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Ainu Laire
Tol Eressea
Jun 3 2009, 7:54am
Post #1 of 22
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Guillermo del Toro's book signing in LA- photos and small report
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I have had a long day so apologies if this is a bit of a ramble 
My friend and I went down to the Borders in Westwood in Los Angeles for GDT's book signing of The Strain. While there were perhaps 20 people around 5PM when the venue opened, by 7PM there were well over 100 people (including some that looked to be from a local news agency). He was slightly delayed because he was giving an interview with a certain website  While we waited we bumped into Garfeimao- it was great to see her again.
When GDT came in, there was quite a bit of cheering and clapping. He had a discussion before the book signings- I did not get exact quotations, but I'll summarize it to the best of my memory. He did explain that there were two different types of vampires- the romantic kind and then the not-so-romantic, violent kind. The vampires in The Strain are the latter. He also explained- I hope I remember this correctly- that the Strain is a part of a trilogy, with the first part being about the more biological stuff about vampires, the second book covering the mythology, and the third (and his favorite theme, IIRC) covering the spirituality. When it came to biology, he did make it clear that we would discover many, many details about vampires- including something about their pee.  When it came to the mythology (and perhaps spirituality, my mind is a bit foggy), he mentioned that they are going a bit of a different route, and not taking the classic route- giving us a new way to think about vampire's mythology.
When it came to his influences he mentioned short stories; unfortunately I cannot remember the name, but it's apparently terrifying. He certainly made a reference to Bram Stoker's Dracula, though I remember him putting more emphasis on an earlier work- perhaps Vampyre by John Polidori. There was also a mention of "I Am Legend" by Richard Matheson. A little fun fact: when an audience member asked him about stories his grandmother had told him, apparently she (who was a devout Catholic) mostly told stories concerning original sin and purgatory to young GDT. He also talked about the 4 starring characters of The Strain, but I'll leave you folks to discover who they are. Let's just say that they are not exactly the most elite team of fighters on the earth.
I wish I could emulate GDT's tone as he spoke- it was obvious that he was comfortable and definitely into the discussion about his book, especially concerning vampires. He was very funny at moments and a clear, engaging speaker. The speech itself was relatively short- no longer than 15 to 20 minutes if I had to take a guess. After a couple audience questions we went to the signing, where he talked individually to everyone there and drew a little caricature of himself in every book saying the book owner's name. Kudos to Borders for making the process very efficient with the sticky notes already having our name written down so he didn't have to ask.
As for the book itself? It looks to be a thriller/mystery/horror. I am 50 pages in and already very curious as to see where it goes. The beginning starts off with something like a prologue (it is a legend that I imagine will have some significance later in the book). It goes on to bluntly tell of the final recording of flight 753... and, well, from there the story continues. I cannot wait to see what it reveals.
My photos go beyond the size requirement of the forums, so I'll leave you with a link where you can see some pictures of him talking and a glimpse of what the cartoon he drew looked like. I'll end this post with the final photo of the evening.
Thanks to Borders and GDT for hosting such a magnificent event! I hope to be there again for the release of the second book of the trilogy!
Left to right: Friend, me, GDT, Garf.
My LiveJournal ~ My artwork and photography ~ My LOTR fan fiction
NARF since age 8, when I refused to read the Hobbit because the cover looked boring and icky.
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Analeewyn
Lorien
Jun 3 2009, 2:42pm
Post #2 of 22
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Great pics and what a great experience. GDT in the person! Thanks so much for sharing!
"Gwenwin in enninath. U-'arnech in naeth i si celich. Renech i beth i pennen?"(Long years have passed. You did not wear the troubles you carry now. Do you remember what I told you?)
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Peredhil lover
Valinor
Jun 3 2009, 3:16pm
Post #3 of 22
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What a great experience for you! I am glad you got to be there.
I do not suffer from LotR obsession - I enjoy every minute of it.
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MrCere
Sr. Staff
Jun 3 2009, 3:19pm
Post #4 of 22
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This is the news TORn is made of. ALways send stuff like this to Spymaster@TheOneRing.net.
Can we post this with or without photos? Awesome!
I have no choice but to believe in free will.
The cake is a lie
The cake is a lie
The cake is a lie
My blog
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deej
Tol Eressea
Jun 3 2009, 3:51pm
Post #5 of 22
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I'm so glad you got to go to this; it sounds like an amazing time for everyone, and the photos are great. I just wish I could have been there!
"...and back again."
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Jazmine
Tol Eressea
Jun 3 2009, 4:43pm
Post #8 of 22
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Thanks for sharing!
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CAhobbit
Rohan
Jun 4 2009, 3:38am
Post #9 of 22
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I so wish I could have gone to the signing last night! So glad to see/hear that you and other TORnsibs had a great time!
Do not meddle in the affairs of hobbits for we can bite your kneecaps off!
