Not me,but I wish I ws them
Mood: Jelous
Damn, To bad this is not me but I would die top be them
I'll just directly quote my LiveJournal post about the Paley Festival. There's quite a bit of backstory, so if you want you can skip down to the part where things actually happen.
I arrived in LA at 1:35 PM on March 4 to meet my buddy Lauren, a USC film student. The evening before, we’d discovered that she had a conflict with the panel, so we had to figure out how I’d get over to the DGA. Mind you, plans to purchase my ticket were still iffy, as seats were sold out and the guy I was going to purchase them from was supposed to hang around the parking lot for a couple of hours before the panel. On Friday night Lauren got me in touch with stele3, a TWoPer* and LiveJournal user, who, as it turns out, is a friend of a friend of my friend, and also a huge "Supernatural" fan. She already had plans to attend the panel with two other TWoPers (baileytc and agenttmk). We decided to go as a group, and sometime around 3:30 PM baileytc and agenttmk drove up to stele3’s place and picked us up. We drove around (actually, we accidentally drove to the museum instead of the DGA, but caught wind of our mistake in time), had some KFC and Baja Fresh*, and went into the lobby.
It should be noted here that I’d been trying to contact the person I was supposed to purchase my ticket from *all day*, to no avail. However, I saw that someone was seated behind the “box office” table, and decided to ask if any tickets had become available. I was highly doubtful, as it was about 5:30 PM and any available tickets are supposed to free up some five minutes before the panels start, but the lady at the table said, “There’s a gentleman trying to sell off three of his tickets now!”
SCORE.
I purchased my ticket, left the other contact a message, and sat down to wait. Eventually, everyone stood up, and we pulled our tickets out in eager anticipation. As we stood, we discussed the merits of the show. stele3 remembered everyone’s question about Dean’s eyes in “Bloody Mary,” and I exclaimed, “Dude! That would be the perfect question for the panel!” We all gibbered excitedly for a moment, and then—we got distracted.
There was a slight commotion off to the far corner of the lobby. As we looked around, we saw that cameras were positioned off to one side, where velvet ropes were set up. Peering over people’s heads, we caught a glimpse of—you guessed it—The Ackles. Then Jared came into view, looking like a veritable Colossus. stele3 and I left our places in line and told our buddies to hold them for us while we did some reconnaissance work, then scampered off to get a better view. We saw that the boys were off in some glass-paned room, talking to people. Meanwhile, a group of girls stood outside behind the ropes, trying to sneak pictures of the guys while guards told them to put away their cameras.
The line started moving, so we jumped back in place, went in, and got amazing seats (a few rows back, right in the middle of the row). Grabbing stele3’s hand, I told our companions we “needed to go to the restroom” (*cough*), and dashed back outside, to the bathroom, and out to the area near the ropes. I pulled stele3 along to the front of the crowd and then stood there, watching and waiting for Jensen to finish talking to the reporter from TVGuide. stele3 stood just next to me, grabbing onto my arm for support and tugging at my sweater.
As we chatted to the girls next to us (young’uns, big fans of Jared), Jensen’s publicist told us she’d bring him over to us to sign autographs. She was *incredibly* sweet, and kept reassuring us he’d come by. Sure enough, as soon as the reporter was done with her interview, she stepped over to him and told him to drop by the ropes.
The first thing he heard from the fans? “Happy Birthday!,” courtesy of me and stele3.
He seemed pretty surprised. It took him a second to get his bearings, and then he smiled, thanked us, shook my hand, and signed my ticket. Frankly, I was less excited about the autograph (which was cool, in its own right) than I was about getting to wish him a happy "diem natalis." Jared called over while he was signing things off to the side, and stated, grinning, “Yeah, that’s right! He just turned twenty-eight!” I asked Jensen if he’d gotten gummy-tummy, but he didn’t hear me, as he was distracted by the girls next to me. So I waited for him, and said, “Thank you. For everything.” He replied, kindly, “You’re welcome. Thank *you*.”
Then I worked up the nerve to say, “Um…hey, I’m sorry if this sounds a little weird, but…uh…could I have a hug?”
He seemed a little surprised, and a wee bit hesitant, but then he grinned and hugged me. As it turns out, there’s photographic evidence in some of the press pictures from the festival. He’s leaning in to hug me (I’m wearing a blue sweater with a collar and cuffs). I didn’t really pick up a scent from him—I was having trouble wrapping my mind around the fact that I was hugging Jensen McFreaking Ackles, the epitome of all that is Sex. I felt guilty, afterwards, as I hadn't known he'd be so reserved, but hey, I had no real way of knowing without asking. We parted, smiling, and I stepped aside to give way to the rest of the crowd.
