It's monday afternoon and I'm exhausted! this is normal for a post convention monday. While I drink some water and eat some carbs, I'll do what i can to share what an awesome weekend I had.
I had to work Friday afternoon so I didn't arrive until 6:30pm. I did see Gary Jones on stage for the caberet at 9, which was hysterical. Then I stepped out for awhile and socialized until the karoake. Stephanie sang (a highlight every convention) and Alex Zahara was massively entertaining. Paul McGillion and Gary Jones also had brief appearances. Chris Judge poked his head out a few times too. I was in bed early at midnight but then my roommate came back and I ended up awake until 2am talking!
Monday, August 22, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
Conventioning
One of my favorite parts of volunteering at conventions is talking to the virgins, the people who are there at a convention for the first time. They aren't sure what is going to happen, who they are going to meet, what the autograph is going to be like, how the photo op, where they get to touch the guest they've come to see, is going to go and they are bundles of nervous energy. Most people try to play it cool but a few minutes into the conversation, the excitement starts to show. Unbridled excitement. When you talk to these same people later in the day after they've spent a few minutes or longer with the guests, their eyes are bright with joy.
There is something about seeing an actor in person who has brought to life this character on a tv show you love that is just cool. You notice the differences in personality and even mannerisms. Of course you notice the similarities too. When you go their Q&A's and get to hear them talk in their own words, its a little surreal. You know there is an actor underneath the face of the character you know but it is kind of mindblowing to see and hear the differences. It is probably the magic of television that we still forget that the people in the box are real but its that same magic that makes us giggle when we get to hug them for the first time. "OMG, i'm touching Castiel!!!"
At that first convention, your first memories will be those magic moments. The next memories are going to be the fans you met standing in line or sitting in the theater. Conversations that start with 'Who are you here to see?', 'have you met them before?' or 'What did you think of last week's episode?' Somewhere in the middle of many of thosee conversations, you find some common ground and then the inane joy starts. You start to realize you are surrounded by people who are as enthralled and enthused about this actor/tv show/genre of tv as you are. You aren't sitting at work mulling over last night's cliffhanger alone. You are talking to someone who is just as blown away as you are and is dying to talk about it!
you come for the stars and you stay for the fans.
Your next convention you are almost certain to see people you saw at the last one and even some of the same stars. You recognize others and they recognize you. Maybe you were facebook friends or you started to follow each other on twitter? You discover that you can go to more conventions if you have more roommates so you may be crammed into a room full of people you hardly know. But you all share something - a common bond of loving the experience of being at a convention.
So what is the experience really about? I think its a weeknd that is its own reality. It isn't fantasy. It isn't made up. These are all still real people, stars and fans both. But it is a very focused weekend where you bring in the stars to the fans who appreciate them. It isn't often that everyone in a room knows who you are and even rarer that they are there to see and listen to you. For an actor, that's a pretty awesome gig. For the fans, you have opportunities to ask questions and get up close to them. With every laugh at a joke told on stage and every hug in a photo op, the love fest grows. People are smiling at each other and by the end of the weekend, you've probably hugged more in one day than you did in the entire last month. It is a deeply positive experience made possible because everyone wins. Fans get a few minutes of the actors time, a chance to listen to the actor talk about old shows, new shows or whatever comes up and then a chance to talk about it all with other people who are truly interested. Actors get paid, of course, but they are also promoting their work, meeting fans who love what they do and hear what the fans think about what they've done. Not a bad gig. Everybody wins. That's a dann good weekend.
My theory then is that a convention is an alternate reality. It facilitates giggling, hugging and laughter. You can't sustain that for too long - lines get tiring, money gets scarce and people get cranky. But for a weekend, you are golden.
There is something about seeing an actor in person who has brought to life this character on a tv show you love that is just cool. You notice the differences in personality and even mannerisms. Of course you notice the similarities too. When you go their Q&A's and get to hear them talk in their own words, its a little surreal. You know there is an actor underneath the face of the character you know but it is kind of mindblowing to see and hear the differences. It is probably the magic of television that we still forget that the people in the box are real but its that same magic that makes us giggle when we get to hug them for the first time. "OMG, i'm touching Castiel!!!"
At that first convention, your first memories will be those magic moments. The next memories are going to be the fans you met standing in line or sitting in the theater. Conversations that start with 'Who are you here to see?', 'have you met them before?' or 'What did you think of last week's episode?' Somewhere in the middle of many of thosee conversations, you find some common ground and then the inane joy starts. You start to realize you are surrounded by people who are as enthralled and enthused about this actor/tv show/genre of tv as you are. You aren't sitting at work mulling over last night's cliffhanger alone. You are talking to someone who is just as blown away as you are and is dying to talk about it!
you come for the stars and you stay for the fans.
Your next convention you are almost certain to see people you saw at the last one and even some of the same stars. You recognize others and they recognize you. Maybe you were facebook friends or you started to follow each other on twitter? You discover that you can go to more conventions if you have more roommates so you may be crammed into a room full of people you hardly know. But you all share something - a common bond of loving the experience of being at a convention.
So what is the experience really about? I think its a weeknd that is its own reality. It isn't fantasy. It isn't made up. These are all still real people, stars and fans both. But it is a very focused weekend where you bring in the stars to the fans who appreciate them. It isn't often that everyone in a room knows who you are and even rarer that they are there to see and listen to you. For an actor, that's a pretty awesome gig. For the fans, you have opportunities to ask questions and get up close to them. With every laugh at a joke told on stage and every hug in a photo op, the love fest grows. People are smiling at each other and by the end of the weekend, you've probably hugged more in one day than you did in the entire last month. It is a deeply positive experience made possible because everyone wins. Fans get a few minutes of the actors time, a chance to listen to the actor talk about old shows, new shows or whatever comes up and then a chance to talk about it all with other people who are truly interested. Actors get paid, of course, but they are also promoting their work, meeting fans who love what they do and hear what the fans think about what they've done. Not a bad gig. Everybody wins. That's a dann good weekend.
My theory then is that a convention is an alternate reality. It facilitates giggling, hugging and laughter. You can't sustain that for too long - lines get tiring, money gets scarce and people get cranky. But for a weekend, you are golden.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Dragoncon 2010 (repost from my LJ)
DragonCon 2010 - Corin Nemec!
holliemke
September 9th, 2010 Corin was a blast again at this convention, my first DragonCon. I wasn't sure how much time I'd actually spend with him given that the convention was so huge - 50,000 people! Thankfully because of the Walk of Fame, there's time to say hi and interact with the guests, depending on how long the lines are. Corin had a steady stream of fans but didn't have the lines that Eddie McClintock, Summer Glau or Colin Ferguson had. We really should change that someday when he gets a new show. We KNOW it will happen. But I digress.
I saw Corin Friday both in the Walk of Fame and on the Stargate panel. It was the only Stargate panel he ended up doing over the weekend because on Monday his handler didn't fetch him! Oops. He was in the Walk of Fame almost all the time he wasn't in a panel. He had pictures from Parker Lewis, Stargate, The Stand and a headshot in the maroon sweater he wears. I do tease him about his clothes because I see the same tops, albeit in different configurations, a lot! He apparently doesn't have a TON of clothes like a lot of people, me included. But what he does wear, he looks DAMN good in.
Friday's Stargate panel included Martin Gero, Ben Browder, Christopher Judge, John DeLancie and Corin Nemec. The first question put to Corin and the rest of the panel was how they got into acting. Corin didn't hear the question at first which prompted John DeLancie to tease him 'clearly you weren't a good student' to which Corin replied 'that's why I became an actor.' Then Corin told the Goonies story that's on wikipedia and imdb. Short version: his dad worked on Goonies and he was really interested in the whole process of acting in a movie. He also gave a shout-out to Sean Astin who was at the convention.
The next question Corin answered was also a panel question about 'what actor living or dead that you'd like to work with.' Corin quipped "well sinee I've worked with Chris Judge..." When Chris answered he said he'd like to work with Errol Flynn. I think swashbuckling came up as a clarification because the audience reacted as if they didn't know who Errol Flynn was. Either way, Corin's next line became infamous - "I'd like to do some swashbuckling with him!" Chris Judge just lost it and out came all the innuendo about 'Corin and Errol Flynn crossing swords" and Corin stated (to Chris) "You're so dirty!" (for the rest of the Stargate panels, even when Corin wasn't there, the swashbuckling comment was brought up.)
The panel was also asked about what kinds of creative freedom they had. Corin talked about his props - usually food. He had a fair amount of freedom until 3/4 of the way through the season when an episode with an Orange brought the house down on him. From what I can gather, when they did 'coverage', trying to do pick up shots, it was extremely time consuming because of what Corin was doing with the Orange. He told this story at Gatecon too. Basically, after this episode, Corin was allowed his tea mug and nothing else. Chris Judge joked about it taking 8 hours to do coverage shots of Corin after the Orange incident. (not sure if the rest of the cast was there or just Corin.)
The actors (and writer Martin Gero) were asked what shows they would recommend to fans. Corin jokingly said "Real Housewives of New Jersey" but then said "I HATE that show but i have to watch it to hate on it - kind of like TMZ." For movies he said he liked Hustler, Bullet and any Errol Flynn.
They were also asked about sci fi films that they'd liked. Corin said he LOVED Logan's Run until he realized the SFX sucked. Star Wars was awesome for him and it blew his mind that both came out about the same time.
The last question was about doing a commercial for a restaurant. Corin liked Popeye's chicken.
Corin's next panel was in the Stargate Track room and it was all about Jonas! Finally we saw Jonas love at one of these conventions and it was awesome. I'm not sure how it came up but the answer to his favorite breakfast cereal was "Blueberry Morning." Now you know.
The next question was if he'd known he was only going to be on Stargate for 1 season. Interestingly enough, not only did he not know it was one season, he was initially brought into the show with the idea that he'd see the show out and then move to Stargate Atlantis as the lead character. They were just starting to talk about Atlantis and they were initially going to end SG-1 and this spin-off into Atlantis. Of course it didn't play out that way. Corin, as always, was extremely respectful and business savvy about how he could understand why SyFy (then Sci-Fi) would want to bring Michael Shanks back even if it meant derailing (my words not Corin's) other plans. It had more to do with the structure of the show rather than anything personal. This was the first I'd heard that Corin was supposed to be in Atlantis. I think that would have been awesome. Later on in the panel someone told him that there were still "Bring Back Jonas" petitions online and that people were interested in seeing him in Stargate Universe. However, Kelowna (Jonas Quinn's home planet) is blown up at one point. The joke then became that maybe Jonas dialed out before the planet blew. Iinstead of women and children first, it was 'Jonas, women, children.' :) His last episode was Fallout in 2004, which he pitched the story for. In it the hair and wardrobe were a 'throwback to the 60's' which Corin joked was fitting since when they first met Kelowna, it was very '50's' so they had advanced a little. When it blew up, he figures they'd reached the 80's. It also came out that he started to suspect he wasn't coming back when everyone was getting their Season 7 contract but him.
