Xena con 2011 - Hudson, Hudson, Hudson!

Friday on a three-day convention is typically slow. The one-day price for a Friday is usually less than for any other day of any convention. Today was a slow day at the annuall Xena convention, except for one thing: Hudson Leick.

I've missed a few years, I must admit, of this annual event. But I'm grateful I was around for the first couple of years, where I saw a young woman change before my eyes. Her slow take on us as fans changed to a masterful manipulation where we all had outrageous fun.

Hudson - whose birth name was Heidi - started out as a young actress who wasn't sure why she was on stage. She seemed mystified by it all. She tried to answer the fans' questions about Callisto, her infamously evil character. She has told a story of flying to New Zealand and reading the script for one of the Callisto shows - perhaps the second one where she kills Gabrielle's new husband, Perdicus. When she reached the part where she is unfathomly cruel to Gabi in a game called Truth or Dare, Hudson starts laughing, right there on the plane. She was perfect for the part.

After a few years of appearing year after year to mostly the same fans at the convention, she dresses to the nines, entices us, engages us, in a totally unscripted conversation. And then she auctions off the dress for charity, usually to benefit the James Ellis Foundation, which allows kids with cancer or whose family members have cancer continue in college.

This year, the young woman from Russia bid $400 for the dress. A couple in the second row kicked in another $300 so that the Russian woman could have the dress. There have been no other bids, nor would there be. All of a sudden, other people kicked in $50 here, $20
there, so that she would get the dress and Anita could go back home to New York with $900. It was very touching.

By the way, I saw the young woman who won the dress in the restroom later. She said to anyone who would listen: "I have two dresses. But now I have three!"

I was touched by something else as well today, as slow as it was. Steven L. Sears is also at every convention. Steve was a producer and
writer on the original Xena. I always enjoy his talks very much because he talks about the writing process and storytelling.

This time someone asked him if he used real-life experiences when he wrote. He hearkened back to his memory of writing "The Price," a
particularly hard-hitting Xena episode where our 'hero' kills without mercy and the effect that ultimately has on her sidekick, Gabrielle.

Steve told us that he wrote that episode about his father. His father was a military man as a career. He was a sniper in the Korean War and a special forces member in VietNam. In short, "My father killed people for a living." Steve has spent a great deal of his life sorting through how that killing machine could be "the same man who tucked me in a night," and was a super father to him. So he wrote The Price to speak to that issue. Awesome.

I guess I'll have to go home and watch that one again.

Later

Xena Once Again

I was all packed last night. And, as usual, as I lay in bed trying to go to sleep, I would remember things I forgot to pack. And then, it suddenly came to me: I didn't have my ticket to the convention.

I got up and went to my office. I went through all my paperwork for the convention. Nothing. So I went through all my visa bills for the first four months of the year, but couldn't find where I had paid Creation for the ticket.

This was an unusual circumstance. I signed up exactly one year ago, during the convention, in hopes of improving my seat. I rummaged through my big pile on my desk, and found last year's program where I had written in my new seat number: F26. So it wasn't just my imagination. I just had no proof. And when I stand in line at the LAX Marriott, I will have nothing to give them but an excuse.

So I found the email address to write to on the Creation Entertainment website -- knowing that would belong to Leticia -- and I simply told my story. The next morning I found that she had emailed a PDF of the ticket. By that time, however, I was just shy of the Grapevine, and moving rapidly south.

Fortunately, the motel I was staying at has a computer - and a printer! - in the lobby. After I checked in, I sat down and printed out my ticket. Good to go!

Creation's customer service has gotten better and better throughout the years. This is their 40th year. And I'm a loyal customer.

Andy Williams in Las Vegas

Everywhere you go in Las Vegas, you hear Christmas music this time of year. 10 percent of more of what you hear will be sung by Andy Williams, whose voice President Reagan called a national treasure.

I saw Andy with Petula Clark a few years ago in his theater in Branson, and his voice was as clear as a bell. Sadly, that's not the case any more. His vibrato was out of control, he couldn't hold a note as well, and the elasticity and the just plain mellowness he was famous for was simply gone.

