Las Vegas Convention Report: Saturday, July 31st

At the end of last month, Creation Entertainment hosted their annual Las Vegas Star Trek Convention at the Las Vegas Hilton. Brent Spiner (Data), Marina Sirtis (Deanna Troi), Kate Mulgrew (Kathryn Janeway), Nana Visitor (Kira Nerys), Colm Meany (Miles O'Brien), Leonard Nimoy (Spock) and William Shatner (James T. Kirk) were among the many Trek celebrities who appeared over the weekend.

The first part of this report covers the events of Saturday, July 31st. Guests on Friday included Chase Masterson (Leeta), Max Grodenchik (Rom), Kate Mulgrew (Kathryn Janeway), Alice Krige (The Borg Queen) and Ethan Phillips (Neelix).

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's odd couple, Chase Masterson and Max Grodenchik reminisced about their relationship when they took the stage on Saturday. Grodenchik told the crowd that DS9 producer Ira Stephen Behr was the one who told him that they would be pairing Rom and Leeta. Behr told Grodenchik that the producers thought it would be best to keep Bashir, Leeta's boyfriend at the time, single because he appealed to the show's female audience. Grodenchik joked that he wasn't sure what to make of that.

Masterson said she enjoyed the humor of the Rom and Leeta relationship, and also the fact that they were able to portray a healthy, loving marriage on television. To finish off, the pair brought DS9 and Voyager script supervisor Lolita Fatjo on for a musical number: "I've Got Two Babes."

Kate Mulgrew urged the audience to vote when she took the stage. She mentioned that she had been asked to appear at the Democratic National Convention, but that family matters had prevented her from attending. She recently lost her father to cancer, and she shared the story of his diagnosis and his last days with the audience.

Mulgrew recalled happy times from the Voyager set as well. When someone asked her about practical jokes on the set, Mulgrew revealed that there were many. She saw a lot of "naked butts," she told the crowd. The men in the cast, especially Tim Russ (Tuvok) enjoyed playing jokes on their captain, especially during shoots that ran late into the evening hours.

In addition to continuing to appear in "Tea at Five," Mulgrew is also championing Alzheimer's research. Her mother is suffering from the disease, and Mulgrew emphasized the importance of stem cell research. She intends to go around the country promoting the cause.

Mulgrew also presented the Sally Malin Teacher's Award to Barbara Givens, who came onto the stage to accept the award.

The Borg Queen herself, Alice Krige, was the next guest on hand. She discussed filming First Contact and her scenes with Data and Picard. She opined that the Queen was intrigued more by Data than Picard because they were more alike than she and Picard were. Krige also noted that filming her scenes for the Las Vegas Hilton ride Borg 4-D were particularly challenging because she shot them alone, with no other actors on hand. In addition to her work on Star Trek, Krige also discussed her early films, Ghost Story and Chariots of Fire.

Ethan Phillips was the last guest of the day, and he warmed the audience up with a few jokes. Phillips fielded the infamous make-up questions, joking, "I've never been asked that before!" He told the audience that his make-up changed subtly throughout the show's run as make-up artist Michael Westmore and the producers honed Neelix's look. Before he left, he auctioned off an authentic Neelix prosthetic head to benefit Los Angeles's Uprising Theatre Company. The head eventually commandeered $950.

Part Three of the convention report, covering appearances by Colm Meany (Miles O'Brien), Nana Visitor (Kira Nerys), William Shatner (James T. Kirk) and Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock) coming soon!

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