Jerry Gwin Bails (June 26, 1933 – November 23, 2006) was an American popular culturist . Known as the "Father of Comic Book Fandom," he was one of the first to approach the comic book field as a subject worthy of academic study, and was a primary force in establishing 1960s comics fandom.
96-665: Comic Festival (also known as Comics Festival UK ) was a British comic book convention which was held annually in Bristol between 1999 and 2004. It was devised and produced by Kev F. Sutherland with the help of Mike Allwood of Area 51 Comics. The presentation of the National Comics Awards was a regular feature of Comic Festival from 1999 to 2003 (except for the year 2000, when the Eagle Awards were presented there). Charity auctions were held every year at
192-550: A "major offensive against Reed Exhibitions ' New York Comic Con ," Wizard scheduled "three East Coast shows in a row — the New England Comic-Con in Boston on October 1-3, Big Apple the same weekend, and the new New Jersey Comic-Con the weekend after, on October 15-17." This was the beginning of what came to be known as the "Con Wars": in fact, Wizard originally scheduled the 2010 Big Apple Comic Con for October 7–10,
288-729: A 1969 "Marvel Bullpen Bulletins " mention noting that the group "holds an annual poll to determine the most popular mags, writers and artists of the preceding year," and directing fans to obtain a ballot from future comics professional Mark Hanerfeld at 42-42 Colden Street in Flushing, New York ...," the Academy waned, "and it was disbanded for lack of interest by the decade's end." The first comic book awards trace their origins to "a letter to Jerry dated October 25, 1961," by Roy Thomas, in which he suggested to Bails that Alter-Ego create its own awards to reward fandom's "favorite comic books in
384-465: A brief guide to the major fanzines being published. He wrote an introductory essay on the collecting of comics and produced a brief timeline of fandom as well as a "truncated Golden Age index." In addition, he set out in print the "standard grading system for comics" which with some slight revisions "is still used today." Bails and co-editor Hames Ware published Who's Who of American Comic Books in four volumes between 1973 and 1976, designed to document
480-496: A column within that publication, Bails' On the Drawing Board "was devoted to blurbs and news items pertaining to upcoming events in pro comics." Thanks to the links forged, and respect gained, by Bails with various key individuals involved in the creation of comics — and in particular, DC Comics ' major editorial force Julius Schwartz — he was able to gain advanced knowledge and news of upcoming comics events, launches and
576-563: A comic convention, the event also gave balanced coverage to historic film showings (often running all night long for the convention's duration) and science-fiction literature, in a manner that provided a template for many future convention organizers—most of whom have yet to attain the same level of equal service to this sort of linked fan base. In October 1964, Bails released the first issue of comics' first dedicated amateur press association publication, CAPA-alpha . Between 1963 and 1964, "new fanzines were popping up right and left . . . [as]
672-642: A convention run by the Academy of Comic-Book Fans and Collectors , the Alley Awards were presented at all three Academy Cons. The 1965 Academy Con also featured one of the first recorded "superhero masquerades", or costume contests. 1965 also saw the genesis of what became the annual Italian comic book convention Lucca Comics & Games . Rinaldo Traini and Romano Calisi (forming the International Congress of Cartoonists and Animators) held
768-651: A dealer room, and film showings.) In addition, an unnamed convention held May 24, 1964, in the Hotel Tuller , Detroit, Michigan, was organized by teenagers Robert Brusch and Dave Szurek, with assistance from Bails and members of the Michigan Science Fiction Society. This gathering featured about 80 fans of the comic book medium. The first recorded "official" comic book convention occurred in 1964 in New York City. Known as
864-528: A gent named Jerry Bails", and put Thomas in touch with the Detroit-based Bails. Bails and Thomas would go on to "exchange . . . 100 pages' worth of letters in less than five months" starting from the end of November 1960, and forge a friendship which in Thomas' words "set in motion a chain of events which led to Alter Ego , organized comics fandom, the Alley Awards , and maybe a bit more." With
960-628: A keynote speech by Kirby, a discussion about censorship between Don Thompson and Comics Code Authority acting administrator Leonard Darvin, a panel about the Golden Age of Comics , and one on the "so-called 'Forgotten '50s", particularly EC Comics . Bhob Stewart, on a panel with Archie Goodwin and Ted White, predicted that there would soon be " underground comics " just as there were already " underground films ". That same summer (August 12–14) in New York, Dave Kaler produced Academy Con II at