This was billed as a Christmas concert, and so most of the songs were thus. However, strangely, he didn't sing one of the songs he is most known for during the season, It's the Most wonderful Time of the Year. My favorite.

Also, it was not really a concert. After Andy would sing a couple of songs, he would bring out another act. It was a variety show, almost Ed Sullivan-ish. The acts were a fast violinist who enlisted an audience member to help, a couple of dancers who changed costumes amazingly behind seconds of being shrouded, a mime who used two dummies to dance. And one of the most astounding impressionists I've ever seen - and, believe me, I've seen some greats in person: Jim Bailey, Danny Gans -- and Bob Anderson was so good, he even did Andy Williams. All of these were amazing acts. They were very entertaining. While you had the feeling that Andy, at his age, could no longer sing during an entire 2-hour concert, his additions really did fill in the gap.

He also had a sister act of four singing in the foreground plus four more singers in the background. It really added to the music, as did the 10-member band.

Andy only sang three of his 50 or so chart makers, including Lonely street, and, of course, Moon River, which he called, "one of my favorite Christmas songs." He told a story about Lonely Street, saying that when he met Elvis for the first time when they were both performing in Vegas, Elvis said to him that the song was the only thing that kept him from going crazy in Germany while he was in the Army.

They had some items for sale in the lobby. The woman selling the items works directly for Andy and lives in Branson. How interesting that his entourage travels with him. I bought an autographed autobiography that he wrote three years ago. Should be an interesting, long read.

P.S. One of my kids, after reading a tweet of mine, asked his mom, Who's Andy Williams? He didn't want to ask me. And that photo that accompanies this article was probably taken 10 or 15 years ago; Andy is completely white-haired now, and seems smaller.

The Las Vegas Star Trek Convention, 2010

This year’s giant Star Trek convention in Las Vegas was a crazy mixture of fans.

I sat next to one fan, a guy I’ve seen at these events for about 15 years now, who told me he had added another room to his house for his collection. “If I’d known, I would have doubled the size of that room. And it would still be too small.”

I met another fan in the Las Vegas Hilton hotel elevator. She was dressed from antenna to toe as an Andorian. She was awaiting her daughter’s arrival at the hotel. “She’s never seen me like this,” she said. Boy, she’s in for a shock, I thought.

The fans are a big part of why I go every year. I often don’t know I’m going until July, when I wake up one morning and, with a friend in tow, find myself booking tickets.

I heard the results of a few polls within the convention. Nearly half of the convention crowd had not attended the Las Vegas convention before. And a third of them had never been to a convention at all before. Lots of new fans are now coming to these things, spurred on, one would suspect, by the immense popularity of the new movie.

I was very pleased to see that there were a couple of panels featuring Deep Space Nine actors. And, gosh, they all look to be the same age as when they played these superbly defined characters some 18 years ago.

On the first panel: Casey Biggs, Marc Alaimo, Andy Robinson, Jeffrey Combs, and Salome Jens. Below are some of the things they said that I thought were noteworthy.

Casey thought the “ratings really took off in the third or fourth season when the war really got going,” and several thought the show mirrored what was happening in the U.S., overcoming predjudices. Marc: “Our show, Star Trek, particularly Deep Space Nine, had a lot to do with breaking down all those barriers. We’re gradually overcoming all of those.” Andy added, “I’ve always been opposed to violence, so it’s ironic” that his character was an anarchist. “My family was destroyed by war. What was left for Garak…must be like a German after World War II. Star Trek for me was the most effective when it was plugged in.”

Marc was asked to comment on what it meant to be a Cardassian. “One of my instincts in the very beginning was to get over the bullying. I never wanted to be a bully. One of the things about Dukat was his power and how he used it. You never saw anything on the show that he did that was cruel or bullying. I enjoyed underplaying his power and let his intellect take over.”

Casey: “The writing on the show was so good. If you’re going to play Hitler, Hitler didn’t believe he was a bad guy. You as an actor have to take these heightened situations… and find something you call can relate to. We are attacking the good guys, but in the end, the good guys become the bad guys. There are 15 different sides to everything.”

Andy commented that he compared the Cardassians to Prussians that “lived by the code, like a Japanese bushido code. The imperialism grew out of a lack of resources. That grew into absolute power corrupts absolutely.” He added about the character Garak, “He was brilliant. When you’re playing someone who’s more brilliant than you, it ups your game.”

