Excuse me...Mr. Burgi?
~ CouverCon 98 ~
23rd - 25th October 1998
'Arrghhhh!' The suppressed outcry
of rage and mental pain roared through the cabin of Air Canada flight # 845 from
Frankfurt to Calgary. A few passengers threw bewildered glances my direction as
I muttered all thinkable and unthinkable curses I could think of - bilingual, of
course. Passing Greenland our captain had just suggested we take a look out the
window since the view was so incredible as icebergs and snow presented
themselves to the passengers. I sighed deeply. The view definitely qualified for
a heartfelt "woooowww" and I had fumbled for my camera to take a photo
to document this magnificent beauty. Feeding a new film into my camera, I
impatiently waited for the familiar noise the machine makes when automatically
loading a roll of film. Surprisingly ~ or better much to my horror ~ nothing
happened!
"Okay, I'm dead," I
mumbled, closing my eyes and struggling hard to NOT smash the camera through the
plane window.
"Oh well," a female
voice of a passenger in front of me tried to comfort me. "You can still
take a mental picture of the view."
A mental picture? This was not
about a MENTAL picture! I had enough mental pictures in my head for two
lifetimes... I didn't give a damn about a MENTAL picture. My heart ached for a
real photo, a photo to touch, taste, see, smell (and hear). A nice close-up...
of Richard Burgi. Please just one. I'll be good and clean my room. Promise...
Camera please, please work, damnit!
My pleas were unheard, the
icebergs of Greenland disappeared out of my range of sight while I thoroughly
examined my camera. It didn't take long to find the cause for the malfunction -
the sign for a low energy level was blinking indicating my batteries were dead.
My heart began beating again as hope set in that I would surely find a shop in Vancouver selling batteries to a
crazy Sentinel fan in need.
A short stop in Calgary gave me
the willies for the second time that day as they connecting flight to Vancouver
was overbooked. I'm still wondering why it's possible to oversell a flight but,
anyway, the people of Air Canada asked for volunteers who would give up their
seat and even offered a voucher of Can$ 300. Certainly, I didn't step forward
because I had an important appointment to keep <g>. Luckily, I already had
got a seat reservation in Frankfurt so that I could board the plane without any
further delay. Maybe it was the day, maybe the powers that be had tremendous fun
scaring the hell out of Little Danny but shortly after I had made myself
comfortable on board the plane that was to take me to Vancouver, the captain's
voice penetrated the preparations for take off.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm
sorry of the delay but we have noticed that our left gas tank is losing fuel.
Currently we are trying to find out if this is a normal occurrence since the
tanks have just been filled. Please be patient..." and so on. There was
something wrong with the fuel tanks? The little hair on my neck stood upright
while the passengers and especially myself were desperately waiting for the
captain's new announcement. In about ten minutes we were ready for take off. The
leaking fuel was nothing out of the ordinary. I guess, fate was smiling upon the
fans from Germany wearing red sneakers and 'crazy glasses'. About 70 minutes
later we touched down and I made my way to the baggage claim area where I
immediately spotted my friend Pam who had been on another flight and was waiting
for me.
We greeted each other, exchanging
bear hugs and goofy smiles. While waiting for my two bags containing my clothes
and 55 t-shirts, Pam told me about the nightmare she had to go through at the
immigration. Apparently, someone had a very bad day because poor Pam was
interviewed for 30 minutes why on earth someone would bother to fly all the way
from Germany for only 2 days. She told the truth that she was attending a
convention and was asked all kinds of strange and totally unnecessary questions.
Strangely enough, I had made it through customs and immigrations with flying
colours despite the fact I had so many shirts in my luggage. However, no one
asked and I certainly did not offer any hints why I was carrying two bags for
two days. Maybe it was my glasses after all?
Pam and I took a cab to the
Westin Bayshore Hotel and our eyes soon grew wide at the sight of the 1st class
hotel. Room # 829 was ours and I left various voice mail messages for the people
who had ordered the t-shirts.
Registering for the CouverCon was
next and we asked our way through the hallways and ballrooms / conference rooms
of the hotel. Signing ourselves in, we chatted with the wonderful people who
helped organize the convention and received our programmes and stuff. I'm sorry
but I don't remember all the names so please bear with me when I don't mention
you personally. Someone asked us if had met "Ken" yet and, as we shook
our heads no, Pam and I were introduced to Ken Earl aka Joel Taggart who just
happened to be there. We shook hands, and Ken quickly eased the sudden feeling
of butterflies in my stomach. It's with the utmost respect and lots of love when
I say that he is a big teddybear, very easy-going, extremely friendly, and,
above all a funny guy as we whould learn during the weekend. Ken told us that he
had been to Germany a long time ago and although he enjoyed his stay he was
sorta disappointed at the lack of English-speaking restaurants. He couldn't read
the German menus and the only thing he could figure out was "Wiener
Schnitzel". Laughing, Ken pointed out that it was good food but after a
certain time he got tired of it. He also asked if TS was shown in Germany and,
when I confirmed it was, he wanted to know how he sounded. "Terrible,"
was my honest answer. We talked for a while and when Pam and I returned to our
room, we were both excited and surprised that it had been indeed "so easy"
to talk to someone from the TS cast.