Someone asked him about eating ice cream and whether he got tired of it for an episode of Stargate. He jokingly said that he only had to eat ice cream off screen if Rick (Richard Dean Anderson) demanded it. Otherwise, they had 2 cameras so they didn't have to do endless takes of it.
He was asked about working with Michael Shanks and why they couldn't have continued both being on the show. Corin explained that he had a great interaction with Michael but again it was about the structure of the show. He wouldn't have minded continuing but it wasn't really in his hands. It made sense to him why Sci-Fi and the show would take Michael back even if that wasn't the initial plan. It wasn't great for him but that's what happens in the business. (that last again is in my words, not Corin's)
His favorite episode is "Nightwalkers" because it was his character's first time off the base, first time for a lot of foods and it was very X-files like. He clarified that it was Onion rings and a choclate shake (not chicken fingers!)
Corin shared a story about doing a commercial for McDonald's when he was 12-13. It was for a McDLT (hot side hot, cold side cold) and he watched them prep the hamburger with Elmer's glue. He was assured it was only being glued on one side and he wouldn't get any in his mouth. They were wrong. Big bite, big mouth full of glue. Thankfully they had a spit bucket.
A younger fan asked if he just remembered a lot of episodes very well or if he refreshed his memory by watching them before he went to conventions. He explained that while a lot of them blend together, there are details that stick with him.
He was asked about blank bullets (another younger fan wanted to know if he shot pellets out of the P90.) He explained how blanks were made from real bullets and there was a time on Stargate where there was a small shortage of them because the Army needed the bullets for actually shooting. (They make blanks out of real bullets
Richard Dean Anderson's penchant for rewriting his dialogue came up in this panel as well. Corin said 'when you're the executive producer and the star of the show, you can do what you want!" So when he did dialogue with RDA, he would just wait until RDA paused (since the dialogue on Corin's script wouldn't necessarily match what RDA was saying) and then he (Corin/Jonas) would say his line.
Someone asked if he was warned about fandom. He said he wasn't but that he felt it was great honor to play the character and that he really likes conventions. He believes the writers did a good job of giving Jonas a chance to win over the SG-1 team and at the same time win over the fans.
Parker Lewis was brought up and Corin explained how when Rupert Murdoch took over Fox, he changed the show because it was very expensive to make. His 1/2 hour comedy was as expensive as an hour drama.
When asked about pranks, Corin had two stories. One was about the prank pulled on him. When filming "For the Very First Time", there was a pig set up with the apple in its mouth for some scene in a banquet hall. He was completely grossed out and went into a big diatribe about how gross bacon and that pig was. When the crew brought around his car that night (a Jeep Wagonner if you're curious), some kind souls had moved the pig's head into the passenger seat of his vehicle complete with apple in its mouth. The second prank was the one he organized for a director who had received a DUI and had to spend half the day in jail before he came to work. There was a jail scene from an episode of PLCL and he convinced the crew to erect the set around 'Video Village' where the director sits around all the videos. So for the rest of the day, after the director came in, he directed from a jail cell.
He talked about working with Dean Stockwell and that he and Dean share some interests in Art. He also went into the business of Hollywood and the economy right now. The 90's were a time of independent films booming and now it is really hard for films because of the economy. Banks are more apprehensive.
Someone got up to close the door but Corin teased him about leaving. This launched into a story about how he often teased people when they leave the room. From his recent conventions in Oz, he got up to follow some girl leaving the room. He was teasing her but it found out that she'd been up late partying the night before so when he asked her why she was leaving, she said "Because I'm going to throw up!" He said that was the best reason EVER and he got himself back to the stage.
He's met the German voice actor who did his dubs for PLCL in Germany and that started a "i'm parker lewis, no I'm parker lewis' interaction. He's heard the French voice actor and is preetty sure he's not as high pitched as that.
When asked about places he's liked filming, he talked about Vancouver (gorgeous), Thailand, the Phillipines and India. Traveling for movies is a lifechanging experience.
Corin talked about going drinking with Chris Judge (once) in Season 6 of Stargate. Chris said "if you drink with me, you drink like me" and then ordered four fingers (four CHRIS fingers - ie = big) of scotch neat. Corin kept up for a little while and then snuck out of the restaurant. Chris didn't even realize he was gone (though he was probably still talking to me all night!) He said he doesn't drink anymore but when he did he liked "bombay sapphire", high end tequila and Jameson.
Corin talked a little about actors being typecast because of doing SciFi roles but how that's obviously a mistake. He's very positive about how a fanbase will stay with someone even after a show is off the air and that is priceless.
When asked if anyone had brought him something that embarassed him, he replied that someone had brought him an action figure that looked NOTHING like him.
He talked about being in Supernatural. He's filmed two episodes and is going back to Vancouver September 9th to film a 3rd.
Interestingly, a fan asked about whether the Internet helped or hurt TV. Corin talked about the ideas he has heard about the Internet and TV becoming the same, almost like a cable television subscription base. The biggest challenge, he thinks, is that Hollywood is trying to figure out how to monetize the Internet.
My favorite question was the poor soul who was confused and wanted to know if he was going to do another Stargate Atlantis. To which Corin firmly but gently explained he hadn't been in Stargate Atlantis.
The final answer I have written down is a recipe not a question. Corin talked about a drink he likes that combines Bannana, blueberries, peanut butter and yogurt. Half the room went "eww" and he said "do you like peanut butter sandwiches?" "Well you don't put the BREAD in!" So try out that recipe, Corin fans!
Sunday's panel was the podcast and that's online. Small items of note - I am the one who asked Corin about Star-ving, I reminded him to plug corinnemec.com and when he says "james marsters" in the audioplay, his face reflected the fact that he had no idea who James Marsters was! Apparently Corin is not a Buffy fan.
