Yet Another Journal

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» Saturday, August 30, 2003
Dragoncon Days 1 and 2

It's our yearly Labor Day pilgrimage, considering we can't afford Worldcon... :-)

Our odyssey began yesterday, with the 50-minute registration...that's the longest I've ever spent in a D*Con registration line. A fellow in an Easter bunny outfit provided amusement.

Since neither of us had any panels we wanted to go to until 4:00, we did a tour of the dealer's room and the exhibitor's hall (which is really just another glorified dealer's room) and the art show. I didn't find too many things I wanted to buy--thank God since the Yellow Daisy Festival is next week! I did buy one fanzine--most of them had to do with either Stargate or Smallville, neither which I've ever watched--that was a crossover between Crusade and M*A*S*H. (Interesting combination.) Oh, yes, and I got Jim Butcher's new Harry Dresden book, Death Masks, and from the author himself, autographed.

We also saw two panels, one with George Takei ("Sulu") and another called "Growing Up on Television," with Bill Mumy ("Will Robinson" "Lennier"), Angela Cartwright ("Linda Williams" "Penny Robinson"), and Noah Hathaway ("Boxey" "Atreyu"). I think George Takei was a budgie in a previous life--he was hilarious talking about Sulu. Bill Mumy still has that mischevious smile.

After a very strange opening ceremonies--they showed some scenes from a popular SF show called The Tribe that I've only heard of looking at TV schedules and then introduced the cast members--the Atlanta Radio Theatre did a new Rory Rammer story, "The Meteor Surfers." Writer Ron Butler's sons were both in the cast, and younger son Colin did a delightful job as a very juvenile punk. The main feature was the late Thomas Fuller's "Can You Hear Me?", a thriller set at a most unlikely setting, a phone sex business. The end still gives me gooseflesh.

Today we had an earlier day: our first panel was at ten. Peter Woodward did a mirthful and informative panel on his History Channel series Conquest. Then James attended a panel while I went to take some photos of the actors and actresses on "The Walk of Fame." I like getting candid shots of them interacting with the fans. I also bought a McFarland book--these are a small press who write detailed volumes on specialized subjects; I got their Doctor Who critical analysis this year. Last year I got their Blake's 7 book. One a year is all I can afford. :-)

James and I met back up again for the Lost in Space panel with Bill Mumy and Angela Cartwright, who act like a real brother and sister after three years of playing siblings on TV. Bill's more of a talker, though. Angela is a photographer now and loves it.

While James stayed for another panel in that same room, I went to see Brad Dourif, who had played "Wormtongue" in last year's The Two Towers. We recently rewatched his Babylon 5 episode, "Passing Through Gethsemane," a truly excellent episode. Then I returned to the room and was part of the Atlanta Radio Theatre Company's panel on SF on old-time radio. I'm more of a comedy expert myself, so I mostly listened.

After the ARTC panel we went to a fun cooking panel called "Starfleet Kitchen," and finally attended a panel on Gerry Anderson's series. Well, the hosts put up four DVD sets on the panel table and as they talked, gave each of them away for the correct answer to a trivia question based on that particular series of DVD. I fastened my eyes on the complete Thunderbirds set and hoped they'd ask an easy trivia question.

They did! They asked what alias Brains used in one episode and I won the set! (Answer: Hiram K. Hackenbacker.)

Well, the next giveaway was the series UFO. James had expressed an interest in getting the set once, but like the Thunderbirds set, it was so expensive. I wished "Please let them ask an easy one." They asked the name of Ed Straker's wife and a man answered up with "Mary," which I had forgotten.

But wait! He said he already had the set! And then they asked the question I hoped they would ask, the name of Straker's son. I whispered to James, "It's John!"

So now he has an early birthday present, along with the autographed photo of Claudia Christian I bought for him.

Now we are home, cuddling with the critters, but have another day tomorrow.