posted 10-30-2005 11:20 AM               

While the hotel was very nice, there didn't seem to be much room outside of the signing/dealing rooms, and the fact that you had to keep going to the notice boards to see if your "virtual ticket" number was up meant that area there was always busy.

While the virtual ticket was a good idea, it seemed disorganized at the beginning with no-one knowing where to queue for which ticket. Plus even though I got there before it opened, my ticket number was in the low 300's so had to hang around until gone 3 o'clock, even though I had got all my other sigs hours before. I'm normally home by midday, even from Coventry or Northampton !

I hope they can find a way of issuing virtual tickets in advance when they send out the other tickets.

Apart from that I had a great time meeting the astro's again, and also Brian Blessed.

posted 10-30-2005 12:06 PM               

Once inside I spotted fellow list members Frederic Janik and Yvan Voirol who were already having items signed by Buzz. When I got to the table I checked out the prices; �90 base, �200 crew completion, �20 inscription (such as Best wishes), �10 personalisation and �10 for mission inscription. I then filled in the form and handed over the folding stuff� all �350 of it (3 items). The only pleasant surprise was that my multi-signed moon voyager�s piece (signed already by Stafford, Bean, Gordon, Haise, Mitchell, Scott, Worden, Duke and Cernan) was signed for the base fee (plus mission inscription). I waited in line to get my stuff signed and was a bit disgruntled at the lack of cordiality by both Buzz and Rob� I don�t think it would have killed anyone to actually say thank you?

After Buzz we went through to the astronaut�s room which at the time was fairly quiet and I managed to get my items signed by Jack Lousma, Charlie Duke and Dick Gordon. Those guys are SO friendly, warm and generous with their time� they are genuinely pleased to see/meet you and clearly have a lot of time for their fans. A shame the same can�t be said for some individuals. When I walked up to Jack Lousma he got up from his seat, extended his hand/arm to me for a handshake and said warmly �Hi, I�m Jack, Pleased to meet you�.

Dave and I then went onto get our tickets for the lectures and found that the Scott Carpenter lecture had started earlier than was previously advertised (11am was supposed to be the kick-off time) and we missed the first 15 minutes. On top of that the queue for Buzz Aldrin had extended outside of the lecture room and for some reason the lady on the door kept it open and it was difficult to hear what Scott was saying for the first 10 minutes until one of the other 5 lecture attendee�s got up and managed to get the lady to close the door. At last we could hear Scott speak!

After the lecture it was back to the astro signing hall and I got some items signed by Scott Carpenter, Vladimir Dzhanibekov, Yuri Romanenko and Valery Kubasov. All the cosmonauts were fantastic� particularly Dzhanibekov and Romanenko and they really did a fantastic job signing my Salyut 6 photograph. Vladimir actually said to me that he took the photograph that I had given him to sign and that was a highlight for sure. I stopped for a chat with Rex Hall� a really helpful and friendly guy who does a lot for our hobby and then it was outside to the ASF table where I had a nice conversation with Linn LeBlanc. In the signing hall I met Rick who had this beautiful slide rule signed by Buzz.

Then it was down to the bar where Dave and I had a drink with Paul Bramley (cheers for the Cider Paul� especially at �7.50 a pint!!!) and Paul Prendergast and we had a great chat and were soon joined by Yvan Voirol.

Then it was onto the Dick Gordon and Charlie Duke lectures. That has to be the best �20 I�ve ever spent� those guys are FANTASTIC story-tellers and really kept their audience enthralled and entertained. I didn�t attend the Aldrin lecture�
Along with Yvan I had a nice lengthy conversation with Vladimir Dzhanibekov outside the signing room and then went back into the room and had a few photos taken with Scott Carpenter and Dick Gordon. Even though I�d not got anything signed at that point those guys were eager to chat� absolutely class personified!!

Then it was back down to the bar for a drink with Yvan, Dave, Paul, Paul and Geoffrey Bowman and we once again had a nice chat about the state of the hobby� amazing that there are people around who can manage to persuade people NOT to sign for charity.