Jensen signed for stele3, as well, and then we scooted over to Jared. Let me tell you, he was eating it up. Jensen seems a lot more reserved then Jared, funnily enough, while Jared is really outgoing. Anyway, people asked Jared about "Gilmore Girls," and he spent a good minute or two talking about his experience on the show, how it was the place he really got started, and how he’d been by about a month before to spend time with the cast. Jared really lit up the room—he was all smiles.
At some point, Jensen was leaning over to give another fan a hug (I’d opened the floodgates!), and Jared, noticing how much love Jensen was getting, piped up, “What? I don’t get any hugs?” Of course, there was a general uproar, arms flailed, and stele3 pointed at me and said, “She’s coming!” Best of all, Jensen just turned to Jared, gave him this look, and hugged him tight. There was a resounding “Aww….” So, yay, I was indirectly responsible for a Padackles moment. Kind of. A bit.
After he was finished, I approached Jared, asked him for his autograph, told him what a wonderful job he’s doing, and thanked him. He said, “No, thank you all, for coming out!” He was very gracious. After he signed my ticket, I grinned, I spread my arms wide (and somewhat awkwardly, the man is a beanstalk) and asked, “Is it okay if I even the score here?”
He dove right in and hugged me, and he smelled *wonderful*. It was a sweet smell, flowery and maybe a little fruity. I remember that it struck me as slightly feminine. Mayhaps my nose was playing tricks on me, but it was a detail that definitely stuck out. Good on you, Jared, for smelling delicious.
Jared then signed stele3’s ticket, and we had a funny little interchange about how he spelled her name correctly on the first try. SIDE NOTE: I still maintain that it’s the most common spelling of that particular name and that if any kudos were to be dealt out when it came to Mr. Padalecki’s spelling prowess, it should have happened when he wrote *my* name out. Come to think of it, I’m not sure he did. I’ll have to check my ticket.
He kept on signing, then yelled back at stele3, “Hey, [insert stele3’s real name]! Is this your Sharpie?” I had a good giggling fit—it was just incredibly amusing to see Jared hollering over people’s heads at us and referring to a fan by name. *shrugs*
We rushed back in (I was snapped at by an usher, who told me not to run in the aisles and consequently caused me to flash back to my elementary school years) and wormed our way back into our row, waving our autographs about like they were Willy Wonka’s golden tickets. As we waited for the panel to start, we eagerly relayed our account to agenttmk, baileytc, and baileytc’s pal in the orange Pumas (that’s another story for another time). Jealousy rolled off the surrounding Paleygoers in waves. Huge, green, billowing waves.
Sorry about that. I got a really amusing mental image and ran with it. Actually, people got really excited and asked if they could see our tickets, and, of course, we obliged.
stele3 then snickered as she realized she’d shaken hands with the boys with the same hand she’d just eaten Baja Fresh with. It still smelled like Mexican food. We started giggling and whispering extremely naughty things having to do with hands and mouths and tasty aromas, but I can’t remember any of the specifics, so I’ll leave it at that.
The panel started, and from then on most of the details are covered by other Paleygoers. I’ll just state that I whooped with the rest of them when Jensen came out, looking gorgeous as all heck. The estrogen levels went through the roof. All the women in the room were secreting pheromones like there was no tomorrow. And some of the younger girls—their screams reached frequencies never before produced in nature.
As for the episode, it was cool to see “Scarecrow” play on the big screen. I occasionally watched "The Lost World" when it aired, so seeing the sheriff (who used to play Ned Malone) in high resolution, leaning in close to Dean, just about made my ovaries explode. It was great laughing along with the rest of the fans—usually it’s just me in my common room, or, occasionally, me and my roommate. stele3 and I yelled along with Dean during the “Hope your apple pie was freakin’ worth it!” line. Actually, I muttered a lot of the lines in sync with the characters—I even had the whole “scythe through the chest” moment down to a T, as I proved with several well-timed hand gestures. I have no idea how stele3 managed to sit through the whole thing with me—I must be the worst person to watch a movie or TV show with.
The panelists came back out, and we spent the rest of the evening in stitches. Jensen was so bashful whenever the fans were screaming for him, and kind of uncomfortable with all the attention he was garnering. It made me like him even more, if that’s possible. Jared, on the other hand, was the ultimate tease.
Their chemistry? *Amazing*. It was *incredible*. I went into the festival a staunch Jensen fangirl, and then Jared had to go and flirt with Jensen incessantly. "Two queens," indeed.
