Brain Tumour Research's Wear A Hat Day

She said it:

I'm doing it in support of friends who have dealt with it (and looking adorkable):




It's not too late for you to join the fun. And if you do, post your photo (and send me a link or the photo for the site)!

Updates
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Groves is doing it!


Monique is doing it!

An Afternoon with David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson

I'm going to be spending the afternoon (and early evening) with David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson (and special guest Chris Carter). And no, smart-asses, it's not because I'll be spending another Saturday night fervently clutching my DVD player remote (though, I love doing that and will do that again). Nope, this is one of those in-person, not in a massive convention hall, charity events that sounds like fun. You should be there, too!

Details:

http://www.prnewschannel.com/2011/06/28/david-duchovny-and-gillian-anderson-welcome-special-guest-chris-carter-as-they-sa-yes-for-charity/

Actors David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson are reuniting for IBG's summer charity event on July 30 in Los Angeles to benefit SA-YES, a South African charity focusing on the empowerment of marginalized youth in the country.

Foregoing an outside moderator, fans will be treated to the actors taking turns as they pose questions to one another about their entire careers, process and future plans. Have any burning questions for the actors? Ask them! Audience members will be allowed to pose work-related questions to Duchovny and Anderson as part of the event. Dying to know what is in store for Hank Moody in the fifth season of Californication, or about Duchovny's role in Goats? Want to know more about Anderson's work in the upcoming Moby Dick or Johnny English Reborn? The opportunity is here! And, of course, the truth is still out there about the possibilities of a third X-Files film.

As a special treat, the man who created the two characters that Entertainment Weekly named among the 100 greatest characters in pop culture, will be joining in the fun.  Chris Carter will take the stage with Duchovny and Anderson during the latter portion of the audience Q&A to field questions from fans and, perhaps, pose a couple of his own to the duo.  In addition, Carter will be joining Anderson for the photo/autograph signing following the Q&A.

VIP tickets are available through the IBG website: http://www.ibginc.org/specialseries 

Act fast! General seating tickets for the event have already sold out. Fans do not want to miss this truly unique, live event.

 

Lovely LA Times Surprise

Look what the lovely Los Angeles Times provided the city with this morning.

Click on the image to make it bigger.

Opportunities You Can't Pass Up

Because I am fantabulous in every possible way (shhhh, go with it), I bring you the following intel (pay special attention to the fact that registration ends today for the live auction items and that the eBay auction ends on Saturday).

Just as a side note, I was over on the Castle set last year. That gang could not have been nicer (or more attractive-- mercy that's a good looking bunch!).

What do "Life Unexpected", "Castle", "The X-Files", "The Soup" and "Two and a Half Men" Have in Common?

Last chance to get your bidder registration forms in for IBG Inc’s first-ever Live Auction event.

IBG Inc has extended their registration through Thursday October 28th 2010 for their first-ever Live Auction event. The auction itself will take place on Saturday, October 30th and feature both live and silent auction lots, as well as a select eBay component.

The auction contains some fantastic, one-of-a-kind item donations! The latest items to arrive include a cast-signed copy of the "Life Unexpected" pilot script and a Discovery Bay Games package (that is a must for "Saturday Night Live" and Grateful Dead fans). These two new additions join the already popular auction lots of "Castle" set visits, VIP TV Taping tickets to "Two and A Half Men", as well as "The Soup", a private cooking lesson with Chef Gavin Mills from Bastide, a limited edition lithograph from the upcoming Disney animated film "Tangled", a ModCloth Outback handbag, and Los Angeles Dodgers ticket vouchers.

Interested parties can take a look at the complete auction catalog and event details on IBG Inc’s website: http://www.ibginc.org/octauctions

Those interested in bidding on any or all of these lots must register on the IBG Inc website anytime before Thursday, October 28th 2010. Bidder forms must be returned by 5pm PT on the 28th for the auction, which takes place on Saturday, October 30th in Los Angeles. IBG will not be allowing on-site or same-day registration; however phone and absentee bidding are available for convenience.

"The X-Files" fans will want to take special notice of these as both stars of the hit 1990s genre series have donated special fan experiences. IBG Inc is happy to announce two unique items available on eBay in conjunction with this auction event: tickets to "The Break of Noon" along with a meet-and-greet with star David Duchovny in NYC, as well as set visits to "Johnny English Reborn" with a meet-and-greet with Gillian Anderson in the UK. The items available on eBay are live right now and do not require special registration through the non-profit’s website. The eBay item lots will end on Saturday, October 30th just after the live auction event ends. Links to the eBay auctions are available on IBG’s website at http://www.ibginc.org/octauctions, or bidders can visit the IBG store on eBay at http://myworld.ebay.com/ibg_inc/

IBG is a 501(c)(3) public charity focusing on utilizing the power of philanthropy through the arts to benefit a wide range of charities worldwide. We act as a "fundraiser facilitator" for micro-funded and start-up charities that would otherwise struggle with the logistics and costs associated with event fundraising. For these charities, every dollar is crucial. Since we began fundraising in December 2008, IBG has disbursed nearly $50,000.00 to participating non-profits.

Proceeds from this live auction event will have significant impact on IBG’s ability to support partner organizations which include non-profits on the front lines dealing with catastrophic illness, education, arts and culture and social services.

Charity Event: Celebration of The X-Files

Some readers have inquired as to whether or not I'll definitely be at "The Celebration of The X-Files" event on November 14, 2009 at the Beverly Wilshire. Um... does this answer the question? :)



Not into clicking on widgets?

Here are the details:

Please join IBG Inc. on Saturday, 14 November 2009 at the Beverly Wilshire hotel in Beverly Hills, CA, for an afternoon to celebrate “The X-Files” series and films, while raising funds for a number of worthy charities. The event will feature a moderated Q&A panel with in person appearances by Frank Spotnitz, Gillian Anderson and other TBA members of “The X-Files” team*.

A limited number of VIP tickets, available for $125, can be purchased here: http://www.ibginc.org/tickets. VIP tickets to the event grant the holder front section seating, in-person autograph with participating panelists (to date: Frank Spotnitz and Gillian Anderson) and admission to the VIP party (please note that panelists are invited, but not expected to attend the VIP party).

Preferred ($75) and general seating ($50) tickets for the Q&A are also now available at http://www.ibginc.org/tickets.

