Episode #66 - 90’s Con RECAP

I’m not sure how I missed this, but I found out about a special event called 90’s Con pretty gosh darn late. I believe it was in February of this year. Somehow I stumbled upon this conference being held in Connecticut, not too far from where I live and close to family and the focus was on 90’s Pop Culture. I just knew I had to go! Unfortunately, because I found out so late I wasn’t able to attend the entire weekend (it runs Friday-Sunday) but I was grateful that I could even attend for one day.

I arrived at the Hartford Convention Center at about 8:30am and pulled into the parking garage. I was worried that it would take me forever to find parking, but thankfully there were plenty of spots. I noticed that a lot of people were waiting outside of the Convention Center. I read that there wasn’t a coat check at the event so it was best to keep coats in cars. I didn’t want to wait outside, in the cold with no jacket, so I took a quick selfie with the marquee board behind me with the 90’s Con logo and headed to the Marriott hotel, right next to the convention center, to hang out in the warm and busy lobby. It was obvious that a lot of people at the Marriott were attending the convention. I noticed a gentleman covered head to toe in neon-colored gear including 90s-themed parachute pants. I also saw people wearing N’Sync and 90210 shirts. I knew I had found my people.

At 9am the doors for the Convention Center finally opened so I made my way over there as I wasn’t sure how long it would take me to get to the area where 90s Con was. After a quick bag check, I headed up the escalator, went to will-call to get my official 90’s Con badge, and stood in line, anxiously awaiting them to allow us in. People who had purchased VIP passes I believe were let in earlier as there were people moving about inside the convention center. Finally, after staring back and forth at my phone for about an hour, they let us in after counting down from 5. Note to self for next year- there is no need to arrive early unless I want to be first in line for something involving a celebrity. That was not on my agenda this year so I slowly walked in.

When I first walked in I stumbled upon the vendors, something I was really looking forward to. Unfortunately, I don’t think it was formally announced anywhere in terms of which vendors would be there and what they would be selling, but I was excited to check everything out. There had to have been at least maybe 30-40 vendors in all, it was hard to tell, but for the most part, what they were selling was of interest to attendees. Except for the Renewal by Andersen Windows company. Not sure if you are familiar with Andersen Windows but they, well, replace windows and doors on houses (and I’m guessing commercial properties as well). They seem to insert themselves into conventions and festivals that have NOTHING TO DO with windows and doors. I’m not sure how motivated people were to get new windows when they wanted to get in line to see Kimmy Gibbler from Full House. Call me crazy, but I’m pretty sure they did not generate much business. Anyhoo, back to the vendors. People were selling 90s-themed funko-pops, posters, TV and movie still photos, candles, snacks, memorabilia, paintings, patches, toys and earrings. I stopped by a business named “Night Owl Designs” and purchased three pairs of earrings- one pair has Betty White on them, another has cassette tapes on them and the third pair I bought has the cast of Goonies on them. It’s like they knew I was coming and put out this jewelry! I’ll put a link to their IG account in the show notes.

You could also purchase official 90’s Con Gear at a large table including items like a baseball cap (which I bought), slap bracelets (which I also bought) as well as a wind-breaker jacket, a beanie baby looking bear, sweatshirts, t-shirts and more. Finally, there were also several tattoo artists there. That’s right, if you went to 90s Con, you could bring home a permanent souvenir. I am not quite sure what people got for tattoos while they were there but I think some people may have gotten their favorite 90’s stars' signature on their bodies. I’m not kidding. When someone finds my dead, lifeless body, I hope the first thing they see is Tori Spelling’s signature on my neck so the paramedics know how important the show 90210 was to me. I kid, I kid. I actually do have tattoos myself but I need a lot more time to plan something like that out, but still that was an unexpected addition to the vendors and it seemed pretty legit.

I walked through the vendor aisles, many, many times. I didn’t really need or want anything, but it was fun to again be around people that are oddly obsessed with decades past like I am.

