"College Years" a Quantum Leap story by Joy Fox (Part III)
Leap Con 96
Wednesday, February 14
My daughter, Karen, and I arrived at LAX at 4:57 p.m. California time.
Myrna was at the airport to meet us and drive us to her house where we
were to stay for two days. We ate a late dinner (late for us since we
were still on Florida time) with Myrna and her husband.
Myrna's an excellent cook. She whipped up a cranberry chicken dish
which was served over noodles. Karen and I went to bed around 10 CA
time after visiting for a couple of hours.
Thursday, February 15
We drove up the coast via Topanga Canyon to Malibu for breakfast. We
ate with Buster Crabbe, Dean Stockwell, Roy Rogers and a host of other
celebs (all in picture form). I had mint tea and an omelet made from
egg beaters. There were a couple of men at the table next to us
discussing movie projects. That was neat.
After breakfast, we drove a little further on to Zuma Beach and were
able to see whales or, as Scotty would put it, "There be whales here!"
We did need binoculars. We all saw a pod of them (I thought Orkas and
Karen thought she saw Humpbacks) and a pod of California dolphins. This
breed is very different from our Bottlenose Atlantic dolphins. They are
larger and darker in color, but not big enough to be confused with
whales, especially when they clear the water. Karen saw a whale breech,
but I didn't.
We were sorry to leave the beach behind. We all could have stayed there
most of the day. The weather was foggy and overcast, but it was great
for us Floridians. Just as long as there aren't any thunderboomers,
we're fine in inclemental weather. Karen and I kind of like it. The
feel is that of the Oregon coast.
From Zuma we drove back to LA via Sunset Blvd. We turned off at Rodeo Drive to tour that street by car. Didn't stop or get out.
When we left this area, we drove into Hollywood and parked near the
Chinese Theater. This was Karen's first trip to LA, so we did the
touristy things. She was thrilled to see all the names and prints in
cement, but her first introduction to the area was a drunk in black
with a Russian hat dancing in the street to no music but that which was
in his head. Shortly after, a woman approached us with a "Jesus is the
way" card. Then, as we were walking to the theater, a Michael Jackson
look-alike, again singing to himself, seemed to follow us.
We left the theater and walked the street down to Vine, looking for two
stores we knew of that sold photographs - the Hollywood Book Store and
Star World. HBS wouldn't sell us any QL, Scott, or Dean photos because
they were bringing them to the con, but Karen found plenty on Richard
Dean Anderson (MacGyver) and she was in heaven. We missed Star World
the first time but caught it on the way back and bought some more
photos on order.
We were all pretty well worn by then and I passed on seeing Scott's
house to return home after a turnoff into Beverly Hills. Myrna showed
me the street where the Magic Castle is (from the movie Lord of
Illusions). Myrna also wanted to show us Soupy Sales' house before it
got too dark.
Friday, February 16
We went into town to Paramount Studios for a great tour. Wish we could
have gotten on more sets, but what we saw was fantastic. The tour
itself is a walking tour at $15 per person.
Can't remember the order in which we saw everything at Paramount, but
early on we passed the sets where Voyager and DS9 are filmed and Karen
and I, who were at the back of the group at this point (group had about
20 people) saw Avery Brooks in uniform walk by! He's got to be over 6'
tall and quite distinguished in person.
Sitting in a chair outside the studio door was Robert Picardo (the
holographic doctor on Voyager) who looked up from a paper he was
reading and smiled at us. He was wearing one of the gold uniforms. We
were staring at him, I know, but we both managed to smile back. Then we
had a lengthy discussion as to whether or not it WAS Robert Picardo. We
finally decided it was Picardo. I later learned that the uniform was
because he was playing Dr. Zimmerman, not the hologram, at that
particlar moment. It was a very brief encounter, but he made a strong
impression on both of us with his friendliness. I wish we could have
talked with him.
Next memory is the set of ET. That's where we saw Leeza Gibbons and her
daughter (who is about 3 or 4). There wasn't a whole lot to see on that
set. We also passed costuming and I looked for Al costumes, but didn't
seen any. Then I realized that QL was shot at Universal, not Paramount.
