I'm a sucker for good missions. Well, okay, I think I'm getting ahead of myself! What I did wasn't exactly a "mission" per se, but it sure as hell felt like one! Call me childish as you want, that's what my imagination is telling me! What was it, you ask? Getting the autographs of the cast and crew of "Black Hawk Down."
I think of it as a mission because it was a goal I've worked on for years now. I've only been an autograph hound for a couple of years and there were still a lot of people I wanted to meet and get autographs from. Some of them included the cast of "Black Hawk Down" which was, for me, the best film of 2001. I'll never forget how enthralled I was watching that masterpiece in the cinema. I'm not exaggerating when I say that it changed my life. It's one of the reasons why I became such an ardent movie geek to begin with.
One of the worst decisions of my life was not choosing to work in the movie industry. I just felt I had nothing to contribute to it apart from being a fan so I chickened out and chose a different profession. My best friend, however, became a top executive within the entertainment industry. And it's because of him that I accomplished this mission!
Over the years, he's become well acquainted with a lot of Hollywood insiders. Including, of course, countless celebrities. He's even friends with Ewan McGregor, one of the lead stars of "Black Hawk Down." As expected, when I asked him to get the cast's autographs, McGregor's was the first he acquired. I've actually met him myself a couple of times and he really is a nice guy! My wife loves him from "Moulin Rouge!" And it was through him that my friend eventually got to reach out to the other cast members.
If I remember correctly, it took my buddy around half a year to have contracted with most of the movie's cast and director Ridley Scott. He told me that the latter was the most difficult to get to since he's not exactly known as an open and welcoming person. He clarified that the director wasn't a-hole, exactly, but that he was one that loved his privacy and whatnot. Damn, if my best friend, who's practically in the in-crowd in Hollywood, couldn't easily get to Ridley Scott, he really must not like meeting people! Eventually, however, he was able to acquire his autographs and everything in the world was good again!
Needless to say, I'm still paying for this mission in more ways than one. However, after getting the autographs of most of the cast of "Black Hawk Down." every penny (or at least every favor done) is worth it! Mission accomplished indeed!
Please note: Our inventory is limited as we may have only received a few posters in total. Most of our items are obtained from film premieres, studios, and from autographed hounds such as the one in the story above.
