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| Ryan Seacrest |
As I approached, I noticed the crowd had grown in size. What I didn't know was that there were a few thousand people behind me moving in as well. When we were right in front of Ryan, the hordes pressed in. Suddenly, I felt like I was at a Who concert. As the large gathering began vying for position, we were pushed and pulled in every direction. Being no more than ten feet from Mr. Seacrest made it impossible for us to escape. Worst yet, the crowd moved in such random directions that I felt myself step off a curb and then back up again. I was very concerned that I would stumble and with my son on my shoulders that would be catastrophic. Just when I thought I could manage the situation, I spotted a young girl, not much older than Aidan, directly in front of Ryan. Her father was fumbling with a camera.
I watched in horror as the tiny girl began to disappear into the sea of admirers. I let go my son's leg and outstretched my arm to help steady the little girl. She was out of my reach. The frenzied crowd paid little attention to this child about to be trampled. As a father, I see things differently. Some people say that babies keep you up at night, but the truth is when you have kids, you never sleep again, no matter what age they are. Just when I thought the little girl would be consumed by the crowd, Ryan exclaimed,
"She's falling!"
Then he reached out, grabbed her arm and held her upwards. Ryan's handler was not happy with him and actively tried to dissuade him from coming in contact with the crowd. Seeing this, her father having satisfactorily adjusted his camera shouted,
"Ryan! Take a picture with me and my daughter!"
He was a big dude, who pushed his way in then spun about lowering himself to his daughter's height as he held the camera aloft and snapped away. Ryan dutifully released the girl to her father's care then positioned himself at the apex of the picture. That was many years ago. I learned that day that celebrity encounters can be dangerous and as a family we swore off seeking close proximity to famous people.
Years later as Aidan entered high school, I was listening to Ryan Seacrest on 102.7 KIIS FM, a radio station out of Los Angeles which I picked up on Sirius XM radio. On the show called On Air with Ryan Seacrest, they do a bit called "Tell Me Something Good" whereby callers phone in and relay an uplifting story. People tell about being cancer free, having a child, landing a dream job or a pending graduation. It's a real feel good piece.
I've heard many people tell Ryan and his cohosts, Sisanie, Patty and Tanya about all sorts of good news. The callers always seem to be FM listeners from the Los Angeles area. Undaunted I decided to call into the station and tell them about how I once saw Ryan save a little girl's life. After a few attempts at getting through, I was briefly put on hold until the call was answered by Ryan himself. He said,
"What do you got to tell us?"
Now, I wasn't sure who I was talking to, but I launched into my story anyway. By the time I got to the part where we encountered Ryan in Times Square, I figured it was him on the phone even though I wasn't sure. When I said that he saved that girl's life, they were all silent like a Scooby Doo reveal. Ryan eventually said something like,
"Things can get out of hand in the city which happened many times."
I sensed that he didn't recall this episode so I told him,
"You might not have realized what you did, but I saw it because I was just a few feet away which was cool but scary."
They all laughed when I told them that the guy wanted a picture of Ryan with his daughter. We didn't use the term "selfie" back in 2009, but the dude got one off anyway. I told Ryan I would unearth pictures and more details about the event, and he showed genuine interest. He thanked me for "reaching out."
After digging through a gig of picture and talking with many of our friends with us that day, I finally traced the date to December 29, 2009. Unfortunately, Christine was unable to get a picture of Aidan and I with Ryan due to the size of the crowd. Later in the day, we took this picture which shows Aidan sporting his monkey hat.
Even though I don't have a picture of the event, someone certainly must have taken one. I know for sure that a guy snapped a photo of Ryan with his daughter right in front of us. So if you were in Times Square on that afternoon in December and saw Ryan Seacrest and possibly took a picture, then see if in the shot there's a bearded guy with a kid on his shoulders, wearing a monkey hat. That would be us. The father who took the picture with Ryan was Hispanic and from his accent, I surmised he wasn't a tourist. He was on Ryan's left side with his daughter to his right. Ryan was wearing a brown suit. He had a makeup induced tan that looked a little unnatural. They missed a spot by his right ear. That's all the details I recall.
Before Ryan got off the phone during my call in, he said that I was "obviously a good dad." I like to think that I am a good father, but when I recall that day, I witnessed Ryan have the same response as I did, that is, concern for a child that was in peril. Ryan does another bit on his radio show called "Ryan's Roses" in which Patty or Sisanie call someone suspected of cheating on their spouse. They pretend that they own a flower shop which is offering free roses as a promotion. The dude usually gives the roses to his girlfriend and not his wife. Ryan often refers to this as a "public service." I always root for the guy to be loyal to his spouce. They usually get more mud on the dude from the note included with the flowers. I always tell Christine if they ever called me for an episode of Ryan's Roses, I would send the flowers to her with a note reading,
"If God made anything more beautiful than you, he kept it for himself."
I listen to 102.7 KIIS FM because I enjoy the banter of Ryan, Sisanie, Tanya and Patty. When it comes to relationship advice, I'm almost always at odds with the cast. For example, recently a woman called in to say that her husband who is in the military was being stationed in Missouri for four years, and she was conflicted about leaving her "dream job" to go with him. Ryan suggested that they try living apart for a year "to see how it goes." It is probably a generational thing, but I disagree. I would have answered that she should divorce the guy because anyone who chooses a job over their spouse doesn't deserve to be married.