Duh!
We were given a bit of the history of Paramount. The main thing I
remember is why the mount and the stars are the symbol of the studio.
Seems the founder (I'm horrible with names) was lonely for his home
state of Utah and put the mount in to remind him of home. The 22 stars
were for the original 22 celebs who were under contract to the studio
when it first began.
Another set we actually got onto was the one with Jacqué (I'm sure I'm
misspelling her name) where she has twins who were separated at birth
and now the separate families are trying to bring the girls together -
Sister, Sister. The actor who played George Jefferson was on a
different part of the set in the same studio. Jacqué was blocking a
scene in the forest. The back of the scene was a matte painting and
Karen was stunned to see how real it looked on the TV monitor. It did
not look real just looking at it. I could have stayed there an hour
just watching, but our guide hurried us along.
Our last set stop was Hard Copy. We arrived just as they were finishing
for the day. The crew kept us laughing as they bandied with each other
and told us some of the "in secrets" of shooting. Did you know that the
newsroom set doesn't exist? The crew went to a Miami studio to film the
newsroom. It's added by blue screen effect behind the anchors. They
also told us that when the anchors turn to a reporter for a fill-in,
that reporter is actually sitting a couple of feet from the anchors!
And we think it's for real! It's almost scary how fake it all is and
how gullible we are in believing what we see.
Leaving this studio, we saw the Hollywood sign and I waited till there
was a red light, then popped into the middle of the street to take a
picture of it. Karen later took a picture from the car which actually
turned out better, because we were closer.
We drove to the Beverly Garland Holiday Inn and checked into our room,
then went the few blocks to City Walk for lunch. It was around 2 p.m.
so we were good and hungry. We ate at a seafood place. Karen and I
settled for a baked potato we shared, California Rolls (a favorite
sushi dish), and the salad bar. That was plenty. Our stomachs were
shrinking from eating only two meals a day.
We toured a bit of City Walk. I showed Karen the escalator down to
Universal Studios. It was too late in the day to take that tour, but we
did take some photos beside the fountain sign. Toured a couple of the
unique shops, then it was rush back to the hotel to meet the group
going to the set of Murphy Brown for that night's taping. There were 8
of us going and one of the group had gotten the tickets well in advance
as they are hard to get.
We had to be at the lot around 5:30, but we didn't get in till roughly
an hour later. We were on the set from 6ish to 11ish. Each scene was
filmed twice, straight through. Then they went back and reshot
close-ups or other angles. They used a 4 camera setup, a lot for a 1/2
hour sitcom. Also, the show is shot on film, not tape, for longer
preservation.
As we were entering, I saw Margaret Colchin of Project Quantum Leap and
Rosie and said hi. She introduced me to some friends she was with and
told me who the guest star was. I was very surprised. Of course, we all
hoped it would be Scott, but we learned later that Scott wasn't planned
for any more MB's this season. However, we did get to see Elizabeth
Taylor! I never expected to EVER see her in person! All in all, it was
a great day and night.
Saturday, February 17
The beginning of CONVENTION. We slept Friday night in the hotel and we
were all so tired that we could have slept on army cots and not cared.
But the rollaway bed we had for Karen was a riot. She got in it and it
nearly folded in half with her, lengthwise! Not the bed itself, mind
you. But the mattress had no support under it so it seemed to sink to
the floor. But, like I said, Karen was so tired she slept anyway.
We got up in time to eat breakfast and hit the Dealer's room at 9:00. I
didn't buy too many pictures, but did get a few. I bought one of John
D'Aquino (Frank in "Jimmy") in his SeaQuest uniform. Karen bought one
of him younger, and we used these to get autographs. John's panel was
the first one and included Rodney Kageyama (bartender in "Lee Harvey
Oswald" and "Leap Home" Part 2), Donna Magnani (Russian lover in "Lee
Harvey Oswald"), Ryan McWhorter (Cory in "Jimmy", and Brad Silverman
(Jimmy in "Jimmy").
It was nice to see Ryan "grown up." He was sixteen and turning into a
handsome young man. I got to talk with him awhile and he seems shy.