Have you always wanted to meet actress Gillian Anderson, or talk writing and producing with Frank Spotnitz? “Meet and Greets” with Gillian Anderson and Frank Spotnitz (which will be held directly prior to the event) will be auctioned on eBay throughout October. Check the tickets page for the latest bidding links: http://www.ibginc.org/tickets.

The IBG website has all your information on ticket availability, event schedule, participating charities and venue details: http://www.ibginc.org/events

Founded in late 2008, IBG established an official non-profit campaign focusing on utilizing the power of philanthropy through the arts to benefit a wide range of charities worldwide. IBG acts as a “fundraiser facilitator” for underfunded and start-up charities that would otherwise struggle with the logistics and costs associated with event fundraising.


*Event talent subject to change due to availability.

Cost
VIP Ticket: $125; Preferred Seating: $75; General Seating: $50; Email admin@ibginc.org for information on student ticket discounts.

Charity

For my readers who are X-Files fans, this one is for you. For those of you who aren’t X-Files fans— how do I know you? Kidding. Kidding. Just look away for a moment.

I Want to Believe (aka X-Files 2)
Want to own an authentic, signed piece of X-Files memorabilia? IBG is running auctions now and 100% of the proceeds will go to benefit Neurofibromatosis!

IBG is very excited to announce that a signed theatrical poster for “I Want to Believe”, donated by Fox Studios, is now available on eBay to benefit NF.

The poster is the international "snow" version and approximately 27" wide x 40" long. It is gorgeous, in great condition and autographed by Gillian Anderson (signed during her recent visit), David Duchovny (the first to sign when he was in town for the SAG awards), Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz specifically to benefit NF. Gillian Anderson's signature is in black. Chris Carter, Frank Spotnitz and David Duchovny signed in silver.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170317538731&ssPageName=ADME:L:LCA:US:1123

Neurofibromatosis (NF) is a genetic disorder of the nervous system which causes tumors to form on the nerves anywhere in the body at any time. This progressive disorder affects all races, all ethnic groups and both sexes equally. NF is one of the most common genetic disorders in the United States (one in every 3,000 to 4,000 births).


The Complete X-Files at Book Soup (aka How to spend an evening with Gillian Anderson, Frank Spotnitz and Matt Hurwitz Without Really Trying)

The DVD of the uncut footage of the Book Soup event to promote the release of “The Complete X-Files”, which featured a Q&A with Gillian Anderson, Frank Spotnitz and Matt Hurwitz, is now available. The DVD is available through IBG (http://allthings.inspiredbygillian.com/store) for $10 plus shipping -- 100% of the proceeds from the sale of this DVD will go to support Off The Street Kids (http://offthestreetkids.org). Your donation gives you an opportunity to be one of the initial contributors supporting the development of this vitally necessary program.

Off The Street Kids (OTSK), a start-up charity supported by Gillian Anderson, seeks to respond to the needs of marginalized youth who are forced to leave care in South Africa at the age of 18 when state funding ceases. Many of these young people return to the streets because they have neither the skills to support themselves nor a home to return to. OTSK aims to help the youth find training, further education and long term employment to prevent them from having to return to the streets.

DVD includes the complete footage (including seven additional minutes of footage not clipped on Big Light). Alison Groves has edited the DVD. In doing so, she was able to boost the sound, and add captions for the questions that were harder to hear. Alison also included a selection of photographs from the event taken by fans.

Additional DVD Details:

Matt, Gillian and Frank footage runs roughly 20 minutes (and includes about 6 minutes of footage with Gillian that was not previously posted on Big Light)

1. What was it like for you to hear from new fans (Matt to Frank)?
2. Did you have any memorable fan experiences during the ramp up to the last movie (to Gillian)?
3. How were you able to balance work and life (to Gillian)?
4. Why are you here (to Gillian)?
5. Are you going to have any more auctions (to Gillian)?
6. Were there any pictures or stories in the book that you’ve forgotten (to Gillian and Frank)?
7. What was the most challenging episode to film (to Gillian and Frank)?
8. Any guest actors that you enjoyed working with or learned from (Matt to Gillian and Frank)?
9. What was the biggest difference between filming in Vancouver and Los Angeles (to Gillian and Frank)?
10. Any word about X-Files 3 (to Frank)?
11. Question regarding the artwork in “all things” (to Gillian)?
12. Do you plan on directing more (to Gillian)?
13. What are you working on right now (to Gillian)?
14. How is the baby (to Gillian)?
15. When did you realize how big X-Files was (to Gillian and Frank)?
16. Did you guys have fans showing up in Vancouver to catch you filming (Matt to Gillian)?

Matt and Frank additional Q&A runs additional 6:30 minutes (filmed off-tripod).
1. Question about the missing end of the sentence on pg. 68 (to Matt)?
2. Any cool stories about behind the scenes things (to Frank)?
3. When does Part 2 of the book come out and what was your process (to Frank and Matt)?
4. Who did the inserts and how were they chosen (to Matt)?

And a brief cameo by Mat Beck.

* Based on our experience with the NF XF DVD, we feel confident that even fans outside the U.S. will be able to view the DVD on your computer systems. Orders will be sent out starting the week of March 30.

That was unexpected…

That was unexpected…

http://katedating.blogspot.com/2008/10/5-months-drawing.html

On October 19, 2008, I embarked upon an experiment. I left the five months that followed it up to the grab bag of fate, and hoped for the best. Admit it. You are curious how it all turned out, aren’t you? I will keep you in suspense no longer. While we still have approximately 20 days left to achieve greatness, let’s review.

1. Go Back to Dance Class.
Fate decided to get me moving again. It was a subtle nudge that simultaneously screamed “get off your fat ass”. Nice try. The ass is still firmly planted on the couch. I’ve started naming the dimples. I’ve not even dipped my toe back into the pilates pool. I’ve morphed into an actual sloth. Seriously, I hang from trees most of the time now.

Somewhat humorously, back in October I declared that this one was the easiest of the four tasks. My identity was so wrapped up in being a dancer for such a long time that it was just a given to me. I couldn’t begin to explain why it hasn’t happened. I like to point out that at heart, I’m a lazy person. Pen, my therapist friend, likes to say that I’m depressed. Well, ok, she doesn’t “like” to say it, she has just decided to diagnose me.

