Old Comic Shows - Before the Days of the Mega Conventions

[rjpb]

When I used to go to cons it was to find books and nothing more, I wasn't interested in panels, signings, promotional booths, etc, and I didn't go to meet other collectors, although I'd do a bit of socializing with dealers and collectors with similar tastes I'd meet by chance. The ability to buy stuff from dealer catalogs, ebay and later, the boards gave me enough of a fix that I stopped going to cons around 1996. When I first started going to cons in the late eighties for the first time since the seventies as a kid, I went to the LA Comic Book and Sci-Fi Convention pretty regularly, but after a while the stock gets pretty stale at these smaller shows with the same dealers showing up all the time.

 

I enjoyed SDCC in the early 90s as I could drive there and back in the same day and even found cheap parking. The money for gas and admission as well as waiting in line for an hour was still a reasonable price to pay for the huge inventory available, and deals could still be had.

 

The older I get, the less fond of crowds I become, so while I enjoy the photo heavy con reports here on the boards, I don't have much desire to go to SD again. It would probably take a free ticket and hotel room.

[webeloobie]

In the early 80s the Jubilee (Diamond?) shows in the DC area were great. Usually in a HoJos or some hotel like that it was just massive amounts of comics. Period. Later (still in the 80s) the shows started to blend. Trekkers and comic geeks cohabitated. Looking up from your spot on the floor, digging through a box of X-Men, you could see Scottie or Checkov walk by. Then you'd bury yourself back in the comic box. Fond memories.

[anstettoman]

1974 was my first comic con i attended in buffalo NY it was $5 to get in and it was a Phil Seuling (not sure of the spelling of his last name) show. I was 17 years old and took a bus to get to the statler hotel in downtown buffalo from alden NY. tables and tables of books, remember 2 things vividly a stack of creepy #1 mags on a table. and a dealer who handed me 5 copies of Amazing fantasy 15 prices at this time for the amazing fantasies were $100- $150. I don't believe many of the books were bagged/borded. Unfortunately since i had about $20 with me to spend at the time dont remember purchasing any books there. It still was a nice way to spend some time with my best friend at the time in the big city.

[HouseofComics.Com]

Good thread. I like both types of shows but have to say that the big ones are becoming less and less comics, especially the Wizard ones. I was very disappointed at the recent Wizard Sacramento show to find six dealers with vintage comics (and three of those were really 50/50 vintage and modern). I went there to buy and it was hard finding things. It's just too hard to justify the effort setting up when all the t-shirt vendors etc. have driven up the costs of the booths.

 

The small shows seem to be making a strong comeback. We just had a new one and it was packed. Other local shows have just expanded to two-day affairs from one due to demand. But as has been mentioned, you won't necessarily have small shows everywhere like it used to be. In the 80s there would be a nice circuit for me with two South Bend shows a year, two in Grand Rapids, one every three weeks in the Detroit suburbs, with plenty in Chicago too. Berkeley had shows in the 80s and 90s, nothing since.

 

I'm kind of jealous of places like Detroit and Philadelphia that still have regular one-day shows as we don't have that despite being a giant media market here. But this stuff is definitely on the upswing so I hope someone can step up and put on more things here. I'd definitely assist.

 

 

[jessebrook1]

This is exactly the type of show i am doing in Douglasville(about 20 min outside of Atlanta), Ga. A real old school show with great dealers. Check it out if you are in Georgia, Alabama or any of the surrounding areas. Check out our Facebook and our website.

 

https://www.facebook.com/events/439676772834559/?ref_dashboard_filter=upcoming

 

http://nwgccshow.weebly.com/

[Hamlet]

There are still little local conventions. Here is a link to a bunch in the Midwest--

 

http://www.epguides.com/comics/schedule.shtml

 

I go to the one in Moundsview MN whenever I am able to. It's free to get in and is held in a hotel conference room. The last time I asked one of the dealers, I think the tables were $20-$30 each.

 

I take my nephew and he buys all the books he can carry out of the bargain boxes.

 

The main problem with the convention is that you see mostly the same comics as the last time you were there. The local dealers don't bring enough fresh inventory to really make going every time worthwhile to me.

 

It is still a fun little convention though.

 

 

[FlyingDonut]

The answer to this thread is "Baltimore".

[webeloobie]

The answer to this thread is "Baltimore".

 

+1

[batman_fan]

The answer to this thread is "Baltimore".