*Check out Blackskyradio.com for corin nemec interviews
*Check out Corinnemec.com for lots and lots of Corin news
*Check out GeekRadioDaily.com for the awesome folks who adore Parker Lewis
holliemke
September 9th, 2010 Corin was a blast again at this convention, my first DragonCon. I wasn't sure how much time I'd actually spend with him given that the convention was so huge - 50,000 people! Thankfully because of the Walk of Fame, there's time to say hi and interact with the guests, depending on how long the lines are. Corin had a steady stream of fans but didn't have the lines that Eddie McClintock, Summer Glau or Colin Ferguson had. We really should change that someday when he gets a new show. We KNOW it will happen. But I digress.
I saw Corin Friday both in the Walk of Fame and on the Stargate panel. It was the only Stargate panel he ended up doing over the weekend because on Monday his handler didn't fetch him! Oops. He was in the Walk of Fame almost all the time he wasn't in a panel. He had pictures from Parker Lewis, Stargate, The Stand and a headshot in the maroon sweater he wears. I do tease him about his clothes because I see the same tops, albeit in different configurations, a lot! He apparently doesn't have a TON of clothes like a lot of people, me included. But what he does wear, he looks DAMN good in.
Friday's Stargate panel included Martin Gero, Ben Browder, Christopher Judge, John DeLancie and Corin Nemec. The first question put to Corin and the rest of the panel was how they got into acting. Corin didn't hear the question at first which prompted John DeLancie to tease him 'clearly you weren't a good student' to which Corin replied 'that's why I became an actor.' Then Corin told the Goonies story that's on wikipedia and imdb. Short version: his dad worked on Goonies and he was really interested in the whole process of acting in a movie. He also gave a shout-out to Sean Astin who was at the convention.
The next question Corin answered was also a panel question about 'what actor living or dead that you'd like to work with.' Corin quipped "well sinee I've worked with Chris Judge..." When Chris answered he said he'd like to work with Errol Flynn. I think swashbuckling came up as a clarification because the audience reacted as if they didn't know who Errol Flynn was. Either way, Corin's next line became infamous - "I'd like to do some swashbuckling with him!" Chris Judge just lost it and out came all the innuendo about 'Corin and Errol Flynn crossing swords" and Corin stated (to Chris) "You're so dirty!" (for the rest of the Stargate panels, even when Corin wasn't there, the swashbuckling comment was brought up.)
The panel was also asked about what kinds of creative freedom they had. Corin talked about his props - usually food. He had a fair amount of freedom until 3/4 of the way through the season when an episode with an Orange brought the house down on him. From what I can gather, when they did 'coverage', trying to do pick up shots, it was extremely time consuming because of what Corin was doing with the Orange. He told this story at Gatecon too. Basically, after this episode, Corin was allowed his tea mug and nothing else. Chris Judge joked about it taking 8 hours to do coverage shots of Corin after the Orange incident. (not sure if the rest of the cast was there or just Corin.)
The actors (and writer Martin Gero) were asked what shows they would recommend to fans. Corin jokingly said "Real Housewives of New Jersey" but then said "I HATE that show but i have to watch it to hate on it - kind of like TMZ." For movies he said he liked Hustler, Bullet and any Errol Flynn.
They were also asked about sci fi films that they'd liked. Corin said he LOVED Logan's Run until he realized the SFX sucked. Star Wars was awesome for him and it blew his mind that both came out about the same time.
The last question was about doing a commercial for a restaurant. Corin liked Popeye's chicken.
Corin's next panel was in the Stargate Track room and it was all about Jonas! Finally we saw Jonas love at one of these conventions and it was awesome. I'm not sure how it came up but the answer to his favorite breakfast cereal was "Blueberry Morning." Now you know.
The next question was if he'd known he was only going to be on Stargate for 1 season. Interestingly enough, not only did he not know it was one season, he was initially brought into the show with the idea that he'd see the show out and then move to Stargate Atlantis as the lead character. They were just starting to talk about Atlantis and they were initially going to end SG-1 and this spin-off into Atlantis. Of course it didn't play out that way. Corin, as always, was extremely respectful and business savvy about how he could understand why SyFy (then Sci-Fi) would want to bring Michael Shanks back even if it meant derailing (my words not Corin's) other plans. It had more to do with the structure of the show rather than anything personal. This was the first I'd heard that Corin was supposed to be in Atlantis. I think that would have been awesome. Later on in the panel someone told him that there were still "Bring Back Jonas" petitions online and that people were interested in seeing him in Stargate Universe. However, Kelowna (Jonas Quinn's home planet) is blown up at one point. The joke then became that maybe Jonas dialed out before the planet blew. Iinstead of women and children first, it was 'Jonas, women, children.' :) His last episode was Fallout in 2004, which he pitched the story for. In it the hair and wardrobe were a 'throwback to the 60's' which Corin joked was fitting since when they first met Kelowna, it was very '50's' so they had advanced a little. When it blew up, he figures they'd reached the 80's. It also came out that he started to suspect he wasn't coming back when everyone was getting their Season 7 contract but him.
Someone asked him about eating ice cream and whether he got tired of it for an episode of Stargate. He jokingly said that he only had to eat ice cream off screen if Rick (Richard Dean Anderson) demanded it. Otherwise, they had 2 cameras so they didn't have to do endless takes of it.
