Holy Cow, Batman. I don’t even know where to start.
First of all, let me say that Thursday seemed to be bad luck for some, in tragic ways. A huge accident on the freeway, forty minutes out of LA, killed two people and stopped traffic in its tracks for most of the day. We missed Chris Yost at the X-Men panel because of that pile-up, and quite a few others who were supposed to be at the Con simply never made it, for the same reason. Axel Alonso was stuck in NYC due to weather. And then some giant drapes fell down in one of the halls and hit my friend’s friend—in the head. He’s fine, I think.
Lucky for me, I made it through the day without any scrapes or bruises. The X-Men panel was so much fun! I got there just in the nick of time—security made me run rings to find the right door, so I was hauling my backside in a dead race through crowded halls. But I got in, met the other guys, and the panel started. If anyone has pictures, I would love to see them. The crowd was huge—and I admit, I froze a little in the headlights—but it was like being a little kid, sitting up there with all the X-Men writers.
Later—rode the hotel elevator with Jennifer Connelly. If Keanu Reeves had been with her, I think I might have died.
And then…and then…
Okay. Those of you who read this blog know I’m a Stargate fan. A huge, stinkin’, Stargate fan. So guess what I got a chance to do last night? Guess what I did that blew my mind?
I worked the red carpet premiere of the Stargate: Continuum.
As in, I was there, less than a foot from Richard Dean Anderson. Ben Browder. Michael Shanks. Robert Picardo. Christopher Judge.
And Amanda Tapping talked to me.
EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!
Here’s how it happened. The wonderful Barbara Vey of Publishers Weekly is working like a mad woman during Comic Con—and as a member of the press, she received an invite to the premiere. Problem was, she needed an extra set of hands to handle the camera work while she did the interviews on the red carpet—and I, being the sacrificing kind, volunteered my services for the event. Me, photographer. On the red carpet. For Stargate.
Barbara is going to post video of her interviews and conversations with the various actors. I also, however, have pictures!
First of all, the location of the premiere was incredible. The USS Midway is a retired aircraft carrier that has been turned into a museum, and given the support the military has shown Stargate over the years, there couldn’t have been a better place to show off the movie.
You can click on the pictures to make them larger:
This is the line of lucky fans waiting to see the premiere.
The red carpet! The planes!
Barbara Vey on the red carpet!
Richard and Bob, two of the veterans who work at the Midway. Such sweet men.
The cast has arrived!
Richard Dean Anderson and Robert Picardo!
Michael Shanks and his wife.
Beau Bridges is a good looking man, and I’m sorry that every picture I have seems to have captured him in the middle of a sentence.
Jewel Staite! Firefly! Atlantis!
Ben Browder acted very sweet—and wait until you see the video I captured between him and Barbara!
Richard Dean Anderson and Barbara Vey, just before the start of her interview with him.
Me, being a dork. But a happy, happy dork.
Okay, here’s some creative editing. I was in the middle of telling Amanda Tapping how much my mom and I loved her on the show when this picture was taken, and you know what it looks like when pictures are snapped in the middle of sentence. It’s bad! Horrific! And Amanda Tapping was so kind and gorgeous, and genuinely sweet. So, focus on her and ignore my deer-caught-in-the-headlights stare.
The deck of the ship at sunset, and in the distance, seating for the premiere.
So, that’s the sampling of photos. I have a lot more, but I haven’t had time to go through all of them yet. I want to say, though, that Richard Dean Anderson is a handsome, handsome man. He is so handsome. And he was incredibly nice. Oh, my gosh, he was nice. Genuinely, you-can’t-fake-this, nice. And you know how you hear that some actors who look big on television are really tiny and short in real life? That is so not the case with the Stargate cast. All the guys are big and brawn, and Amanda was gorgeous and statuesque. And nice? Did I mention that already? Such nice people. I had an incredible, unforgettable, time.
On today’s agenda:
1:00-2:00 – ?Looking at our World: Eye on the Present?Authors discuss how they use the supernatural in stories of contemporary society: Kelley Armstrong (Women of the Otherworld), LA Banks (The Vampire Huntress Legend Series), Kate Brallier (The Boundless Deep), Marjorie M. Liu (The Iron Hunt), C.E. Murphy (The Negotiator Trilogy), Justine Musk (Lord of Bones), Lilith Saintcrow (The Dante Valentine Series), and moderator Samantha Sommersby (Forbidden: The Revolution). Room 3
2:00-3:00? – Looking at our World: Eye on the Present panelists autographing in the Comic-Con Autograph Area.
Have a great day, everyone!