great impression on him myself. At first.

My own experience was completely unlike Rivers’ experience and I got off on a pretty wobbly foot with the award-winning actor. We were at a news conference in a locker room at the University of North Florida. Subject: rugby league. I was one of the only freelancers there, sitting amid our city’s news personalities popularly referred to as ‘local celebs.’ I was sorely out of place and no one knew me. I introduced myself to a photographer from a publication I write for and he looked at me like I was speaking Farsi.  But Crowe was there to talk about rugby league and I am crazy for rugby. The reason for that is I once dated an extremely hot rugby player in college. I didn’t love him but I did come to love the game. And the players aren’t bad on the eyes either. (I know that’s sexist but I’m Southern so there you go.)

Crowe talked about an upcoming match at UNF, between the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the Leeds Rhinos. Jacksonville’s rugby league team The Axemen planned to host the game, and Coach Spinner Howland put his heart and soul into putting the event together. Jacksonville was thrilled to host this event, welcoming the teams with open arms. The match would be unlike any other that had ever occurred on US turf. Crowe is part owner of the Rabbitohs, and if you want to see him at his best, get him to talk to you about rugby league (side note to media who I know lurk here: be sure to include the word ‘league.’) Of his buying into the team, Crowe said, “This is a privilege, not a business deal.”

So after he talked about the match, he took questions. No one made a sound. So I stuck my hand in the air and tossed him a question about a fellow he’d made a movie with who happened to be filming a movie here in Jax (our city was once up front and center in the motion pic industry when it was in its infancy and we still see lots of movies shot here). The look on Crowe’s face said it all. My question thudded into the ether of the room with the impact of a boulder thrown from the Empire State Building. “If you see him, tell him I said g‘day,” Crowe said.

Now that might have been the end of things as far as this freelancer’s questions. But I redeemed myself  by returning to the subject of rugby league and Crowe answered other questions I put forth. After the Q&A, I walked over to him and explained that as a freelancer, I had to try to get as much different information as possible. Because I planned to pitch the story to a number of different publications. He was positively generous about it. He then posed as I took a photo of him with an eager young journalist who was so shy about asking to have her photo made I had to push her into Crowe’s path. I have two daughters. I told this girl, “Don’t be shy. When you’re my age you’ll really value that photo.” When all was done, Crowe walked outside and posed with fans as cameras clicked left and right. Bear in mind he’d been on a plane for about 15 hours.

A few months later, my family and I went to the Plaza III, an upscale restaurant on the river in downtown Jax. I went outside to smoke and struck up a conversation with a staffer. She told me about all the celebs who’ve dined there (and there have been many)—who was nice and who wasn’t.  So I asked, “Who was your nicest?”

She didn’t even think about it. “Russell Crowe.”

Now you may be reading this thinking I was star struck. I’d have to tell you that after 20 years of pumping words out to help us earn a living, not much rocks my boat except the guy I’m married to. The greatest poems I’ve ever written were inspired by him.  I’ve interviewed filmmakers and authors, Pulitzer-winning poets and entrepreneurs. I’ve done freelance work for one of the largest corporations in the nation. Some of the folks were nice and some weren’t. I once interviewed a senator who drove me around the hills in Carolina as gospel music blared from his radio. I didn’t care. I don’t have to sleep with ‘em or eat with ‘em. I just do the job. It’s business not personal.

But Russell Crowe is a nice fellow. I hope he doesn't judge the US by Rivers' behavior. I still can’t believe what she said about him or why she’d arbitrarily select him for her venom,  and all I can say is Crowe struck me as a guy who doesn’t like B.S. and who wouldn’t particularly be impressed with someone like Rivers. Maybe that’s why I liked him so much. We got that in common.

[Text and Photo by Kay B. Day; photo first publication Florida Times-Union.]