All-Con with Wedge and C-3PO

I have said it before and it is true, All-Con is good small convention. It does a lot of things. It doesn’t want to grow and it has loyal fans. The thing they do that I like most is ‘Free Thursday’. No admission to attend on Thursday. That allows me and my friends to come, look over the vendor room, and get the autographs we want.

I had a couple of autographs I wanted. After getting a couple of double-takes from people because I didn’t have a badge, I walked over to David Ankrum’s table. He was standing behind his table arranging photos. The lady that was sitting next to him got his attention and pointed to me. We barely exchanged ‘helloes’ when he pointed out the red, white, and blue ‘A’ logo on my shirt. He asked if I went to Arizona.  I smiled and nodded and asked if he did. As he was saying no and explaining his daughter did, the lady stood and introduced herself as his wife.

As we talked about Tucson and Uof A for a bit. Chris Bartlett came over and asked about a panel they were planning on doing. Since it was business, I stepped back and chatted with the wife, Barbara Ankrum.  Because she had 10 different books on the table with her name on them, I asked if she was a writer.  Yeah, not my sharpest moment. But I was vamping to wait out Chris.

One of the books was made into a Hallmark movie; which I replied my mom and maybe my wife has seen it. Mom watches a lot of Hallmark. Of course, I asked to get a signed copy. Then we talked about writing and the glamor of being a published writer.

Now conversation between Chris and David slowed and they turned to Barbara and me. Barabara asked about Chris’s origin story. I smiled at the turn of phrase but I guess people do say that nowadays: origin story.

He mentioned being a cosplayer and made his own C-3PO suit. He was an actor and did a YouTube video of himself as C-3PO. Lucas saw it and a meeting was set up. They wanted to see him in person. Lucas also wanted to see his suit. They flew in Chris and his suit. Talked and he now does C-3PO in the TV series and some of the other characters. And some of those are characters Chris created himself.

We chatted for another 10 minutes. It was great to be part of the chit-chat. I feel like part of the ‘in crowd’. After Chris moved on, David mentioned he actually tried out for C-3PO. When he was called back, he was asked to do Wedge.

After I left David’s table, I backtracked to Chris’s and picked up his signature.

AH

 

Susan Lucci La Lucci mail order book signing

As you probably know, I prefer getting my autographs in person. Besides being able to verify the signature, I like meeting the people and possibly sharing a word or two. While it doesn’t happen often, it’s great when you can connect or make them laugh or come away with an anecdote to share with friends. Ordering a signed book is not the normal process for me.  I do it, but it’s the exception.

The Wife watched soaps forever. I never did. Well, not daytime soaps. A lot of my sci fi shows are semi or more than semi ‘soapy’. And yes, she laughs at me when she sees what I’m watching.

Somewhere, I became fixated on Susan Lucci. Not stalker fixated. Never wrote her a letter or tracked her on the internet. Just when she was on TV, I would pause. If I passed through the living room and The Wife was watching a soap, I would ask where Susan was. Most times the answer was ‘wrong show’ and I would walk off. If it was the right show, I would pause, wait until I saw Susan and sigh. The Wife would throw a pillow and I would walk off.

When my social media accounts were flooded with ads about Susan’s new book and I could order a signed copied, I succumbed to their advertising power. I could not resist. I clicked a link and provided my payment. I feel a little guilty about being weak minded about that. BUT it is Susan Lucci and The Wife will attest; I have a thing for Susan.

When the book arrived, I opened the package and The Wife took it from my hands and said she wanted to read it. I may have held it for 3 seconds before it was spirited away. Then she let me know there was dozens of glamorous photos of Susan. The Wife has a mean steak.

I’m sure I’ll get the book back in a few months.

AH

Feeding Phil Rosenthal and an Autograph Hound

I have a friend who is a ‘foodie’. The Wife is a semi foodie. I collect autographs.

When Phil Rosenthal announced a tour stop in Dallas, it seemed natural a group of us would go to see Phil. If you don’t know, Phil was the genius behind the TV Series, Everyone Loves Raymond. And he is the genius behind the Netflix series, Someone Feed Phil. It’s a show where he travels and eats. While I was drooling for an autograph, the others (coworker, his wife, and The Wife) drooled over the anecdotes and memories that Phil shared at the Majestic Theater.

