Penn and Tell Majestic Theater 2001

I really though I lost this. Over the years, my focus for autographs has shifted. At first, I collected mostly books. Then I started collecting baseballs. Then I morphed into actors with a few books and balls in the mix. In 2001, I was not into celebs and I mostly did baseballs. So something like a signed ticket stub didn’t have a home in my collection. It ended up in a pile of ticket stubs and left for lost.

I finally got off my lazy butt and did some organizing. While I was cleaning up the mess of ticket stubs, badges, and matchbooks I’ve collected over the years, I found this little gem.  After several hour s of looking over what I had collected, my mess of memories became better organized and sorted. I chucked some stuff.  I shared some memories with The Wife.  Most importantly, I created more room for the next 30 years.

Back in 2001, I dragged The Wife to see Penn and Teller. I had recently seen them perform the Bullet Catch trick on a talk show and was amazed. I was excited there were coming to town and I bought tickets. The Wife was not so excited.  She was a good sport and let me drag her to downtown Dallas to see the team perform.

The show was very good. I was excited I had seen them in person. The Bullet Catch is just as impressive in person as on TV. Their show is series of tricks, anecdotes, and explanations.

After the show, I was surprised both Penn and Teller were in the front of the theater greeting fans and chatting.  I saw that they both had sharpies and signed anything. The only thing I had was my ticket stub. So the both signed; one on each side. That was the perfect bonus to a great show. and then sadly, the ticket stub was lost for over 15 years.

Years later, I got them to sign a book at SDCC. Where again, they greeted fans after the show and signed for people.

AH

Eric Idle and John Cleese Majestic 2016

I enjoy Monty Python.  I must admit, I enjoy their movies much more than their TV Series. On the TV show, I just couldn’t understand ¼ of what they were saying because of the accents. Also there was very local references that meant nothing to a 13 year old kid living in Jersey that knew nothing of US politics yet alone British politics.

Monty Python and the Holy Grail is by far my favorite. I also greatly enjoyed John Cleese in ‘A Fish Called Wanda’ and I was a fan of Eric Idle and the Rutles. The chance of getting their autographs when these two came to Dallas to perform their 2 man show was too great to miss.

As is often the case, I got there too late for a signing before the show.  So I waited.  I was later joined by fellow hounds that had gotten some autographs earlier.  They gave me the 411 about no selfies, only one autograph per person, and expect the photo to be personalized.

Once the show was over, the crowd swelled to 25 or 30 people waiting.  Eric Idle stepped out first.  He walked straight to me and signed.  John Cleese started signing a moment later but on the other side of the sidewalk.

As John finished signing for fans on the far side, he started to step into his car.  Fans from my side shouted for his attention.  He paused and slowly made his way over to us.  As he signed my photo, he did comment that he really liked it. Yeah me. 

Curiously, while they still didn’t do selfies, they were signing multiples for people and not personalizing. Again, this was a win for me.  I prefer not to have the name on the item. At some time, the wife will need sell off all of this stuff to pay for my wake. My name on the collection will not help her sell it.

As they both worked the crowd, a woman about 45 – 50 years old was crying.  She was trying to explain how much it meant seeing them both.  After moment, John just said, ‘quit your blubbering and out with it.  We aren’t that important’.  It was funny and very Monte Python. And I understood what he said.

AH

John Carpenter Majestic Theater June 2016

This was a fairly easy get. John Carpenter was in town performing with his band at the Majestic.  We waited until the show was over and he signed for a few of us waiting at the stage door.

Seem odd that a horror movie director was performing with a band? It does seem odd; however, he had written parts of the movie soundtracks for several of his movies. He is musically inclined. In opinion, that is one of the things that help make his movies a little more tense.

One of my favorite movies of all time is Big Trouble in Little China. It’s a movie even the wife likes and we’ll both quote it. I was extremely happy to have him sign my DVD cover.

