Well put Mary!    I think we all catch performers on a bad day from time to time and those images last.   My "run-in" with Mickey Mantle when I was a kid tainted my image of him, but there may have been reasons for his behavior. It is hard to put ourselves in other shoes. That is why some artists will erupt in rude behavior - they aren't seeing the persons point.    Most of the people I know in the entertainment field are very passionate about their work - more than most people give them credit for. It is very easy to interupt their concentration.

26 years ago, I took my first job in television. I was a production assistant (go-fer)for a television pilot. It was a cultural variety show (doomed for failure from the start) and we had a major Hollywood actress signed to do a segment on Zelda Fitzgerald. (I won't mention her name, but I am sure everyone would know her name through her film work).   I was asked to tag along at a rehearsal. The rehearsal consisted of this actress, a producer and myself.   I was in awe when I met her, but I tried to act real cool. I sat down at the table and started to follow along with the script.   At one point she stopped reading, looked at me and said "tell me, just exactly what is it you do??" My mere presence was interupting her concentration. I got the message and excused myself.   I was crushed. The producer told me later that I did not do anything wrong and she was acting like a prima donna.   It did not make me feel much better.   The next week when we shot the scene, I ran into her in the hall. She gave me a big smile and said "Hi Ron, how are you today?".   That turned me around completely. It may sound innocent, but I realized that her words the week before was a professional reaction, not a personal one. The fact that she remembered my name was enough to tell me that she was not trying to demean me and she took the time to show a little respect for me.

It may not sound like much of a story, but after that I realized most celebrities are only trying to do a job. Sure, some of them have big egos - but that is not a crime.   You would be surprised at how many demands are placed on them.   They cannot simply go to a restaurant without drawing stares or requests for autographs. We expect them to be "real" people, but then we place them on a pedastal where they can't win. We are all just doing a job and sometimes our passions cloud our sense of reason.

I'm not trying to excuse obnoxious behavior. The story about Trisha Yearwood is sickening, but even still I find it hard to pass judgement. Did she hear the request properly? Did she hear something else and react the way she did?   Without all the facts, it is hard to draw a true picture of the person.