He was funny and polished. He had everyone laughing. The moderator did well with asking questions and getting out of the way. She also had some good questions and was well prepared.

After the event, there was a Meet and Greet. Phil posed for photos and signed books. He exchanged a few words with everyone. The Wife was excited to get her book signed. I was happy to get my photo signed.

Afterward, it was nice ride home with friends as we discussion what was said.

Two things that stand out from the appearance:

He talked but a romantic location on the water in Italy (I think), the table is set out on a jetty and is very isolated. Phil decided to take his wife to that restaurant and dine at that romantically isolated table. He called and talked to the owner, who was very excited to speak with Phil. They discussed how busy the restaurant had become since the episode aired. Phil was happy to hear that. Then Phil asked if he could make reservations and get that table on the jetty.  The short answer was ’no’. It was booked for the foreseeable future. Very funny.

Based on the show, it appears Phil loves everything he eats. He took the question and said, yes, everything he airs on the show he likes or loves.  The things he did not like are not aired. He explained, there is no reason to show something he doesn’t like and possible give ‘bad press’ to a small business owner. Just because Phil didn’t like it didn’t mean it wasn’t good.  Which is something I appreciate. People often try to make me eat things they find delicious that just look or smell noxious.

My friends got their appetite whetted and I got my autograph. A good night for everyone.

AH

Carl Lumbly SpaceConSA October 2025

Everyone knows Carl Lumbly from Alias or The Marvel-verse. I never watched Alias, although I should. But for me, his role in Buckaroo Banzai overshadows his work in Marvel-verse.  It’s me. Don’t think about it too much.

Carl’s table was full of photos from Alias and Marvel. As I talked to the handler, I showed the photo and asked if he thought this would be okay. I also asked his opinion about pen color and placement. We both agreed on blue sharpie and the location. Carl’s signature wasn’t too big to get lost in the image.

When it was my turn, I showed the photo and the smile that Carl was wearing got brighter.  He did exactly what I hoped. He made a few comments about the movie and filming and the people he met. He said the same, I had heard often, it was a lot of fun. This director/writer’s first movie and everyone wasn’t sure where it would go.

I mentioned I was more or less babysitting a couple of kids when I was college and they suggested this movie. I hadn’t heard another about it. they ended up not liking the movie but I was very entertained. I have watched the movie a few times since and little details keep popping out.

Carl mentioned he liked the behind scenes photo. He picked up a black pen but the handler stepped in and said he thought blue would be great and pointed where we agreed earlier. It’s nice to have a good handler helping.

As I stepped away, we were both still grinning. This was my favorite encounter at the show.

AH

PS I could have used 'B's' help on this. This photo looked awesome as an 11x14. 8x10 is nice but resizing would have been great.

Grace Park SpaceConSA October 2025

I enjoyed Battlestar Galactica in the early 2000’s. They re-visioned it, but not in a way that made it unwatchable.

I have picked up a lot of the actor’s autographs from that show. Grace Park is one of the few missing holes I have.

Grace was all smiles.  I handed over the photo. She got distracted by her handler.  I was looking over the color pens she had.  Thy actually had a photo with different pens tested. This way you could, hopefully, choose the the best color and placement.

When she came back, I suggested a color and placement. Her handling explained what I did with the test photo. She was impressed. We chatted and I made her laugh a few times. Then she told me I was funny. I told her she needs to tell The Wife that. That made her laugh even louder.

She signed, not in the best pace but I liked it. Then she handled it back.  I stepped back as two of my buddies were next.  They chatted and she mentioned something about me being funny. And they said I make then laugh too.

But maybe the best and last laugh is on me.

I looked at the photo, I see she added the character name of Kono and not Boomer.

AH

Ivanna Sakhno SpaceConSA October 2025

Over the years, I have met fellow collectors at events and conventions. Sometimes, it’s a nodding acquaintance and other times, you exchange phone numbers and keep in touch. I had lost touch with ‘B’.  I was very surprised when he poked his head to the side and said hello. It had been a couple of years.

