February 14, 2010
By CAJeannieFan57/Donna
Sally and I took
our time getting up to the show - got in line at 9:50 for the 10:00
"regular" opening. (Not the Early Bird.) Once in, we started
chatting with one of the Sheriff's Department sheriffs because the setting had
changed in one MAJOR way - they now had black 8-ft high partitions between the
celebrities’ tables. Personally, we HATED that, as it was difficult to look
over the room and see at a glance which celebrity might be where. We couldn’t
imagine the Sheriff’s Department liking it much, either.
Walking around first, as we always do, we surveyed who was where that we really
wanted to meet and get photos, etc. Larry was way over by a wall and a
door, practically next to Ernie Borgnine. Most of the others we wanted to meet were in
the center. At this point, there was a light crowd – we heard it said
that on Saturday, over 4000 people had been in attendance.
We started with the West Side Story celebrities. My first stop was at George Chakiris' table. I was wearing my Cinderella t-shirt and he
inquired about that. When I explained that I direct theater in the elementary school,
he said, "How WONDERFUL!" I told him how I wanted his DANCE
picture to show that cool guys can dance. My next stop was at Russ Tamblyn's table. I've met Russ before, but for a picture
for my brother. Now I wanted it for myself - but once again, Russ dancing. The
only dance picture of Russ was from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, so
I took that one. Third stop was at Rita Moreno's table. She told us she was 78. Holy cow, she does NOT
look it. She's still gorgeous. I think the photo I got her to sign was
from "
Sally wanted to stop and see a few people, too. Most of them, I did not
recognize - my movie education and hers are vastly different. So we
stopped to see them. Somewhere along the way, she wanted to see Chris Atkins.
She moved on and started to chat with the gal next to him - a horror film
actress, Caroline Williams, who was really very personable and energetic. She
seemed to love being around all the well-known folks as much as she enjoyed
being there as a celebrity. While she
and Sally were chatting, I was chatting with Chris Atkins a bit. As most
of you know, my family and I met him and HIS family while camping one
time. So I asked him about his daughter, etc.
We made it over to Larry Hagman, who had a short line - not nearly what it was
at this same show 5+ years ago, so I was a little disappointed for him. Like
Bill back in July, I think he would do better at the show if he was with his
IDOJ costars rather than by himself. Working alongside Larry, were his agent/manager
Gene Yusem, but also "Team Hagman" – three
of his fans, two of them I’ve met several times before. I didn't talk
much with Larry, who charged me $20 to sign the photo that Bill had given me
back in July, and was charging extra for photos with him so I declined that opp. Larry looks
good for 78 years old. When asked about his wife Maj,
his reply was “She’s okay”, but the look on his face showed worry.
We went over to see Ernie Borgnine - Sally wanted to
meet him, get her photo with him, etc.
Another one I made it over to see, also noticed my shirt. That's because I
wandered over to Cinderella herself (1965), Lesley Ann Warren. I got one
of her and Stuart Damon (Prince Charming) so that maybe, maybe someday I'll get
to meet him and have him sign the picture.
Three of the Osmond Brothers were there, but since they weren’t the two that I’d
want to meet, I declined to stop.
We ran into one or two other show regulars that we've seen over the years, and
we always stop and chat. Today was no exception.
Photos - some (like Larry, Rita Moreno, and Lesley Ann Warren) were charging an
extra $15 or 20 for a photo with them. I'm still not used to that - it
used to come free with the autograph at the "old" show – maybe in
time I’ll get used to it, but right now, I skip it. I have a nice collection of
photos to place on my “Meet Musicians” bulletin board at school, got to say “hello”
to Larry, and visited with my friend Sally as well.
The next show is in
April – we’ll see who is invited to be a celebrity at that one!