So my thoughts on the show� despite the guest list being �better� than last year I felt that the signing rooms were not as spacious as last year at Coventry and that there was most definitely a lacking of atmosphere� whether that had anything to do with people dropping 3 times the cost of the next most expensive signer on Aldrin I honestly don�t know but for sure I think that most people I spoke to were miffed at the fees for the �extras� which all the other guests included in their fee.

Well, hope I didn�t miss anyone out� it was great meeting you all and I hope everyone got what they wanted signed. I know I did but my wallet sure as heck was a lot lighter <LOL>.

Best regards to all,

Derek

P.S. Sorry to have missed you Adam... that Salyut image turned out beautifully.

posted 10-30-2005 12:55 PM               

Shame about the planned curry/general piss up. I think a tad of forward planning is required for the next show. I'm up for sticking my name on a badge and looking like a bit of a prat if others are......?!?!

I have to agree with the queues for Buzz. Little co-ordination or control was evident. Charlie, Dick and Jack were a joy and I even managed a laugh with Kubasov despite the language barrier....... Russian to Scouse!!!!

Re atmosphere I think maybe familiarity added to the feeling; Dick, Charlie and Jack have been here before... but that did not stop my hand shaking like a leaf as I handed them my items for signing. There guys have been heroes of mine since I was knee high to a grass hopper. I am now 6ft 5ins so you can imagine..... that has been a VERY long time.

Despite the short comings, and there were a few, I still take my hat off to Garry, Dave, Robert, Dave Shayler, Rex Hall and all the others that make the show possible. Trips to events in San Antonio, New York etc are sadly out of the question; I have the first of two kids to get through University! I welcome the opportunity to meet these guys. Long may such opportunities in the UK continue.

Any chance of Dave Scott or Gene Cernan at Autographica in March?

Regards,

Rick.

posted 10-30-2005 01:07 PM               

quote:

---

Originally posted by machbusterman:
I waited in line to get my stuff signed and was a bit disgruntled at the lack of cordiality by both Buzz and Rob� I don�t think it would have killed anyone to actually say thank you?

---

On my own behalf, I did try to greet and meet as many people as I could, and was very happy to recognize quite a few familiar names amongst the crowd (among them Brenda, Rob W., Rob S., Paul P., Paul B., Rex, David S., Jaqueline, Mike C., Frederick J., Rick M. and many, many more).

At the end of the day, its really a catch 22. If we extended the time with each guest getting a signature, there would be people at the end of the line upset that they were waiting too long or worse, were cut off from even getting an autograph. We try our best to strike a happy medium and hope that most walk away happy.

Based on the comments we heard from several hundred who attended the show, I think we mostly succeeded. However, next time - if there is a next time - we will try even harder.

posted 10-30-2005 01:11 PM               

Adam.

posted 10-30-2005 04:21 PM               

I got talking to Rob Pearlman late Friday night in the bar and found his stories very entertaining, especially his zero g flight!!

It was also funny to see someone come over to Robert and ask for his autograph as they thought he was a Peter Kay lookalike.
And if you're reading this Mr Pearlman...you owe me a drink!!

Si

posted 10-30-2005 05:30 PM               

Didn't know you had a zero G flight.
Sign me up next time you're given another opportunity; I'll come along. Robert is a sleeper; he has exerienced a lot but is a bit modest to talk about it. One day I'd like to buy Robert a few drinks and get a better understanding of his history. Maybe in San Antonio.

Mel

posted 10-31-2005 04:08 AM               

What can you say,a great weekend in all,i met all Astronauts and Cosmonauts and thought how great to meet these guys again,yes again,also had the pleasure to speak to Rex and Lynne,Dave Shayler,even a chap who covered Apollo 17,A.S.T.P.,the early shuttle missions and brought a load of pics,images and authentic nasa mission reports to be signed,he even had a signed Neil Armstrong pic with him as well which i offered to look after for him and he explained the story behind it and did have the chance to meet a few of you Collectspacers,so all in all,couldnt of asked for anything better.

I also attended the lecture given by Scott Carpenter on sunday morning,he was informative and entertaining but visibly tired but gave his all and he gave great answers for all the questions including my three,an absolute legend.

