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HLWW8 Report

Saturday, October 6, 2007

Day 3: HLWW8

Breakfast with F Braun McAsh

I woke up around 7:30am, showered and headed for the elevator on the 16th floor around 8am. When the elevator doors opened there was F Braun McAsh standing in the elevator. I got in and he asked if I was enjoying the weekend (he must have seen my badge). We chatted a little. In the lobby we both were headed outside to find some breakfast. However it was raining pretty good and the two of us turned to see what was on the menu at the restaurant in the lobby of the Pinnacle. The hostess came over and said, "Two for breakfast?" It was a little awkward because it was only a coincidence we were standing there together. At first I said "no, we're not together" but then I turned to him and asked if he wanted to have breakfast with me. Totally expected him to gracefully decline. But instead he said, "Sure, why not." We were seated by the window. After being seated I told him my name. We shook hands and he said, "Braun." I almost laughed because of course I knew his name already! He said he's not good with names but mine is an easy one because he's got two good friends named Shawn (not sure if spelled the same way).

I had some unusual french toast. It was thick and had something like oats or granola on the outside. Braun got eggs and bread from the buffet. He leaned over and looked at my french toast and asked "what is that?" I can't remember the exact name but I told him french toast. He said it looked very unusual. He joked it looked like breaded french toast. And he was right. But it was good. We each had orange juice and coffee.

Needless to say Braun is never at a loss for words. And as much as I would like to say we had a "conversation" it was actually that he did most of the talking. We never talked of Highlander or the show. But we covered Vancouver and the high cost of living and how much more expensive things were in Vancouver than other parts of Canada and the U.S. Which then lead to Canadian politics and United States politics. Though at first he indicated he didn't like to discuss U.S. politics because he never knew what someone's position was and who might get insulted. Though he quickly realized I was not put off by what he said and he dove right in. He also said not many people were fond of all the new construction mostly due to the upcoming 2010 Olympics in Vancouver including money being spent on all new venues. He said there was little real estate left in Vancouver and so now the city was expanding upwards with many skyscrapers. I was actually amazed by all the construction that was going on in the city that I had seen the past few days. So Braun's explanations put it all into perspective. He went on that Vancouver doesn't have the infrastructure to support such growth. He told how one of the main roads through Vancouver, with lots of shops, is in chaos because there is a 50-foot trench through the street to make way for the new subway system going in. However many of those shops are now cut off and customers can't get to them so a lot have been forced to close. Needless to say he wasn't too happy with the Olympics coming to his city and would prefer the money be spent elsewhere. He said he lives north of Vancouver and his property taxes have increased significantly over the years.

He thinks Vancouver needs more arts facilities too. He said the city claims to be this big cultural city on the west coast but that it is actually lacking in museums and cultural event centers. It has a few but not enough.

He also said Vancouver has a high-crime rate mostly due to an influx of gang related activity. He even said there were daylight shootings right down the street in Gastown. He then caught himself and apologized that he was giving me all the bad dirt on the city and then went on to say "but Vancouver is a beautiful city."

We sat there for over an hour chatting away. I picked up the bill and he said I didn't have to pay, that it was too expensive. I told him I'd like to pay it was the least I could do for entertaining me for breakfast. He thanked me and said he should let me go to the con before I missed all the sessions. He walked with me upstairs to the ballroom. He said he had nothing scheduled that day (Saturday) and wasn't due on stage again until the next day. At the Pinnacle ballroom door we shook hands, he thanked me for breakfast and I thanked HIM for having breakfast with me, and I walked into the main events room and the end of the first session.

9am - 10am David Q+A, Ken Q+A, Discuss new Video Game

I missed almost the entire first session since I was having breakfast with F Braun McAsh. But who cares, I had breakfast with F Braun McAsh!!!!!!! :-)

I walked in on about the last 10 to 15 minutes of David Abramowitz's and Ken Gord's discussion. So if anyone has any details from their Q+A session that I completely missed, I'd love to hear them. They were standing on the stage and showing some screen captures from the new Highlander game on the large screen behind them. Again, I missed a good part of this but here's what I did hear them say:

• Methos will be a character in the game
• Peter Wingfield will provide his voice for Methos in the game
• David Abramowitz described Methos' role in the video game as being similar to that of Ramirez in the first Highlander movie.
• Methos will be sort of the help character or guide through the game
• It will be made for Play station 3, X-Box 360 and the PC
• Possible release in 2008
• The main character again is a MacLeod: Owen MacLeod
• Sometime during the weekend Peter Wingfield joked, "You'll see it by Christmas. Not this Christmas but by Christmas."

