Auction Report

From: Debra VanSandt

SATURDAY

This trip to Toronto started out very much like my trip to Fu Fest in June! I couldn't find a way to get there, and at 4:00am on Saturday morning, I'd given up. Kelly called me (all the way from Toronto)! at noon, to tell me that everything that I wanted to see and attend would be the next day (Sunday) and that the dinner party was at 8:00 that night. I told her I'd be there if I could, as long as she was offering to share her hotel room with me. She agreed, so I made some phone calls. The train schedules were lousy, the bus schedules were even worse, and the cost of flying was totally outrageous! What to do??? I called my father, to tell him that I hadn't gone, as planned, because I didn't want to drive our vehicle that far. He offered his car (he also has a van), and I didn't even hesitate - I accepted. You should know that, once again, he was going to have surgery (minor, this time) on Monday. I told him that, simply, if he didn't want me to go to Toronto, to just say so next time instead of going to such elaborate lengths to keep me home... I went anyway <g>. (Don't worry, I was there with him on Monday and stayed a few days while he recuperated. He's doing fine.)

I left home at 2:00pm. Arrived in Toronto at 7:45. You should know that it normally takes me 7 hours to drive there ... and Toronto is in the same time zone that I am. <LOL> I FLEW, and it wasn't in a plane. I had no problem finding the Hotel since it was right off the expressway. I parked the car, hauled my sore butt out from behind the wheel, and wheeled my luggage into the lobby.

Next task: Find Kelly. I called her room via the courtesy phone, but she wasn't there, as I expected, since it was close to 8 o'clock and the dinner party started at 8. I went up to the desk clerk, but Kelly hadn't put my name on the room, so I couldn't get a key or get the room number. Now what to do???? Being the resourceful sort, I started wandering the hotel hallways, dragging my poor luggage behind me and praying that I'd spot Kelly near one of the meeting rooms. Sure enough, I spotted her as she crossed the doorway of the ballroom! Great, you say? Yeah, well, it would have been - except for the security guards who were planted solidly on either side of the entrance ... and I didn't have a pass to get in! Thank goodness Kelly heard me call her name, did an about-face, and saw me standing there. After a huge hug (Kelly: "I can't believe you came!"), we hurried up to the room, I took a very quick shower and changed into a dress, then we hurried back down again. We arrived back at the ballroom by 8:15. Trip up to the room, shower and change clothes, and return in 20 minutes flat. Do you see a pattern here, yet??? <lol>

Kelly talked to Jayne, who was running the weekend, and she let me in even though I couldn't register to attend until the next morning. She trusted me to pay the next day, so you can be sure that I was there first thing Sunday morning to pay up! Anyway, I was starved, so Kelly and I filled our plates with nice food from the buffet tables (a very good menu, too), found a large round table where there were two open chairs and dug in. With my belly full, I began to relax and slow down: I was in Toronto, I was in the hotel, I had found Kelly, and I was in the charity event -- now I could calm down and enjoy myself. And enjoy myself I did!

Dixon Trees was there and gave me a "bonging." If you've never had one, you need to try it -- it's wonderful and very relaxing. The guests hadn't arrived, yet, so we were able to get to know our table partners and chat for a while. A short time later, Nigel Bennett and Jon Cassar and his family (wife and three sons -- ages 8 - 16, I'd guess) and other guests from the Toronto movie and TV industry arrived. A special table was set up for them right beside the dance floor. Guess whose table this was right in front of?!? Yup! Kelly and I were sitting an arm's length away from Nigel and the other guests!!!! What a stitch!

Now, for the fun stuff...Nigel and John walked around the room, talking to the fans. Kelly and I immediately started staring at Nigel, but not for the reason you think -- more about that later. The dress code for the evening was "Casually Elegant," only it appears that Nigel only read the "casual" part. He walked in wearing a Snoopy t-shirt and a pair of well-worn, faded blue jeans. Everybody else was dressed up in suits and ties and dresses -- some even had cocktail dresses on! When he saw how the rest of the room was dressed, he got a small smirk on his face and a twinkle in his eye -- which immediately endeared him to ME - and started working the room. <LOL> I *love* a man with a sense of humor! If you can imagine LaCroix with a smirk, you will know the expression that I'm describing. I was hooked -- line and sinker. Kelly told me that he'd been wearing the shirt all day.

