Held in Burbank,
California between February 18th and 19th 1995, this convention brought
stars Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell together again in front of the
fans!
This convention was
held at the Burbank Airport Hilton hotel.
There were celebrity guests, panels, a
video room, a charity auction, and a dealer's room.
Tickets in advance were $40 ($50 at the door).
Convention
Photos
Scott Bakula
Dean Stockwell
Scott Bakula
Official Photo of
Scott & Dean
Dean Stockwell
&
Scott Bakula
Convention Guests
Dean Stockwell
Scott Bakula
John D'Aquino
Richard Herd
Mary Gordon Murray
Brad Silverman
Jim Thompson
Gillian Horvath
Ginjer Buchanan
Elizabeth Storm
Ashley McConnell
Julie Barret
Willie Garson Sheryl Francis Harrington
Michelle Joyner
Donna
Magnanai
Clive Barker
Diamond Farnsworth
Michael Ster
Michael
Watkins
Rodney Kageyama
Beverly Leech
Beverly Mitchell
Michael
Genovese
Arthur Rosenberg
Jean-Pierre Dorleac
Mary Elizabeth
McGlynn
Rodney Kageyama
David Brooks
Otto
Coelho
Jeff Corbett
Corie Henninger
Greg Millar
Jennifer Rhodes
Pat Skipper
Maree Cheatham
Renee Coleman
Susan French
Leila Hee
Olsen
Carolyn Seymour
Rich Whiteside
Sci-fi Buzz coverage of Leapcon '95
Programming:
Welcome! (a short "hello" and video
introduction)
Editing Quantum Leap (Assistant
Editor Jim Thomson)
Ask the Quantum Leap Guest Stars
(John D'Aquino, Charles Dugan, Marion Dugan, Richard Herd, Mary Gordon
Murry, Brad Silverman)
Writing for Quantum Leap (Gillian
Horvath, Jule Barret, Ginjer Buchanan, Ashley McConnell, Elizabeth
Storm)
Ask the Quantum Leap Guest Stars
(Willie Garson, Sheryl Francis Harrington, Michelle Joyner, Donna
Magnani, Bruce McGill, Mary Elizabeth McGlynn)
Costume Desight (Costume Designer
Jean-Pierre Dorleac will show a video of the fantastic costume show
from Leap Con #1, answer questions)
Ask the Quantum Leap Guest Stars
(Rodney Kageyama, Beverly Leech, Beverly Mitchell, Michael Genovese,
Arthur Rosenberg)
Lord of Illusions Preview (Clive
Barber and Terry Erdmann will present slides and a trailer for the
movie, Lord of Illusions)
Fan Fiction Brown Bag Lunch ("A
discussion about writing and editing fanzines hosted by Carol Davis, with
a panel of other talented fan fiction writers and contributors.")
German QL Episodes
Breaking Into Screenwriting (Gillian
Horvath and Donna Letto)
Brown Bag Lunch with Harriet
Marguiles
Behind the Scenes of Quantum Leap
(Diamond Farnsworth, Michael Stern, Micheel Watkins)
Ask the Quantum Leap Guest Stars
(David Brooks, Otter Coelho, Jeff Corbett, Corie Henniger, Gregory
Millar, Jennifer Rhodes, Pat Skipper)
Charity Oction
Ask the Quantum Leap Guest Stars
(Maree Cheatham, Renee Coleman, Susan French, Anne Lockhart, Leila Hee
Olsen, Carolyn Seymour, Rich Whiteside)
Tribute to Dennis Wolfgerg
Producing the Quantum Leap CD (Mark
Banning)
Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell
"The times for the Electronic Fandom
panel and Music Video panel have yet to be determined." (It is unknown
if these actually occurred.)
The complete panel with Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell
Convention Materials Most of these open as .pdf files with multiple
pages!
Parts
15 through 21 are from the video produced by Jo Fox of the
former The Quantum Cafe website.
Several clips from various portions of the convention.
Download in parts below, or watch all 25
videos together above!
Promo on E!
Interviews
with Scott and Dean with video of the convention activities.
1
minute
Promo on Sci-Fi Buzz
Look
close at the table with items for sale... you can see a few copies of "The Observer!"
3
minutes 49 seconds
Part
1
This
first clip features the introduction of Scott, his answer to a Quantum
Leap movie, and info on his own production company.
4
minutes 57 seconds
Part 2
Scott
talks about "Lord of Illusions" and Dean Stockwell arrives at the
Convention.
3
minutes 17 seconds
Part 3
"Mirror
Image," Scott wearing a dress, and working with animals.
