Fan Source Fan Appreciation Weekend and Dallas Tribute Dinner

October 10-12, 2008, North Hollywood, CA

The Fan Source event was looking dicey at first, with Sheree J. Wilson's new movie not ready for screening as planned, and Patrick Duffy cancelling at the last minute. Both Linda Gray and Larry Hagman were out of town, due to fly in on Sunday.

The host hotel had some bad information, having nothing on the schedule for Friday. In spite of that, fans started to gather, forming a small crowd. Sheree J. Wilson appeared with her husband, Brett K. Miller, a sportscaster and ex-football player. Fans came from all over the world: The UK, Germany, Romania, Canada. Dallas truly has an international audience!

Saturday was a light day, with most of the actors unavailable. There were silent auctions of Dallas memorabilia, including scripts and a portrait of Linda Gray, which sold for $800! Judy Keel, Howard Keel's widow, was on hand for a Q&A and autograph signing. She had a lovely booklet filled with photos of Howard throughout his career.

Sunday was the most highly anticipated day, with four Q&A sessions and autograph signings as well as the Dallas Tribute Dinner, which was to be attended by 75 people. First up was Christopher Atkins, still a good-looking guy. He was funny too! Omri Katz, who played little John Ross, was next. He's no longer in show business, and doesn't want to be, but is a nice guy who the fans definitely enjoyed meeting. Morgan Fairchild, the first Jenna Wade, was next. She is beautiful and very glamorous. She is also extremely intelligent, a knowledgeable supporter of AIDS related charities.

There were more fans of Linda Gray than anyone else at this event. She was the main attraction, and would prove to be the focus of the Tribute Dinner. Linda was late, having just flown in from New York after meeting to plan an off-Broadway engagement of Terms of Endearment. She was stuck in the horrendous LA traffic. When she did show up, the excitement in the room was palpable. She settled in for a fascinating Q&A, followed by photos and autograph signing. Linda took her time with fans, leading to a bit of a crunch when dinner time arrived. She then got people to move along quickly, promising to continue signing after dinner.

At the dinner, Larry Hagman arrived with his wife Maj. Despite a nightmarish day traveling from Florida (his flight was cancelled), Larry was in a great mood, charming and energetic! The crowd moved forward, with many people, waving and shouting greetings.

Larry was wearing a gigantic ring. He isn't into jewelry, so at first this was puzzling. Until he turned it on - it had multicolored flashing lights! He bought a bunch of them at the Burning Man festival this fall. A flashing ring on his finger wasn't enough for Larry - he took it off and put it on his nose! He's 77? Take one of those 7's away from him!

Soon, the presentations began. There was a short Q&A, with each actor being asked one question from the audience. In the middle of this Charlene Tilton arrived with her daughter Cherish, leading to a story from Larry about her always being late. Finally, they came to the big announcement of the evening: The dinner was to raise money for Linda Gray to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame! Her family was there, including children Kehly and Jeff, and grandchildren Ryder and Jack. Jack was adorable, stealing Larry's pile of Hagman money and running around saying he was rich! Larry eventually got half of it back, enough to toss into the air to watch crazy fans dive for it!

Dinner was served: fish, chicken or a vegetarian dish. Desert was ice cream with a chocolate shell. Deborah Rennard, J.R.'s secretary Sly on Dallas, was at the dinner, along with her husband, Paul Haggis, an Academy Award winning producer (Crash).

After the dinner, Larry Hagman signed many autographs and posed for photos with fans. When Larry was leaving, he found Linda, giving her a long kiss goodbye! Linda Gray still had a line of fans awaiting photos and autographs. She was as trouper, refusing to disappoint anyone despite her long hectic day.