By Annette Witheridge and Sara Nathan
Celebrity whisperer Christopher Gaida has witnessed it all – drugs, stroppy stars, and Hollywood actors draped over male escorts – even though they have never come out of the closet.
But 14 years of walking stars down the red carpet has certainly taken its toll – and when it comes to the Oscars, Christopher, 38, will be more than happy to watch from the safety of his lounge on Sunday.
In a revealing interview, he tells MailOnline that it’s the biggest stars who are the most polite – but the young guns, such as pop sensation Justin Bieber, can cause the most trouble.
The 18-year-old singer once refused to go through an X-ray machine at an awards show, causing a stand-off between his bodyguards and the show’s security.
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Friend of the stars: Celebrity walker Christopher Gaida with Kim Kardashian, one of the many names he's escorted down the red carpet
Surly: Pop prince Justin Bieber caused a security commotion when he refused to go through an X Ray machine at an awards bash
‘He ignored everyone’, says Christopher, ‘then stomped through, setting off all the alarms.
‘There was a lot of pushing and shoving with opposing security guys before Justin was forced to empty his pockets out, just like normal people.'
Rather diplomatically, Christopher says: ‘Older, more established celebrities are usually the sweetest. People who are newly famous and reality TV stars are the worst.’
And while celebrities are on their best behavior during televised shows like the Oscars, Golden Globes and Grammys, they're not afraid to let their hair down at the after parties.
Twelve years ago, Christopher spotted one of his fellow male escorts draped all over an A list actor.
‘This actor was certainly not out at all and 12 years later he still isn’t. Most people would be surprised to hear he is actually gay,’ he says.
‘I was shocked he was flaunting it so publically at a party.’
Keeping watch: Behind every Hollywood wardrobe malfunction or diva meltdown, Christopher Gaida (circled) is waiting in the background, hired to ensure every step of the night runs smoothly for his celebrity client
Friends in high places: Christopher Gaida with Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper and boxer Mike Tyson
Although acting giants Robert De Niro, Daniel Day-Lewis and Denzel Washington and rising super stars Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and Jennifer Lawrence may have looked cool, calm and collected as they waltzed down the red carpets during this awards season - behind the scenes it is a very different story.
Just getting celebrities to walk along the red carpet involves a small army of non-acting escorts. Every footstep is perfectly planned, every supposed off-the-cuff comment to the TV cameras is rehearsed over and over. Nothing is natural.
For more than a decade, it’s been Christopher’s job to get A- listers through the barricades and into award ceremonies on time - and with a smile on their face.
'I haven’t dished gossip on drug-taking celebrities... but that’s not to say I haven’t seen what’s going on.'
Christopher has escorted A listers including Cameron Diaz, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Charlie Sheen, Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts.
He’s also had Sharon Stone, David Beckham, Bradley Cooper, Megan Fox, Jessica Alba and Madonna on the red carpet - dealing with everything from full-blown panic attacks and temper tantrums to wardrobe malfunctions and lost tickets.
But after attending more than 100 ceremonies, he admits that the Oscars still blows his mind.
‘It’s a military operation,’ he says. ‘There are snipers on rooftops and heat seeking devises to look for weapons.
‘The security checks are legendry. Even the tickets have microchips in them so that no one can get inside who is not invited.’
This year, it will be the first Oscar ceremony that Christopher will miss in a decade – he’s busy promoting his memoir “Arm Candy: A Celebrity Escort’s Tales From The Red Carpet” and has found himself at the centre of showbiz buzz as movie producers vie to buy the film rights.
Starry eyed: Christopher Gaida and A list beauty Julia Roberts
Never far away: Escort Christopher Gaida (circled) is the A-list's little secret: never far from their side, he guides them from point A to Z, dodging every red-carpet mishap along the way
‘I’m also persona non grata in some circles – I’ve been told my book could ruin Hollywood for ever,” he says, with a chuckle.
‘The silly thing is the celebrities have all been very sweet about it. But Hollywood is such an insecure place that the people in the middle, some lowly producers and such, get very paranoid.
‘I haven’t dished gossip on drug-taking celebrities but that’s not to say I haven’t seen what’s going on.
‘I’ve been offered drugs but I always explain that I’m working and on occasions when a celebrity has asked me to get them some I simply say I am not comfortable doing that.’
Christopher got into the job after leaving college. He was approached to be a celebrity escort and admits: ‘My first instinct was to run – I thought it meant I’d be expected to have sex with whoever I was escorting!
'Actresses often flirt with me but they aren’t serious – they want a boyfriend with money not someone who earns a few hundred dollars guiding them through award ceremonies.'
Born in Philadelphia, Christopher relocated to New York at age 23 for an admin job at MTV. It was there that he was asked to be a last-minute red-carpet escort for night.
'Whitney looked like hell and was in a foul temper...I tried to help her inside, but she did not want to know. I walked away and asked to be assigned to another celebrity'
Now he is part of an elite pool of candidates, where producers hire him two to three weeks before an awards show.
Each escort is usually assigned to one celebrity and Christopher will meet the star at their limo as they arrive for the red-carpet, and then introduce himself to their publicist and manager, before greeting his A-list client directly.
The star's game plan, decided by the celebrity and their staff prior, is then hashed out to Christopher. From how long they want to stay on the carpet for photos, to how many interviews they will do, and what media outlets they want to avoid, it is up to him to execute the plan smoothly and inconspicuously.
The job does contain temptations and Christopher has been known to knock back a few free drinks once the awards are over. But he’s been careful not to get drunk since the time he lurched into Whitney Houston and almost knocked her into a swimming pool.
A few years later he was assigned to escort her into a show at the height of her drug addiction.
She arrived after the ceremony had started, looked like hell and was in a foul temper.