10am - 10:45am Adrian Q+A

I got to admit my memory is starting to get a little foggy here. I can't remember exactly all that was discussed during Adrian's Q+A and Lizzie's after that. I do remember Adrian talking about some of his current projects. He joked that a lot of his recent work has been showing up on the Sci-Fi Channel. Including his current project "Captain Drake". He said that the week after HLWW8 he was off to start filming. He accidentally said he was off to Lithuania to start filming. He quickly corrected himself and said he was off to Bulgaria (Sofia to be exact). Lithuania is where The Source was filmed. I just read on the web that the same guy who wrote Wraiths of Roanoke (aka The Lost Colony), Rafael Jordan, wrote the "Captain Drake" movie. An interesting comment that Adrian made was about the accents for that time period. He said that what most people expect is a proper, regal, British accent when actually for that time period and especially for privateers it is nothing like that. They were working class people. I think he said it was more like a cockney accent (am I remembering that correctly?) but that would go against what the general public expects.

Adrian also joked about being aware that there were polls out there on which of his various hair styles/lengths does everyone like. One of the questions (or was it more of a statement) was from someone who told Adrian that their friend said Adrian smells good. Adrian responded that he definitely smells good today! He debated about putting on some cologne and decided to do so. Then he asked her "do you want to smell?" So he let her come near the stage, he bent down so she could smell his neck and I guess she took a deep breath.

Adrian interacting with the fans

10:45am - 11am Adrian & Elizabeth

Lizzie came on the stage with Adrian at 11am and the two of them reminisced about Highlander. She commented that she had seen some of his recent movies (not The Source) and that he was good in those movies that she saw him in. I think a question came up about Adrian working with the little girl in Seance. Lizzie indicates that she hasn't seen that one. Adrian talked about how it was difficult and disturbing. Lizzie asked why and Adrian, uncomfortable, explains how it's implied that his character has probably abused her. Lizzie was a little taken back and indicated that it might not be one she wants to see. During that whole conversation Adrian started to say how that actress that played the girl was a little freaky or disturbing (can't remember his exact words) and he started to say something about her eyes, that she had strange eyes or something, but then they got side-tracked by something else and he never came back to that thought.

11am - 11:15am Elizabeth

Adrian left at about 11am and Lizzie had the stage to herself. She talked about her daughter and how she can't find the time to do the things she likes such as her artwork. She spoke on how having a child has changed her life and how she's very happy. Speaking of family lead into a discussion about her grandmother in Arkansas and the influence her grandmother had on her life. In fact, she said that she based Amanda on her grandmother. Amanda's free-wheeling spirit is right in line with her grandmother's. And her grandmother liked to scare Lizzie and her friends with tales of witches and ghosts - living in the attic. To the point that her grandmother would open the attic door with the kids down below and then scream in fright as if she encountered a witch/ghost up there.

Lizzie wrote a book called "Handbook for A Would-Be Witch" which details life with her grandmother and some of her stories such as the one above. Elizabeth sat down to read from the book for us. Without hesitation she pulled out a pair of reading glasses placed them on her face and began reading. What was interesting is that most actors would not put glasses on in public because it ruins their "youthful image." But Elizabeth didn't hesitate to do so. Of course she looked great with the glasses on as well as with them off. I really enjoyed her story. It especially struck a chord with me because one of my passions is genealogy. I may even be more passionate about family history than I am about Highlander (I know, hard to believe). Be careful if you mention your family history around me because I'll start investigating it for you. It's a compulsion. I can't help. Elizabeth's recording of the stories of her grandmother, and in such a fascinating way, is such an excellent legacy to leave her family and her daughter. It is unique ways of recording family history like this that really get us genealogists motivated and excited. And part of my motivation for doing genealogy is to leave a similar legacy for my only daughter too. (I bought Elizabeth's book during lunch after this session. The genealogist in me had to.)

11:15am - 12pm Peter

Peter was next up. He genuinely loves interacting with the fans. And that voice of his would make the Pied Piper jealous. I heard someone say during the weekend that Peter could recite the phone book and keep people enthralled. And I believe he could. Peter started telling all of us how he took his son down to the hotel pool that morning and they went for a swim. He said it wasn't what you'd expect from an indoor pool because the water was cold. He mentioned how he would miss his character on Holby City but that he would rather be on 24. I love 24 and have seen every episode every season. Last season it was rumored Peter would be on 24 and when he wasn't I was a little disappointed. But now I can't wait to see him on the show.