Now, for why Kelly and I were staring at him: You need to understand that Kelly absolutely ADORES Snoopy, so we were staring at his *shirt* for over an hour (trying not to be too obvious), while we tried to see what the shirt said and what Snoopy was doing on it. <vbg> Nigel knew that we were glancing at him as he walked around the room (just far enough away so that we couldn't see the shirt clearly, of course), but he didn't know why. He probably assumed we were staring at him because he's one of the stars. Anyway, eventually I told Kelly that we'd definitely have to get a picture of her ... with Nigel's shirt. She was positively drooling over that darned shirt ... not NIGEL, mind you, but the SHIRT! <ROTFLOL>

Anyway, I believe that the guests *did* take time to eat, but I'm not sure. They showed an outtakes video from La Femme Nikita, which we all had fun watching, then the dance music began (not very loudly, at this point). While Nigel walked around the room, Kelly told me what had happened during the day's auction. I was laughing so hard at the antics she described, that Nigel got this look on his face (he was standing just a few feet in front of me, again, talking to a group of fans). I think he wanted to join us, just to find out what was so funny! I don't know if Kelly told you what happened, but that's *her* job, right? Since she was there and I only heard about it secondhand, I've left that story to her.

Eventually the group of fans around Nigel thinned out, so I told Kelly that it was now or never, if she wanted a picture of herself with Nigel's Snoopy shirt. So, we screwed up our courage, crossed the room ... and finally got a clear view of the shirt. I'm certain that I had a huge, cheesy grin on my face. I couldn't help it. I was laughing at Kelly's obsession with the shirt. I started laughing even before I could explain to Nigel.

Me: "Great shirt! Kelly LOVES Snoopy. We've been trying to read it all night."

Nigel, smiling, straightens it out so we can see it clearly. It was a picture of Snoopy with an old-fashioned, hand-push lawnmower. It said, "I fought the lawn, and the lawn won!" Kelly and I both laughed at the joke.

Kelly: "I love it!" (at least, I think that's what she said)

Me: "You know, she's been drooling over that shirt all day! Not drooling over *you,* Nigel, mind you, but drooling over your shirt!" I was laughing at this point, and Kelly was too. "I told her I *had* to get a picture of her with your shirt! Of course, it doesn't hurt that *you're* in it!"

Nigel (laughing merrily): "Sure!"

He stood with a very happy Kelly while I took a picture, then started talking to us about the story behind the shirt. He has a house near a lake, with 40 acres. The yard is HUGE, according to Nigel. The first time he tried to mow it, he tried to mow it with a *hand-powered* mower! The picture in our heads of this event sent Kelly and I into gales of more laughter. Needless to say, he went out and bought a riding lawn mower the next day... We talked for quite a while about his house and property, and the apartment he has in the city so that he doesn't have to commute 2 hours one way to work. It was a pleasant, relaxed chat, which he seemed to enjoy. We finally excused ourselves, though, since other fans wanted to talk to him.

The dancing started in earnest soon after that. The guests danced (with each other) and Jon Cassar's sons had an absolutely wonderful time. They were dancing and clowning and partying hardy. The DJ took requests, and it soon became obvious that "retro" music was the order of the night for these three boys. They were very good and very uninhibited. They made the party a smashing success! At one point, I was sitting at the table watching the boys having such a good time, and chuckling. I commented out loud about it. Nigel was sitting directly in front of me and obviously also was enjoying the show. He turned a big grin in my direction and nodded in agreement. I leaned forward and asked him whose kids they were. That's when I discovered that they were Jon's. Leaning back in my chair, we chatted about them being the life of the party for a moment, then I went to get a drink. (Hey, I was thirsty, and I didn't want Nigel to think I was "hovering" around him - even though HE'S the one who sat there.)

Shortly after that, Nigel made his own request of the DJ. To the tune of "Hot, hot, hot!" Nigel started a conga line! Here this man is, dressed in a T-shirt and jeans, leading a line of dressed-to-the-nines dancers in a winding conga line! The smirk on Nigel's face was priceless! Jon was in the middle of the line waving a candelabra, with burning candles, over his head. And Nigel was waving a bottle of what I believe is beer. Kelly joined the line, along with most of the people in the room. It was a sight to behold!

