Asylum 2009 Report Part Five - Sunday Morning
4,291 words... and apparently my wrist can take no more... and I'm starving!
So, a new day dawns...
Sunday started with some very nice and considerate people running down the hall at about 5am shouting and just generally making a lot of noise. Which, you know, was very much appreciate by all I am sure ;D
Still, I understand the enthusiasm and it's not like I was really getting much sleep anyway... we eventually decided to not rush too much (since we were both knackered), and aimed to get to the restaurant for brekkie by 8.30...
At 8.45 we were still not ready to leave the room! Claire called me and told us we should hurry up cause the room was filling up fast and we weren't allowed to save seats (I was very much on board with that policy - it's really not fair on everyone else if a couple of people save seats for a huge group). Anyhoo, there were two free seats with Claire, Cassie & J at that point but we decided it wasn't worth risking so I asked L if she'd mind very much having breakfast on her own so we could go sit down first (yes, I realise that's cheating slightly - it was OK to leave your seat for loo breaks and photo-ops etc, but not brekkie - but since L is diabetic I figured a food break was just as vital as a loo break and decided to not worry too much about it!).
So, we went to the room and the seats with the girls WERE still free (in the end, the section we were in didn't fill up until much later in the day anyway) so we sat down for a minute to exchange good mornings and then L popped off to the restaurant to get breakfast.
The morning talks were delayed a bit (I kind of lost the ability to tell time by this point so I have no idea what time things were happening on Sunday...), anyhoo, we were sitting around chatting for a while and (I think) they played some more videos (which was fun) and then L came back (she must have eaten REALLY fast!) and she was bearing gifts... a babybel cheese thingy, a granary roll and a blueberry muffin. God bless her highly amusing pregnancy hormones which make her lose her memory - I can't really stomach any of the stuff she brought but I thought it was a really sweet thought (she obviously didn't want me to not be able to eat). She then got a bit of memory back and remembered that me without my morning coffee is BAD. So she basically forced me to go to the restaurant and grab a quick bite to eat and a cup of coffee.
I sat down, ordered coffee, went and got a couple of mini croissant things, ate said croissants and drank said coffee, and was back in the room in the space of less than 10 minutes... don't ask me how (although, for the record - drinking coffee that fast is probably not the best idea!).
So the plan for the day was Richard's talk and the Gabe/Malik photo-op, which were going to clash but I was hoping not by too much since Richard had been very entertaining the day before and there was NO WAY I was missing my photo-op with Gabe and Malik!
Actually, that reminds me... S, A & M's photo-op session had been cancelled the day before, and Misha's had run over to the point they didn't actually get to my number... L had her op though and he loved her T-Shirt and asked if it was OK to put his hand on her Baby Bump for the photo (he's sweet for asking - some people do it without asking!), she said yes (duh!) but when she picked up the photo on Sunday, the photographer hadn't framed the picture low enough so you can't actually see his hand! Still, I guess it was still a bit of fun at the time, and you can kinda see a bit of his thumb... ;D). My number was in the early 200's but I was now a bit concerned I'd have to miss it anyway - since his photo-ops were scheduled for the same time as Jared (do I need to point out there was no way I was missing Jared's talk?).
But, we haven't actually got to that bit yet, have we?
So we're in the room waiting for Richard, listening to music & watching videos etc. It was actually a nice mellow way to start the day.
They put up the announcement for Gabe and Malik's photo's so I decided not to risk being in so long a queue I might miss Jensen and went to queue up right then, I was a bit disappointed about missing the first half of Richard's talk, but the weekend was all about compromise and by this point I was getting pretty used to it! I did see Richard come onto stage and talk about his hangover though... he recommended if we're ever stuck in a castle with a moat with Jensen and Jared and they suggest 'one more drink' we should say NO!
The queue was HUGE already! Either I wasn't the only person who didn't want to risk missing Jensen, or I'd underestimated just how popular they were going to be (and, since I'd been in their talk the day before, I don't really know HOW I'd misjudged that!). Anyhoo, as with the rest of the weekend, the Red Shirts and the Red Shirts Who Weren't Wearing red Shirts were all very good - they kept everything under control (as far as possible) and were courteous and friendly and helpful. Over the course of the weekend, the guys working both inside and outside the photo-op room probably had the worst time of it - they kept having to tell people they weren't allowed to ask for hugs or take 'props' into the room etc. and I got the impression there were a fair number of people who weren't being particularly understanding about that. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't especially happy about the fact that I got a less interesting piccie just cause I was further back in the queue (the table with all the photo-ops on at the end of each day showed plenty where either the rule wasn't being enforced or just didn't exist yet), I don't begrudge the people who got the 'better' ops at all, since they can't really be blamed for being lucky (don't think I don't know just how lucky I was to be right at the front of the Friday Auto Queue. Mind you, it's not like we didn't work for that... ;D), anyway, I don't begrudge it, but it was a bit disappointing and I don't doubt the girls working in that area were getting all kinds of shit because of it. They didn't show any kind of frustration about it (that I saw) though - like I say, every one of them I interacted with was nothing but nice and polite.