Peter mentioned that he had filmed one episode already. Was committed to three more and there was an option for another three. Someone asked him if he's Jack Bauer's (Kiefer Sutherland's character) ally. Peter hesitated and then said "yes and no." He hadn't filmed any scenes with Kiefer yet. And he said he had to be careful about what he revealed. But Peter's character has his own agenda. Again Peter hesitated a little and then said that looking at how his character operates and evolves and based on the history of 24 that he foresees his character is going to have to die.

Jim Byrnes was suppose to come onstage right after Peter for a 12pm to 12:30pm session. However, he was late - stuck in traffic and so Carmel had someone (Peter) fill in for him. Peter Wingfield stayed on the stage and continued chatting with us. Elizabeth came back out on stage and joined Peter for the last half of the session since Jim Byrnes still had not arrived. They sat together and fondly remembered the time they lost it with laughter during the filming of Modern Prometheus. Elizabeth indicated that that scene was the most "unprofessional" she had ever been. Somehow Elizabeth brought up the topic of slash fiction and Peter feigned ignorance. With a smile he claimed he didn't know what it was.

Occasional updates were given that Jim was still on his way. Peter was like how dare he and he whips out his cell phone and says let's give him a call. He tried to reach Jim in his car and wanted to give him a hard time. But all he got was Jim's voicemail which we could just barely hear through Peter's mic.

11:30am - 12pm David, Adrian, Peter & Jim: The Source - what happened?

Now was the session we all were waiting for. Carmel called it "The Source - what happened?" I over-heard someone say they should have called it "The Source - WTF?" Jim Byrnes, David Abramowitz, Adrian and Peter all sat on stage for this session. They all indicated that there were many reasons for it's failure. David even yelled out that his name is not on it and he was happy about that. Adrian looked embarrassed at times - sitting there with his hand on his forehead.

Jim finally showed up about 5 to 10 minutes into this session. He sat down next to Adrian and Adrian leaned over and told him they were discussing The Source. Well Jim Byrnes got this big silly grin on his face and said, "Highlander: The Sores." He kind of lingered on the word "sores." Apparently he likes to refer to the movie by that name. Peter even mentioned it during his session earlier.

So what happened according to these guys? It sounded like the storyline they were promised never materialized. On top of that, Bill Panzer, had his own ideas for Highlander. While they all sort of beat around the bush on this point, David did say that it was thanks to Bill Panzer that we had Highlander in any of its formats and any Highlander at all for that matter. But, that they all bumped heads with Bill over creativity with Highlander. One point that was driven home to us over and over again was that Bill wanted to "revive" Highlander and bring in new viewership. And of course he saw that viewership demographic in the 14 - thirty something male demographic (I don't remember the exact range they gave but 14-30 is close).

Adrian said the script was crap and he wanted David A to look at it. David picks up the story: so Bill Panzer contacts him and says the script needs some help and would he take a crack at it. David does, and David says he pretty much rewrote the entire script. He said his version had some similar ideas as the final movie but for the most part they never used his version. David indicated that in his script he went more into the back story of Duncan and Anna and the tragedy that would drive them apart. He also indicated that the story was to be about the best immortal male and immortal female who come together and are on a quest to find the source and as a result would produce a baby - a new generation of immortals and I guess potentially of Highlander. So David gives them back the script and then he never hears a word. Nothing. Which David takes to mean, "Oh my God, they hated it!"

Now Adrian picks up the story: So Adrian finally gets the script back and it's even worse than before. He says he thought at the time that he couldn't believe David would write this crap (Shawn's words not Adrian's). But he didn't call David for fear of alienating David. What David and Adrian didn't know at the time was that the script that David rewrote was not used. Bits and pieces were taken from it but basically it was not used.

On top of all that filming had already started and they were committed, so major reworking was impossible. But Adrian was really unhappy with the script/story and I think he said he finally reached the breaking point and called David about the script (or maybe he convinced someone else to call David. Sorry, a little fuzzy on the details here).

David A. picks up the story again: So David gets a call that the script still is not working and would he take another look at it. He gets the script and it's a completely different story from the one he re-wrote the first time. I think he said he didn't have time for another complete re-write but tried to help it. And they never used any of that input either.

