Thursday, December 16, 2010

Tanya Wright's LA Book Debut for Butterfly Rising


Tanya Wright, who plays Deputy Kenya Jones on True Blood, appeared at Eso-Wan Books in Los Angeles, CA Tuesday night for the LA debut passage reading and signing of her book, "Butterfly Rising." Shadaliza interviewed Tanya back in August and when reading that interview, I so enjoyed learning about Tanya's many projects I thought it might be fun to hear her speak about the book.  So on Tuesday night, I attended her book signing and was privileged to get a brief video interview with her and hear the reading of two passages from her book. What I experienced, was a woman who is driven by her creativity and passion to tell a story. While she readily admits that she is an actor at heart, she has also always had a passion for writing. However, her interests don't end there. She not only wrote the book, but she has also turned it into a movie on which she had her hand in every aspect of its making. She wrote, directed and produced it, and also edited the final film.  She is truly a 21st Century version of a Renaissance woman.
Tanya Wright
I arrived early to meet with Tanya before her reading. When she came out to the main store area to greet me, even though I knew that she was a beautiful woman before we met, I had only seen her, up to this point, in her True Blood Deputy Jones uniform and therefore, I was somewhat shocked at how lovely she was. When she is in her role of Kenya, the determined and somewhat unhappy Bon Temps deputy, she doesn't come off as the gracious, bubbly and pretty woman that she is in person.  I suppose that makes her a great actress indeed. We made our introductions and then went into the store's office where I videotaped her answering the few questions I had prepared.

Photo of Lynnpd with Tanya Wright and view of the book store area
Video of interview with Tanya Wright
After the interview, I went out to join the audience in the book store while Tanya studied the passages that she planned to read. Once she appeared, and was introduced, she discussed her life as it is now. She lived in Los Angeles for fifteen years, but recently has moved back to her home town of New York City. She mentioned that she was glad to be back in LA however, if for only three days, because it is so cold back in New York City.  Before beginning to read, Tanya told the audience about the the making of the book and the film for Butterfly Rising. She discussed her many inspirations to write the book that include the death of her brother six years ago and Aretha Franklin's music. She read two passages to the audience. The first passage is about the two main characters, two women, Rose and Lilah who take a road trip to meet a mythical medicine man, Lazarus of the Butterflies. Rose and Lilah are very different women. Lilah Bell is a quirky outlandish singer who doesn't sing anymore and has fits of fury of darkness. Rose Johnson is a strong willed, aggressively masculine woman who is sexually free. She has relations with other women's husbands and she makes no apologies for it.  Many people don't understand Rose, but over the course of the book the reader comes to understand her better. The second passage was a shorter one, which is the introduction of Lazarus. He is a man who has very few words and doesn't need to say much but gets everything done. Lazarus is the basis and embodies the central theme of the book.
The video below is an excerpt from her reading and is in two parts.  The first part is of Tanya talking about herself and an introduction to the book.  The second part includes a brief portion of the first passage reading which is about a blackout that Lilah had resulting in her being put into the hospital.
After the reading, Tanya signed copies of her book for the audience.
Tanya signing her book
It was a lovely evening and I thank Tanya for letting me be a part of it.
Thanks to Shadaliza for making my videos look so great!

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Stephen Moyer Recites "The Grinch" at Universal


