Sure, no problem. My phone was ringing off the hook last night and I didn't get a chance to write as much as I would have liked. Keep in mind I paraphrase things, I'm not giving you exact quotes.

Elton John said that Jon was one of the few people in the industry he considered a true friend. He said he enjoyed working on Blaze of Glory with Jon and that he was thrilled that Jon was so honoroed for that song/CD because he knew it was the first thing Jon had done outside the band.

Calista Flockhart said Jon was a very organic and natural actor, very giving, and the type that made you want to work harder.

Peter Travers who is a critic for Rolling Stone, well known for being cynical and hating everyone and everything, praised Jon's skill as an actor. He said there was both preparedness and a naturalness to his performances.

Al Gore said he was struck by how down to earth Jon was and how he was a family man and a community man and that if he ever ran again he'd get Jon to campaign for him in all 50 states.

His mother talked about how she knew he was special before he was born and that she told him she couldn't wait for him to arrive. She said she used to sing to him everything from Marilyn Monroe to Gene Autrey. She said they didn't have toys in their house, they had books and music. She said that the gruelling tours of the 80's left the five band members as "five little limp rag dolls." You could tell she still gets angry thinking of how they were shooting Jon up with steroids so he could keep going and how no one thought of him as anything more thana money machine. She said what she was most proud of was the kind of family man he was.

His father talked about how Jon used to fall asleep with a guitar in his arms and that he'd write lyrics on anything--including the wallpaper. He also mentioned how sick Jon was--that he had a fever and was throwing up, would go on stage and perform like a trooper and get off stage and go back to what he was doing before. He also talked about how odd it was to see kids emulating his son.

Matthew said his first memory of Jon performing was the high school battle of the bands and he thought Jon was a star then because the gym was full and kids were screaming. He told a story of how when Jon did become famous, Jon was getting his hair cut and he saved all the hair and told Jon and their dad that hair would be worth some money. He also talked about how sick Jon was on the NJ tour and how it was strange that he was loosing weight, but puffy, and looked like he'd been beaten.

Tony said Jon never got in trouble as a child--that was his job. Jon's fame happening when he was in high school made Tony more popular.

I'll post some more later about what Jon and the band members had to say.

Becky