He was asked about working with Michael Shanks and why they couldn't have continued both being on the show. Corin explained that he had a great interaction with Michael but again it was about the structure of the show. He wouldn't have minded continuing but it wasn't really in his hands. It made sense to him why Sci-Fi and the show would take Michael back even if that wasn't the initial plan. It wasn't great for him but that's what happens in the business. (that last again is in my words, not Corin's)
His favorite episode is "Nightwalkers" because it was his character's first time off the base, first time for a lot of foods and it was very X-files like. He clarified that it was Onion rings and a choclate shake (not chicken fingers!)
Corin shared a story about doing a commercial for McDonald's when he was 12-13. It was for a McDLT (hot side hot, cold side cold) and he watched them prep the hamburger with Elmer's glue. He was assured it was only being glued on one side and he wouldn't get any in his mouth. They were wrong. Big bite, big mouth full of glue. Thankfully they had a spit bucket.
A younger fan asked if he just remembered a lot of episodes very well or if he refreshed his memory by watching them before he went to conventions. He explained that while a lot of them blend together, there are details that stick with him.
He was asked about blank bullets (another younger fan wanted to know if he shot pellets out of the P90.) He explained how blanks were made from real bullets and there was a time on Stargate where there was a small shortage of them because the Army needed the bullets for actually shooting. (They make blanks out of real bullets
Richard Dean Anderson's penchant for rewriting his dialogue came up in this panel as well. Corin said 'when you're the executive producer and the star of the show, you can do what you want!" So when he did dialogue with RDA, he would just wait until RDA paused (since the dialogue on Corin's script wouldn't necessarily match what RDA was saying) and then he (Corin/Jonas) would say his line.
Someone asked if he was warned about fandom. He said he wasn't but that he felt it was great honor to play the character and that he really likes conventions. He believes the writers did a good job of giving Jonas a chance to win over the SG-1 team and at the same time win over the fans.
Parker Lewis was brought up and Corin explained how when Rupert Murdoch took over Fox, he changed the show because it was very expensive to make. His 1/2 hour comedy was as expensive as an hour drama.
When asked about pranks, Corin had two stories. One was about the prank pulled on him. When filming "For the Very First Time", there was a pig set up with the apple in its mouth for some scene in a banquet hall. He was completely grossed out and went into a big diatribe about how gross bacon and that pig was. When the crew brought around his car that night (a Jeep Wagonner if you're curious), some kind souls had moved the pig's head into the passenger seat of his vehicle complete with apple in its mouth. The second prank was the one he organized for a director who had received a DUI and had to spend half the day in jail before he came to work. There was a jail scene from an episode of PLCL and he convinced the crew to erect the set around 'Video Village' where the director sits around all the videos. So for the rest of the day, after the director came in, he directed from a jail cell.
He talked about working with Dean Stockwell and that he and Dean share some interests in Art. He also went into the business of Hollywood and the economy right now. The 90's were a time of independent films booming and now it is really hard for films because of the economy. Banks are more apprehensive.
Someone got up to close the door but Corin teased him about leaving. This launched into a story about how he often teased people when they leave the room. From his recent conventions in Oz, he got up to follow some girl leaving the room. He was teasing her but it found out that she'd been up late partying the night before so when he asked her why she was leaving, she said "Because I'm going to throw up!" He said that was the best reason EVER and he got himself back to the stage.
He's met the German voice actor who did his dubs for PLCL in Germany and that started a "i'm parker lewis, no I'm parker lewis' interaction. He's heard the French voice actor and is preetty sure he's not as high pitched as that.
When asked about places he's liked filming, he talked about Vancouver (gorgeous), Thailand, the Phillipines and India. Traveling for movies is a lifechanging experience.
Corin talked about going drinking with Chris Judge (once) in Season 6 of Stargate. Chris said "if you drink with me, you drink like me" and then ordered four fingers (four CHRIS fingers - ie = big) of scotch neat. Corin kept up for a little while and then snuck out of the restaurant. Chris didn't even realize he was gone (though he was probably still talking to me all night!) He said he doesn't drink anymore but when he did he liked "bombay sapphire", high end tequila and Jameson.
Corin talked a little about actors being typecast because of doing SciFi roles but how that's obviously a mistake. He's very positive about how a fanbase will stay with someone even after a show is off the air and that is priceless.
When asked if anyone had brought him something that embarassed him, he replied that someone had brought him an action figure that looked NOTHING like him.
He talked about being in Supernatural. He's filmed two episodes and is going back to Vancouver September 9th to film a 3rd.
Interestingly, a fan asked about whether the Internet helped or hurt TV. Corin talked about the ideas he has heard about the Internet and TV becoming the same, almost like a cable television subscription base. The biggest challenge, he thinks, is that Hollywood is trying to figure out how to monetize the Internet.
My favorite question was the poor soul who was confused and wanted to know if he was going to do another Stargate Atlantis. To which Corin firmly but gently explained he hadn't been in Stargate Atlantis.
The final answer I have written down is a recipe not a question. Corin talked about a drink he likes that combines Bannana, blueberries, peanut butter and yogurt. Half the room went "eww" and he said "do you like peanut butter sandwiches?" "Well you don't put the BREAD in!" So try out that recipe, Corin fans!
Sunday's panel was the podcast and that's online. Small items of note - I am the one who asked Corin about Star-ving, I reminded him to plug corinnemec.com and when he says "james marsters" in the audioplay, his face reflected the fact that he had no idea who James Marsters was! Apparently Corin is not a Buffy fan.
