Hot Nerd Girl

Tag: ghostbusters

  • WonderCon 2013

    Mama Jedi, HNG, Geek Outlaw

    Mama Jedi, HNG, Geek Outlaw

    Hope y’all had a very happy and nerderific Easter! I apologize for the lack of posts recently. Between working full-time (yes, I have a “real” job!), out of town guests, and just plain old life, I just haven’t much time to blog. But I’ll try to be better.

    So, a lot of cool crap happened this past weekend. There was new Doctor Who, the season premier of Game of Thrones, and the season finale of The Walking Dead. And, of course, WonderCon.

    I mentioned in my wrap-up of last year’s WonderCon that WC was the first comic book convention I ever went to (back when it was in Oakland) and it holds a very special place in my hearts. It’s a nice combination of comic books and TV/movies. San Diego Comic Con is great, but it focuses so much on the Hollywood stuff that the comic books tend to get a little lost. A comic book vendor and I were joking on Saturday about the audacity of the people who actually buy comic books at a comic book convention! Inconceivable!

    After cosplaying as Thor for a day at SDCC last year, I honestly didn’t think I would cosplay in public again for a very long time. I’m quite shy, especially around large groups of strangers, and my instinct is to blend in. Cosplaying is the opposite of blending in. Because of the timing of the day, I didn’t spend much time at SDCC walking around as Thor. But in the brief times that I did, it garnered a lot of attention. Attention that I’m not used to and that made me a bit panicky. I was very uncomfortable and not just because of the corset. I’ve been putting together a Tenth Doctor costume for quite a while now. He’s my favorite of the Doctor incarnations (followed by Eleven, Four, Nine, and Five) and, if I’m being completely honest with myself, I was looking for an excuse to buy a sonic screwdriver. Because of last year’s experience, I almost didn’t wear it, but I’m glad that I did. It was comfortable and fun and was a great ice breaker (that and the flask of liquor I kept in my backpack *ahem*)

    Enough rambling, on to the panels I attended. Sadly, the TV show panel I was most excited about was the Vikings one and I missed it thanks to the traffic around the convention center. I was very, very sad because, as many of you know, I’m very proud of my Viking heritage. But I sat in on a bunch of really cool ones that made up for it.

    Allons-y!

    Geeking Out with the League of Extraordinary Ladies

    Panelists: Autumn Massey, Dina Kampmeyer, Emily Heyer, Geek Girl Diva, Jenn Fujikawa (Just Jenn), Sarah Kuhn, Stephanie Thorpe, Theresa Wollenstein

    These geektacular ladies are very much in line with my favorite motto: “nerd girls of the world unite.” They are a positive group of strong, independent, intelligent women who love to geek out together and support each other. As someone who can’t stand cattiness, these ladies are right up my alley. The first thing I did when I got home was to join their facebook group. I encourage everyone (men are also welcome) to join as well.  Unfortunately, we had to leave their panel early to make it to the next one. What I wouldn’t give for a time-turner so that I could go to multiple panels that are scheduled for the same time.

    Falling Skies

    Panelists: Drew Roy (Hal), Sarah Carter (Maggie), Seychelle Gabriel (Lourdes), Remi Aubuchon (Executive Producer)

    I’ve been a fan of Falling Skies from the get go. As my NerdBFF Geek Outlaw says, “if it’s got aliens in it, I’ll watch it!” And it keeps getting better. We got to see some clips from the first episode premiering June 9th on TNT, including a new baby girl, some more Karen, a badass new punk rock haircut for Matt, promotions for Tom and Lourdes, new alien technology, conflict for Maggie, and some pretty epic looking battle scenes. It definitely got me excited.

    Oddball Comics Live: Sex, Drugs, and Rock ‘n Roll

    Panelist: Scott Shaw

    I’ve never laughed harder at a panel than I did at this one. Scott Shaw has collected some of the most bizarre comic books imaginable over the course of the last 50 years. It’s filled with crotches, boobs, phallic symbols, crazy concepts, and hidden-in-plain-sight imagery (kind of like the dirty stuff found in every Disney movie made from 1989 to 1992). It’s hard to tell if they were done intentionally or unintentionally.  He’s compiled them into a power point presentation that he complements with witty commentary. It’s hysterical and I highly recommend checking it out if you ever see him on a convention schedule.

