PJ Soles at Flashback Weekend 2022

Earlier this month, I attended Flashback Weekend, Chicago's longest-running horror convention. My coverage appeared at Flashback Weekend Recap on the Chicago Patch.

One cool story involves PJ Soles, a longtime favorite of mine. Soles was on my list of "must see" at the convention. Unfortunately, her line was so long every time I went by her table.

As my friend Cuzz Gekas and I were leaving for the day, show promoter Mia Kerz (Cuzz's cousin) asked us how it was. I said all was great, but I missed Soles and might return the next day to see her. Mia surprised me by saying Soles was in the break room and I could pop in to see her there.

I didn't want to bother her on break, but Mia led the way and Soles could not have been any nicer. She actually remembered me from previous meetings, including once when I interviewed her (at On the Beat With PJ Soles).

We chatted for a few minutes and took the picture. I thanked Soles and Mia profusely for this moment.

Granted, everyone won't get that treatment from Mia (or husband Mike), but everyone will have a great time at Flashback Weekend. I have been going for many years and it is always a stop on my convention list.

Go to FlashbackWeekend.com for news and updates throughout the year. Also check back here for my recurring coverage.

PJ Soles, Cuzz Gekas and me in Rosemont, IL-August 2022.

PJ Soles at Days of the Dead Chicago 2014

Days of the Dead returns to Indianapolis July 17-19. As always, it will be a weekend of horror and pop culture fun. Until then, I recall some of my fun times at previous events.
I have been a longtime fan of PJ Soles. I loved her as Riff in Rock 'n' Roll High School, but she has appeared in so many other classic movies, too. Carrie, Halloween, Stripes and Private Benjamin are just a few of her older movies. She was even in The Boy in the Plastic Bubble.
PJ is not just one of my favorites, she is one of the best convention guests. Whether at her table or in the hallways, PJ is always ready with a smile or hug. She has a large supply of several pictures. She is also ready for a little chatting about the Ramones, her Rock 'n' Roll High School co-stars.
It's fun meeting favoerites and it is even better when they are very cool in person. Making my experience with PJ even better is I had the pleasure of interviewing her. Thanks to Matt Parker for his patience in helping me get this one. It is one of my favorites and can be found at On the Beat With PJ Soles at Days of the Dead. It was the end of a long day at the con for PJ, but she was kind enough to do the interview.

PJ doesn't do every DotD, but she does many. It definitely is a great place to meet her. You might even see me hanging around her table.

Go to DaysoftheDead.com for all of the info on Indy and the other shows. Also, check Days of the Dead on Facebook for more frequent updates. 

PJ Soles and me in Schaumburg, IL-November 2014.

PJ Soles at Days of the Dead Chicago 2014

Days of the Dead returns to Chicago November 22-24. I always love DotD, but especially  when it is in my town. This year, it is moving to Rosemont, even closer to me.

I have met PJ Soles several times at Days of the Dead and I will continue to see her every time she is appearing here. Aside from being a longtime favorite of mine, she is simply a fantastic celebrity guest.

Already a fan of hers for a while, PJ forever won my heart when she starred opposite the Ramones in Rock 'n' Roll High School. She also co-starred in Halloween, Private Benjamin, Stripes and many other films.

At Days of the Dead 2012 Chicago, I had the pleasure of interviewing PJ. She talked about working with the Ramones, her fandom of the band and much more. It really was a fun interview and one of my favorites of all I have done.

Meeting favorite celebrities is always tricky and interviewing them is even riskier. You never want to destroy the image you have of them. Fortunately, PJ surpassed my image by a long shot. She is so friendly and easy going. She embraces her connection to the Ramones and happily discusses it and other parts of her career. By now, we are "convention" friends.

Go to DaysoftheDead.com for more info. Also, check the Days of the Dead Facebook page for more frequent updates.

PJ Soles and me in Schaumburg, IL-November 2014.

Friendly Encounters: PJ Soles and Cuzz Gekas

Friendly Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends who have met celebrities.

I love this picture because it features one of my best friends with one of my all time favorite actresses who has become a friend. This is all because of Days of the Dead.

PJ is a regular celebrity guest at DotD and the continual lines to meet her speak of her wide spread and lasting popularity. Of course, her fan-friendliness plays into that as well. PJ is awesome with the fans.

One of the cool things about PJ's career is her roles in classic movies. Carrie, Stripes, Halloween, Private Benjamin, Breaking Away and Rock 'n' Roll High School are just a few of her popular movies. Of course, the full list is very long and stretches back to 1973. One other underrated movie is The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, starring John Travolta.

I have been a fan of PJ's a long time. Meeting her the first time was awesome, but it became even better every time after that. We have talked a lot and I even got to interview her once, which can be found at On the Beat With PJ Soles.

