Part of my weekend would make the teenager in me giddy. Actually, it made the old guy in me pretty excited, too.
Carl Weathers
At Fan Expo in Rosemont Friday, I met Carl Weathers. Younger folks would know him more for Arrested Development and The Mandalorian, but my fandom goes back to his parts in the Rocky movie series, my favorite movie. I talked to him about his iconic role, as well as his football career prior to portraying Apollo Creed.
Gary Fencik and Doug Plank
My friend was running a sports card show Saturday and invited me to meet former Chicago Bears Gary Fencik and Doug Plank. For most of my youth, the Bears were terrible, with Fencik and Plank consistent bright spots, along with Walter Payton and a few others. Although both are in their late 60s, they were still in great shape. After chatting a bit, I settled between them for the pic.
Bobby Hull
On the other end of the hall, Blackhawks Hall of Famer Bobby Hull regaled all with stories from his career. As I took a picture with Hull, I thought of my late mom, whose favorite player was “The Golden Jet.”
Ashley Eckstein
I had one more athlete encounter, although it was completely unexpected. Back at Fan Expo, as I waited to talk to actress Ashley Eckstein, also from the Star Wars franchise, I recognized her accompanying manager as her husband, David, a former Major League Baseball player. I joked with both about meeting folks from the hated rival St. Louis Cardinals, but they could not have been any nicer.
David Eckstein
Four legends from my youth and a more recent World Series MVP is a lot of sports stardom crammed into a few days. I also met a lot of other celebrities and creators at Fan Expo. It was a fun weekend ensconced in pop culture madness.
— John Wroblewski, online writer
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Oct 2, 2024Consider These IHG Hotels for Winter Stays
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