The actor, William Sadler, came into my Barnes & Noble this evening (Monday). He’s one of those character actors that everybody has seen but many people can’t quite place. He’s been in lots of movies and television programs.
I didn’t recognize him for who he was when he asked me for help as I was passing him in the military history aisle, though I did think he looked familiar. I figured he was a customer that had been in often enough but that I hadn’t dealt with before. I helped him find a book on Chesty Puller, “the most decorated marine in history.”
A little while later while Mr. Sadler was in our café, my friend, Meghan, who recognized him from a favorite show of hers from some years back, pointed him out to me. Before the words, “Shawshank Redemption,” were completely out of her mouth, I realized where I knew him from.
He mentioned to one of the cashiers, as he was checking out at Cash Wrap, that he was playing the part of Chesty in a forthcoming mini-series, which confirmed my guess that he was buying the book as research for an upcoming role.
As funny as it may seem, there are a number of stars that come into the Poughkeepsie store. Several weeks back I stood only a foot and a half away from Paulina Poriskova, the Czech-born supermodel whose poster graced the walls of my freshmen dorm room, back in the day.
I must say, bumping into Mr. Sadler did not hold quite the same thrill for me — but it was okay.
