Reported by Lynda (originally posted on the ORB message board)

Memories of 'The Day Robert Beltran Rocked My World'

Sydney convention, August 25 2001

You could tell this was going to be a good day. The queue moved fast, and everyone met up in high spirits, hugging, saying hello, and catching up on each other’s news. It was obvious from the very start that we were all buzzing, and that the day would hold something *very* special for all of us.

The unintended entertainment began during the auction. By the end of the day, I don’t think a single person there was ignorant of the fact that I am Sydney’s self-proclaimed number one Robert Beltran (and Robert Duncan McNeill) fan (grin). That fact became fast apparent as the auction items came up for bid.

As our MC Peter Budd held up a signed photo of a very young Robert Duncan McNeill, (from Twilight Zone), my frantic attempts to bid before Peter had finished describing the item had a few chuckles drawn from the crowd. Peter sighed and leapt offstage, moving down the aisle to my chair. He waved the photo in front of me, then snatched it back, saying “uh uh, I never said you could touch!”

I sat on my hands, shivering and shaking, while the auditorium laughed and laughed. Peter & I were grinning like idiots, and when I'd had my fill, I sent him back onstage. "OK" he said slowly, looking straight at me, "...bids?" "Thirty," I said clearly, looking around the room. "And death threats to anyone who bids against her," Peter said, while everyone laughed again. Nobody else bid! Lolol, I found out later that some of my mates did want it, but thought better of bidding against me (grin). Thanks, guys.

I lulled everyone into a false sense of security when an absolutely delicious ‘blue toned shot’ of Robbie was offered up, and I didn’t bid high. I figured it was going to a good home (hi Jon!), and that I would have lots of chances to see it again when we next held video nights at Jon’s place. I’m not silly (wink).

However, later on, a photo of both Robert & Robbie, signed by Robbie, was put up. I couldn't help myself. I GASPED, very loudly, (apparently you could hear it across the auditorium) leapt in my seat, then threw myself back down. *Everyone* was in stitches. Peter asked if someone could hold me down, so 4 people did, while the bidding began. As I stayed quiet, those around me let go, thinking it was safe <g>. I didn't bid at first, just sat back and waited, knowing that this photo was *mine*. Slowly the bids crept up, higher and higher, got to $90, then stalled.... "One Hundred," I said clearly, and got a round of applause, hehehe. A woman across the hall started bidding against me, but she eventually gave up when she realised, I guess, that I was serious, so I now have that photo, signed by Robert as well now, sitting next to me as I type.

Next to the photo of Robert & I together. Which I'll tell you all about in a moment ;)

I left the hall briefly, and as I re-rentered, heard Peter say “Oh here she is, just in time. Someone show her the photo. It’s a picture of Paris kissing a Hirogen.” With a startled blink I said “Eeeewwwww!! Blechhh!” shuddered and took my chair, while the inevitable laughs sounded around me. Needless to say, I passed on that item, but it seems my reputation will stick, and I’m irrevocably recognised as a Robert and Robbie fan. Who can argue in the face of truth?

We were *itching* to get to the lunch, where the Platinum ticket holders would each get an opportunity to meet Robert individually, sit with him and have our photos taken. To say the atmosphere was electric is a serious understatement. I myself was trembling with excitement. Robert Beltran! I couldn’t eat, couldn’t drink. I waited nervously as we were called up row by row, to stand in line and wait our turn.

(Just a note here. I don’t usually react like this to guests. But this was Robert!)

To have the photos taken, we waited in line, and walked up stairs, 6 at a time. As you ascended the stairs, Robert came into view, directly in front of you. We locked eyes, and I grinned, waved and mouthed "HI!!". He grinned, winked and mouthed "hi" back. Oh, this was *too* exciting!

I lined up, then took a big breath as my turn came. I walked over as he greeted me (his approach to ALL the fans was very warm and generous all day. Don't let anyone ever tell you that this man is not a gentleman, or a big hearted, kind person. He is. In spades.).

As we shook hands I said "Oh, I am so *glad* you're here!" He grinned widely, said "C'mere" and pulled me down to the seat next to him. I couldn't believe it as he leant right over, holding my hands rather tightly, and we both tried not to laugh out loud for the photo. (I've got a weird, glassy look on *my* face, I can tell you! lol).