The queue was actually moving pretty fast, I don't think I was in it for more than about 20 minutes or so, and when I got in the room I noticed they were both standing up and were hugging voluntarily (in fact, they didn't appear to be giving people much choice!), I was quite happy to see that and was suddenly looking forward to my turn even more!
Now, I don't know about anyone else, but whenever I do photo-ops or the like, I make sure I plan something to say, and go over it in my head in case I get star struck by the time I get to the front of the queue (usually just a very basic "Hello, how are you?" or similar), so I spent most of my time in the room doing that, and keeping a close eye on the queue in front of me so I didn't cause a delay by being slow (I get distracted pretty easily, I'm like a Magpie in that respect). Every photo-op I did, I'd get to the front and the volunteer (they wore blue on the photo room so they shall from now on be called the 'Blue shirts') would have to beckon me forward and ask me to keep moving. Again, not to beat a dead horse or anything, but all of them (I say 'all' I'm pretty sure it was the same 2 every time I was in there) were nice and polite and courteous; they really didn't have enough time to not be a bit quick but I never felt like they were being rude or anything. And, if I smiled at them, they smiled back.
So it's my turn and Malik and Gabe both look over at me and smile and say Hi and put their arms out waiting for me (and how cool does THAT make you feel??? I'll tell you - VERY), I stood in between them and put my arms around their backs and they both put their arms around me and as I was walking away I said "thanks very much, have a good day" and Gabe gave me a really big grin and said "thanks! you too" and I'm pretty sure Malik said similar but I wasn't facing him (cause I was walking away) so I'm not sure. They were both very smiley and gracious the whole time I was in the room and I left that room with a BIG smile on my face!
By the time I got back to the room Richard had been talking for a while and my sister told me he'd said something really moving that would definitely make me cry. Thankfully she didn't tell me until after he'd left the stage, cause it really was VERY moving and I wouldn't have been able to focus on the rest of his talk!
I actually can't remember all that much detail about the end of his talk; other than that he spoke about the differences between playing a character for a long time and playing one sporadically, he said he quite enjoyed the occasion stuff because it was more challenging and interesting (I'm paraphrasing) and he sounded really... enthusiastic while talking about his job. I know it's probably obvious that actors must enjoy what they do (after all, unless you're really successful it's VERY difficult to make a living out of it), but it was very apparent from the way he spoke that he really is passionate about his job.
Just as his talk was winding up he took out his camera and asked us all to do him a favour... he'd recorded us saying 'Hi' to his wife the day before (because she'd had to leave and was sorry to miss his talk) but this time he wanted to get proof for his mates of just how COOL convention crowds are. He said something along the lines of 'they never believe how great this is, so I want to be able to show it to them'. How ADORABLE is that? We, of course, obliged - he started up his camera and we cheered a LOT. Very LOUD. And he looked very pleased with the result! He did also make a joke about putting it on youtube and said something like 'see how YOU like it...' which he said with a BIG grin!
So with Richard's talk over, L explained the story he'd told that'd made her cry... the gist was that he didn't know much about his character in Band Of Brothers because the MOD (or whatever the US version of that is) couldn't provide much detail, apparently that was quite common during the second world war. So Richard had spoken to other Easy Company guys but really wanted to speak to some relatives if possible. After someone in Easy Co told him that 'Muck' was from New York, and NOT Florida (as it said in the script), Richard sent emails out to basically everyone with the right surname in the whole of whichever town it was and eventually got one back from someone who said she thought he was talking about her uncle. The end result was, the family got his medals, finally found out exactly what had happened to him, and got to meet his comrades in Easy Company - apparently his sister has been going to all the reunions since then. As I am typing this out it is making me cry AGAIN so I'm kinda glad I missed that story cause I would have made a bit of a dick of myself. I think it's one of the most moving things I've ever heard. As L was telling me, and I was getting a bit misty eyed, I looked to my other side and it became clear that the others had found it very moving too!
Next up was Jensen and Jason - this was actually quite a cool idea... Jason was acting as a cross between a facilitator and an interviewer, and his presence seemed to be a boon to Jensen. Since they're friends in real life, his being there made for a cool dynamic - they were joking with each other a bit and Jason was asking a couple of questions which lead to great stories. Including his opening question...
