Ghostbusters: my date with Peck and Slimer

Who ya gonna call? Hot Nerd Girl!!

So my friend Hayden is slightly (and when I say slightly I mean majorly) obsessed with Ghostbusters

Ecto-1 ftw!

We once drove all the way downtown to a tech convention just to see Ecto-1 parked outside.  We stayed just long enough to take pictures and chat with the owner and then left. 

Then we got up early and headed to Costco to meet Dan Aykroyd and buy bottles of his Crystal Head vodka a while back.

So when Hayden found out that there would be a special showing of the film at Arclight Theatre with Ernie Hudson and William Atherton showing up for a Q&A session, it was pretty much mandatory that we attend.  Events like this are one of the few perks of living in Los Angeles.  You’d think there would be more perks, but nope, this town pretty much sucks.

It also happens to be Hayden’s birthday so it was a total score for me since it’s quite possibly the easiest birthday present ever.   

Hayden and HNG at it again

I showed up before Hayden did and just happened to run into William Atherton in the Arclight gift shop.  This was not my first time meeting Bill (we’re on a first name basis now).  I had met him once before in 2005 at the Whole Foods Market in Woodland Hills.  We were both grocery shopping and our eyes met.  We introduced ourselves, chatted for minute and then parted ways.  It was a moment, surrounded by organic, cage-free brown eggs, that I will never forget.  Hayden showed up a minute later and we took pictures with him and scored autographs.  I had Bill sign my crystal skull which he found highly amusing.  Amusing enough to write his note to Dan Aykroyd instead of to me.  A note that Danny (we’re on a first name basis now) will probably never, ever see.  But whatever.  Bill’s an awesome guy and not nearly as dickless as Venkman would have you think.

A girl and two pecks

Watching the movie on the big screen was epic.  Let’s just say that I was not old enough to watch it when it was originally on the big screen *ahem* so this was a real, if slightly fuzzy, treat.

Then came the moment we were all waiting for: the Q&A with Ernie Hudson (Winston), William Atherton (Peck), Joe Medjuck (Producer), Steve Johnson (Slimer, Visual Effects Artist), and Billy Bryan (Stay Puft Marshmallow Man).  Oh, but wait, Ernie Hudson decided not to show.  Or even call to say that he wasn’t going to show.

WTF ERNIE HUDSON???  

Ernie, you are dead to me

I know you’re so busy with your thriving acting career and all but really?  You didn’t even have the manners to call and say that you were so sorry that you couldn’t grace us with your presence?

Ugh.  Whatever.  My crystal skull didn’t want your signature on it anyways. 

The Q&A sans Ernie went smashingly with one exception: the host decided that his questions were far more important than fan questions and only left enough time for TWO questions from the audience.  Douche.  As my friend Kate would say “That’s soooooooooooo LA…”

All in all it was a great night. And although the kid next to me made a strange clicking noise when he yawned EVERY 30 SECONDS, I had a great time hanging out with the people behind the magic.  If they ever do one of these for Star Trek I might just have a joygasm.  

I'm a nerd…in case you didn't know

 Some fun facts learned:

  • Exploded Stay Puft was actually shaving cream.  Bill found out they were planning on dumping 100 lbs of the stuff on him and insisted they do a test run.  The test run knocked the stunt guy flat.  Oh, and they accidentally used mentholated shaving cream instead of regular.  Ouch.  Needless to say, all was rectified for Bill’s shot.
  • They filmed at all hours of the night and really pissed off the New Yorkers living in the neighborhood.  At one point Isaac Asimov came running out.  Dan Aykroyd got all excited and ran up to him and started telling him how huge a fan he was.  Asimov just stared and him and yelled “Are you the one responsible for all this???”
  • Francis Ford Coppola was filming The Cotton Club around the same time so when people got upset about the lights and noise the Ghostbusters crew started blaming it on Coppola.
  • They sometimes filmed without permits.  In the montage where they are running around New York catching ghosts, they are, at one point, really running away from a pissed off security guard.
  • The part of Venkman was originally written for John Belushi.  When John Belushi Graduated they brought in Bill Murray to replace him.  They had already created Slimer but completely revamped him as an homage to Belushi in Animal House.
  • Stay Puft is missing his tie in the scene where he explodes. Billy Bryan realized this in the middle of the night after shooting and woke up in a panic.  Since no one in the screenings ever noticed, they left it as is.
  • Stay Puft is the only aspect of the original script that survived.
No iron-on is a match for the 34DD's

Comments

8 responses to “Ghostbusters: my date with Peck and Slimer”

  1. its true sir, this man has no penis.

    lol great movie would have loved to be apart of something like that!

    1. It was fun 🙂 I was scheduled to go to events for The Walking Dead and True Blood but had to cancel because my mom is having surgery. Family first! Come up to LA for the next one!

  2. Had a truly epic time HNG! Thank you SO much for the ticket and going with me. Being the first time I’ve seen my favorite movie of all time since I was 6 was a truly amazing experience… especially since I can understand it better now, and remember it for that matter!

    Truly one of the greatest movies of all-time… every line is a classic repeated by millions world wide, and despite a couple of scenes with outdated effects (terror dogs running), it still manages to stand the test of time.

    Also, thanks for gratuitous 34DD shot… the Ghostbusters logo never stood a chance!

    Speaking of the GB logo, another little fun fact for your readers: A recent research survey was done that revealed the Ghostbusters logo is the 2nd most recognized logo in the WORLD… behind only the the Coca Cola logo. Pretty crazy, eh?

    1. Don’t say I never did anything for you. LOL j/k. Happy Birthday!!! 🙂

      It’s more recognizable than the Star Trek logo??? That can’t be possible!

      1. Here is a link to the YouTube Video of the Q & A for anyone interested:

        http://protoncharging.com/gb/2011/01/28/arclight-qa/

        Also, here is a link with regards to the logo being 2nd most recognizable… its in the very first answer:

        http://www.oxmonline.com/article/features/presses/ghostbusters-exclusive-interview

  3. That’s a shame about Ernie, considering he delivered one of the greatest movie lines of all time:

    Ray, when someone asks you if you’re a god, you say “YES”

    1. I know!! We were so bummed! Hayden has met him before outside of a diner, but I was really looking forward to meeting him. Ah well, c’est la vie!

  4. […] have people who worked on the movie do a Q&A panel afterwards. My NerdBFF Geek Outlaw and I went to one of these for Ghostbusters and LOVED it. Events like that are one of the few things I miss about living in […]

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