So Sunday morning we met Adam and Kate outside the Arclight theater and did a happy dance and then went inside. It was a sold-out crowd and we got seats near the back of the house, which was great (there isn't a bad seat in the place). When the 'presentation' started, Bryan Fuller, Chi McBride, Barry Sonnenfeld and Ellen Greene (*squee!*) came out to thank the audience for their support and everyone was in tears. Sweet Ellen could barely talk and it was felt throughout the theater. They all then started throwing t-shirts out to the crowd and people were going NUTS. None of them made it up to our section and a lot of people were whining and moaning about it. But the show quickly started and I have to say that if you like Pushing Daisies, you will LOVE watching it with hundreds of other fans. Every moment is more intense and more touching when everyone around you is simultaneously gasping and laughing and 'awww'ing. It was incredible.
The episodes themselves were lots of fun and even though it was supposed to only be the season-ender, they were able to make it into a suitable series finale. Bryan Fuller commended the team who all called in favors to come up with extra budget and get people to work for cheap or free to get it all together (since a lot of new footage and special effects work was needed). I won't give away any spoliers, since the final 3 will be aired in May on ABC, but I can say that the final episode wrapped nicely and made me mist up a little (Kate was crying! So there!). In fact, I was quoted as saying "I am not a sentimental person. I'll punch a baby in the face and even I got chills."
Just before the last episode started, they raffled off several props from the shows and Ryan won one! He won a custom arm-sling that was worn by Olive Snook (Kristen Chenoweth) in the show, that was even autographed!
Ryan's hair and face was still asleep.
After the Festival, we went over to 8oz Burger Bar for the world's best hamburgers. Ryan and I ordered custom burgers which were TO DIE FOR. Mine had bacon and gruyere cheese (!) and garlic tomatoes (!!) and BBQ sauce and Ryan got slice of fried mozzarella and tomato sauce. Yes! You can get fried mozzarella on your burger. Heaven!!
While we were there Seth Rogen and his girlfriend sat at the table next to us, which was funny because Adam was once Seth's neck double for a photo shoot* and Adam is slightly bitter that those neck-double roles are disappearing since Seth is slimming down for his role as Green Lantern. So they walk in and Adam sighs "my neck double just walked in" and we all swivel and see that they choose the booth next to us. Que sera. So, they're sitting there enjoying their lunch and it's not 5 minutes before someone (a waiter!) stops by to geek-dump all over Seth and the guy is persistent. As if Seth is going to suddenly stand up and say "YES! You're exactly the actor I've been looking for! Let me call James Cameron and recommend you for his next blockbuster!" What are these people thinking when they do this? Then he finally leaves and a girl comes up to the table, only she pretends that she's geeking out over the girlfriend "Don't you remember me? I'm Anna's friend Lisa's friend? We met that one time at that party 5 years ago? Oh my god, how are you?" and then gives Seth the quick-brush 'oh hey, nice to meet you' AS IF. The girlfriend (apparently named Lauren) was very nice, but they were clearly pestered by this girl and the waiter and I wanted to yell RESPECT CELEBRITY PRIVACY! [quote from 30 Rock, when Jenna yells this at someone sharing the elevator after she loudly starts talking on her cell phone and he can't avoid hearing it] But I kept my opinions to myself and went back to talking about dirty words with Adam's mom. Que sera.
After we ate, we walked up Melrose to where we'd parked (our original lunch plans were for another restaurant) our cars and thankfully the sun was behind the buildings so it was only 90 degrees but not full sunlight. Yay! My sunburn from Saturday was roasting me from inside out, so I was a hot sweaty mess. Then we decided to grab a light dessert, iced tea and cookies before we all set out for home. While we were at the bakery, I had a full-scale melt down (I blame the sunburn!) and could NOT. STOP. GIGGLING. In my mind, it was hilarious, but it probably wasn't. All I know is that somewhere in the conversation there were mentions of how Kate knows several people who have been bitten by Andy Dick and then talk of celebrity slumber parties (with Andy Dick biting people) and then I just lost it. I don't know what happened. Sunburn makes you crazy! Apparently!
It was a fantastic day in so many ways. But my brain was officially a melted popsicle after cookies so Ryan and I headed home. I slept like a log (a log slathered in Solarcaine and with a fan blowing directly on her face, but a log nonetheless!). So THANK YOU to all the fantastic participants in this day, including Seth Rogen, his patient girlfriend, Adam's mom, Shawn (the new guy who laughed at my jokes!), the cops who looked the other way while I jaywalked, Andy Dick, Kathy Griffin, the weirdoes on Melrose, and the stuffy folks at Munky King.
*Adam produced the photo shoot seen in this video and there are pics of Seth and Elizabeth dressed as puritans being hung as witches (1:30) and Adam was strung up in the noose in Seth's costume, to serve as the neck double. So when he was done shooting he had rope burns on his neck AND he fell off the ladder and banged up his leg pretty good.