    Roddenberry Presents

    Panelists: Rod Roddenberry, Trevor Roth, Tory Mell

    As a life-long Trekker, I always enjoy checking out the Roddenberry Presents panel. I’ve had the pleasure of hanging out with Rod and Trevor a few times now and even interviewed Rod at SDCC last year (I’m still perfecting my interviewing skills, mmmkay?) They are super nice and working on some seriously awesome stuff.

    Rod Roddenberry, HNG, Trevor Roth. I have no idea why I look bored in this picture, I SWEAR I wasn’t. I was probably wondering if Mama Jedi knew how to operate my camera.

    Things worth checking out right now: Days Missing, Mission Log podcast, and White Room: 02B3. Things worth checking out in the near future: Worth. We were teased about exciting new things TBA at SDCC this year. One of the highlights of the panel? Winning this awesome “Cool as Kirk” t-shirt for answering one of the trivia questions correctly.

    Geeks Get Published

    Panelists: SG Browne, Katrina Hill, Alan Kistler, Alex Langley, Dr. Travis Langley. Moderated by Jenna Busch.

    This panel was extremely informative. It was a panel full of geek-centric authors offering up free advice on how to get published. The main thing I took away from it was that I’d like to get a literary agent and that I’m doing the right thing by writing what I love. Afterwards, Alan Kistler found me downstairs and wanted a picture (he’s a big Doctor Who fan and is coming out with a Doctor Who book later this year.

    Alan Kistler and HNG

    He graciously stayed and chatted with Geek Outlaw and I for a good 10-15 minutes about writing while his friends wandered off to the bar without him. Thanks again, Alan!

    Here’s some of what happened down on the Floor…

    One of the first booths we noticed was that of Lion Forge Comics. It was a mighty impressive booth.

    Geek Outlaw oohing and ahhing

    They had a healthy line for the slot machine which we were talked into joining. It was manned by this lovely lady armed with a sonic screwdriver.

    Mama Jedi went first and won a giant bag.

    Then it was my turn.

    The machine didn’t seem to be working properly so I fixed it when no one was paying attention and won a bracelet.

    Then Geek Outlaw went and won a bracelet. I totally took a picture of him doing it but he didn’t send it to me so blame him for the empty space here.

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    Based out of St. Louis, MO, Lion Forge has a lot of projects in the works and were some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet. We chatted with a number of the people involved, including the Creative Director, the YouTube channel host, one of the primary writers, and even the guy who’s in charge of Licensing who was kind enough to help me get Mama Jedi into the giant bag she’d won.

    It seemed like a good idea at the time

    There was a large “celebrity row” including Boomer aka Herbert Jefferson Jr. from the Classic Battlestar Galactica.

    Star Wars staple Chewbacca aka Peter Mayhew.

    The ghost of Richard Hatch aka OG Apollo and reboot Zarek.

    The Soup Nazi aka Larry Thomas, who’s decision to sign soup ladles convinced Geek Outlaw to buy an autographed one for his parents who LOVE the Soup Nazi.

    And then there was this guy who Mama Jedi made a beeline for. I still have absolutely no idea who he is or what he does besides sitting there shirtless.

    We ran into SDCC buddy Daniel who was holding down the fort at the booth of a friend.

    We also visited a buddy from this past Long Beach Comic Con. Artist Matt Stevens creates metal fan art. Last time I bought Tenth Doctor and Wash. This time I got an Eleventh Doctor and River Song bookmark. They sit right by my desk and I LOVE them. Not only is Matt a fantastic artist but he’s a super cool dude so you should definitely check him out HERE.

    That’s a mighty fine t-shirt you got there, Matt

    One of the ships from Oblivion.

    There was a parade of R2 units lead by a small child.

    Where were those brakes again?

    They got into a fight with a couple of WALL-E‘s.

    There was some spitting and at one point the Black R2 unit totally flipped off one of the WALL-E’s as you can see in this video I took:

    [youtube:http://youtu.be/gfu_uFi_W6E]

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    It wouldn’t be an HNG convention wrap up without the costume pictures!

    One of the very first cosplayers we ran into was Toni Darling, better known to the interwebz as Lady Thor. She’s a friend of Daniel’s and the artist who’s booth he was manning (see the posters and artwork behind him?)

