I was up early the morning of Friday, June 18, 2010 – with enough time to play around on the computer and make it to breakfast in the hotel lobby in the Cyprus Grille Restaurant with Bob, David, and the Wileys for a delightful breakfast buffet. The waitress was a little dimwitted and while Bob was away in the restroom, she asked us if he had enjoyed his meal. I told her that she’d have to ask him when he was done throwing up. Then David, the Jimmys, and I took a walk to the California State Capitol. It was about 10am when we arrived
The Capitol building is an attractive one, built between 1861 and 1874 and now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Although historic in nature, the building is still active for both the California State Legislature and the Governor, who at the time of our visit was Arnold Schwarzenegger. Despite Bob’s pleas, we were unable to “say hi to Arnie” for him. He had made himself scarce – probably when he found out we were coming. We walked the building and its various levels and stopped in the gift shop. I found the most charming element to the building to be the glass window displays highlighting most of the major cities of California, with relics and icons from each city.
Overlooking the Assembly chamber in the California State Capitol
The Senate Chamber
A statue located in the Capitol Rotunda of Queen Isabella and Christopher Columbus, commemorating the decision to send Spanish ships to explore the New World
Under the dome and my nostrils in the Capitol rotunda
My second State Capitol of the year, 14th total
Back at the Holiday Inn, the convention was still raging. That afternoon we had a Bullfighters Mexican Fiesta Luncheon. Our new friend Nadine sat with us even though Bob made sure that he was wedged between us. The tacos, burritos, rice, and beans were consumed in buffet style. A fun mariachi band named Raices del Tierra played throughout the event and a caricature artist was on hand.
The excitement mounts for Bob and me at the Mexican fiesta
After the lunch, David and I hooked up with Nadine for her to interview him for a video presentation she would be putting together for the Laurel and Hardy official website – as she had done me the day before. We also did a joint interview pontificating about our history in the trivia contests as opponents in 1988, our first victory on a team in 2006, and the upcoming contest where we would try to reclaim our victory. We missed Bill Cassara’s talk about his book Edgar Kennedy: Master of the Slow Burn going on the Laurel and Hardy Fun Factory.
David pontificates to Nadine about the joys of being a young Son
At 2:30pm was the celebrity meet and greet session. Lois Laurel Hawes was on hand to field questions from the audience about her father Stan Laurel and her ‘Uncle’ Babe. Lois hadn’t been to an international Sons convention since 1994 New York, so it was great to have her back in our midst. Dorothy deBorba had been scheduled to be our other celebrity guest, but sadly she passed away just two weeks earlier. Two video presentations honoring Dorothy were shown in tribute to Dorothy, one created by Jimmy.
After the session ended, the film room opened and we were free for the next four hours to explore the area and have dinner on our own. We decided to head into Old Sacramento and look around. David, the Wileys, and I opted to have dinner at a nice little cafe called Steamers Coffee & Tea Exchange in the area. Several other Sons had the same idea – including Lois, Cassidy, Tommy, and Lucy – so we chowed down soup and sandwiches and root beer with them. Among the other delegates present was Dave Greim, who would be competing against David and I the next day in the trivia contest. Apparently he gave away too much trivia when he reminded us what Ollie ordered for lunch in Any Old Port. After dinner, we browsed one of the local memorabilia shops called Stage Nine, perusing the standard crummy movie memorabilia.
The gateway to Old Sacramento, just outside our hotel
Lois and Jimmy – not the ones from Superman
I didn’t get dessert, so Lois shares her ice cream cone
The convention delegates reconvened in the hotel lobby. At 7:30pm, we boarded our buses that took us to the California Automobile Museum. It was an interesting place to have a film screening and worked out quite well. I only quickly perused the cars themselves, enjoying socializing much more.
I grabbed some popcorn and soda and joined the evening film screening of Angora Love and Two Tars accompanied with live music from the Wulitzer organ. There was then some live action entertainment with convention host Becky Kane, Stan Taffel, and the look-alikes (even though ‘Ollie’ had lost his voice). After the show, we headed back to the hotel, arriving about 10pm. David, Kathy Luhman, the Duffs, and I hung out at the bar for an hour or so, enjoying some wine and good laughter – something that seemed to know no limits at this convention.
Kathy heads out to the Automobile Museum in her own limo. Note the “Jeanie Weanie” license plates
On the way to the Auto Museum, the Duffs re-create their fifteen minutes of fame from the Amsterdam Convention
The Wileys create their own memories
Signing in at the museum
Mounting a jalopy
With my good friends Carl and Dee Ahlm. The Ahlms hosted my first Sons of the Desert meetings of the Towed in a Hole Tent back in 1980.
Becky, Stan, Bill, Jamie, and a walking tuba entertain the masses after the film screening
The convention will continue…
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