Adrian also added that shooting in Lithuania was a hindrance too. Language barriers and production not being up to par all contributed to a bad film. In addition he was told that during the fight scenes there were to be some terrific special effects and so the filming of the fight sequences was done with the idea that a lot of special effects would be added (I think Adrian was talking about the final fight scene specifically). But the movie ran out of money and the special effects never materialized. Because of that the fight sequences are terrible. The special effects are terrible. Adrian continued that Highlander (especially the TV series) was always about the characters and their relationships. Because of that Adrian said that there should have been many more close-ups so that you could see that interaction and emotion in the faces of the actors/characters. Adrian says that hardly any close-ups were filmed. He added that for people that didn't know the back stories of Duncan and Joe that Joe's death scene meant nothing. And without the proper close-ups and reaction shots the scene was rather empty.

David also said that it was during this project that Bill Panzer broke his neck. He hesitates and says that Bill was never the same after that and he was not as involved in the production from then on as he should have been. David also said that the production ran out of money and that the financiers ended up taking over the movie.

David re-emphasized that we did have Highlander because of Bill Panzer. And he told us that during the filming of Highlander II that the production ran out of money and the banks were about to take over the film. Bill Panzer said no way was he going to let the banks take over the movie and he and Peter Davis used their own money (many millions of dollars) to finance the rest of the film themselves so that outsiders didn't get control. David said it took them many, many years to recoup that money they invested themselves. He said that sort of devotion is unheard of today in the industry.

Coming away from that session you got the sense that these people truly wanted a different movie, a great movie, and fought hard to get it. Unfortunately a thousand other influences made it not so.

1pm - 3:15pm Lunch and Autographs

After the last morning session it was time for lunch and to get autographs. I stopped in the dealers room and purchased Lizzie's "Would-Be Witch" book. I also bought John Mosby's Verbatim #12 that has a picture of Peter Wingfield on it. I wanted to get him to sign that. I lined up near the registration tables for the autograph session which was to be in the adjoining ballroom to the main events room. The word went out that we were to line up in numeric order (by the number of our badge). The idea was that all preferred seating were "promised" they would get autographs. Of course there was no guarantee on this. There were about 125 preferred seats. I was number 12. While waiting someone came around with a color photo and a black and white photo of Jim Byrnes for sale. The black and white looked like an older image. The color picture looked more recent so I bought that one. They let 20 of us at a time into the room so I was in the first group to enter the room. The Guests of Honor were seated at an L-shaped set of tables facing a grouping of chairs that we were to sit in. Then the staff would usher us up to the tables to get autographs. On one leg of the "L" was Peter Wingfield - Adrian Paul - Elizabeth Gracen - Jim Byrnes - F Braun McAsh - Gillian Horvath. On the other leg was Donna Lettow - Ken Gord - Brandon Jerwa - Shawn Shimpach.

At first they had us line up single file and then we'd walk in front of each GOH one at a time. Sort of like an assembly line or a cafeteria line. I guess that was moving a little slow so they changed it pretty quickly where you'd get in line in front of each GOH. Once you got say Peter's autograph then you'd jump in Adrian's line or anyone else's that you wanted. It seemed to go pretty quickly.

I got Peter's autograph first. I had pulled out the paper sleeve on the Verbatim CD case so that he could sign it and not the plastic CD sleeve. He looked at it and asked what it was. I told him it was John Mosby's Verbatim magazine in digital format. He signed it and I thanked him.

Next up was Adrian. I have sooooo many autographs from him over the years from all the Denver conventions that I didn't buy another picture. Instead I had him sign his bio/image in the HLWW8 Program guide. But instead of signing it to me I asked him to sign it to my daughter, Caitlin. He told me that Jim Byrnes daughter's name is Caitlin too. I reminded him that he had stepped over my daughter when practicing his kata in the hallway before the LA Walkabout Cabaret in 2004 and he said hello to her. He said, "Oh yeah, I kind of remember that." After he signed it (by the way he spelled Caitlin wrong. He spelled it Caitlan.) I told him, "she has no idea who you are, but she will." He must have thought that was funny because he gave a good laugh at that.

Next was Lizzie. I told her I liked her reading today and I asked her to sign it to my daughter. She too saw "Caitlin" and told me hey Jimmy's daughter's name is Caitlin.

Of course Jim Byrnes was next. I said to him I hear from Adrian and Elizabeth that your daughter's name is Caitlin. So is mine. He smiled and said, "Yeah? Great name."

I approached F Braun McAsh and said, "Hey breakfast buddy!" He laughed and he signed his bio in the HLWW8 Program.

I thanked Gillian for coming. I told her I had seen her and Donna at all the Denver conventions and really enjoyed their sessions. She signed her page in the HLWW8 Program.