Checking the Con programme, my
heart jumped as I read the "big day" with Richard Burgi, Garett
Maggart and Bruce A. Young was on *Sunday*. Ohoh, I thought because I was
returning home to Germany on Sunday, and it seemed like there wouldn't be a
chance to make it to the autograph line. I was disappointed at first but when I
heard that they were filming on Saturday, I understood. I had only wished that I
had arranged for a later flight on Monday but....ah, well.
On our way back to the Stanley
Park Room where the 'Mixer', a party, took place I saw Cathy on the phone with
someone. I walked by saying "Hi, Cathy" and she hung up the phone (at
least it looked like that to me), and we greeted each other like old friends.
After all, my last trip to Vancouver wasn't that long ago and the memories of
the great time we had are still vivid.
We met some TS fans waiting in
the hallway for the party to begin and Pam and I talked to a few of them. Nancy
Reed and I recognized each other... and I was told I had very cool glasses -
again and it still thrilled me. The party was interesting - can you spell
"Macarena"? - but due to the time shift and jet lag, Pam and I left
quite early. Of course, we crashed and woke up in the middle of the night, with
the thoughts of what could happen the next day racing through our heads.
Saturday morning started with a
breakfast at "The White Spot" ~ waffles with strawberries and cream
for me, eggs and bread for Pam. Still in the market for batteries, we went to
Robson Street and crashed through the door of the first photo lab we saw. They
had what I was looking for and I was back in business <vbg>. As a matter
of fact, I felt like a new person, now that my "real photos" were
probably to be taken soon. We visited "Planet Hollywood" and walked
back to our hotel after stopping at Starbuck's for a cup of coffee.
Back at the Westin Bayshore I
found out that the programme for Saturday was printed on the back of the Friday
+ Sunday programme <it was sooooooooooo embarrassing>. Pam and I had
missed the first event of the day. Ken Earl recognized us again and we talked
for a minute.
The Q&A of the producers
including Danny Bilson had already begun, and we sneaked into the ballroom,
finding a good place to sit, watch and listen. Honestly, I don't remember much
of what was said and all I can recall is that "Blair's making a huge
sacrifice in the second part of Sentinel Too" and that someone will "publish
his book". An oooohhhhhhhhh went
through the room at Danny's revelations, and it seemed that we are about to see
8 thrilling episodes. Bilson asked us to make a wild guess who might be the one
who reveal the book and the name of Lee Brackett was mentioned. However, Danny
pointed out that Brackett would never come back. If you ask me, I strongly
believe it'll be Jim. We were allowed to ask questions which were answered
thoroughly by Mr. Bilson and the producers.
The next event was the Q&A of
Anna Galvin, Leigh Taylor-Young, Ken Earl and Tim Richardson. Again, it was very
interesting, and we learned about their future plans and how they got the role
in "The Sentinel". By the way, the reason why Miss Galvin only appears
in two episodes so far is, according to Bilson, is that he wanted her to be an
important recurring character who could jump in when needed. He didn't want to *have*
to knit a story around her every week.
In the meantime, Nancy and I had
carried the remaining t-shirts to her car, and she asked me if I had met Ryf yet.
Well, I had seen him during the Q&As but I hadn't worked up enough courage
to actually go to him and say hi. Nancy laughed and promised to drag me to him
when she got the chance <g>. A few minutes later though I approached the
table of his fan club where he and Cathy were sitting. I asked how much the
pictures were and was told they were all for free and that we could donate some
money for the Pediatric AIDS Foundation. Ryf was very friendly. Total
astonishment crossed his face when we told him Pam and I had come all the way
from Germany. He said he liked my glasses and I asked him if it would be okay to
take a photo. He chose a nice spot to stand and asked me if he could try my
glasses. I said no because without them I wouldn't be able to see a thing.
During that weekend I had received lots of comments on my glasses, by the way.