So hopefully i am hoping to make it to the next Autographica in march,fingers crossed.
By the way does anybody know who they have possibly in the pipeline for next year,i did ask the Shaylers if there may be a possibly a chance of bringing Gerry Carr over again,but i was told not in the foreseeable future,but either way hope to see you guys there again next year.
Cheers,
Alex.

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"Why dont you fix your little problem and light this Candle?"

[This message has been edited by ApolloAlex (edited October 31, 2005).]

[This message has been edited by ApolloAlex (edited October 31, 2005).]

posted 10-31-2005 04:20 AM               

So we went to see the other astros. Richard Gordon was great, trying to convert Joe's age into a US school grade. This came in handy later, when Jack Lousma also asked the "what grade are you in?" question. He also told us the tale of how he managed to spot the LM on the moon from orbit, through his sextant. When I asked if he was the only one to do this, he replied "yes, because I was the only one who knew where to look". He then conceded that Stu Roosa may have managed it too.

On to Jack Lousma, who was friendly beyond belief, chatting to Joe about his school, and was amused to hear that Joe's teacher wasn't sure if Buzz Aldrin was still alive. "He certainly is, and I'm sure he'll tell you that himself..."

We met Charlie Duke & Scott Carpenter last year, and finances didn't allow us to line up for them again. Instead, we headed for Joe's other main target for the day - Darth Vader.

David Prowse was OK, but even Joe felt he was not as chatty as he could have been. But, as I pointed out, he's a baddy...

We spent the next couple of hours looking around the dealers, having some lunch, stepping outside to watch the planes taking off, and generally waiting for Buzz.

At about 3pm we were once again loitering around the pre-queue area, with the latest number up to about 320, and our chances of seeing Buzz looking as unlikely as ever (we had to leave by 4 to get the train home). We were the only ones there at that moment, and one of the organisers turned to us and asked what our number was. When I told him, he just said "follow me...." and whisked us through into the room. Whoever he was, THANKYOU!!

Just another 40 minutes standing in line, and we made it. To be honest, I felt Buzz was tiring, but he took care over our items, and happily paused for a photo or two, but there was no time for any real chat, beyond some amusement that a dedication we had asked for, "To Joe...", was the very example on his price list.

I know there has been much debate about his fees, but listening to people in the queue (i.e. people who were willing to pay) confirmed my own feelings. The high price may be justified by contracts with galleries etc, but the extras for dedications, mission number, etc was perhaps a step too far. And the whole question of not displaying the prices until you were actually in the room was very dubious. I know some people got that far and then walked straight out.

Meeting Buzz was a moment we will never forget, but "warm glow" of the day goes to Jack Lousma, who, without prompting, added a lengthy dedication to Joe's photo.

posted 10-31-2005 04:32 AM               

I agree Jack Lousma was great,i addressed all the astronauts and cosmonauts as Mr.Carpenter,Mr.Gordon and so forth but when i reached Jack,he said "Hi im Jack" so i stood and chatted to him about skylab,The saturn 5,his mission and flight on his Saturn 1B,he expained as well because he was the last into command module he told me he had the chance to look down and to which he exclaimed "whoa we where pretty high up" and wrote everything down i wanted and a dedication,fantastic guy.
In the end my wife had to drag me away,lol.

By the way is the four chaps who asked my wife and i to take there pics with Jack Lousma members of Collectspace,that was funny as we explained with all the cameras we where given we felt like paparazzi.
Cheers,
Alex.

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"Why dont you fix your little problem and light this Candle?"

[This message has been edited by ApolloAlex (edited October 31, 2005).]

posted 10-31-2005 05:59 AM               

The venue was probably the best location so far as regards ease of travel, getting onto a plane at Leeds and flying straight to Heathrow. It actually took almost as long to get from the airport to the hotel as the 200 mile flight down !

We were at a slight disadvantage to know what was going on as our information pack and passes hadn�t arrived before departing so we had to get replacement passes first of all. One thing I think Autographica has lacked since it�s early years is a guide, which has floor layouts showing where the various signers are, dealers, which rooms the various talks and events are in and all the timings to help keep everyone on track.

