Chris Jackson/Getty ImagesGiven how California has treated the crown-and-tiara crowd in the past, it's a wonder Kensington Palace's finest are back for more today.
Oh, the Golden State means well, Prince William and Kate Middleton, but this is Hollywood. Things really are different here.
Consider these weird highlights from royal visits past:
1. Fergie Gets Flowers From Johnny 5: Why, isn't it every young duchess' dream to come face to bulging mechanical eyeball with the robot from Short Circuit? Sorry, Short Circuit 2. Yes, that makes it much more special.
2. George Burns Talks Dirty to Queen Elizabeth: Well, all right, per an account of a 1983 Hollywood gala for the Queen and Prince Philip, Burns talked dirty to the whole room. And, all right, Burns wasn't all that dirty. And, all right, the Queen was said to be amused. But, seriously, that Burns dude said the word "sex" way too much.
3. Princess Anne Gets Stuck on a Tram: For many a tourist, the Universal Studios Tour is a perfectly fine way to spend a day. But for the daughter of the Queen of England? Is it really wise, or even kind, to subject a presumably jet-lagged royal to a photo-op with the fake shark from Jaws? Fortunately, Anne didn't flinch, her tour guide reported. (The King Kong 3-D ride was still years away.)
4. Princess Diana Faints: Technically, William's beloved mother passed out in Vancouver, but she did so while touring the California exhibition at the 1986 World's Fair there, so close enough. And, for the record, the incident wasn't spurred by anything California did, per se—you know, like, launch a fake shark at her or something.
5. Prince Charles Gets Totally Dissed: In 1974, William's father, then a bachelor on active military duty, took shore leave in Palm Springs. The local bigwigs treated him to golf, and gushed to the New York Times about how the prince "was far more handsome in person than his photographs." Gee, thanks.