I am fortunate to have had Cuzz Gekas join me for every Days of the Dead Indy event. Over the years, he has joined me in the PJ visits and discussions. Cuzz is a huge help, but more importantly, I have a lot of fun with him.

Sometimes, when Cuzz and I are talking to PJ, I just get that out-of-body surreal feeling. Back when I first saw PJ with the Ramones, I had no clue that I would ever be talking to her with one of my friends. It is alway a weird, but great feeling.

Days of the Dead has provided so many great moments like these. I have become friends with many of the celebrities, workers and fans. I have had great times with Cuzz and others who have joined me.

The next DotD is in Chicago from November 16-18. I'll be there as usual. I',m already looking forward to reconnecting with everyone. Hopefully, Cuzz will join me there.

For all of the info, check out DaysoftheDead.com. Also look here for regular updates.

PJ Soles and Cuzz Gekas in Indianapolis, IN-June 2018.

Friendly Encounters: PJ Soles and Jack Keenan

Friendly Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends who have met celebrities.

Jack Keenan has been a great addition to the Johngy's Beat family.  He started out as emergency relief, but I slowly have drawn him into a much more regular role.  He has been my regular guy for the Chicago Bliss, the Chicago Bandits and Days of the Dead in Chicago.
At the last Days event, he was all over the place setting up stuff and getting things in order.  He was a big hit with the celebs we encountered, including (or especially) P.J. Soles.
P.J. and Jack had a great rapport going.  They were like old friends.  I am almost surprised I actually squeezed in my real work with these two.
Seriously though, help like this is always most welcome.  Getting the celebs at ease is a great start.  P.J. knew us already from previous encounters, but with all of the other demands on her time, every positive thing in our arsenal is a good thing.  Jack even got her to do a Johngy's Beat promo (which is in the left column of promos).
It's a rough job and Jack is an ace at it.  You can tell how much he suffers for the craft by the look on his face in the picture below.  As I wrote, it's a tough job.

Jack Keenan and PJ Soles in Schaumburg, IL-November 2015.

PJ Soles Loves Johngy's Beat

I have had a crush on PJ Soles since my grade school days.  Her portrayal of Riff Randall in Rock 'N' Roll High School is one of my favorite roles of all time.  PJ combining with the Ramones made for pure magic.  I love this movie.

I have met PJ many times over the years and each time seems to get better.  Actually, the first time I met PJ, I think I was so nervous that I didn't even enjoy the experience.  That was one of the few times I have ever been that excited about meeting a celebrity.  This was PJ though!

Since then, I have had the pleasure of interviewing her and talking to her at length about the Ramones, her career and other silly, fun things.  PJ is simply awesome!  I might sound like I am gushing, but I make no apologies.

At the recent Days of the Dead, I asked PJ for a promo for Johngy's Beat and she graciously obliged.  That promo is below and also in the left column of promos.  This one , like PJ herself, will always be special.

PJ Soles: Then and Now

The lesson today is that meeting a celebrity once does not give you a great insight into that celebrity.  There are so many factors involved in every celebrity encounter.

I have been a fan of PJ Soles for many years.  I loved her in Stripes, Rock 'N' Roll High School, Halloween and more.  Many years ago, I had the chance to meet PJ at a Hollywood Collectors Show.  PJ was pleasant, but not very talkative.  It was a rather bland encounter.

I walked away disappointed.  PJ did nothing wrong.  She wasn't mean, rude, rushed or anything negative.  The encpunter just fell flat..

When you meet one of your favorites, you always hope that they will be jovial and chatty.  You imagine a quick connection and a lot of fun.  You want to walk away thinking you will be remembered.

Years later, I had the chance to meet PJ again and this time (and every time since), PJ has been an absolute pleasure.  Every encounter since the first is exactly what anyone would want.  We joke, laugh and chat.

Was the first encounter my fault?  Did I give off a bad vibe?  Maybe I was introverted and I expected PJ to carry the load.  Maybe PJ was under the weather a bit.  Maybe I was the 500th person she met that day.  Maybe none of this is true and I expected too much, because I was such a fan.

I try not to judge celebrities on one encounter.  I never publicly complained about the first meeting with PJ.  I hear stories of people calling celebrities names because they would not sign an autograph or pose for a picture.  That all depends on time, manner and place.

Even now, after meeting PJ many times and getting a bit familiar to her, I still do not pretend to position myself as her friend.  She is friendly.  She is a great convention guest.  Take what you want from each experience, but understand these celebrities are people.  The interactions with them have so many variables and quite often, you can be the determining factor in how the encounter goes or at least how you perceive it.

