Comic Book Conventions

Definition

A comic book convention is an organized and publicized gathering that attracts people who desire to interact with others who share an interest in comic books and associated popular culture.

Introduction

Comic book conventions may occupy a single hotel meeting room or fill an entire convention center. They may attract a few dozen people for a single afternoon or hundreds of thousands for a week. They may be called “comic con,” “comicon,” or some variation thereof and can be referenced colloquially as “con” and, sometimes, “show.” There are, in essence, a whole host of events labeled as comic book conventions by those who create them, and a whole host of activities may be associated with each.

Nonetheless, there are some features that cons seem to hold in common. They are typically open to the public and actively solicit attendance, for which there is most often an admission fee. Most established cons are held on an annual basis. Though many cons have comic books as the central focus, there has always been overlap with other forms of popular culture, especially science fiction. The overlap with other forms of media has become increasingly visible, in no small part the result of the crossover appeal that has come with increased licensing of comic book properties into other media. Most readers of comic books are also consumers of other forms of entertainment, such as television, movies, and video games, and cons have expanded to incorporate features addressing these interests.

While regard for the medium and its talented contributors remains a key motivator behind the support of comic book conventions, cons are also commerce sites. Like comics specialty shops, they provide social support for those attracted to the medium and serve as sites for sales and the promotion of the industry. While most conventions continue to be grassroots initiatives, the efforts of franchisers, such as Fan Expo, to acquire, rename, and market conventions strategically reminds observers that these events are potentially lucrative attractions.

A Brief History of Comic Book Conventions

In the early 1960s, comic book fans became increasingly successful in networking with one another thanks in part to editors, such as Julie Schwartz at DC Comics and Stan Lee at Marvel Comics, who published the addresses of fans to their letters pages. Initially, these fans circulated self-published magazines, or fanzines, among their virtual community, but many longed for face-to-face interaction with their fellow comics fans. Science fiction enthusiasts had been holding conventions of their own since 1939. However, not until March 1964 did a group of comics fans get together for a coordinated event: Jerry Bails, a college professor in Michigan often credited as the “father of comics fandom,” organized and hosted a score of his fellow comics fans for a weekend. In May, another event was held in Chicago, and later that month, teenagers Dave Szurke and Bob Brosch successfully organized what is considered the first formal comic book convention at the Hotel Tuller in Detroit. Later that summer, the inaugural New York Comic Con hosted the first professional guests at a convention.

In the following year, conventions began to pop up in cities nationwide. While these events proliferated, few continued for many consecutive years, as they were largely dependent on the organizers’ interest, energy, and financial stability. These were almost all grassroots rather than corporate initiatives. Marvel Comics tried hosting conventions in the mid-1970s but ceased after only a few years. Conventions would have to grow significantly before corporations would take an interest in managing them.

The longest continually running and best attended comic book convention in the United States is Comic-Con International: San Diego (CCI). Founded in 1970 as the Golden State Comic-Con, CCI has become a popular culture phenomenon, drawing over 150,000 attendees in 2023 and overflowing the spacious San Diego Convention Center each summer. Part of CCI’s rapid expansion in the early twenty-first century has been its proximity to and favor with Hollywood, which has taken to CCI as a means to test market and promote many of its forthcoming blockbuster projects. At the 2024 event, Marvel favorite Robert Dowey, Jr. was announced as the character of Doctor Doom for the Avengers series, causing a massive uproar throughout the convention. This was just one of several announcements made at the 2024 convention. 

Participants

Several different kinds of people are involved in a comic book convention. Organizers are the most essential for holding a convention. They help coordinate and promote the event. Organizers are often enthusiasts, but they stage conventions for an even wider audience. That audience is composed of fellow fans who want to be involved in a dialogue about comics and associated cultures. Some fans express their status in visually distinct ways, such as dressing in costume for the convention, an activity known in some circles as “cosplay.”

Perhaps the most enticing draw for fans is the presence of comic book professionals, typically referred to as “pros,” and other celebrities who are convention guests. The guest list (and the implied opportunity to meet these famous figures) is highly touted in convention promotions. The pros may agree to sign autographs, give presentations, or appear in other venues throughout the convention. Their ranks include comic book professionals such as Batman writer Grant Morrison and Hollywood actors such as Iron Man star Robert Downey, Jr. at the 2024 San Diego Comic-Con, Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds made an appearance to host a special showing of their film Deadpool & Wolverine (2024). A notable number of celebrities from older television shows and films are often found signing autographs at conventions. For example, Lou Ferrigno, a 1970s Incredible Hulk television series star, is a familiar fixture on the convention circuit.