With some prompting, Marc admitted that he was getting married “in exactly two weeks.”

The second panel featured Aron Eisenberg, Armin Shimerman, Nana Visitor, James Darren, and Rene Auberjonois.

Armin told us that, “I missed an opportunity (in preparing to play Quark). I should’ve read a lot about Chinese culture. I may be wrong. People in America say, aren’t the Ferengi the Jews? In Australia they say, aren’t the Ferengi the Chinese? Ferengis represent the other culture. Shylock in The Merchant of Venice.”

“I was never embarrassed about the culture. The culture was important to me as our culture is to us. I never saw them as comic characters.”

James Darren chimed in. “I never felt like I was different from anyone,” that everyone was so welcoming on the show. “I loved playing Cupid for Rene and Nana. I loved playing the character because it reminded me of Frank and Dean. I lived through that era quite heavily. It gave me a nice way to express myself. To me, Vic was my idol.” As for the show, “I wish it were still on.”

Rene added to the discussion. “Everyone on this stage could make that argument” that they were an outsider. “The first time I walked on that set, my mind was blown. It (the Promenade) became the heart of that show: that set. Quark’s was the saloon in town and that’s where we gathered. Armin interrupted, “And you were the sheriff.”

Aron: “I felt really connected to everybody. It was the best time of my life.”

Nana, how did you get past Odo’s rubber during your kissing scene? “Rene’s power.” Nana added, “It began as a friendship and that’s the only conclusion it could have (that Odo left).” Rene: “I think the writers always knew that Odo would be going back to where he came from.”

I saw Nana in one of her first convention appearances in Santa Rosa, California. Buster was three months old then, and I swear she looks the same now as she did then. With as much enthusiasm. She says she’s having fun in her new baking business in New Mexico, and finds it very challenging.

Other items at the convention I really enjoyed:

1. The comedy routines. I couldn’t tell you which of the three panels was funnier, among The Voyager crew, the improv routine of Dean Haglund and Claudia Christian (doing Q and Janeway, loosely), and Patrick Stewart and Brent Spiner together on stage. Each one was hilarious.
2. Seeing Julie Newmar on stage. She had to be helped up on stage in a smaller room, with a smaller audience, and told some great stories. She never really answered any of our questions, but it didn’t seem to matter. Catwoman is still sharp.
3. Seeing Marc Alaimo, Jeff Combs and Casey Biggs do their Shakespeare show, a few scenes from The Bard. They weren’t on the schedule, which may be why Marc was studying his lines on the side before he joined in.
4. Bill Shatner and Leonard Nimoy. Sure, you’ve seen them before, but they’re still hilarious, especially together, and gosh, they’re still alive.
5. Little things like seeing Bill Sadler late at night, approaching some Trekkies at the Star Trek slot machine. He wanted to know how it worked. And watching a soundless “Generations” movie play on the big screen at the Starquest bar. And the big, twitter-prompted party at the bar on Sunday night; one bartender claimed it was “crazy, a madhouse, maybe 3,000 Trekkies. We should’ve had several more bartenders taking drinks.”

I would say the only disappointment was that there wasn’t anyone truly new on stage. In past years we got to see people like Stephen Collins, Malcolm McDowell, Christopher Lloyd, all great people with great stories.

But it was great seeing old-time fans like Blair, Jo Beth, Freddy, and many more. May we all live long and prosper.

Comic Con: The Best Moments of 2010

Well, I didn't blog as much as I thought I would. Most of the problem was that the keyboard on the iPad is virtual, and I kept making error after error in trying to type like QWERTY. Frustrating. And the other problem was that I was living in the moment. That was good.

But here are the Best Moments of Comic Con from my perspective. Also, remember that I'm only reporting what I saw, what I experienced.

1. Ryan Reynolds reciting the Green Lantern Oath.

Simply awesome. The guy is serious. We love that. GL has always been one of my favorite superheroes.

2. The Big Bang Theory songs. This is not just one thing during the panel, but two: The Barenaked Ladies came out and sang the theme song - wow!! And we all sang along because they gave us these song lyric pages. There are three stanzas (is that what they call them?). Ooh. And THEN, Sheldon, oops, I mean Jim Parsons, sang "Soft Kitty" to us. You had to smile.


