The Convention Temple of Loon – Part One
This is the first of three reports from Jasminka about attending her first Supernatural convention, Salute to Supernatural in LA over a week ago. With onsite reports like this, we request that you DO NOT REPOST these articles. Share the links all you want, but no reposting please. Thanks much. Enjoy, Jas has quite a few great stories to share!
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The Convention Temple of Loon
Part One (of Three)
‘I have so many comments in my head right now’
Jensen Ackles, March 28th, L.A. 2010
A few years back a couple of new heroes were born. And with Supernatural moving on to its sixth season, it’s not too far a stretch to imagine that we are witnessing the development of icons of television. The men in the impala (and their partners in crime) were back to Los Angeles and Creation’s Salute to Supernatural Convention, and they will be back in fall with another season of our beloved show.
Everyone’s got their own favourite Supernatural moment. Our fave elements aren’t simply about big action sequences (that are certainly there) – the most memorable facets are the character-based moments that move us to the core, a testimony to the quality of the show – a show rich in priceless gems that have become a part of our lives, and this year I (and many other fans) added another to our own, personal casket of treasures: encounters with the stars that chose to join us at this particular convention.
This is my experience.
More of an adventure, I should say. And as all good thrills should, this one started with a slight shock that pushed my adrenaline before even touching US soil – my British Airways flight was cancelled due to their cabin crew strike, well chosen moment, folks, endangering my trip and putting me on edge just in case I was too cool.
Eventually I got to rebook my flight which resulted in having to get up at three a.m. to get to the airport in Germany, arrive in London at seven and kill half a day before finally getting on my plane to L.A. on which I encountered Michael Jackson’s former drummer and a couple of rather unknown actors going home. They would not remain the last performers I was to meet on this trip. Even before I was actually there, the ‘place of dreams and dreamers’ (to quote Jared’s description of L.A. he shared with us on Sunday) encapsulated me with memorable encounters.
After going smoothly though customs (and yes, Randal, they were very flirty and not at all intimidating), I settled on Wednesday at the Marriott LAX which proved to be a very comfortable hotel. Since I was going to stay there for five nights, they gave me a nicer room than originally booked overlooking the pool which enabled me to open the door to the balcony once in a while to let in fresh air. Actually, from the get go the staff at the hotel were charming, open and interested, and I ended up chatting over the whole weekend with the bell guy Henrich who had lived in Germany once, the stunning and addictively positive waitress Ulla when I was having breakfast (every morning another ‘typical’ American breakfast, give Caesar what Caesar’s is), the manager Tim, who was actually from Texas, the sweetest guy, and many others I met there.
In order not to be overcome by jetlag, I asked to be woken at six a.m. since I planned to roam about the city before being imprisoned in the Convention Temple of Loon for the weekend. Hey, I was arriving from a still slightly snow-frozen part of Germany… and it was spring! Temperature was in the low sixties and was going to get better. Time to take out my summer dresses and get out in the sun.
I did the classics, visited Hollywood, a bit of Beverly Hills, strolled along Santa Monica beach and took in the sea and the heavy breeze – this was heaven. And the rest of my cold that had kept me in chains disappeared – which might have also been because I was beginning to feel really, really happy.
I loved the Farmer’s Market. I think I saw Jennifer Garner there, but I was too far away to take a closer look. At Barnes & Noble a lady who worked for one of the agencies approached me with an offer to take a screen test, as they were looking for shampoo models for a new campaign. Come on! These things actually happen? I had to decline, of course, since I was not an L.A. resident and soon again at my desk treating sick people. But I loved that moment. I might have floated a tiny bit that day.
Apart from visiting the city I was getting ready on my inside to embark on pre-registration for the Gold Ticket holders that was going to take place in the early evening.
As I got down to the vault, as I like to call the rooms where the Con was to be held, there were already several fans waiting, but the atmosphere was tense and got even more so as I asked the Creation folks about the press pass they should be holding for me. Yes, kind readers, they actually issued a press pass for our blog – and as Alice was not able to attend, the honour fell to me to represent our site there, officially.
At that point, though, stressed out and on the verge of a nervous breakdown, no one of the Creation people there knew anything about anything which was an interesting experience and dilemma. Well, someone took charge – one of the bodyguards, a lovely guy I spoke to for a while and who looked for ‘the list’, found our blog and Alice’s name and exchanged it for mine after quickly asking one of the Creation people in charge, and that was it. A bright red pass saying ‘Press’ found its home on my Gold Ticket. And I found a blast of jealousy coming at me before I even opened my mouth.
