{"id":2488,"date":"2015-06-02T16:31:00","date_gmt":"2015-06-02T23:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comic-con.org\/toucan\/?p=2488"},"modified":"2024-01-08T16:37:06","modified_gmt":"2024-01-09T00:37:06","slug":"maggies-world-030-comic-con-memories","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comic-con.org\/toucan\/maggies-world-030-comic-con-memories\/","title":{"rendered":"Maggie\u2019s World 030: Comic-Con Memories"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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MAGGIE’S WORLD BY MAGGIE THOMPSON<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maggie\u2019s World 030: Comic-Con Memories<\/h1>\n\n\n
Maggie Thompson<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Archie Andrews and Chuck Clayton won a trip to Comic-Con, as shown in Archie Giant Series Magazine #601 (Oct 1989). (And thanks to Stan Goldberg and Jon D\u2019Agostino for the flattering art.) \u00a9 2015 Archie Comic Publications, Inc.\u00a0Click on the images to see them larger on your screen and in slideshow mode.<\/strong><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When Archie Andrews and Chuck Clayton had a great time at San Diego\u2019s convention on the cover of Archie Giant Series Magazine<\/em> #601, it was 1989. They\u2019d earned the trip with Chuck\u2019s poster promoting a blood drive. In \u201cComic Con Conniptions\u201d by George Gladir, Stan Goldberg, and Mike Esposito, Comic-Con\u2019s Shel Dorf and John Rogers escorted the two to the Pro Registration desk. It\u2019s safe to say that, outside the world of comics fans and pros, not many people in 1989 even knew that such a special comics event existed. As the cover said, it was the 20th such annual festival in the city. Nevertheless, despite its two decades in existence, it was still pretty much Our Own Special Secret.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Comic-Con 1976: Mel Blanc asked daughter Valerie what she\u2019d like to hear. She said she wanted Jack Benny\u2019s car. He said, \u201cStand back, kid, you\u2019re going to get wet.\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Early Days<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

The first time Don and I were lucky enough to go, it was as guests, thanks especially to our column in The Buyer\u2019s Guide to Comic Fandom<\/em>. The publisher thereof, Alan Light, was there to encourage our participation, and we made a family event of it. It was July 1976, and 9-year-old Valerie and 4-year-old Stephen managed to maintain their cool throughout an event that could have overwhelmed less fannish offspring. The El Cortez Hotel was the site, and there were many attendees; estimated attendance topped a whopping 3,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the following three years, it expanded into the San Diego Convention and Performing Arts Center, and attendance eventually seemed to stabilize at about 5,000, which is what it was when we returned in 1983.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It Began to Grow<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

That return came because we had become editors of Comics Buyer\u2019s Guide<\/em> (which had morphed from that Alan Light publication). That change meant that our hobby had become our job\u2014and that meant that even our Comic-Con attendance had become part of that employment. (On the other hand, it was the sort of job we could only have dreamed of having in years earlier.) And then Comic-Con began to grow again. In 1991, it moved to the San Diego Convention Center. On the other hand, Comic-Con\u2019s 15,000 or so attendees occupied only a small chunk of the territory covered by that venue. Who could have guessed what would happen next?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 2004, Comic-Con had grown to fill the hall\u2014and then kept growing; more than 95,000 people joined the party. Pop culture gained legitimacy, and an increasing number of fans and creators found it was a delightful place to hang out. I met creators whose work I\u2019d admired for years. I found old comics that were on my wantlist. I bought new comics I had to have. I bought so much stuff, I started to have to ship it home, because there was no way it would all fit in my suitcase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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You never know what antics you\u2019ll see at the Eisner Awards. (You\u2019ll find out about great comics, too.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Memories<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Even while I acquired collectibles, I also acquired memories. Who, for example, could forget the Eisner Awards moment when, following a mention of Madonna and Britney Spears kissing, British entertainer Jonathan Ross grabbed Neil Gaiman? How many people do you suppose noticed when Mark Hamill (wearing a fake name badge) worked a dealers\u2019 table? Or how many, another year, observed him and his cast of voice artists making an improv movie that paid tribute to Comic-Con? (Have you seen Comic Book: The Movie<\/em>? Full disclosure: I\u2019m in it.) Magazine articles and online commentaries alike began to swell with coverage of a variety of memorable moments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Last year, son Stephen triumphed over me in a comics quiz designed by NPR\u2019s Pop Culture Happy Hour expert Glen Weldon.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
These Days<\/strong><\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Some of those memorable moments can be personal triumphs. In 2014, for example, daughter Valerie and son Stephen attended with me for the first time since 1976. While Valerie had attended with me several times recently, it was the first time Stephen had been able to attend Comic-Con since he was 4. (On the other hand, some memorable moments feature our failures. That was also the year that Stephen defeated me in a public quiz on comic books. Sigh.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Comic-Con is a plot device on TV and in the movies. Comic-Con is on magazine covers. Comic-Con is a dream. Comic-Con is a huge party made up of countless little parties. Want to spend the weekend in costume? There\u2019s a party for that. Want to goggle at celebrities? There\u2019s a party for that. Want to chat with creators while you get your comics autographed? There\u2019s a party for that. Want to buy the best comics old and new? There\u2019s a party for that. Want to see a celebration of the best comics had to offer in 2014? There\u2019s a party for that. Want to watch cartoonists compete to show off how funny and fast they can be? There\u2019s a party for that. All of these \u201cparties\u201d are part of Comic-Con.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A vast variety of more mundane parties occur throughout the year. At each, chances are that you\u2019ll find opportunities to find new fun, new friends, and new memories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bonus of the gigantic Comic-Con party is that you\u2019ll find all that\u2014and<\/em> comics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Daughter Valerie has attended several Comic-Cons with me in recent years. 2015, too.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s what Valerie and I will be looking for this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And, hey, something else just occurred to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the 1980s and 1990s, when I\u2019d say, \u201cI\u2019m going to the San Diego Comic-Con,\u201d folks used to say, \u201cOh, San Diego? Will you be going to the beach or the zoo or Sea World?\u201d And I\u2019d say, \u201cNo, I\u2019m going to Comic-Con!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These days, when I say, \u201cI\u2019m going to the San Diego Comic-Con,\u201d folks say, \u201cComic-Con? Wow! That must be fun!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I say, \u201cYou bet!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

See you there?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maggie\u2019s World by Maggie Thompson will return the first Tuesday in August \u2026 be here!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Written by<\/p>\n\n\n

Maggie Thompson<\/div>\n\n\n

Published<\/p>\n\n\n