3. A surprise Quantum Leap panel. I ended up sitting through the Aqua Teen Hunger Force panel by myself while waiting for Ricky and Debbie to join me. Film clips of the best "Oh, Boy!" moments, Scott Bakula reminiscing. It was just wonderful.

4. An 8-minute clip from the new movie, COWBOYS & ALIENS, which actually has cowboys and aliens in it! Jon Favreau was there to talk about it, and brought onstage stars Harrison Ford and Daniel Craig in their first Comic Con appearances.

5. Tom Felton - Draco Malfoy - was there to introduce a small clip from the latest Harry Potter movie. Tom seemed like a nice guy. I know, unfathomable. And he picked a raffle ticket -- we all had them -- for someone to win a prize. Sadly, he didn't answer any questions about the movie.


6. Spartacus. Say no more. I was expecting Lucy Lawless to produce her "special guest star," the merkin, but alas, she saved it for an interview later. The cast was bawdy, really in the moment, everything you expected and more. I had hoped to see a trailer about the prequel, but no dice. Nice to see, though, that Andy Whitfield looks healthy after having undergone treatment for melanoma.

7. Guillermo del Toro, wedged into the Hall H schedule, introduced his new film verbally (without any footage) by saying he is remaking The Haunted Mansion. And that he's not taking Eddie Murphy's phone calls. He says this one will be scary, not a comedy. And then he said if you get to a certain room upstairs within the next hour, you'll get a special prize. I did. It was a long poster of the ghost that was expelled from the original ride so many years ago (too scary for kids?). And the artist was there that hour to sign it.

8. Angelina Jolie and Liev Schreiber were there for Salt (a film I caught yesterday when I returned home). Jolie was very gracious, answering every stupid question from the fanboys, the same question over and over. And Liev, while getting few questions, was very witty when he did.


9. A glimpse into the Thor and Captain America films. The Avengers may very well happen.

10. The Exhibitor's Hall, or the dealers' room, didn't seem as crowded as last year. Maybe it's because they spread out programming alll over the place, including two other hotels.

Bad things at the con:
Picking up your swag at another hotel (sheesh).
Long lines, again, for anything.
Very little AT&T access -- with 120,000 people using it, trying to solve riddles, scavenger hunts, blog, post to eBay, etc., this was a major letdown, even after they promised they'd have the capacity. They didn't.

Comic Con, Day 4

"Can I see your iPad?"

"No."

"Can I hold it?"

"No."

Teenage boys think they should be able to do anything, even if it isn't theirs. Even right now, he's leaning against my chair, with an arm along the side.

At 8 in the morning on the last day, we're in line for Sideshow Collectibles. The panel starts in 2 hours.

Stupid boy, who said he was 15 and waiting for the Halo panel after Sideshow. But stupid mature adult - me - who saw the door open and an opportunity to charge her phone. I left the room when Debbie pointed out that a line was forming. They locked the doors and I could't get back in. Thankfully Debbie proactively found a staffer who wasn't a volunteer, and went in and retrieved my phone. Whew.

After this, there's the Merlin panel, and then we're free to roam the dealer's room one last time.

Highest bid on eBay item: $81 so far on the Hatbox Ghost litho from the new Haunted Mansion movie. (It later went to $152.50.)

Comic Con 2010 - Day 3 continued...

Looks like a group of people were just escorted out for some bad behavior. That's what security should be doing rather than trying to force us to move into the center to free up the prized aisle seats for newcomers. Newcomers who didn't get here at 6 in the morning to get in line.

Nice seeing Milla Jovovich, here to promote her fourth Resident Evil film. Alice is by now rather American iconic. The footage has women kick-ass fight scenes, but a plot you could stuff in a paper bag.

Debbie went off to find the Dark Shadows. I hope she make it in. The only people who remember that vampire soap opera are approaching 60.

Oops, had to stop typing to take a freebie on the aisle: a pair of sunglasses promoting Paul, a new movie starring Simon Pegg and Sigourney Weaver. We'll learn more in about 5 minutes.