He was laughing very hard at me and my obvious euphoria, so sat very, very close to me, held my hand, and tried to keep his amusement in check for the shot. When I get it scanned I'll put it somewhere, and you'll see what I mean. He's trying to keep a big grin in check, and those dimples are just *flashing*!!! Aaargghh!

My friend Lena said that my photo is 2nd only to hers out of the whole con for 'intimacy', lol. Everyone else's shots are the usual lovely, friendly looking poses, but not sitting very close etc. Ours are the only two apparently where Robert is right up close and personal (grin). And she *knew* she'd be getting a special shot with Robert, as he was coming down to see her personally, her chair not being able to go up stairs. I admitted wholeheartedly that her photo was absolutely, incredibly wonderful - they are literally cheek to cheek in her shot, and I can tell you she's over the moon. We all watched as that photo was taken, and after the shot, Robert kissed her, and the whole crowd went "Awwwwwww..." in that envious, agonised, delighted way. Robert thought that was very funny.

Lena is now deflecting numerous requests to rent her chair for the day for future cons . She's not silly. ;)

I have to take a moment to describe the vision as we ascended the stairs. Robert sat, relaxed and incredibly, amazingly handsome, watching us with a small smile. I can’t get over how much he impacts on you in person. He’s a big man. The camera simply can’t capture the beauty of him. I’ve always thought that idea was an exaggeration, but I’ve now seen living proof. He is just so much more when you actually see him. It’s left me awe struck at how attractive he really is. He was wearing a casual, dark green long sleeved top, sleeves pulled back to bare his forearms, and all I can come up with are awful clichés, like ‘golden strength and grace’. Really, words are inadequate, at least mine are. And to top it off, his skin is silky soft, and he smells *wonderful*! Truly!

He’s growing his hair, by the way, and keeping your fingers out of its glossy strands is hard work.

Well, finally all the photos were done, and we piled back in to the lifts to return to the auditorium and Robert’s time on stage. It’s not true that I came to blows in the lift with a mate who threatened to knock me out, but we did grin ferally at each other, and I declared quite emphatically that if it came down to a physical match, I would most definitely win! In spite of the fact that she does tower over me, hehe, I was feeling simply unbeatable that day!

As I took my seat in the hall, Peter’s next comments had me blushing, but still shameless. He proceeded to say, “We won’t talk about what happened upstairs. That involved a certain lady who was bidding energetically earlier on for Paris photos. Who happens to be sitting there in Row E. Who apparently turned into a huge puddle when she had her photo taken with Robert upstairs…”

Oh my. Very loud laughter surrounded me, and a friend’s voice across the hall called “Hey Lynda, what’s red?” I grinned and pointed to my face. “This,” I smirked, then turned back to Peter and surreptitiously pushed my glasses on my nose with my middle finger, tongue firmly in cheek. OK, so it was going to be like that, fair game now. Well, I don’t mind. Rather be infamous for my adoration of Robert and Robbie than just about anything else I guess. Girl could have a worse reputation. I’ll keep mine thanks, it’s earned honestly (grin).

Well, it’s time to get to the part you’ve all been waiting for, Robert onstage.

OK. Let’s first briefly clear up some things I’ve read about, regarding his tendency to be misquoted, because of the humorous nature of his comments not coming over well in text reports. I stress to you, that is very, very true. As I took a few notes, I was aware that what I’d written could be misconstrued, but let me assure you, the *way* he said everything was always with tongue in cheek. Reports of his delicious, dark, sarcastic humour are not exaggerated in the slightest. Lot’s of eye rolling, head tossing, smirking and laughter. So when you read what he talked about, keep in mind that most of the time the tone was funny, and was meant to be. There were moments when he was serious, and confronting. Defiant and challenging. I’ll try and be clear which times these were. I will be so ticked off if something I report gets twisted by someone else to prove that “Robert hates this”, or “Robert’s attitude is bad,” etc. Don’t go there. Got it? Good.

Okeydoke. Robert walked on to tremendous and enthusiastic applause and cheers. The cameras went wild, as they do. He posed patiently for a while, then took control and asked everyone to sit. “I thought I was coming to *Austria*,” he sighed. “I’m on the plane, and I said, shouldn’t we be in Austria by now?” A very cheeky grin and flashing eyes greeted the catcalls that caused.