Points for achievement: 0. Points for effort: 0. Points for momentarily considering going back to dance class at some point in the next 20 days just to prove I can: 5.

2. Sell or Produce the Kate Dating Web-Series.
Interesting. I’ve written the first season of the web series, and now I’m re-writing it as a television series (or at least the pilot). And before March 19th, I will have submitted it somewhere. I can’t guarantee a sale, and the show will not be produced by then, but I think we’re definitely moving on this one.

Points for achievement: 0. Points for effort: 10. Champagne for everyone if this one is actually achieved in some measurable way before the end of the month.

3. At Least Once A Week, Open Mind to New Ideas (and say “yes”) and 4. Attend Charity Events and Actually Converse with Strangers at Event.
Wow. I can’t even tell you how many points I deserve for these last two. I thought these two were going to be impossibly difficult to achieve in any measurable way. I’m not a joiner by nature. I’m so narrowly focused on my life that the second I agree to something instead of excitement, I tend to feel the oppressive weight of obligation.

But I took a deep breath and said, “Yes”.

I became fully involved in IBG, a group that raises awareness and funds for start-up and underfunded charities (http://allthings.inspiredbygillian.com). That mere act of saying yes to being part of the organization required me to start talking to strangers at events. I’ve met some fascinating people, and, knock wood, so far my interaction has been pleasant—and in some cases, hilarious!

There was this event with Frank Spotnitz in December: http://katedating.blogspot.com/2008/11/im-not-sure-thats-what-fate-meant.html. The event was a huge success raising much needed funds for Neurofibromatosis, Inc. While not everything went exactly according to plan, everyone seemed to have a great time, and meeting Frank was wonderful. Sure, I actually tried to hide from him during the photo call because a) he was a stranger and b) I was being forced to have a photo taken, but let’s not dwell on that battle over my more covert tendencies.

As a direct result of that event, last Saturday night at a book signing for “The Complete X-Files”, Frank introduced the IBG team to Gillian Anderson. I couldn’t begin to tell you what we said to her. Everyone in the shop was in shock. She lives in London. But there she was. Talking to us. Bizarre doesn’t even begin to cover it.


The group is a whirlwind of activity. I’ve even been forced to let some of these people into my apartment. Gasp! I know! I’m right there with you. I’ve even been known to be out at night for at least 20 or 30 minutes. We’ve got a whole host of upcoming events planned, including a concert, a movie/tv marathon (ha! You didn’t think I was going to say some sort of exercise, did you?) and more auctions. We have items from/signed by George Clooney (swoon), Jimmy Kimmel (amazingly tempting green room passes are among his items), the cast of Private Practice, Kate Walsh, Chris Carter, Frank Spotnitz, David Duchovny and, of course, Gillian Anderson.

Points for achievement: 10. Points for effort: 50.

It’s hard to say at this point whether or not the grab bag of fate has been successful. The goal was to let a random pick of the draw force changes in my life. While I’m still very much in the same place I was before—small apartment, hermit-like aspirations, single, not a partier—in many ways my life has become increasingly connected with the outside world. For better or worse, for richer or poorer, I am committed (or will be, once my need for a straight jacket can no longer be ignored).

Kate, fighting the good fight, in LA

I’m Not Sure That’s What Fate Meant

That fate thing has a wicked sense of humor. When I pulled out items from the grab bag of fate, I was happy to have a mission, but expressed a bit of disappointment. I had planned for these to be huge, life-changing action plans, but what I got were things that I had probably planned on doing anyway. Little did I know that while not dramatically life-changing yet, the items have started to take on lives of their own.

Take this one: Attend Charity Events and Actually Converse with Strangers at Event. Sounds simple, right? I’m a giver. My one big skill in life is writing checks. I’m not a poet or a song writer, but give me a checkbook, and I can make it sing. I do also attend charity events, but I sit in the back, and if there are strangers around, I hide behind a well-placed plant.

But fate has a sense of humor, and I’m not sure exactly how I’m going to hide at this one.

I’ve gotten involved with a great group of ladies who are actual “doers”—and no, get your heads out of the gutter right now, that’s not what I mean! I mean, that when they have an idea, they make it happen. That’s a pretty rare skill. I meet a lot of people who have good ideas, and then never pursue them (including me). I meet a lot of people who say they are going to do something, and then they disappear. But these ladies—these ladies mean business. And there is no way I’m going to be able to hide from strangers.

What is the event?

THE "INSPIRED BY GILLIAN" TEAM PROUDLY ANNOUNCES SPECIAL GUEST APPEARANCES BY THE X-FILES' EXEC. PROD. & WRITER FRANK SPOTNITZ AND DIRECTOR ROB BOWMAN!!

MR. SPOTNITZ AND MR. BOWMAN WILL ENGAGE ATTENDEES IN A 30 MIN. Q&A AT THE SCREENING EVENT, MODERATED BY TV GUIDE'S ERIN FOX!!

Please join the "Inspired By" Gillian" team, in association with 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, for The X-Files double-feature charity screening extravaganza!! In order to celebrate the release of The X-Files: I Want To Believe and on DVD/Blu-Ray and to honour Gillian Anderson's talent and philanthropy, we will be holding a fundraiser screening of FIGHT THE FUTURE and I WANT TO BELIEVE back-to-back!!

This is a charity event being held to solely benefit the organisation Neurofibromatosis, Inc. 100% of the proceeds from the screening will be sent in Ms. Anderson's name on behalf of Philes worldwide.

WHEN -&- WHERE
Time:
Saturday, December 6, 2008 from 2:30pm - 7:30pm

Location: Regency Fairfax Theatre
Street: 7907 Beverly Blvd.
City/Town: Los Angeles, CA

CONTACT
INFO.xfscreeningevent@inspiredbygillian.com
TICKETS: Tickets are on sale now at $50 per person and include:
*Q&A with Frank Spotnitz and Rob Bowman moderated by TV Guide’s Erin Fox
*screening of Fight The Future
*screening of I Want To Believe
*popcorn and soda
*commemorative programme
*a brief speech from a representative from Neurofibromatosis, Inc., who will also be on hand to distribute information and answer any questions.
*your name and brief note included in the letter and event scrapbook being sent to Ms. Anderson.