Originally posted on "AllStephenMoyer.com."
One thing I've learned about Stephen Moyer is that he has a very generous and giving nature. I experienced that yesterday, December 11, 2010 when I went to Universal's Theme Park in the San Fernando Valley, near Los Angeles, CA and heard him read, from Dr. Seuss' "How The Grinch Stole Christmas". My friend, Chelsea and I went together to the park yesterday and we had a wonderful time and even got to speak with Stephen after the show (see video below).
Chelsea Lynn
There are many more photos that can be found in the Photo Gallery
Since we had no way of knowing what to expect, we left early in order to get there in plenty of time to be assured a seat. This is the only performance that Stephen will be attending of this special program that continues throughout the Christmas season. We arranged with one of the "Show Control Supervisors" to get up front seats. This was great, since we were way early and therefore, had time to see some of the park before the event instead of spending the afternoon waiting in line.
We got in our special line at about 3:30 pm (the show was scheduled to begin at 4:40 pm). While we were waiting to get in, we saw Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin walk by on their way to the stage area to get ready for Stephen's performance.
We were among the first of the audience to be admitted to our seats which were very close to the stage, just under the giant Christmas tree. The area had been used earlier in the day as a winter wonderland and a place for the children to play in the snow and get their picture taken with The Grinch. It was probably close to 70 degrees, but seemed almost chilly since we sat on benches that were on an icy and slippery floor. We were right in the middle and close to the stage which gave me an excellent view for shooting my video.  I set up my video camera and I was able to capture the entire performance.
Although we didn't have to wait in the long line, many others did and the audience was very crowded, as you can see in the photos below.  The overflow of people were permitted to sit on the ice in front of our area, right up against the stage. The decorations were beautiful and the tree was enormous.
Panoramic view of the event
As soon as the performance began, Stephen was announced and he stepped on stage to read. His reading lasted approximately 5 minutes and then he left the stage for the Whoville characters to come on. Stephen's reading was just wonderful. He read the piece with a lot of spirit and animation. Then, he left the stage and the Whoville characters came on to perform the Grinch story. The whole program lasted about 15 minutes and everyone in the audience loved it, especially the children. At the end of the performance, they lit the Christmas Tree and one child was chosen to push the button to do the official lighting.

See the rest of The Grinch show.



Then, as people were leaving, and we were packing up our equipment, I thought, let's go around behind the tree to see if Stephen and Anna might still be there. As I walked around carefully, on the ice, I saw Steve and gave a big wave and called his name. He looked up and saw me and immediately came over. We chatted for about 15 minutes about the show and about his playing of the ukulele. Chelsea is very fond of a local band called "The Leftover Cuties" that feature the instrument in their band. They wrote the title song for the TV show, "The Big C".  She asked Stephen if he had heard of them because they play nearby all the time. He hadn't, but seemed interested and then told us that we should check out the British Ukulele Orchestra. On the drive home, we did just that, and had a great time listening to them.
Below is the video showing Stephen coming to us.

It was a wonderful and magical day that I very much enjoyed and want to say, "Thanks Steve for my lovely Christmas present".

Friday, November 19, 2010

Rutina Wesley and the cast of "A Raisin In The Sun" radiate!

Article by Lynn Powell Dougherty featured at trueblood-online.com


Last night, I attended the premiere of the radio recording at the LA Theater Works of the Pulitzer Prize-winning classic, "A Raisin In The Sun". The play was written by Lorraine Hansberry and, in this production, has a great cast including True Blood's Rutina Wesley.

Rutina plays the role of Beneatha Younger, the daughter of the family matriarch, who dreams of being a doctor and is frustrated by the family's economic conditions.Others in this stellar cast include:
  • JudyAnn Elder - Lena Younger
  • James Gleason - Karl Lindner
  • Noah Gray-Cabey - Travis Younger
  • Corey Hawkins - Walter Lee Younger
  • Deidrie Henry - Ruth Younger
  • Terrell Tilford - George Murchison
  • Mirron Willis - Joseph Asagai/Bobo
The first run of the play opened on Broadway on March 11, 1959 and ran for nearly two years before the stage version was transferred to film with the same cast starring Sidney Portier in 1961.

A Raisin in the Sun portrays a few weeks in the life of the Youngers, an African-American family living in the South Side of Chicago in the setting of sometime between WWII and the 1950s. The matriarch of the family, Mama, wants to buy a new house to fulfill a dream she shared with her husband. Mama’s son, Walter Lee, would rather use the money to invest in a liquor store with his friends. He believes that the investment will solve the family’s financial problems forever. Walter’s wife, Ruth, agrees with Mama, however, and hopes that she and Walter can provide more space and opportunity for their son, Travis. Finally, Beneatha, Walter’s sister and Mama’s daughter, wants to use the money for her medical school tuition. She also wishes that her family members were not so interested in joining the white world. Beneatha instead tries to find her identity by looking back to the past and to Africa. source: Wikipedia.