The hotel itself was very nice, but one should expect that, as it is a quality hotel. The downside of course is the truly extortionate food and drink prices onto which they slap a 12.5% �service charge�. The event is a pretty expensive weekend for most of us anyway so this doesn�t help (!)

The Friday evening drinks reception was OK but not much to write home about, other than a chance to catch up with old friends. There was a (very limited) supply of wine provided and it seemed only a few of the guests (who I recognized, it must be said) were in attendance.

Saturday morning � early start to collect our �Virtual Tickets� to see Buzz and Ursula Andress. Got to Buzz� room just after 9.30am and there was already a queue of about 40 people there. Were issued with the �price list� � but we all sort of knew what was coming as it has been debated on various sites for some weeks. Just opted for the one item as I do have a few signed items now from him � how many do you need?

Despite other comments seen thus far, I can only speak as I found, and he was perfectly pleasant with both and Hannah and myself. Greetings, handshakes and thank-you�s all round. He waited patiently at one point when we were not sure if the camera had worked and posed for a second shot.

Toured the show after checking out the action in the �Space� room, which was quite busy by then. The great disappointment for me was Alexei Leonov�s absence as I had a number of items for him. But C�est la vie, another time perhaps. Hannah invested my unspent Leonov cash on signed photos of Viggo Mortensen , Ian McKellern and Sean Bean for her Lord of the Rings collection.

Abandoning the family for a while I headed off to Buzz� lecture which was an excellent Q&A session with most questions posed by �usual suspects� (need I say more).

Lunch at MacDonald�s next door (a favourite Robert Pearlman haunt!) then into the Space room. We met the three cosmonauts for signings, chat and photo shoot (!).

Scott Carpenter was delightful as always and signed the photo I had taken a while back with Jack Lousma, Dick Gordon and himself. Remarked he was the only one still slim enough to get in a spacecraft !!.

Moved on to the ever popular Dick Gordon who signed the group photo as well as another item I wanted. I also gave him a copy of the photo I took of the astronauts group at the 2000 event which he had remarked on a year or so ago that he really liked. He was really pleased to have a copy. Dick also helped me identify some astronauts in a photo of Groups 1 and 2 desert training � we managed to get them all bar one (thanks to Dave Shayler for getting Ed White).

Jack Lousma signed the group and said it was unusual and quite nice to sign more personal items as most requests are to sign �space� pictures. Had a great chat with him.

Charlie Duke signed a photo of the two of us taken last year. Had a good talk especially about his visit to Yorkshire next month. Noticed he had a bag of Pontefract Cakes on his table (obviously in preparation for the visit !)

Part 2 to follow

posted 10-31-2005 01:59 PM               

I enjoyed the event very much, I found the staff as friendly and efficient as usual, and all the guests interesting and available.

I got Buzz to sign my items on the Friday, and at least then he seemed relaxed and to actually enjoy being there.

I have to say the highlight for me was the Saturday dinner, I was sitting (alongside members Kim and Yvan) at Buzz's table and enjoyed the experience very much. Although Buzz often wanders away from the original subject when replying to a question he never ceases to provide very interesting opinions.
He was accompanied by Lois who is a real character (I say that respectfully)and was very friendly.

The space men in general were great, with a special mention to the cosmonauts.

And as usual meeting fellow cSers and Yahoo astronaut group members was a treat (even though I seem to manage not to meet every year a bunch of you guys).

posted 10-31-2005 02:20 PM               

quote:

---

Originally posted by nasamad:

Derek, glad the Salyut pics came out ok, was the one Vladimir took the one I gave you ? I only found it as a low res pic on a yahoo search and added some extra Earth to it to make it good for an 8x10. To be honest I thought it was computer generated.

Adam.

---

Hi Adam,

The photograph you gave me was the one that Vladimir Dzhanibekov took and he really got a kick out of seeing it. I really am most grateful as IMHO it looks absolutely fantastic with the signatures/inscriptions (see below).

