Houston Horror Film Festival August 2024

Yes, another trip down to Houston. I don’t know if this is a new convention or I only noticed it this year, but there were a few names I was intrigued by.   

For the most part, the drive was easy. This was north of where I normally go in Hoston so, I didn’t get bogged down with the traffic. It was in a hotel. Parking was free but it was in the back and it filled up fast. As I as leaving, people were double parking and parking on side roads.

The convention was small. It didn’t take a lot of space. It seemed to fit the size of the crowd.  I walked into the expo floor first. It seemed the only option. I made a quick circuit and found the table for Shannyn Sossaman. That was the main purpose of the drive. I love the movie, A Knight Tail and I think she played the foil/love interest wonderfully. That movie has some wonderful lines that I find myself quoting to The Wife.

I got to the table before Shannyn. Which was good as she offered a large selection of photos. I had printed something, but found one I liked better from her table. I chit-chatted with her handlers and between us, we found a good color choice for the pen. I was all set. What could go wrong…

She arrived with a smile and I said hello. That was probably the last thing I said that where my foot wasn’t trying to find my mouth.

As she sat, I could tell she was looking over the table and trying to set herself up mentally.

What I SHOULD have said: Do you need a few minutes? I can come back.

What I said: Still need time to wake up?

                Really, I said that?  I was implying she needed to set herself up but I was saying she might be hung over. With a smile she said, she had a lovely morning.

Handed over the photo and asked if she could add a quote. I had it printed fairly large to make it easy to read. She read it and I tried to explain the context…like she wasn’t in the movie and hadn’t uttered the line a few lines.

 She signed and I barely said thank you when I said, I hope they take you our someplace nice to eat. Texas has great BBQ and Tex-Mex.

Very politely, she said, she doesn’t read meat very often.

I SHOULD have said: Houston is a large city with lots of options.

What I said: Course you don’t.

                Yes, I said that! Can you believe it? In my head, I was thinking, she was trying to eat properly and making good food choices and would avoid BBQ. But it did NOT come out that way. Oh, my word. I KNEW I was swerving all over the icy road.  I can’t believe how crass I sounded.

Give her credit, she never flinched. I mumbled how much The Wife and I love the movie and I backed out with a slight blush. I truly hope I was the worst she saw all weekend. 

The convention also had 2 Twilight actors. I’m not a fan of the movies, although we did see them all. I read the first book thinking it would be on par with Harry Potter but I was mistaken. But I still wanted to get these two.

The convention had put the Twilight actors in a separate room. I think there were a total of 4 actors set up there but only 2 were present when I was here: Peter Facinelli and Jackson Rathbone. Those were the two I wanted. A Large crowd was expected, but when I was arrived, there was only 1 other fan. I was in and out in 2 minutes. It would have been quicker but Jackson and I actually talked for a minute. He mentioned he lived in Midland, TX.  I know nothing about Midland but it was nice he shared.

After that, I was done. Found my car and headed home.

AH

Bob Gunton Greater Austin ComicCon 2024

Best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.

You might prefer the Scottish that Bobby Burns used: The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men Gang aft agley

Or if you prefer the original Klingon: Qu' nab of tarq 'ej men, pij jah qih

Well, I can’t really say ‘best plain plans’. I had a plan. Not a lot of planning. Mostly it was: wake up, add the address to google maps and drive.

I went to Greater Austin ComicCon to get 3 signatures. Just a 3 hour drive. However, because of the airline software issue, I got one autograph. The other two actors had flight delays and were not there when I was there.  It happens. I’m very happy with the one I got, I just wanted three. The most disappointing part, I didn’t know until after I got there. 

The first and only autograph I got was Bob Gunton. You know him when you see him. He has been in a million shows and movies. I was excited to finally see him at a convention.

I found a great photo from Shawshank Redemption and printed it. I even had a quote. I walked up and he signed. One of the handlers suggested a different quote and we both liked it better.

