"Don't Cry for Me, Pasadena" (Quote by Tim Omundson)
My Kevin Smith Memorial Report:
Late Friday afternoon, I happened to walk by a small group of women in the front row of the auditorium who were talking, and one woman was completely overwhelmed with emotions by something. I didn't hear what they were talking about other than "it was just up on MaryD's," so naturally I had a gut feeling it was news that Kevin had died. I couldn't believe it, so I quickly dismissed it and went into a state of denial. After all, I hadn't heard the conversation, and knowing the Xenaverse, rumors can be quite rampant. However, there was something deep inside of me that knew it was true, but I couldn't deal. So, I ignored it.
That night after the evening show, I got back to the hotel room and Smsolo, my roommate, had CNN on. She told me she had just heard them mention that a New Zealand actor from X:WP had died in China, so she was watching for the full story to come on. However, no story came, so of course, since I hadn't heard it with my own ears I remained content in my denial for the rest of the night.
But alas, the next morning at breakfast, our friend, Cath, confirmed it, and a sign was posted on the Xena Convention board in the lobby of the hotel: "Kevin Smith 1963-2002 Rest in Peace." It wasn't until we went into the auditorium, and I was filing through the photo table line that the emotions hit me. They had sectioned off a collection of all his pictures with a sign noting that all proceeds from Kevin merchandise would go to his family...
I was a wreck the rest of the day.
***
In the program was listed at 7pm Saturday evening "A Special Something." On Friday Sharon announced at some point that Friday was Renee's birthday and hinted that we would probably have an opportunity to sing "Happy Birthday" to her, and that everyone might want to make sure they were in their seats at 6:45pm on Saturday. Of course, then the news about Kevin came and that special time with Renee suddenly became a memorial for Kevin.
Alexis Arquette, Steve Sears, Bruce Campbell, Michael Hurst, Renee O'Connor, Ted Raimi, Hudson Leick, Vicky Pratt, and Alex Tydings all came out and lined up with a table center stage that had a speaker phone on it and a mic hanging over that. Sharon came out to make sure Lucy Lawless was on the phone and to give Michael a hand mic. They gave each other greetings and Michael told Lucy that they were all there. Lucy then spoke about Kevin and what a good guy he was and how he treated everyone as equals, no matter who they were. She talked about how his family came first and that it's they who need our help now. She got a bit choked up, so Michael took over and mentioned an incident at a bar, just after their rugby team won a game, when he witnessed Kevin strip naked, walk out into the street in the rain and perform a Haka (Kiwi ritual dance). Kevin was a funny guy! That was a dominant theme in many of the speeches. Ted said that one of the things he admired most about Kevin was that here was this hunky, gorgeous guy who had taken the time to develop a sense of humor and a very caring personality. He was a truly great guy inside and out. Renee talked about what a genuinely sweet and talented man he was. However, she was barely able to get out a few sentences before choking up and passing the mic on... at which point Lucy chimed in, "Good on ya, Ren! "
Hudson said a few words about the last time she worked with him (which I might have mixed with my report of her Kevin moment from her afternoon appearance), and she reiterated that Kevin is ok and that we need to think about his family now. Then it became too tough for her to speak so she too passed the mic on. Steve talked about a time when he pointed out to Kevin what a huge fan following he had here in the States. Kevin did something Steve had never seen before... He blushed! But the thing was, Kevin knew how popular he was, but he didn't let it faze him. Finally, Michael had an appropriate Shakespeare sonnet he wanted to read, but he asked us to get on our feet and give Kevin a huge ovation once he was finished reading. The sonnet was about how overwhelming the pain and sorrow of a lost love can be, but there's always the loving memories of the good times shared and a life well lived. By the end of the sonnet, Michael was choking up. It was very touching. After which everyone gave Kevin a very long, standing ovation, including the guests on stage, who, one by one, turned and faced the big screen where a picture of Kevin as the God of Love was being shown.
I think the most lasting image of the memorial I'll never forget was of Renee, in black slacks and a tan sparkly, long sleeved top, with shoulder length, dark auburn hair - the bangs of which hung down over her left eye. For a long time, especially at the beginning, she kept her face turned to the side, letting her hair cover up her growing emotion. However, every once in a while she'd face out and let us see her reddened, tear-stained face. At the end, while we all cheered for Kevin, Ted and Michael each gave a crying Renee a hug just before they all ushered themselves out.
Then as we all settled back into our seats, the lights came back up and suddenly we heard Lucy saying from the speaker phone, "Yeah. That was great." This completely broke the tension and everyone laughed. Sharon came out, "You're still on the phone." "Well, yeah, we wanted to hear everything." She continued with a few more thoughts and mentioned something about TVM opening, which went well, and something about she and Danielle and Kevin (the sound got a bit muffled), and then she started getting emotional again so she thanked everyone for a great memorial to Kevin and said goodbye.
It was a very touching expression and communion of friends and fans sharing their love and loss of a truly great man.
Kevin, you are greatly missed!
A side note: We were told later that when everyone stood up and applauded Kevin at the end, Lucy and Rob did the same thing in their living room... *sniff*
