Adam Savage is known for his work in Hollywood building models. Then Mythbusters, and Tested have influenced a generation of makers.
“I love their stories. We signed autographs for about half an hour, and people wait in line and come to me with great stories,” Savage mentioned. “I feel like one of my primary jobs is to be a permission machine. I want to be the one to say, ‘That’s a great idea’ and you should do it.
“It doesn’t matter if it is not possible. In my life, my parents were very supportive of all sorts of things I wanted to do. I also went to school with children who were cruel bastards. They can make you feel shame for the things that you love. In the few times that a friend said that the thing you’re working on is great. I remember those three times.”
It all started working on films like “Phantom Menace”. He ended up working with Lucas Films for five years.
“I was just told it was the 25th anniversary of the Phantom Menace. Is that real?” Savage chuckled. “All of my friends were working on Phantom Menace in the Spring of ‘98. There was a six-month push. 220 model makers were working full-time..The first thing I remembered there was they gave me to an old timer, who is a friend of mine, Larry Tan, who worked on Empire Strikes Back. We were building the Emperor’s shuttle that lands on Naboo. I got to help build the ship. I designed the entire interior. I got to light it, paint it, and run it on the set. All in the first three months, I got the opportunity to show what I can do.”
The original Mythbusters concept was far from what the show turned out to be.
“The original concept for Mythbusters was something we weren’t told for years. The concept included a hot woman, who would travel around the country exploring Urban legends. When it came to testing, she would call the guys at the shop to test it,” Savage remembered. “They tried to cast this for a couple of years. When they saw our demo, they were like, ‘maybe we don’t need this hot chick’; bring in these two.”
Savage was a gem. He’s worth seeing.
Vendor Spotlight
The first place is an artist who creates some cool prints. @Hasunow on Instagram. He messes with a photo’s registration, and these old-school-looking prints are outstanding and eye-popping.
Dave and Adam’s Presents – Hit Parade
They are boxed products that consist of signed baseball jerseys and more. The show price was showing for the jerseys. I looked at the baseball checklist and felt it was strong. They did misspell Cal Ripken Jr., but I’m sure it is spelled correctly on the baseball.
Look for some great photos from the event in the coming days.
Adam Savage photo by Katelynn Reiss