Next Donna. I said to Donna (I'm pretty sure it was Donna but maybe it was Gillian. I'm sticking with Donna) that at the time (the 1990's) I always thought I was the demographic that watched the show. (In her session yesterday she and Gillian talked about how they learned the demographic was actually women ages 20's to 50's or something like that.) And I said it's reflected in the ratio of men to women at the conventions. So she asks me how does it feel to be in the minority at the convention. I said it's great because there are no lines in the men's restrooms.

Ken Gord signed his bio in my HLWW8 Program too. I thanked him for coming and I told him I remembered him from the first convention in Denver. He said that was the last one he had been to. He said he was having a good time and was thrilled to be there.

Brandon Jerwa signed his bio/image in the HLWW8 Program. I told him that the Highlander comic in the dealer's room had sold out and I wished I had gotten one. I knew he and his wife were selling the Battlestar Galactica comic so I said I was going to buy one of those. He told me that someone had found more of the first Highlander comic and it was back in the dealer's room. He also started telling me about the various Battlestar comics he had for sale and that he would be happy to sign anything at his table in the dealer's room.

Finally I got Shawn Shimpach's autograph. His bio/image was inside the front cover of the HLWW8 Program and so he signed it there. He had this look on his face like he couldn't believe people actually wanted his autograph.

The whole autograph process went quickly and smoothly. From waiting in line to getting all the autographs I think took no more than 20 minutes. I have gone to a lot of conventions in the past and have pretty much given up going any more (except for William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy) because they usually involve thousands of people, waiting in autograph lines for hours, paying through the nose for the autograph and then missing most of the events because I had to wait in the autograph lines. The attraction of the small number of attendees at Highlander World Wide events is what drew me back to doing these. I waited in line for over 6 hours to get my photo with William Shatner two years ago and then another two hours to get his autograph. This past May I waited four hours for a photo with Leonard Nimoy and an hour for his autograph. This con(HLWW8) ended up having the shortest autograph line I have ever waited in and still got so many autographs. So a big thank you to Carmel, her staff and the volunteers.

After the autographs I went to the dealer's room. I found the Highlander comic for sale again and got it. Then I went over to Brandon Jerwa's table in the dealer's room and purchased one of his Battlestar Galactica comics from his wife. He was not there (because he was still signing autographs) but she told me to come back later and he would sign them.

There was a little cafe near the rear of the hotel where I ran and got a sandwich before the next session.

3:15pm - 4pm David, Lizzie, Ken, Gillian & Donna discussing women in Highlander

The next session involved David, Lizzie, Ken, Gillian and Donna and the discussion was about women in Highlander. The questions immediately turned to the strong women characters, such as Rebecca. Elizabeth commented on how tough the sword fights were, especially in The Raven. At first Elizabeth thought she hadn't fought any female immortals but then realized she had fought at least two in The Raven.

I think during this session Gillian mentioned that she fought hard to save Ritchie from dying. She said that David wrote an alternative ending to that episode to also be filmed. But when it was never filmed she knew David did that just to appease her. While she spoke of this David just sat there with a sly smirk on this face and never verbally acknowledged or denied what she was saying. But you could tell he was implying it was true.

4pm - 4:30pm Peter Davis Tribute to Bill Panzer

Next was the "surprise" of HLWW8. We were told Peter Davis wanted to attend and present to us a tribute to Bill Panzer. While Peter Davis' appearance was not a surprise (we knew he was coming because it was written on the program) what he did for all the fans was a surprise. He got up on stage and he's a big guy. Tall that is. He even has big hair. And big glasses. This is not meant as a slight. Rather it all added to his Hollywood presence. He's probably seen as an imposing figure in the Hollywood circles. He did not have that suave, debonnaire, sophistication of Bill Panzer, but, he definitely seemed to be "of Hollywood." When he spoke he seemed to be maybe a little uncomfortable doing so in front of us. Which seemed strange considering all the big shots he has to deal with on a regular basis in Hollywood.

But when he spoke of Bill Panzer, I think it was with great admiration for the man and a bit of sadness that he misses his friend. He recounted how Bill loved Highlander and really loved being with the fans and interacting with them. He told how they sat across from each other in a big office at two great big desks that faced each other. He then showed a video tribute to Bill Panzer that he brought with him. It included pictures of Bill from birth and growing up. Bill and Peter Davis teaming up. Their early projects. Bill's family. Interviews with Bill. Bill playing the piano. And Bill hamming it up for the camera. The video was about 15 to 20 minutes long.

