Steven Berkoff

[Dent_1]

 

For some reason I'm reading all this and somewhat liking him all the more for it.

 

He doesn't seem like the weird "what the hell is going on with them" character like Famke, where people are trying to piece together the jigsaw-like mystery puzzle to explain her demeanour (broken ribs bla bla bla). But rather he seems your typical curmudgeonly, cantankerous old sod, almost like you should treat it as a challenge to go to his autograph table to try and coax a laugh or smile out of him.

 

I could be completely wrong but he does seem the terribly serious type and I reckon talk of his theatre work etc. would have gotten a bit more out of him. Naturally the attendees of LFCC are going to be the type who mostly want to see him for his more 'low-brow' mainstream film work, but being an intelligent guy he will have known that going in. Makes you wonder why some guests agree to do these shows...

Theatre goers cut no ice with this guy either - my friend told me he met him at the Stage door and was treated as contemptuously as those who went to LFCC...

 

I think you said it right -"a cantankerous old sod"...

 

 

What was the meeting like though? I imagine Stage Door fans being a more polite version of unscrupulous dealers and nutcase fans camping out at a film premiere. I could be wrong on all counts, but I see loitering in wait for a star (something not enjoyed by many celebs) as very different to an actor deliberately placing themselves at a convention where you are essentially inviting people to come and speak to you.

[Erin]

There is a line in a Brian May song called I'm Scared which goes "I'm scared of Steven Berkoff", maybe Brian May was on to something here! Although you do wonder why these people do conventions if they're not interested in having photos done or signing autographs.

[Murph]

There is a line in a Brian May song called I'm Scared which goes "I'm scared of Steven Berkoff", maybe Brian May was on to something here! Although you do wonder why these people do conventions if they're not interested in having photos done or signing autographs.

£££££

[Diabolik]

 

 

For some reason I'm reading all this and somewhat liking him all the more for it.

 

He doesn't seem like the weird "what the hell is going on with them" character like Famke, where people are trying to piece together the jigsaw-like mystery puzzle to explain her demeanour (broken ribs bla bla bla). But rather he seems your typical curmudgeonly, cantankerous old sod, almost like you should treat it as a challenge to go to his autograph table to try and coax a laugh or smile out of him.

 

I could be completely wrong but he does seem the terribly serious type and I reckon talk of his theatre work etc. would have gotten a bit more out of him. Naturally the attendees of LFCC are going to be the type who mostly want to see him for his more 'low-brow' mainstream film work, but being an intelligent guy he will have known that going in. Makes you wonder why some guests agree to do these shows...

Theatre goers cut no ice with this guy either - my friend told me he met him at the Stage door and was treated as contemptuously as those who went to LFCC...

 

I think you said it right -"a cantankerous old sod"...

What was the meeting like though? I imagine Stage Door fans being a more polite version of unscrupulous dealers and nutcase fans camping out at a film premiere. I could be wrong on all counts, but I see loitering in wait for a star (something not enjoyed by many celebs) as very different to an actor deliberately placing themselves at a convention where you are essentially inviting people to come and speak to you.

My friend and his wife had just watched his play and waited at the stage door to congratulate him on his performance with a small group of fellow theatre goers, with programmes in hand. When he emerged he was curt and unfriendly.

[ieeerr]

 

 

I imagine Stage Door fans being a more polite version of unscrupulous dealers and nutcase fans camping out at a film premiere. I could be wrong on all counts, but I see loitering in wait for a star (something not enjoyed by many celebs) as very different to an actor deliberately placing themselves at a convention where you are essentially inviting people to come and speak to you.

 

 

I don't see premieres and stage doors as anything other than 'deliberately placing themselves somewhere for the fans to come meet and speak to'. Premieres and specifically their red carpets is one of the things mostly for the fans. Some actors won't sign for everyone, other will try their best, it's their choice, and because it's their choice, they can limit and pick the fans and AMOUNT of fans they want to meet and have a chat with(to put it quite rudely, if they feel themselves getting tired or whatever, they can stop signing and go inside the filmhouse, so they are sure that everyone they did sign for has had a pleasant experience). I don't think many celebs do not enjoy their fans loitering in wait for them. I think it's the complete opposite, actually. I think they're flattered, and enjoy the whole thing (without the actual waiting around) as much as the fans do(you can see that when watching livestreams/photos/videos/interviews from any particular premiere).

