This title is sensationally misleading but not exactly 100% false.
Let me start by saying, anyone who tells you not to meet your idol is an idiot. Advice like that comes from the opinion that once you see the human faults of your demigod, all you hold dear with high esteem comes crumbling down. But here's why it's wrong:
1. Why hero worship someone who is actually a jerk? Ignorance is not bliss.
2. They could be an awesome respectable person in real life and makes you appreciate them even more.
The latter is my expirience. Back in 2012 I found out late about Morrisoncon. Having never been to a comic convention before, the spirit of this congregation of artists and writers was what I always dreamed of: real face time with creators. It was expensive but I booked on the prospect of being able to meet Jim Lee. All I wanted to do was meet him.
Upon that meeting, and after my assault rifle barrage of stories, jokes and anything to keep the conversation going (we are mutual Howard Stern fanatics), I asked if he would just look at some of my pages I drew. Being the classy guy he is, he was cool with it and gave me feedback. Then asked if he could draw on it to demonstrate what he was saying. From any interview online, I knew the guy was humble and kind but this took me back. This guy, this legend, seriously asked if he could draw on the garbage of a page I laid out before him cause that's the kind of guy he is.
Bottom left corner of this panel, he made a few lines to define the shadows of this lamp and other shadows. It means absolutely nothing when you see it, but something far greater when I do. Like every human artist trying to make comics, I spent many childhood hours laying his comics next to my computer paper in an attempt to recreate those iconic X-Men poses. Every visit to a comic shop, ended with a back issue hunt for any Punisher, WildC.A.T.S., Divine Right, or anything I was missing of his before I checked out. My password for the day job at one point was Uncanny#248. The same poster he drew that I would fall asleep staring at as a kid now hangs in my son's room. And in a few quick marks of the pencil, that same artist "collaborated" on my page. I understand the insignificance of this but it felt very circle of life for me.
Plenty of stories came out of Morrisoncon but staying on topic, Jim Lee started sketching in people's books and naturally the line grew enormous. I had spoken to his buddy and day-of enforcer, Eddy Choi, who let me stay and kicked everyone behind me off line. For that I am really grateful. I didn't get to the front of the line for a couple hours but I got to sit and talk some more as he whipped up this Catwoman for me. He spent hours drawing for and interacting with fans when he really didn't have to.
I was never a follower just based on his art. It was who this guy was as a professional/ human being. In contrast, I went to this event alone. I had asked someone who was volunteering working/standing around, if they could use my broken iPhone 3 to take a picture of me and my hero and the dude wouldn't. "I can't," was the exact response, despite having done this a few times for others already. But I get it; he didn't have to and he wasn't there to take pictures and maybe he was busy to spare a few seconds but I mention this only to point out the difference in caliber of people. Some people are mega famous artists who put up with fans asking to see their work and engage in polite conversations, and then there are the nobodies who don't have to do anything for you so why should they?
The lesson? Be more like the Jim Lee's in this world.