GeekRoundTable.com

Comic-Con Cancelled and Returned Badge Resale

The Comic-Con International cancelled and returned badge resale will be open only to those who had a valid and confirmed Comic-Con Member ID as of May 24th, 2012. Additionally, anyone who has already purchased a Comic-Con 4-day badge (with or without Preview Night) or Saturday badge will not be allowed to participate in this resale.  

  Please keep in mind that cancelled and returned badge inventory is very limited. There are only 5,000 single day badges for sale.

 The resale will begin on May 31st, 2012 at 8:00 a.m. Pacific Time (PT). There will be no link provided on any social media sites to access the sale directly.

 The link for this resale is: http://www.comic-con.org/cci/2012resale.php

 Please note, this link will not be active until 8:00 a.m. PT. If you click this link early, you will receive a “404 – NOT FOUND” error page and you will need to close your browser window and click the link again at or after 8:00 a.m. PT.  We recommend that you bookmark this link prior to the sale, copy and paste it into your browser, or manually type in the URL.

 To verify the Member ID and last name you will use to sign-in to the EPIC online badge system, please visit https://secure2.comic-con.org/memberid/ and login to your Member ID account. Your correct EPIC login info will be displayed at the top of the page.

You will only be able to register up to two (2) people total during your online registration session and you must have the unique Member ID and last name for each individual. You may purchase up to four (4) single day badges (no duplicate days), while supplies last.

 

For specific rules and regulations for this resale, please visit: http://www.comic-con.org/cci/cci_reg_badge_faq.php or http://www.comic-con.org/cci/cci_reg.php

 

While Comic-Con has made every effort to make the badge purchase experience fair for everyone, it is possible that problems outside of our control could result in the system not working as planned. The possibility exists that anti-virus, anti-spyware, and anti-malware software may aggressively block browser cookies, JavaScript, or other operation of modern web applications. It is also possible that user error, specific hardware problems, local ISP issues, or simply the extremely high level of demand beyond our control may result in your computer and/or browser not behaving as described above. While Comic-Con has done extensive testing, we make no guarantees that your efforts will result in a successful badge purchase regardless of when you enter the process.

 

 

** This  pertains to Comic-Con 2012 attendee badge purchases only. If you do not intend on purchasing a badge during online resales, please disregard this message. This message is not related to Professional, Volunteer, Exhibitor, Press, or Program Participant Registration. For all other inquiries regarding the registration departments above, please visit www.comic-con.org**

 

 

We are coming back!

After some time away from podcasting, I believe it is time to restart the SHOW that talked about all things geek.  Losing my father in 2011 put a damper on things in wanting to do shows, but instead of putting the show away, I want to honor my Dad by restarting the show and giving props to my GEEK parents and returning to one of the things I love!

  There will be some of the old cast, and there will be new faces.  I will be hitting up different conventions and giving you the lowdown on them.  I will post pictures as fast as i can, and with Comic-Con coming back in July, I will try to give you a insider's inside view of the show complete with surprises and special guests!  I have missed doing this and wanna get back in the groove.  If there is anything you want us to talk about or see, we will tr and get it for you.

GEEK OUT!

"Big Mike Vs. The Con" Mark Christopher Lawrence Hosts Comedy Nights at San Diego Comic Con

#SDCC Peeps if your your looking for a good laugh at Con. Maybe need an actual DATE type moment then check out this show were working on with BIG MIKE. I'll be blogging a little this week as our fearless leader and team members are making sure that the GEEK World as we know it stands tall.

Peace, 

David Kamatoy

Lamb's Players Theatre Presents "Big Mike vs The Con
NBC Co-Star of Chuck Hosts Comedy Extravaganzas

San Diego, CA - Lamb's Players Theatre, in conjunction with Prayer Dudz, presents Mark Christopher Lawrence of NBC's hit series Chuck in a two-night comedy extravaganza, "Big Mike vs The Con" at the Horton Grand Theater on July 21 and 22. Mark is joined on Thursday night for a family-oriented "clean comedy" show with comics Jimmy Burns, Lester Barrie, and Scott Wood and guest musician K.C. Murdock. Friday night's show is an edgier, more adult-oriented evening with Chuck co-star Scott Krinsky and comics Chris Clobber and Vicki Barbolak and musical guest Josh Damigo. The two nights are a counterpoint to the wildly successful Comic-Con which runs Thursday through Sunday.

