Monday, November 23, 2009

Boston Super-Megafest!



I woke up extra-early Saturday morning due to my anticipation of Boston Super Megagfest (or because I had too much wine the night before). I’ve been attending this show for 20+ years and you simply never know what treasure you might discover. Following a quick stop at Dunkin’ Donuts for a “Great One”, I sped towards Framingham, MA for the annual nerd jamboree. I purchased tickets early, which meant that I would be given access to the convention 1 hour before the general public.


When I saw the fat Sleestack I knew I was in the right place

Although I arrived at the show an hour earlier than the doors would open for the early birds, I was still met with a long line of other equally excited nerds. Because Richard Anderson (Oscar Goldman) was one of the celebs attending, there was a spirited discussion about The Six Million Dollar Man going on behind me. Thankfully my phone was charged up and I surfed the internet and played Ms. Pacman to pass the time.



Finally the doors opened and there was a nerd stampede, which means that the line moved at a glacial pace as people entered the wondrous room of treasure. This young siren almost knocked me over in her eagerness to gain entrance,


I have crazy eyes

The fans did not disappoint and there were plenty of people dressed in (probably very expensive) costumes,




There was a cool display of monster props and I told Ben to go pose for me. As soon I snapped his picture I heard a voice mutter, “That’s a dollah”. I turned around to find the source of the voice and I spied a little old man behind a table looking at me. Confused I said, “Huh?” He repeated his statement, “It’s a dollah”. He must have realized that I had no idea what the hell he was saying so he added a little more, “We encouraged people to make a dollah donation to (something) if you take a pick-cha of the display”. Of course I only had $20s on me (stupid ATM) and I had to borrow the buck from a friend.


This picture cost me a buck


This guy was waiting to get an autograph from a former Playboy bunny - Earlier he farted near me

Although there are always a bunch of b-celebs at these things, I’m not usually too interested. I go to these shows for the collectibles but I decided to document some of the “famous” people. It’s difficult to get clear photos due to poor lighting and the fact that the celebs don’t like you to take their picture if you’re not forking over $25 so I had to shoot quickly.


Peter Tork posing with a fan bearing an eerie resemblance to Alice from The Brady Bunch


Elderly Oscar Goldman


Big Pussy seemed annoyed with me


Data is old


Cindy Morgan was the sexy chick from Tron and Caddyshack, now she's frumpy

Mickey Dolenz, Ray Park and a few other celebs would be showing up later, but I didn’t stick around. My friend attended a Mickey Dolenz panel and later watched Dolenz and Tork perform in an evening concert. He also attended a Spike (Buffy the Vampire) panel and said that the guy was terrific. On my way out I snapped a bunch of pictures of the very cool Batmobile,



“Batman” was decidedly less cool,



I picked up a few DVDs including a complete bootleg set of the Wonder Years for Whirlygirl as a reward for earning her Masters degree on Saturday. My greatest discovery, however, was two Mego KISS dolls. Mego KISS dolls are extremely difficult to find on the collector’s market due to high KISS and Mego collectors demand and the low quantities originally produced. Twenty years ago I acquired a Gene Simmons for $50. On today’s market single KISS dolls easily fetch hundreds of dollars loose; a set of all 4 in their originally boxes typically costs upwards of $2000 if you can even find them. One of the dealers had a Paul and an (extremely rare) Peter Criss (he was produced in much smaller quantities due to a rumor at the time that he was quitting the band). My jaw dropped when he told me I could have them for $10 each. I had $200 in my pocket and I wouldn’t have hesitated to spend it on this holy grail of Mego collectibles. For $20 I now have 3 out of 4 KISS dolls. Now I’m on the hunt for Ace.


"Where's Ace?"

All in all it was a fun day. I was somewhat disappointed in the wares but there was enough there to keep me entertained for 4 hours. I can’t wait for next year.


See ya next year!

18 comments:

DKC said...

Ha! That is awesome all the way around, JPX!

And a big CONGRATS to Whirlygirl!

Johnny Sweatpants said...

First of all – that was an uproarious post! (I’m trying to cut down on using the adjectives “hilarious” and “hysterical” which I’ve officially run into the ground.) I don’t know what’s funnier – the fat sleestak, “crazy eyes “ or the “it’s a dollah” guy. Priceless! (And godDAMN I don’t miss that awful RI accent one iota.)

The picture in line takes me back. I recall standing in that hallway for what seemed like an eternity waiting to get in, listening to nerd chatter and smelling their unshowered bodies. And is It me or were more people decked out in costumes than in years past?

Excellent score on the KISS dolls. I’m so jealous it makes me sick to my stomach. However, it’s very troubling that you still don’t have Ace. You need to get your hands him even if you have to beg, borrow or still. Or perhaps if you flew out here for Wondercon you could find him…

Whirlygirl said...

Awesome review! The guy waiting for the playboy bunny autograph makes me laugh the most. I bet he has never had a woman in his life.

PS I love the gift :)

Johnny Sweatpants said...

Congrats Whirlygirl!

Catfreeek said...

Great post JPX thanks so much for posting the Peter Tork pic, he's still hot :)

I'm still laughing about the farting guy & the fat sleestack!

Catfreeek said...

Oh and a huge congrats to you Whirly, that's a big accomplishment :)

Johnny Sweatpants said...

Cork it Catfreeek. No one likes an ass kisser.

Beg borrow or "steal" is what I meant to say obviously.

Catfreeek said...

You should know JSP, I learned it all from the master.

JPX Batman looks like he's lifting a leg to cut a huge fart in that pic, was he?

Johnny Sweatpants said...

The Batman picture is gold! I like the unimpressed Joker in the background. And that Batman looks a helluva lot like Adam West.

HandsomeStan said...

I am insanely jealous of you, JSP. I think I've missed this at least four years running now. But I still have the Pac Man throw pillow I got the last time we hit this.

I think the guy in the Batman suit might be the same guy I saw at New York Comic Con in a skin-tight Skeletor outfit, which made me spit out my soda.

A fat man in a Skeletor costume is deeply uproarious for many, many reasons.

Johnny Sweatpants said...

You meant JPX, right Stan?

HandsomeStan said...

Well, I'm jealous of both of you, all the time.

But yes, I meant JPX.

Fucking PFJ. Splitters!

Octopunk said...

Oh my god is this funny. Fat Sleestack -- you just can't make up things that funny. So wish I could've been there.

What's with the chick in the gold dress posing with the Star Wars costumes?

Crazy Eyes is kind of cute. Where the heck were the girls in superhero costumes when I was a teenager? So unfair.

I can NOT get over Fat Bat. First there's fat, then there's the Bat logo that looks like it's made of felt -- but what the fuck's with that pose! When does Batman ever do that? This trip was one photographic score after another.

Big props to Whirlygirl, hope you enjoy the prize! And what's blocking that show from coming out, anyway?

Jordan said...

"B" celebs is way too kind. If Clooney and Pitt are "A" celebs, and, say, Jon Hamm and Steve Carrel are "B" celebs, how far down the alphabet do you have to go before you get to Richard Anderson?

Jordan said...

Hilarious Life of Brian reference, HandsomeStan.

Johnny Sweatpants said...

Octo's right - what the hell kind of bat-pose is that? It looks like he's trying to pass a sobriety test.

Octopunk said...

Only if the cop's asking you to present the biggest fart you can muster.

Catfreeek said...

That's what I say, he looks like he ate several heaping helpings of cabbage and he's about to blow the doors off the Batmobile.

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