I can’t even begin to tell you how all of this happened. I’m not sure any of us anticipated how incredibly generous Gillian Anderson was going to be. I’m not sure any of us anticipated how available and generous Frank Spotnitz and Rob Bowman were going to be. I’m positive no one saw Fox Home Entertainment giving us a call.

Hollywood tends to get a bad rap. The image is of a place that is pretty selfish or at least entirely self-serving, and not particularly interested in the “nobody”. But, knock on wood, all we’ve encountered so far are extremely helpful, interested people—and that’s all the way down the line from assistants to managers to business partners to the studio to the “creatives” themselves.

I think you should all come out for the event!! But if you can’t come out to see me potentially pass out when forced to speak to strangers (an event, in and of itself that should not be missed), but you are interested in helping out the charity, there are a couple of ways you can do that, too:

http://allthings.inspiredbygillian.com/xfmoviesscreening

MILES ADRIFT, INCHES APART
Can't make it to the event? Purchase the
long-distance package for $20 which includes:
*information from Neurofibromatosis, Inc.
*one commemorative event programme
*your name and brief note included in the letter and event scrapbook being sent to Ms. Anderson.

And if that’s not your thing, how about an auction of memorabilia?

http://allthings.inspiredbygillian.com/auction

All proceeds will go to NF, Inc. in tandem with the screening event, on behalf of Philes worldwide in honour of Gillian Anderson.

We are very excited to have nine signed photos from Gillian Anderson available for auction. The first wave will commence on Friday, November 14th, 2008. The photos will be available for bidding three at a time, along with beautiful I Want To Believe trading card sets donated by the lovely Jacqueline Lopez, a friend and fellow Phile.

We will be adding more items each week.

Please keep checking back frequently for auction news and updates!!

***
currently available for this wave of bidding

Gillian Anderson signed editorial shot: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170279341153

Gillian Anderson signed promo photo for The X-Files: Fight the Future:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170279340431

Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny dual-autographed promo photo from The
X-Files: I Want to Believe:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170279338877

I hope to see you guys at the event. And if not at the event, I hope to see you jumping into the bidding fray.

Also, if you could pray that I don’t have a complete panic attack between now and then, that would be great, too.

Deep breath in… deep breath out…deep breath in… deep breath out…

Kate

The XF3 Tease

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the waters... or in my case, back to the blog, The X-Files and another movie become a slightly bigger possibility. Sure, it's early days, and this could just be deflection.

But...

http://www.moviehole.net/200816094-another-x-files-movie
...
FOX chairman Tom Rothman told IESB today that, despite the lackluster performance of the latter, there's still the possibility of another - and he's leaving it up to the cast and crew as to whether they'd like to see that happen.

‘'It's really up to Chris [Carter], David [Duchovny] and Gillian [Anderson]", Rothman tells the site. ...

===

So, in addition to all the other suggestions you have sent for my dart board of fate (which should be ready on Friday), I'm adding "get cast in XF3". It is true that I wont be able to achieve that in the next 5 months, but I could start the process of making it possible. Yep, it's going on a card on that board!

Now, all I need to know is how to best go about groveling to make this happen...

Unmitigated Disaster

A number of you asked whether or not I jumped in and did that interview with the potential for mild embarrassment that I talked about here.

I did do it. Everyone who said “what could go wrong?” please raise your hand.

Yeah. You people with your hands raised, this post is for you.

Many of you already know what happened. You can just skip this post (or skip to the end if you want to know the outcome) unless you want to relive the delight that was my life (as it so often is).

Back in June, I had an interview to promote the new X-Files movie. Against all my better instincts, I agreed to do this. Oddly enough, I wasn’t all that nervous leading up to it. I had a plan. I reviewed some episodes, thought about my answers, picked some high points that I wanted to hit, and I did some shopping. I even got my nails done because I tend to talk with my hands, and they needed some help.

The key here is, I had a plan. I even decided to think positively. This was going to be fun. It was going to be fine. I was going to be charming and witty. Chris Carter would see it, and invite me to the premiere (certain degree of irony in that thinking now since I actually did go to the premiere).

I’ll admit now that my first mistake was the plan. Had I stuck with my usual “this is going to suck, it will be a disaster, I will be a babbling idiot”, the universe may have tried to prove me wrong.

Instead, the universe laughed.

At the last minute, they decided not to have hair and make-up people at the shoot. There were going to be nine of us that day, and all girls, so they figured we could all do basic make-up and hair ourselves. Plus, they wanted us to look natural.

Yeah, the whole “natural” thing is not really a good idea for me. I can barely comb my hair and put on eyeliner. So, I decided to go to the MAC counter at the mall to have my make-up done before the shoot. The mall is in Century City. The interview was in Beverly Hills. They are maybe 2 inches apart. Ok, slight exaggeration, but still, not a far drive.

The plan was to get my make-up done at 11:00. My interview was at 12:30, so there was plenty of time to get the make-up finished and get to the interview.

I walked up to the MAC counter. Alas, there was only one woman working, and she was already doing a make-over. So, I waited for about 5 minutes thinking that she might finish up, but no such luck. So, I went over to the Clinique counter.

The Clinique girl agreed to do my make-up, and I thought I had scored and everything was going to plan. But for some unknown reason, the other girl at the counter decided to wander off to get some stock in the storeroom, leaving my girl there alone. So, naturally, she kept getting interrupted, as she was trying to do my make-up. Not just interrupted by someone wanting to check out. No! She kept getting interrupted by people with lists of products for her to fetch, and what about that special gift (I can’t tell you how many times I heard “What do you mean I can’t get the special gift that was only part of the promotion for 2 days last week, I’m here now!”). My favorite people were the people who came up to her and said “don’t worry, this will just take a second, I know exactly what I want” and then proceeded to not only have no idea what they wanted, but when she made a suggestion, they argued with her.

And yet, I was relatively serene. Ok, I was nervous as hell about the interview, but the plan was in place. This was just a small hiccup in an otherwise perfect plan.

Right.

What should have been a 20 minute make-up session took a little over 45 minutes. By the time I got out of there, and ran for the car, it was already 12:05. And since I was so late, I didn’t really have a lot of time to fix the make-up that maybe might not have suited me all that much—for instance, the lipstick that could have eaten Manhattan. Seriously, I’m pretty sure that it clashed with my hair in normal daylight—adding lights to that combination… yikes! I had no choice but to go with it.

