F/X 2006 The Florida Extravaganza Marches Onward by ED Tucker

The weekend of January 28 marked the 17th anniversary of FX – the Florida Extravaganza collectibles show. This also marked the second year since founder Mike Herz returned to the reins of the Orlando based con to pull the plummeting show out of a dangerous nosedive and my fifteenth visit to the trenches. While the 2006 event was fraught with challenges, the attendee and dealer response was overall positive and the future still looks bright.

From the very outset, 2006 promised to be a year of change for more than just the location. It was obvious from the website that the focus had shifted from a simple toy and collectibles show to a much broader event. This year’s FX incorporated gaming, comic book artists, anime, and a horde of media guests that were all clearly aimed at giving the rival Megacon show a run for it’s business. While celebrity guests have been a staple of FX for many years, this year’s selection of over 30 from all types of media was exponentially larger than any previous year. Even patrons who normally attend just for the collectibles were almost certain to have an opportunity to meet at least one of their favorite stars.

The Central Florida Fairgrounds was chosen as the new host for FX and proved adequate but far from ideal. The main complaint came from the dealers who felt displaced in the detached buildings. The event was spread out over two separate buildings with a smaller building in between serving as the gaming and presentation area. Unfortunately this space was not contiguous and vendors placed in the back building felt isolated from the rest of the show. One dealer even commented that sellers in the main building were telling attendees that there were no other areas! Another concern was the floor plan, which was overhauled at the eleventh hour when problems arose with the facility. This resulted in guest areas being spread out through both buildings and disrupting the flow of traffic in the dealers areas.

The Friday night preview offered attendees who purchased full access admissions an unhurried evening to browse the tables of dealers that were set up early and avoid the general rush for the guests who had arrived in advance. This was where I did the bulk of my purchasing for this fairly economical visit. My main acquisitions were a boxed G.I. Joe Adventure Team Vehicle (the six wheeled amphibious dune buggy primarily used to recover lost mummies) and a Secret Mountain Outpost set from near the end of the line when Hasbro was trying to cash in on the Six Million Dollar Man.

Almost as soon as I set foot in the main building, I ran into fellow PCR contributor Drew Reiber and we raced each other to see who could get to George Romero’s table first! For me it was a long awaited reunion with the godfather of the Living Dead. I had first meet him twenty-one years ago to the month at Valencia Community College just outside Orlando. We reminisced about the lecture he gave that day and he graciously signed my original memorabilia from Night of the Living Dead including a lobby card that pictured him in his brief cameo as a Washington reporter. Drew and I grabbed a few quick photos with Mr. Romero and then parted company as I had many more celebrities to visit.

While it was mentioned nowhere in the publicity material, FX 2006 also served as a reunion for a highly entertaining but overlooked sci-fi horror film from the 1980’s. Produced by the legendary Roger Corman and boasting some of the coolest artwork ever seen on a low budget poster, “Galaxy of Terror” featured Robert Englund, Sid Haig, and Erin Moran who were all in attendance at this year’s show. If star Edward Albert (son of Green Acre’s Eddie) had been there then I believe all of the surviving cast members would have been present. Robert Englund, who was located right next to George Romero, divulged a design secret to me as he signed my poster. While the interiors of the space ship look very realistic and even a bit “Alien” inspired, the walls were actually covered with Big Mac containers from McDonalds! Three guesses what the cast and crew had to eat during filming!

Sid Haig, star of last year’s cult favorite “The Devil’s Rejects“, greeted me with “what have you got for me this time”! I replied with his single line from “Galaxy of Terror“, “I live by the crystals and I die by the crystals” and he immediately knew what was in store. I also finally got a signed advance poster of “Rejects” from him and caught up with the latest news on his career. Unfortunately, Rob Zombie has no plans to follow up “Rejects” with any type of related project but the films success has brought Haig some promising offers for film roles and he plans to be back on the big screen in the near future.

While the job of being Linda Blair’s stunt double in “The Exorcist” may not have been an enviable one, Eileen Dietz is the woman responsible for many of the nightmares that resulted from viewing the film. In addition to doubling for Blair in the most infamous scenes, like the one with the crucifix, Dietz also played “Captain Howdy”, the pasty faced demon who, while appearing for only mere seconds in the finished film, still left a lasting impression on terrified audiences. Ms. Dietz was a delight to meet and entertained Byron and I with some incredible stories about filming one of the greatest horror films of all time. Today she continues to act, mainly in low budget horror films, and runs her own website, www.eileendietz.com, with some cool behind the scenes photos from her film work including “The Exorcist“.