 

As for theatres... Theatres often have more than one exit, there's no need for the (bigger) actors of the production to come through the stage door if they do not want to meet the people who are waiting. So my thoughts are that when they come through the stage door, they deliberitaly place themselves there, to use your words again, to meet the fans. Sometimes there is only one exit, and the actors will have to get past the fans, but when they don't feel up to meeting their fans, they will say so or find another way to not have to stop for the fans, which is part of the deal.

 

​This all unlike with conventions, where there's a certain (massive) amount of fans to go through. No matter if they actually want to meet them or are exhausted or not feeling well; they have to. With premieres and stage doors there isn't that 'must', mostly quite simply because the fans haven't paid for it, so there's no expectations and pressure. It's for this reason that I think some of these conventions guest haven't been a positive experience for all; just simply because they were exhausted halfway through the day yet were expected to meet another 500 people so they couldn't 'retreat to the filmhouse'.

 

​Apologies for going against you again. It's just that I'm one who does stage doors and premieres and I don't like being called a 'nutcase fan' because I'm not. I'd like to think I am respectful and polite.

Edited August 6, 2016 by ieeerr

[Dent_1]

You don't need to apologise at all, said I could be wrong on all counts (having never attended a stage door/premiere) so your comments are insightful to me anyway! I would hope all fans would be polite but I have seen some vids on youtube of some real a***holes heckling celebs.

 

One in particular sticks in my mind where this one guy (dealer) was just chatting absolute ______, saying anything to try and get Bruce Willis' attention. Bruce clearly found it quite annoying, refusing to sign for him, and rather than walk away he still kept signing for other people being far more respectful. The dealer, who was not white, then called Bruce a racist. Unbelievable. And Bruce apparently has a bad rep for signing autos but is that surprising if you have to deal with such nonsense?

Edited August 6, 2016 by Dent_1

[ieeerr]

I agree with that, actually. The dealers are ridiculous, but they are only a small amount. A very annoying small amount, I have to agree.

 

There's been an incident I recall, where one of the dealers shouted "EFFING FANS!!!" And literally.. why? The fans are there to meet their idol, dealers are there to make money. Why do we get cursed at?

 

Some of them dealers are very disrespectful, and annoying, so I agree with that. If those kids aren't around everything is usually very pleasant until you come across another rotten apple.

[john1980]

Dealers are pond scum. I saw a few in the queues arms full of stuff, I know people were getting autographs for friends, but you can feel the difference they werent looking at the guests just conveyor belting their items through. One guy saw my Star Wars was largely personalised and looked horrified commenting "you'll never sell it now" and looked even more shocked with my response of "it's was never for sale."

[Murph]

I hate dealers with a passion. I remember one calling Gillian Anderson a 'C u next tuesday' because she wouldn't see X-Files stuff after a theatre performance.

Edited August 6, 2016 by Murph

[Faerie Tanith]

Dealers are pond scum. I saw a few in the queues arms full of stuff, I know people were getting autographs for friends, but you can feel the difference they werent looking at the guests just conveyor belting their items through. One guy saw my Star Wars was largely personalised and looked horrified commenting "you'll never sell it now" and looked even more shocked with my response of "it's was never for sale."

I always think that if I were a signing guest at one of these events, I'd tell staff prior to the event that I wouldn't sign bulk collections for dealers. It's just so impersonal and cold, in my opinion. I saw a lot of Star Wars guests signing armfuls of items clearly for dealers to sell on and none of them looked overly thrilled about it. I know I wouldn't be best pleased to be in that position. But that's just me and slightly off-topic, so as you were.

[Dent_1]

Dealers are pond scum. One guy saw my Star Wars was largely personalised and looked horrified commenting "you'll never sell it now" and looked even more shocked with my response of "it's was never for sale."

I always find it astonishing that some dealers can't comprehend you wouldn't want to sell your cherished signed items. But that's not really what it's about. They don't really appreciate why many collect autographs, they only understand buying and selling them. Or getting them for free and selling them. So really all they understand is £££/$$$.