That night, the fans I encountered were in a no-sharing mood and eyed me with tremendous suspicion. Why does she get a press pass? Who is she? Ah, you could see the brains steaming up. I didn’t care much, though. I went straight to the vendors room and found a few goodies (and reserved a couple of Tribbles for me that I was going to pick up later – I always wanted to have a Tribble, as a friend of mine has a few and they are just hilariously adorable, so now they are tribbling around in my private office) and spoke to everyone I met there, from the Creation people to the vendors to the security guys, introduced myself, and just talked. I was in the States and at the Con to meet people, and perhaps it files under occupational hazard, but I love to speak to strangers and hear their points of view. It broadens my personal horizon. And – I simply like people. Mostly.
Some of the guys working there were actors, too, not yet employed as they desire to be, and I spoke to a sweet man named Jeremy who will be in JeepersCreepers 3. Well, Kevin Bacon started out in a bad horror movie, too. We spoke a while about the hazards of Hollywood, and I didn’t realize for the first time that it is not that different from the world of theatre I have been familiar with since I trained to be an opera singer a lifetime ago.
Remember his face, kind readers, he might be a star of tomorrow – and I really wish him all the best, as he was actually a genuinely nice person, with fine humour and a bright mind.
A result of introducing myself (which I had not expected) was that they were not checking my wristband anymore, just waving me through, and by Friday night they were not even scanning my questions anymore – which the Creation volunteers were ordered to do and censor. Some girls actually were not allowed to ask too personal questions. As a new volunteer came up to me, I heard the elderly lady in charge say: ‘You don’t have to check her, she knows how to ask a question, she’s a lady.’ Don’t laugh, that moved me. I had not expected that. And, truth be told, I highly appreciated it.
Holy Prophet! Demi-God! Crucifixions to the left, one cross each…
On Friday I finally met some very nice fans, a lovely Brit called Joanne, a girl from Wales who was just vibrant in her happiness to be there (please, should you read this, I forgot your name – forgive me, dear), I was glad to meet RedBird (was a real pleasure!!), but I just couldn’t find anene (where were you girl?), and several others.
There were some weird encounters, as well. A couple of fans bragged about how they stalked out Jared’s and Jensen’s houses, and allegedly Miss Harris’ car was there… Eh? Of course they were going to see each other when he gets home, what kind of news was that? Vicarious embarrassment attacks afoot on my side.
Later at night some others came up to me after they had heard me ask my question to Richard (forgive me for jumping forwards and backwards a bit) and asked me if I was the Jasminka who wrote for WFB (since I was introducing myself to the actors on stage all weekend which I thought to be only polite when talking to a total stranger), and I said yes, I was, ‘so nice of you to come, and who are you?’ And then, there was nothing. ‘ah, just someone who likes to read what you guys have there’… a nameless person, who would have thought? A bit of a zoo-sensation crept up my back. You take a look at me but won’t tell me your name? Not even a false one? Okay…. There is no comment necessary, is there?
Before I was ready to get to my seat in the theatre, I experienced the kind of shoe disaster every woman dreads – a heel came of my gorgeous (and bloody expensive) shoes! I used to laugh at such scenes in movies, thinking, yeah, these things happen, haha… and they do. I had a fit of laughter because I could not believe it (and again the hotel staff was most helpful to find a repair guy who fixed them). Adventures, adventures, really…. Dealing with the unforeseen – where is that prophet when you need him?
Finally we were settling in for the first panels of the day, and it was Gabriel himself, Richard Spreight Jr. who threw the first ball. And he was a joy to watch. As you will probably have read the transcripts or watched the youtube videos I will not recount every word he or the other guests have said.
(I found this picture and the other Convention-pics that will be following at Wolfpup2000’s lifejournal who graciously posted them there and most generously allows anyone who likes them to share them – thank you so much, Wolfpup2000, the pictures you took were fantastic! As my own camera didn’t capture the scene well, I’m glad I found these)
Richard had a great time on stage, though he – as all the others – were tight-lipped when it came to spoilers. As I asked him my question (‘Now that we know that Gabriel has Daddy-issues, what do you think will his reaction be when God makes an appearance?’) I literally forgot about the fact that they were almost done shooting and that Gabriel already had met God (in case Kripke’s promise still holds true) and knew his character’s reaction to the Big Kahuna. Richard answered graciously that he thought that Gabriel would be thrilled to meet the old man, not going into further details, of course.