ALSO. The bit where Jared went off on Joseph Campbell, archetypes, and “Heroes, Myths, and Legends”? SENT ME OVER THE EDGE. As an English major with a Classical Studies and Theater double minor and a deep-seated, lifelong interest in mythology, I was in heaven. Truth be told, a lot of the stuff that went on during the panel got me flailing, and as I was directly in their line of sight, I wouldn’t be surprised if I startled the Bejeezus out of them and am hereafter known as the crazy chick in the blue.
At some point, when they went through Jensen’s résumé, they mentioned "Dark Angel," and the whole place pretty much erupted in screams. The ultimate dork, I chose this moment to yell out Alec’s designation, “X5-494.” Of course, I was so disoriented that I accidentally melded it with Max’s number and shouted, “X5-492!” I quickly realized my mistake and remedied it later on in the evening. I’m sure I annoyed the people behind me. And in front of me. And stele3. I couldn’t help it, though. Mmm, Alec. But I digress.
A little later, someone asked about the make of the car. I was tempted to yell out, “1967 Chevy Impala!” but Jensen fielded the question. And at that moment, stele3 and I belted out,
"METALLICAR!"
Jared and Jensen just stared at us. I’m sure the rest of the panelists looked our way, but as the boys were right in front of us, and were sort of my focal point for the evening, I saw their reaction. I then proceeded to sink down in my seat while grasping stele3’s hand, blushing, I’m sure.
Everyone at the panel was great, but Manners, Kripke, and, of course, the boys, were brilliant. It was alternately hysterical, touching, or just straight-out cool as heck.
Since stele3 wanted to ask about the CW and where "Supernatural" was currently standing in regards to a second season, and my question about the messed up timeline at the beginning of the pilot had already been covered, I decided to raise the Bloody Mary question. However, neither of us was called on. I wonder why. I thought flailing could only attract attention in a positive way.
The minute the panel was done, I hurtled towards the stage, snaking through the crowd. As I reached the far right side of the stage steps, trying to make my way over to Kripke, I caught sight of Ms. Tania Saulnier (Emily in “Scarecrow”), speaking quietly with Sandra McCoy, Jared’s girlfriend. I went over and told her she'd done a great job in "Scarecrow," and she thanked me very sweetly. Let me tell you, she looked surprised that anyone had spotted her at all. She'd been standing off to the side, not pushing her way into the limelight in the least. Tania looked *gorgeous*, by the way. I asked for her autograph, but I had misplaced my program and couldn’t find a pen, so I settled for a handshake.
At that point, a spot in front of Kripke had opened up, so I shouted, “Mr. Kripke!” He turned to look at me, and I worked my way over to him, shook his hand, and told him what amazing work he’d done. Then:
“Me: I have a question that wasn’t covered during the panel; I was hoping you could answer it.
Kripke: Sure!
Me: It’s about 'Bloody Mary,' which was a *brilliant* episode, just the way you managed to tie one of the most well-known and chilling pieces of urban folklore to old superstitions and new twists to create an incredibly cogent story…
Kripke: *grinning*
Me: Sorry, I’m an English major, Classical Studies/Theater double minor, a real dork about all this stuff and sorry, there I go again…anyway, after the brothers have smashed the mirror and Bloody Mary crawls out of the frame, when the guys turn to face her, *Dean’s* eyes start bleeding, as well.
Kripke: *smiling* Yes, they do.
Me: Is this a particularly significant plot point you intend to flesh out in the future?
Kripke: Yes, it is significant, and we’re going to revisit it.”
w00t!
I couldn’t find my program, but someone lent me a pen and I pulled out the only thing I could find: my copy of "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay." Or, rather, my buddy Sarah's copy of "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay" (I’ll buy her a new one; this one’s staying with me). He signed a page and smiled.
As I was leaving, I remembered something, so I turned back and clued Kripke in to Sam’s mistaken gender on his driver’s license on the official website. He seemed surprised. Hee.
Afterwards, we hung around outside the glass-paned room. One of the guards stated, “It’s pretty doubtful that they’ll come out,” to which I replied, grinning, “Patience is a virtue.” It sure is; Kim Manners came out a little while later to use the restroom. When he headed back, he stopped by the fans, and I had the chance to tell him what a great job he’s doing, taking such a wonderful concept and bringing it to fruition. He thanked me, and I thanked *him*, and he signed my program, which I had just located. I shook his hand and stood to the side while stele3 chatted with him, and got his opinion/educated reply as to whether "Supernatural" was getting picked up for a second season, on the CW. He stated, “I’m sure we will.”
My companions and I then walked back to the car, piled in, and drove back, laughing and chatting all the way.
*TWoP stands for Television Without Pity, a great site with amazing forums. Everyone should check it out.
*Has anyone else noticed that a load of Jared pictures, at public appearances, have a Baja Fresh in the background?