Me, you ask? Where was *I*???? Not in that conga line, I can guarantee you! I was chasing the line around the ballroom, snapping photos as fast as my camera would allow, and laughing so hard that the tears were rolling down my face. Nigel loved it. At one point, I wedged myself between our tables, to wait for my camera flash to recharge. I THOUGHT I was out of the way of Nigel's line. Hah! While I'm innocently looking down at my camera, waiting for the flash indicator to light back up, I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye. I looked up just in time to see an evilly grinning Nigel turn the line to squeeze between the tables where I was standing!

Nigel: (giving me a wicked smirk and elbowing me out of the way) "Excuse me!"

Me: (laughing in surprise) "You did that on PURPOSE!"

Nigel didn't answer. He just danced on by with a twinkle in his eyes and a chuckle on his lips. (Cheeky man!) Kelly danced by me, laughing at me, too. But that's all right -- *I* got the last laugh: *I've* got PICTURES...<vveg>

Nigel left shortly after that, but the dancing went on right up until midnight. Everyone had a marvelous evening -- especially the Cassar boys -- and danced their feet off. The party was smashing fun! Kelly and I went up to our room right after the party broke up, but we didn't get to sleep until after 2:00am. Every ime we'd get quiet, one of us would remember something funny about the evening and we'd start laughing all over again. I felt sorry for our neighbors, but we couldn't help it. I think we were more than a bit giddy after such a surprising evening! (No, we weren't drunk -- I can't drink. :-)

SUNDAY

Sunday started waaaayyy too early! After being up until after 2:00am, I dragged my sorry derriere out of bed at the ungodly hour of 7:00am, so that I could get showered and changed and be down to pay up at the registration desk by 8:00. I made it by 8:15 (so sue me - I was moving sloooowww) and faithfully paid for the entire weekend. It was the best $80 (Canadian - $51, American) I've spent in a LONG time! I had breakfast, and made it back in time for the 9 AM "LaFemme Nikita" Technical Panel (Jim and Geoff Murrin and Rae Crombie - Props, Jon Cassar - Director, Jill Carter - Script Supervisor, and Doug MacRae - storyboard artist and LFN comic artist wannabe). I enjoyed it and was even awake enough to ask a question or two. However, these people are WAY TOO YOUNG to have such a big hit! <g> Then the auction commenced.

The popular items of the day were from "La Femme Nikita" and "Forever Knight," although "Psi Factor," "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues," and "Chips 99" made good showings as well. In the morning, Jim and Geoff Murrin auctioned LFN items (which all went for amounts WAY beyond MY budget :-), then Doug MacRae auctioned many of his storyboard drawings - which got very satisfying amounts of money. There were two fun parts to the LFN auctioning (which actually went on sporadically all day long because there was so many things):

1. Jon wanted the mock up LFN comic book cover that Doug was auctioning -- and so did a young man in the audience. This was a fully colored cover which Doug was going to be pitching to Marvel Comics (I believe) the next week, since he wants to do a LFN comic book. After asking the attendees if it was OK for *him* to bid, Jon took a seat in the audience, and a very hot and heavy bidding war commenced. Overheard muttering by Jon as the price soared: "My wife is going to kill me..." :-) However, the *young man's wife* was sitting right in front of him, egging him on - so you can guess who ended up with the drawing. <g> Anyway, apparently deciding that his marriage was more important than Doug's drawing, Jon finally relented when the price was up to thousands of dollars (Canadian) -- and the young man and his wife were happy campers.

2. The other big LFN money maker: A site visit to the LFN set and a promised on-site lunch with Peta and Roy. A lady with a poker face, laughing eyes, and a lot of money finally won *that* bidding war - to the tune of $6,000 (if I remember correctly). Jon's comment to her as the price went up and up and up: "You are as cool as a cucumber! I need you to negotiate my contracts for me." (That got a small smile out of her!) I've been to enough auctions that I knew that look -- she wasn't pokerfaced to me. I watched her face the entire time, and she never showed even the tiniest sign of relenting. It was obvious to me that she meant business and was absolutely determined to get it, no matter the cost, so I didn't envy the person bidding against her. It came down to who was the most determined and had the most money. She won -- no surprise to me. The other person didn't stand a chance! <lol>