There were several different photo ops spread throughout the convention center. You could have someone take your picture next to a newspaper stand, a telephone booth or next to a bunch of tube TVs (you bet I did the one by the TVs!). I also paid $5 for a photo op with the Golden Gays a troup of drag actresses dressed up just like the Golden Girls. They were standing on a set that resembled sort of a cartoonish-looking kitchen like the one from the classic TV show. The photo op was called #tokensophia so they hand over a wig that looks just like Sophia’s as well as a whicker purse and oversized glasses. They could not have been nicer and it sounds like they perform all over the world as their Golden Girls counterparts. I was excited to show them my Betty White aka Rose earrings since I put them on right after I bought them. There was also a slime booth from Nickelodeon and an area where you could play 90s video games.

I also noticed a DJ as I was walking around, he was playing 90s-themed music for the weekend. Thankfully it wasn’t overly loud which I REALLY appreciated. Throughout my day at the convention, I heard music by Nirvana, Kris Kross, and Backstreet Boys. I’m assuming he played N’Sync as well, but I must have missed it. I think we all know that N’Sync is better than Backstreet Boys. Trust me.

Throughout the weekend, there were many panels held where you could see any number of celebrities from a certain TV show, musical genre or movie. For example, on Saturday there was a panel for Saved by the Bell, All That, Hocus Pocus, Charmed, Full House and 90210, I was definitely bummed I missed Saved by the Bell and Full House! I know the other panels were quite popular as well. However, on Sunday I attended most of the panels that were offered. The panels are included with your entry ticket so I wanted to make sure to take advantage of that. Each panel was facilitated by an employee of People magazine. The facilitator asked some of their own questions and then the last few minutes the audience was able to ask their own questions.

The first panel I sat in on was for the movie, Clueless. In attendance for this panel was Alicia Silverstone who played Cher, Stacey Dash who played Dionne, Breckin Meyer who played Travis and Elisa Donovan who played Amber.

During the Clueless panel, Alicia Silverstone commented about how she didn’t get to know her co-actors all that much, she was in every scene so her time making the movie was quite busy. Silverstone had just come off of making 8 movies back to back so she expressed feeling quite exhausted by the time she got to Clueless. When asked what her favorite scene is, she said it was the scene in which she and Dionne are driving and things go a little crazy.

Breckin Meyer was a highlight of the panel. He was getting the ASL interpreter to sign the most random things including poop and then the lyrics to “Lose Yourself” by Eminem. He later, recited the lyrics to “Ice, Ice, Baby” which was also pretty hilarious.

When asked why the movie continues to resonate with audiences, almost 30 years later, Stacey Dash said that the chemistry of the actors in the movie and the fashions are a big part of the draw. In fact, I saw many people dressed like Cher in attendance at the conference. Alicia Silverstone had about 65 different outfit changes throughout the movie but unfortunately, no one got to keep the clothing from the movie.

Elisa Donovan shared that Clueless was her first movie and that alone made it memorable for her.

The panel also discussed some memories of Brittany Murphy, Breckin commented that he knew she was destined to do great things - she was a fabulous actress and an excellent singer and how heartbreaking it was for her to pass at such a young age. Meyer is best friends with Seth Green who apparently dated Murphy at one time. He also talked about still being close friends with Donald Faison who played Murray in the movie. Although he was not at 90’s Con, the cast members present talked about Paul Rudd and how incredibly charming, handsome, and kind he is.

The panel facilitator asked the group what they are up to these days and here’s what they had to say:

Stacey is currently doing a lot of interior design work (ps she is 56 I think I read and she looks amazing). Elisa is an author, she wrote a book about her father who died of cancer called “Weaping on your knees.” The book is being turned into a film.

Breckin is a writer for the show Robot Chicken with his best friend Seth Green.

Alicia recently starred in a film called “Perpetrator” which has been shown at the Berlin Film festival. She is also going to be in a movie called “Reptile” with my imaginary husband, Justin Timberlake. Silverstone was later asked if she would ever do a reboot of “Blast from the Past” with Brenden Frasier who recently won an Oscar for his role in “The Whale.” She said she absolutely would!