The surprise came when we were told that Peter Davis brought 200 DVD copies of the tribute with him and he wanted each and every one of us at HLWW8 to have a copy. I got my copy when the session was over. It was a very nice gesture to us fans as well as a tribute to Bill Panzer. I think Bill would have appreciated the gesture. I know all of us there certainly did.

4:30pm - 5pm Ken Gord: commentary on the episodes that stand out for him.

Ken Gord was up next to discuss some of the scenes that stand out for him. In his half-hour session he discussed two or three scenes. But I have to be honest, I can only remember two of the scenes he discussed. So if anyone remembers any others let me know.

The first scene I remember Ken Gord discussing is Kalas' quickening after taking Fitzcairn's head in Star-Crossed. The staff played the clip of the quickening on the big screen. Ken told us to watch and to see if we could identify what's wrong in the scene. (I think many of us already knew what happened from Denver conventions.) Ken pointed out that when the pyrotechnics were going off a hot ember shot up and hit actor David Robb (Kalas) in the face. Robb, being the professional that he was flinched but continued on acting out the quickening and saved the scene. Ken Gord said it was a good thing too because the quickening shots are so expensive to set up and they had only one shot or take to get it. Well after the scene was done David Robb went ballistic yelling at everyone how dangerous it was. Can't really blame him. None of the pyrotechnics should have touched him. Ken Gord said the guy that set up the pyrotechnics was new and needless to say Ken fired him after that incident.

The next scene I remember him mentioning was the fight on the Eiffel Tower at the end of Finale (Part II). The staff again played the clip of the Eiffel Tower fight. After it played Ken described all the hoops he had to go through to get the city to allow the fight on the Eiffel Tower. He then joked and asked if we liked how he got them to turn off the Eiffel Tower lights at the end of the quickening. That wasn't planned. Every night at 11pm the lights of the Eiffel Tower are turned off and it just so happened that they turned off at 11pm while they were filming. Ken made it sound like a lucky happenstance. Some people kept trying to ask him questions about Season 1 and he had to remind everyone that he didn't come on until Season 2.

5pm - 5:30pm PWFC

After Ken Gord's session I joined the PWFC for their meeting with Peter. Anita King had arranged to bring scrubs for several of the members to put on. Including the cap with the Union Flag on it that Peter wears on Holby City. She had tracked down the supplier of those caps and had them sent to her in time for HLWW8. So about a dozen women from the PWFC quickly donned their Holby City scrubs and waited at the front of the room for Peter to show. The rest of us were seated in several rows of chairs.

Peter shows up, walks into the room, immediately sees everyone in the scrubs and he almost hits the floor laughing. He totally enjoyed it. Anita explained what she went through to get the scrubs. Peter then talked with us for a while and then he was off to prepare for his cabaret act later that evening.

6pm - 8pm Miscellaneous

After the PWFC meeting I went up to my room and called Caitlin at home. I told her that I had gotten Adrian and Elizabeth to sign autographs for her. She says, "Oh, that's so nice of them. Tell them I said thank you!" Well, she has absolutely no clue who they are. She's never seen the show. Not yet anyway. So her statement was very funny. Though at age 6 she already knows what it means to be a "fan." She got to see The Little Mermaid, an off-Broadway play in Denver a couple of months ago with her mom and grandmother. When they were at dinner just down the street from the theater before the show she met the actor that played the fish, Flounder. He was 12-years old and was there with his mother. They invited Caitlin backstage after the play was over. So she got to go behind the stage, got a personal tour, and her favorite part was she got her picture with the actress who played Ariel and she got her autograph. Yeah, a few more years and she'll be joining me at HLWW events.

8pm - 11pm Concert / Cabaret

After dinner (don't ask, I don't remember where I ate) I headed down to the Pinnacle Ballrooms to get ready for the Concert. I ran into Glo outside the Ballroom. We chatted for a bit. I also ran into Matthew and we talked about the day's events and how we couldn't wait for the concert to start. We were let into the ballroom close to 8:30pm. There were about a dozen or more circular tables scattered around the front of the stage. The tables closest to the center of the stage were reserved for the Guests of Honor. I ended up sitting with Bonita, Nic and Sharon at the table closest to the stage on the right side (if you were facing the stage). We had a pretty good view of the stage and we were right next to one of the reserved tables.

