The DragN's Cave

Daydream Rich: Bill ‘Freakin’ Murray

This week’s Daydream rich is going to be a bit different than the previous installments because…well, Bill Murray is a bit different.  Being able to afford anything means that buying material objects becomes mundane.  Choosing between the Lamborghini and the Mercedes or the caviar and the pate is arbitrary when price is not an issue.  But, Bill Murray has found a way to keep his life fun and exciting, despite the terrible handicap of being rich and famous.  He does what no other A-list celebrity would even consider, the unthinkable…he acts like a regular person!

The difference, however, is that he is rich and famous; so, when he he’s invited by strangers to karaoke, he actually shows up and belts out Elvis.  The internet is rife with Bill Murray urban legends, some true some far fetched, but here are a few of our favorite true stories.

The Karaoke Story
The story begins with a group of friends at a bar in NYC.  They spot Bill Murray walking into the bar with a woman, and, after the initial shock, they muster up the courage to invite him to their hotel room for drinks and then karaoke.  Astounded by their good fortune to run into Bill, the group heads back to their room thinking that would be the end of their story.  Fifteen minutes later a knock on the door and the Ghostbuster himself has materialized into their hotel room.  The rest of the night is a drunken blur a singing, yelling, and laughing.  A story this unbelievable can only be accepted if offered with proof.  Fortunately, pictures were taken to prove that the magical night did, indeed, happen.

The Rain Delay
What do most people do when a baseball game is rain delayed?  Hide under the stands until it stops.  What does Bill do? Hops the fence and runs the bases on the tarp and slides into home.  Oh, to be eccentric and famous enough to get away with it.  This video is from a Charleston RiverDogs (the Yankees’ Class A affiliate) game.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4t3dVd9Fhs&feature=player_embedded

The Bartending Story
At the SXSW music festival in Austin, Texas you’re liable to see many shocking sights.  But, bazaar doesn’t even begin to explain what it must have been like for the patrons at the Shangri-La bar when Bill rolled in with the Wu-Tang Clan and started serving drinks.  Apparently, Bill demanded to be the bartender, and then started serving everyone shots of tequila no matter what they ordered.  Here’s some amateur video of the event.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fwwEGjGbxXM


Bill Murray’s ‘Autograph’
When approached to sign an autograph it’s not uncommon for a celebrity to deny it because they’re tired of meaninglessly scribbling their name for a fan.  Bill Murray is not an exception.  But, when other celebrities would just turn a fan away, Bill denies the autograph so that he can do something much more personal for them.  In this case when he denied a fan an autograph he chose to do a slow motion walk on camera with them instead. Here’s the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaRtH7D8oIM

The Party Crasher
There are many stories of Bill being invited by complete strangers to party and actually showing up no matter who did the inviting.  Bill has crashed house parties on more than one occasion and is always the life of the party when he does.

In one such story Bill is in Scotland when he is invited to a house party by 22-year-old Norwegian student Lykke Stavnef.  The college students amazed by his presence were also embarrassed by the amount of dirty dishes in the sink.  Being the casual guy he is Bill begins doing the dishes himself and is more than happy to accept his vodka in a coffee mug.

Stories like these, and many others, have allowed Bill to transcend celebrity and enter folklore.  While we all would fancy being rich and famous, most of us would agree that being a legend is much more exciting.  Bill might not even have the time to daydream because whenever he has an urge to do something he’s already begun to do it.  We can all daydream about the crazy things we would do if we were rich, or we could just go out and do them.  The world would be much happier if people followed their passions, and you know that whether he was a famous actor or a gas station clerk Bill ‘freakin’ murray would still act like Bill ‘freakin’ Murray.

Clown of the Week

“How embarrassing to be human.” -Kurt Vonnegut

Truer words might’ve never been spoken.  We are the only animal on this planet intelligent enough for creative, original thought, yet we are also the only animal insecure enough to feel embarrassment.  We’ve all had our share of awkward moments, but, fortunately, the majority of them are only witnessed by those in our immediate surroundings.  London Mayor Boris Johnson wasn’t so lucky.  

Known to be a bit eccentric, Boris took to the skies to promote the London Olympics with a daring ride down a zipline.  With a devil-may-care smile, he bravely leapt off the platform, proudly clinging only to two Union Jack flags.  Flying high over his countrymen, flags chopping in the wind, Boris was doing all that he could to bring glory to Queen and country.  