Another time a woman called to say she was soon to be married and was unhappy that her ex-boyfriend was attending her wedding with his new girlfriend which she didn't like. Ryan and Sisanie weighed in that "it was her day," and she had the right to object to her ex-boo's new significant other. Call me ole fashioned, but I think during all weddings the only guy present who hooked up with the bride ought to be the groom. I was listening to the radio show for a year before I realized that "hooking up" meant having sex. In my day, hooking up meant meeting someone somewhere as in "we hooked up at the club." This revelation adds new meaning to the on air conversation Ryan had with a caller who exclaimed that she "hooked up with her ex at the movies."
I think all this relationship turmoil has caused Ryan Seacrest to suffer from premarital stress syndrome since he often avoids any on air conversation about marriage, but I once saw him being bigger than himself. He has the foundations of a terrific father. We should all encourage him to commit to a wonderful woman and start a family. I know this because only a man who would be a good father would see that in another in the crowd...
and reach out to save a little girl from certain harm.
Update: On January 9, 2018, Ryan Seacrest said on air that he was into boxing. He's such a mildly mannered, evenly tempered guy during the day. Who knew at night he was into Fight Club?
I've heard many people tell Ryan and his cohosts, Sisanie, Patty and Tanya about all sorts of good news. The callers always seem to be FM listeners from the Los Angeles area. Undaunted I decided to call into the station and tell them about how I once saw Ryan save a little girl's life. After a few attempts at getting through, I was briefly put on hold until the call was answered by Ryan himself. He said,
"What do you got to tell us?"
Now, I wasn't sure who I was talking to, but I launched into my story anyway. By the time I got to the part where we encountered Ryan in Times Square, I figured it was him on the phone even though I wasn't sure. When I said that he saved that girl's life, they were all silent like a Scooby Doo reveal. Ryan eventually said something like,
"Things can get out of hand in the city which happened many times."
I sensed that he didn't recall this episode so I told him,
"You might not have realized what you did, but I saw it because I was just a few feet away which was cool but scary."
They all laughed when I told them that the guy wanted a picture of Ryan with his daughter. We didn't use the term "selfie" back in 2009, but the dude got one off anyway. I told Ryan I would unearth pictures and more details about the event, and he showed genuine interest. He thanked me for "reaching out."
After digging through a gig of picture and talking with many of our friends with us that day, I finally traced the date to December 29, 2009. Unfortunately, Christine was unable to get a picture of Aidan and I with Ryan due to the size of the crowd. Later in the day, we took this picture which shows Aidan sporting his monkey hat.
 |
| Aidan with his Monkey Hat in NYC |
Before Ryan got off the phone during my call in, he said that I was "obviously a good dad." I like to think that I am a good father, but when I recall that day, I witnessed Ryan have the same response as I did, that is, concern for a child that was in peril. Ryan does another bit on his radio show called "Ryan's Roses" in which Patty or Sisanie call someone suspected of cheating on their spouse. They pretend that they own a flower shop which is offering free roses as a promotion. The dude usually gives the roses to his girlfriend and not his wife. Ryan often refers to this as a "public service." I always root for the guy to be loyal to his spouce. They usually get more mud on the dude from the note included with the flowers. I always tell Christine if they ever called me for an episode of Ryan's Roses, I would send the flowers to her with a note reading,
"If God made anything more beautiful than you, he kept it for himself."
I listen to 102.7 KIIS FM because I enjoy the banter of Ryan, Sisanie, Tanya and Patty. When it comes to relationship advice, I'm almost always at odds with the cast. For example, recently a woman called in to say that her husband who is in the military was being stationed in Missouri for four years, and she was conflicted about leaving her "dream job" to go with him. Ryan suggested that they try living apart for a year "to see how it goes." It is probably a generational thing, but I disagree. I would have answered that she should divorce the guy because anyone who chooses a job over their spouse doesn't deserve to be married.
Another time a woman called to say she was soon to be married and was unhappy that her ex-boyfriend was attending her wedding with his new girlfriend which she didn't like. Ryan and Sisanie weighed in that "it was her day," and she had the right to object to her ex-boo's new significant other. Call me ole fashioned, but I think during all weddings the only guy present who hooked up with the bride ought to be the groom. I was listening to the radio show for a year before I realized that "hooking up" meant having sex. In my day, hooking up meant meeting someone somewhere as in "we hooked up at the club." This revelation adds new meaning to the on air conversation Ryan had with a caller who exclaimed that she "hooked up with her ex at the movies."
Another time a woman called seeking relationship advice. She and her husband were separated but had recently agreed to give it another try. They each compiled a list of three things that they wanted the other to do. She sought Ryan's opinion in regards to her husband’s list which she photographed and emailed to the show. The first item on the list was that he wanted his wife to wear more makeup which all agreed was acceptable. The second petition was that he wanted her to wear nicer clothing which was also deemed agreeable. Although Ryan specifically expressed that the man's last item was okay with him, he elected not to read it on air. After perusing the apparently handwritten list, Patty asked,
"What is G9?"
Tanya said, "That's not a G. It's a 6."
Ryan exclaimed, "This is supposed to be a family show!"
I think all this relationship turmoil has caused Ryan Seacrest to suffer from premarital stress syndrome since he often avoids any on air conversation about marriage, but I once saw him being bigger than himself. He has the foundations of a terrific father. We should all encourage him to commit to a wonderful woman and start a family. I know this because only a man who would be a good father would see that in another in the crowd...
and reach out to save a little girl from certain harm.
Update: On January 9, 2018, Ryan Seacrest said on air that he was into boxing. He's such a mildly mannered, evenly tempered guy during the day. Who knew at night he was into Fight Club?
Editor's Note: Originally posted on October 17, 2017.
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