The drive in was great. No traffic and made it there with plenty of time to spare, which is good because they switched Justin Long's photo op from 3pm to 10:15am at the last minute. So I needed to be sure I got there in time. Upon getting inside I head straight to Photo Ops and redeem my 2 ops. I walk up to Justin and he's says "We've met before haven't we?", I respond "No sorry". He laughs and apologizes for making it awkward and complements my shirt. I tell him I've been a fan since Ed and he seemed genuinely taken aback. He probably doesn't get that often. He was a really nice guy. I just wish he had offered table ops with a combo so I could've gotten an autograph too.
After a quick wardrobe change I head straight to the 2 kids from IT since they were my first priority. I wasn't able to get the other 5 kid's autographs at the March show because it was run so poorly so I wanted to be sure I got autographs from Jackson Robert Scott and Jack Dylan Grazer. I'm glad I went on Sunday this time around as it was way less crowded and lines were relatively short. Though that may be because there weren't many high caliber guests like their March show. Jackson's line is pretty long and stretches out into the hall. I find out that's because he hasn't arrived yet. Once he gets there the line moves at a leisurely pace. I was warned by a friend that he's a slow signer but he's only 9 and I know my nephew who's that age wouldn't be able to sit still for that long. Once I get up to him he's hiding under the table and his mom had to tell him to get up. I get my steelbook signed and decide to have him sign a severed arm I brought for the photo op. He charges more for that, but it's too cool to pass up.
That line took about 45 minutes or so, which isn't too bad. I move over to Jack's line next. He was my favorite kid in the movie and I really liked his show Me, Myself, and I which got cancelled. His line takes about 25-30 minutes. During which time I see at least 2 girls crying hysterically that they are so in love with him that he needs to give them a hug and console them. You'd think they're The Beatles or something. He tells me he loves my shirt and asks where I got it. He's a really nice kid. His mom even takes a minute to thank everyone for coming and that it means so much to all of them that we came out and supported Jack. I get my steelbook signed and the pic. I tell him I'm sorry his show got cancelled and he thanks me.
From this point on it was the easiest time. There were no lines for any other guest I wanted save for Tobin Bell and Doug Bradley, but even thri lines were relatively short. I move to Barbara Hershey's table next. Not much to discuss on this one as we didn't really speak other than me telling her I loved The Entity and she replies "Oh great" and smiles a bit. She and her handler comment on how they've never seen a steelbook before and were debating the best color to use. They ask my opinion and I recommend gold, which she goes with. She signs my Steelbook and I get the picture.
I head to Shannon Elizabeth's table with my Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back post and sure enough she's has an upcharge for posters and personal items. I tell the handler I'll have to think about it and head to another table. So instead I head to Doug Bradley's table. Line takes about 15 minutes. He's only charging $25 for an autograph and free photos. He signs the steelbook and I get my picture. He comments on my shirt that he's very confused by it. I explain it's from the movie IT and he shrugs and tells me he's never seen it.
I wasn't sure if I wanted Ashley Laurence yet since she's wasn't offering a combo deal so i take a walk around and consider my next move. I settle on Rob Schneider who I usually don't really like save for one movie of his, The Hot Chick. It's just the right amount of stupid that I can watch it repeatedly and it'll always make me laugh. I pay for the combo and he is impressed that I have an original poster, he tells me he doesn't even have one! He signs the poster and even adds a quote without me asking. He comments that The Hot Chick was his best movie and I agree.
Next I head to the other celebrity room just to see what it's like. The only one with a long line is Sid, so I head over to Chandler Riggs. I used to really like The Walking Dead during the first 3 seasons, but I also want a picture because, to be honest, he got hot!
He's really nice and I grab a quick selfie.
After that I head back to the Riverside Pavilion. I'm making great time so I decide to pay for the selfie and autograph from Ashley Laurence. I pay the handler and she's taking forever taking selfies with someone's dog as I stand waiting at her table. She comes over and without a word poses for the picture. She sits at the table and asks me to sign up for her emailing list, which I awkwardly decline. She and her handler then try to convince me that pink would look so good on my Steelbook. The handler keeps telling me that pink will really make it "pop". I tell them I want her to use silver since that's what Doug used and they finally give in.
I then move over to Billy Zane who's charging a ridiculous $80 for a combo! I bite the bullet because I want him to sign my Book of Shadows from Charmed and I know I can't walk away without also getting a picture. He sees my book, smiles and says "How charming!" After signing he takes a picture of the page and sends it to someone. No clue who. I opt for a selfie rather than having a handler take it but he says he takes the best selfies so he takes the picture.
I now have 15 minutes until my only other photo op. So I head over and the line moves with quickly and I get my picture with the IT Kids. Jackson sees the arm and exclaims "That's my arm!" and puts his arm in his sleeve. He's a cute kid. Reminds me of my nephew. Jack's not looking but I don't really mind it.
I head back to the Riverside and decide to only get a picture with Shannon Elizabeth. I'll get a poster signed another time. Not much to discuss here as we didn't really talk other than me telling her I loved Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and she smiled.
Tobin Bell is at lunch so even though I haven't seen any of Sid Haig's movies I have plenty of time to spare and pics are free so I wait on his line for about 20 minutes. The person before me asks him to flip off the camera and he responds "No, if you want to flip it off you do it". I was gonna ask him to record a quick video for my friend who loves Captain Spaulding but decide against it since he doesn't seem to be in the best mood so I just get the picture.
The only other person I'm interested in now is Tobin Bell, who I mainly want because he played a demon in Charmed. I had planned for him to sign my book of shadows, but his demon didn't have a page so instead of having him sign a blank page I bought a Saw steelbook of eBay solely to get it signed and sell it for a profit. He's still at lunch so I pay the handler and wait. She tells me that he will write anything we want on our items but no movie quotes. I wait about 30 minutes and during this time I see maybe 2 people go up to Carl Weather's table and one of them just said he was great in Rocky and walked away without buying anything.
Tobin gets back and I'm second in line. He comments that my steelbook is so fancy and opens it and inspects it. He signs the book and puts the date, which should help with reselling it I think.
And with that my day is done in just 5 hours! One of the easiest convention experiences I've had so as long as the guest list holds up for the next NJ show I'll be there.
