A print ad in Wizard magazine announces the dates and venue for the Toronto Comic-Con (formerly Paradise Con) as March 26-28, 2010. However, a picture of Warren Ellis floating at the bottom does NOT mean he’ll be at the show, asl Ellis blogged:

First I’ve fucking heard of it.

I’m presuming this is some kind of impossibly convoluted but innocent mistake, as opposed to “well, if we just SAY Warren Ellis is showing up, then he’ll HAVE to.” But I’ve had no contact from Wizard World about this or any other show, so, god knows what actually happened for this to have somehow gotten printed…

Ellis WAS once a guest at the Paradise Con, so it might be logical to assume he could POSSIBLY be again, but that doesn’t mean he will be.

The revamped Wizard World convention slate currently includes this weekend’s Big Apple Con, Anaheim April 16-18 (the same weekend as C2E2), Wizard World Philadelphia June 11-13, and Chicago August 12-15.

We heard a lot of scuttlebutt this weekend regarding how Wizard shows are going about getting some of their guests, including reports of poaching. Several announced guests for this weekend’s Big Apple Comic-Con have yet to get their travel arrangements, and several others who were invited pulled out when such arrangements were not forthcoming.

In addition, Celebrity Authentic, which handles a number of A-listers including Christian Bale, announced a few weeks ago that they were pulling their guests out of Big Apple for unnamed reasons:

Please be advised that due to circumstances beyond our control, we have canceled all talent scheduled to appear at the Big Apple Comic-Con including Willem Dafoe, Taylor Kitsch, Jamie Campbell Bower, Cameron Bright, Robert Patrick, Lynn Collins, Ioan Gruffudd and Scott Speedman. We realize that this comes as a great disappointment for we were all looking forward to the show and these talented artists. This is the first time we have had to cancel a scheduled show appearance for our talent however, we must take this necessary action.

Finally, there is the matter of attendance. According to the New York Post, the show expects “20,000 to 30,000 people,” and “700 companies from film, TV, video games, toys and comics.” Which should be interesting, since the capacity of the venue, Pier 94, is 6500, according to this website.

By Mark Coale

Sure, we published our first issue in [cough] years and it was great to see old friends and discuss not being able to watch either the England or US matches with FMB, but can anything really top finding this book in a 50-cent bin?

So great for all the wrong reasons.

New York’s already busy fall season got one more show with the official word of the Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival, a new oft-rumored indie-centric show to be run by Desert Island and PictureBox. It’s a specially picked guest list, including Gary Panter, Jillian Tamaki, Charles Burns, Ben Katchor, Kim Deitch, Mark Newgarden, Michael Kupperman, Frank Santoro, Lauren Weinstein, Dash Shaw, Matthew Thurber, Jon Vermilyea, and Dina Kelberman.

Although it’s coming very late in the year — December 5th is the last date you can easonably do anything without running afoul of Xmas — this show wins just for having a Charles Burns poster. Plus FREE admission.

Deets:

Saturday December 5th 2009
Our Lady of Consolation Church
184 Metropolitan Ave
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
free admission

The Baltimore Comicon is the strongest example this year of the “fantasy economy” prevailing in economic lean times. While Baltimore retains it charm, quirkiness and access to fresh, delicious crabs, signs of the recession are everywhere. Parts of the city only blocks from the convention center consist of blocks of boarded up buildings — last year it was a Rite-Aid.

Despite this, the show yesterday was JAMMED. People were spending money carefully, no doubt, and overall purchases may have been down, but the crowd bustled, many in costume. In fact, entire families came in costume — dad’s hobby is turning into a family affair, and the families are not being forced into it. There was an adorable little girl dressed as Captain America — Cap is an aspirational model for everyone.

Next year’s dates have been announced — August 28 and 29th, which takes it out of the busy October season and may be just far enough away from SD that people are recovered enough for a leisurely one.