It was fascinating to see a play performed specifically for radio. These types of performances are recorded without sets or costumes, and therefore rely on the actors to amplify their performances through their voices. The play was about two hours long and did include sound effects that also aided in creating the illusion for the listener. The cast sat in chairs at the back of the stage and each rose and slowly moved to one of the microphones when it was their turn to speak their character's lines. They all did a superb job in portraying this family's very moving story. Each actor not only read the character's lines, but also provided their own animated style giving added life to the production.

While watching the actors perform, and with the addition of the external sound effects, you could see in your mind's eye the family's small apartment and almost smell the breakfast cooking. The sound effects, which added much to help build the illusion of the setting, were done by Rachel Yamshon and Kevin Pong who were also on the stage in full few of the audience (see photo below). The recording engineer and editor was Mark Holden.

Although no photos were permitted during the performance, Rutina looked lovely in black leggings, a light blue top and red flats. The photos below, taken during the intermission, show the stage area with microphones and chairs where the actors sat. The sound effects area that was located to the right of the stage.

stage including sound effects area

Rachel Yamshon and Kevin Pong

Having seen the film version of the play, I knew I would enjoy watching it again; however I was just blown away by the acting of this exemplary cast. Rutina and all of the cast performed their parts to perfection and I strongly encourage anyone to see this production while you can.

The play will be performed five times, November 17-21, at the Skirball Cultural Center. And, if you don't get a chance to attend one of the remaining performances, the L.A. Theatre Works' nationally syndicated radio theater series airs locally in Southern California on KPCC 89.3 every Saturday from 10 pm - midnight. The audio show also airs on many other radio stations throughout the country and can be streamed on demand at www.latw.org.

Thanks to Chelsea for the additional photos.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Sam Trammell performs at Actors for Oceans

Article by Lynn Powell Dougherty featured at trueblood-online.com.

Saturday night in West Hollywood, the surf was up!I attended a charity gala event for Project Save our Surf, called "Actors for Oceans" at the Falcon Restaurant on Sunset Boulevard. The event's purpose was to raise awareness and gather contributions toward keeping our oceans clean and to support the organization.


Project Save our Surf, founded three years ago by Tanna Frederick and surf legends Shaun Tomson and PT Townend, is a 501c3 non-profit organization which raises money toward cleaning up our oceans, helping Surfrider, Heal the Bay, Inside the Outdoors, Oceana, and many more ocean orientated organizations.

In addition to Sam Trammell, there were many celebrities attending the event including True Blood's Michelle Forbes, Natasha Alam and Michael McMillian. Also attending were actresses, Tanna Frederick (the founder of the S.O.S.) and Tia Carrere.Scheduled to perform their musical talents was actress, Tia Carrere and True Blood's Sam Trammell.
I arrived early and saw those who walked the red carpet (which was just outside the restaurant), including Sam:


above are Tanna Frederick, Tia Carrere, Michelle Forbes, Natasha Alam and Sam Trammell
After a short stint on the red carpet, Sam walked to the restaurant. Before he entered, I met him and asked him if he would agree to a short video interview with me. As Sam is always extremely gracious, he said, "Sure".Once inside we spoke for a few minutes as he posed for photographs with lots of attendees. Originally, he wanted to do the interview right away, but after a few minutes inside, we both realized that it was just too noisy and crazy then, so we decided to wait until after he performed.Before Sam performed he mingled with the crowd and again was extremely friendly and gracious.Sam and Tia Carrere were scheduled to perform and Tia was first on the program. she sang two songs for the Mauli Ola Foundation. She was accompanied by Daniel Ho on guitar.

