Being with the White Collar Gang at Comic Con and Living to Write About It

In July of 2010, I went to San Diego Comic Con 2010, like we do every year.

But this year was different in that I had started to write for an online site, so I wanted to do some press interview stuff. Some... actually turned out to be more press than could be easily handled.

White Collar was one of the round table press conferences, but I managed to get my questions in fairly well, so I was very pleased with the information I had to write about.

For my articles on Suite 101, I used the official photos that the studios provided. However, being that this is my personal blog, it's a bit more fun to use the photos I took, even if their quality is not the best.

It was really fun reconnecting with Willie Garson, who plays Mozzie on this show. He and I had done a play together, Crackwalker. He was one of the stars and I was stage manager. I reminded him of that play and he turned all smiles. And he started calling out to the WB people and his manager that we had done Crackwalker together. He asked about a couple of people we worked with. However, like him, I had lost touch with them.

There were some other memorable moments.

When Tiffani Thiessen appeared during the photo session, the guys were all concerned about her standing on her feet, since she recently had a baby.

They all called for a chair, even though she didn't want them to do so. I don't think she wanted a big deal to be made of it, perhaps in the press. At their insistence, she sat down, but for only a second. She said something about it feeling weird and popped up onto her feet again to take photos standing with the gang. And that' s how most of the photos are.

While Sharif Atkins was talking to us, Jeff Eastin walked past him, leaned in and shouted out, "All lies."

Another fun occurrence happened during the Jeff Eastin talk. Willie Garson snuck up to Jeff from behind and tweaked his ear. Then he hurried away. But Jeff had seen who it was, and called out, "Is that a wet willie?"

As always, there is more material than will fit into an article, even if writing four articles like I did.

So just to make this blog a bit more interesting for people, here is a tidbit, I didn't have space for in the articles.

When asked about talking to the consultant, Tim Dekay said, "I call up Tom every so often and we talk. My deal is a little bit easier because Tom’s kinda set up what’s right and what’s wrong. A couple of times, I’ve thought hmmm, what’s Peter’s point of view here, and I’ll call up Tom." Tim looked over at his co-star who was sitting beside him, Matt Bomer, and indicated that Matt had it harder because he had to do the 'physical' as well as the 'cerebral stuff.'

Matt agreed and said that he brings his consultant, Simon, in as much as he can. "Actually, as great as it is to learn how to pick pockets and to pick locks, and magic tricks and sleight of hand, as much fun as that’s been to learn, I’ve actually learned more just being around him, seeing what his personality is like. And who he is. He’s so charming. He’s so engaging. He totally throws you off your guard. To the point where it’d almost be like… here have my wallet…"

Tim, laughing: I know.

Matt:When you talk to this guy and he’d be maybe laughing. So I’ve learned more… performance wise, I’ve learned more, that way.

Tim: He’s also very interested.

Matt: He’s a great listener. He’s very intuitive. He susses people out. He learns a shorthand with people very quickly.

The two guys were reminded that the question was on why Tiffani didn’t get to talk to the experts much…

Tim: I don’t know Tiffani… did she ever think of it? Did she?

One of the reporters at my table then said to him that Tiffani told us she would have liked to talk to Tom about his family.

Tim: She didn’t get a lot of time. I didn’t think about that because… it’s interesting, I didn’t go there with him. I think, honestly, because I was… there’s a presence in Tom, when you talk to him…

Matt: Oh my god.

Tim: …you just try to… same thing for me and Tom as you and Simon… Tom always reminds me that the FBI is military-based. It’s not like they’re policemen. These guys are military based. And Tom kinda has that presence… nice guy, he smiles, but you know… [glances at Matt, who says something inaudible]

Tim: No you don’t, you know he’d fuckin’ kill you in a second. You don’t mess with him.

Question that harked back to the father/son relationship discussion… something about Neal feeling same way…

Tim: I think he would, but look, our show… there’s a heightened reality--

Tim: No, that’s true…. Tom had kids. Tom has kids. But Tom is very, very happy. And I’ve spoken to many FBI agents and they’re very happy with the way The Bureau is portrayed. So…

The next question was about Peter being pulled out of being who he is.

Tim: I love it. I love it.

Question: Are you going to be doing more of that?