Ryf signed the pictures for Pam and me, writing on mine: "Dear Danny,
thanks for bringing your great energy to the Vancouver Con all the way from
Germany. Best Wishes, Ryf van Rij." Gathering all my courage again (yes, I
am stupid because there was really no reason to benervous. Everyone, not only
Ryf, had a wonderful way of putting people at ease) I asked if he would sign a
picture for my friend Rike who couldn't come to the Con because of personal
commitments. He did without hesitation. Addressing someone who was standing
beside me, Ryf said that we had come all the way from Germany. I turned around
and smiled to the older man with a beard and a touch of grey hair. Apparently
noticing my puzzlement, Ryf asked if I knew who he was and I said no. We were
introduced to Bruce Bilson, "Danny's father". A few moments later, I
thanked Ryf for his kindness and time, and commented that he had a wonderful
smile. He flashed me that smile and we left. We saw him later that day and also
on Sunday and he recognized us all the time. One of he most impressive features
about him are definitely his eyes. It seems like he completely focuses on the
person he talks to and it gives you a feeling of 'welcome' and 'hey, don't be
shy, I won't bite.'
The next event was about to start
real soon but before we re-entered the room, Pam and I went over to Ken Earl.
(He was wearing a black jacket with the Pet Fly logo and it looked really cool.)
Waving with my con programme I asked if he would maybe sign my programme. His
reply was so funny and it kinda described the "trouble" I had to walk
over to a celebrity and asking for something. Ken said: "You've been here
for two days and it took you so long?" Laughing and probably slightly
blushing, too, I answered that I was just a shy fan from Germany. Signing my
progamme, he laughed again and said: "Oh yeah, shy. I've seen you bugging
everyone for pictures." The well-meant humour in his voice and words warmed
my heart.
Pam and I used the break between
the stunt demo and the sword fight to take a closer look at the silent auction
room where my collages were displayed (among other things of course). A feeling
of pride flooded through me as I viewed the prices people were willing to pay
for the pics and the stuffed animals. I was told later that they went for a
total of US$ 1000. Wow, maybe I should change jobs? <g>
Coming back to the ballroom, Pam
and I recognized Bruce A. Young sitting on a sofa and waiting for his turn to do
the sword fight. He was wearing very casual clothes, jeans and a red hat, and I
watched for a while as people sat down beside him and chatted with him. After
fighting with myself again <g> I slowly walked over to him and introduced
myself – the famous butterflies in my stomach were all over the place. Like
Ken and Ryf before, Bruce was extremely friendly, wonderfully easy-going, and we
talked for a moment. He indicated to the space beside him on the couch and
extended his hand. I mentioned I liked his hat. Bruce laughed saying he needed
something to keep his head warm in the cold of Canada. Yeah right, it was 20°C
outside <g>. I noticed he was wearing an earring in his left ear (looked
very cool.)
The stunt demo and sword fight
were very interesting, showing us how much skill it takes to knock someone down
without hurting him.
Evening came and Pam and I joined
four ladies of the Texas Tribe for dinner (I didn't hear anyone lilt or twange,
by the way). Upon my suggestion, we went to Prospect Point in Stanley Park and
had a fabulous dinner. Memories from my trip in August made me smile and Pam and
I strode down to have a closer look at the Lion's Gate bridge by night. Later,
Mercury accompanied us to our room and we chatted about Jim and Blair, new story
ideas and pictures.
Sunday arrived too soon and while
talking to Kat of the C.C.I. I learned it would be just impossible for me to
join the autograph line since I had to leave the hotel to catch my plane back to
Germany at 2 p.m. I was disappointed and a bit ticked off but I still had the
brunch and auction to look forward to. Just in case I had everything with me –
t-shirts, pictures and the Burgi noodles. The events were again held in the
Stanley Park Room and a crowd of fans gathered in front of the closed doors at a
few minutes past nine. Everyone was nervous, excited and simply beaming with joy
and anticipation. We were told were to sit and were not to sit, what to do, what
not to do and so forth before we were allowed to enter the room. To me it seemed
like we were expecting at least the Presidents of the United States (remind me
later to tell you about Bruce). Pam and I chose a table that was neither
reserved nor taken <g> and discovered that we would have a perfect view on
the table of Richard Burgi that was right beside ours. I figured I would get my
photo after all.
Breakfast was served and we
watched a documentary film about the work of The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS
Foundation. It was very touching and there were tears shining in the people's
eyes. I'm grateful that we, the so-called crazy fans of a TV series, were able
to help with our money and I even more appreciated the fact, the cast and crew
of TS helped a great deal with their presence to raise money.