Thursday, July 21
Mark Christopher Lawrence is joined onstage by Jimmy Burns, known as "The Teacher Comedian," "Mister Punchline" Scott Wood, and Gospel comedian Lester Barrie. Jimmy Burns has toured with George Lopez, Arsenio Hall, Brad Garrett, and the late Richard Jeni. Jimmy has also co-hosted "Live from Here with James P. Connolly" on the National Lampoon Comedy Radio Network. Scott Wood has performed at such venues as The Ice House, The Comedy Store, and The Laugh Factory, and was named Stand Up Comedy Champion at the Improv Comedy Club in 2010. Lester Barrie has been the opening act for Ray Charles and been a co-headliner with Mike Epps, Jonnie Witherspoon, and Bruce Bruce. Musical guest K.C. Murdock opens the night with his mix of classic and alternative rock and blues.

Friday, July 22
Mark and his co-star from Chuck, Scott Krinsky, are joined by talented comics Chris Clobber and Vicki Barbolack for a night of edgy and adult-oriented humor. Besides his role as Jeff Barnes on Chuck, Scott Krinsky regularly performs at the Comedy Store and Improv in Los Angeles. Chris Clobber is the co-producer of BrewHaHa comedy and has written for major Las Vegas and Hollywood performers. Named Nikelodeon's "America's Funniest Mom" and "California's Funniest Female," Vicki Barbolak has worked with the likes of Pauley Shore, Rhonda Shear, and Roseanne Barr during her years on stage.. Friday's musical guest Josh Damigo was the 2010 winner in the San Diego Music Awards "Best Acoustic" category and the 2009 "Best Local Recording Artist."

We extend a special invitation for the media to attend and review the "Big Mike vs The Con" show on Thursday, July 21, or on Friday, July 22, for a fun filled night celebrating Comic Con in San Diego. For tickets call 619-437-6000. To learn more about Big Mike vs The Con comedy show visit Lamb's Players Theatre at http://www.lambsplayers.org. For media inquiries or to schedule and interview with Mark Christopher Lawrence, call David Kamatoy/Kamatoy Media Group at 619-940-5648.

Comic-Con 2011 Attendee Registration will open at 9am PT on Saturday, February 5

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Comic-Con International will open up registration Feb. 5 after having to close down the sales operation twice because of computer glitches.

Comic-Con spokesman David Glanzer said he can offer no more details about the online sale other than that registration will start at 9 a.m. Pacific Time. The convention will have more information on its website closer to Feb. 5 on how to purchase single-day and four-day badges.

In December, Comic-Con launched a test sale limited to 1,000 passes to determine whether it would be able to accommodate the tens of thousands of people who normally want to buy passes without overloading computer servers.

Deluged with a huge volume of aspiring purchasers, Comic-Con’s online system was able to process the sale of the 1,000 passes within 15 minutes, Glanzer said at the time.

Comic-Con tried twice in November to sell single-day and four-day passes to its pop culture extravaganza, but each time, the sale had to be halted after servers were overloaded, and purchasers were greeted with error messages.

Comic-Con has chosen to partner with TicketLeap for the initial ticketing aspect of registration. TicketLeap is powered by Amazon web services, which provides TicketLeap with access to Amazon’s servers and network so they can bring the flexibility required to create a system that matches the needs of the event. Additionally, when researching ticket sellers to partner with, the ticket fee pricing structure became an important issue. TicketLeap is again at the top of the list because they are able to keep costs reasonable for the buyer; they offer a flat $2.00 service charge per ticket.

It is this combination of the ability to adapt to the size of the event while keeping fees reasonable that make TicketLeap a good match for the initial portion of the registration process.

