Survival Sunday: Fighting words

I'm doing this blog post the following day because I had a rather late night having fun. Sunday morning, it didn't take me long to drive from Hawthorne to Burbank. But, then again, it wasn't a work day in Los Angeles. My destination of the morning was the Martial Arts History Museum.

This little museum has exhibits on the culture and history of martial arts in China, Japan, Korea, Philippines, Thailand and Hawaii. In addition, there is also mention of anime...Japanese animated movies...and motion pictures and TV shows with martial arts themes. Below, you see Chinese weapons, Japanese samurai armor and a shield from the film, Mortal Kombat. And yes, that's the headband of Daniel-san from the movie The Karate Kid.

 

After a quick pizza lunch at the Original Farmer's Market, I checked into my hotel early knowing I wouldn't get in until very late in the evening. That was because I had a very special event to attend. Back at the end of March, I submitted a request for a ticket to the live taping of the TV show Talking Dead. This is the show that airs on Sundays, right after that night's The Walking Dead episode. There was only one Sunday that coincided with my vacation time in Los Angeles, so I hoped I would get lucky. Well, last Friday, I got an email from the ticket site that said I DIDN'T get a ticket. Oh well, I thought...I knew it was a long shot. I mean, they get a LOT of requests for not very many tickets. Imagine my surprise when the next day, I get ANOTHER email from them with the good news...I GOT A TICKET! Needless to say, I was ecstatic! 

When I got to CBS Television City about a hour and a half before check-in time, there were a handful of people already in line. Shortly after I got in line, I was joined by a family of three...a middle aged couple and their teenage daughter. We hit it off immediately, and we chatted about The Walking Dead and other TV related stuff. It really made the time go by faster. Since cameras and phones were not allowed in the studio, the only photo I have is the outside of the building and the entrance area.

After everyone was checked in, there was a brief orientation and explanation of what we would be doing throughout the evening. Then, we were escorted upstairs to the viewing area. There, we watched the season finale episode of The Walking Dead, PLUS the season opener for Fear The Walking Dead. The night was dubbed Survival Sunday to promote both shows and to mark the crossover of a major character from the first show to the other. When we finished viewing the episodes, we were again escorted another level up to the Talking Dead soundstage. From the show website, I already knew the special guests would be Andrew Lincoln (Rick) and Lennie James (Morgan) from TWD, and newcomer Garret Dillahunt and Danay Garcia from FTWD would be there. In addition, show creator and producer Robert Kirkman and producer Scott Gimple would also be present. Before we watched the episodes, I was excited to find out TWD's Jeffery Dean Morgan (Negan) was added to the list of guests. Talking Dead is hosted by the always entertaining Chris Hardwick, and after we were also seated, the TWD actors and the producers filed in. They were greeted enthusiastically by the attendees, myself included. Oh, by the way, Morgan was the crossover character.

For the next hour, Talking Dead was shown for the East Coast, and recorded it to be shown later for the other time zones. If there was a downer moment, the chairs were all on one level, and sitting in the fifth row, it was virtually impossible to see anyone on stage. Yes, there were monitors for us to see the action, but that is almost no different than watching it at home. But, there were moments that you wouldn't see or hear unless you were there. And, nothing can replace the experience of being there with the cast members of your favorite show. It was obvious they love their job and working with each other, and also appreciate the adulation of their fans. When the show was over and everyone was filing out of the soundstage, who should be walking toward me in the opposite direction...Andrew Lincoln! Just before he ducked back into the room, he looked at me...and waved! I was so surprised, the only thing I could do was wave back! I should have...could have...said something to him, but my mind just went blank at that moment. But, it will be a moment I'll never forget!

As customary with attendees of Talking Dead, everyone got a free gift. In this case, it was an exclusive The Walking Dead T-shirt that you can only get at the official store. I can always use a new shirt, especially from one of my favorite shows!

Monday will be kind of a rest day. After spending long hours doing the live TV show tapings, I need to take it slower and catch my breath. Then, one last night of fun before I leave the City of Angels.