He again for the umpteenth time recounted the underwear episode – you know, the moment he found bright coloured panties in his trailer (that belonged to Misha) and it took him several embarrassing moments to find out what it was all about. Even though most of us probably knew this story already, listening to him was highly entertaining.
Watching Richard I realized that we were watching the Trickster up there. He seemed so much in character that I began to wonder how the true Richard Spreight Jr. might be, but the persona we saw up there was all we got – and we got about an hour of hilarious fun and witty humour. He enjoyed himself obviously, and we enjoyed him! Anyone who was not yet a Trickster fan certainly is one now…
Later, Richard would come to the Karaoke party and pose for pictures and get up close and personal with fans for hours and hours. He had said that he wanted to listen to the singing and perhaps sing himself, but he didn’t get to do it. Having pictures taken was the deal of the night. I can’t think of a more generous gesture in that environment.
The second guest of that day was our beloved prophet Chuck, Rob Benedict – how do you describe Rob? Well, he’s a simply adorable sweetheart. I guess I had rarely seen a less guarded, more honest and lovable actor amidst his fans. I know, personally I probably would not be that open in his place, and I found Rob’s approach to the whole fan frenzy (already growing at this point) generous and chivalrous.
Observing Rob it also dawned on me how much it meant to him that we liked him and he was soaking up that love in an honest way, not like some actors like to do, you know, dismiss the need for attention with a cool gesture and denying it was there (come on, anyone in this business is to some extent hungry for attention and positive feedback). He was real, authentic up there. A humble and sweet human being with a fine sense of humour (and a knack for Yoda-impersonation at the repeater question of the weekend: which-Star-Wars-character-would-your-character-be ‘A prophet I am…’ Hilarious. (Richard, by the way, had mentioned the Trickster being Lando Calrissian).
He shared fond memories of starting out and how much he would dread to be a real prophet, dealing with the responsibility would be too much and he wouldn’t want that (and apart from that he was certain that no one would believe what he had to say anyway). But he loves to play the character, and it shows off, don’t you think? I am not the only one, I hope, to wish for Chuck to return in season six, am I? We don’t know anything about that as of yet, I’m afraid.
Spontaneously I purchased a photo-op with Rob because he moved me so much up there on stage and I wanted to go home with another special memory of his.
Turns out, one of my most memorable moments became the autograph session. Now, I brought something very special to me for the autographs. Some of you might remember that article Alice posted on Christmas in which I had assembled poetry that reminded me of our show with some pictures to accompany them.
I had made a book like that for myself a while ago, a heavy, leather bound book which now contains beautiful poetry by Henley, Poe, Shakespeare, Frost and many more and pictures of the show that are now signed by the actors who came to this convention. The poem I found for Chuck was ‘The Prophet’ by Pushkin, and as Rob saw this he paused and touched the book very carefully, as if he was afraid to damage it, looked at some other pages and read the poem, going ‘this is awesome, did you make this?’ – ‘yes, I did. I love poetry, and some poems began to remind me of this show’ – ‘I can’t sign this, this is so awesome.’ – ‘please, do, Rob.’ And he did. His sweet reaction almost moved me to tears.
Richard also looked at the book and grinned a typical Trickster-grin (as the poem next to his picture was W.H.Auden’s At Last The Secret Is Out which he seemed to know) and went ‘you asked that question about meeting God!’ – ‘Yeah, that’s me.’ – ‘Good stuff, Jasminka’. Relaxed guy, totally at ease, and very nice.
Who would think that a man so sensitive and nice as Rob Benedict could rock the room like nobody’s business? His band Louden Swain was the gig of the night! To be honest, I had not expected them to be that good, but they set fire! I think their style can be described as alternative rock, and the lyrics were fantastic, the music haunting, fast, unique – I do hope to hear more of them.