Registration for Comic-Con is more than just managing ticket sales. With over 126,000 attendees and several different departments, ticket levels and types, the requirements for a show of it's size are daunting. Each year EPIC has been able to meet the daunting challenge for the attendees and staff.

Glanzer said, We believe that continuing our partnership with Epic Registration Services will again result in good customer service and a registration process that will continue to work on site as it has in the past. The size of our show makes it a very unique event, and EPIC has proven that they have the equipment, personnel and the experience to meet the needs of Comic-Con and our attendees.

 

 

GRT's Own Ned Cato Jr, Named Eisner Judge for 2011

 

 

GeekRoundtable's own Ned Cato Jr, has been bestowed with a great honor, being named as an Eisner judge for 2011.  The Will Eisner Comic Industry Award, commonly shortened to the Eisner Award, is a prize given for creative achievement in American comic books. It is named in honor of the pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner, who was a regular participant in the award ceremony until his death in 2005.

Each category is nominated by a five-member panel, voted on by comic-book professionals, and presented at Comic-Con International  held in San Diego, California. Jackie Estrada has been the award administrator since 1990.

The judges will meet in San Diego in late March to select the nominees that will be placed on the Eisner Awards ballot. The nominees will then be voted on by professionals in the comic book industry, and the results will be announced in a gala awards ceremony on Friday, July 22 at Comic-Con.

The other Judges are:

Karen Green

Columbia University's Graphic Novels Librarian. Karen began her library's comics and graphic novels collection in 2005. She works extensively with Columbia faculty in a wide range of disciplines to facilitate the use of comics in their courses and has curated a related exhibition, "Comics in the Curriculum." She has also spoken at several campuses around the country, as well as to librarian groups, as an advocate for comics in an academic milieu. Karen writes the "Comic Adventures in Academia" column for ComiXology.com, which examines issues in comics librarianship, and has written about comics cataloging for Publishers Weekly. She is a member of the Board of Trustees for the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art.

 

Andrew Helfer, who spent over 20 years wearing a variety of editorial hats for DC Comics, editing such titles as Justice League and Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight and writing such titles as The Shadow. He later founded the DC imprint Paradox Press, producing a series of 17 graphic nonfiction "Big Books" on topics as diverse as Urban Legends, Conspiracy Theories, and Scandals. His Paradox Mystery and Fiction imprints introduced readers to both A History of Violence and Road to Perdition, two graphic novels later adapted into successful films. His interest in manga led to encouraging DC to publish the wordless adventures of a tiny dinosaur named Gon. After leaving DC, Andrew continued producing nonfiction comics, writing and editing a series of biographies that included Malcolm X and Ronald Reagan, among others. Currently, he is working on a new fiction comics project while raising (with his beautiful wife Jaimie) their brand new (and equally beautiful) daughter Emilia.

 

 

Rich Johnson, who has been in just about all aspects of bookselling, from store manager to buyer to publisher. As the first vice president of book trade sales for DC Comics, he took the forefront in establishing graphic novels in the bookstore and library markets. Under his watch, DC Comics achieved its first New York Times Bestseller with Neil Gaiman's Sandman: Endless Nights. Most recently, Johnson served as co-founder and co-publishing director for Yen Press, a graphic novel and manga imprint for Hachette Book Group. He also co-founded Yen Plus a monthly manga anthology magazine. He currently writes a column for the comic book industry website The Beat. He is also founder of Brick Road Media, LLC, a publishing consulting and packaging firm. He is the author of the graphic memoir My Father's Eyes.

 

Chris Powell, the General Manager & CRO of Lone Star Comics/mycomicshop.com. He has been with Lone Star since 1990, holding positions ranging from sales to executive management. Chris was a founding board member of ComicsPRO, the Direct Market comic retailers' organization, serves on the board of moderators for the Game Pro Symposium and the Advisory Board for the Game Store Resource Forum, and is a past president and current board member of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

 

The Eisner Awards are presented under the auspices of Comic-Con International: San Diego, a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to creating awareness of and appreciation for comics and related popular artforms. primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contributions of comics to art and culture.

