Posts Tagged ‘comedy roast’

Shore Leave wrap-up

I’m exhausted, so I’ll keep this short.

Friday night’s comedy roast of Bob Greenberger was a real hoot, and it raised over $800 for the American Red Cross. I am enormously grateful to all the members of the tech crew who helped make it happen, all the performers who took part, all the volunteers who helped make it a success for charity, and the audience who came out to share the evening with us. Most of all, I wish to thank my good friend Robert Greenberger for being such a good sport as the guest of honor.

Saturday and Sunday went by in wild blurs, as they always do at Shore Leave. But it was terrific to be able to hang out with and talk to so many fellow Star Trek authors, especially David R. George III, Kirsten Beyer, William Leisner, Scott Pearson, Amy Sisson, Dave Galanter (and his lovely new wife Simantha), and my good friends Marco Palmieri, Dayton Ward, and Kevin Dilmore, as well as my old pals Glenn Hauman, Aaron Rosenberg (and his wonderful wife Jenifer and their adorable children, Arthur and Adara), and my buddy and partner-in-crime, Alan “Sizzler” Kistler.

Last but not at all least, I must sing the praises of my wife, Kara, who worked her ass off on Friday to help make the roast happen. She was up and working at 7AM that morning, and she spent the day helping the tech crew assemble the stage, the lighting towers, and run electrical. Then, that afternoon and evening, she served as the director and stage manager of the roast. I often say that I could not do what I do without Kara, but in this case it was literally true: Without her, that show simply would not have come together. She made it work and shine, just as she does with everything else in my life. For that and a hundred thousand other reasons, I love my wife.

And that was my Shore Leave for 2011.

The DVDs are here!

Just opened the box and I am very pleased.  The packaging and discs look good, and I’ve test-played one at random, and it works exactly as it should.

krad_dvd_facekrad_dvd_cover

For folks outside of NYC, I’ll be shipping your copies later this week via U.S. Postal Service.  New York recipients who belong to the “eating club,” I’ll see you at lunch tomorrow…

My Shore Leave Schedule

Well, I got my program schedule for Shore Leave, and it’s a train wreck, just like last year’s.


Friday, July 10

7pm–9pm: The Roast of Keith R.A. DeCandido for Charity
Hunt Ballroom — Don’t miss this rude, crude, hilarious tribute to tie-in fiction’s newest Grand Master.

10pm–Midnight: Meet the Pros
Hunt/Valley Foyer — Stop by for chit-chat and book signings with me and lots of other authors. I’ll be premiering my new original novel The Calling here 11 days before it officially goes on sale!


Saturday, July 11

No program items.  Yup, you read that right; it’s not a typo. I have nothing to do on Saturday.  Anyone want to get lunch?

I was scheduled on a “Farscape Continues” panel with Greg Cox and Keith DeCandido, but I begged off because … well, there’s no reason for me to be on that panel.

Saturday will be all about me hawking The Calling at the book-seller’s booth. I might also go off-site to see a movie.


Sunday, July 12

10am–11am: Star Trek Mirror Universe: Shards and Shadows
Salon E — A discussion with several authors of the recent Mirror Universe short-story anthology.

11am–12pm: Writing to Music – The Muse That Inspires
Hunt Ballroom — The panel’s title pretty much sums it up.

12pm–1pm: Classic Star Trek: What Gene Knew
Hunt Ballroom — This will be me, Dayton Ward, Kevin Dilmore, and editor Margaret Clark extolling the virtues of the original series.

1pm–2pm: Post-Destiny — Now What Will the Federation Do?
Hunt Ballroom — Speculation and vaguely informational teases about upcoming books will abound at this TrekLit panel.


The above is also not a typo; I have been scheduled for four non-stop hours of programming on Sunday morning, a time when everyone knows I’m such a joy to be around on during a convention weekend (or any other weekend).

What I find especially vexing about this is that it’s pretty much the same thing they did to me last year. Really, it’s not that hard to put a few TrekLit items on Saturday and a few on Sunday, so what the hell?

Set phasers to “roast”

Now that it’s being publicly promoted by the convention, and has been crowed about by its GoH, I guess it’s safe for me to post this news.

This year’s Shore Leave convention in Hunt Valley, Md., will be kicking off with a bawdy new event:

The First Annual Shore Leave Comedy Roast for Charity

The inaugural year’s guest of honor is none other than bestselling author, IAMTW Grandmaster, and all-around awesome guy Keith R.A. DeCandido (aka kradical to LJ users).

Serving as roastmaster for the evening will be Shore Leave’s one-man cult of personality, Bob Greenberger.

Filling out the roast panel for this inauspicious event will be … (drumroll, please) …

David Mack (that’s me)
Dayton Ward & Kevin Dilmore
Kirsten Beyer (appearing on video)
Michael Jan Friedman
Marco Palmieri
Glenn Hauman

and our special guest …

Peter David!

Download the high-resolution flier (JPEG, 1.8MB) for the event and be in the Hunt Valley Marriott’s resplendent Hunt Ballroom on Friday July 10 at 7pm. Spend an hour drinking and mingling with the roast panel and the guest of honor (because we’ll all be funnier once the audience is drunk).

All proceeds will benefit the American Red Cross. Those of us on the dais will be making contributions of $50 in Keith’s name to this deserving charity, and we’ll be inviting all attendees to donate $1 or $5 or whatever you’re willing to give, and to sign up for the convention’s annual blood drive.

If laughter is the best medicine, here’s hoping we’ll see you all in Health! (Apologies to Stephen Colbert…)