Cameron Diaz

Next in my on-going list of celebrity autographs is Hollywood megastar Cameron Diaz.


Cameron's first movie was opposite Jim Carrey in 1994's The Mask, which she did at the age of 21. I was 14 at the time, so yeah I was pretty smitten with Cameron at the time. I re-watched The Mask on DVD a few months ago. Meh, it's funny how some films seem better in your head.


After this, Cameron went on to star in My Best Friend's Wedding (which I call My Best Friend's Weeding because I'm just so funny), and then in one of her biggest films to date, There's Something About Mary opposite Ben Stiller. One look at this pic and you'll see why it was such a hit.


The next film was yet another blockbuster, Charlie's Angels, which co-starred Lucy Liu and Drew Barrymore. Mindless violence, dance sequences (who doesn't love those?) and just fun. Shame about the sequel (pee-eww!).


Of course, Cameron did a few "artsy" films like A Life Less Ordinary and Vanilla Sky, but I never got around to seeing them.

And of course, Cameron played Princess Fiona in the 4 Shrek films, which grossed something like a combined billion dollars worldwide (not including the money made on Happy Meal toys).


So, on to the autograph... When Cameron was filming Charlies Angels, I sent this promotional postcard for Australian Women's magazine Cosmopolitan to her through the mail. It took a while to get a reply, but it was worth it (sorry about the scan, her skin isn't really that blotchy).


Until next time!

Karen Gillan

Next in my line of celebrity autographs is my most recent addition, Karen Gillan.


When David Tennant decided to leave the role as the ultra-popular Tenth Doctor in Doctor Who, it signalled a big change in the show itself. Head Writer Russell T Davies also decided to leave, with Steven Moffat taking over. That meant a change in the overall cast. Little known actor Matt Smith was signed on as the new Eleventh Doctor, and Karen Gillan was signed on as his new companion, Amy Pond.

I've found that being a Doctor Who fan can be a funny thing. Those of us who have seen the Doctor regenerate from one actor to the next are used to change. But this time, I guess a large portion of the "new" fans didn't take it so willingly. There were death threats made, people went overboard. But, casting a 29 year old as the next Doctor, and a 21 year old read-head as his companion, went over a treat with their (internet based) key demographic.


Photos of Karen Gillen (like this one) also helped.


As did these ones of her first episode on the show.


Half way through the season, there was talk that Amy Pond was too sexy for the show, which is funny because they said the same thing about Louise Jameson, and Nicola Bryant.

Anyway, Amy Pond survived her first season as the Doctor's companion (just) and will appear in the upcoming Doctor Who Christmas Special in the UK this Dec 25. Still no word on when it will air here in Australia...

So, on to the autograph, it was just a simple through-the-mail request, which took about a month to receive this really nice reply.


Until next time!

Blade Trinity, Ryan Reynolds, Jessica Biel, David S Goyer

I haven't posted any celebrity autographs in a while, so today's you're in for a treat... here are 3 autographs I obtained, in person, in December 2004 at the launch of Blade Trinity, starring Wesley Snipes, Ryan Reynolds, and Jessica Biel.

Unfortunately, Wesley Snipes didn't appear, so in his place was director David S Goyer.

(This pic was found via a Google search)

The launch was held at Myer Melbourne, and was hosted by Fox FM's Adam Richards. My brother and I waited in line for an hour and a bit, and were pleased to be (not too) far from the stage.

The 2 co-leads (Reynolds and Biel) were introduced and gave a quick run-down of their roles in the film, as well as a discussion about their previous work. For Reynolds this included Two Guys A Girl And A Pizza Place, and for Biel it was Seventh Heaven. During this time there was a LOT of noise about Reynolds being cast as The Flash. That never eventuated, but he did land the role in Green Lantern (due out in 2011).


For Biel, there was not much else that was talked about, and her nude spread in Gear Magazine was DEFINATELY not discussed...