But even though I was running (yes, literally running for the car), I was still feeling good at this point. Beverly Hills was just not that far away.

Screw that—on a Sunday, Beverly Hills might as well be on the other coast!

The street before Beverly (where the interview was) is Rodeo. Rodeo was blocked off entirely for a classic car show. Which means that even though I was on Santa Monica Blvd, every idiot who had any vague interest at all, was slowing down to look at the cars as they passed the street. And I mean every single car. At that point, I was starting to get a little panicky because I still had to find parking once I got to Beverly. So, I called the coordinator, and I told her that I might be 5 minutes late because of parking. She said no problem, and I started to relax.

HA! HA! HA! HA! HA! Sometimes I kill myself with the humor.

I turned onto Beverly, and I realized that the parking garage nearest to the studio was full and closed to further parking. Not to worry. Somehow, I managed to pull a u-turn, and got in line to park in Crate & Barrel’s parking lot. What I could not do, was actually get into the parking lot because cars were backed up on the road, and only one car could get through at a time. Finally, I got into the parking garage. I got all the way down to the 4th level because I just wanted to park, and run.

Too bad the elevator wasn’t working.

So, I ran up 4 flights of stairs. Yeah, that was a good look for camera. At that point, I was frazzled, sweating, my make-up was melted, and it was 12:30. Out of breath, I ran to the building to press the buzzer to let me into their studio.

Only to notice that I was on North Beverly.

The interview was on SOUTH Beverly.

I think it was a miracle that I didn’t start to cry.

I gritted my teeth and ran back across traffic and down 4 flights of stairs to the car. I got into my car to call the coordinator back, and of course, could not get a signal. In fact, I could not get a signal for another 5 minutes because I couldn’t get out of the parking garage because no one would let the cars out of the garage and back onto Beverly.

I finally got her on the phone, and she asked me if I knew where I was going—and the answer at this point was “of course not”. So, she told me to go east on SM, and then turn south past Olympic. The only problem was, I was already east of the street… and didn’t realize it. By the time we both realized that I am way too far east, I’d already driven out to Doheny.

The only good thing was that even she was laughing at that stage of the game.

I finally arrived at the studio. I was 25 minutes late. I was sweating. I was beyond frazzled. The only coherent words out of my mouth for the last 45 minutes had been curses (LE, you would have been so proud).

I got up to the right floor (miracle!), and they were all waiting for me to go in, and because I was so late, we went straight to the interview. I told the coordinator that I just wanted to brush my hair for a second. She looked away to talk to someone while I was doing this. She looked back at me and said “ok, do you want to brush your hair?”

Uh…

I didn’t have a mirror, my hair was a disaster, and all of a sudden I was sitting on a stool in front of a camera. Luckily, she was giving me powder for shine, and brushing my hair back into place.

Unluckily, the shot was a medium close-up, which meant pretty much breast level up. I was wearing a tank top underneath a v-neck, short-sleeved cardigan. Normally, you wouldn’t think twice about it. But when the camera starts at the boob, and the tank top is white, suddenly the entire bottom of the frame is filled with breast. This may be why no one who has seen the final product has ever mentioned the lipstick.

The interviewer started telling me the rules—nearly all of which I immediately forgot. Things like “they wont be able to hear me, so try to incorporate my question into your answer”—I don’t think I did that once. Things like “don’t use pronouns, use Mulder or Scully instead”—doubt I remembered that one. Then he made me memorize opening lines that involved spelling. People, I can’t spell on good days. I was still sweating from my trip through hell, and I had to spell????? Shit.

I was supposed to look at the camera and say my name and “I’m an X-Phile. That’s P H I L E”. Yeah, I know. To which I responded, “you actually want me to say that?” And then I laughed and warned him that the slate is going to be the hardest part. It was the only part I was supposed to look into the camera for, and even that was hard for me because after I said my intro, I was supposed to hold the look, to give the editors room to cut. But I started to break out into a tremulous smile because I feel like an idiot.

And then suddenly the nerves that had gotten beaten out of me during the frantic flight to the interview were actually worse than before because the adrenaline was still racing through me. My plan was completely blown to hell. I remembered none of the points I wanted to make. All of my analysis was gone. At the beginning, my voice was shaking. And my concentration was so bad that I actually forgot what his question was, and wandered off mid-tangent.

Rather than giving expert commentary about how the intellectual tension fueled the sexual tension, or that the dichotomy of beliefs within each character was vital to their development, inanity ruled the day. Instead of all of that, you know what came out of my mouth? I’m a shipper. What???? I have a job. I’m an adult. I have an MA in Economic Development. I even have a background in English Lit. What came out of my mouth? I’m a shipper. It’s not that I’m denying that I am one, I’m just floored that this was all I can remember saying.

Also, I committed the cardinal sin—I looked directly into the camera a couple of times. The camera guy stood up and did a light test, and it caught my eye, so I flicked my eye up, and caught the camera. It happened at least twice, which means even if they liked my answers at that point, they couldn’t use them. Luckily, I was still babbling, so I really wasn’t providing them with anything useful anyway.

Did I mention that leaning forward into the camera means you’ve either moved out of frame, or your cleavage is even more obvious? I started praying that none of my pink parts strayed.

Did I mention that my hair kept getting caught in my lipgloss, so that in the midst of talking, I had to pull it out?

Did I mention that my mouth was so dry that I had to keep running my tongue over my teeth to help with the dryness? I hope to God none of that ever sees the light of day.

I prayed for great editing.

I kept telling myself that it didn’t matter because it was just going to be part of the electronic press kit, or maybe an online thing. So, I asked the interviewer when we were done what this was going to be used for.

Oh.

It was an international television special airing overseas the week of the US premiere.

Then I thought, well, at least the people involved with the show wont see it. Let’s face it, the only one I’m really concerned about is David because I’d rather not have his first real impression of me be “Well, she has boobs, but can’t string a sentence together to save her life.”

Oh.

David’s publicist is across the street. They drop by on occasion. Sweet.

Well, at least…

It was shown in the theater at the London premiere.

Awesome.

