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
When I finally got through my autograph ticket conversion
obstacle course, I headed to her table. She was not there. I think she was
doing photo ops. She was supposed to be back in 30 minutes. I can work with
that. That is when I went to Dean-Charles’ table. When I was with Dean-Charles,
Bryce was at the table. I slowly made my way over. One person was talking to her. This person had
her hand on Bryce’s arm and leaning close. I figured it was a friend or a professional
encounter. I asked the handler if Bryce was back or just talking to this
person. I was told she was back. Awesome. And yes, I looked back, and there
were still gobs of people in line to get their autograph tickets…glass half
full…I’m not waiting in a long line for Bryce.
The handler liked the photo I brought. Although there was a
table photo I saw and I debated. The handler said something that was true. My photo
was a little more unique. At least for this show. I stayed with my photo. Mine was
a little plain but I did like it.
Bryce was very friendly. We chatted. She made fun of me when
I asked if she been to Dallas before. It is her middle name. in my defense, being
conceive in Dallas is not the same as visiting Dallas. We had a few laughs. I was
enjoying that no one else was in line.
She signed and I left. I had expected a very long line for
her. This was a wonderful boon for an aging autogrpah hound.
AH
The ONLY positive of this issue was there was still a hundred
or more people in line behind me that were stuck. Which means, there
were not in front of me to get autographs. Trying to be glass half full…
I walked up to Dean-Charles Chapman first. Just one other
fan in front of me. They were having a good conversation. I listened and waited
patiently. My patience was surprising because I just finished a 2 ½ hour penitence…but
glass half full…
Dean-Charles was friendly. We chatted. He signed. Since this
convention is in my home town, I offered a few suggestions for diner.
AH
I enjoy her so much I actually presented her with a letter
of appreciation. It was from the Rebels. The Rebels were overjoyed with her
work. It seems she has decreased morale in the Imperium and that has increased
morale among the Rebels. They were encouraging her to continue the good work.
When I walked up to her table, we exchanged a few words and
then I handed her the letter. It’s tough to be put on the spot to try to read something
‘cold’ and react. She did a good job. I got a smirk from her which is what I would
expect from Delores.
Then I handed over my photo and she signed. I was a very
happy camper.
AH
My line slowly inched forward. I kept looking back. People brought
every copy of their books for him to sign. He didn’t mind. When his line was nearly
empty, I asked the person behind me if I could leave for a few minutes. She gave
me her blessing. Then I went to Michael’s table. He was just finishing with a
younger fan as I pulled my book out of the backpack.
The fan left and I stepped up. I told him I was trying to
multi-task. I was stuck in the line that was never moving and figured I would at
least see him.
The last thing he said to the previous fan concerned writing
stories in other people’s universes. The public doesn’t know what is planned. The
publisher is often planning the next 2 years out. Either with books ready to
print or consigning work to other authors. Michael’s suggestion to the fan was
to contact the publisher before investing time on writing something that won’t
fit the time line. I never thought of that before.
After I handed over my book, he asked about my polo shirt.
yes, I was wearing my obligatory UofA shirt. He asked if the ‘A’ was Arizona. I
asked if he went there. He said no, he lives in the Pheonix area. So that got
us chatting about AZ and monsoons and mountains.
He asked if he could personalize. I said, I would like something
more old school: name, date, and convention. He normally doesn’t do that but I think
he liked that idea.
When I got back in line, the line moved about 50 feet. Not far
but much further than I expected. We made progress. I think I waited another 1 ½
hours to get my autograph tickets.
AH
The show was crowded. It is a lot of local fans that don’t
travel 2 or 3 hours for a show. They are excited a show came to them. While I
think they are missing out, they seem very happy at Bell County ComicCon.
When we got there, Diedrich was not at his table. I was told
he’d be back ‘in a few’. That can be ten
minutes to an hour but I got in line with the other people waiting. The wait
was closer to the 10 minute mark.
He chatted as he signed. Friendly and willing to talk.
He smiled when he saw my photo. I blamed The Wife. She
really likes the Miss Congeniality movies. After he signed, I mentioned I really
liked the Drew Carey Show and we watched every week. He thanked me and I was
done.