4
minutes 53 seconds
Part
4
Al's
wardrobe, Scott's love scenes, and the kind of movie Dean likes to be a
part of.
2
minutes 54 seconds
Part
5
"Private
Dancer" as well as other unusual episodes. Dean answers a
question about playing the piano and talks about his voice character in
"Captain Planet."
4
minutes 15 seconds
Part
6
Scott
& Dean talk about who owns Quantum Leap, some comedic
commentary from Dean about teaching Scott, and Scott's comments on how
many takes it took to film the ending scene in "What Price
Gloria?"
4
minutes 59 seconds
Part
7
A
humorous incident involving Scott's car horn, playing the piano, and
Scott's best on-screen kiss.
4
minutes 57 seconds
Part
8
The
car in the Pilot Episode, Scott's views on "Lee Harvery Oswald", Dean's
views on Scott being in "Playgirl" magazine, and the practical joke
Dean played on Scott.
4
minutes 35 seconds
Part
9
Scott
& Dean talking about their careers and the global impact of the
show.
4
minutes 26 seconds
Part
10
Episode
scripts, memories of the late Dennis Wolfberg, and saying "Oh, Boy!"
4
minutes 47 seconds
Part
11
Pranks
on the set, Scott's directing experience, and the "T's" at the end of Mirror
Image.
3
minutes 57 seconds
Part
12
Charity
auction results, fan-fiction, and the final wrap-up of their time at
the convention.
5
minutes 6 seconds
Part
13
Renee
Coleman comments on Scott's appearance in "Playgirl" magazine and
Scott's nervousness during their steamy scenes together, and the
co-star of "Southern Comforts" talks about her first scene with Scott
in humorous detail.
2
minutes 44 seconds
Part
14
Renee
answers a question about how
Scott kisses and his nervousness.
2
minutes 1 second
Part
15
Leila
Hee Olsen of "The Americanization of Machiko" talks about how the
topless scene affected her husband's youth group. We also see several
familiar faces including Susan French of "The Color of Truth."
2
minutes 22 seconds
Part
16
Guest
stars such as John D'Aquino and Richard Herd arrive to the guest panel.
2
minutes 26 seconds
Part
17
John
D'Aquino, Carolyn Seymour, and Renee Coleman sign autographs.
1
minute 48 seconds
Part
18
Featured
in this segment are Cheryl Harrington of Black On White On
Fire and Michelle Joyner of The Right Hand of God
who talks about that episode being the only time she ever wore a habit.
1
minutes 3 seconds
Part
19
Michael
Watkins and Diamond Farnsworth talk about pranks with tapeballs and
wiring Scott's horn to his brakes. Hilarious!
2 minutes 54
seconds
Part
20
Michael
Watkins talks about an explosive disaster on the set of "Justice."
2
minutes 19 seconds
Part
21
K
Callan from "The Americanization of Machiko" and other guest stars
comment on smoking habits around the set.
2
minutes 21 seconds
Meeting
with French fans after the convention: Part 1
Scott
greets French fans after the convention.
2
minutes 54 seconds
Meeting
with French fans after the convention: Part 2
Dean Stockwell
joins Scott in greeting French
fans after the convention.
2
minutes 57 seconds
"College Years" a Quantum Leap story by Joy Fox (Part II)
Leap Con 95
Wednesday, February 15, 1995 was my travel day to the Quantum Leap
convention. Two days prior, we got word on-line that Scott Bakula WOULD
be at the convention. At first, he wasn't going to be able to make it
because of the opening of "Lord of Illusions" but that movie was being
postponed. Later, we would learn at the convention that the reason for
the postponement was to give the movie a chance to garnish a good
audience. Clive Barker had two movies already scheduled for release in
February.
My plane wasn't scheduled to leave until 1:05 in the afternoon. I woke
up around 9 and still had several hours to kill. I had been packing
since Sunday, so I was set that way. I decided that since I was going
to be sitting on a plane for many hours, I ought to take a long walk
for some exercise. First, though, I stopped at the mailbox. In it, I
discovered my newsletter from Project Quantum Leap and a postcard from
Scott Bakula! It was that great one with him leaning against a tree and
it was in color. This was truly a shock because I sent him a letter 11
months ago!! Even though the picture is gorgeous, the main thrill is
getting it the day I was leaving for the convention!
I spent my walk reading my PQL newsletter as I went. Attached with the
newsletter was a Quantum Quarterly. This was another surprise. I kept
checking and rechecking, but there was no separate mailing label with
the QQ.