=============
Now that a couple of months have passed, I can tell you that the product put together is actually fantastic. I’ve only seen the dubbed German version, but I sound quite intelligent dubbed in another language, and my appearances are mercifully brief. I do owe my first born (ha! Good luck with that) to the editor. The vast majority of the piece includes behind the scenes material, interviews with the principals and other fans sounding far, far, far more rational than I did. The frame was tighter than I thought so the breasts did not get any extra special screen time. Most of what they used of me was voiceover—and it was voiceover for what Duchovny was doing on screen. I’ll admit to loving that.

And the lipstick…well, it’s growing on me.

Kate

Full Circle To Find The Truth (aka How My Wednesday Ended Up To Be Surreal)

Photo courtesy of gadd1960.

By now, many of you have figured out two things: 1) I love The X-Files and 2) the new movie comes out this weekend. There are characters, actors and storytellers that stay with you, sometimes inexplicably, for years. For me, this ranks as one of my most successful love affairs.

But it has been fraught with danger, as well. And no, I don’t just mean Diana Fowley.

When I moved to Los Angeles, I started doing extra work—not because I had any great desire to be an actress (I’ve always been a hobby-ist at best), but because it’s Los Angeles, and the opportunity to see production from the inside has always fascinated me.

Over the years, I had the opportunity to work on The X-Files on a number of occasions. One of the best days I had on that set was for the episode “all things”. Why was it great? Many reasons. I was friends with a PA, and he took me around the standing sets. I sat on Mulder’s couch. I wandered into Mulder’s bedroom and sat on his bed wondering why he had a brandy snifter full of condoms if the guy was never getting any. Then I read the script sides for the shooting day. Ah… it became much clearer. Plus, Gillian Anderson was directing, and watching her go through the process (working with Kim Manners and directing David Duchovny, in particular) was fascinating.

But despite the joys of the day (which included working two scenes with David), it was also the site of another of those pesky regrets—another road not taken.

Because it was a small shoot, I didn’t go back to the holding area with the other extras when my first scene was finished. I stayed out of the way and watched. But because I was there when Gillian decided she needed another body to cross the screen behind David, I was a logical choice because I was nearby. I was placed and waiting. I couldn’t have been more than 10 feet away from him.

It was a scene where Gillian was supposed to grab his shoulder and turn him to face her. But she was behind the camera, and her stand-in had left to go to the bathroom. So Gillian yelled out, “can someone stand with him?” And I didn’t move because, of course, she didn’t mean me. Why would she mean me? I figured I was a nobody, so I should definitely not do it. Sets are pretty regimented and extras don’t have a lot of leeway generally. That overwhelming feeling of “I’ll get into trouble” kept me from moving. Then she yelled out “Really anybody”. But before I could force myself to move, a guy on the crew moved into place.

While it became a very funny moment -- the crew guy turned David and then the two of them started pretending to be very deeply in love—it’s a missed opportunity that has never really left my mind. It seems like such a little thing, but… No matter how many other times I worked the show, I kept kicking myself for not taking the chance presented to me.

I think the memory of this regret propelled me from the moment they announced that this second movie was going into production. I know it was a powerful motivator in my getting on that plane in February to go to WonderCon. If the adventure was going to be costly or time consuming, I started asking myself the question—will I regret not taking this chance.

I can’t say that I’ve regretted going to any of these events. I’ve met amazing people, and had such fun, again. Yes, I realize it is all fiction, etc – but it has just been fun. Remember fun? I’m not sure I remember often enough.

It was because of one of these chance encounters at the Paley Festival X-Files event that I probably had one of the most surreal days of my life.

As you know, I finally got my priorities straight and went to the fan event outside of The X-Files premiere. As the pictures and videos show, I got into the first 500 fans. I had sunburn. I was tired. I probably smelled. But I was so much fun to just be with these people. Apparently the video I had taken in the morning of three of the line campers had made the rounds because during the fan event, Frank Spotnitz actually mentioned seeing it. The news spread, and mentions of it made the LA Times and even on to the TV Guide channel premiere coverage (the reporter actually asked Duchovny about it).

And that would have been enough. I would have been okay with the just having those fan moments. I didn’t have tickets to the premiere. I tried bidding on a charity auction, and while for 2 shining minutes I held those tickets, I eventually lost them. I was resigned to it.

And then I got this email: “I have an extra ticket to the premiere—I don’t suppose you want to go”. It was from a girl I met and interviewed at Paley. We had stayed in touch. And still I hesitated. There were complications. There was a juggling act, financial issues and inconvenience—not to mention the whole “night”, “crowd” and “stress” trifecta.

Then I remembered regret. I remembered what it felt like to not take the chance. And while I wouldn’t be able to say I was definitely going to that premiere until I was actually in the seat, I took a deep breath and said “yes”.

I ran from the fan event to a parking garage where I changed clothing (if I ever become famous for any reason, I have no doubt that the parking garage footage will be on TMZ). And then I walked the red carpet in my red dress with my frazzled hair and dazed expression.

I think I still have trouble believing it. After all of these months of waiting, I was there. I watched that movie with Chris and Frank and David and Gillian and the hundreds of other people involved in making something I loved. Honestly, I think they got almost a bigger kick out of our reactions than seeing the movie themselves. At one point, there was a lot of “WHAT???” yelling going on, and then people starting laughing at us. Duchovny even mentioned our reactions in an interview he gave the next day.

It felt like coming home. There were so many people I had met from each of the previous events that also got in, and I’m not sure any of us could claim to be unaffected by our luck. We laughed. We cheered. We gasped. We may have cried (a little, and very elegantly, of course).

I know what you are thinking: “dude, get a life, it’s a movie”. But The X-Files was never just about the show or a movie. It has always been an experience. The stories have always been about seeing life in a different way. Maybe I finally took some of that to heart. And while I may always look upon that day on set with a twinge of regret, I’ll also have an amazing few months of experiences and an evening that still doesn’t seem real.

Kate

The X-Files: I Want To Believe Premiere Fan Event: Videos

David working the fan crowd like a pro!


Find more videos like this on Big Light

David looks like he's getting ready to break out his very best Elvis routine in this very short clip.

Find more videos like this on Big Light

Gillian meets fan on the red carpet.

Find more videos like this on Big Light

The Line

2:00pm Update: Roughly 225-250 people are here along with David Duchovny. Ok, he's not with us, but people in line saw him drive up. I think he's hoping to be one of the 500 in the bleachers. ;)

10:45am Update: 175-200 people currently in line. Did I mention I'm still working? yeah.