Then as I was about to start chatting (no one else was in line), a few kids walked up and saw photos from Ghostbusters Afterlife on his table and started peppering hm with questions. That also happens.

So, I didn’t tell him how much I enjoyed Royal Pains or 24.

After the nice buzz of getting this signature, I walked around looking for my other two ‘wants.’ Maybe 15 minutes later I found a place to sit and checked their website.  No updates about the missing actors. Another buddy saw me walking and texted me the bad news. The convention updated their Instagram feed.

I sat and digested that a while and decided to drive home.

AH

Tiya Sircar Retro Expo July 2024

 

Speaking of Star Wars and ‘getting’ colors choices, Tiya Sircar also got it.  Or maybe her handler got it.

As I stepped forward, she stepped away to pose with a Chomper droid on the floor. She had to; they are crew and good friends.

Before the show, I could not find a photo I liked for Tiya. So, I was left with her table choices but I did like the one I selected. However, it was very dark.   The handler and I chatted and he suggested a purple and I was very skeptical.  I liked the color as it matched her hair but I didn’t think it would show with the black background. He promised it would and if I didn’t like it, I could get another photo and choose a different color.

Tiya returned to the table and we chatted.  She signed and mentioned that she loved that pen color because of the hair. Which I had to tell her was why I liked it too.

Again, I left with another big smile.

AH

Taylor Gray Retro Expo July 2024

Yes, you all know I really enjoyed a lot of the Star Wars animated series.  I’m always happy to add more voice actors to my collection. Retro Expo was helpful this time with Talor Gray.

He was friendly and we chatted about the ‘normal stuff’. I found a table photo I liked and he suggested the green color. He ‘got it’ with the color choices and signature location.  I loved his suggestion. It fits very well with the whole phot and especially with the color of his light saber.

I left with a big smile.

AH

Priscilla Presley Retro Expo July 2024

I got this autograph because of the movie Naked Gun 2. I was never really an Elvis fan and I didn’t really follow Priscilla Presley. But Naked Gun, from all those years ago, put her on my radar.

She had the longest line all day.  She had a huge selection of photos at her table. Many of them were wedding photos or photos of her and Elvis. Many of the people in line were selecting those photos or bringing books for her to sign about her and Elvis.

One fan brought a Bucc-ees stuffed beaver.  Bucc-ees is an iconic stop when traveling along the Interstate between Dallas, Austin, or Houston or San Antonio. It’s huge and has a million gas pumps and very clean bathrooms.  They are very busy and their mascot is a Beaver.  You can buy a stuffed beaver in various sizes.

Priscilla was handed the beaver and really didn’t know what it was but knew the connection to Naked Gun movie. She held the beaver up and asked if she should sign it. The crowd laughed and said yes.  She then ‘worked blue’ and said it wasn’t even hers.  A very big laugh.

She was warm and smiled and was patient as she listened and took selfies with people.   I’m very happy to add this to me collection.

AH

Patrick Duffy Retro Expo July 2024

I have to be truthful, I really thought I have a Patrick Duffy signed book. I don’t. Maybe I’m confusing it with Larry Hagman.  Regardless, I was adding Patrick to my to do list.

He stood behind his table. He greeted people as they approached. Large smile and willingness to chat and listen. I was about to do the typical: welcome to ‘xx’. But I realized, he has spent a LOT of time in Plano, Texas.  I even mentioned that as we shook hands.  He laughed and said, he feels this is his second home.

I also mentioned I watched Man from Atlantis with my sister as a kid. Hey, it was the 70’s and there wasn’t any good sci fi. And I admitted I saw Step by Step more than once. No excused offered there.

Very nice guy and you should go out and meet him if you get the chance.

AH

Harry Hamlin Retro Expo July 2024

Retro Expo has a few shows every year. This time, it was at the Plano Event Center. The building is undergoing some construction.  Parking near the ‘front’ entrance is non-existent but there is plenty of parking in the ‘back’ entrance. The only issue is you enter the show at the back and walk through everything to get to the front and buy your admission. However, as I was walking through the convention I saw where everyone was before I got my ticket. That was helpful.

