Our Resident Commercial Printing Expert Bryan Juergensen and Ernie Hudson of Ghostbusters/The Crow/Oz Fame at Awesome Con 2013 Washington, D.C.
Last weekend (April
20-21, 2013) I attended the 1st
Awesome Con, a comic book/pop culture
convention, in Washington D.C. While
there I had a chance to interview the event coordinator Ben Penrod and writer/artist Dan
Nokes. Before we get to the interviews and as this is primarily a history
oriented comic blog, let us delve (ever so shallowly) into the history of
comic-fandom and comic conventions.
One of the guiding
hands behind modern day comic-fandom as we know it was a man named Jerry Bails who along with Shel Dorf (founder of the San Diego
Comic Con) took over a small comic oriented convention in 1964 in Detroit. They
re-christened the event as the Detroit
Triple-Fan Fair (comics, movies and science fiction literature), and it ran
from 1965-1978. Jerry Bails was serious about comics, not just as
entertainment, but as a subject worthy of academic exploration. Mr. Bails also founded a tiny little fan
magazine (or fanzine if you prefer) called Alter
Ego. The magazine (which continues today) was eventually taken over by a fellow
named Roy Thomas.
Some of you might say
wait…I know that name!! Well you damned well should (insert smiley face here)
Roy Thomas was the man who took Robert E.
Howard’s pulp hero Conan The
Barbarian and made the character and the “sword and sorcery” genre a
mainstay of the Marvel Comics lineup during the Bronze Age (1970-1979.) Alter
Ego magazine is a storehouse of information for comic lovers and if you enjoy
comic history, I highly recommend you check it out.
So…back to the
conventions. The San Diego Comic Con is easily the most well-known, but nearly
every major city (and many small ones) have had long running comic conventions
as well…except for D.C. Past conventions have been outside the city in Maryland
or Virginia, Awesome Con (to the best of this writers knowledge) is the first
in at least a decade to actually take place within the confines of the city.
Interview:
Ben Penrod, Event Coordinator, Awesome Conventions LLC
Sounds Better: Why did
you choose D.C. as your sight for this convention? Why not outside the city as
others have done before?
Ben Penrod: This is an
underserved comic community, and we wanted to bring it here for just that
reason.
SB: You started this
with Third Eye Comics in Annapolis,
Md. Correct?
BP: Yes, this, the
Annapolis Comic Con and Southern Maryland Comic Con, are all done with Third
Eye Comics. Steve Anderson (of Third Eye Comics) and I started this in 2009
with the Annapolis Con.
SB: This is a first
year Con, how many vendors/exhibitors were you able to bring in?
BP: We have around 120
vendors including our guests. We could have easily added more, as we sold out
well before we even announced the Con.[1]
SB: That is impressive!
What I have been hearing from those in attendance: safe, clean, well-organized
and inexpensive. Your take?
BP: Really? That is
great to hear! As far as we are concerned this went better than expected, and
with a great turnout!
SB: This will be an
ongoing event, when will next year’s Con be taking place?
BP: April 19-20, 2014,
and will be right here at the Washington Convention Center.
SB: Thank you Ben! So
mark your calendars boys and girls, and support your local Con(s), your
participation is what keeps these events coming back!
The Lads and Lasses of Awesome Con
Interview:
Dan Nokes, Writer/Artist, Owner 21st Century Sandshark Studios
Dan Nokes
Dan Nokes is the
Creative Director behind 21st Century Sandshark Studios and
author/illustrator of numerous creator owned comic titles.
Sounds Better: Dan,
welcome and thank you for taking the time to talk to us.
Dan Nokes: Thank you
for having me.
SB: Can you tell us a
little about yourself, and your work?
DN: I am an indie comic
creator/artist and writer from Maryland.
SB: What are some of
the projects you have worked on?
DN: Self-published works
include The Reptile and Mr. Amazing (2002),
The Paranormals a 12 issue
maxi-series (2003), The Pistoleers a
western comic (2008) and most recently Adam
and Eve Bizarre Love Triangle In the Zombie Apocalypse (now available in omnibus
trade paperback.)
SB: Any other projects
you’ve been working on?
DN: Yes, two web comics.
Both of which can be found on my website: www.21sandshark.com
SB: How long have you
been at this as an independent, and are you able to make a living?
DN: I started in my
teen and early 20’s by sending out work to the big companies and never got a
response. I decided this is what I want to do, and that my work was worth
seeing, so I started doing it on my own. I’ve done this part time for 11 years
and the last two years it has become my full time job. So far I have been able
to support myself, and I hope that continues!
SB: As do we, many of
those well-known names in comics were once, independent artists as well. You
mentioned your web comic projects, please tell us more.
DN: The first is a
comic entitled Impossible Space Tales of
the Last Pit Stop, the idea here is what if Area 51 was a convenience store
for aliens. Sort of a Men in Black
meets Clerks. The second is The Reptile and Mr. Amazing; The Return of
Kat Carson, the basic premise for this story, if you think of guys like Captain America who got their powers
from a Super Soldier Serum or Nick Fury and the Infinity Formula, these are drugs that were tested on human beings.
In this story our drug was first tested, back in the 1940’s, on your common
house cat, who then gains sentience and super strength. The Kat Carson story, a
joint project was penned by myself and drawn by my brother Will.
SB: And both of these
are available on your website?
DN: Yes they are.
SB: Dan again, thanks
for taking the time to share your work with us.
DN: It’s been my
pleasure.
While people like Jerry
Bails may have been the spark behind organized fandom, it is in fact you and I,
and the many comic readers who came before us that love, appreciate and keep
the art form alive. As an outlet, comic-cons are by their nature for the fans,
and in turn they give artists a place to gain an audience and exposure. So with that, I hope you can make your way to
an event, and join in the fun near you. Next time on the Bubble, we will sit
down with PLB Comics for an inside
look at the start to finish process, and support of an independent comic. Until
then kids, keep ‘em bagged and boarded!
[1] Media
Guests for the 1st Awesome Con included: Ernie Hudson of Ghost
Busters fame, Nicholas Brendon from Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Billy West and
Phil LaMarr of Futurama and Theodus Crane, former cast member of The Walking
Dead. Please refer to website for list of Comic Guests and exhibitors: http://awesomecondc.com/
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