9:30am Update: Just spoke to Cari. She said there are about 100 people in line right now. Here is a video of the early bird campers!






Sadly, I'm at work right now. These guys are having much more fun. Fox has been generous enough to include a huge fan press conference before the premiere of The X-Files: I Want to Believe tonight. The first 500 get seats. Alas, I'm not sure I'm going to get there in time because of this whole day-job-making-a-living-thing. I did get a chance to visit the line this morning before work. The campers got there at midnight! Now that is dedication. These are my people.

LA Film Fest: X-Files: I Want To Believe: Videos: Tiffany

This one is for Venusflesh (Tiffany) over on Big Light. :)




And the fan cards and for Erica (not sure on the spelling) over at Big Light.

The Question Is

Would you go on television and give an interview if there was a chance of you looking foolish in the process?

Normally, I’m a relatively mature (hey, I said “relatively”), educated individual. In real life, I’m fairly serious, or at least I can be if the situation warrants it (unless we are discussing anal bleaching, and then there is just no way I can do anything sling mockery). I have responsibilities. But most of all, I try to avoid looking wildly foolish.

Enter “Temptation A”.

Fans of “The X-Files” are being offered the opportunity to help promote the second movie on an international special. While I don’t know a lot about it, I think it will be largely conversations about the show and the first movie, along with clips, etc. If you are a fan of show, and in Los Angeles, would you do it?

(If you want to, email me at katedating@yahoo.com, and I will give you the details that were forwarded to me from Raskolnikov at Big Light’s network).

I find myself in my usual role of instigator. I’m trying to get everyone around me to do it. I’ve sent out emails. I’ve cajoled. I’ve prodded. What I haven’t done is volunteered myself.

I am reticent. Once again, I am reluctant to put myself out there. Do I really want the world at large to see me regress to my inner 15 year old fangirl-ness? Or should I reserve that privilege for only those people close enough to me to witness it first-hand? And more than that, is this hesitance just another sign of my own natural reserve holding me back from doing something that I really want to do—like working in an invitation to George Clooney to call me? Is this yet another opportunity that I might regret missing eventually?

It really shouldn’t matter to me. I shouldn’t really care if there are people in their living rooms making fun of my lipstick, my lack of face-lift, or my gravitationally challenged breasts. But I think I might care.

So, I need a “Pro” list and a “Con” list. Here is what mine looks like so far. Please send me your additions. You hold my fate in your hands.

Pro
1. I get to help promote XF2
2. I might get to meet other people with similar interests and see what they think about the film (something that I had already started doing at Paley)
3. When don’t I like talking about “The X-Files”?
4. Potential to make “William Hung” money if asked to hum “The X-Files” theme music or to come up with a coherent sentence (which will obviously fail, making me the next YouTube sensation).

Con
1. Potential to look foolish
2. Potential to not be taken seriously in future industry endeavors
3. Potential to end up on Saturday Night Live as someone who needs to get a life
4. Potential to actually lose both undergrad and grad degrees when I provide graphic evidence that I’m an idiot (I’m not great at sounding anything but vapid under pressure in front of a camera)
5. Potential to never get a date again because men point at me on the street and say “there goes that girl who vomited on camera”
6. Potentially struck dumb by the enormity of "what I would wear" question
7. Potential to end up on “Girls Gone Wild” when I accidentally have a significant wardrobe malfunction

Now it’s your turn.

Kate, Oh, God, what would I wear?

A Madness Shared By…

You know what I’m doing right now? I mean besides typing, of course. I’m online at a place called The Haven. There are a lot of people in this one thread right now (so many that we’re likely to crash it), from all over the world, waiting to hear something about the new X-Files trailer that should be released at midnight PST (http://www.xfiles.com/). Actually, we just recently figured out that it was supposed to be midnight PST. Some people, quite inspired really, tried to change their time zones to some remote locale in Russia to try to fake out the release time early this morning (I love the ingenuity!), but when that didn’t work, we began to oh-so-patiently await the legitimate release.

Ok, patiently is a bit of a lie. These people are pretty inventive, though. For instance, I just got a kick out of watching a video on youtube of a girl waiting for the trailer to be released. Yep, it’s a video of her waiting. There are also videos of people reacting to the short promo “therapy” videos that were released this weekend (if you haven’t seen them, go to aintitcool and refresh so that you can see both promos in the top right hand corner). These are my people! Now, a whole bunch of us appear to be watching the first X-Files movie to kill time.

I have to be functional at 5am. I can’t stay up until midnight just to see a trailer that I can watch all day tomorrow (provided work doesn’t block the stream). But there is something about sharing the madness, about reading the reactions as they happen that make this experience much more entertaining than can possibly be explained to non-fans. You know, also known as sane people.

Can you imagine what would happen if I turned this kind of energy onto a guy? Honestly, my not dating is probably a public service. Think of the damage I would do.

“I had you big time”

Kate, humming the X-Files theme song and wondering when the intervention will be scheduled

http://www.cafepress.com/katedating
http://katedating.blogspot.com/
katedating@yahoo.com

Mid-Life Crisis Day 3

Mid-Life Crisis Day 3

I just took a test, and it is official: I am entering an official mid-life crisis. No, seriously, it was a test called “Are You Headed for a Mid-life Crisis” by Mary Kearl. I scored a nine out of 10. The only one I missed was the suicide question. Apparently, I’m too apathetic for suicide. Which I guess is a good thing? Sort of sounds like a backhanded compliment to me, but whatever…

The test results didn’t really give a clear answer on what to do to get out of this particular situation if you aren’t a guy (ie have affair with 25 year old blond and buy sports car). So, I’m sticking with my current plan: somewhat frequent flights of fancy. Tomorrow, I will become a redhead. No worries—several of you expressed concerns about me going strawberry blond. That will not happen. Also as gorgeous as Gillian looks, I will not be going Scully red. Sadly, I could never pull that off. But never fear, change is coming, and I’m sure people at work will be entertained. Maybe I need to change my hair color every couple of months just to keep them guessing. Perhaps I’ll find red to be too sedate and show up at the office rocking some electric blue.