When they'd first walked on to the stage, Jason asked Jensen where he wanted to sit (i.e. which side of the stage) and Jensen mulled it over for a sec and then said "Right!" he then sat in the chair on the right side (to them, left to us) of the stage and got up about 5 seconds later saying "No, changed my mind" (I'm paraphrasing). Now, his security guard had already taken up position behind him on the right and now had to move with him... did I mention they were making a funny little double act? Well, this is the first bit of it! Jensen, as he was sitting down, noticed his security guard had had to move and made a joke about how he'd had to move too and then he imitated the guard saying "Actors!". It was a lot funnier in person than I'm probably making it sound, but the best thing was he guard's reaction - he was trying not to laugh and ended up just making that face adults make when they're tolerating funny children - you know the one? When you're trying not to encourage silly behaviour but secretly think it's adorable? It was pretty clear they were getting on very well and it kind of answered a question I'd had in my mind about whether or not Jared and Jensen were bothered/freaked out by the security. In fact, both of them were joking around with their security guards every time we saw them.
So anyway, Jason's first question (once they'd managed to sit down) was "do you and Jared just automatically go into Sam and Dean mode now you've been playing the characters so long?" which didn't make a lot of sense at first, until he elaborated... turns out they'd all been sitting outside their hotel last night (having a drink I'd imagine) and a little old lady walking down the steps near them fell over flat on her face! according to Jason, Jensen and Jared were out of their seats and picking her up before anyone else even realised what had happened! They wrapped her in a table cloth (I have no IDEA why? Were they worried she was in shock and needed to be kept warm? Who knows...) and they sat with her until the ambulance arrived. Jason then pointed out that Jared had also picked up the flowers she'd dropped and given them to her. As you can imagine, there was a fair amount of 'awww's at this point!
Jensen was being pretty cool about it, as though it's a daily occurrence and not a big deal, which I guess it isn't. Every interaction I've seen leads me to completely believe both of these guys are VERY gentlemanly (did you see Jensen get up to pull Sera Gamble's chair out for her at Comic Con? :D).
Jensen also told us that we should ignore anything Richard says... ;D
Someone asked about the effects involved in filming the getting-ripped-apart-by-hell-hounds scene from No Rest For the Wicked and he explained how he had to have a cast made of his torso (which was hot and uncomfortable)(obviously there was some cat-calling when he said it was hot ;D), he actually said "no, really, it's not good!" they then made a fake torso which he had to wear (very tight obviously) which had fake blood in it which was activated by something like piano wire being pulled... apparently it took all day to film that scene and he felt like a popsicle what with being covered in corn syrup all day!
The next question I remember was pretty cool - the person at the mic basically asked which of Jensen's other characters he thinks would be good to play opposite Dean (she names Tom from MBV, Alec from Dark Angel and Jason from Smallville). He took a minute to think about it and said that Tom was kinda crazy so could probably hold his own a bit just cause of that, but that Jason was a wuss! He pointed out that he had to be a wuss cause no one else on that show can be as tough as Superman. He then said he thought Alec would be the only on who might be able to hold his own and I found myself being very very distracted by the idea of an Alec appearance in Supernatural! I LOVED Alec!
The person who'd asked the question followed up with something I didn't hear very well about The Beresford Agenda (where he had to play piano because Alec was going undercover as a piano teacher) and he told us how he'd spent two weeks learning the piece but then they didn't use it in the end - they hired a pianist with really girly hands instead! Which Jensen was NOT happy about! He made a joke about how he asked them if they couldn't go out and find a construction worker who could play piano instead? "Someone with manly hands!"
I can't remember the exact wording of the question, but someone asked if he liked how dark Sam had got, and he said no... because it meant Dean was worried about him all the time and he really just wants to say "Get over it!" and get on with things and stop being so mopey etc. It was really funny how heartfelt he was about it! And then he made a crack about how they should talk more about Dean and less about emo Sam (emo is my word, not his :D).
Jensen's explanation of the red shorts in After School Special was hilarious! apparently the first bunch the wardrobe department found were quite long and 'normal' looking so Jensen said to them "you know, I don't think this is what they were going for" and went online with the wardrobe dept to help them find something more suitable! He actually found the ones he ended up wearing himself! And he said the reason he picked them was that they were exactly like the shorts his High School coach wore. The coach's name was Coach Roach and Jensen started giggling when he said the name and assured us he wasn't making it up! He also said he felt really uncomfortable around Coach Roach because of those very shorts...