CAhobbit's flickr page
CAhobbit's myspace
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Elven
Valinor
Jun 4 2009, 9:37am
Post #10 of 22
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That sounds fantastic! .. Thankyou so much for the report! and thats so much more than a book signing - its nice to hear GdT gave a speech about his book and was funny and friendly and informative - what else would he be
Great to hear of such a good turnout too.
Im thrilled you made it to the signing and great to see Garf there as well *waves madly*
Thankyou Ainu Laire
Cheers
Elven x
Swishtail.
Tolkien was a Capricorn!!
Russell Crowe for Beorn!!
Avatar: Liberace - The other Lord of the Rings.
Quote of The Week: The thing is I always write in the morning, and I know that if I go to the Net I won’t write ... you can start in the most scholarly website and end up at Paris Hilton dot com .. GdT
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Garfeimao
Rohan
Jun 4 2009, 2:14pm
Post #11 of 22
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Suvi, GDT's reference to pee was actually a reference to the Vampire's peepee, which was his not so vulgar way to say he explains the biology of a vampire's genitalia, something he thinks hasn't really been covered in detail before. bwuhahahahaha.
I love the fact that he's read vampire stories in many different cultures and from many different eras. He really made the whole trilogy sound great, so I can't wait to dig into the new book tomorrow when I fly to Hawaii.
And look, that's us, woohoo.
Peace, Love and Rock & Roll,
Garfeimao
The orange stripey One
Cruise to Middle earth
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Garfeimao
Rohan
Jun 4 2009, 8:41pm
Post #13 of 22
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actually, it was mentioned on Craig Ferguson
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He elaborated more on that show than he did at the bookstore, cause there was that kid in the audience.
Peace, Love and Rock & Roll,
Garfeimao
The orange stripey One
Cruise to Middle earth
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ringer5150
The Shire
Jun 5 2009, 12:42am
Post #15 of 22
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Cool pics! I was one of the last one to meet GDT. Got there kind of late cuz school. 
He signed my STRAIN book and hobbit book. Wish I hadn't forgot my camera. Did anyone else try sneak on that listen little meeting had with some weta guy that was there??? I tried to get close, but they cleared the cafe area and GDT and I think the name I heard was Mike, went in and had a long discussion. Coffee and all. GDT even pulled out his blackberry and they were going over, well it was something. Can u freakin imagine if it was some production stuff??? I tried to get an innocent word with both of them, but GDT's assistant stopped me and the only thing mike said was that now he has to report to New Zealand earlier than he planned. Sounded like that lucky dog got a promotion. Shouldn't really call him a dog. He was a cutie
(This post was edited by ringer5150 on Jun 5 2009, 12:47am)
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Ainu Laire
Tol Eressea
Jun 5 2009, 6:41am
Post #16 of 22
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He was in line right behind me. His story is that he just graduated college and landed an internship at WETA to work on the Hobbit, which is likely why GDT talked more with him- they're going to be working together for a while, after all.
He definitely is very lucky, to say the least xD
My LiveJournal ~ My artwork and photography ~ My LOTR fan fiction
NARF since age 8, when I refused to read the Hobbit because the cover looked boring and icky.
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Garfeimao
Rohan
Jun 5 2009, 12:02pm
Post #18 of 22
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Mike will be working with WETA Digital
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I was with Ainu in line and we did speak quite a bit with Mike. And yes, he does seem a wee bit overwhelmed. He graduated with a degree in Digital production type stuff, I forgot the exact title, and was then hired by New Line and assigned the Internship on this project before Warner Bros. took over. He's going to be working under Jim Rygiel, who won Oscars 3 years in a row on LOTR and has been nominated numerous other times. He specifically mentioned working on MASSIVE, the program that helped them do the CGI battles so realistically.
He did have to think long and hard about whether or not he wanted to take this job because while it's a Dream Assignment, he'd never been out of the country, let alone thought about moving 8000 miles from home for 2-3 years.
Peace, Love and Rock & Roll,
Garfeimao
The orange stripey One
Cruise to Middle earth
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Elven
Valinor
Jun 5 2009, 5:44pm
Post #19 of 22
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I would swim to NZ for a job on this :D ...
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Thats a fantastic story - what a decision to make, but I bet in the end it will be more than worth it a thousand times over.
Amazing - thanks for eavesdropping ... i mean errr sharing that with us
Cheers
Elven x
Swishtail.
Tolkien was a Capricorn!!
Russell Crowe for Beorn!!
Avatar: Liberace - The other Lord of the Rings.
Quote of The Week: The thing is I always write in the morning, and I know that if I go to the Net I won’t write ... you can start in the most scholarly website and end up at Paris Hilton dot com .. GdT
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ringers rock!
Rivendell
Jun 5 2009, 8:04pm
Post #21 of 22
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but if it's in your line of work...
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It wouldn't just be a dream job, it'd be an adult dream job
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ringer5150
The Shire
Jun 6 2009, 4:53am
Post #22 of 22
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Amen to that!
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I was there too!!
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