One of the wackiest parts of the auction was the Coke Can Mementos that every guest auctioneer sold last: Each, GA was given a can of Coke, which they had to drink, then auction off the empty can. A contest quickly ensued between the guests on Saturday, to see who could get the most money for their "used cans," and it continued on Sunday, too. This part always got a laugh -- what the GA wouldn't do to make THEIR cans more valuable! The day before, one of the guests "got intimate" with his can, another stuck it in his pants, and Nigel had actually bitten chunks out of his! Nigel won the Coke Can Mementos contest -- hands down -- for his mutilated can. No one else even came close to the $600 (I believe) that he got! I wasn't there for that one, but I heard about it every time another hapless Sunday guest auctioneer tried to top it... <g>

One of my favorite actors, Barclay Hope, stopped in for a while and helped auction off "Psi Factor" items. Now, I've been watching "Psi Factor" since the day it premiered and I lust after Barclay almost as much as I lust after Chris Potter, so you can imagine how happy I was to be sitting front row center when he came in! He was very, very nice -- and fun. He stuck *his* can down the front of his jeans first thing - in a very appropriate spot <veg> -- and left it there the entire time he auctioned off the Psi items! I was torn between laughing and drooling -- most of the time, the laughing won out. I *know* that I had a HUGE grin on my face the entire time he was there... <LOL> I tried to get a picture of the can-in-the-jeans (discreetly, of course), but it didn't come out. In fact, every picture I took of the man was blurred or too dark - so I don't have a single picture of him! <whaaaaaa> When he finally pulled the can out of his pants, though, we were all in for a surprise: It turned out to be a Seven Up can, instead of a Coke can. :-) That, along with every other item from Psi, went for more than I could afford. Oh well, I'm trying to be philosophical about these things... There's always next year, right?

Anyway, Michael Rhoades (Donny Double-D) and John Bourgeois (Sgt. Broderick) auctioned off KFTLC items in the afternoon. I actually bought something, too! Then the big event (for me) happened: Michael Sloan and Scott Wentworth came in. Now, "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues" is my favorite fandom, and I really admire Michael and think Scott is a doll, so I was one happy camper. Kelly and I had the best view of the two in the house. (Sorry, Suz, but Scott's hair was very, very short!) Earlier, after my fiasco with trying to get a decent picture of Barclay, I had asked Jon if it would be possible to have Michael and Scott pose for pictures *before* they started auctioning. (We were asked NOT to use flash when we took pictures, which was making it difficult to get decent shots of the guests.) Jon was very nice about it and was more than happy to oblige. Because he was so nice, I have a wonderful picture of Michael and Jon and Nigel and Scott posing for the fans. I've captioned it, "The four reasons I came," which is the truth, in a nutshell. Anyway, shortly after that was my *most embarrassing* part of the event, too, and I'm STILL mentally apologizing to Jon every time I remember it. Especially after he'd been so nice about the pictures ... but, I'll get to that later.

First, I had the opportunity to talk to Michael for a short time before the KFTLC auctioning began. I had some pictures from June's Fu Fest, which I wanted to give him -- the one of Sandey Grinn sprawled in the chair and looking daggers at the camera made him laugh. I told him that the next time he saw Sandey, he was to ask him for the story behind THAT photo! I'm sure I'll hear from Sandey about it, too! <I'm a bad, bad girl! LOL> He remembered Kelly and I from Fu Fest and chatted with us about it for a moment. I asked him about his progress with the KFTLC movie, and he said that he was meeting with Warner Brothers the next week to discuss it! Since we haven't heard anything on the KFTLC list, I'm assuming that there's no news yet, though. :-( Anyway, it came time to start the KF part of the auction, so we sat back down and got out our billfolds.