The first autograph I got was Harry Hamlin.  The Wife knows him from L.A. Law. I know him from Clash of the Titans. The photo I printed was the nearly the same as the one he had on the table.  Mine is zoomed in a little more.  Harry was about to sign with a black sharpie I handed over the red pen. The photo screams for red, doesn’t it?

He was friendly. A lot of fans had stories to share and he patiently listened.

AH

Rebel Scum Con – Allen, Texas 2024

Rebel Scum was a small convention in Allen. This was a first-time convention. Most people realized that, but it still got a lot of criticism. I agree they could have done things better but this was a first time. I’m sure if they do an honest review of the good, the bad, and the ugly, next year will be smoother and get a better response from the public.

The small convention had a very long guest list. Even though the list was long, the guests were mostly actors that no one knew. They are actors that sent time behind the make up and prosthetics. Many played multiple minor character roles in the Star Wars Universe. On top of that, a few actors have been though the DFW area over the years, so that limited the need of some collectors to attend.

As discussed previously, I do have an issue when collecting autographs. I have a hard time saying now.  From the long guest list, I found 4 people I wanted autographs.

I think everyone knows Carey Jones for one reason or another. I originally thought I would get a photo signed from Predators but I did like the photo from The Book of Bobba Fett. He was nice and we chatted a few minutes.

Michonne Bouriague sat toward the back of the autograph room. She was also sweet. We chatted in general and both agreed, the next year for this show would be better. It seemed she actually understood, this might be a slow weekend for her.

Marti Matluis will be in an upcoming series for Disney. I have liked most of that I have watched. Looking forward to the new one. We talked about Star Wars celebration and the chances of him attending.

The last one was Grant Feely who w
as in Obi Wan. He played a small part. The young man was friendly. He took his time and verified I like the location and color of the signature. I tried not to laugh. I wish all actors did that.  I shared a dad joke with him. He didn’t get it but his mom laughed. It might be the way I tell it.

After I was done with my autographs, I found my co-worker that was walking the expo floor.  We hung out together for a while. As we looked at the vendor booths, I was trying to talk him into attending other conventions in the near future.  There are so many in the DFW area. Maybe I’ll have a new ComicCon buddy to go to shows with.

AH

Tatiana Maslany Super Hero ComicCon San Antonio 2024

Orphan Black had me hooked from the opening scene of a young lady stepping out of her shoes and walking into a train…and then someone that looked like the deceased picking up her shoes and purse.

Tatiana Maslany played all of the clones in Orphan Black and each one had a unique personality. It was good show to watch.

I was in Tatiana’s line with some friends. The wait seemed short as we were all chatting among ourselves.  Tatiana was behind plexiglass and wore a mask as she greeted the fans and signed.

I was glad I printed something. The table photos were nice but they were all She-Hulk.  As the handler passed along my photo, he explained to Tatiana that all the Orphan Black photo were granulated.  Tatiana cooed as she saw my photo. I told her my Dad and I really liked this show and we both again that Helena is our favorite. I asked if she could add the quote. She read it and she said it was perfect.

After she signed, I asked if it was true she had a theme song for each clone. It was her way to get into character.  She said she use music to separate the personalities and told me what was used for Helena. I think she said Tom Wait (e) not sure.  It was muffled behind the mask and plexiglass but I was thrilled she answered.

This was my favorite encounter and autograph all day.

AH

Chris Pine Super Hero ComicCon San Antonio 2024

I really liked the photo.

I really like the full signature.

I really like the placement of the autograph.

I love the character name and the underline to emphasis it.

Chris Pine was the second autograph that I got in San Antonio. It was a smooth process. He smiled as he focused on what the handler and fans were telling him about placement and pen color for their objects.  My 8x10 was cake walk in comparison to uniforms, posters, phasers, models of the Enterprise he was signing.

I had a big smile as I left his booth. James T Kirk signed my photo.

AH