I got to the airport early and discovered a huge crowd in front of the
check-in counter. The woman in front of me said she had been scheduled
on a Northwest flight that had been cancelled due to bad weather up
north and passengers were being rerouted to other airlines and flights.
My flight wasn't scheduled to leave now until 2:15. That would be too
late to make the connection in Charlotte for Los Angeles. Luckily I am
able to reschedule at the plane check-in counter and take an earlier
flight. This plane, a 757, doesn't take off till after 2, but the
connection is also delayed by half an hour so I make it with 35 minutes
to spare.
The LA leg has an in-flight movie. Take a guess. A highly edited "Color
of Night" with, who else, Scott Bakula! Is all this coincidence? WOW.
BTW, the edited version plays quite well without the gore and blatant
sex.
I arrived in LA without incident and rented a Voyager (shades of Star
Trek!) minivan. Apparently, I followed the wrong map and wound up lost,
but a good sense of direction saved the day and I made it to Burbank
and the Hilton, stopping only twice for directions. A big problem in LA
is the freeway. Being a tourist, I stayed to the far right and the
slowest lane. Problem with that was that often the lane turned into a
double lane exit! Being in the far right, it was impossible to get back
on the freeway and I was forced to exit.
As soon as I hit the hotel, people were looking for me. I had barely
entered my room when the phone rang. It was my online friend, Myrna,
and she came over to introduce herself and meet me. By the time she
left and I wound down from all the excitement, it was 2:30 p.m. Florida
time. Myrna and I spent the next two days touring in and about LA.
Saturday morning the con began. First on the agenda were some composite
videos of Quantum Leap and a short welcome. I found my seat, S108, on
stage left (the right side as you face the stage) about half a dozen
rows from the front. The room was long and narrow. Each row was 8 to 10
seats across on each side with a wide aisle in the middle. The stage
had a lovely but distracting backdrop of Stonehenge with lightbulb
stars. (Jeff Corbett, pictured)
Assistant Editor Jim Thompson told about editing QL and then we had our
first guest panel with John D'Aquino (Frank from "Jimmy"), Richard Herd
(Captain Galaxy) who came on stage with his trihat, Mary Gordon Murray
(Leda Aider in "Trilogy") and Brad Silverman (mirror image "Jimmy").
Mary wasn't anything like the character she played and proved to be
warm and humorous. I got to ask John if his mother had recovered from
the earthquake, which brought a laugh from the audience. John looked
nonplused and explained the reference for those who had not been at the
con in 1994. Later, I told John that I didn't mean to embarrass him, I
was just trying to be humorous. He said that it was all right, he had
been expecting that question.
I'm not sure why, but I missed the author's panel and the autograph
session. I had my book with me and wanted to get Ashley McConnell's
autograph for Random Measures. I think I was eating lunch and talking
with Myrna. After lunch there were several guests in the hallway and I
spoke with them and got their autographs. That was great fun
also. I was back in the auditorium for the 2:00 p.m. panel.
I forgot to mention that before anything else happened, I hit the
dealer's room Saturday morning. They were late in opening and I only
had twenty minutes. This was practically the only time I was there. I
didn't buy zines this year, but bought key chains, magnets, and
pictures. I got the last one of Scott and Candice facing each other on
the bed from Murphy Brown. I also bought the LeapCon '95 tee shirt and
zippered bag. Later, when I was talking to Rich Whiteside, I got the
impression he designed the con logo. He told me he does do graphic art.
It is a wonderful and simple design that I like a lot. Instead of the
atom symbol, it looks like a star with many points. Under it, the
planets start large and diminish in size (or they could be stars from
large to small). The wording says, "Leap Con 1995, The Year the Leaps
Began." It is really great. The bag was navy blue and the shirt I got
was black.
I also bought a LeapCon calendar that has a wonderful picture of Scott
and Dean and the leap dates on it in chronological order. It also shows
birthdays. Dean's is given as March 5, 1936.
Another panel featured Otto Coehlo, Jennifer Rhodes (the mother in
"Blind Faith"), K Callan (Superman's mother in Lois & Clark), Pat
Skipper ("The Beast Within"), Gregory Miller (Lonnie in "Black on White
on Fire"), Corie Henninger (Susan in "Black on White on Fire") and Jeff
Corbett (Chip in "A Leap for Lisa").
(Gregory Miller & Corie Henninger, pictured)
The 2:00 p.m. panel featured Willie Garson (Seymour and Lee Harvey
Oswald), Cheryl Harrington (the woman who brings the hurt child to the
clinic in "Black on White on Fire"), Michelle Joyner (the sister in
"Right Hand of God"), and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn (the singer Sue Ann in
"Memphis Melody"). A disappointment was that Bruce McGill had hurt his
back gardening and couldn't make it. Don Bellisario, who was busy with
production on a new series (JAG), was also a no show.
