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On Friday, September 19, 2003, I met Gabrielle Union. I won a radio contest sponsored by a local radio station here in the Washington Metro Area. As some of you may have guessed, I was excited; not about the fact that I was going to meet a celebrity, been there done that, no big deal. I was excited because I was meeting someone who is inspiring, someone who has overcome obstacles in her life and ended up on top. I was familiar with Ms. Union’s work, and for some reason I found her fascinating. If it weren’t for this terrific website Tiauna created, I would be in the dark about Gabby. Gabrielle has a spirit that we all can admire. Men and women adore her. I know I’m rambling, but this is for those of you who think she’s a “snob” or “stuck-up”, and it’s also for those of you who know better. Okay this is kind of long, but I want you to get the full effect of the evening. In other words, I’m trying to tell you a story (I quoted Bernie Mac).

The one thing that I can say about celebrities is that they are always fashionably late. Sister-girl was no exception. At one point I debated whether or not to stay, but my husband convinced me. (I had been trying to win tickets all week.) I had to find out if it was worth the wait so I found someone from the radio station and asked if Gabrielle was still coming. Once she confirmed it, I told her who I was and she said that she’d spoken with Tiauna earlier in the week (good). She introduced me to the party promoter and he said he’d hook me up so that I could speak with Gabby. At that very moment, she walked into the bowling alley. She didn’t walk in like a celebrity. I mean, she wasn’t like “look at me, I’m fabulous.” She had on Levis, a t-shirt and a ball cap. She walked in, looked around and someone escorted her to her lane. Of course, people flocked to her asking for autographs and the chance to be immortalized on film with Gabby. I patiently waited to be escorted over to her. When I walked up to her, she was finishing up a conversation about LL Cool J. You know the drill, “what was it like kissing him, what about that bald head?” Who cares?? I wanted something more. I wanted to know what she was like as a person.

I know that everyone is not a Gabrielle Union fan, but I plan to make you one. When I was introduced to her, I told her that I was a member of the staff for her fan club. Her mouth dropped (with a smile) and she said, “A staff, there’s a staff now, how did this happen?” She was excited. Actually, she seemed just as excited to meet me, as I was she. If this isn’t true, then she really is a good actress!! I told her what was going on with the website and she admitted that she hasn’t been visiting as much lately because her and her husband’s email addresses keep getting traced. She said when she does visit; it’s usually at a friend’s house. Tiauna, she loves the site. Judging from her expression, her feelings were authentic. I told her that she has inspired a lot people, but mainly young people. She told me that she was aware of this and she couldn’t believe how much people responded to her. She also mentioned being raped and stated that people have told her that she’s helped them deal with similar experiences. I can’t lie; talking to Gabby was like catching up with a friend from high school. I guess she figured that I’d read everything about her, so she felt free to talk about everything. The conversation flowed well. Just when I was about to bring the big question (Neo Ned), her very protective friend, Pam (I think) came over and told me to “get ta stepping.” Just kidding. She actually said something to the effect that she knows that I want to talk to Gabby, but we want to make sure that she has a good time tonight. I was cool with that. She told me to come back later and Gabby would speak with me again. (Note: Pam did come up to me later and said that she wasn’t trying to be rude, but she wanted Gabby to have a good time because she works all the time.)

While I was bowling I tried to remember what questions I wanted to ask. I’d forgotten my list (yes, I made a list). When the party was winding down, I borrowed someone’s camera to have my picture taken with Gabby (thanks Vicki). As I approached her, she smiled at me and said hi again. My response was, “you know I want a picture, right?” She said sure, and put her arm around me. Then she asked me if I was coming to any of the other events scheduled for the weekend, I told her I wasn’t sure because I would have to find a babysitter and I had to be at work at 7am on Monday morning. The promotions assistant told me she would put me on the guest list for Sunday night and Gabby encouraged me to come. She is definitely a people person. She asked me what I did for a living and she was amazed by the fact that I was in the Air Force for nine years. She kept saying, “NINE YEARS, man.” I asked her where Chris was and she said that he covered the Friday and Saturday games for Fox Sports. I told her that my husband said he was going to marry her and she laughed and asked where he was.

Okay, I know I’ve made some of you wait long enough; here it comes: Neo Ned. I asked if she was working on anything new and she said that she was still promoting BB2. They’re traveling to Europe this week for the premiere. I just want you guys to know; at this point people are standing around us listening to this “interview”. They were probably thinking, “Who the hell is she?” I came at her like I was a reporter saying, “I know the ‘Breakup Handbook’ and ‘Neo Ned’ both come out next year; you know there’s already some controversy about ‘Neo Ned’. She stated that she is aware and wanted to clear up some things. First, the only similarity between “Monster’s Ball” and “Neo Ned” is the interracial relationship thing. She said that there is one sex scene in the movie that takes place in a bathroom, but she’s not naked. The scene is shot from the side and it looks like she’s naked, but she’s wearing underwear. Plus, she said something about her husband not having it. I told her that what’s been published about the synopsis is very basic; it leaves a lot to the imagination. Gabrielle said that she knew that and she happily explained the movie to me. Keep in mind that it was two o’clock in the morning so I can’t remember everything verbatim.

Gabrielle’s character, Rachel, is repeatedly raped at the age of fourteen by a photographer who promises her mother he can make her a “star”. Rachel gets pregnant and has a baby as a result of these rapes. Over time, she develops this idea that she is possessed by the spirit of Adolph Hitler as a means of coping with the traumatic experience. I guess it’s her way of blocking it out. She is committed to a mental institution at the age of nineteen. This is where she meets Ned, played by Jeremy Renner (S.W.A.T.) Ned is a neo-nazi who has been brainwashed all his life. He is really out there. Gabby didn’t say how he and Rachel develop a relationship but at some point he realizes that he has been brainwashed and he begins to change his views. Actually, the way she described it, Rachel and Ned really don’t seem “that” crazy at all, they’re just victims of their circumstances (this is my take, not Gabby’s). At some point, they are released from the institution and try to build a life together. The movie explores how they function in society and deal with the issues of an interracial relationship. Honestly, it doesn’t seem that bad to me, I felt better about the whole thing. I can deal with this type of movie, I just don’t want to see her butt-naked. I have a problem with black actresses and nudity for some reason. She said that the movie is expected to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.

Anyway, it was time for me to move on because I could see other people waiting to meet her. I told her it was nice to finally meet her and she said she was glad to meet me too and get this: she said, “Well give me a hug” and she hugged me goodbye. It turned out to be a good week for me considering someone stole my car on Tuesday and the hurricane came through on Thursday. I also told her Jason Kidd was a butthead and she jokingly said she plotted revenge on him for 13 years, but that they are cool now.

P.S. Gabby, if you read this, I hope I did you justice.

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By Trina