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The Edward James Olmos Battlestar Galactica Trader Vic’s @JoeySnackpants at #DragonCon 2011 story…
In order get the full impact of this story you need a little history. First off, Edward James Olmos made this comment about seven years ago…
“I’m going to be the first one to say it really clearly, ‘Please tell your readers, do not watch this program.’ … If you are a real, real staunch ‘Battlestar Galactica’ person, please don’t watch it.” - Edward James Olmos, who plays Commander Adama in “Battlestar Galactica,” to the Television Critics Association in July 2003
That statement made for a way for my pal Joey Snackpants to avoid watching the new series when it aired. He LOVES old school classic science fiction and the original BSG ranks up there with some the greatest fun filled TV of the late seventies and early eighties. When the new series was wrapping up a couple of years ago and its popularity was at a peak, Joey enjoyed jumping into BSG conversations at conventions and pointing out that the ONLY reason he never watched the show was because Edward James Olmos told him not to.
Now, I watched the show at the urging of Jason Dorough and LOVED IT. As a fan, I have regularly encouraged Mr. Snackpants to dedicate some time to give it a chance. His response was the same canned answer about the Edward James Olmos quote… but it eventually became “I’ll only watch it if Edward James Olmos tells me to!”
Flash forward to last night. Each year at Dragon*Con there is a tradition of getting dinner and drinks at Trader Vic’s in the Hilton with my friends. This year, when we were seated, I noticed someone sitting at the table near us:
Yup. That’s Mr. Olmos and Julie Caitlin Brown at the table behind us.
Seeing an opportunity to force Joey to spend about $150 against his will, I began plotting a way to make a moment happen. A few Mai Tais later, I flagged down their server and paid their bill. (It wasn’t until later that we discovered that the server didn’t know who either person at the table was… until we mentioned Selena.)
It worked.
Showing true class, Mr. Olmos and Ms. Brown came to table and shook hands and thanked everyone at our table. I explained to Edward that I was a fan of his work and appreciated him coming over. I then told him the story of Joey’s refusal to watch the show (thus putting Joey, sitting to my right, completely on the spot.)
Edward James Olmos spent about ten minutes pitching Joey Snackpants to watch the new Battlestar Galactica.
Thus, per his own request, Edward James Olmos has now personally TOLD Joey Snackpants to WATCH the new Battlestar Galactica. He has committed to do so.
Yup, It’s Dragon*Con people. 
PAN AMERICAN BANK, ACTOR/ACTIVIST EDWARD JAMES OLMOS TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE TO ANNOUNCE THE LARGEST GATHERING OF LATINO AUTHORS IN U.S. HISTORY
What: Pan American Bank and actor/community activist Edward James Olmos will stage a press conference to announce the largest gathering of Latino authors in U.S. history at the 13th Annual Latino Book & Family Festival, which will be held October 9 and 10 at California State University, Los Angeles at Greenlee Plaza. The family-friendly event will feature over 120 Latino authors and close to 50 author panels, a folklórico dance competition, children’s activities, arts & crafts, and more.
When: Thursday, September 23, 2010 – 11:00 a.m.
Where: Pan American Bank lobby, 3626 East First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90063 – parking in rear.
Who: Edward James Olmos, actor/community activist/founder, Latino Literacy Now
Jesse Torres, President and CEO, Pan American Bank
Invited local, state and federal elected officials
Latino authors participating in the Latino Book & Family Festival
Why: The Latino Book & Family Festival was launched in 1997 in Los Angeles to promote literacy, culture, and education, as well as to provide people of all ages and backgrounds the opportunity to celebrate the diversity of the multicultural communities in the United States in a festival atmosphere. The event is free and open to the public from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm on October 9 and 10, 2010. Donations benefit Latino Literacy Now, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization, and are tax-deductible. More information is available at
Background: The Latino Book & Family Festival is hosted in several major Latino markets across the U.S. including Houston, Dallas, Chicago and Los Angeles. Future expansion plans will take the Festival to New York City, Miami, the San Francisco Bay Area and many other major Latino markets. Edward James Olmos, actor and community activist, is the co-producer of Latino Book & Family Festival.
Established in 1964, Pan American Bank (www.PanAmericanBank.us) is California’s oldest Latino-owned bank. Headquartered in East Los Angeles, Pan American Bank serves the needs of the Latino communities in Los Angeles and Santa Ana. Founded by former U.S. Treasurer Romana Acosta Banuelos, the Bank has stayed true to its mission of transforming and empowering Latino communities through banking relationships built on trust, service, respect, communication, and guidance. Pan American Bank’s Facebook page can be found at http://bit.ly/pab-facebook. The Bank’s blog is found at http://PanAmericanBank.blogspot.com. Pan American Bank can be followed on Twitter at @PanAmericanBank.
Media Visuals: Posters and handouts documenting authors, author panels and related activities. For more information contained in this release, please contact Tony Ramirez at (323) 264-3310.
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