What was it like at this convention during its first decade? Hear all about it from these folks who were there for it: Barry Alfonso, Wendy All, Maeheah Alzmann, Richard Butner, Roger Freedman, Scott Shaw!, Brinke Stevens, William Stout, Phil Yeh, and your moderator Mark Evanier.
Thursday July 18, 2019 11:00am - 12:00pm PDT
Room 5AB
Drop on the deck and flop like a fish because it's a celebration for 20 years of SpongeBob SquarePants! Dive deep down into the making of SpongeBob's brand-new special “SpongeBob's Big Birthday Blowout!” with co-executive producers Vincent Waller and Marc Ceccarelli. Voice actors Tom Kenny (SpongeBob), Bill Fagerbakke (Patrick), Rodger Bumpass (Squidward), Carolyn Lawrence (Sandy), Mr. Lawrence (Plankton), and Clancy Brown (Mr. Krabs) will discuss what it was like to portray their characters in front of the camera for the first time in this live action-animation hybrid episode. Plus, they're covering 20 years of nautical nonsense, so be sure to bring it around town!
Thursday July 18, 2019 1:45pm - 2:45pm PDT
Room 6A
The classic adult swim animated series is celebrating its 20th anniversary with the first-ever Home Movies panel. The fan-fave series is feted with a cast reunion featuring co-creators Loren Bouchard (Bob's Burgers) and Brendon Small (Metalocalypse), plus cast members H. Jon Benjamin (Archer, Bob's Burgers) and Melissa Galsky (Bob's Burgers). Revisit your favorite characters, episodes, and more with the team that brought them to you!
Thursday July 18, 2019 4:45pm - 5:45pm PDT
Room 6BCF
San Diego is home to a thriving, year-round comics culture! For 50 years, San Diegans have innovated comics creativity, publishing, and fandom in a way that's rippled out across the world. Meet some of the visionaries who have called San Diego home and learn how their work has changed comics and continues to define this city as a beacon for comics lovers across the globe.
Thursday July 18, 2019 5:00pm - 6:00pm PDT
Room 32AB
Executive editor Joseph Rybandt introduces Christopher Priest, Tom Sniegoski, Joseph Michael Linsner, Joe Jusko, and Dynamite CEO/publisher Nick Barrucci to preview Vampirella' s 50th anniversary projects.
Take a deep dive into the origins of Alien and its fandom with documentary director Alexandre O. Philippe (The People vs. George Lucas, Doc of the Dead, 78/52: Hitchcock's Shower Scene), Diane O'Bannon (Dan O'Bannon Estate), Will Linn (Joseph Campbell Foundation), David Baxter (Legion M), and others as they discuss Philippe's upcoming feature documentary Memory: The Origins of Alien, and the sustaining power of Ridley Scott's masterpiece with fandom. Trailer debut from the Memory documentary will be shown.
Thursday July 18, 2019 7:15pm - 8:15pm PDT
Room 6BCF
UPDATED: Tue, Jul 16, 04:08PM Celebrate the centennial of a true swashbuckling icon as Zorro turns 100 this summer! John Gertz (president Zorro Productions, Inc.), moderator Scott Cherrin (Zorro historian), comics scribe David Avallone (Zorro Swords of Hell), and keynote speaker Don McGregor discuss the incredible events surrounding the historic anniversary and all things of interest to the Zorro fandom. From the development of the new Zorro movie, to The Mark of Zorro Art Archive, to the ongoing comic book adventures from American Mythology, this panel is celebrating 100 years of the Masked Avenger!
Thursday July 18, 2019 7:30pm - 8:30pm PDT
Room 24ABC
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment (WBHE) salutes that lovable Great Dane Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Inc. gang with a panel spotlighting half a century of crime-solving silliness. For 50 years, the Mystery Inc. gang has entertained fans with zany hijinks, action-packed adventures, and engaging mysteries that have captivated viewers of all ages. What started as a Saturday morning cartoon exploded into an enormously successful franchise encompassing multiple spinoff series, original animated and live-action films, consumer products, and much more. Included in the celebration will be several key showrunners, filmmakers, and stars of the franchise, including Grey Griffin (DC Super Hero Grils, The Loud House) and Kate Micucci (Garfunkel & Oates, Unikitty!), the voices of Daphne and Velma, respectively-and a glimpse of the upcoming Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Complete Series Limited Edition 50th Anniversary Mystery Mansion box set from WBHE (available in stores on September 3).
Saturday July 20, 2019 12:30pm - 1:30pm PDT
Room 6A
Kevin Eastman, co-creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, is celebrating 35 years of Turtles this year alongside multitudes of Turtle fans worldwide. In May of 1984, the first copy of TMNT hit stores and it's been a wild ride ever since. Kevin is thrilled to be self-publishing again, especially in this special anniversary year with his newest projects: Drawing Blood and the Radically Rearranged Ronin Ragdolls . Hear Kevin discuss all things self-publishing. He will be accompanied by writer and co-creator of Drawing Blood,David Avallone and artist Ben Bishop.
