For years I’ve known about the I-Con science fiction convention held annually at SUNY Stony Brook located in Suffolk County on Long Island. Its’ stated goal is to offer attendees as broad an experience as possible with regard to all aspects of science fiction – books, gaming, media, costuming, etc. They host authors, actors, game developers and critics of every stripe and it attracts all kinds.
I never had a burning desire to go (despite having a friend who begged me every year) but in 2007 I decided to give it a shot. There were actors I was interested in seeing (some for the second time) and I wondered how the experience would compare to Creation or Chiller, in terms of face time with the actors, Q & A’s, autograph lines, etc.
I was primarily interested in meeting Ron Glass of “Firefly,” and “Barney Miller” fame as well as seeing George Takei again (especially after his recent no-so-shocking revelation), and Richard Hatch of “Battlestar Galactica.” I-Con doesn’t go crazy with the media guests. It's a volunteer effort and they don’t seem to have a ton of money to spread around so they get one or two “high-powered” performers. The other ones who attend are there are their own dime, hawking autographs, etc.
My original plan was to only attend on Sunday, despite the fact they were chock full of programming beginning on Friday night. The only kink was it appeared that Ron Glass was only signing on Saturday (according to the online schedule) I was just as interested in getting his autograph as a Q & A session so I left work early on Saturday, and ran there just for that. Little did I know he had a booth and was signing throughout the weekend. Oh well. At least I was registered and wouldn’t have to deal with that on Sunday.
I would’ve attended many of the panel discussions, but the vast majority were on Saturday. Most conventions (and I knew this already) wind down on Sunday and many L.A. based guests book out of there early to catch flights. So things were winding down by 2:00 and I missed out on meeting someone else I had hoped to (Marc Singer).
I was able to attend two fun Q & A’s with Takei and Glass. That experience made going worthwhile as it was a very intimate setting and the stars really seemed into it. I had heard most of Takei’s canned answers to common questions (I even asked one I knew full well the answer to) but he’s an original cast member of classic Star Trek, and they sadly won’t be around forever.
Also I’m still doing penance for deliberately missing him when he appeared at my college back in 1990 so I could spend QT my then-girlfriend (who dumped me that same year). I’ve seen him three times since. He really didn’t reference his homosexuality, only to say he was preparing a revised autobiography because “there were a lot of gaps.” He discussed the failed attempt at a Captain Sulu series as well as his recent turn as Howard Stern’s announcer, which coupled with coming out, gave him more play than he’s had in years.
Ron Glass was very entertaining. He is completely befuddled by his renewed popularity thanks to “Firefly,” a show cancelled after 11 episodes. “They don’t have ‘Barney Miller’ conventions,” he joked. He was extremely good natured and was happy to entertain questions on a variety of topics.
It was obvious how much he loved “Firefly,” and despite Book’s death in “Serenity,” he was good natured about how it all turned out. I asked him if he was ever privy to Book’s backstory to which he replied, “Joss isn’t as generous as you think he is,” explaining that Book was to be the show’s enigma, begetting slow reveals and morsels of information over the course of 4-5 years. Guess not.
Unfortunately I missed Richard Hatch’s presentation the day before and there was little else at the show to do but peruse the massive dealer’s room. I was able to meet Hatch there and chat briefly, do the autograph/photo thing but the other actors had left already.
The bulk of the interesting program was held Friday night and Saturday. All in all it was a great experience, and a nice change of pace from Creation and Chiller. It has something for every sci-fi/fantasy fan (some might say too much!) and the tone is much more subdued and relaxed.
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