*Check out Blackskyradio.com for corin nemec interviews
*Check out Corinnemec.com for lots and lots of Corin news
*Check out GeekRadioDaily.com for the awesome folks who adore Parker Lewis
Supernatural - Creation - January 2011 (repost from my LJ)
San Francisco Salute to Supernatural by Creation Entertainment
January 14-16, 2011
It was a great convention and especially so for being my first Creation and my first Supernatural convention. I wasn't sure what to expect but I was very satisfied. The most unusual part for me was the structure of having the guests only appear one day. For instance, Corin's meet and greet, Q and A session, photo ops and autographs all happened on Saturday. The gold package extra of a dessert cocktail party also was on Saturday and included Corin. His schedule for Saturday was:
1:40 – 2:40 Meet N Greet with Corin Nemec and Richard Speight, Jr
3:55 – 4: 35 Corin Nemec on stage for question and Answer session
4:40 Photo Ops with Corin Nemec
7:05 Autographs with Saturday stars including Corin Nemec
10:45 Cocktail/Dessert party with Saturday stars including Corin Nemec (Gold pkg only)
I wasn't gold pkg so I didn't go to the dessert party but I went to everything else. The Meet N Greet was something Creation put together about a month before the convention. There were several offered including 30 minutes for ten fans with Jared, 30 with ten fans with Jensen, an hour with Aldis and Samantha and an hour with Corin and Richard. The auctions started at one price and Jensen's sold out the first week. The other three still had openings as late as the week of the convention. I bought mine the day of and there were only three of us in the Corin/Richard meet. This made it even MORE awesome!
The meet was held in the Victor's room, a beautiful ballroom at the top of the Westin St. Francis, 32 stories up. The view of San Francisco was gorgeous! I think the meet was so small partially because this convention wasn't as big as many other Creation conventions. Another great feature of the meet was that Richard and Corin had never met before and Richard ended up asking Corin a TON of questions. While there were three of us fans, the third lady didn't arrive until it was almost over. Which did make Richard feel better because he had met her before. Within a few minutes of arriving, Richard looked at Corin and I interacting and asked “do you two know each other?” to which Corin replied “yes, Hollie is my stalker.” Some questions/information from that hour:
Corin is reading “The Imperial Cruise” by James Bradley
Richard is reading “Unbroken” by Laura Hillenbrand. He also just finished the trilogy of books by Stieg Larrson
Corin's grandfather and greatgrandfather were Freemasons. The group isn't as big in the US anymore. Richard was fascinated and kept asking questions and Corin kept answering. In particular, I think he mentioned that Jimmy Kimmel films in an old (no longer functioning) Masonic Temple. He mentioned that there is a lot of reading involved and it isn't very appealing to a younger generation.
Beverly Hills, according to Richard and Corin, is the neighborhood 'your parents' live in rather than the hip/happening place it might once have been.
Richard's wife works on gamespot.com
Richard is 5'8
Richard told Corin the story of Skip Muck and Fritz Nylon being friends and both being from a very small town in New York. Skip was the character Richard played in “Band of Brothers” based on a real story and Fritz Nylon was the man the “Saving Private Ryan” story is about. This came out of Richard asking why I had a notebook. When I said I wrote things down, he asked what and I mentioned the story he'd told during his Q and A. Which Corin didn't hear so he repeated it for Corin.
Marie had asked them how they relax. Richard said he goes to the beach a lot with his kids who are both under 5. Corin talked about his graffiti painting. How his breakdancing 'lifestyle' in Atlanta morphed into graffiti when he moved to LA.
This absolutely was worth every penny I paid for it. The interaction between the two actors was lovely as well as the great small group experience. I didn't have a camera but graciously Marie shared her picture with me and it is on my facebook page.
The next Corin event was his Q and A. This was the first Supernatural convention he was at and the first time he could really take questions about his character. Though the first question was about “The Stand.” Here is some information from the QA.
He is very physically different from the character of Harold Lauder but was cast based on how performed the character.
The director asked him to do things to creep out Molly Ringwald so he'd silently come up behind when she was talking to someone else and just stand really close to her until she'd get uncomfortable and move away.
Stephen King once started laughing for no obvious reason and when asked said he was thinking about how with 103 speaking roles in the film, it wouldn't be that unusual for one of them to die in a plane crash. According to Corin, not a single actor laughed.
He played Pop Warner football when he was young in Atlanta and one of the teams he 'played' for was the Steelers. He is a big Steelers fan.
Today, Parker Lewis would probably be a telemarketer and his sister would be his boss.
Mitch Pileggi and he would go to Starbucks and discuss acting
A lady asked him how he prepared for the torture scene. He quipped that he brought his table from home, 'doesn't everyone have a demon knife?'
J2 are both southern boys, as is Corin, since he was raised in Arkansas and Georgia
He has family fairly similar to the Campbells – in particular an uncle in a double wide trailer who lives off the land.
He confirmed that the J2 drive the mini-scooters and that the set is very relaxed but professional
Corin just finished “Besties” and is about to go back to “Nuclear Family”. He had worked on it as a web series last year but its been picked up as a film project. He will also start working on a creature feature called “Sand Sharks.”
He has a sneaking suspicion the hair and make-up people on Supernatural have seen Star-ving, the web series in which he appears naked and plays a version of himself.
As a first convention for a not that popular character, I think Corin did fantastic. As always, he won over even more people. I talked to several people who had not met Corin before but were very impressed. I also saw the smiles as they walked away from the autograph table and it was brilliant! Unfortunately I didn't go to the dessert party since it was gold members only. But I think it was a fantastic convention.