    I have no idea why I’m making that stupid face

    On our way to the Falling Skies panel I time crashed into my future self in the form of a delightful guy with a very convincing British accent named Jack.

    Something’s up with the universe because we ran into each other again at the end of the night while Geek Outlaw and I were chatting with Alan Kistler and took some more pics.

    This is Alan’s friend who took off for the bar while we were deep in conversation about writing and stuff

    Jack even helped us out by taking the picture of our little group in front of the WonderCon sign.

    Time crash number two occurred down on the Floor. This time I ran into my Fourth incarnation.

    Four is my favorite of the Classic Doctors so he gave me a jelly baby which I totally ate, because, heck, it’s a jelly baby from the Doctor! It was delicious.

    It was a little freakier when I saw myself. I’m just going to assume that he’s the Meta-Crisis Doctor 😉

    Mini me. Seriously, this kid was adorable. He was a bit upset with his Mom because she ruined his jacket. It’s not easy being the mother of a Time Lord, mmmkay kiddo?

    There were many, many, many ladies dressed up as the TARDIS. Apparently a Time Lord dropped some TARDIS coral on Earth at some point in the past.  This one was one of my favorites because it was so unique.

    Let’s move away from Gallifrey and check out some of the other costumes, shall we?

    This Lady Thor sat next to us during the Roddenberry panel.

    I ran into this walker at least three times. It freaked me out just as much each time. *shudder* He obviously ran into Haley from Woodbury because there’s no way Daryl would have missed that badly. Twice.

    There are always a few Ghostbusters wandering around conventions. This time they were everywhere. We chatted with a group from Sacramento for quite a while. I like the Ghostbusters groups, they do great things in their communities.

    The Ecto-truck (behind Ecto-1) belongs to one of the guys from the Sacramento group.

    The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man was the Dad of the Mini Tenth Doctor (see him down in the right hand corner? He’s totally thinking he has the coolest Dad ever).

    Stay Puft helped me out by posing with Flat Stanley. I was put in charge of Flat Stanley by a friend who’s kid read the book. I honestly have no idea what the heck Flat Stanley is all about but I returned him to his owner yesterday. Apparently I’m getting him back when I go to Wisconsin for my family reunion next month,

    Rad.

    Steam Punk Snow White can kick your ass.

    Disney Princesses + Rainbow Brite = every little girl’s fantasy come true.

    Jon Snow admiring Daenerys’ …uh…eggs. Riiiight…..

    THIS.

    COBRA Command from GI Joe. I’m pulling this entirely from memory here but the group seems to include Serpentor, Destro, The Baroness, and I think Zarana, a BAT and a Night Creeper. Please correct me if I’m wrong, it’s been more than a few years.

    Marvel goodies vs. DC baddies.

    LEGO Darth Maul!

    This fellow HNG was mighty hot for a scruffy looking nerf herder.

    That’s a nice multipass you got there, Leeloo (and a view from the rear for anyone who’s interested).Finally, there’s CMDR William T. Riker as portrayed by a guy who’s name really is William (no joke). He was very nice and we chatted for a few minutes about how much we love Star Trek. It was only after I got home that I realize we’d already met and taken a picture together at Long Beach Comic Con back in November. Kismet!

    And that concludes my wrap up of WonderCon 2013. It was loads of fun and I’m looking forward to next year!

  • San Diego Comic Con, Part 4 – Sunday Shenanigans

    Geek Outlaw and Hot Nerd Girl aka Nerd Best Friends Forever

    This has been my craziest Summer ever. I feel like I’m never home and I pretty much haven’t been since the beginning of June. Some of the reasons have been great (weddings, visiting new family members, hiking through Yosemite) and some of them have been sad (Grandma’s funeral) but all of them have been very time consuming. So I apologize for being so behind in answering emails and messages. Hopefully things start to calm down a bit.

    In the meantime, here is my last SDCC 2012-related post! (Don’t forget to check out my interview with Rod Roddenberry in the very near future. It was conducted at SDCC but is a beast all its own).

    Even though I had a couple more costumes to choose from I opted not to cosplay on Sunday. Not gonna lie, it was kind of a pain in the ass and one day of it was enough for me. I will definitely cosplay at future conventions though. It was a lot of fun despite the hassle.

    The first half of the day was consumed by the Fringe, Supernatural, and Doctor Who panels in Hall H. In case you missed it, I wrote about all of the Comic Con panels here.