Michelle was very bubbly and the first thing she said when she sat down
was that she was no longer in the habit. She wore her hair long in
braids.
Several people told us that their roles on QL were very early in their
careers. That, I thought, was great that QL gave them such chances and
they performed like pros who had been around the block several times.
One of the big pleasures of this con was the one-on-one conversations
with the QL personalities. Even in line for autographs, people were
patient and the celebs talked with each fan, posed for pictures,
wrote personal notes to them. Everyone at the con enjoyed the event,
whether a fan or a celeb. A con organizer told us that most of the
celebs expressed a desire to come back and do it again next year. I
know I was considering this being my last for awhile, but I am already
planning next year and hope to bring my family along.
When Jean-Pierre Dorleac, the costume designer, was on, I was in the
hall talking to Rich Whiteside, Arthur Rosenberg (father in "Raped")
and Mike Genevese (Don Giovani in "Double Identity"). I discovered
Arthur Rosenberg has a very droll sense of humor. I saw Rodney Kageyama
in the hall, but couldn't get his autograph just then. (Mike Genevese, pictured)
In the hall, I also talked with Mary Elizabeth McGlynn and told her I
thought a gospel album with her and Scott would be great. She loved the
idea and proposed that I ask Scott about that.
After the panel, everyone rushed out of the auditorium to queue up for
autographs. The con committee even provided two blank pages in the
program for autographs! How nice of them.
When I got to John D'Aquino, he said he remembered me from last year,
especially when I showed him the picture of us together. At Kinkos in
Ojai, I had that picture Xeroxed. One copy I asked him to autograph and
the other I had to give to him. I asked John to sign the program, the
original print, and one of the Xeroxes. Surprisingly, he asked ME to
autograph my Xerox copy to him! Neither of us was looking at what we
were writing to each other, but I wrote, "Thanks for everything" and he
wrote the exact same thing to me on the Xeroxed copy. The picture he
autographed with, "Love, John."
Later, John was surprised to see me back in the line. I had the camera
on and captured that look of surprise. I had one picture I wanted him
to sign for my daughter, Karen. He also said something special into the
camera for her. When I got back home and showed this to my daughter,
she was ecstatic. The autograph and special message made her day.
I thought I had gotten Mary Murray's autograph, but I can't seem to
find it in my book. I have to say, though, that some of the signatures
look like doctor scrawls. There is one I absolutely can't read and it
doesn't seem to match any of the names printed in the program. I have
to send a Xerox of that one to friends and see if they can read it for
me.
Next, we broke for lunch.
The 5:00 p.m. event Saturday night was Clive Barker. Rumor had it that
Clive asked to speak at the con rather than being asked to speak.
Apparently, he sees a strong need to convince Leapers to see "Lord of
Illusions". He explained that he held off on the release of the film to
give it a good chance in the theaters. Two Barker movies were being
released in February/March and he felt that to release LOI at that time
would be detrimental to the film.
When I got home and showed that portion of the tape to Richard, he
turned off the sound for awhile and just watched Barker's gestures.
Richard felt Clive Barker was in a hard sell mode. He was very intense
in his presentation and the audience was intensely listening to him as
well.
Clive was also very humorous. He showed clips from LOI and told us he
thought Scott was an extremely talented actor and very under rated.
Clive named other actors (Keaneu Reeves, Bruce Willis) who he didn't
think could act. Clive also said that Scott would do at least two more
d'amour films for him and that Clive couldn't picture d'amour anymore
without seeing Scott. In Clive's mind, Scott is Harry D'Amour.
Sunday morning I was able to sleep a little later. Myrna went home
Saturday night to finish preparing Sunday's dinner. She had invited
around 10 people, but only three of us actually went. She cooked turkey
and we had a feast. The company was great and for desert we watched an
interview Myrna had taped locally of Scott and the con tape we had both
recorded.
The first event Sunday morning was a behind the scenes look with
Michael Stern (Assistant Editor), Michael Watkins (Director of
Photography) and Diamond Farnsworth (Stunt Coordinator). Watkins is a
prankster and the panel agreed it was best to stay on his good side.
When Scott injured his foot, Watkins hot-wired Scott's horn to his
brake so every time he hit the brake the horn went off. Later, when
fans asked Scott if he ever got even for this, Scott looked totally
nonplused. He told us he never forgot that prank but never got even.
