So you wanna meet stars, up close and personal? Well, I can virtually guarantee that you will never be able to meet as many different Hollywood celebrities in one room as you will at the Hollywood Collectors & Celebrity Show, a regular event here in the Southland.

They get the occasional "Big Star" (Val Kilmer showed up in 2003), but for the most part, the stars who show up here to tend to be relatively minor celebs, mainly those who had memorable roles in TV series of the past. As well as former movie stars. But the sheer number of familiar Hollywood faces is amazing: - over 120 celebrities under one roof, all eager to sign autographs, pose for pictures, sell merchandise and mingle with fans.

You'll see former child stars, Western heroes, sitcom favorites, pop hearthrobs, talk show hosts... even Academy Award nominees.

It all takes place Marriot Burbank Airport & Convention Center, in Burbank. And for Baby Boomers raised on the TV sitcoms of the 60's and 70's, the scene comes close to Fan Heaven. Where else could you come face to face with so many old friends from your past?

Celebs who have turned up at past shows include:

Plus, you'll often see multiple cast members of a particular TV show, such as:

• Six cast members from the old sitcom "F Troop":

Ken Berry ('Capt. Wilton Parmenter')
Larry Storch ('Corporal Agarn')
Melody Patterson (' Wrangler Jane')
James Hampton ('Bugler Hannible Dobbs')
Joe Brooks ('Trooper Vanderbilt')
Don Diamond ('Crazy Cat')

• Five stars of the Fred MacMurray sitcom "My Three Sons":

Barry Livingston ('Chip Douglas')
Stanley Livingston ('Ernie Douglas')
Beverly Garland (Fred's TV wife, 'Barbara')
Tina Cole ('Katie Miller Douglas')
Dawn Lyn ('Dodie Harper Douglas')

• Four cast members from the sitcom "WKRP In Cincinnati":

Howard Hesseman ('Dr. Johnny Fever')
Gary Sandy ('Andy Travis')
Frank Bonner ('Herb Tarlek')
Gordon Jump (the boss, 'Mr. Carlton'; also 'The Maytag Repairman')

• Three cast members from 'Bewitched":

Erin Murphy ('Tabitha', all grown up now)
Sandra Gould (nosey neighbor 'Mrs. Gladys Kravitz')
Bernard Fox ('Dr. Bombay')
Kasey Rogers ('Louise Tate', the boss' wife)

• Three stars of Jack Webb's police show, "Adam 12":

Kent McCord  ('Officer Jim Reed')
Martin Milner ('Officer Pete Malloy')
William Boyett ('Sgt. MacDonald')

• Three members of "The Waltons":

Mary McDonough ('Erin Walton')
Eric Scott ('Ben Walton')
Jon Walmsley ('Jason Walton')

• Three more stars of the original "Lost in Space" (besides June Lockhart):

Jonathan Harris ('Dr. Smith')
Marta Kristen ('Judy Robinson')
Mark Goddard ('Don West')

• Three stars of 'The Time Tunnel":

James Darren ('Dr. Tony Newman'; was also "Moondoggie" in all those "Gidget" movies, and T.J. Hooker's sidekick 'James Corrigan' and is now the holographic lounge singer, 'Vic Fontaine' on "Star Trek: Deep Space 9")
Robert Colbert ('Dr. Douglas Phillips')
Lee Meriwether ('Dr. Ann MacGregor';  also Catwoman on 'Batman'')

• Two stars from the sitcom "Family Affair":

Johnny Whitaker ('Jodie')
Kathy Garver ('Cissy')

• Two stars of "Beverly Hills, 90210":

Gabrielle Carteris ('Andrea')
James Eckhouse ('Jim Walsh')

• Two stars from "The Andy Griffith Show":

Howard Morrisa ('Ernest T Bass')
Maggie Peterson (hillbilly 'Charlene Darling')

• Two stars from "Little House on the Prairie":