Robert, I appreciate your words in the post above. Both Buzz and yourself were pleasant but the exchange with Buzz was no-where near as enjoyable as it was with the other space guests. And that had absolutely nothing to do with the monetary cost of the signatures... the others were just genuinely pleased to meet fans/collectors of the space program.

posted 10-31-2005 02:56 PM               

Pottered about for the remainder of the afternoon calling in to get a signed photo of Ursula Andress. Then, a visit to Brian Blessed. What a character !!! Spoke of his mountaineering, acting, judo and his cosmonaut training!

In the late afternoon retired to our room to regroup and prepare for the evening. Called in at the bar for some ice and found a lurking group of �suspects� including Derek Horne who I managed to meet at last after exchanging e-mails for many months and missing on previous occasions.

Having changed into our finery we proceeded to the pre-dinner drinks reception held upstairs in the �Hangar of the Crystal Carp� as I christened it. Much mingling, small amounts of free wine (it has to be said � one third of a glass doesn�t constitute free drinks on my boozeometer).

Had a nice chat with John Ffoulkes and his wife, Alex and Tracy Ward introduced themselves and we had a nice talk with them also, especially as they were to be on our dinner table. Frederic and Yvan were much in evidence and we had a few natters with them. Moved down to the other end of the room for photo opportunities with the cosmonauts and Buzz and managed to get a few good ones.

Running somewhat late we moved into dinner and had a quite enjoyable meal but as they say (in Russia I believe) �it�s not what you eat it is who you eat with�. This couldn�t have been truer as we had the honour and pleasure of spending an evening with two (OK Rex, three) of the nicest people you could wish to meet.

Vladimir Dzhanibekov and Yuri Romenenko were superb company. Both have good English and we chatted about many topics as well as, of course their flying and cosmonautics careers (and what careers!). Besides discussing Tolkien and guitar playing we were regaled by stories of their training and flights and some of the stunts you wouldn�t believe (!). These were interspersed with regular toasts of course.

I sat next to Vladimir for quite a while and found him to be a very kind considerate and very humble man as well as a skilled artist (Happy spaceman Ollie !). At the end of the evening he took his place card and wrote a long and lovely message to Hannah which I know some of you saw. At the end of the evening we all shook hands, hugged, Hannah got several and a kiss and the cosmonauts took to their beds, as they had to work next day.

The rest of us went back upstairs to the �Casino Royale� to play with the Autographica money we had been left with on our table. After getting quite a good photo of Ursula Andress having a win I then proceeded to the roulette table having promised Hannah we would have a brief go as it was midnight.

Well despite my attempts to lose my chips so we could go to bed I kept winning, and winning and winning�.. . Eventually I asked Fred to take over and see if he could lose it for me, and retired. Others went to the bar (what did you say Ollie � 4am when you staggered out).

Next morning at breakfast I�m staggered to find that Fred didn�t lose my money but we had in fact amassed over �4,000 and won 3rd prize in the competition. We collected our prize and said we would have a look to see what we could share out. Over 15 signed photos from Star Trek, A-Team. Buffy, and Stargate � so Hannah who knew who most of these people were had an instant addition to her collection.

Back to the Space Room to get a few more cosmonaut signatures and further chats with the astronauts who were having a quiet time by now.

After lunch at MacDonalds again, (Robert Pearlman in there again. I think I have a handle on your food preferences Robert!) back to the hotel for a final tour round and goodbyes.

So thanks to everyone we met from the usual suspects and beyond. Geoffrey Bowman, Ollie the Pauls x 3. Ian A, Alex and Tracy, Rob and Jill Wood and family (cool in a tux Rob), John Ffoulkes and Mrs F, John Masters, Frederic and Yvon, Helen, Carl Walker, Dwight, Derek, Brenda and Ted , Phil Graham and anyone else I know and have omitted (sorry!)

Be thanks to the workers - Rex and Lynn for all their hard work, Dave and Mike Shayler and their clan for the AIS stand and the talks. Robert Pearlman and his assistant to whom I must apologise as I never learned your name! Of course I must say a BIG thank you to Dave and Garry the heartbeats of Autographica, without you gentlemen this simply would not happen. Take a big bow!

posted 10-31-2005 03:52 PM               

I had one of mine signed in gold and it didn't come out quite so well.