AH

Patton Oswalt at the Majestic 01/2016

I was able to pick up Patton Oswalt’s autograph when he performed at the Majestic Theater in Dallas.  He stopped on his way into the theater and signed and posed for photos with the fans.  He spent about 15 minutes with the crowd and chatted as he signed. 

My photo is dark and the blue pen doesn’t help. I was trying to get a photo that was a little different.  Sometimes, planning just doesn’t work like you think when you are on line and googling images.

AH

The Nerdist himself – Chris Hardwick – Majestic 9/1/15

From my many adventures at SDCC, I have seen Chris Hardwick a few times; either walking around or at a booth.  He even stopped and posed for a ‘drive by’ photo for me. I have just never gotten his autograph.

This time he was on my turf.  Well, not really my turf. I don’t have any turf. I’m a nerd. Nerd’s don’t have turf. Nerds have collectible action figures.  Let me rephrase: This time Chris Hardwick was in Dallas.  Where the nerd concentration was notably lower than SDCC and that would increase the probability of getting his autograph.

Four of waited before the show, hoping to make it a quick night. However, the roadie for the show asked us to come back after the show. We’re nerds. We left and ate. Then we returned a while later.  They even put up barricades to keep us from rushing Chris.

As he show ended, some of the crowd attending made their way back to the stage door.  We were joined by 30 other fans. The barricades actually made sense.

When Chris Hardwick exited the building, he surveyed the crowd. He mentioned he’d greet and talk to everyone. He assured us there was no reason to worry.  Very nice to hear that. He had it under control.
Then he walked past the barricades and entered the crowd. He posed and chatted. He signed and laughed.

Since he tweeted about Buc-ees earlier in the day, I asked how he enjoyed the pit stop icon between Dallas and Houston.  He said he had to stop there to show it off to his friends as they drove up. He’d been there before and was impressed. He also had to expose the others to Buc-ee Nuggets which he had a hard time explaining.

He signed my photo and then moved on to others. He circulated through the crowd without a hurrying.  Very refreshing to see.

AH

Eddie Izzard Majestic Theater 6/24/14

Eddie Izzard was scheduled for 3 days in Dallas at the Majestic Theater.  Two of those days I worked late and it was rainy. The last day was clear-ish and I got out of work as early as I could.  I was thinking I might have been too late.

When I got to the theater, I didn’t see any of my fellow hounds. That’s usually a good sign that I’m too late.  As I waited, I texted a friend that was coming out and asked if he had any luck.  He texted back that they were still waiting.  Looking around, I saw him down the street with another friend waiting at a different location. So we hung out together.

Once we saw Eddie get out of the car, we walked over to hm.  I noticed he had his makeup on already. As we got closer I noticed the false eyelashes and mascara. I wondered if he was in makeup for the show or that he just felt more comfortable like hat.

 He pleasantly stopped and signed a nice signature for each of use.  When asked for photo, he said only with a phone and he did the selfie himself.  He was nice about it. He really had more practice and wanted to ensure the shot was good.

Then he was off and into the theater.

AH

Conan O’Brien, Mary Kay, and me – Majestic 3/31/14

The autograph hounds were pretty excited when Conan O’Brien announced he would be filming in Dallas.  Besides the fact that everyone wanted Conan’s auto, they also wanted any guests he might have on the show.  It was going to be a high target environment for the week he was in town.

In preparation, I actually found a photo I liked and printed it.  A rarity nowadays as work is keeping me hopping and I’m either printing something out at the last minute or missing the opportunity because I can’t get away.

The weird thing about printing off a photo in advance, I actually had it in my car when Conan came to the office. Yeah, in case you didn’t see it on his show, he came to the Mary Kay office.

(http://teamcoco.com/video/mary-kay-remote)

  I really wanted to rush down to the car and pull out the photo and see if he would sign. But what would my coworkers say?  You can’t geek out too hard at work. So I missed a good chance then, as I know no other hounds were around.

But my next chance came on the first day of taping in Dallas.  I took off work earliy-ish. I hung out with my fellow hounds. I was told he actually arrived at 10:30 in the morning.   While waiting I missed out on Adam Sandler; I got Dirk Norwitzki to sign a 3x5 card; and I spent a lot of time talking with the hounds.