Watkins was also responsible for the tape ball fights and filling
Dean's Cadillac with golf balls up to the dash board. (Michael Watkins, pictured)
Watkins had a habit of blushing a lot when he was excited. His face
would turn blood red. Diamond told us Scott's dancing ability allowed
him to pick up the back swing kick readily and although Scott never
studied martial arts, Diamond felt he could master it in no time.
Michael Stern didn't have a prank story to tell but said he had an
image of Scott that would live with him forever. Scott was directing
one ep and was dressed as a woman for a scene in another. He came into
the editing room to see how things were going on Leap Home and Michael
has this image of Scott as a woman looking at himself as his father.
Diamond told us that Scott became an aficionado of everything new he
tried. Diamond and Clive Barker both said that Scott was very physical
and did all his own stunts, but had enough sense to back off on
anything really dangerous. Diamond said that often actors' egos got in
the way and he had difficulty getting them to back off. However, as
stunt coordinator, Diamond had the last word on any set.
Once again, after the panel, we queued up for autographs and I got a
wonderful picture of Diamond as well as pictures of the two Michael's.
The next panel featured David Brooks (the sleaze photographer in "Deep
South"), Otto Coelho ("Disco Inferno" and "All Americans"), Jeff
Corbett (Chip in "A Leap for Lisa"), Corie Henniger (Susan in "Black on
White on Fire"), Gregory Millar (Lonnie "Black on White on Fire"),
Jennifer Rhodes (the nasty mother in "Blind Faith") and Pat Skipper
(the sheriff in "Beast Within" and Tequila in "MIA"). Jennifer told us
that she once had a part in a horror flick in which she was a nun. She
said she took the role because she got to kill the baddies with holy
water shot from an Uzi pump water pistol. This cracked up Otto Coelho,
and his laugh, in turn, had the audience in stitches. Jeff Corbett told
us he became engaged on Valentine's day. Later, I told him I hoped his
marriage was as good as mine. I've been married twenty years and each
year gets better. Jeff thanked my for my wishes and said his marriage
would be the same because he was engaged to a wonderful girl.
Like Myrna, my wallet and I skipped the charity auction. My pockets
were pretty shallow by now and I had bought an autographed picture at
last year's auction. I'm glad I did because things were VERY pricey. I
heard that the towel Scott wore in "It's Like Riding A Bike" went for
$3500! Other items were going for big bucks as well. I'm happy that the
Con did so well on the auction, though.
At 3:00 p.m. we had a panel with Maree Cheatham (the aggressive boss in
"Play Ball"), Renee Coleman (Alia), Carolyn Seymour (Zoe) (both in the
evil leaper eps), Susan French (Ms. Melanie in "Color of Truth"), Rich
Whiteside (the shadow in "Leap for Lisa" and he was also in "Leap Home
Part 2"), and Leila Hee Olsen (Machiko). Leila and I had a great
conversation and I learned that her father-in-law lives in Orlando. I
also had a long chat with Rich before the panel discussion. Carolyn
thought I was a trooper for coming so far for the convention.
Sadly, Ms. French came and went so quickly that no one was able to get
her autograph and very few questions were directed her way on the panel.
Gads! Have I been living on sugar! But those Danish from Solvang were wonderful.
Again, with autographing, I missed the tribute to Dennis Wolfberg,
which I truly wanted to see, and most of the session with Mark Banning
of Crescendo records. I did pop in toward the end and asked him about
producing a gospel album with Mary Elizabeth and Scott, but he said he
didn't do that type of production.
Then came what we all had been waiting for! Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell!
Scott was the first to walk on stage and, of course, the audience went
wild cheering, but his appearance shocked me, just as it did last year.
Last year, Scott wore his hair very short and close cropped. This year,
it was long and wild. I wanted to take scissors and brush to it, right
from the start! He once told a TV audience that his background was
Bohemian and this look was definitely that. He wore light blue jeans, a
blue jeans jacket open at the neck and sleeves and, Myrna noticed, his
shoelaces were untied.
Last year's con was very special for me because Scott and Dean seemed
more emotional with each other and they called on the audience to ask
their questions. That was special. Dean picked me, not those
controlling the mics.
This year, Scott and Dean seemed more distant from the audience. It was
more like a press conference than anything, but both men were more
playful with each other and Dean was more relaxed and comfortable than
I've ever seen him. Also, this year the session ran longer.
Just before this session, I was sitting with Myrna's husband when I
noticed a TV camera and interviews being done. Being the ham that I am,
I made a beeline for Myrna, hoping the interviewer would call on us.
Sure enough, and we did a lengthy interview with sustenance, but our
piece wound up on the cutting room floor. Turns out it was E!. Oh, well.
