But the really famous ones expect to be recognized. And if they aren't ... "Elton John is who I remember most. We had a 16-year-old watching the door for a concert, and Elton John came up alone. Now, she was young. She might have known his music, but she later told us she had never seen him before. Elton John walked up to the door and she asked to see his pass. He told her, 'I'm Elton John,' but because she didn't know, she said she couldn't let him in ... Instead of calling his manager or someone more senior, he went ballistic. When I came to the room, I overheard him saying, 'Don't you know who I am?! I'm Elton John! Let me in my room!'"
According to Cody, Sir Elton John was "livid" and "red in the face" by the time he got there. "I ran up and opened the door, apologizing to Elton John as he went in. But he stood halfway through. 'I want her fired. Now. I'm not leaving until she's fired.' I got by with 'I'll see what I can do,' and he stormed away. We brought her back and she started to lose it. She was crying and saying, 'I didn't know!' We didn't fire her, but we made sure she saw pictures of whoever was performing from then on. And I can't listen to Elton John the same way anymore."
Now, normally guys like Elton, who have a net worth higher than most nations, travel around with an entourage. But it seems John had lost his that day, and without them, "he looked like a regular guy. My first thought wasn't 'That's Elton John!' when I saw him. There was a golf tournament in town, and I thought, 'That's John Daly trying to get in.'"
Elton John had the worst reaction Cody's witnessed, but he's not the only famous person to take offense at not being recognized. "Steely Dan were ticked off, because we had to hunt down a photo of them ... Nine Inch Nails showed us their driver's licenses, and we had to check their names against Wikipedia on our booth computer. They were speechless."