He's not sure what he wants to do, but he does want a career with
people because he says he is a people person.
When we got autographs, the room was set up quite a distance from the
auditorium in the registration hall. That was a shame. Last year, the
autograph table was right outside the auditorium.
One of the best aspects to a Quantum Leap convention is the ability to
talk to actors up close and personal. Each time I got an autograph, I
chatted with the celeb for awhile. I enjoy talking with people and it
is nice to talk one on one with the guests.
I was very surprised and pleased to find that John still remembered me.
This year, John took my hand as I passed through the line and was
talking to him. I introduced Karen to him and she managed to get out
seven words. "I think my heart is about to explode," she told him to
which John replied, "Go ahead. Let it explode all over the table."
Karen was very taken with John's act of kindness last year. She was
more thrilled to be meeting John than any other star at the con.
After autographs, we hung around even more because John said he would
come back and take pictures with us. About 50 fans waited patiently for
this opportunity. In the meantime, I asked Rodney Kagayama if he
would take a picture with Karen and he was happy to pose. Donna, whom I
asked to pose with Rodney, then asked me to take a picture of her with
John. I took a couple of pictures and sent her copies. I hope she likes
them.
Unfortunately, waiting to pose for pictures with John D'Aquino we were
unable to see the panel with Tommy Thompson, Michael Stern, and Michael
Watkins. I love listening to these men Watkins and Stern) and the
stories they tell and I really wanted to hear Tommy Thompson. Tommy
wrote and produced many Quantum Leaps.
The pictures of Karen and me with John came out great. The one of John
and me can be found on at the top of the main Quantum Cafe page.
I've got to quote Karen here. I love her description of the event.
"After we got their autographs, John was taking photographs with
everyone. I waited in line with my mom to get a picture with him. Mom
knew him personally and introduced me when we got his autograph. I told
him my heart was about to explode and he said to go ahead and let it
explode all over the table. I was so nervous. Back to the picture. When
I finally got to him, he gave me a hug (I was calm by this point) and
that was the picture, him hugging me. He smelled so good. For the rest
of the day and that night, I was smelling him. And it wasn't just me.
He was actually leaving a scent behind!"
We managed to squeeze in lunch, Karen, Myrna, and I, before the next
major panel. We missed Gillian Horvath on breaking into screen writing
and also Mark Banning, the producer of the soundtrack CD for Quantum
Leap, but I ran into Mark in the Dealer's room and was able to chat
with him a bit in there.
The next panel was SaMi Chester (Bebe in "Black on White on Fire"),
Otto Coelho (football player in "All Americans") Michael Genovese (Don
Gino in "Double Identity"), James Handy ("Temptation Eyes") and Arthur
Rosenberg (the father in "Raped"). SaMi was extremely interesting and
said if there was one thing he could do he would go to Africa when
slavery first began and tell them, "Don't get into the boat." But the
way he said it, it was funny. The panel jelled well together. Otto has
a very high pitched laugh and when something sets him off, he breaks up
the rest of the panel and the audience with his infectious laugh. Mike
Genovese blushed several times and that was nice to see. He plays such
stern and nasty types, it is nice to see a more sensitive side to him.
When Mike is concentrating hard on something, he looks like he is
scowling. This panel hung around while the next panel came up, then
both panels signed autographs. (James Harper, pictured)
The last panel of the day was Kimberly Cullum (Sammy Jo in "Trilogy"),
Richard Herd (Captain Galaxy and Ziggy "Mirror Image"), Harry Groener
(the detective in "Permanent Wave") and Rich Whiteside (Doc "Leap Home
Part 2", Shadow "A Leap for Lisa." At the autograph table, I told
Kimberly that I wrote a story based on her character, Sammy Jo, and I
would love to send it to her. I got an address from her mother and sent
her the story.
We missed the bloopers because we were getting autographs. I would have loved to have seen the bloopers.
Dinner was late and we wound up eating in the hotel. After dinner,
Myrna went visiting and Karen and I went to the room. Karen went to
bed. Shortly after, there was a knock on the door and a friend came in
to visit. I was so happy to see her. We sat and looked at pictures and
chatted for almost two hours. When she left, I went to bed and Myrna
came in not long afterward.
