4 Odd Things State Theatre Artists Requested

On Tuesday afternoon, I sat in on a Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce lunch at the .

It was a cool experience, sitting on the stage and looking out into the theater, while theater president Shelley Brown gave a talk.

She spoke a lot about the mechanics of running the theater, booking acts, and the struggle of doing live music in an iTunes world.

She was clearly proud of the , and noted that the documentary about the show -- Most Valuable Players -- will be released next week on DVD.

But Brown also told stories about working with some of the artists, and the demands they've made. Here are four that rival the infamous Van Halen brown M&Ms story.

1. Ringo Starr wanted a baked potato. And that's it. Brown says the Beatle -- who's a vegan -- is one of the least demanding artists she's encountered. He even cooked the potato himself.

2. Brian Setzer asked for socks and underwear. "Clean ones," Brown stressed.

3. Stephanie Powers insisted Brown rescue a cat. The actress was performing the play "Love Letters" at the State in 1995. Brown said Powers heard a stray cat crying outside the theater, and said she wouldn't be able to perform unless she knew the cat was OK (and fed). Brown and the stage crew went out to get the cat, which was ultimately adopted by a Nazareth family.

4. Art Garfunkel wanted honey. Bear honey.  A lot of singers want honey for their voices, Brown said. And Garfunkel got honey when he came to Easton. But the problem, she said, is that the honey wasn't in one of those bear bottles, a fact that led to a "temper tantrum" from the guy who co-sang "Bridge Over Troubled Water."