Wonka Kids – cause 3 out of 5 ain’t bad

Did you grow up watching Willy Wonka?  Did you find it fun or creepy?  I first saw it an age where I could enjoy the movie and was not creeped out. I can’t say the same for Wizard of Oz or Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.  Those movies weren’t as entertaining as Mom and Dad thought. I was excited about getting the Wonka kids signatures. This was a warm part of my childhood.

I know that getting 3 out of 5 signatures isn’t that good.  Originally Wizard World in Austin was getting all 5 of the kids. One had to cancel and I figured 4 of the 5 was still good.  Somehow during the time I was there Saturday, I never saw the fourth.  C’est le vie.  Another show at another time.

When I was ready to pick up these autographs I approached Peter Ostrum first but he was in the mist of repairing some eyeglasses. He had the tiny screwdriver out and I saw a small screw on the table.  Peter looked up and was about to move the glasses and I stopped him. I told him getting the glasses fixed is more important and I tapped my glasses so he knew how important it really was. 

Then Paris Themmen, who was sitting next to Peter, leaned over and said that the glasses were his.  He said that since Peter was a Doctor, it only made sense to have him operate on the glasses.  We all gave a courtesy chuckle over that.  So I slide over to Paris and got him to sign a photo.

I was about to slide back to Peter but magically he had a line so I went over to Julie Dawn Cole.  She smiled and I smiled back and then told her I saw her and her Golden Ticket on Hollywood Treasure. She laughed and talked about reality and TV reality.  She mentioned how the timeline in the show did not match the timeline in reality. She also told me she had one more Golden Ticket which was not for sale.

After that, I moved back to Peter. He was done with the other fans and the glasses were now repaired.  He signed and then I asked if he got his Veterinary Degree at Texas A&M.  He said no and asked why?  I mentioned I had a sick cat and he smiled before I finished.  I knew that smile.  I told him I wasn’t going to ask for a diagnosis and he laughed. I said we had gone to A&M's Vet clinic 3 times.  I was told it was one of the best in the country and he agreed that it was.

He asked what was wrong and I said the cat vomits everyday and he nodded and said ‘ah’ and then added: the mysterious vomiting cat. Apparently vomiting cats isn’t too rare. He asked if they ever found the issue and I said no. He asked what tests they did and I realized we were trying to diagnosis the cat…in the middle of a comic book convention. Surreal to say the least.   

I gave him a few more details and apologized for talking about a sick cat. He said he won’t have become a vet is if he didn’t care about other people’s animals. A comment I appreciated and I left feeling I meet another very nice guy.

AH