Saturday, August 13, 2005

Star Trek Convention Day One

LasVegasVacation Blogging


I mentioned the other day about the Star Trek convention being poorly run. Some people think it's been great. I'm not one of those.

The first day, they put us in a line. The line was for everything. I wanted to ask what the line was for, and they told me to get in line for questions like that.

When the thing started for the "Gold tickets" (people with more money than us), they came down the line and told us (without "Gold tickets") that we didn't need to stay in line and could go eat and come back in an hour for when it opened to the rest of us. They had us in line for hours that morning, for no reason that I could see.

It was like they weren't ready for a crowd of people lining up to see Star Trek stuff. I mean, hello! It's a Star Trek convention! They made a big deal about people pre-registering, and we did the night before. And we were wearing our wristbands and tickets around our necks, so it's not like it was a secret that we had done the pre-registration stuff. But told us to get in line anyway. Dumbasses!

When it finally started, the first fellow on stage was a guy named Denis Russell. He worked on the first pilot, and at times throughout the original series, even earning an Emmy nomination for his work. It was really interesting stuff to me. Because the optical effects, though not any comparison to today's effects, were groundbreaking at the time. And, as a young boy, I was fascinated by it. So, it was a joy for me to hear him speak.

Robert Walker (Charlie Evans from Charlie X) and Grace Lee Whitney (Yeoman Janice Rand from the first season and TOS movies) had a session that was very interesting. They were fun.

LeVar Burton (Geordi LaForge) was an absolute delight. He was fun, witty, and a snappy dresser who even dresses himself. Yeah, folks ask all kinds of questions at these things, it seems.

John de Lancie (Q) was interesting to hear, and seemed to enjoy answering questions too. My Big Sister (who's 5'4") got a picture with him, and was delighted with how nice he was.

I enjoyed listening to Robin Curtis (Lt. Saavik #2, my favorite Saavik). She made us feel like we were special to her. While I realize that the others are real people, she seemed to me to be the most "real" -- that is, she was one of us, but a star at the same time. I would have enjoyed talking with her, though she would have tired of me in about two minutes.

The last star from the first day was Corbin Bernsen (Q2 from "Deja Q"). A lot of the Q&A centered on his work in LA Law. I'd seen him on Fox & Friends in the past and thought I'd enjoy hearing him. And I was not disappointed.
SPOILER ALERT: He's planning a Star Trek themed movie, tentatively titled "Trek Collectors." It's about some crazed fans who collect Star Trek items of every sort, then decide to collect the ultimate Trek collectible: actors who appeared on the show. Sort of a Trekkers/Galaxy Quest meets The Most Dangerous Game. It sounds like a blast and I'd pay real money to see it.

Thursday had some good things going on, but the damper of the ill-prepared staff made it not quite what it could have been. I've mentioned to my Big Sister (who's 5'4") that she should share her feelings about it. If she does, you might see a side of her you don't want to see. But it'd be fun!

Note: Our seats, though expensive, weren't expensive enough to get as close as some people who paid less. Go figure. Anyway, the photos here are from StarTrek.com. No, I didn't ask permission. Yes, they'll probably tell me to take them down. Or would if they knew about them. They don't read this little blog. But the people from StarTrek.com were cool.



More Star Trek convention coverage: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4

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