    The second half I spent wandering around the Exhibition Hall. I didn’t see as many celebs on Sunday but Convention regular Thomas Jane was there.

    A bunch of people requested that I check out the Suicide Girls booth. Ask and you shall receive. They really liked my buttons.

    My buttons turned out to be pretty popular actually.

    Which is awesome cause I’m pretty much obsessed with my new button machine.

    I really wanted an awesome souvenir from the Con, and y’all know I’m a huge Trekkie, so when Geek Outlaw found Brian Rood’s booth I got really excited. I bought that lovely Kirk-Spock print you see in the pic.

    Some other randomly awesome stuff from the Floor:

    I’m actually pretty bummed that they remade Total Recall (if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it mmmkay?) but I’ll wait until I see it to pass final judgement. I gotta admit though, this hover car was pretty badass.

    Geek Outlaw disappeared on me so I took this picture to make him feel guilty for ditching me 😉

    We ran into fan Andrew while roaming around.

    Michonne forgot to cut my arms and jaw off. Bad Michonne.

    My friend Eddy was sad that he was a zombie.

    We heard that there were Batmobiles across the way at the Hilton so we made our way over there.

    On to costumes!

    It took this badass chica about 1000 hours to make this armor out of aluminum.

    Where was this uber hot Cap when I needed her?? We were bummed that we didn’t run into each other when I was dressed as Thor the day before.

    Orcs! and Trolls!

    And Gollum! Oh my!

    I think he’s a little scared of me.

    This Bane was very friendly.

    As was this Darth Vader. All he wanted was a hug and everyone was just walking by. He looked very surprised and happy when I hugged him. What can I say? I’m a lover.

    Dark Helmet was not as friendly.

    Shit! I hate it when I get my Schartz twisted.

    I know who I’m gonna call. The World’s Tallest Ghostbuster standing next to me.

    It’s a Starfleet officer who has been assimilated by the Borg and has an Alien busting out of his chest WHO HAS ALSO BEEN ASSIMILATED BY THE BORG!! *le sigh* … I think I’m in love.

    Exterminate! Exterminate! EXTERMINATE!!!

    While taking the picture with the Dalek I heard someone yell “Hey Hot Nerd Girl! Show us your tits!” I turned around and my friend Leia was standing there! She’s a fellow HNG and sexy beast. Sorry guys, I did not show her my tits.

    And so ended my 2012 Comic Con experience. It was a great first crack and I can’t wait to go next year. I’m going to try to make it to APE Con in San Francisco in October but with all this traveling I’ve been doing I may not make it. We’ll see. In the meantime, thanks to Mama Jedi, Troi, Darcy, Joy, Christian, Eddy, and especially Geek Outlaw for hanging out with me at SDCC. Thanks again to Daniel and Morgan for the great panel seats. Thanks to everyone I met and chatted with. And thanks to you for patiently waiting for this SDCC coverage while I was off gallivanting around the country.

    I leave you with this totally awesome picture I took of Geek Outlaw.

    You’re welcome.

  • WonderCon 2012

    The WonderCrew: Troi, Geek Outlaw, HNG, Mama Jedi

    The first time I went to WonderCon was way back in 2002 while I was in college in San Francisco.  I was the only girl in the group and was rocking my Batman Underoos and a very ill-fitting SFSU sweatshirt.

    A Spider-Man sticker on top of a Batman logo…I’m trying to remember if we had some sort of Marvel vs. DC thing going on that day….

    Since moving to Southern California I wasn’t sure I’d ever go to a WonderCon again but fate had other plans (namely construction) and planted WonderCon in Anaheim this year.  I had to go.  Now, normally I like to spend at least two days at a comic book convention; however, WonderCon inconveniently fell on St. Patrick’s Day weekend and the Irish blood in me refused to give up the St. Patty’s Day festivities.  Therefore, I settled for going to WonderCon on Friday only.

    This was the first Comic Book Convention for my Mom, my sister-in-law Troi and my friend Hayden (aka Geek Outlaw).  We’re all going to San Diego Comic Con this Summer so it was good practice for them.  My Mom wore the HNG t-shirt I had made for Long Beach Comic Con and guys were flirting with her all day.  What can I say?  I have a hot mama.  Hayden wore his Geek Outlaw outfit which was so weighed down by his geeky accoutrements that he literally had to mosey.