Eisner Awards administrator Jackie Estrada can be reached at Jackie@comic-con.org.

 

It's Official.........Comic-Con to Stay in San Diego.....through 2015.

For Immediate Release

SAN DIEGO -- Comic-Con International: San Diego (Comic-Con), the largest comics convention of its kind in the world, today announced it will be staying in San Diego for the foreseeable future.

San Diego Mayor Jerry Saunders announces Comic-Con is staying in San Diego, through 2015.

Comic-Con reached a self-imposed attendance limit at the San Diego Convention Center (SDCC) in 2007 and has had to cap attendance at approximately 125,000 people each year since. In looking at ways to better accommodate the growing demand from attendees and exhibitors, the nonprofit organization considered proposals for a move to larger facilities in Los Angeles or Anaheim after the expiration of its SDCC lease in 2012. This decision keeps Comic-Con in San Diego through 2015.

Comic-Con International:San Diego, Executive Director Fae Desmond

"We are grateful for the tireless efforts all three cities put into to their proposals," said David Glanzer, Comic-Con's director of marketing and public relations. "In the end, we feel this decision is the best for all those who attend Comic-Con and for the organization itself. We are happy that the community has worked with us to ensure that we remain here."

Comic-Con was first held in 1970 at the U.S. Grant Hotel, where it attracted 300 people. As the event grew, subsequent homes included the downtown El Cortez Hotel in the 1970s and the San Diego Convention and Performing Arts Center in the 1980s. Comic-Con moved to the then newly built SDCC in 1991. Comic-Con celebrated its 41st year in 2010.

The San Diego Convention Center Corporation has scheduled a press conference for Friday, October 1 at 11:45 a.m. at Lobby E of the convention center.

Eddie Ibrahim, Director of Programming, left, along with Director of PR and Marketing, center, and Comic-Con Board Member Lee Oeth, right, attend the press conference announcing Comic-Con staying in San Diego through 2015

About Comic-Con International:

Comic-Con International: San Diego (Comic-Con), the largest convention of its kind in the world, is a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to creating awareness of, and appreciation for, comics and related popular artforms, primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contribution of comics to art and culture. In addition to its San Diego convention each summer, Comic-Con organizes the San Francisco–based WonderCon each spring and Alternative Press Expo each fall. On the web: Comic-Con.org, Facebook.com/comiccon, Twitter.com/comic_con.

Sanctuary Episode, "Sleepers" Mentions...San Diego Comic Con GEEK ON

San Diego Comic Con gets a great nod from the team at Sanctuary. I won't spoil it for you just pay attention at about 4-5 min in...

This is available online at Hulu and Scfi.

Enjoy!

GeekRoundTable.com:Comic Con 40-years book release with founders of the Comic Con. Live Broadcast on Ustream.tv

Join Ned Cato Jr.,Chris and Mary Sturhan and the rest of the GeekRoundTable.com gang as they hang with the release of Comic-Con 40 years.

Comic-Con: A Different Point of View 2009 Edition

Almost everyone has an opinion on Comic-Con, and I am back this year with new deep thoughts. I like to listen to people's complaints and then listen to the answers people give them. Sometimes these answers are nice, but not the real answers, often because the real answer is too complicated. So I am going to give you, the reader, a short series of questions and real answers. Hopefully, I wrote the 6 points down in the spirit in which they were meant. Please read and really think about it.

The first one is easy!

Question #1 Has Comic-Con ever thought of doing "X" a certain way?

Answer: Yes! Comic-Con has been round for 40 years. FORTY! Many many things have been tried and were epic failures. Comic-Con staffers plan for the entire year and lots of that time goes into fixing problems. Some things just do not work out. 

The second two are related and odd

#2 Why does the Convention Center Starbucks close at 5:00?  #3 Why doesn't the Convention Center sell water in line?

Answer: Surprisingly Comic-Con has very little control over what the Convention Center does. CCI just rents the space. As near as I can tell the Convention Center does not like to make money. I know for a fact that CCI has asked the Convention Center about food & concessions and not much progress is made. Which is odd.

