DEFNETTERS GET 'EUPHORIC' AT SHOW ME CENTER

Def Leppard fans, who met through the DefNet Internet mailing list, gathered at the Holiday Inn in Cape Girardeau after attending a concert at the Show Me Center Friday.

Twenty-five people from nine states traveled to Cape Girardeau Friday, seeking "Euphoria" they could only get from seeing Def Leppard. The group of strangers shared three common bonds: love for the legendary British rock band, access to the Internet and a subscription to DefNet.

DefNet, an Internet mailing list, was created in 1998 by two devoted Def Leppard fans, a Canadian who calls himself The LL Kid and Mark Senff, a fan from The Netherlands. DefNet now boasts 430 members from around the world.

DefNetters drove from as far away as Texas, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania to attend the Show Me Center concert. Most had never met in person.

"I didn't travel all this way for the concert," said Natalie Zavesky, Ft. Worth, Texas. "I came to meet all of these guys!"

"I was coming if I had to drive all the way by myself," laughed Rebecca Mahone, Texarkana, Texas. "My husband thinks I'm crazy."

The group gathered at the Cape Girardeau Holiday Inn on Thursday and Friday nights for an informal DefNet convention. Other such gatherings have taken place in Peoria, Chicago and Vancouver. Another will occur when the band plays in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania on February 5.

"The DefNetters organize the meetings among themselves," LL Kid said. "The one thing they have in common in each convention' is that a great time was had by all the fans, coming from all corners of the U.S., Canada and even Europe."

The group ranged in age from 16 to 47. The youngest member of the group, Samantha Mooneyhan, attended with her parents, both members of DefNet.

A budding journalist for an Illinois teen newspaper, Mooneyhan landed an interview with bassist Rick Savage while she was in town.

Her stepfather, Thierry Boehm said "Sav" was the child's third word after "Mom" and "Dad".

"I was born the week "Pyromania" came out and he has always been my favorite member," Mooneyhan said. "I can't believe how incredibly cool they all are and they treated me like a princess. Malvin (Mortimer, tour manager) is the greatest guy in the world."

The Murphysboro teen was delighted when the band waved to her and blew her kisses from the stage. Mooneyhan was especially thrilled to show off her prized memento from the occasion to fellow DefNetters: a page in her school yearbook signed by all of the members of the band.

"I will never, ever forget this as long as I live," she said. "It's been the best night of my whole life."

Mooneyhan was not the only DefNetter that left Cape Girardeau with wonderful memories from the weekend. Def Leppard was aware of the gathering and met many of the DefNetters either at the hotel or the concert.

"Vivian (Campbell, guitarist) was just so nice," said Angi Clingan, who drove from Madison, Wisconsin to see the show. "And Malvin is so sweet. I have just had the greatest time."

Jeannette Viviani, St. Louis, was lucky enough to get front row tickets to Friday's show. Her daughter Tina is a student at SEMO and bought the tickets for her mom, a fan since 1981. Viviani discovered the Internet and DefNet after her daughter left for college.

"I spent 70 percent of my time on my daughter and 30 percent on work," she said. "When she went to college, I had 70 percent of my time free so I discovered the Internet!"

Margi DeFord traveled from her home in Villa Park, Illinois to meet her DefNetter friends. DeFord has traveled as far away as Texas to see the Leppards, a feat that helped her meet the band.

"We lucked out down there and the radio station gave us second row seats because we came so far just to see Def Leppard and we got to go to the meet and greet before the show," DeFord said. "Why else would I go to Texas?"

The band seems extremely aware of the dedication of their fans on the Internet. Senff, one of the founders of DefNet, also hosts one of the best Def Leppard related websites. At www.senff.com, fans can find reliable information about the band, view pictures, download samples, and read a column submitted by Mortimer, the band's tour manger and longtime friend.

"As far as I know, they do appreciate what I'm doing and every once in a while they ask me to put something on the site," Senff said.

Recently, the band asked Senff to put a survey up on his site so the fans could vote for the next single to be released from their new album, "Euphoria." Senff spends approximately four to five hours a day on Def Leppard related items.

Such dedication seems to be mirrored to the fans from the band itself. After twenty-two years together, Def Leppard holds a special place in most of the fans' hearts due to the strong friendship the band shares.

"I admire their perseverance and the fact that they have stuck together like a family through thick and thin," Viviani said. "They have songs that cheer me up and fit just about any mood and something about their music reminds me of my carefree high school days."

The Holiday Inn gathering resembled a high school reunion rather than a meeting of twenty-five strangers who didn't know one another by face or name. The group joked often about needing name tags with their screen names on them in order to recognize each other. By Saturday, the DefNetters exchanged hugs and addresses, vowing to plan another such gathering when the band tours the area again.

"I am so glad I came," Mahone said as she hugged her new friends good-bye. "This has just been incredible."

With a few departing hugs, the Netters drove back to their homes hundreds of miles away rocked by a common sense of euphoria.

Krissy Geary (Geary99) is a DefNetter from Murphysboro.