I later went up to them as they were signing their albums and confessed: ‘You know, I had actually expected you guys to suck. You know, another actor with another band…’ Rob looked up at me with a frozen, waiting face: ‘And, did we?’ He really seemed to mean it. But I had nothing but praise for his band. ‘No, you guys are really great, I enjoyed every minute!’ And we talked a bit about the inspirations they get for their music, how usually Rob wrote the music and all of them got together and wrote the lyrics, throwing ideas around with a lot of fun – which clearly pays off. Louden Swain is a rockin’ band! Anyone who gets the chance to hear them play should go and check them out.
But the night was not over by far – some of us went straight to the Karaoke party in the hotel bar, and it was great fun! Watching Richard Spreight having his picture taken with countless fans, I was completely relaxed and eventually put my name on the list to sing a tune, late into the night I was singing Michael Bublé’s Feeling Good. Allow me to brag a bit here – I did a damn good job! The guests there were swinging with me, I danced with the security ‘boss’ and I was so happy that I still have it. I guess you never really cease to be a performer once you’ve been one. And – what was actually really sweet – some of the fans who had been crazy, jealous or simply rude came up to me and told me how much they liked my voice and my show – and that, folks, was a great gesture! Thanks so much!
This is my account of my first days in Los Angeles. The next two parts will feature my exploits on Saturday, meeting Jim Beaver and Misha Collins, being admitted to an exclusive round table with the Ghostfacers AJ Buckley and Travis Wester prior to their appearance on stage and the Saturday Night Dessert Party.
Following that you will read in part three about Sunday, meeting Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki and some special moments I was lucky to experience.
I’m writing as fast as I can, but work captured me already, and I ask you to be patient. At least a little bit longer.
Cheers, everyone!
Hi Jasminka
I’m so thrilled you had a great time…and a Press Pass! That’s fantastic.
Richard Spreight Jr and Robert Benedict sound like a blast to meet.
Karaoke eh? Man I wish I had been there to see you.
Last time I did Karaoke people were running out of the establishment with their hands over their ears…screaming “For the love of God save us from this act against humanity!†😮
A slight exaggeration maybe, but not that far off.
Thank-you so much for sharing.
Can’t wait for part 2 and 3.
I’m assuming that at picutre of you with Jeremy… that’s a really good picture.
It was so nice to meet you at the convention; I can’t believe it’s been two weeks already because I feel like I still haven’t caught up on all of the article worthy quotes and stories! Looking forward to reading the rest of your posts. I have one left to put up, too: the Ghostfacers roundtable interview (thirty minutes was a lot to transcribe and try to whittle down; those guys are the best!)
You should post your photo ops! I turned the one of me & Jensen into my new blog profile pic
Jasminka,
Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences! I really enjoyed reading about your trip to the LA convention and look forward to reading the rest! Thanks again!!
Hi Jasminka, thank you so much for this report. I’m looking forward to the next parts. I would love to have been there too!
Press pass? Maybe I should re-think my position that one Con was enough? On the other hand, I’m not at all a people person, so if it comes to a fight over a future European Con, it will be in much better hands with you than with me.
This is a great Pt I for your report, and I’m looking forward to the rest.
Yeah yeah, flirty customs, upbeat staff, but see, told you Americans are jealous, greedy, evil bastards. Of course, I’m sure that press pass went to your head, right? Bypassed the censorship filter using your evil psychiatry powers you did. 😉
Fantastic one-third report, Jas, sounds like it was completely worth the trip. Louden Swain was actually good? Whenever I think of celebrity bands I can’t help but conjure up Keanu Reeves’ crappy outfit. There’s hope for shallow Hollywood yet!
No footage of your Karaoke exploits? Boo, hiss, hiss. At least now we know what you look like in case you become famous. “Hey, I know her!” 😀
Well, as it happens, we’re a friendly little place with a lot to be friendly about.
Hi Jas,
I enjoyed reading your report very, very much, can’t get that smile off my face 🙂 And I was reliving my visit to LA, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Venice Beach – the city I actually don’t find very pretty (no offence, LA-ers) but it is still breathtaking.
Happy for you for getting the press pass! You’re talking to everyone? Yeah, I know how that is 😉 But that’s what makes travel great, meeting new people, learning about new cultures. I’m glad the friendly people were the majority and you had such a great time!
If you ever come to Zadar, if you like, we could meet for a coffee and chat 🙂 Just let me know.
Looking forward to the rest of your report!
