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Mark Sutton’s “Matrix”
I was attending a church growth conference at Saddleback Church in California in the year of our Lord, 2000. Most of my church staff was present and I was invited along as the head of our drama ministry. Most of my breakout sessions involved using drama in church ministries and I was headed for a session when Mark Sutton, my pastor, stopped me.
“Bruce, we’re going back to the hotel.”
“Who?”
“You and me.”
“Why?”
“Because they have The Matrix on pay per view.”
I remember my mouth falling open in shock. My pastor, the man who insisted his entire staff spend four days in California for a church growth conference wanted to to back to the hotel and watch “The Matrix”. But, I have always respected the authority of my senior pastor so I joined him. We watched the move and he loved every second of it.
Mark passed away in January of this year from a failing lung transplant. Mark was the best communicator I have ever met. His imagination was endless as the many dramas we wrote together testified.
But despite his seeming gentle nature, he loved movies. Gory movies. Violent movies. And he was very glib about it. “The more violent and gory, the better!” And the only person he could get to go with him was me. I don’t like ultra-violence. But neither of our wives liked movies. And our children were too young for theses type of movies.
I recall one time, he wanted to go see “Starship Troopers”, the ultra violent science fiction movie made by Paul Verhoeven. We arrived at the theater and realized we were the only ones there. Mark insisted on sitting in the third or fourth row. Closer to the action, he said. There we sat as the credits rolled and the first violent scene appears. To my shock, Mark began talking to the movie!
“Really! Come on. You can do better than that!”
Now, I insist on silence in the movies. Sean, my son, would talk constantly during a movie making sure I just saw the scene we had just seen. His mantra was:
“Hey, Dad.”
“What Sean?”
“Did you see that robot?”
“Yes, Sean.”
“Hey, Dad.”
“What, Sean?”
“Did you see who that robot shot?”
“Yes, Sean.”
“Hey, Dad.”
I called these the “Hey Dad what Seans.” By the time he was in middle school he grew out of it. Thank you God! Now, he has a son who, well you can guess.
By the time we were thirty minutes into the movie, we were both loudly commenting on each scene. It was like some weird episode of Mystery Theater 3000! At times I was certain blood, body fluids, or water from the infamous co-ed shower scene splattered on us.
When all was done, Mark smiled and laughed. These movies were cathartic for him. Having to constantly be on his best behavior as a pastor, deprived him of moments when he could just let down for a bit. But with me, he was in a safe zone.
In 2001, we took our two daughters to see “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.” We both had read the book in our teenage years. Our daughters were around 14 at the time. They loved the movie. They sat between me and Mark and I remember leaning over and looking at Mark with this silly grin and he would give me a thumbs up. Not because the movie was too violent but because it was such a beautiful and well done testimony to the book. After that movie, we both transitioned into attending movies with our daughters. No more Starship Troopers.
Mark has gone on to his eternal reward now. But before he passed away, he had the joy of writing two fiction books. Pitfall is a story about the war in heaven that leads to Lucifer’s downfall. And Demon Undertow is a murder mystery set in a mythical city based on Daytona Beach, Florida. In both books, he used violence but to a much muted degree than what we saw in the movies.
This weekend, I will be at GeekD Con with my books and Mark’s two books. I have a few print versions and I will also have a special ebook bundle for both books. Come celebrate Mark’s love of writing, and fiction, and books like “Lord of the Rings.”
No blood. No body fluid. No co-ed showers! Just good, clean fun!
I hope to see you there.
Buckley Station
The road has changed.
I remember it as much bigger with larger hills. But the landscape is unchanged. We drove along Blanchard Furrh Road through small hills and winding turns toward Walter Jacob’s Nature Park just west of the sprawling village of Blanchard.
I grew up in these hills and woods. With anticipation, I couldn’t wait to see the brick facade to the abandoned Buckley Station. Way back in the 1960’s, Buckley Station was a pumping station for natural gas. And the employees had wonderful benefits. A couple of dozen houses were built around a circle on the wooded hill next to the road to the station. In the center of this circle of houses was a huge playground. And not far behind the houses was a private lake and clubhouse for parties and large group gatherings. No one could use those facilities but the people who lived there. What was cool to me as a ten year old was the step like construction of the sign. I could climb up the two levels above the ground.