Programming

Most of the activity at comic book conventions takes place in the exhibit hall (also known as the dealer’s room), where fans and vendors gather to buy and sell comic books (new and old), graphic novels, trade paperbacks, art, action figures, T-shirts, and every conceivable product associated with the industry. Vendors are assigned to “tables” or “booths,” designated areas where they display their merchandise and conduct business with potential buyers. Many comics vendors are proprietors of their own comic book specialty stores, and most of their marketing efforts are unsophisticated. Many erect backdrops with their most valuable items (back issues, for example) and display additional items on a table in front of them (long boxes of comics, for example).

Comic book conventions also typically provide some forum for interaction between fans and pros, such as autographing sessions. Sometimes, multiple guests will be arranged in a row, or “artists’ alley,” in a distinct section or room of the convention space apart from the vendors. The degree and amount of formality associated with this interaction seems inversely related to both the size of the convention and the star power of the pro; that is, obtaining an autograph from Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee, for example, at CCI is more difficult to accomplish than having a conversation with a writer of independent comics at a regional convention.

Formal presentations are also frequent convention activities. They usually take place in a space other than the exhibit hall and can feature any combination of pros and fans speaking on a number of industry-related topics. Such presentations include, but are not limited to, new project announcements, interviews, and fan-led discussions of comics' content. These presentations are scheduled in advance and are typically promoted in some public manner, such as being previewed in a convention program or announced over a public address system.

Other activities that might take place at a convention include social gatherings such as after-hours parties, costume contests, charity auctions, and awards ceremonies recognizing those in the industry. At some conventions, academics even give conference-style research presentations (for example, the Comics Arts Conference). The variety of activities made available to attendees results from some combination of the convention’s size, longevity, fiscal strength, and the imagination and initiative of its organizers.

Impact

Although quantifying the impact of conventions on the production of graphic novels is difficult, numerous creator-told anecdotes indicate that the gatherings have influenced the creative directions of many careers and shaped some of the art form’s most memorable works. Pros have recounted how successful collaborations have emerged after meeting a colleague at a convention. Indeed, because so much of the work of comics creation is done in geographic isolation, conventions provide some of the rare opportunities for pros to meet in person.

The conventions have also contributed to growing awareness about graphic novels in the wider culture. With mainstream media increasingly providing coverage beyond treating conventions as havens for social misfits, the events help raise the profile of comics as a legitimate medium for expressing ideas.

The most enduring impact of conventions, however, is likely the sense of community they have fostered among fans and between fans and professionals. Because of the open and often cordial interactions between fans and pros, the comics industry demonstrates a level of interactivity that is atypical in other mass media, where fans rarely gain audiences with their favorite creative personalities, much less influence the direction of their work, as comics fans have done.

Bibliography

Arrant, Chris. “Wizard World Closes its Convention Business, Selling all Cons off to Fan Expo.” Games Radar, 10 Aug. 2021, www.gamesradar.com/wizard-world-closes-its-convention-business-selling-all-cons-off-to-fan-expo. Accessed 3 Aug. 2024.

Comic-Con: Forty Years of Artists, Writers, Fans, and Friends. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2009.

Jackson, Angelique. “Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman Crash Comic-Con’s Hall H with All the Cameo Stars from ‘Deadpool & Wolverine.’” Variety, 25 July 2024, variety.com/2024/film/news/deadpool-wolverine-ryan-reynolds-hugh-jackman-surprise-comic-con-1236085835. Accessed 3 Aug. 2024.

MacDonald, Heidie. “San Diego Comic-Con 2024: Amid Industry Changes, the Con Lights Up the Skies.” Publishers Weekly, 30 July 2024, www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/comics/article/95607-san-diego-comic-con-2024-amid-industry-changes-the-con-lights-up-the-skies.html. Accessed 3 Aug. 2024.

Pustz, Matthew J. Comic Book Culture: Fanboys and True Believers. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1999.

Schelly, Bill. The Golden Age of Comic Fandom. Seattle: Hamster Press, 1999.