Saturday July 20, 2019 2:00pm - 3:00pm PDT
Room 28DE
Sid and Marty Krofft and H. R. Pufnstuf are celebrating their 50th anniversary, and they are coming to Comic-Con. Sid and Marty Krofft became a household name in the '70s with a series of remarkable programs that featured elaborate sets and fanciful characters. They created and produced some of the most iconic names in family entertainment for over 50 years and are still in action today. Come celebrate the 50th anniversary of Sid and Marty Krofft and H.R. Pufnstuf. The panel will cover upcoming projects and reveal exciting works in progress, including never-before-seen titles. Moderated by David Arquette and Greg Garcia (My Name Is Ear, Raising Hope).
Saturday July 20, 2019 2:00pm - 3:00pm PDT
Room 23ABC
Ron Diamond (Animation Show of Shows curator and producer), Andrew Chesworth, and Bobby Pontillas (directors of the 2019 Oscar nominated One Small Step) discuss their creative journey. Los Angeles Times critic Charles Solomon said that the films in "the 20th edition demonstrate that in the right hands, animation can be a vehicle for personal expression as powerful and intimate as drawing, painting, or sculpture."
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission that first put humans on the moon, this panel brings together some of the engineers who actually built the spacecraft that got us there. Moderated by Benjamin Dickow, president of the Columbia Memorial Space Center, and science educator Ray Hedgpeth, several former members of the Apollo program, including retired engineer Jerry Blackburn, talk about the excitement and challenge of getting astronauts to the moon. The discussion will include rare photos and delve into how sci-fi and comics from the '40s and '50s drove the dreams of these professionals during the '60s The panelists will be joined by a current aerospace engineer to give a glimpse into what the next 50 years may hold. The Columbia Memorial Space Center is located outside of downtown Los Angeles on the former NASA site where all of the Apollo spacecraft and all of the Space Shuttles were designed and built.
Saturday July 20, 2019 3:30pm - 4:30pm PDT
Room 5AB
In 1939 MLJ Comics, the company later rebranded as Archie Comics, published Blue Ribbon Comics and entered the world of superheroes with Bob Phantom. They would go on to create a pantheon of superheroes, including the first patriotic superhero the Shield and fan favorites like the Comet, Hangman, the Fly, Lancelot Strong, and many more. These heroes have appeared in both Archie Comics and DC Comics. They have been reprinted in England, France, Germany, and Brazil. They have crossed over to radio, film, and the pulps. Presented here is the 80-year history of the greatest superheroes of the Archie Universe from the people who brought you the MLJ Companion : Rik Offenberger (Archie Comics), Paul Castiglia (Archie Comics), Jon B. Cook (TwoMorrows Publishing), and John Morrow (TwoMorrows Publishing), as well as writer and movie producer Michael Uslan (Batman) and Golden Age comic expert J.C. Vaughn (Gemstone Publishing).
Over the past decade, Abrams ComicArts has published nearly 100 graphic novels, from New York Times bestsellers to Eisner Award–winning monographs, including My Friend Dahmer by Derf Backderf, Kirby: King of Comics by Mark Evanier, and Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation by Octavia Butler adapted by Damian Duffy and illustrated by John Jennings. ComicArts has maintained its dedication to publishing a curated list of stunning, thoughtfully designed books while expanding its reach and vision in an ever-changing publishing marketplace. Panelists include editorial director Charles Kochman, editor Charlotte Greenbaum, publisher Andrew Smith, and author John Jennings, who will discuss what it takes to publish a successful graphic novel while reflecting on the past, present, and future of the imprint, including Megascope, the recently announced line of comics curated by Jennings, which will showcase speculative works by and about people of color, with a focus on science fiction, fantasy, horror, and stories of magical realism.
Saturday July 20, 2019 4:00pm - 5:00pm PDT
Room 28DE
Michael Uslan, originator and executive producer of the Batman movie franchise, celebrates the 30th anniversary of this revolutionary film that changed Hollywood and the world culture, presenting an extended version of his TED Talk on the ten-year human endurance contest to get this first dark and serious superhero movie made. Q&A to follow along with the first trailer that changed the perception of fandom and the world. Introduction by producer David Uslan.
Saturday July 20, 2019 6:45pm - 7:45pm PDT
Room 6A
Rod Serling's classic 1970s horror series, which spawned the directing careers of Steven Spielberg and Leonard Nimoy and many stars of TV and film, celebrates 50 years. Join the artist who created the original Night Gallery paintings, Tom Wright (director, NCIS, Supernatural), Scott Skelton (co-author, Rod Serling's Night Gallery: An After-Hours Tour), Taylor White (publisher and proprietor of Creature Features), and others for a retrospective of the art, horror, and creative legacy of a show that has inspired so many genre creators of today. White and Skelton will be previewing their upcoming coffeetable book exploring the paintings from the series: Rod Serling's Night Gallery: The Art of Darkness . Moderated by Jim Benson (radio host, TV Time Machine; co-author, Rod Serling's Night Gallery: An After-Hours Tour).
Celebrate 45 years of Troma and 50 years of filmmaking by Lloyd Kaufman (president of Troma, creator of The Toxic Avenger) with the man himself and panelists Dolph Ziggler (stand-up comedian, WWE superstar), Chuck Tingle (world's greatest author), Trent Hagga (star of Terror Firmer, director 68 Kill), James Rolfe (Angry Video Game Nerd, Cinemassacre), Patricia Swinney Kaufman (producer of RTNH and Poultrygeist), and others. Moderated by Megan Silver.
Saturday July 20, 2019 9:00pm - 10:00pm PDT
Room 25ABC