The guests of honour arrived and
we cheered and applauded. Garett – wearing all black and his hair in a
ponytail– introduced himself: "Hi, I'm Garett," and we
laughed good-naturedly. Unfortunately, Richard Burgi did make it for the brunch
due to car problems. So, his seat remained vacant and my hopes for a good view
on him died quickly.
After the brunch I zoomed in on
Garett to get a photo of him and he even waved into my direction. Of course, my
camera refused to work at that precious moment. I walked over to the table were
Mercury and her friends were sitting (right beside Garett's) and I pondered
about the possibility of trying this spot for a picture. Mercury shook her head
in disbelief and amusement telling me I should go to him and say I had come all
the way from Germany just for the convention. I looked at her like she had just
made a dirty proposal and said I would NEVER do that. Mercury and I 'quarreled'
back and forth and finally I asked if she would come with me. Mercury sighed and
I know she inwardly rolled her eyes
against the sky. However – I LOVE you, Mercury!!! – she agreed and I waved
for Pam to join me. The three of us approached Garett.
My heart beat a thousand times in
a minute, but after the short introduction Garett proved that there was
absolutely NO reason to be so shy about talking to him. He was very friendly,
wearing new glasses as I noticed, and absolutely amazed Pam and I had come the
whole way from Europe for just the weekend. (We had heard that comment so often
this weekend and we think we are indeed insane.) Pam introduced herself as
"Hi, I'm Pam from Germany", and Garett remembered her as the girl who
had sent him some photos a few weeks ago! Needless to say, Pam was stunned. He
admitted he liked her photos. Then, I drew his attention to the lizard / panther
shirt I was wearing and he read it, laughing. I didn’t have "his"
shirt handy but I promised to give it to him later. We talked for a moment and
then Anna Galvin (!) took a photo of Pam, Garett and myself. I dragged Mercury
into the picture because she had made it happen. Behind us we heard people
giggling and Garett turned around asking what was going on. Later when I got the
photo developed I saw the reason: We had 'bunny ears'. Luckily, we had two pics
taken <g>. Standing beside Garett, I noticed he was even taller than I am
and it surprised me because he always seemed so small beside Richard and Bruce.
Anna Galvin talked to us for a while, commenting on my "good English"
which flattered me immensely . Garett vanished into the crowd saying he wanted
to join the people at Richard's table who were still waiting for their guest of
honour. Personally, I think that was very considerate of him and, if possible, I
now like him even more.
We all were shooed out of the
brunch room because they had to clean the tables for the up-coming auction.
Outside in the hallway we spotted Garett again posing for pictures with people.
He had a friendly word for everyone and waited for each photo to be taken.
Suddenly, a dark voice roared through the hallway and the tall figure of Bruce
A. Young swam through the crowd. "Mr. President, Mr. President!", he
yelled making fun of the situation. Garett looked at him quizzically, apparently
thinking Bruce was going to tell him something – maybe about the whereabouts
of Richard – but Bruce just said 'hi' and disappeared into the Stanley Park
Room leaving Garett behind, grinning from ear to ear.
Richard Burgi finally arrived and
the auction could begin. We were led back into the brunch room, which was now of
course the 'auction room'. I glanced at my watch since I had to leave at 2 p.m.
There was only one hour left but I decided I shouldn't dwell on it and enjoy the
auction. The room looked like a press conference – cameras with mega zooms,
video cameras and flashes. Somehow it was like a press conference. A very funny
one. Richard, Garett and Bruce appeared on the small stage. Richard broke the
ice right from the start as he asked: "So, where are all your husbands?"
The auction started, offering
various items from the show: Three scripts (Flight, Finkelman's Folly and
Sentinel Too), boxers, the shirts Blair and Jim wore during 'Flight', the funny
head from 'Light My Fire', two jackets, a pillow (with Garett saying in a tiny
voice "that is my pillow" A
basketball was auctioned and Richard asked us to bid as long as Garett would
manage to spin it on his finger. Blair's bracelets went for US$1000, as I recall.
During the auction I kept an eye on my watch because I would have to leave soon.
The sad moment came and when the
auction was over, Pam and I left the room to go upstairs and get my stuff. We
walked through one of the HUGE hallways of the hotel. The autograph line was
about to begin in a few moments but, as I said, I had to leave. Pam was just
with me for 'moral support'. Her plane left at 7 so she still had a few hours.
Anyway, we were talking to each other, and suddenly I whispered: "Oh my god."
He was there. On the phone with someone, totally alone with no one near him.
RICHARD BURGI. Okay, he was on the phone, it was a private call, and we walked
by. My heart jumped as I got a close look at him. I smiled because my task now
was somehow completed. I had wanted to see him close and I just had. Pam and I
walked a few metres when we heard him hanging up the phone. I'm a very shy
person and one of the hardest parts of this con was for me to go to a person and
say hi. I had met Bruce, Anna, Ryf, Ken and even Garett before, but I always had
someone to introduce me
Now, Pam and I were alone.