 

followed quickly by "blue crab"

[namisgr]

I also like Baltimore for being a high quality pure comic show, but nothing can recapture the days of the old shows when comic creators would autograph books free of charge, and for the joy of having their work recognized and appreciated by the fans.

[g-man]

I attended and set up a few times at the shows at the old 57 Park Plaza in Boston...mid to late 80s into the 90s. Early on it was pretty good. My 1st show attending was Teddy Van Liew's 1st show setting up. I made a few deals w him that day and still have one of the books. Went down hill a bit when Monkey Business or some such name took over. Guy who ran it was a bit out there.

[Rekani]

I attended and set up a few times at the shows at the old 57 Park Plaza in Boston...mid to late 80s into the 90s. Early on it was pretty good. My 1st show attending was Teddy Van Liew's 1st show setting up. I made a few deals w him that day and still have one of the books. Went down hill a bit when Monkey Business or some such name took over. Guy who ran it was a bit out there.

 

Wow, I was reading through this thread and thinking about those shows and how much fun I had at them as a kid. I probably went when I was around 12-14 (87-89), my mom would take me and walk around with me all day (she was quite patient haha).

 

I remember buying my copy of IH 181 at one of those shows, the coupon was cut out but I was just stoked to be getting a first appearance on my want list back then. I think I paid around $20 for it back then, it was late in the day and the guy was selling his wall books for half off.

 

I made a dumb move and sold it about 12 years ago, I still need to find another one

[Dale Roberts]

I was just about to start a thread asking if we, comic fans, are victims of our own success.

 

I just got in from Planet Comicon last night and having rested a bit, was mulling the whole experience over. I have to say, it was not a good one.

 

For the show itself, I am not impressed. I had to pay $45 to get $10 worth of comic show. I heard this show being compared to Wizard shows and if that is truly the case, then the whole convention scene is doomed. However, if you like steampunk, toys, costuming supplies, fantasy artists, t-shirts, or artists who are really good at pinups but can't tell a story then this show is for you.

 

NONE of the typical good dealers in older books were there. Dale Roberts, Harley Yee, Motor CIty Comics, and Graham Crackers were AWOL. For the first time I can remember, I never once saw Chuck roaming around. I guess the word is out that this isn't a comic show anymore. Warp 9 was there but for the first time I can remember, I didn't get anything from them. I don't know if that is an indictment of their selection or my lack of knowledge on what new booksto look for.

 

I acted as a CAW too, and that took so much time that I think I missed pretty much everything I had any interest in. I tried to remember who I wanted to go back and see, but my damaged brain didn't remember any of them until about 0700 this morning. That would be fine but I am home now, 4 hours away from the show.

 

On a lighter note, I did get to spend some time with Neal Adams without a gaggle of fans or his wife around. I got a sweet companion piece to my Green Arrow sketch from last year as well as a really nice Deadman sketch. I also enjoyed spending time with Tony Moore and Skottie Young, but those were cut short before I could make any purchases. I sincerely hope to catch them at another show someday. JJ had a nice booth and I'll have to hit him up to see if any of the interesting pieces are still available once he gets home, I just wanted out of the show too bad to think straight. Matt Kindt, Brian Hurtt, and Cullen Bunn were fun to talk to, as always, but I forgot to go back and get a page from Mr. Kindt. I hate to say it, but when we left Saturday at 3-ish, I didn't want anything but that convention center shrinking in my rearview mirror.

 

It was cool that I had a friend of mine come with me that has not been to a show in 20+ years. He has a passing interest in comics at best, but enjoys the spectacle of it all. He commented on how different it was from what he remembered. He said that he didn't remember so many elaborate costumes. He thought that in the past, it seemed more like people wanted to dress like their heroes than to get any real attention. He also thought it was weird that a "comicon" had so few comics available in it and that so much of the stuff for sale was less comic than geek culture. I mention his opinions both because he is out of the loop and his opinions are mine as well. I was just concerned because I am on the inside of comics all the time and maybe I remember the "good ole days" as being brighter than they really were.

 

To those of you from the boards, it was nice to meet you! Don't take any of this as a reflection of you, it is the show itself that I am critical of as well as the type of fans that type of show is bringing in. It feels like comic fans wanted a wider acceptance and now that others are seeking the same, we want to retract back into out holes and revel in our outsider status. I don't think that we are more widely accepted now so much as it is that others are just glomming on and making us feel alienated in what was our own world for so many years.