Throwing the ball at the kid was also his idea - apparently when he read the script he said to the guy directing the episode they were filming (I assume he meant Philip Sgriccia) that he thought he should hit the kid with the ball... the director agreed and called Eric Kripke and Jensen could hear him laughing over the phone... he said he made it look like he'd thrown the ball a lot harder than he really did (he even gave us a cute little demonstration :D) but that the kid wasn't exactly HAPPY about it... *G*
Someone asked Jensen if he wanted to do a cowboy film and he said he kind of did want to, but that there's not much audience for it so not a lot are getting made. He then corrected himself saying, 'well, I DID want to, but then Brokeback Mountain came out...'.
The absolute funnierst part of the whole talk was when a girl showed Jensen a copy of Heat magazine, where he has been voted Torso of the week! He was handed the magazine, and sat back down to look at it and while he was explaining how much he hated that picture (it's a candid shot and he's not sure how it ended up online) his security guard sidled up behind him to sneak a look... Jensen saw him out of the corner of his eye and gave him a VERY amusing look in return! I was cracking up! The security guard moved back into place and Jensen kept looking back at him in mock-suspicion... *G*
Someone else asked Claire's question from the previous day about what souvenir he'd take from the set and when a person in the crowd shouted 'Sam!' he said 'Nah, you can keep him' :o) He ended up saying he had his eye on one of the Impala's and he seemed pretty confident he's actually going to get it...
You've probably all heard the Icarus story a million times already so I'm just going to tell you what I thought about it, rather than explaining it again - This is the first time I have ever heard Jensen start talking about his girlfriend without any real prompting, and it's the first time I've heard him refer to her by name (i.e. 'my girlfriend, Danneel') and he looked a little bit surprised, but quite pleased, when everyone cheered when he said her name - he nodded, smiled, and said "I know, right? Love her!") this whole exchange went further to prove to me that he really is getting more and more comfortable with every convention he does. He was being really open about his personal life, something he's never really done before (as evidenced by the fact he's had a dog for 2 years that none of his fans knew about - and let's be honest, some fangirls are pretty good at the fact finding...).
It was also really adorable the way he was talking about Icarus, and then showing the picture - most people who own dogs love talking about them, they seem to be just one step down from children and Jensen is no exception. Even when he was making jokes about him not being a very manly dog, he still sounded affectionate and kind of proud. He sounded ESPECIALLY proud when he mentioned Icarus's two best friends (Sadie and Harley, bless!) and how Icarus can really hold his own in a fight. Jensen did a VERY funny impression of Harley being freaked out by the tiny ball of fluff attacking him... he finished off his Icarus talk by saying "What he lacks in masculinity, he makes up (for) in personality." (you know what I've noticed while transcribing comments made by Jensen? He misses out a lot of words... e.g. the implied 'for' in that last sentence... I don't really know why I'm pointing that out, just found it interesting I guess!)
Oh, by the way, in case you wondered... Jensen was looking FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINE in his checked shirt on Sunday... God DAMN that man is gorgeous!
The person who'd asked Jared on Saturday who'd killed the most Demons asked Jensen the same thing and Jensen said... Dean! As I suspected he would... his reasoning was that Dean had never taken a break from hunting, whereas Sam had gone off to college (at which point it became apparent he was lumping all monsters etc. in with ACTUAL demons), someone in the crowd pointed out that Phantom Traveller was the first time Sam and Dean had actually MET a demon and (after getting it repeated because he didn't hear first time), he made a funny face and looked over towards Doug (I think) and said "She's breaking the rules! Escort her OUT!" It was very funny and playful :D He also didn't really acknowledge this new information and amend his answer... *G*
Someone asked if he can remember his favourite quote and he said he memorises lines and then they're gone after a while so he'd need us to give him options - he decided Bitch/Jerk is his favourite, because he gets to call Jared a Bitch!
Before leaving the stage, he put on his sunglasses and, for no reason I can imagine, decided to do a funny little dance and then a couple of funny poses before actually leaving the stage! It was really funny and SO unexpected and we were sitting to the side of the stage and got a VERY nice view of him shaking his booty!
*sigh* He was on SUCH top form for this talk, it was just wonderful :o)
Now... Gabe and Malik were up next, but I'm losing the feeling in my wrist so I'm going to stop this section here. I'm going to also have to try to talk my brother into making dinner...
End of Sunday Part One AKA Sunday A.M.(ish)
Coming up in Part Two...
Malik tries to strangle a child... Andy can control God... And Misha hugs me - TWICE!