After the show was done filming, the crowd behind the Majestic grew. Most were just there to take a photo or to see him up close.  About a dozen of us were prepared.

When Conan finally exited the stage doors, the crowd roared. He was just as goofy in person as on the show.  He chatted and signed. He would pause and let the crows snap their photos. When he signed for me, he told me he really liked my photo.  Then he asked to borrow my Sharpie.  He did a lot of selfies with the fans and made his way up and down the line.

After 15 minutes he finally left.  My Sharpie was gone forever. Small price to pay…but I was thinking that I should emboss a link to my website on my sharpies. Just in case it’s borrowed and they look at it later…

AH

Neil Gaiman Majestic theater 6/24/13

Neil Gaiman came to town.  He held a book reading and autograph session at the Majestic Theater in Dallas.  I quickly bought a ticket when I found out about it. The best thing, I also bought a signed book with the ticket.

I could bring another book to get signed. Neil promised to stay until everyone got their books signed.  I dutifully bought a copy of American Gods. Just a paperback.  Not a first edition.  It’s one of the iconic pieces he’s known for.

He is another of my SDCC bucket list signatures.  For years he’s been there but I’ve never had any success.  This was an excellent opportunity to cross him off and relax and enjoy the experience.

I swear the day of the signing was a full moon.  I got there later than I wanted.  Work kept me late and traffic was bad. The evening sun blazed down on us as we waited in line.  Sweat soaked through my shirt. Even when we turned the corner and avoided the glare, it was stifling.  The event started late. Inside the theater, it  was over 80 degrees. I continued to sweat.

Whose Line is it Anyway – Majestic May 2013

I found out earlier in the week that Whose Line is it Anyway was coming to town, I only paused long enough to tell the wife before I bought tickets and found a photo on line to print out. The show is one we both have watched for years (both the British and the US versions) and will even watch the reruns repeatedly.  We were extremely excited to see them coming to town.

As we drove to the Majestic Theater we saw the travel bus.  As I looked it over I saw Ryan Stiles, Greg Proops, and Jeff Davis milling about.  By the time we parked the car, they had all entered the building. As I mentioned before, it’s always better to try getting the autographs before the show. If you strike out before the show you still have a chance after the show.

The show was great. Chip Esten was on stage also.  Everyone listed was performing. I had a chance to get everyone to sign my photo.

As the show ended, I rushed out and got to the stage door.  I was the first one there and I was assuming no one got on the bus yet.  As I turned to say something to the wife, Ryan Stiles left the building and walked unto the bus. Ugh I missed him. I literally turned my back for 5 seconds.  I had a feeling he would not being coming out.

Greg Proops exited the building and I asked for a signature. He mentioned I got the b

ack of the theater awfully fast.  I just nodded. I know at times, people leave as soon as the show ends.  I wasn’t sure about this group so I rushed out just in case.

After he signed, he went back in the building. Other fans joined us and waited.  About 10 minutes later Greg came out again and started chatting with people and signing.  Soon Chip came out and was also very social. He spent time with everyone and just chatted.

The last to come out was Jeff Davis.  He introduced himself to me and asked my name. He signed and chatted and posed for photos.

At home, I thought a silver Sharpie would work best on the photo.  After the first signature I saw how wrong I was. Chip brought his own Sharpie and that worked great.  Jeff noticed the silver wasn’t going to work as he started writing and moved his signature to above his head.

These guys were great with the fans.  Someone mentioned that Ryan wasn’t feeling well.  After they had made the rounds with everyone, they got on the bus and left.

So I got 3 of the 4 of the signatures I wanted. The photo is good but the Sharpie color choice was bad.  Next time I’ll do better.

AH

George Lopez – order from the chaos

After working 24 straight days of 10 plus hours a day, this was a nice break.  A friend emailed me asking if I was going to try get George Lopez’s autograph. It was completely off the radar.  I had the wash/rinse cycle of work, watch a little TV, sleep, and work going.  I needed to break the rhythm and this was perfect.