We missed the Harvey dinner, but came for the awards, and Scott Kurtz was a witty host, who went there, with some pointed humor. The show started with an “unmotion comic” that featured Prince Valiant, Dagwood, Garfield and BC in a humorous take on the evolution from comic strips to webcomics. Hopefully Kurtz will put it online. Towards the end of the night, he alluded to the inclusiveness of comics — adding how remarkable it was that a webcomics vet such as himself could be giving away awards in front of a crowd of legends such as Joe Kubert, Chris Claremont and Neal Adams. As noted by many people in Baltimore’s friendly, comics loving atmosphere, in comics most everyone wants the other fellow to do well, an extreme rarity in any industry.

Elsewhere, people were gearing up for the Diamond Retailer Summit, which kicks off tonight. Both DC’s Bob Wayne and Boom!’s Ross Richie have promised some rip-roaring announcements over the next few days, so we’re getting out of our hotel room right now to go cover them!

Before we go, here’s a con report by a fellow named Ray that seems to cover all the bases:

I’ve been to two conventions this year- this and Wizard World Philly. There’s no doubt that this was the better convention. WW Philly has gone from a great show to a terrible one over the years, a victim of the declining Wizard company. There’s only so many people you can lay off at a company before rot sets in, and WW Philly this year was a show that was hollow at its core. Most of the comics industry’s A-List decided to go to Charlotte’s Heroes con instead of Philly, so the only people left were those that lived in the Northeast that just couldn’t get to Charlotte for one reason or another. (Next year, Philly’s not the same weekend as Charlotte. Hopefully, this will result in a better Philly convention. If not, the show just can’t survive. And that’s a shame; Philly’s a great comics town.)

Baltimore is just a great comics show. There’s no “pop culture” aspect of the show; there’s no room. No video games. No “wrestler’s row” to fill the appearance schedule. (Jerry Lawler was scheduled to appear, but his Memphis mayoral campaign got in the way. But Lawler is a legit comics professional, so he doesn’t count.) There’s no gaming tables. It’s a packed show, just wall-to-wall comics. It’s a little overwhelming at times; Glenn and I nearly got lost more than once trying to navigate the showroom floor. But how can you complain about too much comics?

BIG thanks to Ed Catto for his company and driving skills on the way down. We’ll have a full report on the adventures we had with Captain Action later on, but suffice to say piloting a Havoc class helicopter while storming an enemy base is much easier than you’d think.

While everyone marveled at PLANETARY 27 finally being published, a much less important book will also debut this week.

The often-delayed issue four of ODESSA STEPS MAGAZINE makes its first appearance at the Baltimore Comic Con this weekend (see earlier post for more details).

In this issue, you can find such diverse things as an interview with Jamie S. Rich talking comics and Criterion DVDs, sportswriter Dan LeBatard, an academic article about STARMAN and lots of wrestling wackiness both north and south of the border.

And only three bucks. Surely a bargain.

You can find it at the Odessa Steps Magazine booth (#138) in Artist’s Alley. There’s also a good chance you can find THE BEAT HERSELF at the booth, likely haranguing the helper monkey on why it took so long for this to be published.

This is THE BEAT breaking in here and congratulating Mark on getting out another issue of ODESSA STEPS! The last time it came out people read fanzines. Perhaps after seeing this, they will again. Please stop by and say hi and get a copy, and once again, THANK YOU MARK COALE.

Crabcakes, we’re looking at you. The Baltimore Comicon — twitter hash tag #bcc! — runs tomorrow and Sunday (with the Diamond Retailer Summit pulling in on Monday and Tuesday) and it looks to be the same kind of fun, cozy show that we’ve come to expect from Marc Nathan and company. The guest of honor is George Perez and other guests include Bendis, Kirkman, Sakai, Fraction and lots more. Full list here. It’s a stellar line-up and you won’t find a friendlier environment to meet the top creators of today than Baltimore.

Programming is here, and once again, it’s a wide ranging slate, with panels from Image, Dark Horse, Marvel, DC, Top Cow and ACT-I-VATE and spotlights on Ian Sattler, Stan Sakai, Jo Chen, and Chris Claremont.

The Harvey Awards are held Saturday night, and we can safely say that the winners will be closely watched, given all the questions over the nomination process. Tickets can be purchased here.