 

 

Next up on the parade of stars was Cindy Williams, best known as Shirley from “Laverne and Shirley“, but better remembered by fanboys for appearing in the apocalyptic comedy film “GASSSS” and the bizarre sequel “Beware the Blob!” (directed by J.R. himself, Larry Hagman). While tales of her demeanor during the dissolution of the long running “Laverne and Shirley” series do not paint her in the most attractive of lights, Ms. Williams was an absolute sweetheart in person. She was more than willing to talk about all stages of her career and there is still a genuine camaraderie between her and the other Happy Days alumni who were present.

 

My last celebrity sighting on Friday night was the lovely and good-natured Pricilla Barnes who played the final blonde roommate Terri on another 70’s staple, “Three’s Company“. Ms. Barnes managed to survive the co-ed living arrangements unscathed and still appears in a variety of feature films today including “The Devil’s Rejects“. Our conversation steered to a much earlier point in her career (March 1976 to be exact) when she posed Full Monty for Penthouse Magazine under an alias (as Joann Witty for all you trivia buffs out there). It seems the magazine decided to rerun these photos using her real name during the height of her popularity on “Three’s Company” and found themselves in a lawsuit which Barnes says she won. Unfortunately this caused bad blood between her and Penthouse to this day and she refuses to sign their magazines either under her real or assumed name. As a consolation, she did autograph the one sheet poster I brought for “The Seniors“, a 1978 film she appeared in with Dennis Quaid. In this better than average drive-in sexploitation picture, Barnes plays “Sylvia”, a character the film describes as “a nymphomaniac who loves to cook and clean”. While she has no dialog in the entire movie and her screen time is restricted, she provides some excellent eye candy and you get a good idea of why she made Pet of the Month!

In the pre-show hours of Saturday morning, Mike Herz assembled his staff for one last pep talk before the general admission began. With a cigarette dangling from his lip, he reminded me more of Vic Morrow in “Combat!” planning a dangerous mission with his troops than a mere show promoter. As the crowd rolled in and the aisles filled up, it appeared his organizational skills had paid off and his staff did an excellent job of controlling the morning rush. Fortunately for Byron and I, we were able to get in early and avoid the traffic jam for a brief hour.

After canvassing the dealers again and making a few more purchases, including some vintage comic books and an HBO promotional shirt from the series “Carnivale” with great spider girl freak show artwork, I headed straight back to the celebrity area to catch the guests that had not been available the night before. I finally had an opportunity to meet Johnny Whitaker who played Jody on “Family Affair” but may be better remembered for his two-season stint on the Sid & Marty Krofft Saturday morning series “Sigmund and the Sea Monsters“. I had him autograph a half sheet poster for the Disney film “Napoleon and Samantha” in which he stars opposite Jody Foster in her film debut and a full-grown lion! Unfortunately I did not get to ask him about the rumored final episode of “Sea Monsters” where Johnny and his brother Scott get sent to psychiatric counseling after selling Sigmund to a research institute and dynamiting the cave where the rest of his annoying family were living!

Last, but by no means least, I stopped by to give David Carradine a second chance at selling me an autograph. Carradine had previously been a guest at the 2002 FX but his “sliding scale” autograph policy, which included $30 for movie posters, drove most fans including myself away. In the intervening years, Mr. Carradine’s stock has risen with his appearances in the “Kill Bill” cult film series but his autograph prices have gone down and he now charges $20 to sign anything like just about everyone else. After waiting for four years, I was finally able to get my one sheet for “Death Race 2000” signed but I passed on the replica “Kill Bill” swords he was selling for $85.00.

The merchandise selection at this year’s show was a mixed bag. While there was an expected preponderance of newer items, vintage collectibles were still strongly represented. The emphasis on celebrity guests brought in movie poster vendors, comic book dealers were more prominent, and bootleg DVDs are still on the rise. High end collectibles were on display from Master Replicas including Cinderella’s glass slipper, an incredibly detailed model of the Nautilus submarine from “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea“, and light sabers from Star Wars that did everything but send unlucky Jedi Knights into the Force! Deals could still be found but serious collectors are recommended to attend the Friday preview for access to the best bargains and selections of the show.

Byron proved to be the big spender for this year’s FX. In addition to two of the previously mentioned light sabers (one Darth Vader and one Luke Skywalker style), he also purchased a promotional Disney shirt for “Star Wars” and one for the new “Battlestar Galactica” series. He rounded out his purchases with some collectible cards from the “Smallville” television series and “Star Wars” miniatures from the new gaming line.

Despite the logistical problems of a new location and the possible pitfalls of over diversification, the Florida Extravaganza collectibles show is back on the right track. Attendance and dealer satisfaction are still strong and continued careful management should guarantee future success. Even in this current culture of perpetual online collectibles purchasing, FX proves there is still a solid base of collectors who appreciate the tradition and excitement of a real toy show.