As we were waiting for Ivanna Sakhno to arrive, I mentioned my photo. I said I liked the image but I could not crop it in a meaning way. It was too large. He paused. Shook his head in disappointment. He said I should have reached out. He basically does that for a living. Well, he does a lot more than futz with image sizes but he could have resized it for me.  I need to remember that.

Chatting with him made the time pass quicker. Ivanna had a long line but still took a few seconds to chat and smile.

After I was done, I looked for ’B’ and just as mysteriously appearing, he disappeared. Never saw him at the show again.  Odd how that happens.

AH

Grant Gustin SpaceConSA October 2025

I’ve had Grant Gustin cancel a couple of appearances on me. Well, he didn’t cancel on ME. He just cancelled appearances where I thought I would be meeting him. I think the last cancellation was a year ago at this very show. I’m glad SpaceCon got him back.

Grant was friendly and all smiles.

When I handed over the photo, he looked at it, trying to place it. It wasn’t one of this table photos. He asked about color, suggesting white. I asked for yellow and explained that his suit had the yellow highlights. It’s a matching in a subtle way.

Then he asked where to sign and suggested the ’void’. I had not heard anyone describe the space that way before. I liked that description. It told me he ‘got’ why I cropped the photo that way.

After he signed, I commented that The Wife remembers him from Glee. He laughed. He was in a few episodes but it’s interesting what sticks in the back of our minds.

AH

Wilson Bethel SpaceconSA October 2025

I like that Wilson Bethel has a quote and symbol he automatically adds to his signature. He embraces the role and he is having fun.

As he was about to sign for me, we got interrupted by the owner of the convention. The owner came by and had to a few words to say to Wilson and to take a few selfies. It was a short delay and no real harm. Afterward, I just did my normal ‘thanks for coming to San Antonio and hope they feed you well’, routine.

AH

Gil Gerard SpaceConSA October 2025

I returned to San Antonio the weekend after Big Texas ComicCon for another show. The show that made me drive another 4 ½ hours was SpaceConSA. I have been to this show before, along with its sister convention, Superhero ComicCon. These shows are well organized solid shows with exciting guests not often seen across the country.

This particular show was less than thrilling for me as I had met many of these guests. I have attended a lot of ComicCon over the decades. Most of these people, I have bumped into in the past.

One of them I had seen before was Gil Gerard. As I was checking my list of autographs, I noticed, I had him on a photo with Erin Grey but not by himself. This was my time to correct that.

Gil arrived a little late. He apologized. He was in a wheelchair. When I got there, he was still trying to get comfortable in the chair used at the table. He mentioned he fell a while back and is still recovering.

He signed and I thanked him. I mentioned my sister and I always watched Buck Rogers as kids. He thanked me and I was on my way.

And of course, after I left, I remembered I wanted to ask about the episode with Buster Crabbe.  I’m sure he’s been asked a million times. I do remember watching Buster in Buck Rogers AND Flash Gordon on a UHF channel in Philly. It was one of the reasons, I watched Gil’s version in the 70’s.

AH

Maggie Grace Big Texas ComicCon 2025

I overheard this was the first time that Maggie Grace has done a ComicCon where she signed for paying fans. When she arrived, she mentioned she was nervous. She had just come from the photo ops and she wore a slightly off-white pant suit with low heels. She hair and makeup were done. The blouse she wore had long frilly sleeves that she was constantly pushing up her arm as she talked and signed.

When I finally got to her, she signed and asked if she could add the quote I agreed. I think this is perfect for this photo.

I mentioned she was part of the reason I got to go to SDCC so often.  The first year I went was just after the first season of Lost aired. She and Josh Hollway were on the Lost panel. The Wife was infatuated with Sawyer. After The Wife asked me a dozen times to confirm that Sawyer was there, she declared we would go next year.  And the unspoken part was to see Sawyer.  Josh Holloway did not attend that next SDCC. Grace laughed and said, you never know, Josh might do a ComicCon and then The Wife would be happy.

She shared a few brief memories of SDCC and the crowds before I left.

AH