Sunday, February 18
The first guest panel of the day was set for 11:00. The charity auction
was at 8:45. The nightshirt Scott wore on the Stephanie Miller
Show was auctioned off for $1300 and my friend was high bidder. It was
signed by Scott Bakula. She showed it to me and let me touch. It was
not the one he wore on the show. It was the one he was given by the
show. Another item, a director's clapper board, that was signed by all
the guests, went for only $160. That was a steal and I wish I had bid
on it.
At 11, we were again in the auditorium armed with cameras for the panel
with Marjorie Monaghan ("One Strobe Over the Line"), who was also in
the Beowulf episode of "Voyager", Penny Peyser (the lawyer in "Raped"),
Dan Roebuck (Neil "The Play's the Thing") and James Harper "Don't call
me Vinny" (Vinny the Viper in "Sea Bride"). James and Dan played such
despicable characters, it was fun to see them away from their
characters. It is amazing what wonderful actors these people are. James
and Dan are nothing like the men they played. Both have great senses of
humor and love to laugh. Dan even showed me pictures of his 3 month old
son. He is one proud daddy. (Daniel Roebuck, pictured)
Again, I missed the author panel because I was getting autographs and
I'm not even sure I got lunch. The next guest was Jay Schwartz (Scott's
publicist) and I wanted to hear him speak. Jay was a bit nervous. He
doesn't usually talk to the public. But he was well received and a bit
insightful as well.
Jay did not sign autographs and the next speaker was Clive Barker
("Lord of Illusions") who talked about the director's cut of the just
released film (released to home video). I had tried to rent it before
the con but never got hold of a copy. They were off the shelves as fast
as they were returned. When I got back from the trip, I managed to be
the first one to rent the laser disk version as it was just being
readied for rental when I called Blockbusters. This was a great
surprise. I could still do without the gore and think the movie would
have even been stronger if some of the horror was alluded to instead of
blatantly displayed, but at the end of the credits, the laser contained
some of the television and movie trailers, the bit from the Sci Fi
channel on the making of LOI, and some movie stills. It ran almost an
hour after the end of the movie. Goes to show, it always pays to stay
through the credits!
When Clive left, Deborah Pratt came on. Deborah wrote and produced some
wonderful Quantum Leaps, including "Trilogy" and now, she tells us, she
will soon be directing. Her daughter, Troian, is 10 now (she was the
little girl in "Another Mother").
Deborah was on for about 20 minutes when the man of the hour came out.
Scott looked fantastic and I've already checked. I got some great
clasps of him. But the time with him on stage was way too short. Dean
couldn't make it. We were almost expecting him to walk on unexpectedly
but he never did. This is the first time that Dean did not show up and
we all missed him.
Scott was in a talkative mood. He was upbeat and cheerful but very few
questions were asked from the audience. I think maybe 8 questions were
asked in all. Not much more than that. The con organizers weren't
allowing anyone out of their seats to get closer to the stage for
pictures like they did with other guests. The flashbulbs were popping
like crazy. It's almost comical because NO ONE in the back would get
anything except the backs of heads with flash! It also got to be very
annoying and I know for any video cameras on automatic that the lenses
would have a hard time focusing through all that light. It would
probably be much easier on Scott if they turned on some bright stage
lights and disallowed flash photography. Be easier on all concerned,
too.
Monday, February 19
We slept long and then finished minor packing and left for the LAX
airport. On the way, we stopped for breakfast and it was one of the
best that weekend. Karen and bagel and lox and it was delicious. I had
blintzes, a treat.
When we got to the airport, I realized that I had forgotten my journal.
In packing, I kept overlooking the journal, thinking it was a bible. I
asked Myrna to call the hotel for me. When I got back to work Wed., I
had to call the hotel and give them an address to mail the journal. I
thought they would send it COD, but they paid the postage and sent it
to work. That was nice of them and a pleasant end to a wonderful
vacation.
See Part I of this convention story on the LeapCon 1994 page. Part II is on the LeapCon 1995 page.
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