Tia Carrere and Daniel Ho
The Mauli Ola Foundation and their program, "Surf Experience Days", pairs professional surf instructors and novice surf students who have Cystic Fibrosis to introduce them to the healing properties of exercise, ocean air, achievement, and fun in a supportive environment. Hypertonic saline (which is prevalent in the ocean air just above the water’s surface) has been shown to be a natural treatment for people with Cystic Fibrosis.
Then, after a brief five minute break, it was Sam's turn to perform.
I thought he did really well even with the poor sound quality which was not the best. There was no stage and lots of things going while he was playing, including the silent auction. As you will hear in the video interview below, Sam told me that he couldn't hear what he was playing, so he had no idea how it sounded. He was quite good and I think he has musical talent and would have excelled if he had pursued it as a profession. It was very brave of him to play for us and I applaud his effort.After Sam's performance, Tanna Frederick gave Sam an award and told the crowd that Sam had agreed to be on the Board of S.O.S. They both discussed the repeat of the successful 24 hour surfing event which is in the planning to be held again next year. Then, everyone mingled while Sam and the event organizers posed for several photos.

Sam with Tanna Frederick and a representative from Sovereign Earth
Sam bid on an item in the silent auction and won. It was a fabulous surfing photo that he shows off in our video interview below.Once Sam was free, he and I went out to the now abandoned red carpet area which had plenty of light and was not as noisy as inside the restaurant (although still pretty loud) to do the interview. In addition to discussing the photo, during the interview, Sam talks about attending Eyecon 2010 last week and meeting several Billsbabes there including our very own Michael, aka, SterlingSilverCharm. He also discusses True Blood, how he got involved in the S.O.S., and how he hasn't played guitar since he was a kid.
Interview with Sam
Once again, I continue to be amazed by the congeniality of all of the True Blood cast I have met and Sam is way up there in my esteem for his sincere generosity and friendliness. Nothing seems to phase him when it comes to his fans, he is accepting of them all with not a critical word to anyone.Thanks Sam!
Many additional photos can be found in the Vault Photo Gallery.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Ryan Kwanten's Red Hill is a gem!

Article by Lynn Powell Dougherty featured at trueblood-online.com

Ryan Kwanten and Lynnpd
Last night, I went with my friend, Pinky to the Australian's in Film, LA Premiere to see the screening of Patrick Hughe's Red Hill starring True Blood's Ryan Kwanten at the Harmony Gold Theater on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, CA.

I had called earlier in the week to request tickets and was lucky enough to get them even though the event was already filled to capacity.We arrived early because we wanted to be sure to get good seats and to hopefully meet Ryan when he arrived. We did just that.

As he arrived, there was a group of autograph seekers awaiting him and he was immediately surrounded by them. Pinky was able to get a photo autographed by him and Ryan was kind enough to pose with us for photos.



Fans crowd around Ryan for autographs in front of the theater.

There I am, talking to Ryan as he generously signs autographs for his fans.
Ryan then was whisked to the carpet to do the requisite interviews and then, Rutina Wesley arrived and was kind enough to also pose for a picture. She also had her picture taken on the red carpet with Ryan.
Ryan on the Red Carpet
Rutina Wesley and "Pinky" at the red carpet of Red Hill


