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2008’ NEW YORK COMICON WAR JOURNAL
Everyone is wondering how My weekend went at The 2008' New York Comicon went, so this here is a journal of the trails, tribulations, and good ol' times that made this Con one of the most memorable I've ever attended. *Please ignore all of the mumbo jumbo computer stuff before the paragraphs, an annoying problem caused from my transfer of the entry from Word to Myspace
.. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->I arrived early in the city Friday morning and checked into our room at The Desmond TuTu Center. The hotel was surprisingly nice, considering the outside of the building was old, and under heavy re-construction. I was happy to see that the room was quite spacious and well maintained. I dropped off my bulk luggage and headed to the con. When I arrived at The Jacob Javits Center, I went straight to the counter for My Professional Creator badge (which made me feel quite important) and mossied on into the main hall. Like last year, the main hall was bustling with excitement, and I was itchin' to explore every square inch of this years glorious Fanboy Mecca. 
.. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]--> .. -->[endif]-->Professional creators and vendors are allowed to attend the show earlier than the general public on Friday, so I was able to get a sneak peek of the days events before the ravenous crowds started pouring in. Tons of awesome stuff to see, including toy displays from just about every company you can think of, Comic and toy retailers, Artist, and celebrity autographing tables and booths, Podcast shows broadcasting live from the convention, Movie props, costumes, and the list goes on… .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]--> I had a both a great first day on Friday, and a disappointing situation that really bummed me out. Good news first I was able to network with quite a few folk, spreading the word on both Fanboy Theatre, and the Fan Film Podcast. I handed out free copies of one of our shows on cd along with business cards, graciously provided by Fan Film Podcast co-host Mr. Moshier, all in the name of shameless promotion. I also picked up a few comics, action figures, DVD's, and gifts for my beloved Patty, who I would be meeting up with later that evening at our hotel room. .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]-->Okay, now for the let down..Ever since I was ten years old I have idolized Mr. Stan Lee, co-creator of some of comicdom's greatest characters such as: Spider-Man, The Hulk, The Fantastic Four, the X-Men, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, and others. I knew Mr. Lee would be signing autographs that day, so in the middle of the day I looked for people waiting in line and got lucky on the first try! I approached a group of 3 or 4 guys and asked if this was the line for Stan, They happily informed me that it was indeed THE LINE for the golden ticket. While waiting in line for over an hour I got to know the gentlemen, and found them to be an awesome bunch of dudes. I am terrible with names, so please forgive me guys, the only name I can recall for sure was a bloke by the name of John. Additional members of the crew consisted of a Sake sipping gentlemen, and a most gracious fella who provided me with free beers! After getting to know my fellow line dwellers I was dealt a crushing blow that I never saw coming. A show worker announced to the many standing in line that Stan would only be signing fifteen autographs that day. What the fuck !?! I was screwed being number seventeen or so. Mr. Sake and the others could see that I was crushed, and they were gracious enough to provide me with one of their tickets. Being that they have met Mr. Lee before, and because they were there to get Alex Ross's autograph as well, they were more than happy to lend a hand. I thanked the guys for being so cool and made plans to meet up with them in a few hours at the designated signing time. I left the con for a while in search of some grub, I lucked up and came across a diner about six blocks north of the Center. I had myself a great lunch and headed back to the con for my seemingly fated meeting with one of the biggest legends in the history of comics. .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]-->Freshly re-fueled, and eager to meet my hero, I went back to the con and rifled through my pockets for my ticket only to find it was gone. I felt my heart sink into my stomach, I felt like such an asshole, how could I let myself loose the golden ticket? I searched every pocket on my person again, and reluctantly accepted the fact that it was lost. Well, maybe next time. Like Patty said, "Maybe it wasn't meant to be". Thanks anyway Mr. Sake, John, Beer Guy, and friends. Sharing your ticket with me really meant a lot. Maybe we'll bump heads again next year. .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]-->Saturday morning would be day two of the con, and my first whole day with my better half tagging along, and taking pics of the show for my site. The GF's not into the whole comic and toy scene as much as me, but she's slowly starting to take a liking to certain elements of Nerd culture, that's my girl  .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]--> .. -->[endif]-->Going with the modus operandi of day one, The Paz and I strolled the show floor, swimming through the sea of humanity growing deeper by the minute. Amidst the flesh traffic, consisting of true nerds, rude assholes, crazy folks, costumed fans, regular joes, obese men, unwashed cretins, fanboys and fangals, and celebs, we did our thing, taking advantage of much of what the day had to offer. After hitting the dollar bins, filling in holes in my DC Direct collection, and handing out more cd's, Just one more thing remained on the schedule for Saturday, The Fan Film Panel! 
