Friday the 9th saw me to the hotel in time to grab some dinner and meet up with friends in the restaurant/bar adjoining the hotel. While we were greeted and/or joined by several convention guests over the course of the evening (such as Reggie Bannister and Tom Savini), there was no Naschy sighting for me that night. We were, however, informed that he and his family had been seen checking in. Being much too tired to explore, I retired early that night.

I awoke relatively early on Saturday morning--hours before the convention was due to begin. Not wishing to deal with expensive room service meals, I decided to head for the lobby and the low-cost breakfast counter. As this was to be Naschy's debut day, I made sure I was wearing my "Waldemar Lives!" T-shirt. This was by no means a commercial item--it's simply a red-on-black gothic-lettered custom shirt I had made on a whim about seven years previously. It turned out to be the perfect introduction.

All too often, one anticipates an event and finds oneself painfully frustrated when things simply won't work out the way they're imagined. But there are those rare exceptions when the reality outshines the fantasy. As I approached the elevator on my floor (the floor, as it turned out, of practically all the convention guests), I was alone save for a couple approaching the same elevator from the opposite end of the hall. It took less than five seconds for me to register the fact that I was approaching none other than Paul Naschy himself. With the moment upon me, I did the only thing I could think of on such short notice--I opened my jacket just a little bit wider so that he could see the T-shirt.

His reaction: a pleasant laugh. I introduced myself by name and by the galley sheets from my original Fangoria articles which I had brought for him to hopefully sign. In the meantime, Naschy's wife introduced herself (I didn't learn till later that her name was Elvira, as she referred to herself as "the wife of Paul Naschy"). Some initial pleasantries--then Naschy spoke in halting English. "Ten minutes...in the lobby...a book of my work." I nodded my acknowledgement, shook his hand and made my way downstairs--alone. At the time, I wasn't quite sure--did he want me to meet him in the lobby, or was he politely asking me to hold off a bit until he arrived to sign books in the lobby? In either case, the book was something I knew absolutely nothing about.

I got to the breakfast bar, grabbed myself a simple cereal/milk/coffee combo, and settled down at an empty table to see what would happen. It didn't take long for Naschy to arrive, but now, along with Elvira, he had brought his entire entourage--including his family and Jose M. Cavanach (director of "El Ojo de la Medusa") to join me at the table. The feeling was overwhelming as Naschy unveiled a copy of his autobiography and personally inscribed it to me. I had no formal interview prepared--I had plenty to ask, but also plenty to share. With his family helping along with the translation, I alternated between the two.

One of the first questions on any Naschy fan's mind is "Whatever became of 'The Nights of the Werewolf?'" Naschy informed me that the rights to the film were lost along with the lives of the producer and the director during a fatal car accident and that nobody knew where to locate a print. Then I had to tell Naschy how my childhood friends and I grew up with "Assignment Terror" and always loved the scene where Waldemar stuffs the mummy into a wheel and sets him on fire.

I began to ask Naschy about the possibility of missing scenes in such films as "The Devil's Possessed." He made it clear that a discussion of missing Naschy footage could take all day--but that restored versions of many of his films were on their way, including a "Count Dracula's Great Love" running twenty minutes longer than the "restored" U.S. tape. Then I had to tell Naschy how my mother forbade me to watch "The Mummy's Revenge" on TV and how that had me seeking out more Naschy than ever!

With time suddenly running short, I mentioned the upcoming tribute video and warned Naschy that I hadn't been able to resist including the unforgettable musical number from "Operation Mantis" amongst the more serious clips. At that, Elvira smiled teasingly and said "Oh, yes...the 'rocker!'" Naschy grinned with good humor. When asked, Naschy was agreeable to posing for a couple of pictures with me--a young woman from Naschy's entourage used my camera and came up with one great shot--and then a good shot of my pants when she turned the camera sideways for an artistic follow-up (I still love the picture).

One last thing I had to get across in this meeting--while many U.S. fans were there to meet Naschy and to acknowledge his work and dedication, I felt I owed a very personal debt. Without the Naschy legacy, I might never have gotten my start in the writing field. I will never forget that, and I had to be sure Naschy knew it, too. After explaining this as thoroughly as I could, my final question to Naschy was, in all seriousness, "What can I do for you?"

His answer: "Keep writing."