 The next two questions have been asked for at least the last 10 years.

#4 Why doesn't Comic-Con ticket each panel?

Answer: In the first place, making enough tickets for say Hall H would be 6,500 tickets x however many panels each day x 4 days of the con =  a whole forest of trees. I prefer my trees used for comics, not stubs. But if you insist on it, where would CCI put the separate lines for the ticket gathering? If there are 6-10 panels a day in one room there would need to be that many lines. Next off, who would redeem the tickets at the door? If there must be tickets at the door let it be for Swag that I get in the Fulfillment room later. I hope you see the bad domino effect that tickets cause.

#5 Why doesn't Comic-Con clear the room after each panel? 

Answer: Once again, where would CCI put the separate lines for each panel? If there are 6-10 panels a day in one room there would need to be that many lines. A really bad side effect of clearing rooms is that there would be less panels, a lot less panels. A small programming room would take 15 minutes to clear and 15 minutes to fill. The time needed to clear huge rooms like H or Ballroom 20 would increase exponentially. Clearing rooms will reduce overall panels by 150. Yes I said 150 less panels! I cannot possibly believe that anyone would like less great programming.

 The last question is for you to think about and possibly do some homework on.

#6 Pick a panel during the show that you thought was too crowded and choose another panel at that same time, in a larger room that could be swapped. The basic statement by many fans is that, "Panel X should have been in a bigger room". My answer is: What Room Where?  Every room was crowded everywhere most of the time, but if you can pull off a legitimate room swap I suggest you send that legitimate answer to the Programming department at Comic-Con. Otherwise be happy with what you have. The Programming department at Comic-Con gets nothing but grief from all sides. The Companies are whining, the fans are whining & sometimes even the Staff whines and they know better.

I would like to personally THANK the Programming department for attempting the impossible feat of trying to please everyone, all the time. Good Job!

Geek Out!

Mary Sturhann

Ned Cato Jr. with David Kamatoy at San Diego Comic Con 2009

David Kamatoy takes his irreverent brand of interviewing to the San Diego Comic-Con 2009 this weekend. In this first episode David visits with Producer, Writer, Actor, and Editor Jason Makiaris, whose work is featured on Channel101.com. The two discuss geeks and their shared experience in musical theater. David then speaks with Ned Cato, Jr., founder of Geek Round Table, and asks Ned if he has anything to say to the fans of the Comic-Con.  Ned’s advice: “Wear comfortable shoes.”

 

Jason Makiaris then rejoins David for a stroll through the Gaslamp District near the Convention Center where the Comic-Con is being held. In the middle of a conversation about Michael Jackson and Lou Ferrigno, a San Diego Comic-Con 2009 volunteer, "Just Boyd," joins in to discuss random topics. Finally they bump into Steve Agee, star of Comedy Central's “The Sarah Silverman Program.” What ensues is an impromptu interview on the streets of San Diego during the San Diego Comic-Con.

"This type of experience captured on tape is what the San Diego Comic-Con is all about. You will randomly bump into both fans and celebrities in the most casual ways," says Kamatoy.

During the interview, “Just Boyd” remarks that Steve Agee looks familiar, to which he replies, “I’m a gamer.” He then reveals his true stardom – being on “The Sarah Silverman Program.” Steve then goes on to talk about his amazing feat of having over 500,000 followers on Twitter.

David Kamatoy will be posting coverage from the San Diego Comic Con 2009 to his blog www.DavidKamatoy.com, as well as to social media video sites like YouTube, Viddler, MySpace, YourFINDit, and Vimeo. David plans to integrate and promote the best of the footage on his Radio Show, now streaming on Tuesdays and Thursdays on UStream.tv from 4-7 p.m. PST.

"We are developing a unique style that is being shaped by both this current technology and more traditional media forms. Our hope is that we endear ourselves a little to both the amateur and the professional, just like the Comic-Con. It makes sense that this would be a great place to go to develop content."