Ten things you may not have known about Bruce Springsteen:
(1) He never really liked his nickname of “The Boss,” which he picked up in the early '70s while working small clubs in Asbury Park, N.J. (2) At the age of seven, he knew instantly he wanted to be a rock ‘n’ roll star, after seeing Elvis Presley on the Ed Sullivan Show. His mother bought him a guitar the next day, even though his hands were too small to play. (3) Springsteen’s obsession with music was a form of rebellion against his moody, sometimes abusive father. Their volatile relationship inspired songs such as “Adam Raised a Cain” and “Used Cars.” (4) Springsteen was a rebellious kid, even at his Catholic grade school. In third grade, a nun stuffed him in a garbage can under her desk because, she said, that’s where he belonged. (5) The songwriter, who became known for his poetic and emotionally moving lyrics, continued to do poorly in high school, making mostly Cs and Ds. (6) Springsteen’s breakthrough “Born to Run” album in 1975 landed him on the covers of Time and Newsweek the same day – a feat not even Elvis Presley or the Beatles ever accomplished. (7) When the blue-collar hometown of Freehold, N.J. made plans to honor Bruce, a proposed statue had to be scrapped after the mayor decided the town couldn’t afford to pay for the tribute. (8) Whenever Springsteen enters a strange new hotel room, the first thing he does is play his guitar for five minutes to feel more at home. (9) He married actress-model Julianne Phillips in 1985 and divorced her in 1989, after falling in love with his backup singer, Patti Scialfa. They married in 1991 and have three children. (10) Bruce’s kids used to burst into tears whenever they saw his bandanna-wearing guitarist, Steve Van Zandt, because they thought that he looked like a pirate.
Rugged screen actor Samuel L. Jackson got into acting to cure his stuttering.
A St. Louis waitress once accidentally knocked singer Sheryl Crow’s front teeth out with a beer mug.
Instead of trusting banks, comedian Jerry Seinfeld keeps thousands of dollars stashed in a small, embroidered bag he hid in his bedroom closet.
Ellen Burstyn broke into the movies in a U.S. Navy film about venereal disease. The sex-fact movie was shown to recruits – including her stunned brother, who thought the better of revealing the embarrassing tidbit to his military buddies.
Among the thousands of Elvis impersonators performing today is a 550-pound guy known as Peter “Big Elvis” Vallee. He’s been impersonating the King for more than 20 years. Vallee launched his Elvis act while attending junior high in Seattle.
Patty Hearst’s 17-year-old daughter Lydia is a Ford model.
Mel Gibson makes sure that every movie contract he signs has a clause in it guaranteeing that his chiropractor gets to accompany him to the set every day. That’s because the Aussie has scoliosis, a curvature of the spine.
Michael Jackson, who is often seen in public with a mask over his nose and mouth to filter out unknown microbes, isn’t the only star today who has certain phobias about being a “clean freak.” Many will not shake hands for fear of contracting germs. Ashley Judd has the perfect solution. She keeps both her hands full with her pup, Buttercup, to avoid unwanted germ contact with fellow humans.

While on tour, Elton John refuses to stay in a room that is equipped with fluorescent lights.
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