The Beat and Future Mr. Beat are motoring down tomorrow AM with Captain Action himself, Ed Catto, so there may be delays while we fight bears or thwart Latverian dictators — or just try to find a Cinnabon on the Turnpike–but we’ll be there! After the excitement of Cinnabon, The Beat will be covering all the action, at the con AND the Retailers Summit, which promises to be quite fascinating.

Please, if you see us, don’t be shy about saying hi. It’s always an honor to meet Beat readers.

While it sounds like a great time for all, travelers should be aware that the Baltimore Marathon is taking place Saturday morning, and there’s a Ravens game on Sunday. The con sent out the following traveling advisory, which continues in the jump. With ample mass transit opportunities, it doesn’t sound impossible, however.

The 10th annual Baltimore Comic-Con falls on October 10-11, 2009, and this year, the Baltimore Marathon will occur on our opening day, October 10th.  This will be different than the standard Orioles or Ravens game, so we want to pass on what information we can to make your commute into Baltimore as easy as possible.
 
Getting to the Show on Saturday, October 10th. 

Due to the Baltimore Marathon, traffic might be a little strange due road closures on nearby streets.  Here are our suggestions for avoiding traffic problems on your way to the show Saturday morning.
 
Even more than in past years, the Baltimore Comic-Con recommends taking the light rail when attending the show this year.  We’re excited to be sharing the stage with the Baltimore Running Festival on Saturday, October 10th, but as you can imagine, the races will affect traffic off and on during the day.  There are no road closures going directly to the Convention Center, but there will be periodic road closures in the downtown area into the afternoon, potentially causing delays. 

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Next weekend’s Big Apple Con is sending out a press release every half hour or so — and they just released the programming, such as it is. We’ve put the whole thing in the jump but looking at the predominance of panels featuring meda and sports guests — Star Trek, the Termnator, Pete Rose — and scarcity of comics publishers — Avatar is the only one — calling this a “comic-con” is stretching things a bit.

Now, IF the con had put together a panel featuring Yogi Berra, Ric Flair and William Shatner and called it “The three most quoted living people,” then THAT would have been the most awesome event in human history. Whoo!
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By Matt Maxwell

So this wasn’t the first comic show in Long Beach. Not so long ago, Wizard used to have their LA-based show in Long Beach. And back then, it was pretty good. Decently-sized, good crowds, some programming, a collection of bars and restaurants nearby that you could sneak out to instead of paying eight dollars for a slice of pizza. Had great conversations with both Grant Morrison and Darwyn Cooke at those shows, and had a good time (since it was only a little over an hour away from where I lived at the time and was pretty cheap as these things went.)

Then Wizard moved their show to the LA Convention Center and it promptly became a ghost town. LA-based people no longer treated it as a vacation (Long Beach is about a half hour south of downtown and a pleasant enough destination), but as work. That and, though it’s being rebuilt and gentrified aggressively, downtown LA by the convention center isn’t that great a place to hang out (though leaps and bounds better than it used to be in the nineties). Marvel sent a delegation and DC stopped sending theirs. The LA show never really recovered. I exhibited there once and attended once, neither time was all that interesting (but the light crowds made for a good set of convention training wheels as it were.)

I was pretty interested to see that the same crew was bringing the show back, no longer under the aegis of Wizard (how often do you see that phrase typed out?) and with a very comics-centric focus (though Nintendo easily had the largest booth there). Sure, sign me up. If nothing else, it gives me a good chance to see my friends in Orange County. Maybe sell some books. Granted, it’s no longer a trivial task to get down there, but it’s not all that much of a trip either. As Sean T. Collins writes, “I’ll eat that.”

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We popped over to Bowlmor Lanes off Union Square last night for the New York Comic-Con 2010 One Year Out party, and it was quite a festive evening. The John Romitas — Jr and Sr — were announced as keystone guests for the 2010 show (to be held October 8-10 at the Javits Center.) Marvel freelancers prevailed against Marvel editors in a Bowl-off. And paparazzi were stationed outside in thick lines. Wow, are people really that interested in Denis Callero and Rodney Ramos? we thought, as we entered.

