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This week has been one of the best autograph weeks I've had in a long time.
Not only did I get Tom Hanks, Sylvester Stallone ( at the LA Film Festival ) ,Rush and Tom Cruise but I also got the governor of California, Mr. Arnold Swartzenegger.
This past Sunday the governor was going to present at a journalism award show in downtown Los Angeles. Just as I figured security was tight and access looked impossible. Unless you were a hotel guest you were imediately kicked off the property.
Me and a friend decided to head over to the bar and buy a drink to make it look like we were guests. It worked. The governor arrived but after taking some photos with CNN's Anderson Copper he headed right into the event. However, knowing the governors routen, me and my friend knew he wasn't going to stick around long. He pretty much doesn his thing and then he leaves right away. After about 15 minutes we saw his security come out the door. Sure enough Arnold came out and we rushed right up with our photos. He was so nice. He signed both out 12X18 Terminator photo's. posed for pictures and shook our hands. Security was scrict but once you get up to the governor he is veru accomidating to his fans.
Until he starts to sign authentics TTM this is the only way to get a real Arnold Swartzenegger signature.
All in all a fantastic week! I wish it could be this good all the time.

I'm glad you did so well with Arnold and so with Tom! Hope you always are so lucky!

Thanks!
Yeah, this past week I've been extremley lucky. It comes in spurts. Sometimes I'll even go weeks without getting a success, then all of a sudden I'll do good. This hobby can be a hit and miss.

Amen to that..... It's funny you mention that. My buddy and I were talking about that a few weeks ago. He said he doesn't collect as much because of what you just said and unless it's someone I really,really want to go after I agree with him. It's so fustrating at times.......... One day you will have a ton of successes and the next it will be all failures. Like one day I waited for over 5 hrs in the sun and went home empty handed and another time it was raining and got a success. It comes in spurts like you said but with me it involves driving several hrs and taking time off for work and then getting nothing that's the fustrating part but sometimes you get lucky sometimes not. That's what my friend said it's a gamble and he's right.....

You are 100% right.
Case in point......last night I went up to Hollywood to a small premiere of a film called Sinners and Saints. Not ever hearing anything on this film should have given me a clue at what to expect at the premiere. On the guest list was Sean Patrick Flanery ( Boondock Saints and he played Indiana Jones as a teenager in the TV series ), Jolene Blalock ( Star Trek Enterprise)
Tom Berenger ( Major League, and the Big Chill ) and Jurgen Prochnow ( Das Boot and Dune ), among others.
Another clue to what to expect was that there were absolutely no security, the red carpet was only three feet long, no barricade and there were only 5 press photographers. I was not aware of the setup until it was to late and I arrived at the theatre. In all my years of collecting I have never ran into Tom Berenger. Blalock I haven't seen in over two years. And Prchnow only once at a film premiere screening of Das Boot The Directors Cut. A LOT of rare names that I had to go to the premiere and try to get them. It was a total wish list. No one showed up expect Sean Patrick Flanery. Though I did need him on a couple things, if I knew ahead of time that he would be the only decent name to show. I would have stayed home. I see Sean pretty often in Hollywood.
That brings up another thing I see a lot in Hollywood that would discourage anybody from coming out, and that is the movie premiere guest list. Just because someone is listed to attend as a guest they don't neccesarily show up. I would say maybe one out of every five names listed will show. Unfortunately if someone is listed, you have to go and take chance that person will show. Just another gamble to deal with in this hobby

And even if there is a premiere, signing,etc that too is a gamble. Sometimes the star won't sign or they won't cross the street or if it's a signing they might stop at a certain point and you don't get your autograph. It's tricky sometimes.... Sometimes I love doing what I do and collecting signatures but other times I think is it worth it?? I could of stayed home or went to work instead of asking off.

Amen to that.

bud simpson wrote:You are 100% right.
Case in point......last night I went up to Hollywood to a small premiere of a film called Sinners and Saints. Not ever hearing anything on this film should have given me a clue at what to expect at the premiere. On the guest list was Sean Patrick Flanery ( Boondock Saints and he played Indiana Jones as a teenager in the TV series ), Jolene Blalock ( Star Trek Enterprise)
Tom Berenger ( Major League, and the Big Chill ) and Jurgen Prochnow ( Das Boot and Dune ), among others.
Another clue to what to expect was that there were absolutely no security, the red carpet was only three feet long, no barricade and there were only 5 press photographers. I was not aware of the setup until it was to late and I arrived at the theatre. In all my years of collecting I have never ran into Tom Berenger. Blalock I haven't seen in over two years. And Prchnow only once at a film premiere screening of Das Boot The Directors Cut. A LOT of rare names that I had to go to the premiere and try to get them. It was a total wish list. No one showed up expect Sean Patrick Flanery. Though I did need him on a couple things, if I knew ahead of time that he would be the only decent name to show. I would have stayed home. I see Sean pretty often in Hollywood.
That brings up another thing I see a lot in Hollywood that would discourage anybody from coming out, and that is the movie premiere guest list. Just because someone is listed to attend as a guest they don't neccesarily show up. I would say maybe one out of every five names listed will show. Unfortunately if someone is listed, you have to go and take chance that person will show. Just another gamble to deal with in this hobby

I would say alot of times even less than that, a good percent of the names listed as "Celebrity guests" on the press sheets are not even on the seating chart inside. one of the complaints I always here at work, when i talk with some of the press members i have befriended is that as much as 65 percent of the celebrity guests are just put on there to ensure a higher turn out of acredited media members, and the studios know that most of those names are not even actually show up. especially on lesser films, where the talent from the film are not a big enough draw on their own for the major media outlets.

Yeah,
I pretty much know that. If this were the only event listed for that night, I wouldn't have gone. I had something else to do as a backup. I only messed with this because I was in the area anyway. So I had nothing to lose.