Convention Etiquette: Discussion and Advice on Do's and Don'ts

[HyperCaz]

a do: if you are chatting with them out of Q/A time, don't pelt them with questions about the show. They're normal people too and may share some of your interests

a don't: no matter how tempting, do not make them dance with you. (where do I apologise?)

[brihana25]

Don't - ask Christopher Judge to shave unless you are very very specific about exactly what region of his body it is you're referring to

Don't don't don't don't DON'T - wear a T-shirt with your favorite slash pairing on it, and then make one of the two actors who is part of that pairing pose for a picture with you wearing it!

[brihana25]

Oh, as an addendum to the above post:

The next person who gives any of the actors a slash anything to sign - artwork, manip, fanfic, video, t-shirt, whatever, explicit or not, I don't care - I will personally hunt down and smack upside the head.

There are some places you just do not go in front of the actors, and that happens to be one of them.

[Skydiver]

I'm thinking of getting my costume autographed. Think any of the actors are gonna have a fit about that?

depends on where you're asking them to sign.

consider that the actor may or may not like to sign your bum or your chest. and if you want it on the front (your chest) consider having your jacket be removable so that the actor can sign it without risking touching you. (some actors don't mind, some don't want to cross the line and risk doing something imappropriate)

[TechnoWraith]

depends on where you're asking them to sign.

consider that the actor may or may not like to sign your bum or your chest. and if you want it on the front (your chest) consider having your jacket be removable so that the actor can sign it without risking touching you. (some actors don't mind, some don't want to cross the line and risk doing something imappropriate)

You're familiar with steve from Posioning the Well. I'm having the lower part of the costume (the robe part?) made about a couple inches longer then it needs to be to add autograph space on the inside (not the outside). So would that be a problem? (If it is a problem, then i can just forget about it and have it made to the proper size).

[Skydiver]

it will probaly be fine.

it all depends on the actor and his/her comfort level.

i've seen actors more than willing to sign a girl's bum (well the seat of her jeans) and i've seen others balk at signing an arm, so it varies.

jsut ask his/ her permission and you should be fine

[TechnoWraith]

it will probaly be fine.

it all depends on the actor and his/her comfort level.

i've seen actors more than willing to sign a girl's bum (well the seat of her jeans) and i've seen others balk at signing an arm, so it varies.

jsut ask his/ her permission and you should be fine

Ok. Thanks for the info.

[BruTak]

I'm thinking of getting my costume autographed. Think any of the actors are gonna have a fit about that?

As long as you okay it with the con staff, I don't see why you should have any problems.

a buddy of mine used to wear a denim jacket that was covered in various Sci-fi patches, SG-1, RoboCop, SeaQuest etc. He started taking it to the various Wolf Conventions he attended, and none of the guests had any qualms about signing it.

[Lee]

If I ever get the wonderful chance to go to a Gate con I shall keep all of these excellent tips in mind! Thank you very much for taking your time to pos them!

[Madeleine]

Query:

What is proper con ettiquette when a drunken and whisky-swilling guest starts his 11:30 slot more-or-less on time, and entertains the audience (or a large portion thereof) with his whisky-swilling antics... and is still busy with the antics at 12:30 when the nice actress whose slot is due to start turns up by the side of the stage, but who doesn't get off, and is still there onstage at 1:15?

I really didn't know what, if anything, I should do. I felt really badly for the actress, who was left standing there like a lemon, and who ended up not doing her talk, but being added into a group talk later on where she only got asked three questions. I felt a bit cheated, cos I wanted an hour of listening to this actress, and instead I was sitting in a hall watching people queue up at the front of the stage for a swig fron the drunken actor's whisky bottle. On the other hand all the people queueing for the whisky seemed to be enjoying themselves.

So: do I sit in my seat feeling bad for the actress and cheated that I'm missing her talk to watch a whisky queue? Or do I find the organiser and behave like a shocking ingrate by complaining about the entertainment that is being provided and which at least some of the paying attendees are enjoying?

What I did was sit in my seat. But the actress looked really sad for the rest of the day, and I still feel guilty. Ugh.