BUT NO. It turns out Paris Hilton was attending a party in the bar upstairs, meaning anxiously swarming publicists, and every once in a while, a large man in a suit would tell you where to stand. We had to leave before Ms. Hilton made her appearance, but NYCC’s Peter Tatara captured the moment, and Hilton’s unorthodox bowling footware.

But even the famed socialite could not steal the spotlight from comics! No sir. There was a nice crowd of friendly faces, too many to name, really, but we wanted to shout out Fanfare/Ponent Mon’s Steve Vrattos who was limping from an SPX spill at the Silver Diner — see, THAT is why we never go there! — and told us about his blog, which recounts adventures from his years as a Spider-Man.

We also caught up with Greg Topalian, from Reed Exhibitions, the guy who came up with the idea for NYCC more than five years ago. Turns out he was on the right track, and Reed now has three comics oriented shows and has pacted with the video game show PAX for two more. Greg is a very smart guy, and we always make sure to listen more than we talk when he’s around. Greg, Roger Bilheim, who does PR for NYCC, NYAF, C2E2 and BEA, among others, and myself chatted about the state of the “fantasy economy.” According to Greg and Roger, it’s still holding up — NYCC 2010 will take up the entire Javits — and Pax East, to be held in Boston next March, also looks like a strong show, they said.

It’s hard to go wrong with bowling and beer, let’s face it. Marvel’s freelance team — including Ramos, Peter David, Dan Slott, Chris Sotomayor, Greg Pak, and others — beat the editors — Axel Alonso, Mark Paniccia, CB Cebuski, & Co. — 900 to 873. Peter David had the high score of 177, and everyone was hoping he’d take on Hilton in a championship round, but sadly, it was not to be. However, on a bright note, Hilton is teaming with Marvel’s Jen Grunwald for a new reality show called “Between the Sheets of Paper.”

Tatara has lots o’ pics up at the NYCC blog, starting right about here.

(Disclosure: We’re hosted by a sister company of Reed Exhibitions, which puts on New York Comic-Con, and have, in the past, consulted for the show.)

It is surreal to be writing stories about San Diego Comic-Con selling out in October. But that is the reality we live in. We asked SDCC PR and marketing director David Glanzer a bit more about yesterday’s announcement that passes to Preview Night had sold out:

Q: What’s behind this shockingly early sell-out? Were fewer tickets available? I’ve heard publishers and other attendees say that Preview night has become the new Saturday, so has there been a need to trim the size of the crowd?

Glanzer: In the past all four-day badge holders could attend Preview Night, though not all did.

This year, however, it seemed more crowded as more people took advantage of that ability.

For 2010 the decision was made to offer an option (of whether they wanted to attend Preview Night) to those who pre-registered for four-day badges. We limited the number of badges for Preview Night to the number of those who attended in 2008.

Q: Does this mean that if you want to go to Preview Night…you can’t any more?

DG: Currently you cannot purchase a Preview Night badge, that is correct. Four-day badges are currently still available.

Q: Should we take this as a clue that four day passes might be selling out soon?

DG: Right now I think we’re okay. But it’s so hard to predict. I think we’re going to try to do a better job of keeping the public informed if those begin to sell more quickly.

Q: Any other changes we might be looking for at the horribly early date?

DG:I think this is pretty much it for now anyway.

*******
The news that the SAME number of preview night passes have been sold as last year may trigger flashbacks and PTSD in some people. As one industry veteran booth runner at a prominent comics company told us recently, “Preview Night is horrible.”
Oops, David pointed out that he said attendance is being held to 2008 levels, which is LESS than 2009 attendees, hopefully leading to FEWER flashbacks and PTSD.

With no programming to distract attendees, and exclusive swag giveaways at the movie booths, Preview Night has been dubbed “The new Saturday,” by most vets. It’s the most crowded and frantic time at the show. It’s worth noting that this year, (you’ll recall San Diego ended 10 weeks ago) TV/Hollywood programming was added to Wednesday night for the first time, and there were several off-site events. One might expect even more of this in an attempt to thin the crowds a bit.

