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August 29, 2006 The Media Ho Revisits the General Hospital Fan Club Weekend! PART II of II: The Luncheon As I was saying, about a month ago…yes, I apologize, but “life is what happens while you’re making other plans.” However, I can still reconstruct the events of that hot, hot day… Did I mention it was hot? I spent most of Friday at Disneyland, or as I now call it, DisneyHELL, with Dianna, Katrina, and Delena (Katrina’s daughter). I, who normally shun water rides, eagerly sought them out. Whenever possible, I could be found standing under the mister at Disney’s California Adventure theme park. At one point, Delena jokingly sprayed me with her fan/spray bottle, and I smiled and said, “Kiddo, this is the one time in your life you’ll be able to do this to me without fear of death. Have at it!” Yes, I allowed her to spray me whenever she liked. When we returned to the Day’s Inn that evening, I was planning to fall face-first into the pool, but the bloody thing was filled with kids. The nerve. So, instead, I hit the showers and then hit the bed. We had a VERY early call the next morning. When was the last time you had breakfast at 6:15am? On a Saturday? Right, didn’t think so. However, we were due at the Lodge to help Debbie Morris & Co. set up for the Luncheon, so our various clocks were set. Saturday was the third morning in a row with a rising time of 5:15, if not earlier (Thursday was the record: 4am, as I had a 6:55am flight to Burbank from New York). Color me grouchy. The EOS staff assembled and sleepwalked over to Twain’s, a GHFCW breakfast tradition. Twain’s griddle had chosen an unfortunate time of day to croak; so most of us had to adjust our menu selections (read some of the other recaps for some hilarious griddle-related stories; my choices were griddle-free). Then, off to set up for the Luncheon. Have you ever seen 500 empty goodie bags? No? Consider yourself lucky. Luckier, still, if you’ve never had to help fill said goodie bags. It’s a chore, especially early in the morning. But what the heck, all for the cause. Around 8:30, we began check-in, held indoors this time because of the oppressive heat. Did I mention that the Los Angeles area was in the middle of a record-breaking heat wave? Yes indeed, and that Saturday was a record-setting 114º. No joke. Add to that 400 luncheon attendees, plus actors, staff, security, and other folks in one large ballroom with a seriously overtaxed air conditioning system, and you’ve got trouble in River City. With a capital “T.” However, everyone – actors and fans alike – cooperated in marvelous fashion. Many went beyond cooperative, in fact. Once check-in was completed, we were off to our various assignments. KellyB and I were posted at one of the secret entrances to the Green Room area to escort whomever showed up at that door down to the Green Room, where all the actors assemble before entering the Luncheon. This area was so secret, in fact, that the six actors who found it last year were M.I.A. this time. We greeted two wonderful ladies, though. First up: Bergen (“Big Alice”) Williams, who was lovely and engaging. We told her how happy we were to see her, and how sad we were last year when she wasn’t there, and she was very gracious and friendly. KellyB escorted her to the Green Room while I hung out with Steven, the security dude assigned to us by Lucy, the head of security and assigner of dudes. She’s always been good to us. The second actor to come our way was the lovely and engaging Kent (“Lainey”) King, whom I had the pleasure of sneaking through the secret passageways. She, too, was a delight. Both Williams and King were more petite and beautiful in person, as is often the case. Lucy gave us the go-ahead to ditch the hardly-used door and hang out in the Green Room. Cameras and other things at the ready, we made our way through the passageways and made our entrance. I had a special goal, but wandered around with my (soon-to-be-dead) camera, taking a few candids:
They’re just so adorable!
Jason (“Dr. Patrick Drake”) Thompson and Laura (“Carly”) Wright are extremely photogenic, no?
I asked for an “uncle/niece” shot, and John J. (“Mac”) York and Kimberly (“Robin”) McCullough graciously complied Now it was time to make my move. I took a Playbill from a Broadway show I’d seen in 1978 and approached Constance (“Helena”) Towers. When I showed her the Playbill, a radiant and beautiful smile came across her face. I told her that I’d seen her co-star with Yul Brynner in the revival of “The King and I” and had my original Playbill – and ticket stub – with me. I asked her if she’d mind signing it (“Mind! Of course not!”), and she did so with a flourish. We chatted briefly about the show, and she was delighted that I’d seen it and brought the Playbill with me. Unfortunately, I don’t have a Kodak of that moment to share with you, but trust me when I say it was one of the highlights of my weekend. We also spoke about how she adores the babies who play Baby John, and she told me that she’s always said that if they should go missing, the first place anyone should look for them is her house! She also agreed with me that a name change from John to something more appropriate – Ivan, for instance – should happen. (Of course, in between that conversation and the writing of this recap, Baby John has been renamed Spencer, and I’m still waiting for Helena to return to Port Charles to rectify that situation!) I closed by saying, “The other Karen says to say hello!” (That was a joke set up by Karen, the WubQueen – wubs.net – who also runs Ms. Towers’ fan club. She couldn’t attend, so asked any of us who were there to pass that message on to CT!) She laughed, and we traded some complementary stories about the one and only Wubqueen. I walked over with my beautifully autographed Playbill to where Stuart (“Alan”) Damon was sitting. Knowing his Broadway pedigree, I told him my story, and he was delighted! He asked if he could look at it, and I said, of course! As he was thumbing through it, he said, “You know, I worked with so many people who are in this Playbill, including the director – a lot of years.” This turned into a great conversation, and I asked him if I could take his picture holding the Playbill. Very enthusiastic, he posed several different ways. This was the cutest shot:
Stuart Damon really enjoyed reading my Playbill from Constance Towers’ starring role opposite Yul Brynner in “The King and I,” from 1978 Floating on air, I decided to float around and take some more candid shots.