EDIT: serenitysangel has come great photo's here and there are some of the Heat Magazine/Security Guard moment about two thirds of the way down!
So, a new day dawns...
Sunday started with some very nice and considerate people running down the hall at about 5am shouting and just generally making a lot of noise. Which, you know, was very much appreciate by all I am sure ;D
Still, I understand the enthusiasm and it's not like I was really getting much sleep anyway... we eventually decided to not rush too much (since we were both knackered), and aimed to get to the restaurant for brekkie by 8.30...
At 8.45 we were still not ready to leave the room! Claire called me and told us we should hurry up cause the room was filling up fast and we weren't allowed to save seats (I was very much on board with that policy - it's really not fair on everyone else if a couple of people save seats for a huge group). Anyhoo, there were two free seats with Claire, Cassie & J at that point but we decided it wasn't worth risking so I asked L if she'd mind very much having breakfast on her own so we could go sit down first (yes, I realise that's cheating slightly - it was OK to leave your seat for loo breaks and photo-ops etc, but not brekkie - but since L is diabetic I figured a food break was just as vital as a loo break and decided to not worry too much about it!).
So, we went to the room and the seats with the girls WERE still free (in the end, the section we were in didn't fill up until much later in the day anyway) so we sat down for a minute to exchange good mornings and then L popped off to the restaurant to get breakfast.
The morning talks were delayed a bit (I kind of lost the ability to tell time by this point so I have no idea what time things were happening on Sunday...), anyhoo, we were sitting around chatting for a while and (I think) they played some more videos (which was fun) and then L came back (she must have eaten REALLY fast!) and she was bearing gifts... a babybel cheese thingy, a granary roll and a blueberry muffin. God bless her highly amusing pregnancy hormones which make her lose her memory - I can't really stomach any of the stuff she brought but I thought it was a really sweet thought (she obviously didn't want me to not be able to eat). She then got a bit of memory back and remembered that me without my morning coffee is BAD. So she basically forced me to go to the restaurant and grab a quick bite to eat and a cup of coffee.
I sat down, ordered coffee, went and got a couple of mini croissant things, ate said croissants and drank said coffee, and was back in the room in the space of less than 10 minutes... don't ask me how (although, for the record - drinking coffee that fast is probably not the best idea!).
So the plan for the day was Richard's talk and the Gabe/Malik photo-op, which were going to clash but I was hoping not by too much since Richard had been very entertaining the day before and there was NO WAY I was missing my photo-op with Gabe and Malik!
Actually, that reminds me... S, A & M's photo-op session had been cancelled the day before, and Misha's had run over to the point they didn't actually get to my number... L had her op though and he loved her T-Shirt and asked if it was OK to put his hand on her Baby Bump for the photo (he's sweet for asking - some people do it without asking!), she said yes (duh!) but when she picked up the photo on Sunday, the photographer hadn't framed the picture low enough so you can't actually see his hand! Still, I guess it was still a bit of fun at the time, and you can kinda see a bit of his thumb... ;D). My number was in the early 200's but I was now a bit concerned I'd have to miss it anyway - since his photo-ops were scheduled for the same time as Jared (do I need to point out there was no way I was missing Jared's talk?).
But, we haven't actually got to that bit yet, have we?
So we're in the room waiting for Richard, listening to music & watching videos etc. It was actually a nice mellow way to start the day.
They put up the announcement for Gabe and Malik's photo's so I decided not to risk being in so long a queue I might miss Jensen and went to queue up right then, I was a bit disappointed about missing the first half of Richard's talk, but the weekend was all about compromise and by this point I was getting pretty used to it! I did see Richard come onto stage and talk about his hangover though... he recommended if we're ever stuck in a castle with a moat with Jensen and Jared and they suggest 'one more drink' we should say NO!
The queue was HUGE already! Either I wasn't the only person who didn't want to risk missing Jensen, or I'd underestimated just how popular they were going to be (and, since I'd been in their talk the day before, I don't really know HOW I'd misjudged that!). Anyhoo, as with the rest of the weekend, the Red Shirts and the Red Shirts Who Weren't Wearing red Shirts were all very good - they kept everything under control (as far as possible) and were courteous and friendly and helpful. Over the course of the weekend, the guys working both inside and outside the photo-op room probably had the worst time of it - they kept having to tell people they weren't allowed to ask for hugs or take 'props' into the room etc. and I got the impression there were a fair number of people who weren't being particularly understanding about that. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't especially happy about the fact that I got a less interesting piccie just cause I was further back in the queue (the table with all the photo-ops on at the end of each day showed plenty where either the rule wasn't being enforced or just didn't exist yet), I don't begrudge the people who got the 'better' ops at all, since they can't really be blamed for being lucky (don't think I don't know just how lucky I was to be right at the front of the Friday Auto Queue. Mind you, it's not like we didn't work for that... ;D), anyway, I don't begrudge it, but it was a bit disappointing and I don't doubt the girls working in that area were getting all kinds of shit because of it. They didn't show any kind of frustration about it (that I saw) though - like I say, every one of them I interacted with was nothing but nice and polite.