Also, as noted above, there has been a scaling back to 2008, which should come as welcome news.

That looming sense of anxiety and worry you’ve had since San Diego 2009 ended a mere two months ago?

Totally justified.

Thanks to Horace Austin for the link.

Rich Johnston has helpfully rounded up Twitter news of the weekend’s three conventions — BICS in Birmingham, UK; Mid-Ohio Con in…Mid-Ohio, aka Columbus, OH; and Long Beach Comic-Con in Cali–in a post he calledA Tale of Three Twitties(can we say we’re JEALOUS!!!!!) but it was this one which caught our eye:

Paul Cornell: Stayed out talking comics: great. But missed Andy Diggle in other pub. Next year: official pub sort out please

PUB CONFUSION AT CON! You’ve got to sort this out, mate!

Meanwhile, we followed Mid-Ohio Con via Maggie Thompson who covers it all:

Purchases: MicroChamber Paper from Bags Unlimited, Love & Capes hoodie. Ready for anything!
and
Discussed with Marv Wolfman the advantages of donating comics to university collections.

Meanwhile at Long Beach, reports are very good. We’re hearing the show isn’t that large but the vibe is chipper, and David Gallaher, at least, sold out of HIGH MOON. Kelson Vibber has a nice photo set up, with crowd shots but also…a heron! See, being on the water makes people happy! Long Beach is definitely a great spot for a show, and next year we’re going to try to make it out.

For West Coasters, the premiere event this weekend is the new Long Beach Comic-Con, running today through Sunday at the Long Beach Convention Center. Although a new show on the scene, it’s run by a veteran crew led by Martha Donato, and features a stellar guest list led by Stan Lee, Jim Lee and Berkeley Breathed. Media guests include Thomas Jane, Seth Green, and George Lazenby. The whole list is here. Programming is here, in pdf form, but we’ve included a write-up in the jump. Exhibitors include BOOM!, Top Cow, Archaia, Aspen, and Com.x. The show kicks off with a ribbon cutting today at noon with Lees Stan and Jim.

The Long Beach Post has a preview:

Instead, the show will boast more than 150 guests, from Stan Lee to Jim Lee, with Bloom County creator Berkeley Breathed making his first-ever convention appearance. Exhibitors like Nintendo and Aspen Comics will take their place alongside local shops like Pulp Fiction and Amazing Comics, and Marvel and DC have both dispatched editors to host panels with fans, and talent wranglers to evaluate portfolios. In other words, it’s an impressive array for a first year convention—in fact, as we were putting this story together, Donato called back to announce that Anthony Michael Hall and Elizabeth Rohm will join the ranks of the con’s entertainment guests, a list which already included Thomas Jane and Seth Green.

We have fond memories of past shows at the Long Beach Convention Center, and it’s a great spot for a show, with ocean breezes, a fine facility and lots of food nearby. If our schedule weren’t so jammed, we might have made the trip, but as it stands, we hope everyone has a blast.

Folks who blogged about their plans:
Top Cow
Corinna Bechko
Mach 1 Wrestling
Marvel
David Malki
Drew Rausch
Josh Fialkov
Archaia
Gabriel Hardman
Titanium Rain
BOOM! Studios
Whilce Portacio
Nick Simmons
Hero Initiative
…and LOTS more. Feel free to post links in the comments.

ALSO: PARTIES
Friday night:

Saturday it’s the BOOM! Drink up:

Once again, we’re bummed we can’t be there, but please send us any reports, scoops and linkage.
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Now freed from competition with turkey and stuffing, Mid-Ohio Con kicks off Saturday and Sunday, October 3–4, in Exhibit Hall E of the Greater Columbus Convention Center, 400 North High Street, Columbus, OH. Guests include special guests Mike Golden and Bernie Wrightson, as well as Mark Evanier, Marv Wolfman, Chris Giarrusso, Tony Isabella, David Mack and the usual MORE. Good times.

Exhibitors include Cartoon Books and Avatar Press.

Programming can be viewed here, and all the rest of the info you need to attend is in the above link. We have no operatives on the ground, but welcome any con reports or links.

