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Ashley
Andy Serkis was a complete sweetheart when I met him at his booksigning in Pasadena. My friend and I were lucky because we got there 4 hours early and there were only about 30 people in front of us. When we left, there were hundreds and hundreds of people lined up all down the street. I started crying when I met him, telling him how he inspired me to persue acting and I gave him a poem I wrote and dedicated to him. He stood up, gave me a hug, and said, “Aww, thank you, you’re so sweet. Good luck with that. Good luck with your carreer.” One person gave him a fake oscar too and when I saw him, he was slightly teary. He seems like such a sweet down-to-earth guy who really appreciates his fans.
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Katrelya
Living in Sierra Madre, California, I’m just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Vroman’s, Pasadena, where I’ve been a regular customer ever since I was old enough to read!
A few days ago, my National Geographic Beyond the Movie Return of the King DVD arrived – with a coupon for ROTK, so I treated myself to a matinee on the 16th at a nearby theatre. Then, on to Vroman’s to see Andy!
The line was long, but many people – some in Gollum T-shirts – were carrying interesting memorabilia, including some rather large Gollum standees. There was a notice saying that Andy’s book had completely sold out, so I was glad I purchased mine in advance! The line itself was more like a party! Everybody was chatting about Tolkien, Gollum, and Andy as we waited for our turns to see him!
It was amazing to meet a Lord of the Rings star, right after having seen him on the big screen! I was sure to tell Andy I had come directly from the theatre, as I thanked him for his magnificent performance as Gollum! Andy’s smile was warm and genuine, and he is very down-to-earth. He is truly a delightful person!
The Vroman’s Staff was also friendly and courteous. They had placed Andy’s table in an area of the store where everyone could also enjoy the delightful ambience of the bookstore.
After meeting Andy, I had an espresso in the Vroman’s cafe – where I made some new friends who had come all the way from San Diego to see Andy! We discussed Tolkien and history! Tolkien would have approved of all the fellowship that was happening that happy day at Vroman’s.
Thank you, Andy! Thank you, Vroman’s Staff!
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Merry Hatebear
There was a pretty good turnout at the Andy Serkis book signing event in Pasadena,CA today. I would estimate that there were around 200 people (maybe more? I’m not so good with estimating!) in line by the time Serkis was set to begin signing. The line of people wrapped around the corner from the bookstore and the store sold every copy of the book they had . Unfortunately the signing was set to last only 2 hours and because of this Serkis couldn’t talk to the crowd, personalize signed items or allow fans to take posed pictures with him or anything like that. It was still a pretty good event though. Poor Andy’s arm must be SO tired from all the signing he’s been doing!
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Kailin
He showed up a bit early, and we’d been prompted by staff that if he did, they would begin early so they could fit more people in. They had another signing event going on at 7pm, so they wanted to make sure he was done before then. The line wrapped halfway around the building, then down the block, then around the corner, and back towards the parking lot. I know the bookstore actually ran out of the Gollum book well before the event was set to begin, so I guess that means it was a success.
When I got inside with my boyfriend, and sister, Andy actually looked at my boyfriend and rememebered him from previous meetings. OK, that’s
nice. He was signing at a rather furious pace, but did take the time to look up often, smile or say hello when he could, and was always charming and pleasant, as usual. Last year, my boyfriend had given him a pass to the Magic Castle, in Hollywood. Apparently, he used it and liked it, so he asked for another one today.
People were not supposed to ask for individualizations of signatures or pictures with Andy, so we didn’t. But, my sister has Down Syndrome and she just has to shake hands or hug the people she meets, and so she gave Andy a hug. He was ready to pose for a picture, which made me fumple for the camera. The picture I’m sending is the results, with my sister’s shoulder disappearing into the foreground.