    [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1J67TEVdIN0]

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    First things first.  Star Trek.  Star Trek actors are the only celebrities I get star struck by.  I’m not sure why that is other than the fact that I heart Star Trek sosososososososo much.  Seriously, Harrison Ford could walk up to me and I’d be like “yo, what’s up dude?” but if Patrick Stewart did that I would freak the fuck out.  So it should come as no surprise that when I saw Anthony Montgomery (aka Ensign Travis Mayweather) I freaked the fuck out.

    See that look on my face? That’s pure joy right there.

    I was in the process of purchasing a comic book and getting my face sketched on the back of it (more on that later) when Hayden and I realized that Anthony was in the booth right next door.  I couldn’t move yet because of the sketching so Hayden went over and warned Anthony that a Super Trekkie was in his midst.  I tend to be a very shy person but as soon as I got the go ahead from the sketch artist that I could move I practically mauled the poor man.

    I swear I don’t normally do this type of thing!

    He now holds the distinction of being the only Star Trek actor that I’ve hugged.  Twice.  Seriously though, super super super nice guy.  I even told him my Connor Trinneer story and he got a laugh out of that (short version: I had just arrived at Whole Foods in Hollywood and saw a guy holding a baby and trying to get a grocery cart.  I got the grocery cart for him and when he turned around and thanked me I realized it was Connor Trinneer and I almost had a heart attack right on the spot).

    Anthony was there promoting his new graphic novel Miles Away.  Y’all should check it out because it looks really good and because I heart him.  A lot.

    Back to the comic book I was purchasing before I saw Anthony….

    Artist: J caught my eye because she’s a fellow HNG who wrote a comic book. Seriously, she’s badass.  She combines the comic with music to create a whole experience for the reader.  I love and support my fellow HNG’s and you should too.  So check her out.

    And she makes a darn sexy Wonder Woman too

    One of her artists, Will Olmo, did a quick sketch of me on the back of the book.

    While looking for an artist I saw at LBCC (alas, I never found him and I can’t remember his name) I ran into two other artists that I will be paying close attention to from now on.  The first one is Mike McKone who happens to live just a few miles away from me.  I’m going to try and hit him up for an interview.  The second is Gerimi Burleigh creator of Eye of the Gods and Morningstar.  We first noticed Gerimi because Hayden is a fan of the country western genre and Morningstar has a cowboy twist to it.  After talking to him, you can’t help but like him.  Super talented and super nice.  Plus, he has an awesome name.

    Geek Outlaw and Gerimi Burleigh

    DC is fighting hunger in Africa with their We Can Be Heroes campaign.  To bring attention to the cause they had a photobooth set up wherein you could get your picture taken with shadowy images of the Justice League.

    They printed a picture for you (or in Hayden’s case, a crapload of pictures…the printer went nuts over his sexy photo and wouldn’t stop printing them). The photos will be accessible online and on the DC facebook page at some point.

    My scanner doesn’t like this picture for some reason so I’ll replace it when they get the digital versions up

    We went to an Amazing Spider-Man panel where I saw and got super excited about this:

    It’s Punisher! In space!

    But the best panel was Nerdist Industries Live! I really hope that no one reading this is too young to remember MTV’s Singled Out.  It was back when MTV still played music videos and there were only a handful of reality shows, namely Real World, Singled Out and Love Line (though LL may have come later…I can’t remember, I haven’t watched MTV in years). Anyhooters, people mostly remember Singled Out because it introduced the world to Jenny McCarthy.  I remember it because it introduced me to Chris Hardwick.  My love for him has only increased over the years what with The Nerdist, Talking Dead, and various hilarious commentaries on E! pop culture shows.

    He introduced several people who will be participating in the new Nerdist youtube channel.

    Those of us in Ballroom 3 had to pay dearly to see this panel.  Warner Brothers decided that right beforehand they would force everyone waiting for The Nerdist to watch an episode of The Secret Circle.  It was worse than Chinese water torture.  And this is coming from someone who enjoys Twilight (I know, I know). It did give Chris the opportunity to tell jokes about sexy witch scissor sex (that’s how you complete the circle, right?) which almost made it worth it.  Almost.

    Other Chris Hardwick gems:

    Nerds make the shiny things that distract the mouth breathers.