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.. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]--> At 3:00 that afternoon I was to be part of a Fan Film Panel organized by Clive Young. My fellow panelists would include Chris Notarile (Blinky Productions), Dan Poole (Director of The Green Goblin's Last Stand), Adam Bertocci (TheForce.Net moderator, and Director of Run Leia Run), and Dan Galiardi (Five Towns College Professor, and Director of Iron Fist-The Dragon Unleashed). I finally got to meet Mr. Poole, Mr. Galiardi, and Mr. Young before the panel started, and found them all to be very friendly and down to Earth guys. Chris Notarile (an old friend of mine from way back), and Adam Bertocci (whom I had never met before) were last to arrive. ..
.. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]--> The Panel room was quite large, I had no idea that eventually every single seat would be occupied by the end of our presentation. I thought maybe ten to twenty people max, but I was pleasantly surprised. We all took our places at the panel table, seats began to fill, and Mr. Young opened up with a great presentation describing the evolution of Fan Films over the years. Next it was our turn to talk a little bit about ourselves. Some came prepared with power point presentations and film clips, but I decided to go with the minimalist approach. I gave a brief description of my website and podcast, my role in the Fan Film community, and my feelings on Fan Films in general. I didn't have much time to really say my piece, but I did the best I could in the allotted time I was given. All in all I feel it went fairly well, despite our technical difficulties. .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]-->When the panel reached it's conclusion the room was packed more than ever, the reason? I'd like to think it was just US..but in reality the individual coming up after us was the likely reason for the restless mob. 
.. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]--> Heroes star, Milo Ventimiglia was to speak on behalf of Devil's Due Publishing about a new comic book project he is working on with the fledgling company. The cameras flashed away, and the ladies swooned as Milo discussed his comic. I found the concept to be nothing special, but Mr. Ventimiglia sounded quite sincere in his enthusiastic description of the books plot. .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]-->After the comic book discussion Milo took questions from the crowd. At one point he admitted to being a self-proclaimed Fanboy. He mentioned a list of titles He was into, including an old title, from the long defunct Now Comics, called Ralph Snart. I to was a big Ralph Snart guy way back when, So I shouted out something to the effect of "Hell yeah, good book!" Milo responded and that was quite cool. Heroes is my second favorite show, after Smallville, and I really enjoy Mr. Ventimiglia's work on the show. At one point I politely heckled him asking when the Gilmour Girls figures were coming out. He seemed embarrassed, yet amused by the question. That's right, I ragged on Peter Petrelli  .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]--> .. -->[endif]--> Finally Sunday arrived, the last day of the con, and the perfect opportunity to do that last minute dollar bin-diving. Both Patty and I were really tired as the day wore on, but we endured. Patty gets points for being a trooper that day. Despite not feeling well, she was still able to play Tonto to my Lone Ranger. LoveYa Babe! 
.. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]-->.. -->[endif]--> So, there it is, My 2008' New York Comicon War Journal. In closing I'd like to thank Mr Clive Young for organizing and hosting our humble little panel, you rule Bud! Hope we can do it again soon. I'd also like to give a shout out to Billy and The Atomx Crew, it was awesome finally running into you guys at the show. And finally, thanks to the powers that be at the New York Comicon for allowing a Fan Film panel to be a part of their programming. See ya' next year!
.. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]--> .. -->[endif]--> Fanboy Will out… .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]--> .. -->[endif]--> .. -->[if !supportEmptyParas]--> .. -->[endif]-->
8:49 AM
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okay
good
accomplished
excited
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