That’s me in our front yard and right across the highway was the wood around that romantic lake.
A Little GEEKD Will Do Ya
I have to admit I was a nerd before nerd was a word. It was only later in my life that the term “geek” could be applied to me. I have a class picture from my eighth grade year book listing showing me with hair plastered down with Brylcreem (a little dab a do ya) with black thick rimmed glasses (which are very chic now!) And a pocket protector.
Yes. A pocket protector. If you don’t know what that is, bless you! It served to carry my pens and my slide rule. In my defense, digital calculators came out when I was in the ninth grade.
It wasn’t until the tenth grade I rebelled against the short hair and the heavy glasses. I grew my hair out as long as school rules permitted. There was an actual measurement of how close your hair could come to your collar and how low your sideburns could extend. I pushed the limit and got some gold rimmed glasses. I was now very groovy and hip! But I was still a nerd and still a prehistoric geek.
This past weekend I took my adult daughter to GEEKD con in Shreveport. The first time I took her to a comic-con or anima convention was in 2005, MECHACON in Lafayette. I was shell shocked at what I saw and experienced but since then have settled into the fun to be had at these events. It should be noted that Casey and I left Lafayette on Sunday morning in 2005 right ahead of hurricane Katrina!
Of course, in order to really enjoy such an event, one must cosplay. If you don’t know what that means, it’s basically dress up as your favorite character from comic, movies, television, etc.
In the past, I gave in to my daughter’s request and I have been Indiana Jones, a Jedi Knight, the 4th Doctor, and most recently, the War Doctor. Now that I am, ahem, mature in age, the War Doctor and the older Indiana Jones are right down my alley. Casey has pulled off almost every iteration of the newer Doctors from Doctor Who and a host of anime characters I have no experience with.
The event was HUGE! We went to the first convention in Bossier City ten years ago and it was quite modest compared to this weekend. I also remember the line to get in to that first convention was almost a quarter of a mile long!
My daughter wanted to meet some voice actors, once again from anime shows, and I had no idea who she was talking about. I wanted to meet Bret Iwan, the voice of Mickey Mouse as I am a huge Disney fan. Also, we wanted to meet John Barrowman, the actor who portrayed Malcolm in Arrow and Captain Jack Harkness in Doctor Who and Torchwood.
I want to say that meeting each of these celebrities was so shockingly pleasant. Their love for their fans was obvious. Barrowman came out from behind his table to meet and greet every person, sign autographs and pose for selfies. Bret Iwan was the most humble and down to earth person I met. Kat Cressida, a genuine surprise guest I did not realize I knew, played Kat in Babylon Five but also has voiced many Disney characters such as Jessie, and the bride in the attic in the Haunted Mansion (my daughter’s favorite ride) along with other Disney characters. We spent almost fifteen minutes just talking and visiting with her and she shared some of her audition stories with us. What a sweet person!
I attended Bret’s panel and loved hearing his stories about how he ended getting the job of voicing Mickey Mouse after Wayne Alwine, the voice of Mickey for decades, passed away. Such a sweet and inspiring story.
But then, oh my goodness, I attended John Barrowman’s panel. I have never heard such foul language and nasty jokes packed into one hour in my life. But I have to admit I laughed so hard my throat was soar. He was definitely not for the PG13 crowd. In fact at one point when answering a question he asked the guest how old he was. He replied, “14” and Jack just said, “I’m in trouble!” BTW, he was wearing a dress that looked like the TARDIS and white high heel shoes.
However, I did meet one special person. S. K. Davidson, a young woman, alone at her table, has written a science fiction novel, “An Unforeseen Genesis” and I am enjoying the book. I sensed upon meeting her that her spirit synced with mine and I believed she was a believer. After reading her book dedication, I was so pleased to read in her dedication that she is a Christian. Check out her website.
Also, my son Sean informed me of geekdevotions.com, another Christian site dedicated to celebrating geeks who just happen to be Christian and more. Check out their site and their Youtube channel.
So from the ridiculous (Barrowman) to the sublime (Bret and S. K. Davidson) it was a fulfilling and fun experience. Next year, I’ll be there probably as Indiana Jones, the old one who barely made it though Dial of Destiny. You can jeer at me then!
Bruce Hennigan 
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