People who blogged about going to the show:
Len Wein
Paul Storrie
Marv Wolfman
Adam Talley
Also…VERY IMPORTANT: The Hero Initiative will be on hand. Please help out a great cause!

The title of the UK’s premier comics show was somewhat in flux after the Bristol show dwindled. but it seems like this weekend’s BICS in Birmingham at the Thinktank Millennium Point has developed into a full service show. You can see all the hoohah in the link, which includes a very snappy-looking website. Guests include Bryan Talbot, premiering GRANDVILLE, Howard Chaykin, Andy Diggle, David Lloyd, Mark Buckingham, Alan Davis, DC’s Michael Wright, and enough other gaffers to drink an entire bar down to the dry, cracked mud. Entire guest list is here. Programming is here:
Saturday and Sunday. Other events include an IMAX screening of WATCHMEN (Jealous!!!!) and a launch party TONIGHT. (Flyer above — no date given but it is tonight, Friday.)

Of course, the main event, if we know our Brits, will be enjoying a pint or two. Or twenty. FMB, aka Ben McCool, is at the show and has promised some sort of report when his head clears, and we’re keeping him to his word.

In other news, show co-organizer James Hodgkins is debuting a new, fancy look. No wonder everyone thinks comics are the road to riches.

People who blogged their doings:
Paul Cornell
TOXIC
Time Bomb Comics
Insomnia
Sonia Leong
Adam Cadwell
The Judge MInty crew
Underfire Comics
Al Davison
David Lloyd
Dare Comics
..and probably lots more. If you want to plug something, please do so in the comments. And hoist a pint of room temperature, cask ale at the Duke of Wellington for us!

This is far from a complete link dump, it’s more just things that struck our fancy,

¶ The Critics Panel at SPX was much discussed. You can either read about it, in Johanna Draper Carlson’s precís

OR

you can LISTEN to it at Sean T. Collins‘ recording! An age of wonders!

¶ Leah’s Stuff has the above marvelous picture, which we have ganked, in addition to a charming account of her activities, because it was THAT kind of show. Also: Colleen Venable, must you be so photogenic?

¶ Soo Lee has some piccies.

¶ Forces of geek shares an interesting notion for the end of year Skip Week:

One thing I did at his show, which is very different than anything I had done before, was visit each and every table, and try to make contact with each and every creator, and hand them a flier and give them a pitch for an event called “Indy Comic Book Week.” The ICBW is the brainstorm of Vinh-Luan Luu, who realized that on December 30, 2009, the Wednesday after Christmas, Diamond Comics Distribution, in an effort to cut costs and save money, will not be shipping any new product to any of the thousands of stores world wide that depend on them for delivery. For one week, when you walk into a comic book store, with a pocket full of holiday cash and gift cards saying to your friendly comic book store proprietor, ‘What’s new?” the answer will be, “Nothing,” unless the forces of the indy comic book world can organize to fill the shelves of receptive retailers with new product.

¶ David Welsh is a must read. David very kindly does not mention meeting The Beat, because at the moment he said “Hi”, we a) had to pee REALLY, REALLY BAD, and b) were so hungry that we were completely lightheaded and didn’t even know who he was. Apologies to David, who is indispensable.

¶ The alert nerd recap

¶ Robin Ha’s exciting news

¶ Comicsgirl had a swell time.

¶ Initially, we were very amused by the writeup by Jack at Not For You Studios

There was a surprising amount of handlebar moustaches amongst the very youthful happy youth of the very young. Moustache wax must’ve been on sale, verily, or demons possessed them all. The three-quarter hat is the very height of indie fashion, as it turns out. We have all very much seen Newsies, as it turns out. It was a brisk very Saturday on this very fateful very-berry-berry Crunchberries. Mmm. Shit, man, it, like, rained hard, dude.

And then we read what he had to say about the moderator of the Jeffrey Brown panel:

It was also discovered, as well, that Jack finds the moderator for this panel to be a dull, dull woman with dull, dull questions.

Well now, smarty pants, the audience had many chances to speak up, so you could put us all to shame, so swagger it, my cock-a-whoop.

