Is Giamatti Charging Five Bucks to Take a Photo with Him?

By on January 19, 2011 10:32 pm in Celebrity Residents

My pal/entertainment reporter guy/Star Wars maven Steve Iervolino once told me a story about asking Billy Dee Williams for an autograph at a movie junket. Steve’s a huge fan of the franchise, so getting Lando Calrissian to sign something for him was a big deal and totally not something he was looking to resell for a quick buck. So it was a big shock to him when BDW asked him for $25 right there and then to sign a poster.

Word comes today via Perez Hilton that Brooklyn Heights resident/actor/Golden Globe winner Paul Giamatti is reportedly doing the same thing but in this case it’s $5 to take a photo with him. Is he being serious (like BDW) or ironic or is it totally made up?

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  • Heightsman

    If it’s true….IF, he’s a douche bag and I will heckle the crap out of him on our street everytime I see him by throwing $5 dollar bills at his feet.

  • David on Middagh

    Five?!

    When he was charging 2 (and it wasn’t so long ago, so he can’t blame inflation), you could still make a profit on eBay, even with the listing fee /PayPal fee /etc. But for five it isn’t worth it.

    Doesn’t matter; he’s been ducking me anyway.

  • davoyager

    Hey I’ll pose for a quarter, Buys me a second and a half of health coverage.

  • travy

    he looks disturbed and unhappy whenever i see him in the hood. the last person i’d approach for anything.

  • bklyn20

    Before he moved, he and I used to pass each other on the street on a near-daily basis. He would always smile (slightly) and nod, and I would do the same. Mind you, I never said “Hey, aren’t you that guy from “Sideways?!”

    Gosh, judging from his photo rate, I must owe him at least $20.00 plus interest by now.

    Who really believes this?

  • ed

    how much to pose with Brooklyn Decker?….oh wait, that’s the dumbo blog, sorry.

  • Hello Brooklyn

    I fight the urge to sream out “Pig Vomit!” every time I see him. Double-you-ennnnnn-bee-see!

  • Andrew Porter

    That’s funny, I was *paying* people a buck to take my autograph before Christmas…

  • A New Yorker

    I have met Giamatti on a few occasions and I have taken photos with him each time. He never asked for $5. He may have seemed uncomfortable with being treated like a famous person, but he tried to overcome that and be gracious. That has been my experience with him.

  • http://thesmokingnun.com Chuck Taylor

    not true, at least in February 2009. I saw giamatti in the court street elevator for the R train and asked him to take a quick photo together. he seemed MISERABLE, but obliged.

    here’s our awkward conversation:
    CT: Paul, everyone I know in the neighborhood always talks about seeing you. Now I can, too.
    PG: Yeah.
    CT: Do you mind if we take a picture together?… I’m Chuck [shake hands]
    PG: Paul.
    CT: Ready?
    PG: No. [Click/flash!]
    CT: That wasn’t so bad, was it?
    PG: Yes…

    see (horrid) pic here:
    http://chucktaylorblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/paul-giamatti.html

  • David on Middagh

    Eh. True NYC residents don’t bug their neighbors for pictures. Man, I would hate it if I felt that every time I went outside I had to be presentable and upbeat, or risk looking homeless in somebody’s blog.

  • Whaaambulance

    Really, you think he plans to keep accurate tax records for each $5 autograph? Me thinks he has better things to do lest he become like Willie McCovey, who was sentenced in Federal Court just steps away from his home for failure to report income earned for, among other things, signing autographs. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_n6_v90/ai_18404262/. To think that the son of Bart Giamatti, who banned Pete Rose, wouldn’t be aware is to think fairly low thoughts of him (and other celebs, sports and non-sports, have been nailed for this charge, to wit Al Capone).

    But, hey, it got you 11 responses and countless page views, so even a trollish post has some value.