How much does Comic-Con matter to San Diego and its businesses? Here are two signs found near the restaurant in our hotel.

No, I haven’t tried the Captain America shot. (Yet?)

Here’s a fellow we saw standing in front of the convention center. I have no idea what his costume is supposed to be. I just liked the idea of an angry cigarette-smoking flower reading a book in front of the Con; that this guy is an exhibitor just sweetens the deal.

But then, you run into all types at the Con. Here’s someone you rarely see in daylight.

And here’s the same guy with my friend Roscoe Smith.

When I saw a panel entitled “State of the Industry” listed, I decided to go. Comic-books are an important part of my life, and for 40 years I’ve been hearing that they’re going to die any minute. (And, when you see the sales figures showing that major Marvel titles are lucky to sell 40,000 copies a month, you finally believe it’s true.) The graphic novel has led to a revival of the form, and certainly there’s money to be made in all those movie and TV properties, but I hope to keep getting those periodicals, too. So I went to the panel, and here’s what I discovered:  It was intended as a discourse between publishers’ reps sitting on the dais, and comic-shop owners, who made up the audience. It was a small room, overstuffed with perhaps 50 comics shop owners — and me, sitting quietly like a spy, the only reader in the house with no financial stake in this. Here’s what I got from it:  the publishers are going digital as quickly as they can, and the comics shop owners are very worried about this. One publisher (I forget which, but I don’t think it was DC or Marvel) couldn’t figure out why  a coupon they had made for comics shops to share with people to get them to try digital comics for free had failed; the retailers quickly let them know:  “Why would I want to get my customers to buy digital comics? What’s in it for me?” At times, the conversation was so heated I was waiting for angry villagers to arrive. The publishers were saying that readers of digital comics were a different audience, and therefore no threat, but if that’s so, someone wanted to know, why were they trying to get the shop owners to get their buyers to switch? And if they’re separate audiences, why does the last page of every Marvel digital comic have a plug for the Comic Shop Locator where you can find your local shop? Someone else complained that digital comics are 99 cents each, while the same comic is $2.99 (or more) in a shop. One of the publishers said that digital is “a very small part” of their business — and then the crowd wanted to know just how “small” a part; when the guy said 1-2%, then the retailer wanted to know if it was this insignificant, why were they devoting so much time to it? So my takeaway was this:  The publishers are heading into digital as quickly as they can, and the comics-shop owners, acutely aware of the recent demise of Borders and other bookstores, are feeling very threatened. And oh, by the way, two weeks ago I subscribed to Marvel’s digital comics; I spend about $40 a month on comics — the digital service cost me $40 for the year.

The next thing I went to was a tribute to artist Gene Colan, who died recently.  I thought Mark Evanier’s opening remarks were apt: that Gene Colan was lucky, because he lived long enough to be celebrated. Thousands of fans (including me) got the chance to tell him how much his work meant to them; he received a museum show devoted to his work while he was alive; and the next generation of editors who were devoted to his work kept him busy and respected. Marv Wolfman was also kind enough to say that he felt that it was from working with Gene Colan that he learned how to write comics. Marv was the fourth writer assigned to “Tomb of Dracula” (after Gerry Conway, Gardner Fox, and Archie Goodwin had each done two issues). There wasn’t much action in the book, which largely revolved around what would seem to be the supporting cast, making plans and deciding what to do. And while Colan could draw action (brilliantly), he also excelled at penciling highly expressive faces. This meant that Marv had to learn to write character-driven stories — and that’s what has driven his career ever since, as anyone who’s read his comics knows.

The next panel concerned the birth of comics fanzines, and included Paul Levitz (former president and publisher of DC Comics, and onetime fan editor of The Comic Reader), Roy Thomas (Alter Ego), Maggie Thompson (several fanzines, and then the Comics Buyers Guide) and others. I asked a question about RBCC, the zine that introduced me to comics fandom because the editor/publisher actually advertised it in comic-books, which was where I found out about it, and fandom. I can’t overstate the importance of this publication to me in my adolescence. Here’s what I learned about it:  The editor, G.B. Love, had cerebral palsy, and typed each issue one key at a time, and was only able to strike that key by hitting it with the eraser end of a pencil clutched in one hand. That he was able to publish that thing despite this challenge is a testament to his dedication.

Other highlights:

Terence and I went to AMC’s “Walking Dead” booth, where we found ourselves trying to get off the rooftop before the zombies broke in. As someone noted on my Facebook page, he seems awfully gleeful to be sawing my arm off. (Note Roscoe watching in the background with great alarm.)

My friend Paul and I dropped in on the “Dark Shadows” panel. Like many other kids in the late 60’s, I rushed home from school so I could watch it, and was daily annoyed by the debate with my grandmother because she also had to watch another boy, a boy whose name I still remember was Glenn Jupin, and Glenn Jupin was too afraid to watch it, and I wanted to know why he couldn’t just go play in another room. (This is what life was like before DVR, DVD, and multiple TV sets.) I did watch it, and just about every day. Tim Burton is making a new version with Johnny Depp, and the crowd and I had our trepidation. (I still haven’t forgotten his take on “Planet of the Apes.”) Someone said, “I don’t want Barnabas to be Jack Sparrow with fangs.” Kathryn Leigh Scott is now 68 years old and is stunning. Maybe she really did get bitten and is immortal.

Our crowd, minus friend Larry, went out to dinner at Buster’s Beach House, where this photo revealed my son Lex’s friend Brendan to be possessed by a demon of a high order. (Sad, and a little terrifying.) Left to right:  Trey, Lex, Brendan Beelzebub, Roscoe, myself, Paul, and Terence. (Larry has been beamed off somewhere by “Star Trek” people.)

After this, we went to see “The Worst Cartoons Ever” — and believe me, they qualified, hilariously so — and then the animated version of “Batman: Year One.” These two showings were on opposite ends of the convention center. Midway between them, we took this shot:

You will never again see the Sails Pavilion deserted in this way during the Con (picture 50,000 jammed just into this photo, and you, ahem, get the picture). It was a phenomenon, and I’m glad we captured it in a photo.

After “Batman: Year One,” which I thought was pretty good (especially enjoyed Bryan Cranston as Lieutenant Gordon), we walked past what I’m calling “South Park Village,” closed for the evening and every bit as spookily bereft as Storybookland.

Finally, what is this a photo of? People camped out after midnight so that they can get their Con badge first thing in the morning.

More soon.

This entry was posted on Friday, July 22nd, 2011 at 11:38 pm and is filed under Comics, Theatre. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.