He chatted casually for a bit, warming up. Commented on our football, which he likes, but wrote off Union. I was grinning in evil anticipation at this early point, because he was delighting in teasing everyone, and there’s nothing more delicious than Robert Beltran in heavy tease mode.

He opened up the forum to questions almost straight away. I was pleased – perhaps all those things I’ve always wanted to know would be revealed.

Q: What have you been doing since Voyager ended.

Hehehe. Robert rocked on his heels, one eyebrow shot up, and a definite smirk twisted those lips. After a brief pause for effect, he drawled “Not much!” A knowing grin shot across his face as we chuckled.

He told us he’s been working on two screenplays, and a play. Mostly writing, he said. He hopes to produce and direct a film by the end of the year. When asked about a possible release date, he explained that small independent projects can’t compete in the marketplace in terms of budget and backing, so it’s all an unknown at this point. He talked more in depth on this topic later.

Q: Didn’t you work with Scott Bakula on the film Luminarias? So what’s he like, and will he make a good Captain?

“Luminarias,” he corrected, for pronunciation. (Oh, the way it rolled off his tongue.) Yes, he did indeed work with Scott Bakula, and thinks he’ll make a very good Captain! (Insert very innocent expression at this point.) “If he sucks, it’s pretty much the fault of the writers. It usually is. (Big grin forming). That’s my excuse anyway!” Huge laugh got him ducking his head almost shyly. Obviously his notoriety is something he completely acknowledges, and deals with quite openly. I must admit, at the end of the con, my feelings that he has a high level of personal integrity, and a healthy attitude to life and the entertainment industry, were confirmed and bolstered. I have nothing but admiration for this man.

Q: Do you feel that your time spent on with Star Trek has depreciated your roles as an actor?

Robert blinked in surprise. “That’s a very strange thing to ask,” he responded. He thought for a minute, then started to feel his way through his answer. He described how working within the franchise did get you well known in certain circles. But he went on to say that in LA, while the show is known for hiring good actors (and here he interrupted himself, smiling and saying, well, some are good – and shrugging self-deprecatingly), and that everyone validates the quality of their work, he feels that it isn’t in general taken as seriously by the ‘industry as a whole’ as working on some other shows would. “Friends is far more challenging, for instance,” he quipped, grinning, to a big laugh from the audience.

Yes, he feels that working on Star Trek means that you can be “out of the loop” for a while, but that it’s a trade off. There are good and bad points to being known as a Star Trek actor. He concluded more firmly, deciding that it was “not a detriment to my career.”

Then he shrugged again, and said, “We’ll see if my theory holds.” A beaming smile lit his face as we applauded in support. “Maybe I should come back and show you all my low budget film,” he murmured. At the thunderous cheer, he smiled and said “All right!” I hope he takes us up on it.

Q: The next question wanted to know what he thought of various episodes. I think it was ‘Twisted’. (Someone correct me if I got it wrong, please).

In full defiant mode, Robert said, “It was bad. It sucked!” Sounds of laughter, and some comments from the audience. “It *did*!” he insisted. “We all read it, we all got together and agreed, it sucked. But what do you do? You just do your best.” He shrugged, asking us to see the practical side of being on the set that week. But he did conclude with “There were a *few* episodes that I was proud to be a part of.”

Q: Do you agree with most of us that Chakotay was the most under used character in the show?

A big cheer went up at the question, and he nodded. “What about Garrett?” someone queried. “Naah, he deserves to be an ensign,” he growled, winking. Another huge roar of laughter went up.

At this point, Robert decided to indulge in a spot of slapstick. Pausing to take a sip of water, he spat it out in alarm. “It’s 7-up!!” he exclaimed. “We thought you were into Seven!!” someone shouted. Robert laughed, and replied, “Yeah, but then I’d be drinking out of a D cup!” I can’t believe we walked into that one! Talk about a set-up (grin).

Q: I think you have a wonderful voice, I was wondering if you would sing for us?