Lara
Karen, Danielle, Emmasnoopy, RisenShine, Dany, Narcissus, Faellie, Randal, Lara, folks, thanks so much for your sweet comments!
Karen, I can’t believe people would actually run away, come on… it can’t be that bad….
Danielle, meeting you was lovely moment, thanks so much for some advice you gave me and shared your experiences with me, I hope it was not the last time for us to meet!
Emmasnoopy, what a sweet pen name! I’m happy you enjoyed what I had to tell and hope you’ll like the other parts coming up.
RisenShine, it would have been great to meet you there. You sent Alice an email for me which I deleted by accident, so sorry, wanted to get back to you, please contact me again via the usual way, if you like!
Dany, sweetie, thanks so much, yes, that’s me in that pic with Jeremy, I forgot to mention that. Did you really think I looked like that? That would be an interesting study – does someone’s writing correlate with one’s looks? Oh, mad scientist emerging again….
Narcissus, thanks for your encouragement, dear! Hope you’re doing well with your exams!
Faellie, thank you so much. If I wasn’t a people person, I probably would be wrong at my job… I’m glad, though, that I am… More or less. But meeting you at a European Con would be fantastic, you know.
Randal, don’t go exposing my evil psychiatry powers, man!
Lara, I wish I would come to Zadar. In fact, I’ve been there a few times so far ( a while back), but plan to get down to the sea again, this year I won’t be able to, but I’m sure we will meet there one day! The Adriatic is just sooooooooo beautiful…
Thanks again, love Jas
I’m a little late to the party, but great writeup, Jasminka! I can’t wait to read the rest of your report. It sounds like you had a great time and quite the experience, and I’m so happy that it worked out so well for you. Everyone should be able to have such a wonderful experience at a con, I think.
And a press pass! How fun! People are always jealous of what they can’t have, so too bad for them! Glad you didn’t let them get to you.
You should have said yes to that shampoo ad! That would have been hilarious. Or why not just create your own by carrying around your own mini-fan and blowing a breeze in your face every time you walk anywhere? That’s what I tend to do. 😉
Ardeospina and Clarice, hey, wow, thanks, ladies!
Ardeospina, how can I get that mini-fan? Crazy chick, really…. 😉
Clarice, will there really be a Con in Brazil next year? Gosh, I wish I could go, always wanted to get there… South America…. Wow….
Love Jas
Hiya Jas. I’m late to the party too 🙂
It’s been a while since I’ve been here, my busy and crazy life took over for a minute. Now, I just have to do this one assignment and then I’m free to roam the interwebby again *g*
Buuut, on to your report. Wow. Sounds like you had an awesome time, like I hoped you would. Everyone sounds so friendly and warm up there, I’m glad. I’m not that much of a people person either (I never can think of anything to say) but I’m vicariously living through your experiences now and it’s fun 😉
First things first, a shoe disaster!!?? I teared up a bit at that 🙂 Luckily you got them fixed so it was not that bad. Damn those heels, they always seem to go at the most inconvenient moment! Ok, kidding a side…
Richard and Rob sound, both in their own way, really interesting folk, down to earth and enjoying themselves (well as much as you can in that situation, I know I would be just mortified at that stage, performing never being my thing). I hope they stay that way, humble and honest with a sense of humour and a sense of self, it’s a really charming quality.
I love your signing gift, I’d love to see it now that it’s all finalized. I love that poetry article of yours, it’s one of my favorites.
Thanks for this and now I’m off to parts 2 and 3 🙂
Ps. Nice picture, you look lovely (and so does the man next to you, a really sweet guy) and I wish I could’ve heard you sing.. Well maybe there’ll be youtube clips 😎
Thank you for sharing this experiance! Talk about living vicariously. 🙂
Sounds like you had a lovely time, you had me smiling through most of it. (Not the shoe disaster of course)
It was nice to hear good things about Rob and Richard. Especially Richard since I’ve had a soft spot for him ever since ‘Band of Brothers.’
I’m jealous of those lucky ducks who were able to hear you sing! Looking forward to reading the rest of your reports.
Supernarttu and Yvonne, ladies, thank you for your ever kind words…
dearest Viking, I’m also a bit late to find your post here, so thank you again for your wonderful support in sharing your love and humour!
Yvonne, both guys rocked, it was a most awesoe experience… Can’t believe you actually found this report…
Thanx again!! Jas