The Red Carpet photos of Ryan with Patrick Hughes and Clare Van Der Boom and one of Rutina:
There were other True Blood stars who attended the event last night in addition to Ryan and Rutina. Both Jim Parrack and Lindsay Pulsipher were there and on the Red Carpet.
Jim Parrack and Lynnpd
Jim is a friend whom I have met several times before. I recently saw his play Terra Haute and it was good to say hello again.
Seeing the film.
We then went into the theater to view the film. I had heard really good things about Red Hill after reading many of the reviews and therefore, I expected it to be good, but I had no idea how good.
What did I think of the film?
Patrick Hughes, who wrote, directed, produced and finally edited the film, did a phenomenal job on almost no money and Ryan's performance as Shane Cooper is astounding. In fact, the whole cast was excellent. The cinematography was unbelievable and the landscapes in that part of Australia are quite striking. It's hard to believe that they shot this film in just four weeks. This is truly a testament to excellent planning and a stellar cast and crew.The story revolves around Shane Cooper, played by Ryan Kwanten, who has moved to this small town because his wife is pregnant and needs peace and quiet. Well, Shane couldn't have picked a worse time to arrive in town because a man has just escaped from the local prison and is on his way back to get revenge on the police force of Red Hill who have put him in jail.While Red Hill may be somewhat predictable at times, there is enough surprise to satisfy the most critical viewer. And, the writing, directing, cinematography and acting are so good that you don't mind and are happy to go along for the ride.
Patrick Hughes, Clare Van Der Boom and Ryan Kwanten on stage for the Q&A

Monday, October 18, 2010

2010 Scream Awards - A Press Experience


On Saturday night, October 16, 2010, I had the wonderful experience of attending the 2010 Scream Awards.The Vault was given two Press Passes that included the Red Carpet for me to attend as Co-Admin and a fellow Billsbabe BittenByBill (BBB) to share the experience with me. BBB had been to the event last year, so she was a great help in explaining the ins and outs of the event to me.It was a chilly and drizzly evening when I got to The Greek Theater in Griffith Park, Los Angeles, CA. BBB had already arrived and when we met up it was great to finally meet each other. We both have been Billsbabes since 2008 and have corresponded but never met, so it was a real treat to do so.Let me start off by saying how much we appreciated the opportunity to have a pass and be part of the Press at the event. Thank you to the Scream Awards for including us! However, our position was not the best and didn't allow us much media coverage, so while it was appreciated, it also was somewhat disappointing. Of course, we were mostly interested in True Blood, and were hoping at least that some of the cast members who knew we would be there would find us and stop by.We knew that many of the cast were expected to attend including, Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Rutina Wesley, Sam Trammell, Kristin Bauer, Alexander Skarsgård and Alan Ball. Unfortunately, most of them either didn't even walk the carpet or just stayed in the front area where the main stream press was. We were stationed outside that area and stood behind gates with very little front end space as shown below. We had no covering and very poor lighting, so we just made do with what we were given, still hoping for some attention from the True Blood cast.


