Cell Phone Brings Wold Reknowned Orchestra to Halt

Beautiful classical music was reaching a crescendo at the world-reknowned New York Philharmonic, when suddenly - a sour note.

And now, the front-row customer whose repeated cell phone ring tones ruined the performance for everybody is coming forward to apologize, after two sleepless nights.

"You can imagine how devastating it is to know you had a hand in that," the guilt-wracked businessman identified only as "Patron X" told the New York Times.

"Patron X" released in a statemant, "I hope the people at that performance and members of the orchestra can certainly forgive me for this whole event."

Conductor Alan Gilbert said, "This ring tone went on and on and on, it was the loudest thing in the hall."

Gilbert was so outraged by the nonstop ring tones he took the most drastic measure a composer can take.

"Something had to be done! So we had to stop the music," said Gilbert.

And the crowd went wild, according to a woman who was there, "The audience was going nuts, jeering and screaming, 'Throw him out!' "

At last, the phone was turned off, and the music resumed. "Patron X" later personally apologized to the conductor and his apology was accepted.

If you think the philharmonic fiasco at Lincoln Center is an isolated incident, guess again. It's just the latest in a long string of annoying cell phone interruptions that couldn't have come at a worse time.

Barbra Streisand's 1999 Golden Globes speech was tarnished by a ringing phone.

Streisand asked, "Is that somebody's cell phone?"

Gweneth Paltrow, just minutes after winning her Oscar® for Shakespeare in Love, took matters in hand and grabbed a ringing phone and talked to the caller on the other end in the press room.