Shortly after Scott arrived and before Dean came out, I got to ask my
question. I told Scott I was the one who gave him the shark tooth last
year and he remembered me. I asked him, "What about the movie and can
you tell us something about your new series?" Scott gave a lengthy
answer, basically saying he thought the movie was coming within the
next couple of years and as to the pilot he was shooting, it was a
darker character, an LA undercover cop with psychological
problems. (NOTE: This pilot never sold.) Shortly after this, Dean
walked on stage and the audience again went wild.
Dean looked great. Very relaxed, laid back, and well rested. He wore a colorful golf shirt and tan pants.
At one point in the session, Dean complained about too many orange
question placards in the audience (there were 3) and Scott ribbed him
no end about his "confusion." One of the staff brought a placard to
Dean. It turned out to be stuck on a LOI knife - the kind that when you
"stab" someone, the blade disappears into the handle. While Scott was
talking, Dean stabbed him repeatedly in the leg. Later, Scott made as
if to sidearm Dean and Dean stabbed the knife into his middle, making a
grimacing face. He then stabbed the knife into his head, again with
lots of facial expression. Scott then tried to take the "toy" away from
Dean, but to no avail.
The shenanigans continued for almost an hour and a half. When it
finally ended, we learned that Scott was not leaving right away. He was
cornered by the French delegation and E! and so we decided to wait for
him to come out. We waited over an hour.
At first, a bunch of us stood in the hallway with items to be
autographed, but we were told by the staff that Scott would not be
signing autographs. However, if we wanted to leave something with her,
she would give it to Scott. No promises, but she would try to have
Scott sign what we requested. I left one of the A Passion To Kill
posters in hopes that Scott would write a personal note. (He did sign
it and I received it in the mail. It was signed, "To Jo, All the
Best!!! Scott Bakula") Then I went outside to join Myrna and two other
friends to wait and see if Scott came out.
He did. Scott came out to head for his vehicle. He told us he was
rushed and couldn't sign autographs, but he did sign for some people
who shoved papers at him. I got to shake his hand and thank him again
for the special attention he gave me last year. Scott started to lean
over as if he were going to hug me, but someone shoved a paper under
his nose so he backed off. Myrna said the same thing happened to her,
but she didn't get to shake Scott's hand. Some of the crowd were being
very rude. Scott, through all of this, remained the gentleman he is and
tried his darndest to please everyone, even while trying to leave. At
last he made it to his car and waved to all of us as he drove off. I
heard later that Dean came rushing out to yell, "Stop that Trooper!"
but I didn't see him so I can't verify this.
I was told that this didn't make it to all sites, so I'm reposting my
con
report. I hope everyone gets it this time.
Okay, gang, here goes. I promised my con report and I'm going to do my
best to give you a good one. There is only one _little_ problem. I'm
doing this whole thing from memory with only the schedule of the con in
front of me to help jar the old grey cells. If I make a mistake,
apologies
in advance. There were a _lot_ of guest stars. If you have any other
questions, post them, and I'll try to answer them.
Before the main programming began, the dealer's room opened. Pictures,
keyrings, refridgerator magnets, zines and other various goodies were
available for purchase. The room should have been a little larger. When
there were a lot of people in there, it was very hard to navigate the
room.
I'm sure there was at least one or two things that appealed to everyone
there.
First thing I noticed (although I'd heard the news the day before) that
Don
B. wasn't going to be there on Sunday (or Saturday for that matter). He
had "a hectic weekend shooting schedule" and could not attend.
The backdrop for the stage was the opening scene from the Pilot episode,
complete with the headlights of Al's car off in the distance (sorry, no
blond in the foreground). It was a nice backdrop, but a little too busy
and tended to draw the automatic focus of cameras (video and still) away
from what I was really trying to focus on. Thankfully, the Con Committee
was taping the entire thing.
Okay, on to what I remember of the con, starting with Saturday, February
18th.
_Editing_Quantum_Leap_
Jim Thomson gave this little talk, and I did not attend this one. He
showed the Making of Marilyn tape, which I'd seen at another con and I
wanted to say 'hi' to friends that I knew where there and would be
wondering around at this point. I hope that someone else can report on
what was said at this panel.
_QL_Guest_Panel_One_
John D'Aquino, Richard Herd, Mary Gordon Murray and Brad Silverman.
This group played well off each other. Like I said, I'm only giving
impressions here, unless something really stands out in my memory, and
unfortunately, nothing really does from this panel.
