Looking Back: Doctor Who Celebration '87

About a week ago, on a whim, I searched the internet for signs of future Doctor Who conventions. It didn't take long to discover the upcoming Chicago Tardis event. Chicago is a leisurely drive from where I live, and with Colin Baker himself as one of the guests, how could I resist? Of course I registered. 

As I keyed in my information, I realized that it has been  many years since I attended a Doctor Who convention. Decades, even. No, make that a quarter-century! In the mid 80's I went to two conventions. One of them (the later of the two) was Doctor Who Celebration '87 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.  This was a small affair, held in a high school auditorium, lasting only 8 hours. I believe it was hosted or sponsored by the local PBS station, WPNE, channel 38. During the classic Who era, the Public broadcast stations were the main source of Who. 

The Doctor Who USA Tour was there, which included a small museum built into a semi-trailer, and Bessie the car. Sadly, it took less than 20 minutes to walk through the trailer and to view Bessie. After that, it was into the auditorium, where they were showing video tapes on a large TV with terrible audio. The highlight of the event, however, was Sylvester McCoy. Sylvester hit the stage mid to late afternoon. His episodes had not yet aired, and this was one of his earliest convention appearances in the United States. We were quite excited to see him, and he did not disappoint! Sylvester's on-stage antics were entertaining. He definitely had a penchant for comedy, juggling, and slapstick. I clearly remember being impressed by him, and confident that the role of the Doctor was in good hands. 

The thermometer topped 91 degrees that day. During his time on stage, Sylvester commented that he wasn't accustomed to such temperatures. When I got through the autograph line, the poor guy looked hot, exhausted, and sweaty. But come to think of it, most of us in attendance looked that way by late afternoon. 

If I had a beef about the event, it would have been the merchandise. There were a precious few booths set up in the vendor area, and they all seemed to have the exact same collection of PBS-branded Doctor Who swag. They couldn't fool me. They were just selling left over junk from the fund raiser they held at the station just a few months back. I could recognize those "I (heart) (heart) Doctor Who" coffee mugs anywhere!