    A nerd’s true superpower is to try to understand something and try to live it more than any other living creature.

    At the end of the panel Chris had two Angry Bird stuffed animals.  The first he threw right to a kid in the front row who made them all feel horribly guilty for cussing.  The second he decided to throw as far as he could.  The guy next to me was crazy still during the whole panel but he wanted that GD Angry Bird.  I’ve never seen a man that size move so fast.  It was pretty epic.  And the guy was STOKED.  Of course I captured it on video.

    [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3GAz77TDqs]

    –

    On to cosplay photos!

    We got to take pictures in front of an Avengers poster while holding Cap’s shield.

    Somehow I ended up being the buttkicker in both photos

    And then with Captain America himself.

    There was Batman.

    And Rogue.

    Hulk…at least the top half of him…

    And Spidey (who was insanely flexible).

    And then there was whatever the frak this guy is.

    That’s a nice leg and dangly-thing you got there Mister

    To represent the gamers we had some Halo.

    And some Halo Barbies.

    Scorpion had some crazy white contacts lenses that gave me a really great mental picture of what Roose Bolton’s eyes must look like.

    Abraham Lincoln was in attendance just in case any vampires showed up.

    Battlestar Galactica was represented.

    This is the best Doctor #10 I’ve ever seen at a Con.  He was spot on.

    These fellow HNG’s made their Tardis dresses themselves.  As a very non-domestic lady I was extremely impressed.

    It takes this artist 8 hours to put this Firefly display together every time he goes to a convention.

    Represent.

    My favorite shirt of day.

    I heart Transformers.  Haha, j/k, it’s a Gundam.

    And, of course, there was plenty of the Force.

    Last but not least, Hayden’s favorite, the Ghostbusters.

    That was a really hard pose to hold.

    ….and all the times Troi and I decided to photobomb Hayden’s pictures… 🙂

    Our souvenirs, including an R2D2 for my nephew.

    WonderCon turned out to be a good time had by all.  The newbies are sufficiently stoked for SD Comic Con and I got an 8-bit Starfleet communicator. What more could a girl ask for?

    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
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    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
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
  • 
		
		
    
			
			
    10 Hottest Babes of Sci-Fi
    
			
    There is nothing quite like seeing a hot chick in a hot outfit kicking some alien ass. Maybe it’s the funky hairdos, or the skin tight outfits, or the technobabble being spoken by a pair of ruby red lips. I don’t know, but can you honestly tell me that there’s anything greater? Honestly.
    

    Honestly.
    

    I didn’t think so.
    

    So in honor of these bodacious, bad ass, and brilliant babes (cause brains are important too), here’s my list of the top 10 hottest babes in Sci-Fi.
    

    You’re welcome.
    

    
10. Nichelle Nichols
    

    She wasn’t the first sci-fi babe but she’s the earliest one on the list and she has the distinction of having broken down several racial barriers as Uhura. Not only was she a main character on a television show who was black (and a female), but she participated in the first ever inter-racial kiss on television in the Star Trek episode “Plato’s Stepchildren.” Of course, they had to make the kiss forced by aliens to get it past the censors but it was a step in the right direction. When the pressure became too much and she was tempted to quit, none other than Martin Luther King Jr himself convinced her to stay on the show. On a personal note, I’ve met her and she’s AWESOME.
    

    9. Carrie-Anne Moss
    

    She wears skin tight leather while kicking some serious ass. Having worn skin tight leather I can tell you exactly how difficult that is. Her main claim to sci-fi fame is the Matrix trilogy (we’ll stick with the first one, shall we?) It’s a movie that revolutionized film making, CGI, story telling, you name it. Some people dig Neo, I dig Trinity. I even dig her slicked back hair which is not something I usually go for (*cough* Jamie Lee Curtis *cough* True Lies *cough) I can think of a couple of trinities involving Carrie-Anne that I wouldn’t mind being a part of.
    

    8. Linda Hamilton
    

    Holy craparoni Batman, talk about ripped. The then Mrs. Cameron worked out like a maniac to prep for her role in Terminator 2: Judgment Day showing a grit and self-discipline totally befitting her character. Any woman who can break out of a maximum security facility with a broom stick and a hypodermic needle deserves kudos in my book. And a giant underground storage bunker full of weapons? Yes please! Very few women look hot with a cigarette hanging out of their mouths. Linda Hamilton is one of them.
    