1056-481: A lot of fans were infected by the "publishing bug," many of them talented writers and artists." In an attempt to focus these emerging talents, and head off the over-abundance of "crud-zines" (poor quality fanzines), which seemed to equal in number their good quality counterparts, Bails adapted the long-standing practice of amateur press alliance (APAs) for comics, creating the first all-comics APA, "CAPA-alpha" (the first — e.g., 'alpha' — 'Comics A.P.A.'). This allowed
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#17327916391011152-1107: A microfilm reader, Bails offered a reproduction service of "cover photographs, spanning most of the key #1 issues from the World War II era," in black & white for $ 2. These reproductions pre-dated by three decades the four volumes of comic book covers published as The Photo-Journal Guide to Comic Books by Ernie Gerber in the mid-1990s. The lack of reference materials available to comics fans meant that much early fandom activity revolved around indexing various companies and individuals' output. A pioneer in this field, Bails worked with Howard Keltner , Raymond Miller and Fred Von Bernewitz (among others) to index various comics, detailing "what comics had been published, their contents, how many issues they ran, etc." Naturally Bails' early efforts dealt with All-Star Comics and DC, in first his All-Star Index and then an Authoritative Index to DC Comics . With Howard Keltner in particular, Bails then compiled several extensive wider inventories of " Golden Age " comics, including The Collector's Guide to
1248-681: A new convention, Gateway Con, was inaugurated in St. Louis . In 1968, two important conventions had their start. Taking over for the Academy Con, Brooklyn native and school teacher Phil Seuling hosted the International Convention of Comic Book Art at the Statler Hilton Hotel in New York City on July 4–7. The guests of honor were Stan Lee and Burne Hogarth This annual convention, which later became known as
1344-558: A not-for-profit basis, though nowadays most events catering to fans are managed by commercial interests for profit. Many conventions have award presentations relating to comics (such as the Eisner Awards , which have been presented at San Diego Comic-Con since 1988; or the Harvey Awards , which have been presented at a variety of venues also since 1988). At commercial events, comic book creators often sign autographs for
1440-557: A number of categories" in a manner similar to the Oscars . In the letter column of Fantastic Four #33 (1964), it is stated that the Association "elected Stan the best writer, and the best editor of the year! They've also voted the ol' F.F. and SPIDER-MAN the two best comic books of the year! Also -- what was their choice for the year's best annual? The FANTASTIC FOUR ANNUAL, natch!" Initially suggested as 'The Alter-Ego Award,'
1536-617: A number of categories" in a manner similar to the Oscars . The first Alley Awards, given for the calendar year 1961, were reported in Alter Ego No. 4 (Oct. 1962). On March 21–22, 1964, the first annual "Alley Tally" by ACBFC members was organized by Bails at his house in Detroit, with the purpose of counting "the Alley Award ballots for 1963". This became notable in retrospect as the first major gathering of comics fans, predating
1632-532: A number of small conventions were organized during the mid-1990s that emphasized comics, particularly those not published by the big mainstream companies DC Comics and Marvel Comics . Many of these "indy cons" were inspired by Cerebus creator Dave Sim . In 1992, Sim partnered with Great Eastern Conventions in promoting small conventions in more than 20 U.S. locations, including Indiana, Oregon, Texas, as well as in South Florida. And in 1995, Sim toured
1728-522: A sort of umbrella for all his ideas and projects, and those of others." The ACBFC's charter, "enthusiastically endorsed by members of fandom" detailed the Academy's intentions: formation of the Alley Awards, publication of The Comic Reader and "a directory of comic fans," to assist in establishing a yearly comics convention and to endorse a "code of fair practice in the selling and trading of comic books." Bails introduced and attempted to popularize
1824-564: A variety of comics fanzines , beginning with Ted White 's The Facts Behind Superman , James Taurasi's Fantasy Comics and Bhob Stewart 's The EC Fan Bulletin in 1953-54. These were followed by Ron Parker's Hoohah , Dick and Pat Lupoff 's Xero and Don and Maggie Thompson 's Comic Art . Xero presented essays about comics ultimately collected in a 1970 book, All in Color for a Dime , published in hardcover by Arlington House and by Ace in paperback. Although Bails' innovative ideas changed
1920-593: A weekend attendance of more than 58,000 people. In 2002, Wizard produced "Wizard World East" in Philadelphia, a still-ongoing show (now known as "FanExpo Philadelphia"). The company added ongoing shows in Texas in 2003, Los Angeles in 2004, and Boston in 2005. In 2007–2008, Wizard held conventions in Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Chicago , and Texas. Beginning in 2009, Wizard made a concerted push to dominate
