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San Diego Comic-Con Criticized for Planned In-Person Thanksgiving Weekend Event
MARCH 27, 2021 7:54PM by Sharareh Drury

Daniel Knighton/Getty Images
"Comic-Con Special Edition" will be an in-person event set for November 26-28 at the San Diego Convention Center.
San Diego Comic-Con will return this year with an in-person convention during Thanksgiving weekend.

The pop culture event will host a "Comic-Con Special Edition" at the San Diego Convention Center from November 26-28. The announcement comes less than a month after Comic-Con International announced a virtual event would be held this summer due to uncertainty around the coronavirus pandemic and the risk of large-scale gatherings. The three-day Comic-Con@Home virtual event is set for July 23-25.

"It is our hope that by Fall conditions will permit larger public gatherings," an announcement for the event said. "Comic-Con Special Edition will be the first in-person convention produced by the organization since Comic-Con 2019, and the first since the onset of the global pandemic COVID-19. The Fall event will allow the organization to highlight all the great elements that make Comic-Con such a popular event each year, as well as generate much needed revenue not only for the organization but also for local businesses and the community."

David Glanzer, spokesperson for the nonprofit organization, noted that while it has been able to switch from in-person gatherings to limited online events, "the loss of revenue has had an acute impact on the organization as it has with many small businesses, necessitating reduced work schedules and reduction in pay for employees, among other issues."

"Hopefully this event will shore up our financial reserves and mark a slow return to larger in-person gatherings in 2022," Glanzer added.

There are no additional details on badge costs or attendance capacity at this time.

The announcement for an in-person Thanksgiving weekend event received immediate criticism across social media, with many noting the pandemic impacted the ability for many to be with their families during the holidays last year.

"So they scheduled #SDCC on the same weekend as the first chance most families will (hopefully) be fully able to celebrate Thanksgiving in two years. See you in 2022!" Charles Soule, writer and author for Daredevil and She-Hulk, shared on Twitter.

"Sure. Make it during the one non-denominational fall holiday weekend in U.S., w/ always peak airfare prices. And I’m sure A-list celebs will LOVE doing this. Black Friday, indeed," author Tara Bennett wrote.

Linda Ge, who writes for CW's new series Kung Fu, also tweeted "Does Comic-Con realize that most people didn't get to spend last Thanksgiving with their families because of the pandemic? #SDCC"

Last year was the first time in San Diego Comic-Con's 50-year history that the in-person component was canceled. The fandom-rich con launched as a small, comics-focused event in 1970, and grew into a massive gathering that sees fans, movie and TV stars and movie studios descend upon the city. An estimated 135,000 people came to the San Diego Convention Center for the 2019 con.


The Hollywood Reporter
SHARAREH DRURY
sharareh.drury@thr.com
@shararehdrury

Nice to see Linda Ge's name though. We met in the Badlands.

[GeneChing]

Wizard World closes its convention business, selling all cons off to Fan Expo
By Chris Arrant about 1 hour ago

After 25 years, the Wizard World comic conventions are no more


Wizard World Chicago
(Image credit: Wizard World)
Fan Expo has announced a deal with Wizard World to acquire six of Wizard World's largest yearly comic conventions, including the organizer's Chicago, Philadelphia, New Orleans, Portland, and St. Louis Wizard World events.

"Fan Expo HQ is devoted to creating unmissable, exceptional fan experiences. We're beyond thrilled to be able to offer that to fans in six new locations, and pleased that Wizard World recognized our ability to elevate guest experience to the next level," says Fan Expo HQ president Aman Gupta in the announcement. "We're looking forward to getting to know each of these individual communities, learn what they're looking for, and raise the bar!"

Of all the conventions acquired, the Chicago event is arguably the one with the most potential. It is the second oldest comic event in North America (behind only Comic-Con International: San Diego), and for a time in the '90s and early '00s was the second largest comic convention in North America (also behind SDCC).

"Personally, I'm eager to contribute to the incredible legacy of the Chicago event, the second oldest comic event in North America (1972), and restore it to its former glory and beyond," Gupta adds.

There will be one last Wizard World - the already scheduled Wizard World Chicago, taking place October 15 through 17, 2021, will go on as planned in the historic Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois.

In 2022, it - and the other five cities' Wizard Worlds - will be renamed as Fan Expos.

Dates for the 2022 events in New Orleans, Portland, and St. Louis were announced earlier this year by Wizard World, but as of press time, Fan Expo says the dates are now 'to be determined.'


(Image credit: DC)
"Dates and show information for 2022 will be released later this year," a Fan Expo representative tells Newsarama. "Where possible, we are working to maintain the existing date patterns, and intend to remain in existing venues."

With the acquisition of these six comic conventions, Fan Expo HQ now has 17 North American cons, making it the largest comic convention organization in the world. Fan Expo HQ expects nearly 1 million fans across its 2022 events, including the former Wizard World cons.

Wizard World's sale of its largest shows to Fan Expo is effectively Wizard's exit from the comic book convention business - at least as an organizer. Wizard was originally founded as part of the comics journalism magazine of the same name. In 1996 it got into the convention game, buying the long-running Chicago Comicon and renaming it Wizard World Chicago. The magazine side of the business closed in 2011.

According to a Fan Expo representative, Wizard World will continue to operate its collectibles business Wizard World Vault, and is expected to have booth space at future Fan Expo events.

Here's a list of all the upcoming major comic conventions in North America and around the world.

Chris Arrant

Newsarama Senior Editor Chris Arrant has covered comic book news for Newsarama since 2003, and has also written for USA Today, Life, Entertainment Weekly, Publisher's Weekly, Marvel Entertainment, TOKYOPOP, AdHouse Books, Cartoon Brew, Bleeding Cool, Comic Shop News, and CBR. He is the author of the book Modern: Masters Cliff Chiang, co-authored Art of Spider-Man Classic, and contributed to Dark Horse/Bedside Press' anthology Pros and (Comic) Cons. He has acted as a judge for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the Harvey Awards, and the Stan Lee Awards. Chris is a member of the American Library Association's Graphic Novel & Comics Round Table.

I only attended one Wizard World which I wrote up here: The Kung Fu of Comic Cons 2019 – Wizard World Bay Area

That was the last con I did before the pandemic...