‘I tried to help her inside, but she did not want to know and her own security effectively shut me out. I walked away and asked to be assigned to another celebrity.’
Blonde ambition: Christopher Gaida revealed how Paris Hilton make her limo stop so she could smoke a cigarette before an awards bash
He gets around: Christopher Gaida cuddles up to Matt Damon and soap star Susan Lucci
Whitney’s singer friend Chakka Khan also got into the bad books of several celebrity escorts because of her strange behavior.
‘I was waiting on the red carpet talking to another guest when she walked by and pushed me really hard,’ Christopher says. ‘She literally shoved me into a wall and ripped my shirt.
‘She walked off without even acknowledging it. I wasn’t sure if it was an accident or if she had done it on purpose but an hour later one of the other escorts came running over to me.
Tell All tome: The 38-year-olds book, Arm Candy: A Celebrity Escort's Tales From The red Carpet, is out now
‘He was all upset – Chakka Khan had pushed him so hard that he had fallen to the ground.'
Christopher was expecting fists to fly when he escorted high-as-a-kite Charlie Sheen into a backstage green room – and discovered too late that the only other person in there was Ashton Kutcher.
He says: ‘Charlie had just been fired from Two and a Half Men and Ashton replaced him. My heart sank when I realised what I’d done. I caught Ashton’s face – he looked very nervous indeed.
‘But Charlie played it like a champ. He went over to Ashton and congratulated him on his new job!
‘Luckily Charlie smokes about five packs of cigarettes a day, so it wasn’t long before he left the green room and was outside lighting up.
‘One of the big surprises is that many of the supposedly health conscious Hollywood stars smoke like chimneys. But they don’t want the public to know.
‘I’ve been in a limo with Paris Hilton when she’s made the driver stop 10 minutes from the venue so she can get out and have a few drags. Then she sprays herself with perfume, pops bubble gum in her mouth and she’s ready to meet her public.'
Christopher always assumed actors would be brimming over with confidence, so he was surprised to discover just how nervous many of them get before walking the red carpet.
‘Megan Fox had a full blown panic attack at the 2007 Teen Choice Awards,’ he says. “She was so scared she could barely breathe. She asked me to find her Transformers’ co-star Shia LaBeouf.
One step behind: Celebrity walker Christopher Gaida accompanies a very pregnant Natalie Portman at the 2011 Film Independent Spirit Awards in LA
‘I couldn’t find him anywhere and she was practically paralysed with nerves. I had to keep telling her that she was fantastic and looked great. I assured her I would be just three steps behind and she wouldn’t lose her way or trip over.
'This sounds mad but actors are used to having their lines prepared for them and they do several takes to get things right. On the red carpet, they’re live and they have to be themselves. Sometimes they find that hard.
'Others like Tom Hanks just love the red carpet. He stops to talk to everyone. I’ve actually lost him on several occasions because he has wondered off. That means trouble for me as it is my job to make sure the celebrity is escorted properly to their seat inside.
At the 1999 VH1 Vogue Fashion Awards, Mr Gaida was hired to escort Sharon Stone. But as he introduced himself, she refused to shake his hand, demanding that he walk three steps ahead of her at all times and never look back.
He says: 'She gave me a frozen glare, then barked that I was to walk three feet ahead of her and not look back. I was terrified she’d get lost and I would get the blame.’
Wilde times: Christopher Gaida with stunning Olivia Wilde
While stars do get just as star struck as the average person – as Oscar winner Hillary Swank asked for an introduction to Donna Summer at one awards bash, Christopher reveals.
Susan Sarandon even swooned over Sting, as he says: . She was saying she couldn’t believe it was really him. We got through security into his dressing room, where he was more than happy to pose for photos with her.”
It’s usually chaos backstage and the only people allowed in dressing rooms are major presenters. They are bare, basic rooms because the stars are only going to be using them for a brief time. But Elton John’s staff always arrive ahead of time with boxes of mirrors, cushions and candles to make his quarters more comfortable.
Courtney Love went on a foul-mouthed rampage when she discovered her dressing room was the size of a cleaning supply cupboard.
'She didn’t feel she was getting the respect she deserved and threatened to walk out if she didn’t get a better room. Her language was x-rated. She was screaming that it was a janitor’s closet,' he says.
'Eventually we managed to clam her down and she was very sweet when she saw me later at the after-party. She leaned over the balcony, blew a kiss and threw down a red rose for me.'
Christopher usually does 12 to 15 shows a year and bulks up his earnings by working as a producer on Los Angeles-based TV shows.
Ask him who is favourite celebrity is and he doesn’t hesitate – he’s hopelessly in love with former Baywatch star Pamela Anderson.
She looked like hell: Tragic Whitney Houston arrived in a 'foul temper' at an awards ceremony at the height of her drug addiction
Meanwhile, he reveals: 'Brad and Angelina are also lovely. They are so proud of each other’s work and Angie doesn’t like to leave his side, even for a minute. She’s an independent lady but she won’t take her seat at an awards ceremony without Brad.
'Everyone assumes celebrities ooze confidence but they’re just like us really,” he says. “They get super nervous, especially when it comes to outfits.'
Christopher took a deep breath when tubby Cheers star Kirstie Alley asked if her bum looked big in an unflattering gown.
'Normally I try to be honest,' he says. 'But she didn’t have time to change so I told her she looked fantastic.'
But Christopher reckons there’s something far scary than insecure actresses in ill-fitting outfits – screaming pre-teen fans.
e once had to wade in to a baying mob of 12-year-old girls to rescue High School Musical star Zac Efron.
'It was terrifying,' he says. 'I had to keep yelling at them that they’d be thrown out if they didn’t leave him alone and get back to their seats. I thought they were going to tear Zac and me to pieces!'
4:30 PM PT -- TMZ
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