While most parts of conventions – smelly enclosed spaces, nerds, boring panels, overpriced food, insanely overpriced memorabilia – don’t appeal to me, I’ve always loved the Autograph Alley. Or, as it’s alternately known, the Walk of Shame. This is where all of the B list celebs have booths and charge you for their autographs. Walking through Autograph Alley at a good convention is like heaven for people who read this site – Flash Gordon‘s Sam J Jones will be seated next to a guy who wore an Ewok suit in Return of the Jedi right around the corner from a Playboy model who last appeared in the magazine in 1981.

These are the people who get me excited; living in LA and doing what I do for a living I’ve met all the big names, and I know I’ll meet the next round of big names when they get big. But what about the big names of the past, or the names that never got all that big? Where else will I get to meet Elvira or Ken Foree or Fat Momma from Who Wants To Be A Superhero? And then be charged to get my picture taken with them?

The Hollywood Show, being held in Burbank on April 25th and 26th sounds like a convention that’s right up my alley. Their guest list reads like a weird movie and TV who’s who, and includes more than one person who I was certain was dead. They also have amazing photo ops. But the title of this article refers to one major event they’re hosting: a Back to the Future reunion.

Check out this list of talent appearing at the reunion:

    * Tamara Carrera (“Jacuzzi Girl #1”)
    * Tracy Dali (“Jacuzzi Girl #2”)
    * Charles Fleischer (“Terry”)
    * Courtney Gains (“Dixon”)
    * Deborah Harmon (“News Anchor”)
    * Christopher Lloyd (“Doc Emmett L. Brown”)
    * Ricky Dean Logan (“Data”, “Needles gang member”)
    * Francis Lee McCain (“Stella Baines”)
    * Marc McClure (“Dave McFly”)
    * Kevin Pike (Special Effects Coordinator)
    * Andrew Probert (Production Illustrator)
    * Elsa Raven (“Clocktower Woman”)
    * Lea Thompson (“Lorraine Baines McFly”, “Maggie McFly”)
    * James Tolkan (“Mr. Strickland”, “Marshal Strickland”)
    * Darlene Vogel (“Spike”, “IFT Receptionist”)
    * Jeffrey Weissman (“George McFly”)
    * Claudia Wells (“Jennifer Parker”)

You read that right. Jacuzzi Girls 1 AND 2 (from Back to the Future, Part II of course), the guy who played Crispin Glover in Part II and Marty’s original girlfriend from the first movie! Also Christopher Lloyd and Lea Thompson in her first convention appearance, but forget them: Clocktower Woman will be there!

I kid. I’m psyched about this. There will be a DeLorean from the movie on premises, and you’ll be charged to have your picture taken there. Production illustrator Andrew Probert has a slideshow of the original ending of BTTF that he’ll present as well; I guess that’s not on the new DVDs for some reason.

And if that’s not enough – they’re throwing an Enchantment Under the Sea dance Saturday night. Fuck yes!

And that’s just the tip of the Hollywood Show iceberg. I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am for this photo op:

And Steven Bauer will be at the show! You can have him in the picture.

Of course I’m taking the piss on that one, but here’s one I’m not taking the piss on:

Yes, that’s the Statue of Liberty prop from Planet of the Apes. Yes, they will charge you take your picture in front of it. Yes, Linda Harrison, who played Nova, will also be there. Yes, I will be getting my picture taken.

There are a zillion more people at this convention who I am dying to meet. A few:

# Gerrit Graham, Beef from Phantom of the Paradise
# Peter Graves, who is apparently not dead
# Ed Gale, the dude in the Chucky and Howard The Duck costumes
# A Buck Rogers cast reunion, featuring Gil Gerard, Erin Gray and the guy who was Twiki!
# Mamie Van Doren, also apparently not dead
# Dawn Wells, of Gilligan’s Island
# COLONEL TIGH FROM BATTLESTAR GALACTICA!
# Allison Angrim, who was Nelly Olsen on Little House on the Prairie (this gets me so excited it’s humiliating)
# Frank Bank, who was Lumpy on Leave it to Beaver
# Kathleen Coleman, who played Holly in the original Land of the Lost
# A couple of veterans of the Our Gang comedies
# Lori Petty, whose career apparently is dead
# The guy who played Jackie Chiles on Seinfeld


and a million more. For the complete guest list, visit the Hollywood Show’s website. They’re adding names by the minute, it seems. I’m guaranteed to be there, recruiting guests for the New Beverly and doing quickie Flip Cam interviews, as well as plain old gawking. I just want to get lunch with Steven Bauer, Dawn Wells, Ed Gale and Mamie Van Doren. All at once. I’ll pay.

Thanks to BTTF.com for the list of BTTF attendees in a neat alphabetical order.