Josh Hutcherson: A Young Actor on the Rise

Tonight I attended the annual lighting of the Christmas tree on Fountain Square in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. Appearing at the ceremony was local resident and one of the hottest up and coming actors, 17 year old Josh Hutcherson. Josh first appeared in the Jon Favreau-directed "Zathura: A Space Adventure" and has appeared in a string of films the past five years. Josh is also sure to garner more media attention as he is playing the character "Robert" in the remake of "Red Dawn" that is scheduled to be released in 2010. So, this "Light Up the Square" event was a good opportunity to meet a movie star who has and will continue to receive accolades and national exposure.

As nice as Cincinnati weather can be during the summer, the fall and winter temperatures can be quite cold and today was not an exception. After scouting the staging area and some tents behind it, I went over to the Westin Hotel lobby to warm up for a little while. Fifteen minutes later, around 6:15 pm, I crossed back over and saw that Josh Hutcherson was already backstage. I'm not sure when or how he arrived to the event but there were only two of us collectors waiting there to meet Josh. My friend and fellow collector, Brian, asked one of the staff members if she would let Josh know that we were interested in meeting him and getting an autograph. She walked over to Josh and sure enough, he immediately headed over to us. I said, "I've got a few different photos here...they're all different as you have been in quite a few films". Josh smiled and replied nicely, "I don't mind. Yeah, I've been in a few." He graciously and without hesitation inked my DVD cover to "Journey to the Center of the Earth" and followed it up by signing all 6 of my photos from his films, including "RV", "Bridge to Terabithia" and the previously-mentioned adaptation of the Jules Verne classic, "Journey to the Center of the Earth". Josh seemed to search for just the right place to neatly place his autograph on each item presented to him to sign. After signing all our autographs, Josh posed for a photograph with each of us and then even stayed and chatted for a few more minutes. Josh told us that he had recently been in Detroit, Michigan working on the new "Red Dawn" movie. I asked him whether he was still living in Northern Kentucky or was he living out in Los Angeles. Josh told me that he travels back and forth between Cincinnati and Los Angeles and I said to him that I was doing the same thing. I also mentioned that I lived in Pasadena, with my sister, and Josh said that he liked Pasadena. He stated that he had some friends who lived at the Colorado Paseo, a high-end housing development attached to the retail shopping mall. I mentioned that we live right there in that area as well, just a block or two away. I also said that we go to the movies there at Colorado Paseo and also at the Arclight located on Sunset Blvd. Josh indicated that he knew the Arclight and seemed to enjoy discussing life and living in Los Angeles. From our conversation, it was obvious that Josh realized that I knew what I was talking about. Since Hutcherson seemed so nice, I pulled out my last available item and asked him if he would mind signing my DVD disc of "Journey to the Center of the Earth". Josh didn't care and politely signed the DVD in a silver Sharpie. By this time a line of 3 or 4 young girls had lined up and Josh moved on to deal with them one by one, signing their autograph requests and posing for pictures with them.

I wish Josh Hutcherson the best with his career and I certainly wish that all autograph encounters were as successful as this most recent one. The upcoming "Red Dawn" features an up-and-coming cast and big budget special effects so it's expected to do well at the box office. Josh appreciates his fans and his friendly approach towards fans means that I will not only go see "Red Dawn" at the theater but I also plan on supporting Hutcherson's other future projects.