"WHO WAS
THAT MASKED MAN?!"
(Only people old
enough to remember "The Lone Ranger" will understand
that!!)
* * *
I suspect my first
encounter with Jamie/Myhr is not much different from anyone
else's, but I'll do my best to give it a fresh
approach.
The year was
1994…
The place; the 'Stardust
Hotel', Las Vegas
The occasion; the annual
'Beauty and the Beast' convention
Friday night saw the
traditional 'Costume and Talent Contest' and the Master of
Ceremonies was…'MYHR'!
I was way back in the
hall so wasn't, until much later, able to properly see and
appreciate the incredible make-up and detail that Jamie uses
to make the character so believable. All I knew was that he
made my friends and I laugh, with his mischievous talk and
antics around the stage. We had travelled from England for
the very first time to a convention, so we hadn't seen
Jamie's 'virgin' appearance the year before.
Although he made himself
available at the end of the evening for photos, it seemed
like Myhr was a little bit of a celebrity himself, and maybe
the fact that we didn't know who was under that cute
cat face, somehow made us stand back and observe, rather
than join in the fun (remember, we Brits are famous for our
reserve). A lot of people seemed to know him, however, and
he was purring and posing happily with a varied assortment
of female admirers. I suppose when we went to bed that night
we didn't think much more about it, and in any case, had no
idea if he was due to make another appearance during the
convention.
The next morning I was
due at Edward Albert's Fan Club Breakfast Meeting and I was
a little nervous because I didn't think I would know anyone
(my friends were doing something else that morning). Looking
around I was relieved to spot a familiar face at a table
with a free seat. I sat down with Gwen Lord who was chatting
with a man I hadn't seen around the night before. I didn't
take much notice and Gwen didn't introduce me, so I just
sat, as we waited for Edward to arrive, and couldn't help
overhearing some of the conversation at the table.
Gwen seemed to be telling
the man about her own convention in England the next year
and they were discussing dates and whether he was free. It
seemed a little strange but it was no business of mine, and
in any case, I just wanted to see Edward! Gwen and the man
seemed to settle something between them and she looked up at
me and said, conspiratorially: "We too, can have a
pussycat." I had no idea what she was talking about, and
told her so.
She said that the man
next to her was Jamie Murray and I thought to myself,
o-k-a-y fine, I'm sure he's very nice but is that
supposed to mean something to me? Eventually
taking pity on my ignorance, Gwen explained and introduced
me. Jamie Murray, she tried to convince me, was 'Myhr'. I
say 'tried to convince me' because frankly I couldn't
believe it; I mean this guy was in his mid-forties; surely
that outrageous cat would only have been in his twenties;
and this guy had glasses, a grey beard and greying hair.
(Forgive me, Jamie, you know I love you dearly!!!) He was
also softly spoken and so quiet and reserved he could have
been English!
I kept looking at him,
then at Gwen to see if she was serious, then back at him
again and finally, said something intelligent, like, "is it
true? Are you really that
cat…that…Myhr… from last night?! He assured
me that indeed he was, although I'm not sure even then that
I believed him completely! Of course that didn't stop me
telling my friends when we met up later and going in search
of Jamie again just so that I could point him out and hear
them gasp in unison with disbelief.
This has to be a common
reaction when people first learn the identity of the man
behind Myhr's mask, and I mean absolutely no disrespect to
Jamie by saying that. It's just that the whole personna of
Myhr is in total contrast to Jamie's own personality. It's
just like an actor becoming a completely different person;
when Jamie dresses up in those tight black jeans, the
full-sleeved white shirt and waistcoat/vest (depending where
you come from!), the wild, soft to the touch red-blond wig
and that stunning make-up, he just becomes this incredibly
cheeky, irrepressible feline. He even looks at
you differently from those amber eyes; as if those elegant
hands with the beautifully manicured claws might just find
their way somewhere they shouldn't!
The transformation from
Jamie to Myhr is spellbinding, but both are equally beloved
members of 'Beauty and the Beast' fandom.
THE
END
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