On May 24, 2013 the Louisiana Ghostbusters headed to Birmingham, AL to take part in “Mass Hysteria”, hosted by the Alabama Ghostbusters at Alabama Phoenix Fest. We joined with Busters from across the South East to welcome Winston Zeddemore himself, Mr. Ernie Hudson, and Slimer from Ghostbusters II, Mrs Robin Shelby who is never without her loving spouse, Mr. Sean Spence.
The weekend was filled with amazing panels as well as Q&A sessions that were heavily attended by many Ghostheads at the convention. Special events for the family included Kids labs for Proton Pack builds and Slime making. They were a huge hit with the little ones at this very family-friendly event.
During the “Mass Hysteria” Panel on May 25, Jack Dupuy, Franchise Manager, & Ben Langlinais, LAGB Media/PR Rep, presented to Mr. Hudson, already an Honorary member of the Louisiana Ghostbusters, with the LAGB Award for Excellence Challenge Coin for his assistance judgeing our Ghostbusters fan film contest, The Golden Ghost Awards. Even during a severe illness Mr. Hudson persevered by watching all film submissions, then providing critique and feedback on them.
For the “Who Ya Gonna Call” panel attendees were treated screenings of two existing webisodes from the Alabama Ghostbusters as well as a sneak preview of
Louisiana Ghostbusters appearance in an upcoming episode of Ghostbustin 911. Attendees were also treated with a sneak preview of Episode 7 of that series which is about to go public.
When evening wore on we dusted off the traditional sports coats we like to wear out to nights on the town, and headed to Fox & Hound near our hotel for dinner with over 60 attendees including Mrs. Robin Shelby and Mr. Sean Spence. After dinner Mrs. Shelby was honored with a Louisiana Ghostbusters challenge coin Award for Excellence for her participation in the Golden Ghost Awards as a judge. Then, she and Mr. Spence were inducted into the Louisiana Ghostbusters as honorary members with plaques. LAGB rounded out their awards by recognizing Mr. Brock Parker, Chief of the Alabama Ghostbusters, for his hard work and dedication both in his franchise and in everything he has done to bolster interaction between franchises nation-wide. Brock is a true friend and mentor of LAGB. Then, during the official Mass Hysteria awards presented by the ALGBs, one of our own, David Johnson, was the recipient of the Mass Hysteria award for best prop for his Mario and Luigi Busters costumes.
Sunday May 26, saw the convention drawing to an end. As final goodbyes were being said talks for next year’s event were all ready being whispered. The LAGB would like to thank Brock Parker, Bo Bearden, Kevin Gardner, and the Alabama Ghostbusters for allowing us to participate with them in this amazing event. Can’t wait to see what you all have in store for next year!
