Brenmark's 2009 SDCC Report

[Brenmark]

Wow!! What a convention. I have been going to this convention since 1973, and this year, the 40th, was one of the best I have attended. Even though it has undergone Hollywoodzation and has been heading in that direction for several years (Chuck nailed it in his newsletter over in Comic General), it was still one hell of a lot of fun for those of us who still like comics and comic and fantasy art.

 

I left Fresno on Monday as the heat was coming down from the 112 the day before breaking a 110 year old record. For those of you who think the convention should move to Las Vegas in the summer time check out my soda can below that I had left in my truck. Fortunately, it didn’t explode all over the dash. . It simply peeled itself back with the liquid inside. You know Vegas is hotter than Fresno, and the heat is stifling.

 

 

I went down with only one focus in mind. I wanted a Virgil Finlay pen and ink. I had talked to just about everyone before the show, but there were none available so I wasn’t too optimistic that I would see one to purchase.

 

Six hours later I was at my little motel in Chula Vista. My friends kid me about my accommodations, but I only pay 285 for the week while they are paying between 250 and 300 a night. The room is clean, and I’m 15 minutes away from the center on Harbor Blvd. I save a ton of money which is put to good use buying art. The only drawback is I have to be there at the convention by 6:15 to get a parking space underneath the center itself. So I generally have breakfast at the buffet at the Mariott and wait for the doors to open. I go early in the week so I can get rested and visit with friends I know in San Diego.

 

Here are a few pre set-up pictures.

 

 

 

 

Here are some of the art and comic dealer booths.

 

Bechara

 

 

 

Mike and Scotty

 

Jerry Vanderstelt

 

Matt Busch

 

Kookie

 

 

Ron and Jean from Redbeards

 

Sal from Amazing Adventures

 

Hans Booth (Tri-State)

 

Early Superman from Brian's booth (Neat Stuff Collectibles)

 

Monte Moore

Monte Moore's Ironman

 

Scott Eder

 

 

Here are a few highlights of my convention experience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Donato

 

 

 

 

I found no Finlay on preview night so I stopped by Jason Shawn Alexander’s booth to look at his latest work. Last year I met him on the last day so I was pretty much broke by the time I saw the Abe Sapien pages. This year I saw him early and purchased a page from Dead Irons with both a vampire and werewolves. His work is incredible, and my scan does not do it justice.

 

 

Jason Shawn Alexander

 

On Thursday I found some Finlays and bought one. It didn’t have the girl I wanted, but I liked it, and it will do for a starter.

 

 

 

Thursday afternoon all my panels were conflicting so I jumped between the Silver Age panel with Russ Heath, Jerry Robinson, Ramona Fradon, Jack Katz, Gene Colon, Murphy Anderson, and Leonard Starr and the Charles Vess/ Jill Thompson art lesson. The Silver Age panel was a wonderful mix of anecdotes and fascinating history. Everyone rushed Murphy Anderson at the end to get things signed, but I wanted to talk with Leonard Starr and have him sign the Superman 400 plate he did for the portfolio. I can’t remember the last time Starr was at the convention, but it must have been about 20 years. With his signature I’m down to the last five plates for signatures, and although I will probably never get a Ditko, I’m pretty sure I will see the others for their signatures. A lot of people bought the 40th anniversary SDCC book and were getting it signed. It’s a very nice history of the convention.

 

Russ Heath and Jerry Robinson

 

Gene Colon

 

 

Ramona Fradon

 

Murphy Anderson

 

 

Jack Katz and Murphy

 

 

The Charles Vess/ Jill Thompson art lesson was very interesting. Charles drew out a dragon on a cliff and talked about this technique. He didn’t have time to get it colored as his time was up, but I think he was coloring it for the CBLDF auction on Saturday night. I missed Jill’s lesson as the panel time conflicted with the Silver Age panel. I brought a page from Morgan’s Tale for Charles to sign and gave him a gift I brought of a Vess Cola bottle I found in an antique store. He got a kick out of it, and I took a picture:

 

 

 

I really wanted to see Stan Freberg. I have been a fan of his comedy records since the 50s, and he didn’t disappoint. He told some wonderful stories of how he just walked in an agent’s office, told them he did voices, and was sent to Warner Brothers where he got a job. I think he was like 18 or 19 years old at the time. His lovely wife Hunter contributed some very funny stories as well, and the hall was packed. I knew Mark Evanier was friends with him so I knew it was only a matter of time before he got him to the convention. The only trouble was they only gave him an hour to talk, and I think he could have talked for 2 or 3 hours. Later I saw him at his booth and got this signed.

