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I think that everyone has certain things above all else that they hold dear and will for the rest of their lives. In my case, these are things I developed in interest in since childhood. They rank in this order: The Brave Little Toaster movie (first one only), the Tintin comics, and Alice in Wonderland.

Well, Lewis Carroll is dead, as is Herge, so only Jerry Rees remains (and he'd better for a very long time!). Here's the thing: If I am a fan of something I really want to have something special of it as well as let that person know how much I admire them. I just got that chance and this will stick with me for the rest of my life.

I have a routine of checking eBay everyday for certain things. One of these things is the Brave Little Toaster. So far, besides the movie, I only had a pin and the soundtrack. What I longed for was an animation cel of Kirby. Not only do I love that grump with a heart of gold to death I adore the late great Thurl Ravenscroft who voiced him. Scratching your head? Well, you actually know this fellow without "knowing" him, so to speak. Let me help you:





Yes, that's who those magnificent pipes belong to and it's thanks to TBLT that I found this out.

Cels for the other two god-awful movies Jerry had nothing to do with pop up all the time but ones for the original are hard to come by. One of Blanket with an offer to have Jerry actually sign it showed up one day and so I messaged the seller asking if they by any chance had a Kirby cel they'd be willing to part with. Indeed they did, we made plans for her to post it, and I'd be ready to swoop in when she did so. But on one particular message she included a detail that made my jaw drop: Her name. Rebecca.

Yes, I am such a fantard that I knew Jerry's wife's name. I was talking to the Rees family (No wonder the signing option was available!). This cel was coming out of Jerry's personal collection just because a fan wanted one so badly.

At last the day came and, as you know from the previous blog, I bought it. Today, just as I was leaving for work, the mail lady was walking it up. I had to wait eight and a half freaking hours to open the darn thing!

Here is the beautiful cel I received:


But that's not all:


I CRIED. I cried my eyes out. That's just above and beyond. Jerry made a fan's dreams come true right here and actually managed to make his film even dearer to me. How great is it when someone who made something you love so much ends up being such a terrific person? Not only do I have a one of a kind cel but something personal made only for me. I'm almost crying all over again.