The Red Carpet area for the main press and our assigned area
Throughout most of the carpet period, we saw some stars that included, Mickey Rourke, Marilyn Manson, Paul Wesley, Nina Dobrev, actors from the TV show Lost and many more, that I'm afraid most of us didn't know. I expected, at least, that Sam Trammell would come to us because his publicist had stopped by earlier to find us and said he would stop by.I had recently attended a charity event that was important to Stephen Moyer for the fund to help the Darnell Family and we had discussed the Scream awards at that event, so I was hopeful he and Anna would attend. When it got close to 7pm, we were all starting to get pretty concerned thinking that many wouldn't even bother to come to us. Just then, as I looked up, I saw Stephen Moyer.After taking some photos in the press area, he had come to our area and sought me out, saying: I'm here to see "Lynn from the Vault" and then said to all around me, "It's the only one I"m doing." I had told him I would be on the red carpet, but never expected him to "single me out" in such a way. The very brief and extremely amateur video below represents the moment he arrived to see me on the red carpet Thanks Steve, you are the best.
You can imagine how excited I was to be singled out in such a way. The next video below represents most of the 5 minute interview that Stephen gave to me, although there were many around me catching it and they also started asking him questions.While I wished we could have asked all the questions that the fans posted here on the site, sorry, but there just wasn't time and for most, no opportunity. We got Stephen to answer three questions in the video below:
  1. What would you wear if you were going to dress up for the Scream Awards?
  2. What are you doing during the hiatus of True Blood?
  3. What is your favorite horror film?
When we discussed what he's doing right now he indicated that he will be hopefully starting The Big Valley on October 25 and he talked about True Blood not starting now until November 30. They had originally thought they would film two episodes before the new year, but now only one is scheduled.
Also, I brought him a gift. While at the Darnell fundraiser, he told me that he and Anna hadn't even seen Anna's brother, Andrew Paquin's film, "Open House". I just happened to have an extra Blu-ray lying around and I brought it and gave it to him. He was very appreciative. I hope they enjoy it, I did.Below are some photos of Stephen:
Sam also stopped by. He spoke to us all and I told him that I plan to attend his event this coming Saturday, "Actors for Oceans". He replied that he was very nervous because he was scheduled to play an acoustic guitar and he admitted that he needed to do a lot of practicing. The cause is a good one and I like that he cares about the oceans of the world enough to get his guitar out and let us hear him. I can't wait.Below are some photos of Sam:
After all the stars left the carpet, our job as reporters was done and it was now time for us to party! There was a special "lounge" for the Press where you could get something to drink and eat, watch the show on closed circuit TV and hook up your laptop. BBB and I opted to experience the show by sitting with the audience. Wow, was it fun! It is unlike any other award show you have ever seen.
The audience is all dressed in Gothic horror outfits, sort of a 2010 version of Rocky Horror Picture Show. The Greek theater is an open air theater, so the drizzle continued to shower down on us during the event, but no one seemed to care. Drinks were being served to the audience during the event (specifically Fangbangers made with True Blood drink). With each commercial break, handlers moved people to different seats as seat fillers for the stars when they went on stage to present. True Blood won big on this night and BBB and I were just thrilled and screaming our lungs out. When the show won Best TV Show, I was up in the front screaming and waving my arms. We had a blast! While it was wonderful to see the show in person, it is something I can't wait to see also on TV. It's a fabulous time that you all should watch this Tuesday, October 19 on Spike TV.
More images can be seen in the Vault Photo Gallery.
Thanks to demuredemented and ThelLou for helping out with the videos.

Monday, October 11, 2010

Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer and more attend Darnell fundraiser


Yesterday, Sunday October 10, I attended The Darnell Family fundraiser and silent auction event that was held in Venice, California at the Canal Club for the Darnell Family. As we previously reported tragedy has stuck this family leaving the four remaining children alone with no home or income. Their loved ones and neighbors and lots of people in the city of Venice came together to insure that the fund set up for the children will help to provide sufficiently for their care. Click on each photo to see a larger view. More photos can be found in the Photo Gallery for this event. The fundraiser was brought together with the help of many from Venice and the entertainment industry. In two weeks they managed to arrange this event and get lots of items for their silent auction. The Canal Club donated the space and Shaina Rosenblum helped to organize it. Many others helped out from the community as well, including Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer who have donated items that are currently being offered for sale on EBay. Also scheduled in Venice was a music event fundraiser that was held later in the day.
Shaina Rosenblum, event organizer
When I arrived at the Canal Club, I was early and things were still being set up. I was greeted by Shaina who helped me to display our donation.  Many of the items were laid out on the tables in a room set aside for the silent auction. I had told her, the day before that The Vault would donate a 2010 Comic Con Swag Bag and she put it on the same table as a True Blood Script signed by Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer and Alan Ball.
Table where the True Blood Script and Swag bag were displayed andclose up of the swag bag donated by The Vault
There were many items from celebrities. Just to name a fiew, there was a Blu-ray of Clockwork Orange signed by Malcolm MacDowell, a hard bound copy of a Full Metal Jacket script signed by Matthew Modine. There were also the traditional, bottles of wine, facials, floral arrangements, art work, jewelry, etc., but other than the True Blood articles, the one that interested me the most was Stuart Copeland’s drum lid that was signed by him.
Owner Paul Pondella with Dakota the Wolf
Once the items were set up, we waited for the event to begin. As they slowly arrived, the room began to fill up. Then, I noticed that there was a large, what I at first thought was a dog, in the room, but it was a wolf. Of course, I immediately assumed it was from True Blood since Stephen Moyer would be attending this event, however, it turned out that it was an Alaskan Timberland Wolf named, Dakota which was raised by Paul and Colette of Shadowland Foundation. They are trying to save this particular species of wolf and he certainly was beautiful. Paul and Colette are friends of the family. Then after a short while, there were words said about the Darnell family and then we looked at a slide presentation depicting photos of the family. This was for everyone, but especially the family members who attended, the most difficult part of the afternoon. Shortly after the end of the slide show, I noticed some more people arriving. I was surprised when one of them turned out to be True Blood’s Theo Alexander who had just walked in with a friend. He strolled around and started looking at the items up for auction. I went up to him asking if I could take his photo and his friend suggested that we could take one together.  I told him how much we loved his portrayal of Talbot and hope to see him back in "flashbacks" on True Blood.
Lynnpd with Theo Alexander
At this point everyone was eating and silently bidding on the auction items when I noticed that in the bar side of the club there was Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer. They had just arrived and were greeting everyone and saying hello to the Darnell children. When I walked into that part of the club, Stephen looked up and immediately noticed me. I had told him I would be attending and had asked if he and Anna would sign our donated “swag bag” when they came. Before Stephen had a chance to come over to me,  Theo Alexander went up to him and Stephen gave him a big hug. Anna and Stephen spoke to him for a short time.