    7. Sigourney Weaver
    

    From ripped to Ripley, Sigourney is another bad ass chick with a chip on her shoulder. She may fight aliens instead of robots but, like Sarah Connor, Ellen Ripley keeps coming back for more. She’s also managed to solidify her place in sci-fi history with a couple of other franchises in the form of Ghostbusters and Avatar (personally my favorite character in the movie). After all of that, how could she possibly endear herself to me even more? Oh, I dunno, maybe by starring in one of my very favorite movies ever, GALAXY QUEST. Never give up, never surrender Sigourney. We need you.
    

    6. Famke Janssen
    

    Genre-wise most people automatically think of X-Men when they think of Miss Famke and I know I’m walking a fine line here since technically X-Men is a comic book movie, not a sci-fi movie *semi-colon however comma* she’s got some sci-fi cred of her very own. Ok, yes, she is a Bond girl but I’m not referring to that either. Let’s go back about 18 years and remember a Star Trek: The Next Generation episode called “The Perfect Mate” in which Famke played Kamala, an alien that looks kind of like a Trill before we knew what Trill’s were. Kamala is biologically created to become the perfect mate for the person she bonds with. As in, loves football and beer and giving blowjobs.  You name it, she’s on it.  The perfect woman. For this role alone she deserves a place on this list.
    

    5. Milla Jovovich
    

    Another ass kicker. God I love a woman who can kick some ass. In The 5th Element, Leeloo wore little more than some first aid tape and a bright orange ‘do. It matched Bruce Willis’ bright orange spandex wife beater and I’m pretty sure he saw that as a sign of fate. I know I would. Resident Evil has zombies in it.  I may have mentioned once or twice before that I don’t much care for zombies (stoopid nightmares).  I’ve seen the first movie but none of the sequels.  Anyone who kills zombies is a-ok with me.
    

    4. Marina Sirtis (see also Gates McFadden, Terry Farrell, Nana Visitor, Jeri Ryan)
    

    The Sexy Sirens of Star Trek television. There are many of them and they are all pertiful. However, we’re going to focus on the utterly divine Deanna Troi for the purposes of this list. Originally introduced wearing a traditional lady’s uniform complete with a short hemline (ala Uhura) it was decided after oh, about 2 episodes, that her best assets were a little higher up on her body. Therefore, she became the one and only Starfleet officer ever permitted to not only ditch the uniform but wear cleavage-tastic outfits in lieu of said uniform. Much as it would inspire the troops, I just can’t see the USMC permitting such a thing. Only for Troi was the rule book thrown out. Plus I’ve heard that she cusses like a sailor with her awesome British accent. LOVE her. On a personal note, my brother married a girl named Troi which automatically knocked him up a few notches in my book. Jealous much? You should be, cause she’s AWESOME.
    

    
3. Zoe Saldana
    

    I danced for 15 years, and really, it’s how the “Hot” in “Hot Nerd Girl” got there. So I first fell in love with Miss Zoe when she was in the movie Center Stage about a ballet school in NYC. Since then she has become something of a sci-fi “It Girl” with her roles in the new Star Trek movie (soon to be franchise) and Avatar movie (soon to be franchise). An admitted sci-fi geek, she’s not afraid to challenge herself and take on larger than life roles. Oh, and she’s HAWT. She’s got that going for her.
    

    
2. Olivia Wilde
    

    The sci-fi “It Girl” of the not so distant future. Here’s a girl who has yet to be seen on screen in a sci-fi film. All of that will change on December 17th when Tron: Legacy comes out. In a way she’s replacing Cindy Morgan’s Yori with her Quorra and that’s just fine with me. She gets to sport a normal (if slightly Mia Wallace-esque) hairdo instead of a day-glo bald cap which I’m sure she’s pretty dang stoked about. But that’s not all folks. In the works are Cowboys & Aliens with Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford and Now with Amanda Seyfried and Cillian Murphy, both of which look extremely promising. Sci-fi “It Girl” of the future. You heard it here first.
    