The queue was actually moving pretty fast, I don't think I was in it for more than about 20 minutes or so, and when I got in the room I noticed they were both standing up and were hugging voluntarily (in fact, they didn't appear to be giving people much choice!), I was quite happy to see that and was suddenly looking forward to my turn even more!
Now, I don't know about anyone else, but whenever I do photo-ops or the like, I make sure I plan something to say, and go over it in my head in case I get star struck by the time I get to the front of the queue (usually just a very basic "Hello, how are you?" or similar), so I spent most of my time in the room doing that, and keeping a close eye on the queue in front of me so I didn't cause a delay by being slow (I get distracted pretty easily, I'm like a Magpie in that respect). Every photo-op I did, I'd get to the front and the volunteer (they wore blue on the photo room so they shall from now on be called the 'Blue shirts') would have to beckon me forward and ask me to keep moving. Again, not to beat a dead horse or anything, but all of them (I say 'all' I'm pretty sure it was the same 2 every time I was in there) were nice and polite and courteous; they really didn't have enough time to not be a bit quick but I never felt like they were being rude or anything. And, if I smiled at them, they smiled back.
So it's my turn and Malik and Gabe both look over at me and smile and say Hi and put their arms out waiting for me (and how cool does THAT make you feel??? I'll tell you - VERY), I stood in between them and put my arms around their backs and they both put their arms around me and as I was walking away I said "thanks very much, have a good day" and Gabe gave me a really big grin and said "thanks! you too" and I'm pretty sure Malik said similar but I wasn't facing him (cause I was walking away) so I'm not sure. They were both very smiley and gracious the whole time I was in the room and I left that room with a BIG smile on my face!
By the time I got back to the room Richard had been talking for a while and my sister told me he'd said something really moving that would definitely make me cry. Thankfully she didn't tell me until after he'd left the stage, cause it really was VERY moving and I wouldn't have been able to focus on the rest of his talk!
I actually can't remember all that much detail about the end of his talk; other than that he spoke about the differences between playing a character for a long time and playing one sporadically, he said he quite enjoyed the occasion stuff because it was more challenging and interesting (I'm paraphrasing) and he sounded really... enthusiastic while talking about his job. I know it's probably obvious that actors must enjoy what they do (after all, unless you're really successful it's VERY difficult to make a living out of it), but it was very apparent from the way he spoke that he really is passionate about his job.
Just as his talk was winding up he took out his camera and asked us all to do him a favour... he'd recorded us saying 'Hi' to his wife the day before (because she'd had to leave and was sorry to miss his talk) but this time he wanted to get proof for his mates of just how COOL convention crowds are. He said something along the lines of 'they never believe how great this is, so I want to be able to show it to them'. How ADORABLE is that? We, of course, obliged - he started up his camera and we cheered a LOT. Very LOUD. And he looked very pleased with the result! He did also make a joke about putting it on youtube and said something like 'see how YOU like it...' which he said with a BIG grin!
So with Richard's talk over, L explained the story he'd told that'd made her cry... the gist was that he didn't know much about his character in Band Of Brothers because the MOD (or whatever the US version of that is) couldn't provide much detail, apparently that was quite common during the second world war. So Richard had spoken to other Easy Company guys but really wanted to speak to some relatives if possible. After someone in Easy Co told him that 'Muck' was from New York, and NOT Florida (as it said in the script), Richard sent emails out to basically everyone with the right surname in the whole of whichever town it was and eventually got one back from someone who said she thought he was talking about her uncle. The end result was, the family got his medals, finally found out exactly what had happened to him, and got to meet his comrades in Easy Company - apparently his sister has been going to all the reunions since then. As I am typing this out it is making me cry AGAIN so I'm kinda glad I missed that story cause I would have made a bit of a dick of myself. I think it's one of the most moving things I've ever heard. As L was telling me, and I was getting a bit misty eyed, I looked to my other side and it became clear that the others had found it very moving too!
Next up was Jensen and Jason - this was actually quite a cool idea... Jason was acting as a cross between a facilitator and an interviewer, and his presence seemed to be a boon to Jensen. Since they're friends in real life, his being there made for a cool dynamic - they were joking with each other a bit and Jason was asking a couple of questions which lead to great stories. Including his opening question...
