Behind the Scenes at Madame Tussauds

Madame Tussauds may attract a lot of tourists, but The NY Times journeys into the mostly unseen nooks of the wax museum, uncovering an oddity that locals would probably pay to see: the repair shop. This is where "unmouthed teeth and disembodied heads are strewn across the tables and the floor." The wax ER had Joan Rivers in when the paper visited, they were told people touch her dress a lot (causing frequent fix-ups), though not as much as Marilyn Monroe's! Another behind the scenes factoid: B-listers are often requesting the Tussaud treatment, wanting to live on forever in all their wax glory. For the chosen ones, they can get nitpicky; the artists are well aware of their works of art and their real-life counterparts, many of whom come back to check in on their figures. Al Roker, post weight-loss, requested a slimmer wax self...but there's no word on whether Lindsay is okay with her 2006 faux Lohan, which looks a little dated now.