An Awkward Thing About LA

If you are in Ohio and jamming along to Bree Sharp’s “David Duchovny” song, the people around you might think you are strange (well, ok, definitely), but for the most part, you’ll be fine. If you are singing it at the top of your lungs in Malibu, you might want to think twice. I was tooling up the coast line yesterday (reveling in my birthday vacation days). It was in the mid-70’s, so the windows were open, and I was singing along (badly), and then I thought… the person driving next to me might actually know this guy. And God help me, if he had pulled up next to me at a stop light. Can you imagine how strange that would be—to have total strangers singing about you not loving them on the way to Starbucks? Yeah, it was just an odd feeling. I quickly turned to the far hipper “Love Will Keep Us Together”. It’s just much less embarrassing to be caught singing along to Captain & Tennille.

Kate, we who are about to dye salute you!

http://www.cafepress.com/katedating
http://katedating.blogspot.com/
katedating@yahoo.com

Kate's Moment of X-Files Zen

I know I said I was done posting shaky video of the X-Files panel, but this one made me laugh. Turn down the volume. Frank Spotnitz is answering a question very seriously, and David and Gillian were talking amongst themselves. It's just a cute moment. Since they had been up shooting all night long, I'm guessing a certain amount of punchiness had made its appearance. So, turn the sound down and enjoy my version of a moment of Zen.




Kate
katedating@yahoo.com

Caprice Crane and Final Thoughts on the Weekend

As I’m sure was the case for many of the people who attended the festivities over the weekend, coming back to real life proved fairly difficult. I was completely unmotivated to come back to work—actually, I was completely unmotivated to get out of bed. Maybe it is a sign I need to do more unexpected and adventurous things. Nah, that can’t be it.

If you are still looking for videos of the event, a great one is here: http://weeklycomicbookreview.com/2008/02/24/x-files-2-wondercon-08-panel/

Also, if you don’t mind spoilers, you check out these:
http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_seyret&Itemid=227&task=videodirectlink&id=737
http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_seyret&Itemid=227&task=videodirectlink&id=739
http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_seyret&Itemid=227&task=videodirectlink&id=738


The flight back to Los Angeles (which had Jason Kyson Lee from Heroes and Rachael Taylor from the Transformers on it—both coming back from the same convention that I was at) allowed me to finish a book by Caprice Crane called “Forget About It”. Essentially, the book was about a girl who has seen life take so many turns for the bad (boss steals her ideas, lousy relationship with her mother, boyfriend is cheating, etc) that when she gets in an accident, she decides to fake having amnesia so she can start fresh.

It’s not just that she pretends to not know people, she seizes on this singular opportunity to change how she relates to everyone around her. She was always the girl who never stuck up for herself. She never made waves. She never wanted to cause trouble. The “amnesia” allowed her to lose her constant filter.

I’m not saying that I need a case of faux amnesia, but it made me really consider what having that kind of momentary freedom would feel like. I don’t have her relationship issues (thank goodness!), but I find myself in that “Oh, no, don’t want a fuss” position. Don’t believe me?

Have you ever gotten stuck in a stairwell of a high rise in New York? My friend M and I were working on the 35th floor of a building in New York (pre-9/11 safety situation). She and I took the stairs up to the 36th floor for something—the elevator wouldn’t go up that high because that floor was under partial construction. We had pass cards that should have opened the doors. The key card didn’t work. No big deal. We’ll just walk back down to the 35th floor. Yeah. That would have been a good plan… if the key card had worked there.

So, we’re stuck on the stairwell 35 floors up, and we’re a tiny bit flummoxed as to our next move. We decide to head down the stairs. Reasonable, right? Sure. We try all the key card stations several floors down. Still nothing. Well, we were already fairly far along, so we realize that we’ll just have to go all the way to the bottom, and take the elevator back to our floor. It was a good plan. Solid reasoning involved there. Would have worked too, if it hadn’t have been for the cage.

For some reason, the lower floors had a steel cage-like door blocking them. And it was closed. And locked.

Huh.

Ok, things at this point were not looking good. We had one more fairly reasonable option—the emergency phones. There were phones being put in every 5 floors or so for just this type of situation. We were sheepish. We were contrite.

We were also screwed because the phones didn’t work. No cell phones, either. Just M and I standing on the landing back on the 35th floor stairwell. We had only been gone for maybe 10 minutes. No one was missing us—or looking for us.

It was at this moment that I learned a very valuable lesson: calm demeanor and problem solving acumen are not character traits that get you rescued. M (God bless her) started screaming and pounding on the door. There were people working down the hall, so it was reasonable that eventually one of them would begrudgingly get off their butt and open the door (which someone finally did—looking way put out that we’d interrupted her very important game of solitaire to do it). See, M had already envisioned our rotting corpses in the stairwell about a two or three seconds after the door shut behind us. I’m pretty sure in her mind, we’d already been eaten by dogs—never mind that if dogs could get in, we could get out. She had seen our untimely end almost immediately, and was not going down without a fight.

You know what I did? I sat down on the stairs. My brain was trapped between two things: 1) I wonder if I can figure out a way to rewire the phone so it sets off an alarm and 2) we’re going to get into trouble. Forget about the fact that we hadn’t done anything wrong. Forget about the fact that when we finally did get out, we were able to alert the building managers that there was a safety problem with the non-operable key pads. My overriding thought as I was trying to MacGyver my way out was “we’re going to get into trouble”.

I’m that person. I’m the don’t-make-waves girl. I’m the one who obsessively checks her blackberry because I don’t want anyone else to be inconvenienced at work. I’m the girl who covers for colleagues constantly because I don’t want the hassle and don’t want them to get into trouble. I’m the girl who spends years not asking for what she wants in a relationship because she’s afraid of the consequences. I’m the girl who would never fly off to San Francisco for an X-Files event because it’s frivolous and would mean other people at work would be covering for her.

And yet I did it anyway.

Maybe this weekend was my own little form of amnesiac rebellion.

Kate, who thinks if this rebellion continues, the men of Los Angeles need to beware

katedating@yahoo.com

Better Than

That was better than sex.

P.S. If you click on the photos they get larger except for the first one which was a screen grab off of a very shaky video. When someone else was answering a question, David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson had this cute moment. Sadly, my video of it sucks. I'm betting one of the thousands of other people there caught it.

Sorry for the slow upload. I'm actually waiting to get on a plane back to LA right now. I'm hoping to get more up tonight when I get back to LA.