When they'd first walked on to the stage, Jason asked Jensen where he wanted to sit (i.e. which side of the stage) and Jensen mulled it over for a sec and then said "Right!" he then sat in the chair on the right side (to them, left to us) of the stage and got up about 5 seconds later saying "No, changed my mind" (I'm paraphrasing). Now, his security guard had already taken up position behind him on the right and now had to move with him... did I mention they were making a funny little double act? Well, this is the first bit of it! Jensen, as he was sitting down, noticed his security guard had had to move and made a joke about how he'd had to move too and then he imitated the guard saying "Actors!". It was a lot funnier in person than I'm probably making it sound, but the best thing was he guard's reaction - he was trying not to laugh and ended up just making that face adults make when they're tolerating funny children - you know the one? When you're trying not to encourage silly behaviour but secretly think it's adorable? It was pretty clear they were getting on very well and it kind of answered a question I'd had in my mind about whether or not Jared and Jensen were bothered/freaked out by the security. In fact, both of them were joking around with their security guards every time we saw them.
So anyway, Jason's first question (once they'd managed to sit down) was "do you and Jared just automatically go into Sam and Dean mode now you've been playing the characters so long?" which didn't make a lot of sense at first, until he elaborated... turns out they'd all been sitting outside their hotel last night (having a drink I'd imagine) and a little old lady walking down the steps near them fell over flat on her face! according to Jason, Jensen and Jared were out of their seats and picking her up before anyone else even realised what had happened! They wrapped her in a table cloth (I have no IDEA why? Were they worried she was in shock and needed to be kept warm? Who knows...) and they sat with her until the ambulance arrived. Jason then pointed out that Jared had also picked up the flowers she'd dropped and given them to her. As you can imagine, there was a fair amount of 'awww's at this point!
Jensen was being pretty cool about it, as though it's a daily occurrence and not a big deal, which I guess it isn't. Every interaction I've seen leads me to completely believe both of these guys are VERY gentlemanly (did you see Jensen get up to pull Sera Gamble's chair out for her at Comic Con? :D).
Jensen also told us that we should ignore anything Richard says... ;D
Someone asked about the effects involved in filming the getting-ripped-apart-by-hell-hounds scene from No Rest For the Wicked and he explained how he had to have a cast made of his torso (which was hot and uncomfortable)(obviously there was some cat-calling when he said it was hot ;D), he actually said "no, really, it's not good!" they then made a fake torso which he had to wear (very tight obviously) which had fake blood in it which was activated by something like piano wire being pulled... apparently it took all day to film that scene and he felt like a popsicle what with being covered in corn syrup all day!
The next question I remember was pretty cool - the person at the mic basically asked which of Jensen's other characters he thinks would be good to play opposite Dean (she names Tom from MBV, Alec from Dark Angel and Jason from Smallville). He took a minute to think about it and said that Tom was kinda crazy so could probably hold his own a bit just cause of that, but that Jason was a wuss! He pointed out that he had to be a wuss cause no one else on that show can be as tough as Superman. He then said he thought Alec would be the only on who might be able to hold his own and I found myself being very very distracted by the idea of an Alec appearance in Supernatural! I LOVED Alec!
The person who'd asked the question followed up with something I didn't hear very well about The Beresford Agenda (where he had to play piano because Alec was going undercover as a piano teacher) and he told us how he'd spent two weeks learning the piece but then they didn't use it in the end - they hired a pianist with really girly hands instead! Which Jensen was NOT happy about! He made a joke about how he asked them if they couldn't go out and find a construction worker who could play piano instead? "Someone with manly hands!"
I can't remember the exact wording of the question, but someone asked if he liked how dark Sam had got, and he said no... because it meant Dean was worried about him all the time and he really just wants to say "Get over it!" and get on with things and stop being so mopey etc. It was really funny how heartfelt he was about it! And then he made a crack about how they should talk more about Dean and less about emo Sam (emo is my word, not his :D).
Jensen's explanation of the red shorts in After School Special was hilarious! apparently the first bunch the wardrobe department found were quite long and 'normal' looking so Jensen said to them "you know, I don't think this is what they were going for" and went online with the wardrobe dept to help them find something more suitable! He actually found the ones he ended up wearing himself! And he said the reason he picked them was that they were exactly like the shorts his High School coach wore. The coach's name was Coach Roach and Jensen started giggling when he said the name and assured us he wasn't making it up! He also said he felt really uncomfortable around Coach Roach because of those very shorts...