[SapphireJewelledQueen]

Query:

What is proper con ettiquette when a drunken and whisky-swilling guest starts his 11:30 slot more-or-less on time, and entertains the audience (or a large portion thereof) with his whisky-swilling antics... and is still busy with the antics at 12:30 when the nice actress whose slot is due to start turns up by the side of the stage, but who doesn't get off, and is still there onstage at 1:15?

I really didn't know what, if anything, I should do. I felt really badly for the actress, who was left standing there like a lemon, and who ended up not doing her talk, but being added into a group talk later on where she only got asked three questions. I felt a bit cheated, cos I wanted an hour of listening to this actress, and instead I was sitting in a hall watching people queue up at the front of the stage for a swig fron the drunken actor's whisky bottle. On the other hand all the people queueing for the whisky seemed to be enjoying themselves.

So: do I sit in my seat feeling bad for the actress and cheated that I'm missing her talk to watch a whisky queue? Or do I find the organiser and behave like a shocking ingrate by complaining about the entertainment that is being provided and which at least some of the paying attendees are enjoying?

What I did was sit in my seat. But the actress looked really sad for the rest of the day, and I still feel guilty. Ugh.

If I had the chance to talk to said actress (or I would have made an effort), I would have gone and talked to her for the rest of the night.I hate it when people are sad like that! May I ask who the actress is?

[Skydiver]

So: do I sit in my seat feeling bad for the actress and cheated that I'm missing her talk to watch a whisky queue? Or do I find the organiser and behave like a shocking ingrate by complaining about the entertainment that is being provided and which at least some of the paying attendees are enjoying?

What I did was sit in my seat. But the actress looked really sad for the rest of the day, and I still feel guilty. Ugh.

i would jump the tush of the organizer for
a) allowing the actor to get smashed
b) not being able to wrangle said actor
c) disrespecting one of his guests

the con organizer screwed up. he (presuming it's a he) is responsible for the drunk actor's reputation being smeared by his public drunkenness, he's responsible for the slighted actor looking like a schmo (and anyone else think it'll be doubtful that that actress ever signs up to do one of his cons again??), and he's responsible for the fans of the actress getting slighted

not much you can do to change things after the fact, but personally i would take it up with the con orgainzer and express your dislike, then i would write the actress a letter, telling her how you feel, how you were sad that you couldn't see her, etc. and telling her that if she does anohther con in your area you're going to try to attend just so that you can hear her (whether it's necessarily true or not, it would be a nice gesture to help make her mood a bit better since she has to be feeling a bit grumpy about the whole thing)

I remember gatecon 2004 and that chris judge was...tipsy on stage and in the pictures afterwards. both he and MS drank beer while AT stuck to water (in hindsight she was pregnant at the time). while i'm no prude about drinking, those that can't hold thier liquor have no place imbibing in public, especially when they're on stage working. very irresponsible.

the pictures after their talk were obviously busy, and were made even more so by the near constant need to keep wrangling chris who kept waundering off to the patio to grab another beer.

i'm glad he had a good time, but it was rather disrespectful to his fans when he put his own pleasure first. drink a few beers sure, but don't get drunk on stage.

[kelmah]

That's...wow. I can't believe they would do something like that. One assumes that these people are professionals, and then... Well, my respect for those two just dropped a few points.

[Skydiver]

hey, i'm not dissing MS or CJ. MS did drink but he drank in moderation. chris did get a bit carried away but all it did was make him a bit jovial and 'happy'

I think chris just got carried away and i witnessed nothing inappropriate or anything like that.

and madeleine's comment had nothing to do with those two, i was just relaying a similar situation.

[Madeleine]

i would take it up with the con orgainzer and express your dislike,

Will do. I gushed effusively about his other cons which were fab, and i've got a fair few nice things to say about this con, so hopefully I won't come over as a whinger.

then i would write the actress a letter, telling her how you feel, how you were sad that you couldn't see her, etc. and telling her that if she does anohther con in your area you're going to try to attend just so that you can hear her (whether it's necessarily true or not, it would be a nice gesture to help make her mood a bit better since she has to be feeling a bit grumpy about the whole thing)

Oh yes, definitely! (And I probably would go to see her if she was going to do a talk in S England)