_Writing_for_QL_
Gillian Horvath, Ginjer Buchanan, Elizabeth Storm, Ashley McConnell and
Julie Barret
I was volunteering during this panel, but it was checking con passes at
the
door, so I did manage to catch a little of the discussion. Gillian
talked
a little about screenwriting while the other the other ladies discussed
writing the QL novels and concordance. If you're interested in writing a
QL novel, send a SASE to Ginjer and she'll send you the specs. I had
talked briefly with Elizabeth before the panel and she is one really
nice
lady, a true fan of the show as well as a writer. Small plug here -- her
novel, _Pulitzer_, looks like it's going to be really great. The cover
art
is the best yet (she had advanced copies with her, which she showed me)
and
the brief synopsis I read tells me it's going to be a great book. Sorry,
this turned into a commercial, but I was very impressed with Elizabeth.
_QL_Guest_Panel_Two_
Willie Garson, Sheryl Francis Harrington, Michelle Joyner, Donna
Magnanai
and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn
I was out kibitzing with my friends and missed that panel.
_Costume_Design_
Jean-Pierre Dorleac showed a tape of his fashion show from 1992 and then
answered a few questions. The tape took most of the time and I wish that
it was available to the fans. It was a professional looking tape and
well
put together.
_QL_Guest_Panel_Three_
Rodney Kageyama, Beverly Leech, Beverly Mitchell, Michael Genovese and
Arthur Rosenberg
I don't remember much about this panel, other than the fact that they
were
having a lot of fun. There was a lot of laughter and joking around. Rod
was asked about his kiss with Scott (in LHO) and he joked about how many
times they had to practice that and the large number of reshoots --
actually, he said the whole shoot was very professional.
_Lord_of_Illusions_Preview_
Clive Barker was a good speaker -- and he seemed so normal. :) He
showed a
couple of clips of LOI. Looks like it's going to be a good movie. The
really weird stuff with this panel had nothing to do with Clive. Partway
during his Q&A, the fire alarm went off; a very high piercing noise
with
flashing lights. False alarm of course, but I was a little surprised
that
no one got up to leave. Later, A party that was next door let loose with
some really awful music. Before that, it had been smurf-like music, but
this stuff was awful. Clive said he'd rather have the smurf music and
have
this image of small blue bodies doing -- things -- on the floor of the
next
room.
Sunday, February 19
_Behind_the_Scenes_of_QL_
Diamond Farnsworth, Michael Stern and Michael Watkins
These guys were just plain fun. They told stories of jokes on the set --
which I believe that someone else has already mentioned. I have to
admit,
though, that the thought of Scott's car horn being wired to go off
everytime he hit the brake is hysterical -- almost as funny as the
mind-picture I have of the van shaking with the laughter of the crew as
they watched Scott start up his car. Diamond did mention that there were
some stunts that he wouldn't let Scott do, but that Scott did do a lot
of
his own stunts.
_QL_Guest_Panel_Four_
David Brooks, Otto Coelho, Jeff Corbett, Corie Henninger, Greg Millar,
Jennifer Rhodes and Pat Skipper
Another great bunch. The con committee did a great job of putting
together
guest panels that got along great together. Nothing really stands out
from
this panel, other than the fact that Jeff (Chip--Leap for Lisa) said
that
he got engaged on Valentine's Day and that LfL was his first job in LA
(he's originally from NYC) and that the cast (meaning Scott and Dean)
and
crew were absolutly wonderful. Actually, any guest panel you went to,
this
was the feeling they came away with. The set was obviously a very happy
one to work on.
_Charity_Auction_
I was helping to work this one, and it was a lot of fun. In case you
were
there, I was the runner wearing the Dean Stockwell airbrushed shirt --
and
the one who was yelling out the bids for the woman who finally got the
towel that Scott wore on MB. She ended up bidding $3,500 for the towel.
No offense, but I thought it was a bit excessive. I did get close to the
towel, and it isn't black. It had a pattern running through it and was
dark green. I myself bid on, and got an autographed photo of Dean and an
autographed copy of the script to _Married_to_the_Mob_. I think the
total
rasied for charity by the auciton was around $15,000, but Adina will
have
to let us know for sure.
_QL_Guest_Panel_Five_
Maree Cheatham, Renee Coleman, Susan French, Leila Hee Olsen, Carolyn
Seymour and Rich Whiteside.