2016-464: A wide variety of activities and panels, with a larger number of attendees participating with cosplay than for most other types of fan conventions . Comic book conventions are also used as a method by which publishers, distributors, and retailers represent their comic-related releases. Comic book conventions may be considered derivatives of science-fiction conventions , which began during the late 1930s. Comic-cons were traditionally organized by fans on
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#17327916391012112-590: A year, Bails passed it on to Ronn Foss, and in 1964 it merged with G. B. Love 's fanzine The Rocket's Blast to form The Rocket's Blast and the ComiCollector . A month after the debut of The Comicollector , in October 1961, Bails also founded and published On the Drawing Board , the forerunner to the long-running news-zine The Comic Reader , designed to showcase the latest comic news. Spinning-off from Alter-Ego after appearing for three issues as
2208-445: The Alley Awards (below), and inspired by Roy Thomas' thoughts on a comics-industry version of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences , the name and workings of the Academy of Comic-Book Fans and Collectors became a way "to emphasize the seriousness of comics fans about their hobby." Bails further liked "the idea of a fandom organization that would not only perpetuate the concept of comics as an art form, but would also act as
2304-954: The Alternative Press Expo (APE), which debuted in San Jose, California, in 1994; and the Small Press Expo (SPX), which premiered in Bethesda, Maryland in 1994. Wizard Entertainment purchased the Chicago Comicon in 1997 to expand from its core publishing business into trade/consumer conventions. The renamed "Wizard World Chicago" was the template for a new kind of convention that shifted its emphasis from actual comic books to ancillary elements of popular culture fandom: celebrity performers, movies, television, video games, and toys – "comic conventions" almost in name only. By 2006, Wizard World Chicago boasted
2400-875: The Comic Art Convention (CAC), hosted the presentation of the Alley Awards from 1968 to 1970. CAC ran annually (occasionally in Philadelphia ) over Independence Day weekend, until 1983. In England, Phil Clarke produced Comicon '68 (British Comic Art Convention) at the Midland Hotel, Birmingham , from August 30 to September 2, 1968. "Member"-guests include Alan Moore , Paul Neary , Jim Baikie , Steve Moore , and Nick Landau ; there were 70 attendees. The British Comicon ran annually, variously in Birmingham, London, and Sheffield , until 1981. Comic book conventions increased dramatically during
2496-643: The Jacob K. Javits Convention Center . (The 1995 show was the last comic book convention held at the Javits Center until the New York Comic Con in 2006.) Great Eastern also ran shows in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Oregon, Minnesota, Texas, and South Florida. Despite their large fan attendance and expansive venues, however, Great Eastern's large shows were criticized by many within
2592-468: The New York Coliseum on 59th St. & Columbus Circle. As a substitute event, comic book retailer Michael Carbonaro and others quickly organized the first Big Apple Comic Con , now a long-running show. Greenberg and Great Eastern Conventions disappeared from the fan convention circuit from that time. In response to the big conventions' shifting of emphasis away from comic books themselves,
2688-623: The New Yorker Hotel , in New York City. The guest of honor was Jim Steranko . From that time until the late 1980s, Creation Entertainment continued producing large annual conventions in New York City, usually occurring the weekend after Thanksgiving. A popular venue for the Thanksgiving cons was the Statler Hilton Hotel . In the mid-1970s, attendance at the New York Creation conventions averaged around 5,000 fans;
2784-1018: The Salone Internazionale del Comics ("International Congress of Comics") in Bordighera . In 1966, it was relocated to a small piazza in the center of Lucca , and has grown in size and importance over the years. In 1966, comic book conventions continued to evolve and expand, The July 23–24 New York Comicon (not to be confused with the later New York Comic Con ) was held at the Park Sheraton Hotel, in New York. Produced by John Benson, guests included Jack Kirby , Jim Steranko , Otto Binder , Len Brown , Larry Ivie , Jack Binder , Roy Thomas , Gil Kane , Archie Goodwin , Bhob Stewart , Klaus Nordling , Sal Trapani , Rocke Mastroserio , and Ted White . (There were four women in attendance: Pat Lupoff , Lee Hoffman , Flo Steinberg , and Maggie Thompson .) Featured events included
