With Comic-Con underway, stars have been descending upon the San Diego Convention Center.
One of these celebs has been an unexpected one: Lisa Whelchel, best known for playing snooty Blair Warner on beloved sitcom “The Facts of Life.”
‘Lord of the Rings’ Cosplay
On July 24, Whelchel took to Instagram to share some photos from her very-first Comic-Con.
“That’s a wrap on my first Comic-Con,” Whelchel wrote in the caption, in which she’s costumed like a “Lord of the Rings” heroine.
“It was overwhelming. Over-stimulating. And now, over. We had such a fun and full and fabulous time,” she shared in the caption.
“I dressed up as Galadriel,” she continued. “My daughter, Clancy, was Arwen. My son-in-love, Aaron, was Dr. Grace from ‘Project Hail Mary.’ My brother, Justice, was The Punisher and my nephew, Logan, was Spider-Man,” she added, referring to some other photos she’d posted.
“We attended panels, played games, bought collectibles, walked the exhibit floor and got enough steps in to last a month,” she continued, with additional photos including a gaggle of Spider-Men, plus pics of Whelchel signing autographs and posing with MeTV host Svengoolie, “The Sandlot” star Patrick Renna and “Lord of the Rings” wizard Gandalf.
She conluded by writing, “@collectorscall and @metvnetwork belong at @comic_con. “These are our people. There’s nothing I love more than making memories with my family and we we made some lifetime ones!”
‘Collector’s Call’
Whelchel’s first time appearing at Comic-Con wasn’t just to dredge up nostalgia for her “Facts of Life” past.
In fact, she was there to promote “Collector’s Call,” MeTV’s unscripted series in which she meets with some of America’s biggest collectors of pop-culture memorabilia .
“These fans have amassed astonishing collections covering everything from Elvis Presley to James Bond, from Barbie to LEGO to bicycles… and so much more!,” reads the series’ logline. “While touring these extensive collections and learning about the collector’s fascination with their chosen items, Whelchel enlists the help of professional appraisers and experts to put an estimated value on the collection’s worth … Along the way, we discover collections featured in the Guinness Book of Records, alongside others valued in the millions of dollars. With the values established, the experts will try to tempt the collectors with a trade, offering a coveted item that would be the perfect addition to their collections. The collectors must then make an agonizing choice and decide how sentimental they are about their existing pieces … or how much they’re willing to give up for a new addition to the collection.”
A Hallmark Alum
Meanwhile, viewers of Hallmark Channel may recall that Whelchel has starred in a few Hallmark movies over the years.
All told, she’s appeared in two: “Hearts of Spring” and “For Better or Worse.” In the latter, she was reunited with her former “Facts of Life” co-star Kim Fields.
“It’s a funny romantic comedy,” Fields told KSiteTV. “We’re wedding planners who are dealing with this divorce attorney to works next to them in their office, and how they clash, and also what happens when their kids start to interact and fall in love.”
Added Whelchel: “I play a woman who has lost her husband, and is in the wedding planning business, and a divorce attorney moves into the office next door, and of course, there’s lots of sparks flying, negatively at first, and then the sparks fly in a positive way. It’s a really delightful romantic comedy about opposites attracting. It really is an adorable, fun, well-done movie.