January 14-16, 2011
It was a great convention and especially so for being my first Creation and my first Supernatural convention. I wasn't sure what to expect but I was very satisfied. The most unusual part for me was the structure of having the guests only appear one day. For instance, Corin's meet and greet, Q and A session, photo ops and autographs all happened on Saturday. The gold package extra of a dessert cocktail party also was on Saturday and included Corin. His schedule for Saturday was:
1:40 – 2:40 Meet N Greet with Corin Nemec and Richard Speight, Jr
3:55 – 4: 35 Corin Nemec on stage for question and Answer session
4:40 Photo Ops with Corin Nemec
7:05 Autographs with Saturday stars including Corin Nemec
10:45 Cocktail/Dessert party with Saturday stars including Corin Nemec (Gold pkg only)
I wasn't gold pkg so I didn't go to the dessert party but I went to everything else. The Meet N Greet was something Creation put together about a month before the convention. There were several offered including 30 minutes for ten fans with Jared, 30 with ten fans with Jensen, an hour with Aldis and Samantha and an hour with Corin and Richard. The auctions started at one price and Jensen's sold out the first week. The other three still had openings as late as the week of the convention. I bought mine the day of and there were only three of us in the Corin/Richard meet. This made it even MORE awesome!
The meet was held in the Victor's room, a beautiful ballroom at the top of the Westin St. Francis, 32 stories up. The view of San Francisco was gorgeous! I think the meet was so small partially because this convention wasn't as big as many other Creation conventions. Another great feature of the meet was that Richard and Corin had never met before and Richard ended up asking Corin a TON of questions. While there were three of us fans, the third lady didn't arrive until it was almost over. Which did make Richard feel better because he had met her before. Within a few minutes of arriving, Richard looked at Corin and I interacting and asked “do you two know each other?” to which Corin replied “yes, Hollie is my stalker.” Some questions/information from that hour:
Corin is reading “The Imperial Cruise” by James Bradley
Richard is reading “Unbroken” by Laura Hillenbrand. He also just finished the trilogy of books by Stieg Larrson
Corin's grandfather and greatgrandfather were Freemasons. The group isn't as big in the US anymore. Richard was fascinated and kept asking questions and Corin kept answering. In particular, I think he mentioned that Jimmy Kimmel films in an old (no longer functioning) Masonic Temple. He mentioned that there is a lot of reading involved and it isn't very appealing to a younger generation.
Beverly Hills, according to Richard and Corin, is the neighborhood 'your parents' live in rather than the hip/happening place it might once have been.
Richard's wife works on gamespot.com
Richard is 5'8
Richard told Corin the story of Skip Muck and Fritz Nylon being friends and both being from a very small town in New York. Skip was the character Richard played in “Band of Brothers” based on a real story and Fritz Nylon was the man the “Saving Private Ryan” story is about. This came out of Richard asking why I had a notebook. When I said I wrote things down, he asked what and I mentioned the story he'd told during his Q and A. Which Corin didn't hear so he repeated it for Corin.
Marie had asked them how they relax. Richard said he goes to the beach a lot with his kids who are both under 5. Corin talked about his graffiti painting. How his breakdancing 'lifestyle' in Atlanta morphed into graffiti when he moved to LA.
This absolutely was worth every penny I paid for it. The interaction between the two actors was lovely as well as the great small group experience. I didn't have a camera but graciously Marie shared her picture with me and it is on my facebook page.
The next Corin event was his Q and A. This was the first Supernatural convention he was at and the first time he could really take questions about his character. Though the first question was about “The Stand.” Here is some information from the QA.
He is very physically different from the character of Harold Lauder but was cast based on how performed the character.
The director asked him to do things to creep out Molly Ringwald so he'd silently come up behind when she was talking to someone else and just stand really close to her until she'd get uncomfortable and move away.
Stephen King once started laughing for no obvious reason and when asked said he was thinking about how with 103 speaking roles in the film, it wouldn't be that unusual for one of them to die in a plane crash. According to Corin, not a single actor laughed.
He played Pop Warner football when he was young in Atlanta and one of the teams he 'played' for was the Steelers. He is a big Steelers fan.
Today, Parker Lewis would probably be a telemarketer and his sister would be his boss.
Mitch Pileggi and he would go to Starbucks and discuss acting
A lady asked him how he prepared for the torture scene. He quipped that he brought his table from home, 'doesn't everyone have a demon knife?'
J2 are both southern boys, as is Corin, since he was raised in Arkansas and Georgia
He has family fairly similar to the Campbells – in particular an uncle in a double wide trailer who lives off the land.
He confirmed that the J2 drive the mini-scooters and that the set is very relaxed but professional
Corin just finished “Besties” and is about to go back to “Nuclear Family”. He had worked on it as a web series last year but its been picked up as a film project. He will also start working on a creature feature called “Sand Sharks.”
He has a sneaking suspicion the hair and make-up people on Supernatural have seen Star-ving, the web series in which he appears naked and plays a version of himself.
As a first convention for a not that popular character, I think Corin did fantastic. As always, he won over even more people. I talked to several people who had not met Corin before but were very impressed. I also saw the smiles as they walked away from the autograph table and it was brilliant! Unfortunately I didn't go to the dessert party since it was gold members only. But I think it was a fantastic convention.
Long Beach Comic Con
It's a comic con. Not to be confused with San Diego Comic Con which has lots of media guests. Long Beach was 98% comics. I went to see Corin Nemec and Bruce Boxleitner. There were people there but nothing like the Stan Lee lines.
There was also wrestling so I did a big of ogling of the good looking men. The cars outside were fun - Back to the Future and Knight Rider were cool to see.
The real bonus of this convention was spending half of Sunday just talking to Corin!
Overall Grade: D for media guests
There was also wrestling so I did a big of ogling of the good looking men. The cars outside were fun - Back to the Future and Knight Rider were cool to see.
The real bonus of this convention was spending half of Sunday just talking to Corin!
