- THURS. JULY 24
Finally!! The day is here! Opening day of Comic Con. We couldn’t be more excited. Well, actually we could. Part of the blame there is the simple fact that none of us ever really sleep during Comic Con. It just seems so pointless, with all the parties and festivities going on - until the next morning arrives and we have to get up to do it again. And let’s not forget the FREE breakfast calling at the Embassy Suites. It starts at 6:30 and ends at 9:30 am. This means that, by habit, we get maybe 3 hours of solid sleep per night for about 5 days. I didn’t say it was healthy - but somehow it IS fun.
We’re off and running, breakfasts in bellies, skipping the effective but not-arriving-fast-enough-for-us Con shuttle bus. We get near the convention hall only to be slowed down by the hordes. My goodness! Where do they all come from? It’s a madhouse, but nothing what’s to be expected by Saturday.
The fans were out in full view, but dwarfed by the amount of characters walking about. Costumes and outfits galore! It was Halloween in July, only more creative. This is the very essence of why we go to Comic Con year after year. It’s a nonjudgmental way to just be a kid, enjoy Halloween early, and people-watch. Great stuff. As we got to the convention hall doors, we were greeted as always, by a Captain “Love Boat” Stubing attired doorman, who would politely say Hello and open the doors for all.
10:30 am - Spotlight on Noel Neill.
Noel is stated to be the original live Lois Lane, Superman’s girlfriend, starting in 1948. At least that is the claim. In reality - for a bit of trivia - model Joanne Carter was the real-life person on whom Lois Joanne Lane-Kent would become. Lois, the character, ended up with Joanne as her middle name, and ended up marrying Clark Kent/Superman, while the real Joanne ended up inspiring Lois’ looks, and marrying Superman co-creator Jerry Siegal. What a tale.
As far as live action, Noel actually wasn’t the first Lois seen on screen. That would be Phyllis Coates, who portrayed Lois in “Adventures Of Superman” on TV from 1952-53, with Noel carrying on from 1953-58. Noel has played the character of Lois Lane in more media ventures and instances than anyone else, as well as other Lois/Superman related characters in later films. When talking about a “live” performance, that would be actress Rollie Bester who originated the Lois role in the first 1940s radio program. She was followed by Helen Choate and Joan Alexander (who did the bulk of the radio voicing).
Unlike many stars who find typecasting annoying (such as Phyllis Coates), Noel has made it quite a career, with her bread and butter coming from appearing in a multitude of Superman-related media through the present day, delightfully meeting with fans. And Noel was the #2 pin-up poster girl, next to Betty Grable. Just a bit of trivia to expand the Comic Con experience.
Also at 10:30 was Comic Book Law School 101 -
This is a great series continuing this year that helps new artist, writers, and others in the business to understand the ongoing legalities in the industry - and there are plenty. After decades of lost wages, stolen characters and stories, “work for hire” vs freelancing, etc, this is a great way to figure out what actually happens behind the scenes, aside from the creative processes. Highly recommended.
At 11:30 was a look-forward-to panel on the upcoming “The Day The Earth Stood Still” remake, featuring Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connelly to talk about the filmmaking experience. This film looks like it’s going to be quite a bit... “more” than the original.
We spent a majority of the day running around to all the exhibit hall booths, seeing new products, and chatting up with old friends. At 4 pm or so, Samuel L. Jackson, now quite the Comic Con mainstay since his first appearance, came to chat about his latest anime project, “Afro Samurai.” Always entertaining is the best way to describe anything Sam is in.
By 6 pm, we were down to the wire of animated panels. At 6 pm , we saw the new Bill Plympton animated masterpiece, “Idiots & Angels.” There’s something cutely awkward and inviting about Plympton’s style that is reminiscent of mid-1970s TV animated specials. I’m thinking of “The Point,” with that exacerbatingly catchy “Me And My Arrow” song that became a TV car ad staple later.
At 7pm it was time to check out the - now defunct - “TV’s Funhouse” panel featuring creators Robert Smigel and Dino Stamatopoulos. Although it had a slow start, the fun grew as the questions and commentaries became more absurd. But what could be expected from the people who brought us Saturday Night Live staple cartoons - “The Ex-Presidents” and the oft-quoted “The Ambiguously Gay Duo” super hero teams. Let’s not forget their later accomplishments such as “Moral Oral” and “Metalocalypse.” Awesome!
Now the fun began to set the mood for later in the night, and an onslaught of emails to follow.
At the end of the panel, I was feeling just a bit overwhelmed and underslept. I left the panel a few minutes early and just wanted to get back to the hotel. Sleep, wonderful sleep. A nap would do nicely. As I walked alone down the deserted hallway, a cadre of people were approaching. It wasn’t a solid line, but a mob encircled, moving my direction.
As they got within shoving distance and began pushing into me, I reached out to give a push back. “Get the hell away from me.” I said firmly, as I pushed photographers and bouncers aside to expose - yes, Paris Hilton. Good God! What was SHE doing here? Has Comic Con suddenly become the haven for Hollywood tabloid fodder? Has it finally “made it”?
No matter, my quick thinking went into gear as I realized my camera with flash on, was ready to go. Snap, snap, snap. I shot off some pics, and continued on my way. Yay! I had finally gotten one of “those” shots. Good for me. This was going to prove to be a possible undoing for me the next morning, as I saw the news headlines - “Paris attracts her scummy horde of ‘backward-walking’ paparazzi at Comic Con.” NO!! That was ME amidst the scum. Good grief. I felt dirty, like I needed a shower to wash off the filth. What had I become? I too had “walked backwards” for a moment, to capture the glamour queen. Suddenly I feared if a photo of me in the throng would surface in the news. Would someone see me, and never take my work seriously again? I sincerely hoped not. But, what the hell - I shot photos of Paris Hilton. Did you? Good for me.
Paris was actually at the Con to promote her new film project, “Repo: The Genetic Opera,” a musical-horror piece featuring Bill Moseley (“Devil’s Rejects”), Paul Sorvino, and Nivek Ogre of the band Skinny Puppy.
To continue with my story at hand - sorry for the run-ahead to the next day - we came back to the convention hall at 10 pm to see the long-awaited, long-rumored “Lost Boys: The Tribe” sequel film. On the panel were original cast member, Corey Feldman - playing his Edgar Frog character - along with Kiefer Sutherland’s half-brother Angus, and the adorable Autumn Reeser. The film was shown in its entirety, followed by a rather amusing Q&A session between cast and audience. A fine beginning to the first day of the Con.
Written by Philip Anderson - with extra commentary and inputs by Perlito Godoy and Keith Denison
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- Stories / Events
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- The Trip Down
Thurs. July 24
- Fri. July 25
- Sat. July 26
- Sun. July 27
- Comic Con 2008
- Photos
- Interviews:
- Dean Haglund
- ("X-Files")
- Candace Kita
- ("Chuck & Larry)
- Conchita Campbell ("4400")
- Megalyn Echikunwoke ("4400")
- Ira Behr / Craig Sweeney ("4400")
- Jeffrey Combs ("4400" / "Reanimator")
- Rafael Navarro (Artist "Scooby Doo" / "Sonambulo")
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