That said a) it is still a funny writeup and b) having moderated and appeared on something like 536 panels this year, we really should write up tips and tricks (or learn some) one of these days.

Technorati Tags: women with felt beards, SPX

We alluded a few weeks ago to KingCon, yet another new convention on the schedule, this one spotlighting BROOKLYN. The announced dates are November 7-8 and the venue is the Brooklyn Lyceum. According to a new press release, organizers hope to spotlight comics, animation, and so on. Held barely a month after the Big Apple Con, KingCon arrives in the midst of an already busy convention schedule! Full PR below:

KingConBrooklyn.com
227 4th Ave in Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY 11215 R train at Union St.
718.857.4816 BrooklynLyceum.com

Brooklyn, New York has long been home to some of the Comic medium’s greatest talent, yet the borough has never had a comic convention to call its own. That is all about to change. On November 7th and 8th, 2009, the Brooklyn Lyceum will host KingCon: A Brooklyn Comic and Animation Convention. Featuring dozens of the borough’s most talented independent artists, writers, animators and publishers, KingCon will include exhibitors, vendors, panelists and signers. Some featured guests will be Act-I-Vate’s Dean Haspiel, Northlanders’ Brian Wood, celebrated illustrator Molly Crabapple, Matt Manning, Bob Greenberger and many others. KingCon will also boast a host of contests and activities, and offer attendees the opportunity to interact with celebrities from the world of comics, film, television and sports.

Brooklyn has long lacked a forum for this wealth of talent to convene. After birthing the Lyceum’s ongoing series of groundbreaking events (the popular Craft Market series and NYC Zine Fest ‘09), Lyceum festival organizer and programmer Deb Klein helped pave the way for future events like KingCon.

“It was the natural next step” says Lyceum owner Eric Richmond. “The Zine Fest brought in so many comic artists and writers, it was clear they needed a showcase of their own and that the Brooklyn Lyceum was an ideal location.” Local Talent. Subway access. History. Great food and drink. What more could you want?

Thus the idea for KingCon was born. Utilizing the building as a veritable museum of comic art and branching out into a number of adjacent Brooklyn businesses, the convention will encompass the pop culture element of its larger Manhattan cousins, while shining the spotlight on the dozens of independent artists who  often get lost among the costumed chaos of New York conventions.

“The lack of a Brooklyn based comic convention always surprised me,” says writer, artist, and convention co-organizer Mike Zagari. “Now with KING CON, Brooklyn’s flourishing and emerging writers and artists finally have an event to call their own!” With its close proximity to the subway, and its stunning, raw space, the building intends to do just that. Located in a century-old NYC Public Bath house turned event and performance space along a formerly rough and tumble industrial stretch of Fourth Avenue, the Lyceum has been, since 2000, a venue for emerging and well-established talent. Past showcases have included Jose Gonzalez, The Polyphonic Spree, The Dresden Dolls, Yo La Tengo, Fiona Apple and French folk singer Krystle Warren.

Says KingCon organizer and longtime comic lover Regan Jaye: “I had no idea when I presented the idea how overwhelming the response was going to be.” Indeed the response has been powerful, and the event promises to be a landmark event, not only in the history of the building but in Brooklyn as well.

You can find out more about the Con and the full schedule of events at http://kingconbrooklyn.com.

There is still Exhibitor space available! Please check http://www.kingconbrooklyn.com/exhibitor_info for more info and rates!

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After a rocky start, our SPX journey got into gear yesterday, as The Beat, Jah Furry, Brian Heater and Josh Neufeld set off, after a brief detour to drop FMB off at the airport. Despite such setbacks as a strange bug biting The Beat, faulty GPS leading us on an eerie tour of Elizabeth, NJ (the toxic effects will have the most harm on our future children,) and an equally scenic tour of nighttime Baltimore on the way to Atomic Books, the merry caravan did arrive at aforesaid Atomic Books party last night.