Overall Grade: D for media guests
Dragoncon
Lots has been written about Dragoncon so I'll keep it fairly short and sweet. It is a large convention - around 40,000 people. I think only San Diego Comic Con is bigger. Dcon spans 5 host hotels where different tracks have dedicated rooms. It is an annual event and the base price is a little over $100 for all four days. Easily a 24 hour convention once you know enough people to attend the parties. There is no way to see everything you want to see because there are 400 guests alone.
I really liked the major name panels like True Blood and Eureka. The diversity of guests means that each day your favorite actor could be in a totally different environment. The rooms are huge and accomodate almost everyone. They clear the rooms between panels so unlike SDCC, if you really want to see a panel, you have an hour wait. I know I hung around the area where the line for a Eureka/Warehouse 13 crossover panel was going to begin about two hours ahead of time and ended up at almost the front of the line.
The walk of fame (where the celebs sit between panels and sell autographs) is wonderful. There are some long lines but there's also some really short ones. Occasionally, I would just go up and tell someone I loved their work. Some people really liked that. Some really wanted you to buy a damn autograph.
Photo ops were very scheduled and somewhat intimidating for me. I never did figure out exactly where to have them taken so I just didn't this time. The fans at this con are awesome. The costumes alone are worth going for! Plus, there is signicant waiting in line for every panel so lots of opportunities to get to know your neighbors.
It is a very hot and crowded convention. Atlanta over Labor Day is tolerable in AC but much harder when you have to go outside for some lines or want to try avoiding the crowd in the habitrails. (the main three hotels are connected by tubes/tunnels that look like hamster habitrails.) At the worst of times, you are pressed firmly against the person in front of you. At the best of the times, you can walk a normal pace but there are still people everywhere. When you get to a lobby - Hyatt, Hilton or Marriot - there's often wall to wall people. Excellent for watching and picture taking but not fun for anyone who has any kind of crowd phobia.
Elevators when you are in the host hotels are kind of tough too. I believe the Hyatt is the worst but the others are rough too. Lots of squeezing in and occasionally hotel staff will interupt to make sure its a bit more orderly.
Overall experience: B-. Love the fans. Love the costumes. Dislike the heat and being sweaty all the time. Great opportunity to see bigger named stars from shows like Eureka and Warehouse 13.
I really liked the major name panels like True Blood and Eureka. The diversity of guests means that each day your favorite actor could be in a totally different environment. The rooms are huge and accomodate almost everyone. They clear the rooms between panels so unlike SDCC, if you really want to see a panel, you have an hour wait. I know I hung around the area where the line for a Eureka/Warehouse 13 crossover panel was going to begin about two hours ahead of time and ended up at almost the front of the line.
The walk of fame (where the celebs sit between panels and sell autographs) is wonderful. There are some long lines but there's also some really short ones. Occasionally, I would just go up and tell someone I loved their work. Some people really liked that. Some really wanted you to buy a damn autograph.
Photo ops were very scheduled and somewhat intimidating for me. I never did figure out exactly where to have them taken so I just didn't this time. The fans at this con are awesome. The costumes alone are worth going for! Plus, there is signicant waiting in line for every panel so lots of opportunities to get to know your neighbors.
It is a very hot and crowded convention. Atlanta over Labor Day is tolerable in AC but much harder when you have to go outside for some lines or want to try avoiding the crowd in the habitrails. (the main three hotels are connected by tubes/tunnels that look like hamster habitrails.) At the worst of times, you are pressed firmly against the person in front of you. At the best of the times, you can walk a normal pace but there are still people everywhere. When you get to a lobby - Hyatt, Hilton or Marriot - there's often wall to wall people. Excellent for watching and picture taking but not fun for anyone who has any kind of crowd phobia.
Elevators when you are in the host hotels are kind of tough too. I believe the Hyatt is the worst but the others are rough too. Lots of squeezing in and occasionally hotel staff will interupt to make sure its a bit more orderly.
Overall experience: B-. Love the fans. Love the costumes. Dislike the heat and being sweaty all the time. Great opportunity to see bigger named stars from shows like Eureka and Warehouse 13.
Gatecon 2010
Gatecon is probably my favorite convention experience yet. The hard work of the volunteers and the organizers blends together to make it a special experience. The specific fans that attend are extremely well behaved and as a result the celebrities can relax. To be fair, the invite list, while very large, isn't extremely well known. Corin Nemec, JR Bourne, Colin Cunningham, Gary Chaulk, Cliff Simon, Paul McGillion and Erick Avari were just some of the 20 plus actors in attendance and they are best known for their Stargate work. However, they were all amazing guests on stage and off.
There was plenty of opportunity to ask questions of the various panels and a lot of chances for the guests to interact with each other. In addition, between the bar and the smoking area outside, many of the guests relaxed with each other and the fans informally. There were also opportunities for Meet N Greets with 5 -8 fans at a fairly low cost.
The size of the convention was good - around 300-400 possibly? I'm not entirely certain on the numbers but it was smaller than NEFanX but not as big as a Creation convention.
By far, this has been my favorite convention. Overal, serious A+. I wish they were having more of them. I can only hope.
There was plenty of opportunity to ask questions of the various panels and a lot of chances for the guests to interact with each other. In addition, between the bar and the smoking area outside, many of the guests relaxed with each other and the fans informally. There were also opportunities for Meet N Greets with 5 -8 fans at a fairly low cost.
The size of the convention was good - around 300-400 possibly? I'm not entirely certain on the numbers but it was smaller than NEFanX but not as big as a Creation convention.
By far, this has been my favorite convention. Overal, serious A+. I wish they were having more of them. I can only hope.
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