2880-693: The University of Kansas City , from which he earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Physics, and then his Master's degree in Math. A student teacher by 1953, he gained his Ph.D. in Natural science c. 1959 , and in 1960 moved to Detroit with his wife Sondra "to become Assistant Professor of Natural Science at Wayne State University ." In 1953, Bails wrote to DC (c/o Julius Schwartz ) to inquire about issues of All-Star Comics . His letter
2976-467: The University of London Union . Guests included such U.K. stars as Steve Bissette , Bill Sienkiewicz , Dave Sim , Marv Wolfman , Brian Bolland , John Bolton , Eddie Campbell , Alan Davis , Hunt Emerson , Brett Ewins , Dave Gibbons , Ian Gibson , Denis Gifford , Alan Grant , Garry Leach , David Lloyd , Mike McMahon , Alan Moore , Steve Moore , Paul Neary , Kevin O'Neill , Ron Smith , Dez Skinn , Bryan Talbot , and John Wagner . Admission
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3072-473: The back issues of this magazine [ All-Star Comics ]," and six years later when the JSA was dropped, started to work towards their revival. In the letters column of Fantastic Four #22 ( cover-dated Jan. 1964) the editor refers to him as "one of fandom's most articulate critics." As a young man, he "sent samples of his art to EC ("and Al Feldstein was nice enough to respond with advice.")," before attending
3168-518: The "New York Comicon", it was held July 24, 1964, at the Workman's Circle Building. A one-day convention organized by 16-year-old Bernie Bubnis and fellow enthusiast Ron Fradkin, official guests of the Tri-State Con included Steve Ditko , Flo Steinberg , and Tom Gill . Reports were of over 100 attendees. A 16-year-old George R. R. Martin attended the convention and claimed to be
3264-459: The "Second Heroic Age of Comics". later known as the Silver Age of Comic Books . The directory itself contained fan listings culled from Bails' master list of 1,600 names. Bails invited fans to contact each other, "make sure they [all] know about the Academy; help form a local Chapter [and] help Comic Fandom to grow!" Bails also contributed to the following year's Guidebook to Comics Fandom ,
3360-589: The 1970s, with many of the largest conventions of the modern era being established during the decade. During the early 1970s, conventions were initiated in almost every major American city (and some minor ones), as well as in London, with Comic Mart , a bimonthly trade show which ran regularly until the mid-1980s. Comic book creators, editors, and publishers began to make it part of their routine to attend conventions as official guests. Major comics-related news events were often revealed at annual conventions: examples include
3456-589: The Alley Tally and "even larger fan meetings in Chicago . . . helped build momentum" for these earliest conventions, including the aforementioned " Academy Cons " held in New York in 1965–1967. Bails himself was "on the organizing committee" for the Detroit Triple Fan Fair , 1964. THE DTFF would continue sporadically through the 1970s under its initial format, though expanded; while primarily
3552-484: The Bold #29. The finished article became "an amateur journal devoted to the revivals of the costumed heroes at DC and elsewhere, as well as historical studies of what Bails deemed ' The First Heroic Age of Comics .'" The original run of Alter Ego lasted 11 issues, spread over a total of 17 years. Ten issues were released between 1961 and 1969, with issue #11 following nine years later, in 1978. Bails edited and published
3648-602: The Bristol-based Comic Expo , which began in 2004 and lasted until 2014. For Comics 99, Sutherland produced The World's Biggest Comic , which featured the work of 100 of the world's leading comic artists, auctioned to raise money for the British charity Comic Relief . Subsequent projects, for the benefit of ChildLine , included the Charity Deck of Cards which, in 2001, raised over £10,000 through
3744-649: The City Squire Inn. Meanwhile, also in 1966, the first Southwesterncon was held in Dallas, Texas . Organized by Larry Herndon (of the fanzine Star Studded Comics ), the official guest was Dave Kaler; about 70 attendees participated. Later Southwesterncons rotated between Houston (" Houstoncon ") and Dallas ("D-Con"), adding Oklahoma City ("Multicon") to the mix in 1970. The Southwesterncon partnership lasted roughly until 1971, with Houstoncon, D-Con, and Multicon continuing separately until 1982. In 1966,
3840-581: The First Heroic Age of Comics . A partial listing of Bails-involved indexes includes: Bails' friend and colleague Ray Bottorff Jr. recalls that Bails had "begun to create a comic book price guide, when a man named Bob Overstreet contacted him because he was doing the same thing." Bails' extensive notes "became a backbone to the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide ." In addition to his work in comics indexing, Bails
3936-505: The International Superman Expo. Held June 16–19, official guests include Curt Swan , Jerry Ordway , George Pérez , Marv Wolfman , and Julius Schwartz . By the end of the 1980s, comic book conventions were evolving into sprawling affairs that promoted movies, television shows, celebrity performers, video games, toys, and cosplay as much as (if not more than) comic books. Many historians date this shift to