The second to last question from an audience member was about which tape or CD did the actors and actresses wear out in the 90s: Alicia said “Jagged Little Pill” by Alanis Morrisette, Stacey said anything by Nirvana, Elisa said Public Enemy and Breckin said Pearl Jam and Rage Against the Machine.

The last question by the audience was by an individual who asked the group, in their best Clueless character voice to say their favorite line from the movie. Here is a soundbite from that moment, it was pretty memorable.

The next panel I attended was entitled “Boy Bands” which consisted of Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick of N’Sync as well as Jeff Timmons from 98 Degrees. If you knew me in my teenage years then you likely know that I was OBSESSED with N’Sync, I saw them in concert 3 times when I was in high school, I still have some of my concert tickets, I know their choreography, etc. So I was excited to see Chris and Joey. I also had my photo taken with Lance Bass which I turned into a Christmas card in 2001. But I digress.

The panel session was pretty informal but it was a lot of fun. Chris and Joey are super fun and charismatic so it was a good reminder of why they were such great performers Jeff was definitely not as outgoing as Chris and Joey but he still had a lot of fun accolades to add to the discussion.

A lot of the conversation revolved around comparing the various boy bands of the 90s to each other, but mostly in a poking fun way not in an actual competitive way. It was pretty hysterical, to say the least. Jeff admitted that 98 degrees were not good dancers and Chris chimed in and said that N’Sync was, which is accurate and led to applause and cheers from the audience. I would say N’Sync were the best dancers of all of the boy bands of the 90s, fight me! Chris and Joey commented that 98 degrees mainly just did the box dance when they were on stage and the three of them proceeded to perform the box dance while singing “Give me just one night, una noche.” Both 98 Degrees and N’Sync crossed paths a lot in their early days, especially in Europe which is wear N’Sync first made it big. Jeff said when he first saw N’Sync he knew they were going to make it big.

The performers went on to talk about funny encounters with fans including one time when two girls skunk onto a room service cart and got themselves delivered to N’Sync’s hotel room. Apparently odd situations like these were not unusual.

Jeff did say that 98 Degrees did have some beef with another boy band group called Five, I believe Five had the song entitled “Slam Dunk the Funk!” And despite the long-standing rumors, there really wasn’t a rivalry between N’Sync and the Backstreet Boys. Chris said that he is actually close friends with AJ from BSB.

For the most part it sounds like members of both N’Sync and 98 Degrees continue to be in contact with each other. 98 Degrees have been working on new music and N’Sync has a group text going pretty much at all times. Lance is the nostalgic member of N’Sync and often reminds everyone of anniversaries and milestones from the group’s history apparently.

Jeff ended the session by saying that N’Sync should reunite and that it’s way overdue. Of course everyone screamed and cheered when he said that, including myself.

The final panel I attended was on the Wonder Years. In attendance was Danika McKellar who played Winnie Cooper and Olivia d'Abo who played Karen Arnold, Kevin’s old sister in the show.

I didn’t realize this but d’Abo is actually British with a thick British accent so she had to perfect an American accent for the show. Out of all of the panels that I attended, Danika seemed to be the most down-to-earth celebrity that I heard speak. Her mom was actually in the audience during the panel which added another layer of making Danika incredibly endearing. If Danika had trouble remembering something from the show or her childhood, her mom would help remind her.

I learned a lot of interesting behind-the-scenes information about the show and Danika which I didn’t know before. First of all, the character of Winnie Cooper was only supposed to be in the pilot episode. However, she did such a great job on the show and was such a sweet character that she remained on the show for the duration of it’s run, 6 seasons. Danika’s sister, was also considered for the role of Winnie Cooper, but it was given to Danika of course. However, her sister (Crystal McKellar) was cast as Becky Slater, a role created just for her. Both Danika and her sister did acting as sort of a side gig, just for fun. It was never supposed to be a huge time commitment. McKellar’s parents tried to keep her as grounded as possible during her time on television. She actually didn’t attend the Emmys the first year the Wonder Years was nominated because her Dad had planned a rafting trip for the family. Also, the kiss between Kevin and Danika was her first kiss ever and it was quite perfect to say the least because she actually had a real-life crush on Fred Savage, I mean, who didn’t?