I'm very proud to say that I actually got Scott Wentworth to laugh several times during the afternoon. At one point he was auctioning off a blouse and a tape of the dailies of the episode that the blouse had been worn in (contributed by our own Jean D.). Now, folks, this blouse couldn't have been more than a size 4, and I am NOT a small lady ... but Scott brings it over to Kelly (who also couldn't have worn it) and me and has us fingering the material. He's pitching it very hard to us, knowing that we are KFTLC fans, and because, sitting in the front row, we were easy targets to pitch to. After only a moment of this, though, I finally looked up at him and with as straight a face as I could muster, I said, "Scott ... look at this blouse ... now, look at me [indicating my very ample bosom). Do you REALLY think I can wear this?!?" He got this momentarily stunned look, then he burst into laughter, did an abrupt about-face, and (still laughing) went to the other side of the room to pitch his wares. The second time, he and Michael were taking a break while Jon and Nigel auctioned off some more "La Femme Nikita" items. I'd bought an 8 by 10 photo of Scott in June, at Fu Fest, but he wasn't able to attend, so it was still virgin (i.e.: it wasn't signed :-). The picture is from the '97 Fu Fest: It is Scott with a big grin on his face -- and long hair. I had hauled it with me in the hopes that I might get a chance to have Scott sign it. This was that chance! He and Michael were sitting in chairs straight across from Kelly and me, so I pulled out the picture. As soon as they looked in my direction, I "danced" the picture on my lap and put a big, cheesy grin on my face. When Scott saw the picture, he burst into laughter, again, and this time Michael joined him. I held up the permanent marker that I'd brought for the purpose and pantomimed signing the picture, with a bright, hopeful look on my face and my best imitation of puppy dog eyes. Grinning, Scott nodded and waved me to come up. I'm sure that I bounced up there, but I was trying hard to be inconspicuous, so that I wouldn't interfere with the auction. While he signed the picture, we chatted briefly about Suz and Fu Fest, then I sat down again.

Now, for my most embarrassing moment ... but, I blame Scott. If he hadn't had his arm around me... After the KFTLC portion of the auction, Scott and Michael stayed. This gave Kelly and I the chance to actually spend a bit more time with them. When the number of fans around Scott thinned out, we chatted with him in a corner of the room, then asked if we could have our picture taken with him. Being the nice guy that he is, he was happy to do it (this was only about the 30th request for pictures he'd had in less than an hour :-). I took Kelly's picture with Scott, then I handed Kelly my camera. While Kelly got used to the camera, I told Scott that I hoped THIS picture would turn out OK, since every time I'd handed my camera to people at Fu Fest, the pictures other people took of me never turned out right: They were always too far away. Just then, Kelly said that she was ready, so Scott put his arm around me (!!!!) and I looked up just in time to see Kelly taking two steps backward. I told her "Stop!" but I spoke too loudly (hey, I was a bit rattled - Scott had his arm around me)! And Jon came over and asked me to be quiet. My face turned pink, I'm sure, but that's not the worst part ... oh no. You'd think that I'd have learned my lesson, right? Wrong. I told Kelly (quietly) that she was too far away and asked her to move back up. She did. Then she commented that she couldn't get it right, yet. "That's OK, Kelly," I answered, smiling broadly, "I don't mind standing here a bit longer with Scott's arm around me!" Scott laughed, and I'm sure I had a foolish grin on my face. Then Kelly backed up again! Frustrated, I called, "Stop!" again, and Jon had to come over and shush me one more time. Looking back on it, I realize that I should have excused myself and gone over to Kelly to quietly see why she was backing up so far (she was trying to use the guides in the viewfinder, which aren't accurate), but I didn't want to move out of Scott's hold <g> not to mention that standing there with him, my mind wasn't "hitting on all cylinders," either. So, you see, Scott's to blame ... at least, that's my story, and I'm sticking to it. Anyway, Kelly eventually took the picture and I have a very nice snapshot of Scott and me laughing, with my face a very embarrassed shade of pink.

Right after the auction, there was a Producer's Panel which included Michael and Phil Bedard and Larry LaLonde (Once a Thief, Forever Knight, KFTLC), David Rosen (Psi Factor), and I believe also the producer of La Femme Nikita (whose name I can't remember right now). This was an informative discussion even though I didn't ask questions. Basically, I watched the expressions on the other producers' faces while one or the other would talk. After all, I theorized, there should be some pretty stiff competition amongst these guys. I found that that didn't seem to be true at all: They talked easily together and contributed evenly to the conversation, even deferring to each other and mentioning each other's shows whenever it was necessary to make their point. It was a pleasant discussion and well handled. The panel lasted a little over an hour, then the final tally for the auction was announced (a very nice sum for only two days' work).

After that, Jon asked us, as the last official act of Lights, Camera, Auction! whether we'd like to have them do it again next year. The answer was a resounding and enthusiastic YES! So, my friends, keep your eyes and ears open. This is a MUST ATTEND event. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to have fun, mingle with TV stars, spend money, and help out charity at the
same time. The memories alone are worth the it, yet you come away with much, much more!

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This page last updated April 13, 1999