Another fun panel -- especially for the ladies. Renee told us about the
scene she did with Scott in the first Evil Leaper episode. Scott, it
seems, was a little shy about the bedroom scene, while Renee was all
set to
have a lot of fun. Renee was no longer the shy little girl we'd seen at
previous cons -- she was having fun. BTW, ladies, Renee said that Scott
has very soft lips. Susan (baseball team owner in Play Ball) said that
the
scene when she had Scott on the desk was their first scene and they
hadn't
even met at this point. She introduced herself and then threw him on the
desk. Some intro. :)
_Tribute_to_Dennis_Wolfberg_
This was a montage of clips of Dennis's career. Some of his standup
stuff,
receiving the Commedian of the Year award, clips from QL and his obit
from
_Entertainment_Tonight_. Very nice. Dennis is definitely going to be
missed.
_Producing_the_QL_CD_
Mark Banning spoke for about 30 minutes or so on the CD. Right now,
there
are no plans for another CD. Problem with this panel is that people
weren't paying all that much attention because of what was coming on
next.
This had originally been Don's time slot.
_Scott_Bakula_and_Dean_Stockwell_
Scott walked on first. This time, he was on time and Dean was late. My
first thought when I saw Scott walk on was that he needed a comb. He
definitely looked scruffy. Nice, but scruffy. Hair was mussed, shirt
wasn't tucked in and one of his boots wasn't laced. <sigh> He
still
looked good though. Dean, on the other hand (when he showed up about ten
minutes later) looked nice. Multi-colored shirt, nice pants and shows,
and
his hair was combed. :) Scott gave Dean a wrap-around hug when he showed
up.
The best thing I can say about Scott and Dean is that it is obvious that
these two men really do like each other a lot. At one point, Dean called
Scott 'son' and Scott's face lit up. It was obviously a compliment that
Scott appreciated.
The two of them were playful on stage as well. As a promo for LOI, there
were these little plastic knives with blades that sunk into the hilt
when
you poked someone (or thing) with it. Dean got his hands on one and kept
stabbing Scott in the leg. There was a lot of joking about that. At one
point, Dean turned his back to Scott when Scott had the knife, expecting
Scott to stab him in the back. Of course, Scott would never stab Dean in
the back (and he didn't).
We heard the car horn story from Scott's point of view, as well as the
story about the golf balls Dean got for his birthday one year.
The guys were scheduled to be on the stage for an hour and they stayed
for
an hour and a half. They were more than generous with their time,
spending
time with the con committee afterwards to thank them (I assume) for the
con.
I already told you about my 'brush with greatness,' meaning Dean, so I'm
not going to repeat it here.
I had a wonderful weekend and I would like to take this time to thank
Adina
and the rest of the con committee for a wonderful weekend. The whole
weekend was very professionally done and if there were any problems, I
certainly didn't see them and I've been to a great many cons -- both
larger
and smaller ones.
CONGRATUALTIONS ADINA AND CREW!!!! You did a great job and I'm looking
forward to next year's already.
--
Beth Hlabse ea...@po.CWRU.Edu Assistant Sysop
The Science Fiction and Fantasy Sig (GO SCIFI)
__________________________________________________________________________
Al's Place: Where Leapers can be themselves!
Saturday morning the con began. First on the agenda were some composite
videos of Quantum Leap and a short welcome. I found my seat, S108, on
stage left (the right side as you face the stage) about half a dozen
rows from the front. The room was long and narrow. Each row was 8 to 10
seats across on each side with a wide aisle in the middle. The stage
had a lovely but distracting backdrop of Stonehenge with lightbulb
stars. 
Another panel featured Otto Coehlo, Jennifer Rhodes (the mother in
"Blind Faith"), K Callan (Superman's mother in Lois & Clark), Pat
Skipper ("The Beast Within"), Gregory Miller (Lonnie in "Black on White
on Fire"), Corie Henninger (Susan in "Black on White on Fire") and Jeff
Corbett (Chip in "A Leap for Lisa").
When Jean-Pierre Dorleac, the costume designer, was on, I was in the
hall talking to Rich Whiteside, Arthur Rosenberg (father in "Raped")
and Mike Genevese (Don Giovani in "Double Identity"). I discovered
Arthur Rosenberg has a very droll sense of humor. I saw Rodney Kageyama
in the hall, but couldn't get his autograph just then. 
The first event Sunday morning was a behind the scenes look with
Michael Stern (Assistant Editor), Michael Watkins (Director of
Photography) and Diamond Farnsworth (Stunt Coordinator). Watkins is a
prankster and the panel agreed it was best to stay on his good side.
When Scott injured his foot, Watkins hot-wired Scott's horn to his
brake so every time he hit the brake the horn went off. Later, when
fans asked Scott if he ever got even for this, Scott looked totally
nonplused. He told us he never forgot that prank but never got even.
Watkins was also responsible for the tape ball fights and filling
Dean's Cadillac with golf balls up to the dash board. 