Whose fault was it that my first encounter with PJ left me a bit disappointed?  Maybe there is no fault, because there was no real problem.  Maybe it was a perfectly fine celebrity convention interaction.

On the other hand, maybe the real blame goes to PJ.  She was so adorable as Riff Randell that I just wanted to hang out a bit with her!

PJ Soles and me in Indianapolis, IN-June 2015.

Friendly Encounters: PJ Soles and Cuzz Gekas

Friendly Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends who have met celebrities.

Pamela Jayne Soles, better known as PJ Soles, first crossed my radar with her appearance in Carrie.  Shortly after, I saw her in The Boy in the Plastic Bubble.  In the next few years, I saw PJ in Halloween, Rock 'N' Roll High School, Stripes and Private Benjamin.  By this point I was hooked.

I was so excited many years later when I got to meet PJ at a convention.  Since then, I have had the pleasure of meeting her many times.

Some of the best times I have had with PJ have happened at Days of the Dead.  PJ is always in a good mood, even when she had laryngitis at the last Days event.  Days lends itself to a lot of interaction with the celebrities and PJ is great with her fans.  Cuzz Gekas and I have been at every Days of the Dead in Indianapolis and we agree that PJ is one of our favorite guests ever.

The next Days event is in Schaumburg (Chicago) from November 20-22.

Cuzz Gekas and me in Indianapolis, IN-June 2015.

On the Beat with PJ Soles at Days of the Dead 2012

I have been very fortunate to meet and talk to many of my favorites from all genres of celebdom.  At the recent Days of the Dead convention, I added one more very special actress to that list.
I first became a fan of PJ Soles when she co-starred with the Ramones in Rock 'n' Roll High School in 1979.  Later I realized I had already seen her in Carrie, The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, Breaking Away and Halloween.  I would go on to watch her perform in many other movies and television series.
Despite a lengthy, successful career, my favorite PJ role remains Riff Randell.  PJ doesn't mind being associated so strongly with that movie, that role or the Ramones.  In fact, at the convention, she sported a cool Ramones shirt.  We even talked about her feelings towards the Ramones in the interview below.
I talked to PJ as the convention was ending on Friday.  Despite being tired from a long day of meeting fans, PJ was kind enough to give us a couple minutes of her time.
As I sat there talking to PJ, I kept thinking how surreal it all is.  I remember seeing her onscreen for the first time.  I remember having her as a high school crush.  This really was one of the coolest moments I have ever had.  I am also happy to report that PJ was incredibly sweet and polite with every fan.  She took time to talk to everyone and give them a moment to remember.
After you watch the video, check out PJSoles.com for more info and updates.

PJ Soles and The Show

Over the last few days, I have tried to give an overview of The Show, which will star PJ Soles.  At Days of the Dead, in just a few minutes of conversation there, PJ got me hooked on the premise of The Show.  I had to learn more and I wanted to share it with all of you.
I have been a fan of PJ for a long time.  I enjoyed her early work such as Carrie, The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, Halloween and Stripes.  Perhaps my favorite role of hers was Riff Randall in Rock 'N' Roll High School, also starring the Ramones.  Since then, PJ has done a good amount of tv, while still appearing on the big screen, in movies including The Devil's Rejects.
I met PJ several years ago, but I was able to have an actual conversation with her at Days of the Dead.  I was so intrigued by The Show, that I forgot to talk to her about Rock 'N' Roll High School!
I hope you jump on the bandwagon for The Show.  Matt Russell has promised to send me updates and I will continue to post them on Johngy's Beat.  I really appreciate Matt for his time and consideration in giving us some extra info and insight into The Show.
This concludes my three day coverage of The Show.  If you haven't done so already, go to TheShowmovie.com, The Show's Facebook page and "like" it and then go to The Show's Twitter page and "follow" it.

PJ Soles, Cuzz Gekas and me in Indianapolis, IN-July 2011.

It's All About PJ Soles

Most people remember P.J. Soles from her role in Halloween or Stripes or even Private Benjamin. I first took notice of Soles in the lesser-known Rock 'N' Roll High School.
As a young teenager, this film, featuring the Ramones and also starring Clint Howard and Vince Van Patten, was as cool as it got. The plot was forgettable, but it didn't matter, since watching the Ramones perform their songs was the best part. Remember, this was before YouTube. The Ramones dominated the soundtrack, but Paul McCartney, Todd Rundgren, (our old friend) Brian Eno and several others also contributed.
Oh, yeah, back to Soles...I met Soles at a convention several years ago. The meeting left me flat. She wasn't unpleasant. Actually, she was quite bland. Maybe I just caught her at a down time, but I never understand why stars would do these shows, but be so indifferent. At least Soles was better than some stars who have been surly at conventions.

PJ Soles and me in Rosemont, IL-mid 00's.