Patrick Stewart, best known as Capt. Jean-Luc Picard of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," doesn't make a lot of convention appearances, especially in the United States. So it was a surprise when Slanted Fedora touted Stewart's appearance at a convention at The Meadowlands in New Jersey Jan. 5 while filming for "Star Trek: Nemesis" was continuing.

But when Stewart didn't show up as advertised, some fans were outraged, prompting the actor to respond to what happened.

In a statement issued through The Patrick Stewart Network, courtesy of TrekWeb, Stewart addressed those concerns.

"It is my custom to keep my affairs as private as possible, but so much disquieting information has been reaching me about my recent non-appearance at the Slanted Fedora Convention ... that I feel it important to put the record straight so far as the facts are concerned," Stewart said. "Sometime in 2002, I was approached by David Scott to appear at the above-mentioned convention. I gave only my provisional acceptance, subject to my availability.

"Time passed and with so much going on in 2001, I forgot about my provisional commitment, but when I made it I assumed that as with every other such engagement, the organizers would reconfirm my commitment nearer the time. This never happened."

Stewart said he was reminded of the convention in November when people from Slanted Fedora began to call his assistant. It was then he realized that his appearance would be impossible since he would be in the middle of shooting "Nemesis" before moving on to play Professor X in "The X-Men" sequel.

Stewart said that at the very latest, Scott was informed about his inability to appear Dec. 6, however it was "some time" before Stewart's appearance at the convention was removed from the site.

"At about this time, (Scott) informed (Stewart's assistant) that he had a signed contract for my appearance, but our repeated request to see a copy of it produced nothing," Stewart said. "He also claimed that I was contracted to sign photographs at the convention, something I have not done for over 10 years, and which it is commonly known I do not do."

Stewart said that he still wanted to make sure that fans who were attending the convention would not feel too upset over his inability to attend, so on Dec. 10, he signed a contract with Slanted Fedora to send 1,200 autographed photos to be given to convention attendees that could be given as part of the convention ticket package. The photographs, he said, came late (by Jan. 4) because he refused to sign the photos until he received payment.

"I should have insisted that I waited until the check was cleared because when my bank submitted it, it bounced," Stewart said. "As of the 23rd of January, I have still not been paid for the photographs."

"I am very sorry that attendees were misled about my appearance, but as I have tried to make clear, I am just as irritated with Slanted Fedora as anyone else and, as I have assured David Scott, nothing could induce me to work with them again."

Airlock Alpha is seeking a response from Slanted Fedora organizer David Scott, but one was not available by the time this story was posted. However, we will post a followup if a response is received.