Kent King was a real sweetie and I enjoyed our short time togetherI next talked to Executive Producer Jill Farren Phelps, who was most pleasant, and convinced her to pose for a photo. “Why do you want my picture?” “Jill, you’re the Big Kahuna!” She smiled and posed.
Jill laughed when I congratulated her on GH’s second Best Show Emmy in a row and said, “At least you got a few more words in this year!” I spotted John “Edward” Ingle giving Adrian (“Det. Rodriguez”) Alvarado some advice. I took the shot, welcomed Mr. Ingle back to the show (“Great to be back!”), said hi to Adrian, who remembered me from the Kickoff, and then…disaster struck.
After taking this picture of John and Adrian, my camera protested from the heat and quit on me. Or maybe the star power in the room just caused it to overheat. Whatever. Just then, it was time for the actors to line up, in alphabetical order, for their entrance into the Luncheon. We scurried past them and got situated in the ballroom to watch the festivities begin. MC John Ingle introduced the cast, and each and every one got a rousing reception. Who caused the most thunderous applause? Well, I believe if a decibel meter had been in the room, it would have been off the charts for a good number of the actors, but the loudest cheers were definitely for Sonya (“Epiphany”) Eddy and Laura (“Carly”) Wright. Yes, Maurice (“Sonny”) Benard and Steve (“Jason”) Burton were up there, but Sonya and Laura rocked the house. As I realized this, I grabbed KellyB and asked her to help me work Sonya’s table. I knew it was going to be crazier than anticipated. The coolest entrance had to be the one made by Scott (“Dillon”) Clifton, who somersaulted his way down the aisle. The most dramatic? The spy who came in from the heat, Tristan (“Robert Scorpio”) Rogers, who had been delayed in traffic from LAX. It almost looked like he’d been backlit as he strode in through the double doors and made his way to the podium. (The biggest entrance came even later, during the autograph session, as Finola (“Anna Devane”) Hughes ran in, very late, jumped on a table, waved her arms, shouting, “I made it!”) After the awards were presented to the actors and the Q&A session finished, the room was broken up for the autograph session. Each actor had his or her own table and line, and KellyB and I had the absolute and total pleasure of working with Sonya Eddy. (I told her we were her “Special K” team, which she liked!) We got her set up, kept the ice water flowing, and watched as a long line started to materialize in front of her table. By then, the air conditioning had very nearly given up on us. A fan came by and announced that her husband called to let us all know that it was 114º, a new record for the day. We believed it. In between taking photos for fans, keeping the line moving, and being friendly to all, KellyB and I were alternately fanning Sonya and each other. One of the luncheon guests came by with some extra Ric/Alexis fans for us (thank you!), and we kept them swishing through the air. At one point, KellyB found an actual electric fan and set it up to help cool off Sonya and Rebecca (“Liz”) Herbst, who was at the adjacent table but never broke a sweat. Unlike the rest of us. In spite of the heat and the fact that Sonya wasn’t leaving until the last fan had gotten her (or his) photo and autograph, we had a blast. Sonya was exceptionally friendly and we enjoyed joking with her in between her visits with fans. What a warm and lovely person she is. And you could really see how she’s connected with the fans. It seemed like every other person told her how much they love the character of Epiphany and how she doesn’t take any nonsense from anyone. Sonya received many requests to smack down certain characters. Others just wanted to give her a big hug and thank her for being “so real.”
At the end of the autograph session, KellyB and I took pictures of each other – using her camera – with Sonya. Here I am with one of my new favorite people! Midway through the afternoon, some of the actors (and their lines) were moved into the Green Room so the ballroom could cool down a bit. After 3:00, the Luncheon was officially over. Sonya finished up around 3:15 (most of the ballroom was now empty), and we said our farewells and told her to ask for her Special K team next year! We wandered over to the Green Room, where Laura Wright and Scott Clifton were still signing away. Our own Carolyn was tending to Laura (read her “Three Hours With Laura Wright” for a great take on that fun experience) and, though they both looked slightly exhausted, they were having a blast. Kathy, KellyB and I wandered over to Scott and asked if he’d mind posing for one last photo. He didn’t mind a bit, and if you go to Kathy’s recap, you’ll see a very cute photo – bunny ears for all! I think I can best close this recap with one last funny story involving Scott Clifton. One of my EOS pals asked him if she could touch his hair. He smiled and bent down. She touched it and said, “My gosh, it’s stiffer than Steve Burton’s!” Scott ended our day by saying, “Mine’s stiffer.” And on that note, thus endeth my recap of the GHFCW! Many thanks to all involved, especially Debbie Morris and her team; Clifton, Olga, and Paris Morris; Linda and Linna; Debby O’Connor; Lucy and her security dudes (especially Steven); and everyone else who helped make this a wonderful experience. Thanks, too, to Patty from USC, who not only takes some great photos but also gives great shoulder and neck massages. The EOS staff, a most wonderful group of friends. Special shout-out to Sonya Eddy, who had a marvelous GHFCW debut…see you next year!
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