At the stage door of the Majestic there are always a few hunters waiting for the celeb.  The crew that was organizing George Lopez’s appearance was different though.

They were there keeping an eye on us. They were talking and asking us what we brought.  They reminded us to politely ask for an autograph and then to thank him for his time.

They also let us know that George will usually sign for everyone…if he isn’t running late.

They then turned very serious when they stated it was a ‘one person’ policy.

George got there just minutes before the show was to start.  His people were watching us. They were making sure we didn’t double dip. They checked that we weren’t videotaping anything.  And all the while they were politely and low keyed.  It was nice.

George took his time and signed and no one rushed him. He posed for photos and made sure everyone was taken care of.

So the process was quick and painless and stress free since we were all on the same page.  All of that was just an added bonus of seeing friends and doing something other than work.

AH

Kevin James- 2nd effort pays off

Kevin James flew into town to do one night of stand up and then flew out of town.

He appeared at the Majestic Theater and surprisingly there was about 30 people waiting for him. I got there early because I had time and I have missed out when some stars arrive uber-early.  When I arrived there were only 6 of us.  As the clock ticked closer, a few more people trickled in. Many were just there to see him as he walked in the stage down.

I’m sure these people thought the autograph hounds were nuts for standing on the concrete and in the very warm sun for hours. I’m sure their noses didn’t appreciate the smell as we got ripe.

It was the time of the show and the car drove up.  Kevin James got out and you can see he’s torn between what he wants to do and what he has to do.   He wants to sign but he needs to perform.  He compromises and signs for about 10 people. 

 I missed out. I wasn’t one of the few that got a signature.  He was in front of me for a good minute but my clipboard was never blessed with his ‘graph. It happens and I was slightly disappointed.  The ones that wanted a glimpse got it and hurried into the show. The hounds compared our results and left.

I wasn’t ready to give up.  I knew he would be exiting from the same door and I still had a chance.  I ate with a couple of fellow seekers and then came back.

After the show there were only 2 of us wanting his signature.  There was also a young couple that just wanted a photo.  Kevin left the building and saw us. He came over and quickly signed and then posed for the young couple. Then just as quickly he was in his car and gone. But not before I got my autograph.

AH

Stephen King Majestic 11/10/11

I’d like to say I’m the biggest Stephen King fan. I’d like to say I’ve read everything he’s written. But I really can’t. He writes faster than I can read. If I only read his books I’d still have a stack of books on my nightstand and be a decade behind in my reading. And to be truthful, his fans scare me.

It’s been 20 years since I really thought about his fans. That was when I worked at Waldenbooks.  His fans are true to meaning of the word ‘fan’ - short for fanatic. They are like Dallas Cowboy fans during a winning year. They are over top and believe the Cowboys can do no wrong. Yes, Cowboy fans scare me too.

Too many of fans are like Annie Wilkes in Misery, they love/hate him. They think he walks on water and he talks directly to their souls and are also pissed off he doesn’t write more and say exactly what they want him to say.

Jay Leno 10/29/11 Majestic

So after I rushed out from Jane Lynch, I sped down the highway to get Downtown.  I wanted to be there in time to get Jay Leno before the show.

I get downtown and I vaguely knew where the Majestic theater is. Downtown Dallas isn’t that big, so if I get lost, it’s not a crisis but the shot clock is tick, tick, ticking. I find the place and now I’m looking for my fellow hounds. Seeing them will tell me I’m in the right spot and that I’m not late.  I haven’t tried to get anyone at the Majestic before so I don’t know the protocol, or the timing, or the sweet spot forgetting signatures.

After attempting to drive correctly down all the one way streets I see another collector. A small smile spreads across my lips. I know I’m not lost.  I now know where to stand.  Now, the question is where do I park? I’m hoping be in and out fairly quick.  I don’t want to pay but I would really like my car to still be there when it’s time to go home.