 

The irony is their flawed logic on the topic of personalisations: the dealer wants something to be (unpersonalised) and more saleable. Why? Because they see that as being 'more desirable' - in so far as a wider audience may wish to buy it from them.

But why wouldn't that same end consumer forego using dealers (where they can) and get personalisations if it makes the same items even more personal and cherished by being more 'unique'?

 

The only reason not to, unless you really hate personalisations, is just to keep dealers in business and I don't think any fan at these events cares about that. You should have just said "you're a narrow minded idiot" to the dealer and turned away.

[Shellychellebelle]

I can't stand dealers either, have come across some extremely disrespectful people in the past. I'm sure they are not all the same. I'm surprised that stars do not have a sign to say personalisation only. I wouldn't want the dealers money knowing they're just trying to cash in off my back.

[john1980]

 

Dealers are pond scum. I saw a few in the queues arms full of stuff, I know people were getting autographs for friends, but you can feel the difference they werent looking at the guests just conveyor belting their items through. One guy saw my Star Wars was largely personalised and looked horrified commenting "you'll never sell it now" and looked even more shocked with my response of "it's was never for sale."

I always think that if I were a signing guest at one of these events, I'd tell staff prior to the event that I wouldn't sign bulk collections for dealers. It's just so impersonal and cold, in my opinion. I saw a lot of Star Wars guests signing armfuls of items clearly for dealers to sell on and none of them looked overly thrilled about it. I know I wouldn't be best pleased to be in that position. But that's just me and slightly off-topic, so as you were.

I was more on topic than usual, during my little brain wanders. Someone mentioned dealers abusing signers.

 

But yeah I'm just glad no one seems to have asked Berkoff about his Deep Space 9 experience, he might have exploded. See I can stay on topic

Edited August 6, 2016 by john1980

[Diabolik]

My take on this - if you don't like to meet your fans don't do cons...

 

If you don't like to be associated with lighter entertainment don't do Doctor Who, Rambo First Blood Part 2, Beverly Hills Cop or Octopussy

Edited August 6, 2016 by Diabolik

[KingRichard76]

Ahhh, the "D" word, I have no time for dealers and these parasites are ruining it/in so many cases, HAVE ruined it for Fans.

 

Was in 2011 I had the honour of meeting Mr. Oz briefly at the Stage Door, there was just me and another chap, at that point he came in the front way, a few days previous I had bought the Star Wars bluray and he was good enough to sign it/personalise, he also signed my Muppet Show Book and Season 2 & 3 DVD, he personalised all four items, was very kind to me even to the point of worrying about the ink rubbing off one of my dvds, he agreed to pose for a pic as well - it was one of the greatest moments in my life.

 

Fast forward a week or so later when nightmares started surfacing about dealers shoving piles and piles of 10x8s under his nose, a good friend of mine whom only had Little Shop of Horrors on her for him to sign missed out - a FAN missed out due to the dealers.

 

At the Larry Crowne prem later that year (I as a fan very much was looking forward to Mr. Hanks signing my Big DVD) he turned up didnt sign where I was and people around me started booing him, you dont boo someone just because they dont sign for you, nor do you boo someone who turns up late to an event it just smacks of inconsideration.

 

Have seen stars in their cars being chased down streets by flipping dealers, and its not a pleasant site to see.

 

I think the worst case of the damage the dealers do was something a good friend told to me a few weeks back, she is a very respectful, sweet, well mannered, thoroughly polite young lady who had gone to the Star Trek prem, Chris Pine wouldnt sign for her as he foolishly mistook her for being a dealer so clearly due to the actions of dealers a FAN missed out.

 

As ​MURPH ​has stated Gillian Anderson was called an unmentionable word, this I heard of, as I also heard that Alex Kingston was also called that a few years back - seriously, what is wrong with these people?

 

Yep, ​IEEERR I​ recently experienced the "BLEEPING FANS" comment when waiting for a very well known actor from a dealer- I had a ticket to see this actors show and very much appreciate what hes brought to the small/then big screen.

 

If I recall there were a ton of dealers at LFCC 2014 and they'd all got Stan Lee before us FANS - many missed out due to them.