I waited a short time for the buddy to finished and then we
headed back to Dallas.
AH
It was 5PM on Saturday and I was ready to get this done and
go back to the hotel. The Spurs basketball team was in the NBA finals and the
game was starting just across the parking lot. I wanted to get out before the game
started.
I got in line for John Cena. There were several groups to be
called before us but I was the front of our line. The guy next to me was
watching the Rangers baseball game on his phone and chatting with the people behind
him.
The line monitors started walking through the group. Reminders
to have the prepaid tickets out and the item to have signed. They mentioned
John had a hard break but he could get through everyone if we didn’t chit chat
and were ready with our items. Yes, I did start to worry. I wondered if I would
be staying late or coming back on Sunday. I really didn’t want to come back. I wanted
to relax on Sunday.
The line really did start to move. When I got behind the
curtains hiding signing table and John, I handed over my ticket and photo. I mentioned
I would like red for the paint pen. The handler said, the ‘red’ they had didn’t
work well. John actually paused and turned to me and said I won’t like the
results in ‘red’. But I will like the
results in ‘blue’. With a smile, I said: ‘Blue’ it is.
Then I was in front of John and he signed. I told him thanks and it did look good in ‘blue’.
Then he smiled and said: I told you.
I left and it wasn’t too long after 5 PM. I called The Wife
and she was already waiting in the parking lot waiting for me. A short walk in
the San Antonio heat and I was in the car heading to a restaurant for dinner. Then
we walked the game from the hotel room.
AH
When I was prepping for this convention, I couldn’t find a photo
I liked that wasn’t pixelated. I was relying on the options at the table. Even
they didn’t have too many options. I chose what I thought was best. I do like
this photo. The silver paint pen was great.
While Jimmy was ahead of schedule with the signing, he was
taking a few seconds with everyone. I welcomed him to Texas and he asked where I
was from. I told him I came from North
of Dallas. He mentioned a relative in Ft Worth. Then he asked if I grew up in
Texas. I’m sure I don’t sound Texan. I mentioned Jersey. He told me he worked in
Princeton for a while. I told him my Dad worked in Princeton for a while too. Then
a few more comments about how pretty Jersey is. Yes, Jersey is pretty. Lots of
history too.
As we parted, he told me to say ‘hi’ to my Dad. How cool is that? My Dad got a shout out from
Jimmy Smits!
AH
A tradition at conventions, when the guest arrives, the waiting
crowd cheers and claps. Once we did that
for Famke, Olivier Ritchers looked up. He paused in his signing and walked over
to her. They are both from the Netherlands and the chatted for a few minutes.
She is just shy of 6 feet but she looked short next to Olivier. But EVERYBODY
looks short next to him.
I had printed a photo. It was similar to her table photo but
mine was cropped to give more space for a signature. I handed over the photo
and asked for white and suggested where to place her autograph.
She gave me a nice large graph in the prefect spot. Love it.
AH
I thought she looked classy and elegant in the photo; I didn’t
want the color choice to be distracting. She assured me it would look nice. I think
it does.
Maybe I need to have my testosterone checked….?
AH
Olivier is huge. I’m 6’ 3” and I’m dwarfed. He was all
smiles and chatted with everyone. Someone was filming content and Olivier would
pause and talk to the camera.
As I got to the front of the table, the handlers looked at my
photo. Nothing but crickets behind their eyes. That’s okay. The photo ain’t for
them.
Then it was my turn. We shook hands. I tried hard to give a
strong handshake but I could tell, he never felt it. He didn’t squeeze back
incase he hurt me. I was not offended.
He looked down at the photo and stepped back laughing. He looked
over the tables photos to find it. I mentioned
I printed this one myself. He quickly said it was staged for a day that Alan
was off set. It was something fun to do. He turned to the handlers and told
them. He was happy to see this. I made him happy.
As he signed, I mentioned the video of him and his friend in
black suits acting like body guards. Then he asked if he should do more. I, of
course, said yes. He tuned to the camera and said the public wants more. They
have to do more.
With my mission accomplished, I left for the next autograph.
AH