 

 

Thursday night a few of the Big Five DC War guys (Peter, Mick, and Henry) and others I didn’t know went to Little Italy for some pizza, beer, and pasta to celebrate Sgt. Rock’s 50th anniversary. Why DC didn’t have a celebration at the con I don’t know. Russ Heath joined us, and he was a crack-up. He is a master of the one-liner and had us laughing all through dinner. It was a fun night for all. Later I took him back to his hotel and then headed back down to Chula Vista. Russ had some wonderful recreations at his table during the con, and I noticed a jump in prices on his vintage 2x pages that I saw on various dealer tables. I have no pictures as my camera's battery gave out for the night.

 

 

Friday I decided I wanted some pages from Gary Gianni’s “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.” It easy to see that this was a labor of love for Gary. He did it several years ago and published a print run originally in black and white. It’s been republished in color with a new story in the back. I spent half an hour looking at two pages, and I couldn’t make up my mind so I said the hell with it, I’ll buy both of them, and I’m glad I did. I’m a big admirer of the work of Franklin Booth and Joseph Clement Coll, and Gary’s work is right up there with those two masters of pen and ink.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I like superheroe art as well, but I’ve been priced out of that market for some time especially where Wrightson, Ditko and Kirby are concerned. I am so out of the loop pricewise that when I saw Barry Smith’s Conan #10 cover at Albert’s booth I was thinking it was probably 30K. Boy, was I wrong!! It was 55K. I also saw a nice Conan splash at another booth for 24K with an interior for 9.

 

 

 

I have been drifting into fantasy and illustrative art for quite a while. When I look at Gianni, Foster, Smith, Vess, Donato, Guay, Vanderstelt, and others it takes me back to a time of ageless beauty and romance.

 

Saturday I spent taking pictures and talking with my friends who are dealers or collectors. I spent some time with Gary Lockwood talking about 2001 and his snooker games with Kubrick at his place. We also traveled to a lot of the same places in Peru so we had something in common to talk about. He’s a great story teller.

 

 

 

It was good to see Gary and Mee Yun Montalbano.and baby Logan. They are some of the nicest people at the convention that I know, and have been there selling posters of Gary’s work for many years. Gary’s artwork is incredible. If you missed his table, you missed an opportunity to see some beautiful oils.

 

 

 

Tom Yeates was there, and the new John Carter book with his spectacular illustrations will be out soon. I think my next sketch from Tom will be Flash Gordon. I saw him working on one for someone else, and it was sweet.

 

 

On Sunday I spent the last of my budget and bought a Reed Crandall I was looking at a few days earlier. It was from “The Time Machine, “ but I don’t know where it was published. If anyone on the board knows, please let me know. I liked the cat creatures.

 

 

Well... I’ve rambled on enough so will close out on what was a very enjoyable convention for me. Here are a few of the costumed people walking around on the floor and some of my favorite pieces of art at this show. Enjoy.

 

Hot Gibson by Janesko

 

 

Flash Gordon at Joe and Nadia's booth

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AND

 

the best Superman model I've ever seen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[thehumantorch]

What a great report. Best I've read.

[bocaratondefense]

What a great report. Thanks for the recap and all the great photos.

[invisibleghosts]

Fantastic report and great pictures!

 

Thank-you so much for sharing! (thumbs u

[tth2]

Great pics and narratives! (thumbs u

[BrianHoward]

Great report Mark!

 

It was excellent hanging out with you again. Congrats on your acquisitions, that Finlay is awesome. I hope you had a chance to check out the Hob Nob..

 

See ya next year!

[thecollectron]

Nice pictures, and congrats on the Finlay acquisition!

[comicartcom]

Hey Mark.. you're one of the guys that I miss seeing as I haven't been there for the last 3 years.

 

I tyhought it was very funny seeing you under the MGM sign.. classic

 

Rich

[cujobyte]

What a great report. Best I've read.

 

Ditto!! Thanks!!

[Brenmark]

 

 

Thanks for the kind words. Despite the crowding, this con was just plain fun.

 

By the way, if you have read this far, there is no need to look at Part II of the report. When I posted the first part, my computer showed a black screen where there were many photos missing so I created a Part II. Then a fellow board member told me all my pictures were present, but I couldn't delete the second post because it had already had a comment. I don't know what happened to my computer. It still shows black where the photos should be.

 

See you guys at WonderCon in the spring.