Kevin Hagen ('Doctor Hiram Baker')
Alison Arngrim ('Nellie Oleson')
Charlotte Stewart (teacher 'Miss Beadle ')
Lindsay Greenbush (little 'Carrie Ingalls')

• Two more cast members of the original "Lassie" series:

Jon Provost  (Lassie's owner, 'Timmy')
Hugh Reilly (Timmy's Father, 'Paul Martin')

• Two stars of "The Munsters":

Pat Priest ('Marilyn', the pretty member of "The Munsters")
Butch Patrick ('Eddie Munster')

• Two cast members from the talking-horse sitcom, "Mister Ed":

Alan Young (Mr. Ed's owner, 'Wilbur Post')
Connie Hines (Wilbur's wife, 'Carol Post')

• Two cast members from the original sitcom "Dennis the Menace":

Jay North ('Dennis')
Jeannie Russell ('Margaret')

• Two stars of "Diff'rent Strokes":

Todd Bridges ('Willis')
Dana Plato ('Kimberly')

• Two 'brides' from the Northwest romance/adventure, "Here Come the Brides":

Bridget Hanley ('Candy Pruitt')
Susan Tolsky ('Biddie Cloom')

• Two cast members from the "Planet Of The Apes" films:

Linda Harrison ('Nova')
Natalie Tundy ('Albina'), and

• Two stars from the Western series "Laredo":

William Smith ('Joe Riley')
Peter Brown ('Chad Cooper')

Plus:

...and so on.

Bear in mind that not all of these celebrities show up for every show, of course, but many do, and the organizers are adding new names all the time. This year they actually had to turn away some stars who wanted to appear at the show.

More good news: this event is held three or four times a year, so you won't have to wait long to attend the next show.

Besides the celebrities, the show offers lots of great collectable merchandise and movie memorabilia, from $1 pins to $5,000 movie posters.

Why do these stars show up at this event?  Motives differ. Some do it for the money. The stars do charge for autographs and photos (it varies from as low as $10 to as high as $40 for Val Kilmer) - so be sure to bring cash.) Other celebs want exposure, some like to mingle with other stars, and many simply enjoy bathing in the attention of doting fans once again.

What kind of money can celebrities make signing autographs at these shows? Well, some stars claim that they've sold over 2000 photos for the weekend. So do the math. (On the other hand, some celebs say that they only sold 50 photos the whole weekend.)

Where: For years, the event was held at the Beverly Garland Hotel in Universal City, but in mid-2004, the show moved to a new location: the Marriot Burbank Airport & Convention Center, at 2500 Hollywood Way, in Burbank, about two miles north of Warner Bros studio.

When: The Hollywood Celebrity and Collectors Show is held several times each year. Their upcoming shows are scheduled for:

February 18th & 19th, 2005
  April 23rd & 24th, 2005
   July 16th & 17th, 2005
    October 1st & 2nd, 2005
     January 27th & 28th, 2006
      April 22nd & 23rd, 2006
       July 15th & 16th, 2006
        October 14th & 15th, 2006
         January 6th & 7th, 2007
           April 28th & 29th, 2007
            July 21st & 22nd, 2007
             October 6th & 7th, 2007

Typical show hours are: Saturday & Sunday, 10 a.m.to 5 p.m.
(Phone ahead for exact dates and times of the next show.)

Price of Admission: $15 daily. (Free, if you stay at the Beverly Garland Hotel.) The stars also charge for autographs here (price varies). (Some need the money, others donate it to charities. But the rise of professional autograph sellers has made that policy almost a necessity.)

 Getting there: The the Marriot Burbank Airport & Convention Center is located on the east side of the Glendale/Burbank/Pasadena Airport, in Burbank, on the east side of Hollywood Way, just north of West Vanowen Street. That's about two miles north of Warner Bros studio, about four miles northeast of Universal Studios Hollywood, on the other side of the Burbank airport from Western Costume, and just two blocks northeast of Vahalla Memorial Park. There is a complimentary shuttle every 45 minutes to and from the hotel and Universal Studios.