Dean's Day
Dean Haglund provides a star's-eye view of the Chicago Expo
The X-Files Magazine, Summer 1998
7:30 a.m.: Wake up call. I have to do a live interview with WGN-TV
this morning before the Expo opens. Who's awake to watch me live?
7:59 a.m.: Get to Navy Pier and enter. Security asks to see my pass,
which I don't have. I point out that my photo seems to be hanging over
there in the merchandise area. He isn't convinced but lets me pass
anyway. Who is he working for?
8:14 a.m.: In the middle of the WGN interview, our sound cuts out. The
reporter immediately blames NBC.
8:56 a.m.: Try to hack into the NBC site and shut them down. I am
unsuccessful.
9:05 a.m.: I find out that I am first on stage at 12:15. Tom Braidwood,
Mitch Pileggi and Steven Williams follow. I thought I was on at 2:30
p.m. Somebody is trying to prevent me from sleeping. Back to the hotel
to figure out who.
9:30 to 11 a.m.: Five different staff people try to enter my room
without knocking. I have the privacy sign up, but they pay no attention.
One said he was checking for "trays." I thought that he said "greys."
I am getting more suspicious.
12:20 p.m.: I go onstage and improvise an episode of The X-Files. Tom
joins me for a scene. Lots of fun. . .
1:10 p.m.: I come offstage all sweaty. The lights felt hotter than
normal. Are the lighting guys in on something here, too?
1:27 p.m.: The local Fox affiliate interviews me in the green room. The
green room smells like incense; I need a sitar. The tape runs out in
the middle of my interview. I jump to conclusions.
12:40 p.m.!!!!!: A clock in the green room is an hour off. Missing time!
I check for probe scars.
1:44 p.m.: It's time for autographs. Tom and I face nearly 2,000 people
who all want an autograph. I crack my knuckles and prepare.
3:47 p.m.: All signed in record time.
4:30 p.m.: I say "Hi" to Mitch and Steven, who face at least 3,000
people wanting autographs.
4:45 p.m.: I am lounging in the green room for the first time today
and Tom tells me to wait for him but.....
4:55 p.m.: I get in the car by myself to the hotel. I've got to think!
7:44 p.m.: I must have fallen asleep...or I just lost another hour
somewhere. I return to the Expo to greet the sponsors and sign more
autographs.
9:45 p.m.: Dinner at some restaurant. Apparently Spike Lee is also
there, but I don't see him. Dizzy with fear and suspicion, I head back
to the hotel, unplug all phones and barricade the door. Get ready for
another day.
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