Tim: Yeah.Peter goes undercover more. I think that’s fun because it makes our relationship more [gesturing at each other]… it makes us be with each other more. And that’s something I always told Jeff and the other writers. And yes, Peter has to send Neal out, but the more they can be, the more they have to deal with each other, the better. It’s fun to watch. It’s fun to be in.

For more, check out my articles on Suite 101.com:

White Collar: At the Core It's About the Relationship of Two Men

White Collar: Neal and Peter's Other Partners

White Collar: It's Not Just Neal & Peter, There's a FBI Team, Too

White Collar: Conman May Be Old School But the Showrunner Tweets

Covering Human Target at San Diego Comic Con 2010 for Suite101.com

While I used to have fun at Comic Con, recently there have just been too damn many people going there to enjoy it. Not only is it claustrophobic, but you can't get any business done, and you can't get into anything without waiting hours in line. And we are not there to stand in line -- our time is too valuable.

This year was different as I was doing press coverage for Suite101.com -- the online site I write for. Despite it being a lot of work, I really enjoyed doing this. It made going to Comic Con fun again.

I've already written up went we learned in the press room for Sons of Anarchy. So this one celebrates me getting the articles on Human Target online.

There are four articles on my page at Suite101.com:

1. Human Target As Charlie & Her Angels, Revealed at Comic Con 2010

2. Like It Or Not, Human Target's Men Got Each Other's Backs

3. On Becoming Human Targets: Stars and Boss at SD Comic Con 2010

4. Human Target Will Show Team's Conflicts and Emotions in Season 2.

But even with writing up four articles, there was left-over information that I didn't get to use. So I thought I'd share that here.

Unlike at the Sons of Anarchy press room where I got one-on-one attention, I was in a round table situation here. We all sat patiently as each of the actors and showrunner made their way down the 'live feed' press line. So when Chi McBride came over and we all scooted our microphones at him, it was funny when he stared at them and said, "... I don't know what to say."

I immediately piped up with, "I'll give you something to say."

He answered, "Give me a question."

And I asked him to describe how his character felt about the other main characters and their relationships. He came back with the whole dysfunctional answer which are covered in the articles.

When asked about back stories, Chi said, "Yeah, I think we see a lot more what happens to these guys when they're off the clock. Winston's got an ex-wife. And I don't know about you guys but I think that nothing makes a guy happier than when he's got to deal with his ex-wife." This is said while Chi shakes his head side to side and grins from ear to ear. "That's got to be the high point -- do you know what I mean? Like when you're in the middle of a divorce, you probably say, 'Can we still see each other? And spend time together? because that'll be the best.' But we're gonna have that happen and see Winston's brother who's on the wrong side of the law in his business. So you see a lot of what these guys are like, what makes them tick, and how the team is more cohesive when they're working together."

Both Mark and Chi are looking forward to Lennie James returning as Baptiste. Chi said, "We love us some Lennie James." And Mark added, "He's a firearms expert. He's a car enthusiast." To which Chi turned to Mark and said, "Yeah." Shows what appeals to men.

Turning back to us, Chi explained, "Lennie is straight bad-ass. He really is and Matt has a great way to bring him back. We just want to see more of him. He’s a wonderful actor, he’s a real gentleman and a pleasure to work with. That’s one of the things that’s pretty much a common thread on this show. We have people who enjoy working together and who enjoy personally and spend time together working. And it’s not like working."

Another cool question from the floor during the panel was what was Chance's Kryptonite? "We’re floating that it’s pretty important for Chance to have people who believed in him," Mark answered. "He spent so much time working solo, working on his own. His conscience sort of caught up with him. So there’s that sort of thing that haunts him. It’s the people in the present that kinda believe in him and work with him on his team that are going to be able to help him or they are the ones who ultimately betray him and leave him vulnerable. No pressure, guys.”

During the Q&A at the panel, a girl got up to ask a question and Jackie Earle Haley saw that she was dressed as his character Guerrero. He was so delighted that he asked her to come up on stage to ask her question. The photo to the left is from that moment. Oddly though, I can't remember what her question was.

For more, check out my articles at Suite101.com. The photo credits here go to Greg Gayne/2010 WBEI. The photos I took weren't very good at all, but then being an artist or photographer is not in my skill set. I'm grateful that I can write and act.

And finally, I want to thank Natalia Desrosiers and Chris Cottle of Warner Brothers Publicity for making this all happen and for all their hard work, without which, this wouldn't have happened at all.