Forum: rec.arts.tv.mst3k.misc
Subject: Re: Mike's book signing in Woodbury, MN
Date: 07/26/2000
Author: Commander Crayfish (clfunaro@aol.com)
"Chris Deborah Moore" canddmoore@worldnet.att.net wrote:
>I went to Mike's book signing in Woodbury, Minnesota tonight. He read the
>entry for The Bridges of Madison County and answered a lot of questions from
>the crowd. I really enjoyed getting to see him in person and getting my
>book signed.
He was a charmer, wasn't he? Among my favorite bits were when he described the one and only film he had ever fled- Billy Madison, produced by the same folks as MST3K:TM, and which all of the cast had been invited to at a private screening. I loved the image of him and Kevin and the rest actually RUNNING out of a theater that conjured up in the back of my mind. He certainly had all of us in the crowd eating out of his hands, as well...
He was really personable one-on-one, as well. I had to ask him, upon seeing the Maltin blurb on the cover, how he felt Maltin would have ranked it on the star system. "Marginally better than Laserblast?" "Only marginally, yeah. I'm not that good a writer."
Oh yes, that man kicks ass. I liked his other comment on Maltin too. "The man will not SHUT UP!" ;-)
"Even a stupid plan is better than no plan."
- Captain Chuck Simian
*****************CLFunaro@aol.com*****************
Forum: rec.arts.tv.mst3k.misc
Subject: Re: Mike's book signing in Woodbury, MN
Date: 7/27/00 12:26 AM Central Daylight Time
Author: mst3ktrade@aol.com (Mst3ktrade)
I liked Mike's re-enactment of himself listening to Maltin: "Oh really? You have the laserdisc of that movie too?" {rolls his eyes and backs away slowly}
Yes, I was lucky enough to be at the signing. At the last minute, I decided to leave work early to go and it was probably the best decision I've ever made in
my life. Mike was extremely funny (of course) and very warm and easygoing. His personality makes you feel like he sees you as a friend. Even though
you're just a face in the crowd and your fannish devotion would probably scare the bejeebers out of him if you didn't keep it in check. But I digress.
Despite his laid-back personality, I was still a little star struck. So while I was waiting in line, I was wracking my brain to think of something I could say or a question I could ask in order to make a little conversation while I had the chance. When I finally made it to the front of the line, he said, "Hi.
How are you?" I replied, "Good," and handed him the book to sign. Then I realized that I was actually talking to Mike Nelson. He asked if he could make
it out to anyone, and I tried to say my name, but my throat had suddenly taken on the texture of the Sahara desert. I don't think he heard my rasping attempt
to speak because he repeated the question and this time I was able to answer, "Jeremy." Unfortunately, my name is actually Steve. Just kidding. While he
signed the book, I said, "I have a question about the contest you had on the website. Are any of the winners actually cashing their checks, or are they
just keeping them as momentos?" He replied, "A lot of them have been telling us that they don't plan to cash them. {sinister voice} It was all part of our
master plan. We save 1.18 every time they don't cash it." I mumbled something along the lines of, "if I had won, that baby would be framed on my wall," and
then thanked him as he handed the book back. It was only as I walked away that I had the presence of mind to actually look at what he wrote. When I did, I
had to laugh. It said:
"To Jeremy,
Don't eat glass.
Michael J. Nelson"
Now, I hope he wrote that as a silly non-sequiter and not because I appeared stupid enough to actually ingest glass if not duly warned in advance of its
inadvisability. Knowing what a nice guy Mike is, I'm going with the former. And Mike, if you happen to be reading this--thank you. Thank you for making us
laugh at the movies. Again.
Mike Nelson. What a guy. Here's hoping we can all be a little bit more like him. I yield the floor.
Jeremy
P.S. The book is hilarious! But as funny as it is in print, it was 10 times funnier hearing Mike read from it. If ever a book needed an audio version this is it. I would certainly buy a copy. In the meantime, I urge all of you to rush out and buy the book if you haven't already. Mike Nelson's Movie Megacheese. Ask for it by name.
Forum: rec.arts.tv.mst3k.misc
Subject: Re: Mike's book signing in Woodbury, MN
Date: 07/29/2000
Author: Commander Crayfish (clfunaro@aol.com)
mst3ktrade@aol.com (Mst3ktrade) wrote:
>I liked Mike's re-enactment of himself listening to Maltin: "Oh really? You
>have the laserdisc of that movie too?" {rolls his eyes and backs away slowly}
My favorite part had to be when the "twenty dollars of audio equipment" provided to him by the good folks at Barnes and Noble failed, and Mike spent the next five minutes fiddling with the equipment. Trust me, folks, your life is not complete until you hear Mike belt out a rendition of "Like a Rhinestone Cowboy."
>Yes, I was lucky enough to be at the signing. At the last minute, I decided to
>leave work early to go and it was probably the best decision I've ever made in
>my life. Mike was extremely funny (of course) and very warm and easygoing.
>His personality makes you feel like he sees you as a friend. Even though
>you're just a face in the crowd and your fannish devotion would probably scare
>the bejeebers out of him if you didn't keep it in check. But I digress.
No, I agree with you there. Mike is a great man, incredibly warm and with a wit so fast he can shoot out a barb before it actually registers with you. He's also TALL, which really put me off for a moment. Watching him come out of that side hallway and tower above the bookcases... I mean, I'm 6'3", so people who are taller than me really tend to get my notice. Mike is like the Shaq of comedy writers. And what do you want to bet than "comic novel" he mentioned working on with famous Minnesotans as the main characters will include at the very least, Dylan and Prince?
>Despite his laid-back personality, I was still a little star struck. So while
>I was waiting in line, I was wracking my brain to think of something I could
>say or a question I could ask in order to make a little conversation while I
>had the chance.
[snippage by web author]
See, I was wracking my brain before I actually got to the bookstore just to make sure I wouldn't do my usual stupid thing and babble incoherently, or worse yet:
"Dude. Your wife is HOT."
Don't doubt my powers of foot-in-mouthism. The Laserblast thing seemed like a great in. It's simple, it isn't overly-fannish, his Maltin rifs during the reading cemented it for me. I told him about three times what an honor it was to meet him, which seemed far better than just rambling about how big an MST fan I am. His signature to me was-
"Chris -- HELP! Mike Nelson."
After seeing that line winding all the way back to the front of the store, and knowing that he'd never get done in time, wouldn't you think the same? ;-)
>P.S. The book is hilarious! But as funny as it is in print, it was 10 times
>funnier hearing Mike read from it
[snippage again]
I hadn't actually read the thing yet myself when he began the reading, so I will forever more be hearing the Bridges of Madison County segment in Mike's "rich natural voice," as he described it. "I did not read this book, because I am A MAN. Even the author did not read this book." To actually hear Clint Eastwood's face referred to as a chewtoy... It's moments like that you just can't put a price on.
By the way, I have to ask this, because I am a dope... Was Gateway Con held in St. Louis? Because Mike mentioned attending an unofficial MST con a "week ago" in Saint Louis, and I was thinking how cool it would be if he actually mentioned it at a signing. Almost makes up for my not being able to attend. Almost.
I also liked how Mike commented that "you get real sick" of MiSTing bad programs on the television, past a certain point, and how he just lets his kids do it for him now.
"Even a stupid plan is better than no plan."
- Captain Chuck Simian
*****************CLFunaro@aol.com*****************
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