Olivia d’Abo reminisced about working alongside a young David Schwimmer who played her husband in the show (he would later go on to play Ross on Friends of course).

One thing I didn’t realize about the show is that it was sort of canceled somewhat unexpectedly. They filmed some scenes and some episodes and all of a sudden it was over, catching everyone off guard.

Both actresses gave the audience an update about what they are up to these days. Danika is now producing movies and was on Dancing with the Stars a few years ago. She is also a published author, she has written several books about math if I am remembering correctly. Olivia is still acting as well both in movies like Staycation and TV shows like Jane the Virgin.

After the panels ended I did a few more laps through the celebrity booths where you could get selfies and autographs with various 90s stars like Mark-Paul Gosselar who played Zach Morris on Saved by the Bell, Danny Tamborelli from the Adventures of Pete and Pete, Shannon Doherty from 90210 and so many others. Selfies and autographs were an extra charge and then there were also professional photo ops which were also an extra charge. Since I was just there for 1 day I didn’t want to spend time in lines waiting for celebrities and shelling out a lot of money, but it was a lot of fun to just walk around and take it all in. I think I walked past Mario Lopez about a million times and he has aged like a fine wine. The celebrity encounters I know were a HUGE draw for people attending 90’s Con which I believe I mentioned earlier in the or at least on my blog post about 90s Con. I am in the 90’s Con Facebook group (that’s the only reason I have FB is for groups) and tons of people posted all of their photos with celebrities. I imagine some people must have spent hundreds and hundreds of dollars on photos with celebrities. Many people commented on how nice everyone was including Shannon Doherty who said that she was feeling pretty good these days (she has battled cancer for the last few years) as well as Melissa Joan Hart from Clarissa Explains it All and Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

I will post a link to the 90’s Con website so you can see who appeared at 90s Con in CT. You can also find more information about other pop culture related conventions on the website link I will post.

It is pretty cool to think that these famous people make time to see their fans. And sure, there is money involved which is just sort of awkward but I also understand that they need to be paid for their time.

It sounds like the 90’s Con in Hartford is going to be an annual thing each spring which I am extremely happy about and there is also going to be on this fall in Tampa, Florida. If I can make it work, I will definitely try to go next year! Like with any experience there were certainly some pros and cons. However, I am really happy that I went and look forward to going again in the future.

I hope you will join me for my next show where we will be discussing a few television episodes of well-known TV shows from the 90s with the help of my new friends over at the 90’s Noise Podcast. I was also recently a guest on the Up All Night : A Horror Anthology Podcast so please check that out as well. I’ll put a link to both of these podcasts in my show notes.

Until next time, BKBSAHOTYM.

New episode recording:

Hello and thank you so very much for tuning in to the Pop Culture Retrospective Podcast, a show inspired by, and in memory of, my big sister Rebecca and her love for all things pop-culture, especially the people, places and things of the 80s, 90s and early 00s. My name is Amy Lewis and I am your captain aboard this pop culture time machine. You are tuning in to episode #67 - 90s television show episodes review with special guests Aprill and Ashley, from 90’s Noise!! On this episode we are continuing a discussion we started on their show, 90’s Noise where we discussed 2 episodes of Will and Grace as well as 1 episode of Sex and the City. Ony my podcast, we review 1 more episode of Sex and the City as well as 2 episodes from the 90s (and early 2000s classic) Friends. Enjoy!

Thank you so much for tuning into the show. You can find everything Pop Culture Retrospective Podcast at my website: popcultureretrospective.com Here you can find links to my social media pages, contact me, leave a voice mail message, check out merch and more! I hope you will join me for my next episode where I had the pleasure of speaking with Mr. Chris Clews, an 80’s Pop Culture Expert who has written The Ultimate Series on Essential Work and Life Lessons from 80’s Pop Culture as well as Raised on the 80s, he is also a keynote speaker on 80’s Pop Culture. It was a fun and inspiring interview and I cannot wait for you to hear it. Until THEN…..