Peter James Mann
Rhode Island Comic Con Brought the Crowds
When Chris, the creator of this site, first asked me to come on the trip to Rhode Island Comic Con, I was stoked. I hadn’t been to a conference since PAX Unplugged 2019. While I’d gone for two years in a row, it was the only one I ever went to. As I learned this weekend, that makes it my “Home Con.” It’s a term I came to admire during my time in Providence, Rhode Island.
Rhode Island Comic Con bills itself as “The Biggest Con in the Smallest State,” and it feels that way, especially after a pandemic. It took up two major complexes, the Rhode Island Convention Center and the Dunkin’ Donuts Stadium. That wasn’t including panels held inside ballrooms in The Omni Hotel. At times, that still felt like it wasn’t enough room. I saw estimates ranging between 30,000 and 50,000. At times, it felt like everyone was there all at once.
I found myself taking breaks away from RICC to breathe, both physically and mentally, just from the sheer size. After the last year and a half, I was feeling overwhelmed.
When I spoke to anyone, whether it was an interview or just in a casual conversation, I found that many, many of the people at the conference were amazingly kind and generous. Only twice was there hesitation for an interview. Everyone else was not only willing to talk to us, they made sure that we got to ask a few questions and some even joined our Dork Daily Community on Facebook! (Hello, new friends!).
I had a great time speaking with Cosplayers and Chris was able to speak with a few celebrities in depth, which you’ll find on our Facebook and YouTube pages. You are REQUIRED to watch them by law. I said it. No, I won’t take it back.
We even were able to attend a few panels in between me gazing upon all of the toys and comics on the expo floor like a starving child. Overall, I was glad I went to Rhode Island Comic Con. It was great to meet some new people and get to know them better. And while we weren’t allowed to record during the panels, I’ve got some in-depth coverage you’ll be seeing over the next few days! Let’s start with the first one we were able to attend!
Tool Time Panel
Richard Karn (Al), his wife Tudi Roche (Jill’s sister Carrie), and Debbie Dunning (Heidi) were in attendance for this intimate panel about their experiences on the show Home Improvement. While Tim Allen and the other stars weren’t there, they still had a presence on the panel through various funny stories.
One of the more surprising things to find out was how hard Richard Karn and Tim Allen fought to have Debbie cast on the show. While he wasn’t in the meetings, they were adamant they wanted her for the role for her Calendar Girl looks and aesthetic.
But, as the moderator pointed out, Debbie would take her role of Heidi in a more progressive direction by not only writing her pregnancy into the show, but by giving the character more real-world problems – a trend that, while in the early 1990s, wasn’t common on Prime Time Sitcom TV.
Richard’s favorite times on set were rehearsing Tool Time in the mornings. Structurally, this was always first and the rest of the show would be filmed second. It makes sense, especially considering the size of the Tool Time set compared to the house and backyard sets.
Tudi, Debbie and Richard were all essentially told they were guest spots before becoming principal cast members. Apparently, this was how Home Improvement chose actors and characters in the show. if it was a hit, they would stick. If it fell flat, they left it on the floor.
Richard was, apparently, quite nervous about Tudi not making the show. After all, it was his wife. And prior to being on the show, she would be behind-the-scenes with their infant son. But they had met in New York doing theater together and he knew she would do well. She was also nervous, but as it turned out, there was no need to be.
When asked by the attendants about their favorite guests, a laundry list of celebrities came out. There was professional golfer Paige Stewart, George Foreman, Ernest Borgnine, Rodney Dangerfield, President Jimmy Carter, and Bob Villa. Surprisingly, Lucy Liu’s 1st television appearance was on the show as a guest on Tool Time!
If you’re looking for more stories about Al and Home Improvement, make sure you check out our full interview with Richard Karn over on our YouTube Channel. If you like the video, please give us a thumbs up and consider subscribing! It really helps us out more than you know.
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See you soon!
