Got on the VIP list (which turned out to mean little) for an advance screening of the film Home of the Giants. A guy who runs a fan site got me on the list. AFAIK, I’m the only person in the group who was there. Other people couldn’t get to L.A. on a week’s notice, and the one other person who lives here hasn’t yet posted to say she attended. Dan, the guy with the site, is in Singapore at the moment, and practically begged me to go in his stead.
Didn’t take any begging, though. Mr. Rilch works at Sony, which is a hop, skip and jump from Fox, where the screening was. We drove over together, and passed the time before the theater opened chatting with someone who remembered him from when Mr. Rilch used to work there. The theater opened, we took our seats, I talked with some people from the crew who know Dan, and about 15 minutes before the stated showtime, I started feeling restless and wanted a cigarette.
So I went outside and lit up, and I’d barely taken three puffs when along came a group of people which included Haley. It is something to see him in a group, let me tell you. He does not have the “star” attitude, like his crew are just there to form a wall around him; he was definitely the center of the group, but because he drew people to him, not because they were afraid to leave. He looked and was dressed pretty much like the typical college student, except probably cleaner and neater.
So after his group went inside, I stood on the steps puffing, and then I noticed Haley’s dad standing in the doorway. (He’s been photographed with Haley many times. Also, he often has cameo roles in his kids’ films, including this one.) I ditched the cigarette, hopped up the steps and said “Mr. Osment?” He turned and said “And you are…?” I said, “I just have to shake your hand for raising two such fine children.” He responded well to that, and told me that Haley had just come from New York on Monday, having finished with NYU for the year, and that he’d wished it could be longer. (Haley, I mean, not his dad.) I also met Haley’s mom, who wasn’t very talkative, but other fans have said she never is. Dad was nice and friendly, though.
Then, after the movie, no one said anything about a Q&A session, which was supposed to be the idea behind the VIP list. Darn it. But I doubled back and found Haley being greeted by various people. I hung around a bit, talking to a guy who said he’s Haley’s roommate at NYU, discussing what happens when a California native spends a winter on the east coast. Then, finally, everyone else had finished with Haley.
Now, two things I’ve got to say about Haley. First, he is very goodlooking. He may not be everyone’s type, but basically, what you see on the screen is what you see in real life. Second, he’s very tuned in to the people around him. I’ve met plenty of celebrities. Some are just in their own little bubble, some are impatient, some are so enthusiastic you know it’s an act, but Haley gave the impression of being the host of a party, wanting to greet everyone and not snub anyone. For contrast, there’s an actor I won’t name who Mr. Rilch and Boss sometimes do business with. He’s always polite, but the one time he was here, there was a definite air of the king visiting the populace.
Anyway, with Haley, instead of turning away and exiting the theater, which he could easily have done, he looked around as if to check for anyone else waiting to be acknowledged. Which was me. I forget if he said anything first, but I put out my hand, which he shook, and I said, “Hi, I’m Rilchie; would you mind if my husband got a picture of us?” As we were walking over to Mr. Rilch, I added, “There’s no way you’d remember, but we were both crew members on ‘I’ll Remember April’. He was an electric, and I did craft service for a couple days.” (This is true, but neither of us actually made the connection until years later.) Haley said, “Oh, no way!” or something to that effect, and then we took the standard fan pose, with his arm around me.
Mr. Rilch is disappointed with how dark the photo came out, but the way I see it, I never got a photo with Warren Zevon, or Roger Zelazny, and they’re both dead now. At any rate, Haley seemed very at ease doing something he’s done a zillion times before; there was no impression of “Jeez, I was just gonna leave…” Again, speaking from experience, few celebrities are this much “there” during a fan encounter. The whole thing was just so normal, I’m stunned.
Then afterwards, I shook his hand again and said, “Take care of yourself, man; I want you to make a looooot more movies!” (Thinking, “Don’t you ever drink and drive again; don’t wash out of your probation or NYU; and fergodsake, I hope you don’t have that wallet hanging out of your back pocket like that when you’re walking around New York!”) He thanked me, and we left. And now I’m a hero to the rest of the group!
As for the movie. Well, I promised Dan, and by extension SymPics, that I wouldn’t post or repeat any spoilers, so I’ll just say it was a good little film, I’d see it again, I’d have liked it even if Haley wasn’t in it, it was a good blend of a sports movie and a boys-try-to-play-a-man’s-game movie, and as far as Haley, it should put paid to the misperception that he’s eternally 12. I still don’t know when it’s coming out (the screening was partly an attempt to find a distributor), but I think it’ll make a good showing at the box office when it does.
