A dilettante’s adventures and misadventures collecting autographed books, baseballs, and photos; meeting celebrities and ball players; and attending conventions from the past 35 years.
When I came back, the line was shorter but I wasn’t ‘next’. When
I finally was my time to get my autograph, Valorie Curry was very friendly. The
previous fan was chatting about the video game she was in for years. She mentioned
she started that character when he was his age now.
As we chatted, she glowed when talking about the actor who
played Soldier Boy (Jenson Ackles, who was in Supernatural). She said he was
such a nice guy.
Then I was on my way to the next line.
AH
Robert wore a hat and gave off a New York vibe. It was a
good vibe. A vibe I saw a lot as a kid. He speaks quietly and is friendly.
We chatted and he signed before I realized it. Can you see
the signature? It shows better in person.
While not the best autograph I got, I’m happy to have met him after all these
years.
AH
He and his handler had some fun banter going back and forth.
Not sure if they knew each other or they just clicked.
I selected a photo from his table and he was planning on
using silver and sign along the bottom. I suggested blue and sign near the top.
He hesitated. The handler mentioned he has a large signature. Before I could
rethink, Richard started signing. His hand shook a lot. It took him some
effort. He finished and stared at the photo. He wasn’t happy with it. He picked
up another photo and started again. The handler and I chatted as he worked on
it.
When he was done, he nodded and asked which one I preferred.
I picked the first one. They gave me both. We chatted a little more, he was
very proud of his movie 3 O’ Clock high, which I remember fondly.
AH
When I finally got to the table, the handler was too bubbly for
me. I was drenched in sweat and needed some electrolytes. I handed her money,
and slid my photo over to her. She was waiting for me to respond and I didn’t, I
just stood there and sweated.
As I stepped forward, I could tell, she wanted to say
something to Jake about my attitude. But I was saving energy for him. I opened
up. We shook hands, a hard strong grip. I welcomed him to Texas and wished him
a great convention. I told him I was Strangers Things fan so I offered this
photo. He nodded and signed.
Then we shook again and I wandered off for some water and Gatorade.
AH
The crowded was divided between getting Young Guns and Scream
items signed by him.
He was friendly. He got distracted when Keifer Southerland moved.
He said something to Keifer and he mentioned that it was great to be all together
for a Young Guns reunion. It’s been a while since he had seen some of the
actors. The fans were very happy about that too.
AH
Casey was friendly. He was chatting with people. The line
moved as a steady pace. This was the second signature I got and I was making
progress on my list.
AH
Jeff Fahey was the first autograph I got at Fan Expo. It was
not the first line I stood in. I gave up after 30 minutes in another celebrity’s
line. The guest was there. His table was ready but he wasn’t ready. So, I left.
I had a long list of autographs I wanted and needed to be as productive as
possible.
Jeff welcomed me as I walked up with a huge smile. He has
smile like he knows you and is happy to see you again. He had a nice selection of
table photos. We chatted; mostly about Lost. It’s exciting to get Lost autographs.
Those autographs are slow to obtain. It was a great way to make progress on my want
list.
Then I wandered to the next guest.
AH
He had a long line but I wasn’t concerned. I had all day. Even
though it was long, the line was moving. To help past the time, the fans had
lots of interesting items for him to sign. One had a foot tall coffin with Jubo
in it. Another fan had a bucket of KFC. I was more mundane and just had an
8x10.
When I stepped up, I said, Hello President Palmer. I got a
very small smile. I’m sure he got that a thousand times. Then I added, I always
think of 24 when I see your name. It’s true. I do. Now you ask yourself, why
did I get a photo from Major League signed? Because, I might think David Palmer
but Major League is more iconic to me. I watch Major League at least once a
year. I haven’t watched 24 since it ended many many years ago.
Dennis was nice. He added the quote: Hats for bats, which is
a line The Wife and I toss about more times than I care to admit. And it’s perfect
for the photo.
Then I left and enjoyed the rest of my Saturday.
AH
His line was about 30 people deep. It was moving slow because
Paul was enjoying meeting his fans. He had stories to share and questions to
answer. Very friendly and likeable. He shared his anecdotes with the Star Wars people
about his chin strap and beard. He didn’t want to wear it as it made his face
look fat. It was going back and forth and whether ‘canon’ was involved. Star
Wars takes canon seriously.
After a short photo op break, I got his autograph and I headed
back to the car. It felt good to sit and decompress the spine. And yes, there
was still people in line to get their autograph tickets.
AH
Denise Gough had a short line by the time I got there. She was moving
fairly fast but giving people time. She wasn’t rushing people.
I think she picked up a blue pen to sign but I asked for
white. I said it will work better with the grey background and match the uniform.
She admitted it looked nice when she was done.
She offered the quote and I think it’s perfect.
AH
