“Should Auld Acquaintance Be Forgot...” Part 2

On our way to the computer show yesterday, we saw the rubble before we even passed to the left of the site. All that was left was the right side of the facade, from the front doors to the restaurant, and the rooms off to the right. And even this was not complete, for, in passing, we could see the structure gaping open at the rear.

The old Castlegate Hotel is no more.

It didn’t really look like a castle, but had a vaguely Tudor style with occasional “turrets,” enough to give it a quasi-medieval feel even if the big glass enclosure at the front ruined the effect.

It had been vacant for several years now, its windows gradually being broken, graffiti splotching its sides. One unsuccessful reopening under the aegis of a chain hotel had finally left it bereft. It was probably now overrun with rats and roaches.

It had been in pretty bad shape the last time we were there, for one of the last of the Fantasy Fairs or Dixie Treks, whatever. Claudia Christian from Babylon 5 was to stay there, apparently took one look at her room, and walked out, demanding a room at another hotel. This could have been taken as an attack of prima-donna-ism had not anyone with eyes observed the rest of the hotel. The stairs heading down to the convention rooms were dirty, scattered with scraps of paper, dust, and dead bugs. Apparently no one had vacuumed in a long time. The claustrophobic elevator smelled stale. The area where a thriving restaurant had been was now a dusty hangout for con-goers between panels, and the connecting rest rooms were grimy, with dead palmetto bugs lying feet up in the middle of the floor. Had the sleeping rooms had been treated with equal “care,” I would have walked out myself.

Yet the old place was a source of great memories as well. We’d met old friends in the lobby for chats, cruised dealers’ rooms clotted with collectors’ pieces and comic books, enjoyed speakers young and old. On that stage James played “Perry White” in a reinactment skit starring Noel Neill, Lois Lane in the 1950s Superman series. Christopher Reeve appeared, months before his debilitating accident, chatting and taking pictures with the crowd. The aforementioned Ms. Christian and Deep Space 9's Nana Visitor, two of the most energetic actresses we’d ever seen, became perpetual motion machines on the main stage. We’d met new friends, collected autographs, laughed and occasionally cried, but in general had a great time.

The Castlegate, as it used to be, will be missed.

“...so bring on the ball, if you will,
and after the ball is through
I’ll stay at home, the same as you,
Starin’ at the old TV,
Thinkin’ how it used...to...be...”
          ...”Hots Michael at the Piano”

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 12:01:00 PM

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