Touching a Star

Okay, I am definitely not cool.

Sometimes, you will have old thoughts and ideas in your mind, and you can call them up when you are trying to find another piece to add to the Vocal community. I have been working on two separate pieces and am near completion on both of them, but I also made a list of people which I cannot ignore. One thing about travelling and having an interest in art and culture is that you want to know who did what and how they did what. And if you get the chance, you want the chance to talk to them.

This is where I prove that I am not cool.

I have my list of the people I have met over the years, and I want to talk about why they matter to me. Yes, they are famous. No, you may not know all of them (there are some links provided for a few of the more obscure names). And I want to make sure that I do not bore you with my life, so I will be giving a very brief explanation of the circumstances of our meeting and how it went down.

Oh, and this list is not complete. Some encounters went nowhere and others I can barely remember. These are the ones that stick in my thoughts.

So…

1. David Hasselhoff: This is kind of a cheat. It was not so much a meeting but a crowding. There was a large group of us in the parking lot of Toys-R-Us in the spring or summer of what I want to say was 1984 or ’85. Knight Rider was one of my favourite shows, as it was for many of us young kids who had congregated at that parking lot to meet one of our heroes. I was worried in that crush whether or not I would meet him, with good cause. The number of people gathered in that lot was too high. And we were about to find out that it was very unsafe…from the Hasselhoff - The Hoff - himself. I do not remember everything he said, but I always thought it was quite a nice gesture for him to stand on the roof of that store and give us the truth about the situation. Never met the man, but I am thankful.

2. Lynn Johnston: You may not know this name, so I am looking forward to explaining this one. Ms. Johnston is the author of For Better or For Worse, still one of the best comic series ever produced in Canada. I was a fan, as was my mother, which was why I was very glad to discover that Ms. Johnston was coming to my university bookstore to do a signing just before my mother’s birthday. In this situation, the crowds were much sparser, and I was able to talk to her about her work and the work of another cartoonist, Bill Watterson (Calvin and Hobbes). And she mentioned how difficult he was finding it to keep creating work (it was in syndication at the time). Ms. Johnston would also retire her strip, but I will always remember her kindness and warmth, and the fact that I now have that autographed book in my collection.

3. Joe Flaherty: And this is why I declared myself to be so uncool. I was a devoted fan of SCTV from a young age, and to be in the same room with any member of the cast was such an impossible dream that I never even considered it possible. But one year, when I was still an undergraduate, Mr. Joe “Count Floyd” Flaherty himself was in a restaurant enjoying a meal not too far from the table where I sat with friends who begged me to keep cool. An impossibility. Not only did I not keep cool, I even got an autograph – “Thanks for the comedy tips!” – and considered getting new friends. At least Joe found it all quite amusing.

4. Speech: This happened overseas, and I will have to explain a few things. I was teaching overseas, and one day discovered that there was going to be an in-store signing of the latest release from the group Arrested Development (remember Tennesee? Mr. Wendell? Anyone?) Anyway, I got there pretty late – Tower Records, when it was still up and running internationally – and had to sooth my head with a listening centre that had the CD available for all comers. And it was while I was standing there that I felt a light chuck on my arm, turned and faced the lead singer, Speech. “I hope you like it,” he said…and then the whole group walked past me, making me sputter something about how no one would believe me. I did not even have the nerve to get an autograph. And very few people believed me when I shared this story. But it is too true… Wish I bought that album…

5. St. Vincent: I returned home; I got into McGill; I lived in Montreal; I had too many roommates. This matters. I was at home one day, reading in my windowless space in a four-room apartment, when I was offered a ticket to see someone called St. Vincent. The only reason this one particular roommate offered me the ticket was because she had received it from one roommate who could not go…and hated me. It is a long story, and I really do not want to dig into it here, but I am grateful that I got it. I had to look online to find out about that performer. I found a live clip of her performing Marry Me, and I was totally charmed. And with that, I went out to the show at La Sala Rossa, saw an opening act that featured another friend (another story there), and then the opening act came to set up…including Annie Clark (St. Vincent herself). That was impressive, as was the fact that she opened the set with Marry Me and performed material from the latest album at that time, Actor. I had to wait behind and talk to her, and she asked if I had any merch. I mentioned how I could only afford the ticket (a little lie), and she said, after autographing it, “Don’t worry. One that might be even more valuable.” I am still charmed by this and remain a devoted fan. Thank you, Annie.

6. Dany Laferriere: One of the things I like about this page is that I can introduce you to different writers, artists, and the like to you (some of you have already thanked me for this). And this is an interesting one. Mr. Laferriere is a Haitian-Canadian author living in Quebec who became a celebrity after publishing a book entitled – deep breath here – How to Make Love to a Negro without Getting Tired (I will not translate it into French for you). It was a book I had not read, but I had seen the film (yes, they filmed it), and I was very curious about the man. And at a book festival, I saw him…and a crowd of admirers that held his attention and seemed to be protecting him from his other fans, like me. But I did shake his hand, speak about writing (he asked about my West Indian family), and then he slipped away. But he was not the only writer whom I bothered with my presence.

7. Alexander Hemon: He was also at the festival, and I had not read his work yet. Again, no money, but I did have a free ticket. I knew that he would also be speaking, and I was lucky enough to hear him discuss his collection that was gaining a lot of interest, The Question of Bruno. Afterwards, I was milling about the ballroom that linked up the different halls, and he came out. I spoke to him for a little longer than expected, and he offered to autograph my nonexistent copy of his collection. And he did something when he found out that I did not have a copy that I will never forget: he looked at me for a moment, went into his satchel, took out a copy, and autographed it right in front of me. This was a valuable lesson that I still carry with me: never dismiss anyone who takes an interest in you, and cares about what you do. Thank you, Mr. Hemon.

8. Zadie Smith: Do I meet anyone besides writers nowadays? It seems as if I have lost interest in musicians and just want to be in the orbit of the people who created the novels, poems and essays I love. And I got lucky with this one. I had been reading Ms. Smith’s work since I found a used copy of White Teeth, read it once, put it aside, then found myself reading it again and carrying it with me wherever I went. It was a novel that made me look forward to whatever else came from that mind: The Autograph Man, On Beauty, NW, Changing My Mind, and Swing Time. That last book was the reason why she was at The Rialto Theatre in Montreal. That was the reason why I waited in line until I could get her autograph on all the books I carried with me, spoke to her – this seems to be a theme – about my West Indian heritage (I had a bracelet on with “Dominica” written on it), and then thank her for her work. I do regret that the crowds had to be shuffled along so quickly. There was so much more I wanted to ask…

9. Anne Carson: Last writer, I promise… This was a very interesting story. I went to a reading at the Bibliotheque Nationale in Montreal. The poet was being interviewed by Eleanor Watchel, the former host of a CBC Radio program called Writers and Company. I was devoted to the show, the host, and the work of Ms. Carson I had encountered (I would recommend Men in the Off Hours and Autobiography of Red). I would also recommend seeing her read her work if you get the chance. Any poet who does not complain about someone’s Smartphone going off (“It is the music of our age”) and wears red cowboy boots (rather stylish) is worth your time. And she read some newer pieces that I had to collect (I finally had enough money to buy something). A wonderful night all around…

Finally, there was this man:

10. George A. Romero: It was my first ComicCon; Montreal ComicCon, to be clear. I really did not know what to expect. I did not plan on attending any of the special events, but I did want to see certain people. Summer Glau autographed my complete set of Firefly on DVD (“I swallowed a bug” – ha, ha), met many artists who were as devoted to my nerd culture loves (Dr. Who portrayed as the group the Who – very clever), and then took a pause…and saw him. He was all alone at a long set of tables and paneling and I wondered if I should approach him. But I was not going to pass this up…and I met one of the kindest and sweetest souls you could ever have the good fortune to meet. Of course, Night of the Living Dead was the main topic of our chat, but we also talked about the life of the director, where inspiration comes from, and how he felt about living in Canada (he was a Toronto resident, so not a perfect man). And I almost cried. Mr. Romero meant so much to me that I felt that I should have done more than just buy a poster for the price of an autograph. Tarantino said that the “A” in his name stood for “A Fucking Genius”, and I have to concur. One of the best moments in my introduction to the annual nerdathon.

So, that is my list of encounters. It could have been much longer (other brief moments with people you might recognize will have to wait for another day), but I think that these are the ones I want to remember and share with you.

Let me know if you have your own list of interesting encounters with the stars in your firmament…

*

Thank you for reading!

If you liked this, you can add your Insights, Comment, leave a Heart, Tip, Pledge, or Subscribe. I will appreciate any support you have shown for my work.

You can find more poems, stories, and articles by Kendall Defoe on my Vocal profile. I complain, argue, provoke and create...just like everybody else.

Give it a look...