Robert looked a teeny tiny bit trapped. He demurred. We argued. He shook his head. We begged. “Ya Me Voy,” I called. To no avail. We pushed. He resisted. Said he didn’t have a great voice. Started to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ slowly, excruciatingly off-key. Stopped out our loud groans, and said he would normally sing with back up, or a piano, or a guitar, or… he said if he had to sing, at least someone here had to get up and perform with him.

A girl stood up and said she sang Cabaret. Robert folded his arms and asked her to name some songs. She kept umming and aahhing!! Silly person! “Fly Me To The Moon,” she said. “Fly me to the moon…,” Robert sang, then said “and that’s all the words I know. Pick another!” “Frank Sinatra,” she ventured. “Which song?” he asked. She seemed to rally, and said quickly “’New York, New York’, everyone knows that one!” “I *hate* ‘New York, New York’”, he countered smugly. After repeated attempts to get her to name something he knew the words to, she gave up and sat back down. I bet she’ll kick herself forever at her lost opportunity.

Peter came to his rescue (Robert looked *very* grateful!), by saying that the next time Robert was here, we’d organise musical backup in advance. We cheered, and Robert nodded his head and agreed. Hold you to it, Robert (wink).

Q: If you were to name a real star, what would it be?

Well, there were a number of questions like this throughout the day - I won't bother repeating them all, but I guess every convention gets its share, and this was no exception. Robert looked a bit dumbfounded, and said he’d have to think about it.

Q: Would you tell us a bit about your ethnic background?

OK, this one was answered seriously, but as time wore on, with that undercurrent of sarcasm that had me squirming in my seat. Don’t piss this guy off. Pity that some of the barbs he let fly this day went over the heads of a few they were aimed at, and the phrase ‘doesn’t suffer fools gladly’ kept ringing in my ears. (Not that this was a bad question, not at all – and his response to the fan that asked it was friendly. It was only further down his response that the lips twisted, and you could see a harder glint in his eye.) Somewhere around the description of European invaders onto native cultures, he stopped smiling. He concluded by repeating that he was Mexican, but also “the product of some crazy bastard named Beltran.” Ouch.

Q: How did you start your career in acting?

Well, this was a funny story. Total change of pace. Robert talked about his involvement with sport in his youth, commenting that he thought he should look around for a career that “didn’t hurt” quite as much (grin). But as well as being a “jock”, he was also into theatre. He felt he’d been very lucky in having directors and instructors “that encouraged me, and gave me some discipline.” (Have you ever noticed how loyal Robert is to co-workers that he respects? Have a peek at his ‘Features’ section on his web site, you’ll see what I mean.)

The first time he auditioned during college was for a part in Romeo and Juliet. The Theatre Department were still casting, so he approached them and inquired about trying out for Tiboult. They saw him as Romeo. Robert was more interested in Tiboult. Sword fighting, that’s what he wanted. They ‘discussed’ it for a while, then a tall, blonde Juliet hopeful was paraded before him (grin). He was encouraged to go away and… rehearse some scenes, come back the next day, see what he thought. (All this was related with that very droll, half innocent, half downright evil approach that he has. Very amusing.)

“Gee,” he pondered, raising his hands, balancing the scales, “lemme see… Shakespeare, her. Swords, or her… hmmmm. She won me over.” He then went on to say that in the end, neither of them were picked for Romeo and Juliet, and he ended up playing Tiboult anyway! A shorter pair of actors was chosen, because they looked younger. The blonde (Barbara Lewis) lamented “If only I wasn’t so tall…” sob, sob. Robert was happily exclaiming, “I get to play *Tiboult!!*” “Oh, shut up!!” Barbara cried.

Q: What role would you like to play, out of all the roles there are? Iago? I could see you as an Iago.

Robert paused and said quite seriously “Othello maybe. I think Othello has more breadth and depth.” He then said he’d already played the role he really wanted, that being Hamlet. So, he’d have to say either Macbeth or Othello.

Peter called out something funny along the lines of “I heard that was why Mel Gibson gave up doing Shakespeare, he didn’t want to compete with you.” Robert nearly choked, then rallied. “Yeah, that’s what I heard!” he said, trying and failing to keep a straight face. Then he groused with an incredibly cheeky, evil grin, “Better than Ken Brannaggghhhhhh!” Oh gods I laughed. And I love Ken Branagh (grin).

Onto part 2 ....

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