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Published Thursday, February 23, 2006 by seanlmccarthy | E-mail this post

NACA CONVENTION WRAP

Managed to make my way over to Hynes Convention Center on Tuesday for the final day of NACA's National Convention. Didn't see comics Kyle Cease or Kelly MacFarland -- who reminded me about the confab a couple of nights earlier at The Comedy Studio -- but did see plenty of comedians, musicians, magicians and other oddities begging for bookings from college campus activity directors. The strangest thing I found wasn't so much the company that rents out toilets on wheels for "toilet races," although that was strange enough, but seeing three different booths with agencies representing former cast members of MTV's "The Real World." So that's where my story went. Danny and Melinda from the Austin cast seemed friendly and courteous, both to me and to the many college students who wanted to meet them and get photos with them. Crazy to think how much they live off of that show -- 28 speaking appearances lined up just for this month and March. But they told me that going to college campuses isn't about making money. Rather, it's about sharing their experiences from the show with students. Er, um, right.

Melinda: "Ours was different because we had real issues we had to deal with. It wasn't just about who was hooking up with whom or who could drink the most."

Danny: "That's why I do it."

Two rows of booths behind them, fellow cast members Wes and Johanna. Again: Er, um, right.