Anyway, here are the autographs:

(David S Goyer signed Wesley Snipes' promo postcard)


Ryan Reynolds as Hannibal King


Jessica Biel as Abigail Whistler

For so-called "Big Name Hollywood Stars", they were pretty nice people and seemed genuinely happy to be there. Too bad the movie bombed.

Mr Fantastic - Alex Hyde-White

Next on my list of celebrity autographs is the original Mr Fantastic, Alex Hyde-White.


Many people don't know this, but before the Fantastic Four films of 2005 and 2007, starring Ioan Gruffudd and Jessica Alba, there was the 1994 film, directed by Roger Corman, starring Rebecca Staab (Invisible Girl), Michael Bailey Smith (Thing), Jay Underwood (Human Torch), and English actor Alex Hyde-White (Mr Fantastic).


The making of this movie is actually much more interesting then the movie itself.

In the early 1990's, Constantin Films were going to lose the rights to the Fantastic Four unless production on a feature film went ahead. They didn't have $40 million to play with, so they did it for cheap, without ever intending the film to be released. Funny thing was, Constatin Films didn't tell the crew about their intentions. So the end result is a Straight-To-Shelf movie, which you can only get by download from the internet, or by purchase from ebay.



The movie wasn't all bad. The story stayed relatively close to the comics, and the actors did fairly well in the roles.

As for Alex Hyde-White, he was passable as Reed Richards/Mr Fantastic, but the special effects didn't help.

After the film was made, Alex went on to various other projects, such as Pretty Woman, Days Of Our Lives, and on the Celebrity Golf circuit. Much more information can be obtained from his official website.

As for the autograph, once again it was a simple "through the mail" response. A wonderful 8x10 black & white of Alex Hyde-White as Mr Fantastic. What's nice is he inscribed it to me "Fantastically Yours".

Great guy!

George Lazenby

Next up for my celebrity autograph blog is ex-James Bond star, George Lazenby.


During the filming of 1967's You Only Live Twice, Sean Connery famously quit the role of 007, mainly in part to the constant interruptions by the fanatical Japanese. The search was on for the new Bond, and Eon Productions searched the world over, with many famous names up for contention, including future 007 Timothy Dalton, Adam West (Batman), and Hans de Vries (who was also a contender for the role in 1962's Dr No).

But, thanks in part to his rugged good looks, and his fighting skills, Australian-born George Lazenby was announced with much fanfare as the new 007, to much derision (just like what was seen when Daniel Craig secured the role in 2004, and when Matt Smith was announced as the new Doctor Who in 2009). Nontheless, production for what was to be the greatest James Bond film over them all, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, began in 1968.

With leading lady Diana Rigg cast as the heroin, Teresa (Tracy) di Vincenzo, late in the production, filming occurred at Pinewood Studios, and on location in Portugal, and Switzerland. In what was to be the last Bond film of it's kind (aside from 2006's Casino Royale), the plot for OHMSS was taken almost entirely from Ian Fleming's novel. At 140 minutes long, it involved Bond tracking down arch-villain Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Telly Savalas), who had built a scientific institute at Piz Gloria in the Swiss Alps, and who had assumed the identity of Comte Balthazar de Bleuville. Eager to has his title ratified by the College of Arms, Bond pretends to be Sir Hillary Bray, in an attempt to lure Blofeld across the German border so he can be arrested and prosecuted for his crimes.

The film also had Bond falling in love with Tracy, the daughter of Portuguese mafia boss Marc Ange Draco (played by Gabriele Ferzetti). At first Tracy is distant to Bond's attempts to save her from her own distruction, but she soon has feelings for Bond, and they agree to marry.


Cue an escape by Bond from Piz Gloria, a rescue attempt for Tracy with the help of Draco, and the wedding, and it all seems to be going swimingly for Bond, until the final scene where the newlywed Tracy is shot in the head by Blofeld in a drive-by. The film ends with Bond consoling his dead wife, which many movie-goers felt to be a real downer.