 

But no, I'm no fan of dealers I never have been and never will be

[TerraHawk]

 

Dealers are pond scum. I saw a few in the queues arms full of stuff, I know people were getting autographs for friends, but you can feel the difference they werent looking at the guests just conveyor belting their items through. One guy saw my Star Wars was largely personalised and looked horrified commenting "you'll never sell it now" and looked even more shocked with my response of "it's was never for sale."

I always think that if I were a signing guest at one of these events, I'd tell staff prior to the event that I wouldn't sign bulk collections for dealers. It's just so impersonal and cold, in my opinion. I saw a lot of Star Wars guests signing armfuls of items clearly for dealers to sell on and none of them looked overly thrilled about it. I know I wouldn't be best pleased to be in that position. But that's just me and slightly off-topic, so as you were.

 

 

Then you are talking about depriving the organiser of a certain percentage of sales. Buying a preorder is essentially via a dealer. I mean how many people really met some of the smaller Star Wars guests? Few hundred of the more dedicated? So an extra 100 autographs for dealers on top of that pays for them to be there.

 

Dealers at shows are at least paying their way, the actor still gets something for their trouble. Via post or stage door they get nothing.

 

There is a line in a Brian May song called I'm Scared which goes "I'm scared of Steven Berkoff", maybe Brian May was on to something here! Although you do wonder why these people do conventions if they're not interested in having photos done or signing autographs.

£££££

 

Well he was only £15. A lot of these deals are done by agents, its quite possible they agreed to the photos on his behalf, without informing him till the day.

 

I can't stand dealers either, have come across some extremely disrespectful people in the past. I'm sure they are not all the same. I'm surprised that stars do not have a sign to say personalisation only. I wouldn't want the dealers money knowing they're just trying to cash in off my back.

 

Plenty of fans have no interest in dedications, it doesn't mean we are all looking to sell. If you have a multi-signed item you run out of space a lot quicker if they are all dedicated,

 

In saying that though, selling is always an option if the needs arises. I'd never get back what I'd spent on mine, mind you. But there's nothing worse than seeing a dedicated photo on eBay when its made out to 2 or 3 members of the same family. You might find someone with your name interested, but not a group.

[RomeroSavini]

I have seen dealers push, hit and get into fights with fans. Even pushing children out of the way!

 

Spread their vile antics all over the net I say, eradicate them all.

 

I experienced loads of the scum at the Suicide Squad London Premiere this week... lets just say many deserve a good beating....

Many of the stars on the red carpet stayed away from them gladly as security must have infirmed everyone (a gang of dealers had took over a section of front place barrier), but sadly that in tern stopped many fans around them being near the stars as well.

 

Vile.....

[TerraHawk]

Ahhh, the "D" word, I have no time for dealers and these parasites are ruining it/in so many cases, HAVE ruined it for Fans.

 

Was in 2011 I had the honour of meeting Mr. Oz briefly at the Stage Door, there was just me and another chap, at that point he came in the front way, a few days previous I had bought the Star Wars bluray and he was good enough to sign it/personalise, he also signed my Muppet Show Book and Season 2 & 3 DVD, he personalised all four items, was very kind to me even to the point of worrying about the ink rubbing off one of my dvds, he agreed to pose for a pic as well - it was one of the greatest moments in my life.

 

Fast forward a week or so later when nightmares started surfacing about dealers shoving piles and piles of 10x8s under his nose, a good friend of mine whom only had Little Shop of Horrors on her for him to sign missed out - a FAN missed out due to the dealers.

 

 

But no, I'm no fan of dealers I never have been and never will be

 

I don't suppose anyone is a fan of dealers - but when you have people like Frank Oz and James Earl Jones who don't do paid signings - like it or not dealers do provide a black market where there is no legitimate alternative for most collectors. Most of us are happy to pay our way, but some actors don't play the game by our rules. That doesn't help the situation.

 

I was watching that Frank Oz play for months, when the rehearsals came I was too busy at work to get to London! But instead I wrote to him and got two stickers signed. I'd still pay to get him in my book properly though.

[RomeroSavini]

I dont buy signatutes from anyone, ever. I may pay for the experience of meeting and the interaction between me and them, maybe getting them to sign something in the process.

 

A piece of paper with some ink on it is worthless in my eyes without any memories to go with it.