I have now put this weekends purchases on my site as individual entries and also as a single page, including my Aldrin composite that didn't arrive until Friday morning, phew ! http://adboo.com/auto/autographica_2005.htm

posted 10-31-2005 03:56 PM               

quote:

---

Originally posted by machbusterman:
I waited in line to get my stuff signed and was a bit disgruntled at the lack of cordiality by ... Buzz � I don�t think it would have killed anyone to actually say thank you? Derek

---

Good report Derek.
I'm grateful Rob brought Buzz over but have to echo the coldness of the encounter. Every other astronaut in attendance STOOD UP when you met them and said "Hi, I'm Charlie/Dick/Jack/Scott". Photos were taken STANDING UP with Charlie, Dick, Jack and Scotty SMILING at the camera. They all concluded the encounter with "THANKS, for coming" or similar.
Sadly, as in Burbank, the Aldrin experience was just the same and left me feeling empty. Still, I have two nice photos of me KNEELING at Buzz's side with his head firmly down. Guess that's commerce for you.

Paul

posted 10-31-2005 04:25 PM               

quote:

---

Originally posted by Steve Procter:
Part 2

Well despite my attempts to lose my chips so we could go to bed I kept winning, and winning and winning�.. . Eventually I asked Fred to take over and see if he could lose it for me, and retired. Others went to the bar (what did you say Ollie � 4am when you staggered out).

---

Thank you Steve for a wonderful report but I do need to correct one point and that is the 4am departure time from the bar after the Saturday night party. Whilst 4am is technically correct in GMT time, if the clocks had not moved back at 2am with the end of British Summer Time the time would have been 5am.

Best wishes
Rob Wood

posted 10-31-2005 05:15 PM               

Sorry I have done the 'serious' drinkers in the group a dis-service!

We wimps were in bed by 1.30 !!!

posted 10-31-2005 08:34 PM               

quote:

---

Originally posted by Blackarrow:
... At �8 (yes, that's about $14) for a pint of cider (i.e. two bottles) ...

---

posted 11-01-2005 06:03 AM               

Well we at moonpans.com had a great weekend, despite our prints for the show being delayed by customs, and only turning up yesterday (Monday)! But we still managed to carry on by offering our other moonwalker signed prints and posters.

Our table was in the Astronaut room, which was a great place to be, just next to Jack Lousma and Charlie Duke, who were both very friendly indeed, as was Dick Gordon and Scott Carpenter.

During quiet periods they all came over to browse through our panoramas, and seemed very impressed, there was also a lot of friendly banter between them and the cosmonauts.

Heres a couple of photos:

Our table with Jack Lousma and then Charlie Duke on the far right

Buzz signing a moonpan and Robert Pearlman

Thanks
Mike Constantine
http://moonpans.com

posted 11-01-2005 06:21 AM               

However drinks were expensive. 10 pound for a beer and a non-alcoholic cocktail?!? I guess that's to be expected at any hotel. Besides, no-one forced you to drink the hotel booze.

I got all my sigs on the Friday which allowed me to mingle with the VIPs without worrying about times etc on the Saturday. As I caught up with friends on Sunday, I decided to skip the show. The time pressure to make my flight also helped in my decisions.

The cosmonaughts and astronaughts were great fun. Luckily for me I am also a Bond fan, so chatting with the 007 people was a nice break when the astro lines got too long.

The moonpan and Praxis book people (david Shayler and co) were magnificent. Hats off to you guys, you made my time there very hassle free and enjoyable! Many many thanks.

posted 11-01-2005 07:23 AM            

I'd also like to extend my thanks to the Autographica team for a great show (this was my second).

My highlight was meeting Jack Lousma - he was onboard Skylab when I was born, and he took time out to have a very long conversation with me about what he might have been doing (-: Watching Dick Gordon climb onto his chair to pose for a picture with a very tall bloke was funny ("Hey, I'm scared of heights!").

Vladimir Dzhanibekov signed my picture twice by accident, which meant I had a very smiley photo - he couldn't stop laughing.