The SPX happy vibe was in full effect as greetings and beverages were flying everywhere. The Nerdlinger Awards–presided over by Liz Baillie, MK Reed and Robin Enrico– unfolded in all their glory, with a few winners even on hand to accept their handsome trophies. (We do have a list of the winners, but will have to transcribe it later.) Everyone was super impressed by the venue — Atomic Books is the kind of eclectic treasure trove of a store that thrives in quirky neighborhoods, tended by caring owners, and we could have spent hours just poring over the magazines(!), toys, books, comics, and minis on sale. Well worth the trip.

Following some grub at the equally quirky Golden West Cafe, we were back on the road, arriving safely at the NORTH Bethesda Conference Center. Then, sadly, the ailing The Beat passed out, overcome by the day’s parade of bug bites and toxic fumes, while Brian and Furry cavorted into the wee hours, as various Twitter photos during the night show.

We’ll update with photos and more later. Things we’re looking forward to — more great comics, the Ignatzes (hosted by It Girl Liz Baillie) and Brian using his night vision goggles!

We got this open letter from Patrick Brower of Challengers Comics + Conversation in Chicago, and it’s a little hypeish, but it sounds like this weekend’s Windy City Con was a fun, successful event, so let’s share in the good feeling, shall we? (Pictures here.)

Windy City ComiConQUERED

An open letter to Chris Neseman, Brion Salazar and, quite frankly, EVERYONE who attended the 2009 Windy City Comicon

I cannot count the number of comic book conventions I have been to as a fan and as an exhibitor/retailer, I mean its many, many shows over a 19+ year career in comics retail and 15 years as a fan before that. This past Saturday Around Comics hosted the 2nd annual Windy City Comicon in Chicago and I don’t think I’ve ever had a better con experience.  I mean it.  Windy City is a con the puts the focus on the creators and only has a handful of vendors on the floor.  Well, I guess 20 is more than a ‘handful.’ But with 80 creator tables, 20 vendor booths seems like a small number in comparison, but it works out just right for the space.  Doing the math, 80 Creators + 20 Vendors + 6 Panels = 1 huge day of fun for everyone involved.

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Peter Kuper, Kevin Huizenga, Kate Beaton and Al Columbia have joined the guest list at SPX. They join Gahan Wilson, Paul Karasik, Carol Tyler, Josh Neufeld, John Porcellino, Willy Linthout Jerry Moriarity, R. Sikoryak and Joshua Cotter, so, all in all, it’s gonna be pretty cool.

Peter Kuper is a contributor to Time, Newsweek, The New York Times and many other publications as an illustrator. He is the co-founder of the long running World War 3 Illustrated  as well as being the main artist on Mad’s long running series Spy vs. Spy. Peter’s latest creation is Diario de Oaxaca: A Sketchbook Journal of Two Years In Mexico published by PM Press. Diario is a combination of comics, sketches, photography and a journal of the time he and his family lived in Oaxaca, Mexico during a time of political turmoil there. This work comes on the heels of his critically acclaimed semi-autobiographical Stop Forgetting To Remember-The Autobiography of Walter Kurtz released in 2007 by Crown Publishers. Peter will only be at SPX on Saturday, September 26 in the afternoon.

Kevin Huizenga has just released the latest stories of the philosophical sage Glen Ganges, with #3 published recently by Fantagraphics. Kevin twice made Time Magazines Top Ten Comics and is a weekly contributor to the irreverent and always humorous Amazing Facts and Beyond with Leon Beyond. Visit Kevin at his blog The Balloonist at http://kevinh.blogspot.com/.

Kate Beaton  is the winner of the 2009 Doug Wright Award for Best Emerging Talent. Her History Comics  takes an irreverent and comical view of history and historical figures, this leading to coverage in Wired Magazine, Bitch and Macleans. Kate is responsible for the all of the banners on the SPX site, for which SPX has received rave reviews. Kate’s work can be viewed at her web site http://harkavagrant.com/.

Al Columbia is the creator behind the just released PIm & Francie: The Golden Bear Days from Fantagraphics, which is a collection of excavations, comic strips, animation stills, storybook covers, and other output over the years. Al started as an assistant to Bill Sienkiewicz, then moved on to create the Biologic Show.