I turned around, took my heart
into my hands (as we say here) and said, "Excuse me....Mr. Burgi?" He
stopped in his tracks and looked at me. "Yes," he said. I had dreamed
of this moment for a long time, I had even made a 'list' of what to say to him,
but now as I was standing in front of him, looking up into his INCREDIBLE blue
eyes, I didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry to bother you like this but....my
friend Pam and I are from Germany...." "Oh, you're from Gemany? Hallo,
wie geht's?" he replied. He still looked at me and my heart rate just
skyrocketed. "I'm fine thanks".. "Did you just come here for the
Con?" he asked. "Yes....." "Oh wow." "Uhm...I know
there is supposed to be this autograph line in a few minutes but I have to catch
our plane now and have to leave....and...I ..was wondering if it would be
possible to take a picture of you?" I know he replied something but I
cannot recall what it was because I couldn't think clearly anymore <g>.
All I know is that Pam and I took our pictures with him (he was in the middle).
Then I said that I even had a little gift for him, and he said it was very
generous and that he really appreciated it and all the support. I fumbled for
the t-shirt (he had already read mine and laughed) thanking him for attending
the con and being so kind et all. Then he said the words: "I like your
glasses" (I wear kinda unique glasses and everyone had commented on them
already, and everyone had said RB would say something, if he got the chance.)
Anyway, while I was roaming through my bag a security guard or so approached us
saying we should leave now since the autograph line was about to begin soon and
we should go there.
My hero jumped in for us then.
Richard said to the guy: "Hey, these girls are coming all the way from
Germany and they have to leave now." He 'saved' us from being thrown out so
to speak and the guard backed off. This shows what a nice man he is. I mean he
could've gone away but no he made sure we felt comfortable and took his time
with us. I gave him his shirt and....he HUGGED me and placed a little KISS on my
cheek. I could feel his stubble tickling my face as he turned his head... He
signed a photo for me with a pen that wasn't quite working <g> but he DID.
We said our good byes and again thanked him for his kindness.
I left and caught my plane to
Germany in time, my mind whirling around the unbelievable moments at the con. I
ordered a glass of wine for dinner and relived these magnificent minutes over
and over again. Then I slept through the rest of the flight, dreaming of a
"gentle" man with blue eyes beyond imagination.
On Tuesday evening my friend Pam
called me filling me in on the things that happened after that. She was waiting
in the autograph line since she still had some time. Since there were no gifts
allowed, as they said, Pam had given the stuff I still had for Garett, Bruce and
Richard (yeah, I had something else but I didn't want to bother him any longer)
to some working for the con to give to the guys. Anyway, as Pam was standing
there, someone approached her handing her 3 signed photos of the boys for me.
They all said something like "have a safe trip home" or "sorry
you had to leave so soon".
As I learnt later, this "someone"
was Mercury <hugs to you!!>. I had given her a package of "Burgi
Noodles" (Burgi's Eierspaetzle) and asked her to give it to Richard because
I thought he would get a kick out of it. This is what she wrote to me later:
I went through the line and I got you autographs from the guys. I figured
since you couldn't be there and you had done so much for me, I would do this for
you. I already had their autographs.
You'll have to tell me what they say, though.
I told them you were from Germany and you had to leave. Geez, I thought
Garett was gonna run out of room, he wrote so much.
I gave Richard the noodles. Man,
you should have since his face. It
was full of awe. He was so excited. He
smacked Ken Earl (who was sitting next to him) on the arm and said, "Look,
Ken. Isn't this cool?
Burgi noodles."
Ken replied, "Are you getting paid for that?
I mean, they are using your name."
Richard didn't answer, just kept staring at the package and running his
finger over the name. He thought it
was cool. Finally, he turns to a
woman on his right and says, "Look, Honey, Burgi noodles. How about that? They're
from Germany."
Turned out to be his wife, Lori Burgi.
She took the package and looked at it and said, "Neat."
Then she asked me what the translation was.
I nearly blushed so bad. I
stammered out a halfway coherent reply about egg noodles. And she just nodded
and thanked me.
Overall, they were both grateful and loved it. It was a hit!
Well, that's it. That was
CouverCon98. I'm glad I made this insane last minute decision and I'm so happy
Pam managed to convince me. I'm still pretty tired but when I look at my
pictures and relive these moments, meeting the guys and the fellow Sentinel fans...
I'm happy.
Back to EVENTS index