3 Comments May 12, 2009 – 5:23 pm popping..

Ran into Sam Milby at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Restaurant at Times Square, Manhattan in New York City on April 15, 2009. It was funny because I didn’t recognize him when I bumped into him. I mumbled a quick sorry and he stopped to look at me almost like waiting for me to recognize him and I didn’t!

My sister whispered and pointed out to me, “hey, he’s a movie actor in the Philippines!” Of course, how could I not know?! Except that I was in New York and seeing a famous Filipino actor walking by doesn’t happen very often.

I smiled at him and I exclaimed his name excitedly, “SAM!” He smiled back. I asked for a photo but my sister was already being shown our table. She was gone. I was left (alone!) with Sam Milby in one spot of Bubba Gump. Awkward silence. Sam waited for my sis!

I asked him if he was alone. (What was I going to ask? I didn’t know a thing about him or any latest news. I had no idea what he was doing in New York!) “Kasama ko sina Piolo, John Lloyd and Bea” were his exact words (in perfect slang tagalog)!

My sister finally came back at the same time Sam’s companion followed him wondering what’s taking him so long. Sam was looking for the bathroom. LOL. I pointed it out to him at the farthest end of the restaurant. He said ok. His companion took this great photo, bid our goodbyes and off Sam to the bathroom!

We scoured the entire floor looking for Piolo Pascual, John Llyod Cruz and Bea Alonzo! LOL. We missed to check downstairs and later realized that they must have been done eating and was on their way out when Sam had to go and the bathroom was upstairs. Sam’s star-studded entourage would have just been downstairs all that time!! GRRRR!!

We found out later that Sam Milby and Piolo Pascual were here for a concert series in various cities in North America entitled “Heartthrobs” with Pokwang, John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo. They had a show in New Jersey on April 17th which explains why they were in New York when we saw them on the 15th.

Very friendly guy!

(Although I still wonder, had we seen him in the Philippines would he have reacted the same way? It would have been impossible to come that close with him OR he would be swarmed by screaming fans we’ll never get that photo with him at all and he wouldn’t have waited for my sis!)

Thanks for the photo op Sam! We will ‘treasure’ that short encounter, never mind if you won’t remember us the next time we see you again!