Throwing the ball at the kid was also his idea - apparently when he read the script he said to the guy directing the episode they were filming (I assume he meant Philip Sgriccia) that he thought he should hit the kid with the ball... the director agreed and called Eric Kripke and Jensen could hear him laughing over the phone... he said he made it look like he'd thrown the ball a lot harder than he really did (he even gave us a cute little demonstration :D) but that the kid wasn't exactly HAPPY about it... *G*
Someone asked Jensen if he wanted to do a cowboy film and he said he kind of did want to, but that there's not much audience for it so not a lot are getting made. He then corrected himself saying, 'well, I DID want to, but then Brokeback Mountain came out...'.
The absolute funnierst part of the whole talk was when a girl showed Jensen a copy of Heat magazine, where he has been voted Torso of the week! He was handed the magazine, and sat back down to look at it and while he was explaining how much he hated that picture (it's a candid shot and he's not sure how it ended up online) his security guard sidled up behind him to sneak a look... Jensen saw him out of the corner of his eye and gave him a VERY amusing look in return! I was cracking up! The security guard moved back into place and Jensen kept looking back at him in mock-suspicion... *G*
Someone else asked Claire's question from the previous day about what souvenir he'd take from the set and when a person in the crowd shouted 'Sam!' he said 'Nah, you can keep him' :o) He ended up saying he had his eye on one of the Impala's and he seemed pretty confident he's actually going to get it...
You've probably all heard the Icarus story a million times already so I'm just going to tell you what I thought about it, rather than explaining it again - This is the first time I have ever heard Jensen start talking about his girlfriend without any real prompting, and it's the first time I've heard him refer to her by name (i.e. 'my girlfriend, Danneel') and he looked a little bit surprised, but quite pleased, when everyone cheered when he said her name - he nodded, smiled, and said "I know, right? Love her!") this whole exchange went further to prove to me that he really is getting more and more comfortable with every convention he does. He was being really open about his personal life, something he's never really done before (as evidenced by the fact he's had a dog for 2 years that none of his fans knew about - and let's be honest, some fangirls are pretty good at the fact finding...).
It was also really adorable the way he was talking about Icarus, and then showing the picture - most people who own dogs love talking about them, they seem to be just one step down from children and Jensen is no exception. Even when he was making jokes about him not being a very manly dog, he still sounded affectionate and kind of proud. He sounded ESPECIALLY proud when he mentioned Icarus's two best friends (Sadie and Harley, bless!) and how Icarus can really hold his own in a fight. Jensen did a VERY funny impression of Harley being freaked out by the tiny ball of fluff attacking him... he finished off his Icarus talk by saying "What he lacks in masculinity, he makes up (for) in personality." (you know what I've noticed while transcribing comments made by Jensen? He misses out a lot of words... e.g. the implied 'for' in that last sentence... I don't really know why I'm pointing that out, just found it interesting I guess!)
Oh, by the way, in case you wondered... Jensen was looking FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINE in his checked shirt on Sunday... God DAMN that man is gorgeous!
The person who'd asked Jared on Saturday who'd killed the most Demons asked Jensen the same thing and Jensen said... Dean! As I suspected he would... his reasoning was that Dean had never taken a break from hunting, whereas Sam had gone off to college (at which point it became apparent he was lumping all monsters etc. in with ACTUAL demons), someone in the crowd pointed out that Phantom Traveller was the first time Sam and Dean had actually MET a demon and (after getting it repeated because he didn't hear first time), he made a funny face and looked over towards Doug (I think) and said "She's breaking the rules! Escort her OUT!" It was very funny and playful :D He also didn't really acknowledge this new information and amend his answer... *G*
Someone asked if he can remember his favourite quote and he said he memorises lines and then they're gone after a while so he'd need us to give him options - he decided Bitch/Jerk is his favourite, because he gets to call Jared a Bitch!
Before leaving the stage, he put on his sunglasses and, for no reason I can imagine, decided to do a funny little dance and then a couple of funny poses before actually leaving the stage! It was really funny and SO unexpected and we were sitting to the side of the stage and got a VERY nice view of him shaking his booty!
*sigh* He was on SUCH top form for this talk, it was just wonderful :o)
Now... Gabe and Malik were up next, but I'm losing the feeling in my wrist so I'm going to stop this section here. I'm going to also have to try to talk my brother into making dinner...
End of Sunday Part One AKA Sunday A.M.(ish)
Coming up in Part Two...
Malik tries to strangle a child... Andy can control God... And Misha hugs me - TWICE!
EDIT: serenitysangel has come great photo's here and there are some of the Heat Magazine/Security Guard moment about two thirds of the way down!