Thanks too to Robert for your hard work in getting Buzz over here - I know we all appreciate it.

cS members - I missed you all! Although I think I might have been near to Derek in the queue when he was at the Cosmonauts. Hope to see more of you in March (-:

posted 11-01-2005 11:36 AM               

I attended Friday night and immediately obtained the autographs of Vladimir Dzhanibekov, Yuri Romanenko and Valery Kubasov. At only �10 per autograph including photo, this represented fantastic value for money. I think it is a great shame that many non-space enthusiasts � i.e. those attending the show for film and tv �stars� did not take the time to find out who these guys were and what REAL achievements they have made.

I also obtained Buzz Aldrin�s autograph on Friday night. I thought for a good while about this, as the price, in my view, is extremely high indeed. Not least adding an extra �10 for �To Robin� and another �10 for �Apollo XI�. Only because of the savings I made by not having to stay at the hotel, I relented and decided to obtain his autograph. I have to be honest and say that it is the autograph that I have gained the least satisfaction in obtaining. Given the other extra charges that were made for completion and model items, it was a little unprincipled for me. Still, I�m sure that I will be glad about it in time, when the financial pain wears off, I hope. (Mind you, I did see one dealer selling Sid James� autograph � British � �Carry On� - film �star� for �199. Made Buzz Aldrin�s seem somewhat better value!)

As I had obtained Dick Gordon�s Charlie Duke�s, Jack Lousma�s and Scott Carpenter�s autographs at previous Autographica�s, so I did not obtain them again � mostly due to budget, but personally speaking, one is usually enough for me.

However, I did attend the following lectures:

Buzz Aldrin � on Saturday. The room was packed. Ok.

Vladimir Dzhanibekov, Yuri Romanenko and Valery Kubasov � on Saturday. Few people in attendance, which was a shame because these guys really have great story to tell.

Scott Carpenter � Sunday. Few people in attendance, but a really great talk. Now we know about the Titov swing!

Vladimir Dzhanibekov, Yuri Romanenko and Valery Kubasov (Again) � on Sunday. A few more people in attendance this time, and an even better talk!

Dick Gordon � on Sunday. Very few people in attendance, but what a great talk!

Charlie Duke � on Sunday. A few more people in attendance. This guy gives brilliant talk. In fact, the very best talk I have ever heard about anything in my life. I really do wish some of my non-space autograph collectors would have come and seen this chap. I know they would have loved it!

Jack Lousma � on Sunday. Very few people in attendance, but a highly interesting and amusing talk! Unfortunately I had run out of video tape at this point � and I so wish I hadn�t!

However, I did manage to get the photographs of all the people I did not buy an autograph from � Carpenter, Gordon, Duke, Lousma - by explaining that having just enjoyed their talk so much, and asking politely If I could have a picture taken with them. They all obliged fantastically. This enhanced my time tremendously, as I was feeling financially bereft by now. Also I had so many photographs taken with Cosmonauts I lost count � at any convenient moment, I just asked for another pictures and they happily obliged. I have to say that it was this group of guys that made the time so good. (6 talks � Cosmonauts twice, Astronauts one each, and three Cosmonauts autographs = �90. Great value as far as I am concerned.)

I did not attend the dinner, parties etc, due to financial re4aosn, as I have never attended any before, I cannot comments on them. I have read people's comments about the atmosphere, but I was happy enough.

posted 11-01-2005 12:13 PM               

To Buzz's credit his rate was the same for non A11 multi signed items, and that made me very happy indeed. I have an item with 22 sigs ranginging from Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, STS, Vostok, Soyuz, ASTP, Salyut, MIR, and "currently awaiting assignment" so it is pretty representative of the whole space faring phenomenon.

I found the beer prices more offensive than any signature rate.

posted 11-01-2005 01:50 PM               

quote:

---

Originally posted by mmmoo:
Buzz signing a moonpan and Robert Pearlman

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posted 11-01-2005 04:26 PM            

quote:

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Originally posted by spaced out:
[QUOTE]Originally posted by mmmoo:
[b]Buzz signing a moonpan and Robert Pearlman

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[/B][/QUOTE]

It depends if he has already been signed by Armstrong and Collins...

posted 11-01-2005 11:38 PM               

quote:

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Originally posted by john ffoulkes:
I was not aware of any charges for using Visa. Anyone else experienced the same thing?

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