Today I had the incredible opportunity to meet talented actor Sean Astin. He’s starred in many of my favorite movies, including Rudy and the Lord of the Rings trilogy. And of course, there’s always The Goonies and his lisping bodybuilder character, Doug Whitmore, in 50 First Dates.
Astin was the keynote speaker at University of Idaho’s convocation. After several short speeches from UI officials, Astin approached the podium and delivered a fabulous speech. Using examples from characters he’s portrayed, he encouraged UI students to be fully “present” in life, curious and adventurous.
Persevere, be determined and never give up, like Rudy Ruettiger. Forge true friendships with the loyalty of Samwise Gamgee. And above all, “choose good.”
In the middle of his speech, Astin recited the rapid-fire locker room talk from the movie Rudy, making me smile as I recalled the exact scene to which he was referring.
“We’re gonna go inside. We’re gonna go outside. We’re gonna go outside, inside, outside! We’re gonna get ’em on the run boys!” (At 2:00 in this video:)
http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdRiPWOP8so
Right before he wrapped up, Astin gave a short, but heartfelt, rendition of Samwise Gamgee’s speech at the end of LOTR The Two Towers. And he did it in Sam’s voice. Being a LOTR nerd and a sucker for all things emotional, I may or may not have teared up a little when he did that. It was beautiful.
Here’s that scene from the movie:
http://youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Soe8ayi3ScE
But the best part of the whole experience came after the speech had ended and event staff had begun packing up the stage and chairs. With my camera and long lens in tow, I walked to the media area where several reporters and photographers were waiting to speak with Astin.
Although I’m no longer a reporter, I stayed in the crowd. As Astin’s publicist was getting everyone organized, I saw Astin look around.
“Where’s the marching band?” he said. “Are they still here?”
He mentioned the band again during his first interview, saying they were incredible during their performance at convocation. A few minutes later during a lull between questions, I stepped forward.
“Hi, I’m an alum of the Vandal Marching Band, and I think they would really like to hear what you have to say about them,” I said.
Astin smiled and said, “Oh sure! Here, come closer. Closer!”
And then this happened:
Later, I also got to take a picture with Mr. Astin. Some celebrities may scoff at the idea of taking pictures with random fans, but Sean Astin was awesome. So nice, very humble and quite funny.
He also took a picture with the Idaho Volleyball team, joking that he couldn’t possibly fit in with the group because they were all taller than him.
All in all, it was an excellent way to finish off a busy week. Great speech. Excellent company. And the band killed it, as usual.
Meredith Metsker 