Anna and Stephen greet True Blood's Theo Alexander (Talbot)
After several minutes of greeting and speaking to the hosts and others in the room, Stephen came up to me. He gave me his usual hug and kiss on the cheek, always appreciated and started making some suggestions for photos that could help. He and Anna posed for photos with two of the Darnell children, Rachel and Olivia and with the Wolf, as seen in the photos below.

Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin pose with Rachel and Olivia Darnell,
two of the four surviving children of the Darnell family.
Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer and Owner Paula Pondella of the Shadowland Foundation 
pose with the Alaskan Timberland Wolf, Dakota who was a guest at the event.
After taking photos he and Anna came over to the auction area with me to see what was on display, sign the swag bag and to look at the script they had donated.  The script was later taken off the table and was to be put on EBay hoping to get a greater yield to help the family.

Script of Season 3, Episode 12 signed by Anna, Stephen
and Alan Ball (look for it on EBay)
They chatted with me for quite awhile. We discussed the recent fundraiser “The Battle of the Fang” and our fundraiser, “The Stephen Moyer Kids Theater Fundraiser". Stephen is very pleased with the fund raisers. We discussed lots of things like the fake Anna Paquin’s out there and Stephen's upcoming movie roles. He said that he is waiting to hear about when the filming of The Big Valley will begin, which has been postponed several times due to lack of funding. He hopes The Caller and The Double will be out soon. He said he has heard good things about The Double. He doesn’t know about Ice, either. I said, "we need to see you in a new film!"  He agreed. It certainly isn't because he hasn't tried. Believe it or not, he and Anna haven’t yet seen Andrew Paquin's film in which they appeared, Open House. I couldn’t believe it, but they said it’s true. They want to see it though and will soon, I’m sure. I'd be glad to share my Blu-Ray with them.  I asked if they would be attending the Scream Awards, but they weren't sure about it. After almost an hour, but what seemed like seconds to me, I said goodbye to Anna and Stephen.
More photos can be found in the Photo Gallery for this event.
All the money that was raised today, the money from the EBay auctions and at the concert  will go to help the remaining four Darnell children who very much need financial support. Truly this is a worthy cause that I was glad to support. Please donate to help this lovely family!
For more information and PayPal donations visit the Darnell Memorial Fund Facebook page. This page is also accessible for non-Facebook members.
Donations by check can be sent to: Darnell Memorial Fund Acct. 3130266046 Antelope Valley Bank, Acton branch 31924 Crown Valley Road Acton, CA 93510