The Guests of Honor began filing in. At the reserved table next to us sat David Abramowitz, Peter Davis and his wife/girlfriend, Elizabeth Gracen, Adrian Paul, Ken Gord, mystery guy we didn't know at first, and Peter Wingfield. From where I was sitting the stage was pretty much in front of me and the reserved table was a little to my left. Elizabeth and Adrian had their backs to our table. Every one at our table kept trying to guess who the mystery guy was next to Ken. He looked familiar to all of us but we weren't sure. Bonita and Sharon took guesses. Nic guessed Director Richard Martin. But none of us were sure. We assumed we probably were remembering him from the extras on the DVD sets. At one point "mystery guy" is chatting it up with Elizabeth. He suddenly realizes it's Adrian sitting next to her and he blurts out, "I didn't f**king recognize you!!! I thought you were her [Elizabeth's] husband!" And he and Adrian start talking. Guess that beard of Adrian's threw him off.

The evening started off as a cabaret with the various GOH's performing little skits or readings. F Braun McAsh did a comedy routine. Peter and Gillian each read poetry. Gillian's readings were a special kind of poetry that requires using or repeating several words throughout the reading in a certain pattern. She even had a chart on the large screen behind her that illustrated the complexity of the reading. Donna Lettow, if I remember correctly, read from one of her books.

But the one act that stands out in everyone's mind was between Adrian and Elizabeth. Adrian came out on the stage first and sat down in a chair with a small table next to it. He looks agitated. He keeps glancing at his watch and he's mumbling something like "she's late ... of course she's late ... she's always late." And right away you can tell he's doing it in Duncan's voice. He's about to get up and leave when Elizabeth walks on stage as Amanda carrying a shopping bag. They banter back and forth throughout the skit just like they use to on the show. At one point I think she asks "how's Joe" and Duncan says good. But I had the strangest dream about him the other night that he died. We all laughed as we realized this was Adrian's attempt to say The Source was just a bad dream.

We find out that they haven't seen each other in over five years. Amanda asks if he's seeing anyone and Duncan says yes. She asks if he is happy with her. Duncan hesitates just a little and says yes he's happy. Of course Amanda tries to seduce him and convince him to pick up where they left off. Duncan almost gives in but he doesn't. They are saying goodbye to each other and are about to go their separate ways when tango music starts playing. They're stopped in their tracks, look at each other and are drawn right back to each other again and start tangoing. The whole thing was very reminiscent of the tango on top of the Eiffel Tower. After the tango they walk off. It was great to see Duncan and Amanda together again and performed in person just for us. We found out that David Abramowitz whipped up script of the act for them.

Throughout the cabaret Jim Byrnes would wheel himself out in a wheelchair behind me. The table behind me was for his band and Jim would go over to the table to join them and watch the acts. At one point I turned around and for a second I thought he was Lifeguard from Wiseguy. I loved that show in the 1980's.

With the cabaret portion of the night done it was time for Jim Byrnes' concert. Jim sat in the middle of two other band members. To Jim's left was Steve Dawson (yes, that's his real last name). Steve played guitar. Actually he played many, many, different types of guitars. It seemed like he changed guitars with almost every song. To Jim's right was a gentleman known as Zubot and he primarily played stringed instruments. Together they were fantastic. I can't even describe it properly or do it justice. I am looking forward to Carmel and company getting this concert on DVD because I will definitely buy it.

Jim played and sung a variety of his music. One song was sort of dedicated to Bill Panzer. At another point Jim introduced a woman singer who was there. Unfortunately I cannot remember her name. But Jim sung her praises and invited her up onstage to sing with him. She was sitting at the table behind me and she got onstage and knocked all our socks off with her gospel/blues singing. It was like a religious experience. Her voice was simply amazing. When she was done singing, David Abramowitz was so amazed at what he just heard that he stood up, pointed his hands at the stage and shouted, "Holy Shit!!!!"

At one point Jim invited David Abramowitz up on stage and David belted out "Summertime" in that deep voice that he has become so famous for at Highlander events. If they ever remake "The Jazz Singer" for the umpteenth time I recommend David for the role.

The whole concert was fantastic and magical. Something that cannot be repeated. I mentioned earlier that it was like a religious experience. I think David even said as much. A southern religious experience. As if to emphasize this point, throughout the concert, Anita King was singing, waving her hands in the air, hootin' and hollerin' and having a grand ole time. She was a blast to watch. From where I was sitting if I turned to my far left I could see Anita at her table. Straight ahead I had a perfect view of Elizabeth Gracen. And like Anita, Elizabeth was doing at her table the exact same thing Anita was doing. I often saw Elizabeth with her hands raised way above her head swaying to the music. At one point when Anita was having a good time Elizabeth could hear her and she kept turning around to look at Anita. Elizabeth thought Anita was hilarious and she whispered something to Adrian and pointed back at Anita. Then when Anita started to sing out loud or shout Elizabeth would do the same. That concert alone was worth the entire price of admission. When it was over we all were definitely on a natural high.