    
1. Carrie Fisher
    

    If I didn’t put Princess Leia at the top of the list I’m pretty sure there would be a nerd uprising and I would have my HNG status revoked. If there’s anyone on this planet that can pull off a bronze bikini better than Carrie Fisher circa 1983, I have yet to see them. Star Wars is an iconic film, one that I watched over and over and over again growing up. Part of it was the Ewoks (soooo cute!) and part of it was the fact that I would have given my left pinkie toe to be Princess Leia, cinnabon hairdo and all.
    

    And here’s how you can make it happen! A basic Princess Leia costume goes for about $50.  If I can get enough people to donate up to that amount, I’ll do a photo shoot and post it on the site! So donate below and let’s get this photo shoot happening!
    

    

    My Sarah Connor impression…uh…if she were to wear heels…which she would never do…meh.
    

    
			
    
		
    
		
	
  • 
		
		
    
			
			
    I met Dan Aykroyd on Saturday
    
			
    Ray, Tray, and Hay
    

    This is cool for many reasons.
    

      

    1. It’s Dan Aykroyd
      2. 

    2. Ghostbusters 3 is really starting to make headway
      3. 

    3. My friend and fellow nerd, Hayden, is probably the biggest Ghostbusters geek in California, if not the country
      4. 

    4. Ghostbusters 3 is really starting to make headway
      5. 

    5. There’s a chance he’s going to put Hayden to work
      6. 

    6. His vodka, Crystal Head, is based on the Legend of the 13 Crystal Skulls (which, sadly, George Lucas managed to make ridiculous in Indy 4)
      7. 

    7. Ghostbusters 3 is really starting to make headway
      8. 

    

    H-Dogg was a little starstruck
    

    First off, let me just say that Dan was super nice (that’s right, we’re on a first name basis now).  Hayden and I hiked over to Costco (!!!) to meet him and get some stuff signed (he was there to sign bottles of the vodka).  He really dug Hayden’s kickass custom made GB hockey jersey (he’s Canadian, it would be illegal for him to NOT like hockey) and Hayden just about passed out when Dan asked him for his business card.  We were the only people he stood up to take a picture with.  Probably because we were the only ones who didn’t try to kiss him on the lips (!!!)  I almost wore Hayden’s GB uniform (complete with a utility belt featuring blinking lights) but, alas, it was just too big to be comfortable so I opted for a t-shirt in Slimer green.  I would not have been the lone person in uniform (there were many); however, I would have been the only girl which would have almost been worth it.
    

    Those ghosts won't know what hit 'em!
    

    One of the perks of meeting famous people at Costco is the type of people you end up in line with.  The family in front of us were there shopping, oblivious to the fact that Dan would be there and the husband just happened to wear his GB shirt that day.  He was both excited to get it signed and bummed because he wouldn’t be able to wash or wear it again (although I’m skeptical about the last time it had been washed anyway).  The child, a boy around 3 or 4 years old was so excited to be The Incredible Hulk for Halloween that he told us about it.  Repeatedly.  As in, every 30 seconds or so.  Which would have been great if he had actually known anything about The Incredible Hulk.  But he didn’t.  Hayden and I taught much to this young padawan.  He was also very fond of death-defying shopping cart stunts and pulling electronics off of shelves.  I kept about 5 feet behind him at one point for fear I would end up with pink lemonade all over me.
    

    Oh Dan, you couldn’t have done this at Whole Foods or something? BevMo would have been good!
    

    Venkman's back
    

    You may have seen Bill Murray decked out in GB gear at the 2010 Scream Awards.  He was the last piece in a puzzle that Aykroyd has been working on for over 20 years.  When asked, Dan brightened up and was visibly excited about the GB3 wheels being set into motion.  It is his baby after all.  Supposedly the script is written and the 2nd draft of it is being worked on which means that the soonest it will be released is sometime in 2012.  It will be interesting to see how they incorporate the advances in special effects and whether or not Hi-C will bring back Slimer Juice (aka Ecto-Cooler), which was quite possibly my favorite beverage as a kid.
    

    $40 and change later I went home with a glass skull full of mediocre liquor and Dan Aykroyd’s signature plastered across the forehead.  I haven’t decided if I’ll crack it open or if it will make friends with the not-to-be-opened-for-fear-of-death-and-dismemberment Romulan Ale and Klingon Blood Wine.  I guess it depends on how long my bottle of Grey Goose lasts.  But if and when I do open it, I will certainly say a toast for Dan and his contribution to nerdom.
    

    That's some nice head you got there