All was going as planned until he began to noticeably decelerate around the halfway point and eventually come to a crawling stop still 65 feet from the end of the line.  As Boris hung there awkwardly, flags gone limp, his smile was now an abashed look of bemusement as he stared down at the ever increasing crowd.  
It’s bad enough that this happened in front of a large crowd and that he is a public figure, but happening at the event with the most media coverage on the planet ensured that his moment of embarrassment would spread to all corners of the globe.  Although he didn’t quite stick the landing, Boris kept his composure and was able to make light of it with the crowd as he awaited rescue.“This is great fun but it needs to go faster,” he joked.  Less than ten minutes of dangling like an awkward diplomat-piñata, and he was tugged to safety by grounds workers.  Maybe not a performance worthy of a gold medal, but we felt that Boris at least deserved the consolation prize of being DragNSync’s Clown of the Week.  Cheers, mate!
 
Here is the video of Boris’ zipline mishap.

Man Lessons from Will Ferrell

There’s no dispute that since his days at SNL to his roles as a movie frontman, Will Ferrell has been exceedingly good at making us laugh.  His characters, always flirting with the line between the ridiculous and the obscene, have all shared one common trait, however. They’ve taught us how to be a man. (Excluding his hilarious foray into drag for Janet Reno’s Dance Party) So, here are eight Will Ferrell characters that taught the most about being a man.

#1 Ricky Bobby

• Be the Best

So often people fail because they’re insecure and think they’re not good enough to succeed.  It usually is not true, but it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.  Well your momma didn’t raise no sissy!  Have the mentality of “I’m the best there is. Plain and simple. I wake up in the morning and piss excellence.”  True, arrogance could cause you to run headfirst into a wall, but find the perfect balance of confidence and become the champion you know you are. First or last, baby!!!



#2 Gene Frenkel

• Earn Your Keep

Not everyone can be the frontman, but that doesn’t diminish your importance.  If you’ve got a niche and you’re good at it then own that skill, and people will notice.  Be proud of your abilities, whatever they are, and make them a valuable asset. Don’t ask if the group if it could use any more cowbell, be so good that they get a fever and the only cure will be more cowbell!



#3 Harry Caray

• Stay Curious. Like a Cat

The term “there are no dumb questions” is just, well…dumb.  But, if you don’t know something, sometimes you just have to ask a dumb question to find out.  Your temporary embarrassment will be worth added intelligence.  How else are you going to find out the important information about people without asking things like  “If you were a hot dog, and you were starving, would you eat yourself?”


#4 Chazz Reinhold

• Be an Innovator, Fish with Dynamite

If you’ve got dynamite and you happen to be fishing, use it!  There’s no point making things more difficult than they should be. Try to avoid the morally questionable like literally fishing with dynamite or seducing women at funerals (even though grief is nature’s most powerful aphrodisiac).  The point is to find an edge to take advantage of.  Most people think “by the book” is the only way to go about things, but those people will forever run with the pack.  Think outside the box and write your own book.



#5 Craig Buchanan

• Be Excited B-E Excited!

Be enthusiastic. Be cheerful. Be like the band geek at prom; just happy to be invited.  The world’s got enough negative people and enough whiners.  Lift people up and cheer them on.  It doesn’t matter if they are competing for a world championship or a high school regional chess tournament, they will appreciate the encouragement. Your life is as exciting and positive as you make it.  Make it a good one.

#6 Brennan Huff

• Find a Best Friend

The world is a lonely place when you’ve got no one to share it with. Find someone who shares your interests in watching cops, collecting retro-nudie mags, and doing karate in the garage.  It makes Shark Week even more enjoyable when you’re watching it with your bestie. Plus, you’ve always got someone to watch your back so you’ll never again end up with a belly full of white dog crap.


#7 Ron Burgundy

• Grow a Mustache

That is all you need to know as a man.  Follow the other seven lessons you learned and then grow a mustache.  People respect and put an exorbitant amount of trust in a man who can grow luscious lady tickler.  The thicker the better.  Now that you know the tricks, it’s time to start down the path of manhood that Will Ferrell has paved for us all. From all of us here at DragNSYNC, you stay classy.

Even the best mess up sometimes.  Check out this hilarious montage of Will Ferrell Bloopers!