I have no reason to doubt the story @1. Anybody who's worked in the hospitality industry, particularly in higher-end establishments, usually has a few of these kinds of anecdotes in their back pocket. I've even got a reverse-version of this: that is, an encounter with a bellhop who later became a very well-known Hollywood actor. Come to a SLOG Happy sometime, and I'll regale you with it.
i may be off base about this, but we bartenders and baristas don't kiss and tell, because we're like shrinks. so our tips over hours worked ratio is probably higher on the average because of the trust factor. i could make some pretty high ticket celebrities (hollywood, sports, music, politics, etc.) deeply ashamed about how they treated their coffee person at the tip jar, though.
/scene