After the Concert

After the concert our table lingered around, standing between our table and the stage. We were still debating who the "mystery guy" sitting next to Ken Gord was. Ken saw us standing there and came over to talk to us. Of course we asked who that guy was. Ken said, "oh, that's Richard Martin" and he turned around, grabbed Martin, lead him over to us and introduced Richard Martin to us. So Nic was right that it was Richard Martin. Martin told us that he was very impressed with the interest still in the show. His first episode was The Valkyrie. And that episode stands out for him. He told us how when he first got the script that he checked to see what characters are in it and what scenes will need to be filmed. He sees Duncan. Methos. Joe Dawson. Hitler. Hitler? The Hitler? Not some unknown like Charles Hitler but the Adolf Hitler. And he emphasizes the point by putting his finger beneath his nose to mimic Hitler's skinny mustache. He thought at the time where are they going to get someone to portray Hitler properly. He said the actor they found to play Hitler ended up being perfect for the part. After talking for 5 to 10 minutes Richard Martin, Ken and the rest of the Guests started leaving.

Those of us remaining from our table along with Matthew and a few other folks filed out into the hallway and we were talking out there. Coming down the hallway was David Abramowitz and he sees our group and he stops to talk. He's still gushing, like the rest of us, about what a fantastic night that was. He said something to the effect that we all (and he was including himself and the GOH's in that "we") were part of something amazing and unique. It was magical. And we all agreed.

David was wearing a long black leather jacket. In fact he wore it while singing with Jim during the concert. He was getting a little hot standing there with us and commented he needed to take it off. He said he had just got paid for some writing gig he had done but for some reason he didn't think he was going to get paid. Well the check came in just before he left for Vancouver and so he bought the leather jacket with that money.

After talking with David most of us moved down to the lobby. The bar was closing already so we just sat on the seats in the lobby. It was late (maybe 12:30am?) and we talked more down there. While sitting there we saw Dawson and Zubot leave (Jim Byrnes' band members) come down the stairs and leave. Bonita, Sharon, Nic and I decided to order pizza and have it delivered to the hotel. Bonita, Sharon and Nic were all sharing a room together so the four of us hung out there and watched Highlander out-takes while waiting for the pizza. Nic had brought her DVD player and all her Highlander DVD's with her. She popped in the DVD with "The Valkyrie" and we watched the extras for that episode where Richard Martin was interviewed. So we start listening and we hear Martin talking about how he got the script and he's going through the characters in the episode and he sees Hitler. Hitler? The Hitler? Well if you feel like you're having deja vu, you're not. We laughed when we realized that the story he told us downstairs in the ballroom an hour or so before was EXACTLY what he said during the DVD interview. It was practically word for word!

The pizza came shortly after that. We had all given Sharon our money and she was going to pay with her credit card. The pizza guy is standing at the door and Sharon gets her credit card and is signing for the pizza. Sharon jokingly says that she's signing her autograph like the other actors did today. Well the pizza guy perked up and you could see he's trying to figure out who Sharon is. He thinks she's someone famous because she's talking about signing autograph's. The look of confusion on his face was priceless. That poor guy still probably thinks he met an actress and is kicking himself because he can't figure out who it is.

So we eat the pizza and Nic pops in the DVD for Comes A Horseman and we watch the 19 or so Jimmy scene out-takes. Nic is pretty good at picking out the little bits from each take that were used in the final aired version. So we get through all the takes and the DVD goes back to the main menu. I'm sitting in a chair between the tv and the beds. The DVD player is next to the tv so I've got my back to Nic, Sharon and Bonita, who are on the beds, while watching this. I turn around and look at Sharon. She's propped up on one arm. Her head is bobbing. Every time her head goes down, it pops up again. But she's out. Asleep. I look at Nic. She has her head propped up on her hands. Eyes closed. She's out. I look over at Bonita. Out. The three of them all fell asleep. Was it something I said? :-) So next time you're at a convention and can't fall asleep, just invite me for pizza and I'll bore you to sleep. :-) By the way, the next day Nic was trying to convince us that she was "just resting her eyes."

I got back to my room around 3am and fell right asleep. Hoping that I could get up by 7:30am.

Day 4 Report will be up soon

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