 

That and I trust no one haha They are not real unless I see it done with my eyes :-)

[Faerie Tanith]

I dont buy signatutes from anyone, ever. I may pay for the experience of meeting and the interaction between me and them, maybe getting them to sign something in the process.

 

A piece of paper with some ink on it is worthless in my eyes without any memories to go with it.

 

That and I trust no one haha They are not real unless I see it done with my eyes :-)

This. Exactly this. I once bought a signed Merlin print online, supposedly signed by Katie McGrath, Colin Morgan and Bradley James. But how do I know any of them ever went near the print itself? What's the point in looking at it and thinking "....I got that online, what a wildly fond memory that purchase was".

 

Far better to know you have the real thing along with the memories.

[john1980]

 

I dont buy signatutes from anyone, ever. I may pay for the experience of meeting and the interaction between me and them, maybe getting them to sign something in the process.

 

A piece of paper with some ink on it is worthless in my eyes without any memories to go with it.

 

That and I trust no one haha They are not real unless I see it done with my eyes :-)

This. Exactly this. I once bought a signed Merlin print online, supposedly signed by Katie McGrath, Colin Morgan and Bradley James. But how do I know any of them ever went near the print itself? What's the point in looking at it and thinking "....I got that online, what a wildly fond memory that purchase was".

 

Far better to know you have the real thing along with the memories.

Its why I wont do the preorder from Showmasters, as much as I want Ray Park on my Star Wars set, I trust them but I like meeting the people signing my stuff.

[Diabolik]

The only exception being stars who have passed, I get all of mine in person too - usually cheaper and you have the memories too...

[ieeerr]

 

 

Yep, ​IEEERR I​ recently experienced the "BLEEPING FANS" comment when waiting for a very well known actor from a dealer-

 

 

​I now wonder if it's the same guy. I honestly wouldn't be surprised..

 

Many of the stars on the red carpet stayed away from them gladly as security must have infirmed everyone (a gang of dealers had took over a section of front place barrier)

 

Luckily most celebs do seem to recognize the dealers, so they stay away from them. At the Spectre premiere last year them dealers were literally running up and down(there was only 2/3 rows of people in the area I stood), mostly literally walking along with the actors. I have my fave *cough* dealer in my photo with Andrew Scott. At one point I was taking a photo with an actor, I cannot remember who it was, and them dealers had their photos literally in my face, so then the actor angrily pushed their hand away. My god.

 

​I don't get the autograph-selling business. I'm not judging at all, but why do people buy when they can either go and get something signed personally (I get that this is not always possible, but I also think people are too quick to say "I will never meet *insert name*") or they could send the actor a letter and their favorite photo with a request to sign that and send it back? I get if i said actor has passed away, but apart from that, I really don't understand.

Edited August 7, 2016 by ieeerr

[john1980]

 

 

 

Yep, ​IEEERR I​ recently experienced the "BLEEPING FANS" comment when waiting for a very well known actor from a dealer-

 

​I now wonder if it's the same guy. I honestly wouldn't be surprised..

Many of the stars on the red carpet stayed away from them gladly as security must have infirmed everyone (a gang of dealers had took over a section of front place barrier)

Luckily most celebs do seem to recognize the dealers, so they stay away from them. At the Spectre premiere last year them dealers were literally running up and down(there was only 2/3 rows of people in the area I stood), mostly literally walking along with the actors. I have my fave *cough* dealer in my photo with Andrew Scott. At one point I was taking a photo with an actor, I cannot remember who it was, and them dealers had their photos literally in my face, so then the actor angrily pushed their hand away. My god.

 

​I don't get the autograph-selling business. I'm not judging at all, but why do people buy when they can either go and get something signed personally (I get that this is not always possible, but I also think people are too quick to say "I will never meet *insert name*") or they could send the actor a letter and their favorite photo with a request to sign that and send it back? I get if i said actor has passed away, but apart from that, I really don't understand.

Its not just autographs its collectables in general. If people find that others are making money from something they will assume they are deserved a cut. The mentality of if you're willing to spend Xto get something I will charge y and make a profit

[Nadine84]

I really wanted a Steven/Famke double shoot.

LOOOOOOL!!! Made my day!