This, coupled with the fact that George Lazenby had rejected Eon's offer of a 7 picture contract (which he later revealed to be poor advice given by his manager), by the time OHMSS at his the cinemas, the search was on for the next Bond.

Regardless, the film is STILL the best James Bond movie of them all. In terms of plot, script, casting, locations, stunts, and the music, it's 10 out of 10.


After OHMSS, George had trouble finding the next big break. In the 70's he was in talks with Bruce Lee to star in a dual Hong Kong/Australian production, but when Lee died in 1973, the role was re-cast to Jimmy Wang Yu, and when The Man From Hong Kong (aka Dragon Flies) premiered in 1975, it did poorly at the box office, despite having some ripping stunts, the world's only fight-scene atop of Ayres Rock (as it was then known), and Rebecca Gilling showing her boobs.


In the late 80's, George was cast as Jor-El in the tv series, The Adventures Of Superboy, but despite the show running for 4 seasons, it never hit the heights of other sci-fi shows at the time (eg: Star Trek: The Next Generation).


Now, as for the autograph, this is a great one. In 2005 I visited Pinewood Studios as part of "An Evening with George Lazenby" which involved a guided tour of the Studios. Production of Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory had just finished, and they were currently shooting The Da Vinci Code, and Basic Instict 2. It also included a screening of OHMSS, attendances by former James Bond celebrities, a meet and greet with George, followed by a dinner and Q&A session. It was a real treat!



Until next time.

Britney Spears

Next in my line-up of celebrity autographs is the one and only Britney Spears.


Britney really hit the big time with the release of her single, ...Baby One More Time, in 1999. I started following Britney's career when one of my friends (who shall remain nameless) told me about her.


The song title was also used as the album title, and was then followed by Oops!.. I Did It Again (2000), Britney (2001), and In The Zone (2003).

This was what many people consider to be the high point of Britney's career, as it culminated in DVDs, posters, t-shirts, even her own dolls. She also had a guest spot on The Simpsons, her own feature film, Crossroads (co-starring Star Trek's Zoe Saldana), and a cameo as a Fembot in Austin Powers In Goldmember.


Since then, Britney married twice, once (briefly) to Jason Allen Alexander, and then to Kevin Federline, the father of her two children.

Reported drug and alcohol problems surfaced, which resulted in Britney shaving her head and then going in for therapy. The paparazzi didn't help either.

Britney returned to the recording studio, releasing Blackout (2007) and Circus (2008). Once again, the media went crazy about her less-then-well received on stage performances in the US and Australia. But what do you expect from blood-sucking parasites?

Anyway, when In The Zone was released, I wrote to Britney and sent her a Cleo postcard. Not only did I get the postcard signed, I also received an 8x10.


Good times!

Dan Castellaneta - Homer Simpson

My next celebrity autograph is from Dan Castellaneta, who for the last 20+ years has been the voice of the most popular animated character of all time, Homer Simpson.


Here's what Dan looks like in real life:


Dan started out as a comedian, and got his big break when he was cast on The Tracey Ullman Show in the late 1980's, which also featured the first animated shorts for The Simpsons. When the show was picked up by Fox, Dan moved across as the voice of Homer, and also provided additional voices for Grandma, Barney, Krusty, Groundskeeper Willie, Mayor Quimby, etc.

But it's not just The Simpsons which Dan has provided voices for, you can also hear him as Doc Brown in the Back To The Future cartoon, as Megavolt in Darkwing Duck, and also as The Robot Devil in Futurama.


Dan himself has also appeared up in many other TV shows in the past, such as ALF, Married With Children, and as a kid's basketball coach in an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond (brilliant!).

For more information on Dan's extensive career (of which I have only briefly mentioned), please consult Wikipedia, or his website http://www.dancastellaneta.com/


Now, as for the autograph, many years ago I wrote to The Simpsons c/- Fox in the US, and received this brilliant inscribed 8x10 photo of Homer in the mail. If you look closely you can see the photo has been folded right down Homer's face, damned posties!


Until next time!