This past weekend, I headed up to Chattanooga, Tennessee for the 2nd annual ConNooga Sci-Fi/Fantasy convention. I once again assumed my Steampunk role as Otto Von Clank, the A.S. Revenger’s Bavarian steamborg engineer and humorist. Time once again for adventures unknown…and comedy. (Steampunk group photo courtesy of Basil Kittrell)
The trip started late Friday night about 11:15 pm. While Professor Phalin and I picked up Oliver Skyline, the Revenger’s Naviguesser, we realized the truck’s tailgate had been down during the cross-town drive. Miraculously, no gear lost. One Naviguesser, a WELL secured tailgate, and about 2 hours later, we met up with Captain Quinn in Chattanooga. It should be noted that the good Captain’s work does require a non-descript, white cargo van, with few windows, from time to time. We immediately inquired about Free Candy and the jokes only got worse from there. We drug our slap happy arse’s into the hotel still crying from laughing so hard (at 2:30 am local time), with the Captain just shaking his head in disgust.
After not getting to sleep until 4:30 am, we painfully crawled out of bed at 9 am for clean up and a quick breakfast at McDonald’s. Keep in mind, we’re in full Steampunk regalia and we’re getting more than a few looks from the bewildered locals.
We breezed through con registration at The Chattanooga Choo Choo hotel lobby, and immediately reconed the dealer room for sundries and prizes. Not five minutes in the door, and already a photo op request. A good sign and we were delighted to accommodate. This would be one of many throughout the day, which made us all feel great! We then split off into groups to peruse the goodies being sold and chat with the guests and booth vendors. Here are some notables I had the pleasure of talking with:
- Patricia Albrecht (www.myspace.com/patriciaalice) and Samantha Newark (www.myspace.com/samalasmusic) - Better known as Pizzazz and Jem from the 80’s cartoon show, these two nice ladies have wide and varied experience throughout the entertainment world. Ms. Albrecht is a poet and writer as well as music business supporter. Ms. Newark is an established singer/song writer with a new self-titled album out. She even performed with Chase Masterson during the convention.
- Ok, story time. Originally I was going to post a "look who'll be at ConNooga" and end it with the "It's Showtime Synergy!" tag line from the Jem TV show. Just didn't have time to do it. Got to con and told this story to Ms. Albrecht and Ms. Newark, who both got a chuckle out of it. Later, both ladies kindly autographed pictures, but it wasn't until I got back to the hotel Saturday night, that I read them. Ms. Newark used the same tag line in the autograph! It was a good laugh and well played. Oh, and I’ve had that theme song stuck in my head since Sunday, after YouTubing the first espisode of the show. Truly outrageous!
- Chase Masterson (http://www.chasemasterson.com/) - While known for her work on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Ms. Masterson is another nice lady with varied creative projects in the works. She performed with Samantha Newark during ConNooga, and screened her Sci-Fi Noir film “Yesterday Was a Lie”, which won 10 Best Feature awards, at the con as well. More info on the film can be found at http://www.yesterdaywasalie.com/.
- Fandom Calendar 2009 Models – Jamie, aka Ms. November, has a Steampunk photo shoot in the works and Amberetta (http://www.amberetta.com/) will be in a production of Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues.
- Convention Vixens (http://www.convixens.com/) – Had a chance to interviewed Lyric (also an accomplished belly dancer) who gave a little history on the group, and met one of its newest members in her Neko (cat girl) persona. Got to talk with Hypnotic and did briefly see Yaya Han just as we were headed out Sunday morning.
- Lloyd Kaufman (President of Troma Entertainment and Chairman of the Independent Film and Television Alliance) - Mr. Kaufman, of the Toxic Avenger fame, graciously took time out of his busy schedule for a brief (and my very first) interview. He humorously plugged his latest movie, “Poultrygeist” and his new book “Direct Your Own Damn Movie!”. Troma is also celebrating 35 years in the biz.
- Grapevine Fires (http://www.grapevinefires.com/) was one of many fun vendors to talk with, but what sets them apart are their Brain Slugs. Yes! If you’re a Futurama fan and you’ve ever wanted one, here you go!
Amidst all this mirth, my camcorder was a bad little monkey, taking blurry at best pictures most of the time. Luckily, the Professor had his shiny new Canon SLR, and saved the bacon on more than a few occasions. Despite this, I lost several photo ops and the camera ate the video interview footage of Lloyd Kaufman and garbled Lyric’s interview footage. Yes, the two best parts went kaput. Go figure.
Regardless, the Revenger crew joined some of Professor Sid’s Steampunk crew for more photo ops around the trains between the hotel lobby and dealer room. The mild temperatures and sunny sky made great backdrop for the group shots. Yep, more requests from curious onlookers, more hamming it up, and we loved it all. We just had fun with the random folks and the feedback we received was positive, along with a few laughs.
Fast forward to some much needed break and food time in the evening, then it was time to head back to con for the night-time festivities. After more milling and chatting and general catching up with friends old and new, it was time for Drum Circle. If you’ve never been, imagine a ring of drummers with a handful of them leading the beat on various size hand-drums, and belly dancers in the center of the circle. Truly a fun and spiritual experience for participants and onlookers. My musical side kicked in and I had to give drumming a try, even if I was a newbie. What fun! After picking up the rhythm, a handful of us total strangers got on the same wavelength. The grins were big, and comradery filled the air while the belly dancers were a beautiful sight to behold. (On a comical side note, Lyric from Convention Vixens was dancing right in front of me during the circle, but I didn’t realize it was her until the next day. The password is DENSE!) There was even a point where I got to lead with the base beat while head banging too. And yes, in true Dwarven fashion, I did play the drum with my head a couple times. Yes, with my HEAD. (looks around) EAT DRUMS!! EAT DRUMS!!
Yes friends, a memorable and epic adventure. Special thanks once again to all the great folks who took time to chat, do interviews, and pose for pictures. Also a big thank you to those who asked the same of the Revenger crew. We really appreciated it! And finally, thank you to my fellow crew members for a really fun trip. Can’t tell you how much I enjoyed this!
Dropping the ball, technically speaking, on Mr. Kaufman's interview, not only lost some very funny moments, but also lost a very important message he wished to deliver. A message very dear to his heart. The following is taken from an email he was kind enough to send:
