(posted on the same day at: http://www.drh.net/jrice/www/Canteen/Read/)
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"Darian" (an alias I used to use in a BBS) writes:
Miss Belfridge and I were just at the Valley Fair Mall in San Jose to see John Inman (he came to the KTEH Store of Knowledge). It was HEAVEN. :)
The line was MASSIVELY long, but we got there relatively early, and the line was moving fast so the wait was quite bearable. While people were waiting in line, salespersons from the Store of Knowledge walked down the line selling people the two AYBS? books, the five AYBS? videos, as well as an AYBS? t-shirt. Free promotional flyers of John Inman's appearance were also being handed out.
At any rate Miss Belfridge and I got inside and John Inman signed our AYBS? books and he even took a picture with us! *cue teenybopper voice* Oh my god, it was awesome. He had an arm around the each of us and one of the KTEH people took a photo of the three of us. Once we get the photos developed perhaps we'll be able to get them scanned and uploaded onto the Net.
Some people brought in tape measures for Inman to sign! It was an idea I wish I had thought of. ^_~
So after getting our picture taken we just hung around in the store, acting like groupies, watching AYBS? episodes on the Store of Knowledge's big screen TV. (I highly recommend watching AYBS? on a huge screen)
There were so many people present that when John Inman's allotted two hours were over, the line of people still stretched quite far. John Inman was escorted down the line of remaining people so that he could at least get to be able to greet the people who had not been fortunate enough to get his autograph.
Inman of course was the nicest gentleman ever... when we were posing for the picture he joked that maybe we could take his place and do the signing for him! Inman himself looked the same as ever, with the hairpiece and the pinky ring and the hankerchief... If you looked closely, you could tell that the session was (not surprisingly) tiring for him: his hand shook a bit from signing so many books and shirts and flyers (and tape measures!)...
People were being pushed through the line as fast as they could go, and towards the end of the two hours people were being herded through even faster in a desperate attempt to fit everyone in. Yet for all their efforts, the line of people stretched on... ^_~
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"Miss Belfridge" (my friend's alias) writes:
Well, everything he said was true... Thank *GOD* we got there early enough to get inside to see him. The store opened its doors at 10:00, and they were only allowing 4 to 5 people in at a time. It took us approximately 20 minutes or so to get through the line, then we just hung out 'til noon. Inman was the most charming gentleman you'd ever want to meet. He was kind enough to pose for (what ended up being) 3 or 4 pictures with us. I really meant to say something clever to him, but of course, ended up just sounding star-struck. : ) And, of course, the whole time we were posing for our pictures, the only thing going through my mind was, "Oh my god! Mr. Humphries' arm is around my waist!" : ) It was a great feeling.
Several fans brought gifts, including a lei made from orange and yellow carnations (which he proudly wore throughout the remainder of his appearance). Lots of people brought books, t-shirts, etc. for him to sign. The tape-measure idea was GREAT! "I wish I'd thought of that!" :)
As he said, the lines were HUGE, lots of people. When we left (after he had greeted the crowd who were not able to get autographs), we walked by a girl (standing with her boyfriend) with tears streaming down her face, upset that she had not been able to see him.
In short (basically because he already covered almost all of it), it was an awesome experience. Hopefully our pictures will turn out, and we'll get them up so you can see them.
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Here is a picture of "Miss Belfridge" and myself posing with John Inman. It's not a great picture of any of the three of us (my hair! what was I thinking? better pics of me are here! :p), but the better pics that I have are not with me. I'll try to get them scanned once I find them.
Other people have met John Inman and other AYBS? actors; go to my Articles/Humor page to read some of their stories.