 

Sounds a lot like the Indiana Comic Con that I just left.

 

There was a tremendous crowd. If I had to guess, over 3000 on Friday, well over 10,000 on Saturday, and probably 5 or 6000.00 today. Hundreds and hundreds of kids in costume. Thousands of people with absolutely no interest in buying anything.

 

The comic con of today is what the mall was to kids in the 1980s. They just go there to hang out all day. They want to see their friends, want to see all the stuff, but are not there to contribute to the hobby in any way. They make the show promoters money, and no one else.

 

I would much rather go to a show with 2000 comic collectors than 20,000 people with no money and no interest in comics of any kind.

 

 

[RCheli]

About ten years ago I put on three shows in downtown Chicago in hopes of bringing back the good ol' days. Just a few artists, but I wanted to load it up with comic book dealers. No toys or bootleg DVDs or whatever. Just comics.

 

And you know what? Nobody came.

 

Now this was before social media kicked in, but I put out fliers and had a website and sent out e-mails and press releases, and in a city the size of Chicago, I got around 300 people each time.

 

Heck, I offered FREE PARKING and still couldn't get people there. It was really discouraging, not only financially (it took me a couple of years to pay off the losses) but emotionally. I had a lot of people tell me how much they appreciated what I was doing and most dealers made money, but I sure as hell didn't.

 

Especially in bigger cities, small-time shows are tough.

[fastballspecial]

We are victims of our own success. The promoters as Dale said make all the money. I cant imagine being a dealer at these shows now or even which ones to go to that you think will be good for your business.

 

The convention crowd has evolved. That's not necessarily a bad thing as I see new collectors in the market and a nice growth in women collectors for once. Its much more a fashion show then it was in the past. While I admire some of the cos-players creativity and ingenuity its pretty much lost on me.

 

I enjoyed the much smaller shows I went to as a teenager and my early 20s.

 

[batman_fan]

The 1st comic book show I attended was in Cheyenne, WY in 1987. The biggest dealer at the show was Howard Rockman. I actually set up and sold some stuff. I traded Howard a bunch of bronze X-Men for a Batman15. I can't imagine anyone sold very much sadly.

[HouseofComics.Com]

Good post, Dale. I like your hanging out at the mall analogy.

 

The social media allows the promoter to spend less money on advertising and tap into not only the fans "broadcasting" that they are going but also each guest and artist mentions it on social media and gets their people out too. I think that's why our new little show last month had so many people despite only one email going out two weeks before the show. (fliers were at local shops well before that)

 

 

[HouseofComics.Com]

Of the six dealers with old comics at Wizard Sac, four have local stores. So I can see the benefit to them of doing the show. The other two do every show and don't really have an online presence so they sort of had to do the show.

 

Someone said that with the low competition they had to do really well but I'm not so sure it works that way. Low competition shows usually have low competition for a reason.

 

Customers I know who only have interest in buying old comics stayed away, esp. with the $40+ ticket prices. Customers who like old comics but also want to get stuff signed by Claremont or Golden or Adams went and enjoyed themselves. But didn't really buy anything.

[makeminemego]

I know I'm personally hedging my bets on going to the Wizard World St. Louis con next month. I went last year and had trouble navigating the place due to the amount of people attending, only a small percentage of which were there for comic books-smaller even for those buying vintage.

 

On top of that, the Wizard website has a list of dealers who will be there, and I notice many big dealers who were there last year aren't on the list.

 

So, for now, it's a "no" for me. Just too many headaches for what could be very little payoff.

[PovertyRow]

I attended and set up a few times at the shows at the old 57 Park Plaza in Boston...mid to late 80s into the 90s. Early on it was pretty good. My 1st show attending was Teddy Van Liew's 1st show setting up. I made a few deals w him that day and still have one of the books. Went down hill a bit when Monkey Business or some such name took over. Guy who ran it was a bit out there.

 

I went to that show often in the 80s/90s but remember it being in the Raddison in later years? That's where I first met Ted, Harley, Jim Payette, Steve Borock and many others.

 

My last one was 1999 before I moved here to CA. Then it was Primate Productions run by Dave Cummings (?).

 

Overall it was a good show. Lots of SA and GA books and more comic books than anything else.. Still have good memories of it, although Dave could be a little frenetic.