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4032-736: The North American convention circuit. The company began by starting new shows in various cities, and then by acquiring existing conventions, such as New York City's longest-running multigenre popular culture convention, the Big Apple Convention , and the Paradise Comics Toronto Comicon . Wizard's 2010 "North American Comic Con" tour included shows in Toronto , Anaheim, Philadelphia, Chicago , New York City , Austin, and Boston. As part of
4128-604: The Pick-Congress Hotel, was the first Chicago-area comics and collectibles convention. Produced by Nancy Warner, the show had about 2,000 attendees. That show evolved into the Chicago Comicon (now known as Fan Expo Chicago ), and has been known to attract as many as 70,000 attendees annually. The Angoulême International Comics Festival debuted in Angoulême, France, in January 1974. 10,000 attendees made it
4224-615: The Pierremont Plaza Hotel, in Atlanta, Georgia. Official guests were Michael Moorcock (his first convention appearance in twelve years), Robert Asprin , Lynn Abbey , Robert Adams , Richard "Lord British" Garriott , Gary Gygax , and Toastmaster Brad Strickland ; and there were 1,400 attendees. In 1988, in commemoration of Superman 's 50th anniversary, the Cleveland Convention Center hosted
4320-458: The Schwartz revivals. The Thompsons' interest was in just about every aspect of comic art but the superhero comics of 1961. Helped in large part to the efforts of DC editor Julius Schwartz and writer Gardner Fox , Bails would play a pivotal role in the fledgling field of comics fandom, which he called "panelology" (the study of comics). Bails was the founding editor of Alter-Ego , one of
4416-435: The ability to follow the published credits of Golden Age comic book creators. As this approach had never been used before, the data were later appended, and have since been adapted by a variety of comic price guides and comic book historians. A "professor of science and technology," Bails "had a technical bent" that saw him embracing new forms of technology and novel ideas in his continued efforts within fandom. Among his ideas
4512-528: The accuracy of his project. A major part of the reference work was fan-identification of artistic styles and signature-spotting and recognition, which deductions often formed the basis for Bails' questions to creators, who could then offer corrections and additions. This included collecting and microfilming more than 500,000 comic book pages and contacting many hundreds of comic book professionals, asking them to fill out questionnaires about their careers. After two subsequent editions, Bails focused on computerizing
4608-460: The admission was around $ 5/day. The 1971 Comic Art Convention (held July 2–4 at the Statler Hilton Hotel , New York City) was notable for being the convention credited by Will Eisner for his return to comics: I came back into the field because of [convention organizer Phil Seuling ]. I remember [him] calling me in New London, [Connecticut] , where I was sitting there as chairman of
4704-634: The auctioning of the original art and sales of the limited edition decks. The Just 1 Page charity comic was produced at Comic Festival, beginning in 2001 (and then continuing on at Comic Expo ). This UK comics –related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Comic book convention A comic book convention or comic con is a fan convention emphasizing comic books and comic book culture, in which comic book fans gather to meet creators, experts, and each other. Commonly, comic conventions are multi-day events hosted at convention centers, hotels, or college campuses. They feature
4800-529: The awards were given out being 1969. Between March 21 and March 22, 1964, the first annual "Alley Tally" was organized by Bails at his house with the purpose of counting "the Alley Award ballots for 1963." This became notable in retrospect as the first major gathering of comics fans, predating the earliest comic book conventions , which were held later in the year. Attendees included Ronn Foss, Don Glut, Chuck Moss, Don and Maggie Thompson , Mike Vosburg , and Grass Green . Bill Schelly (among others) notes that
4896-471: The biggest shows include a large range of popular culture and entertainment elements of virtually all genres, including horror, animation, anime , manga , toys, collectible card games , video games , webcomics , and fantasy novels. San Diego Comic-Con , a multigenre entertainment and comic convention held annually in San Diego since 1970, is the best known of U.S. comic-cons. According to Forbes ,
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#17327916391014992-463: The board of Croft Publishing Co. My secretary said, 'There's a Mr. Seuling on the phone and he's talking about a comics convention. What is that?' She said, 'I didn't know you were a cartoonist , Mr. Eisner.' 'Oh, yes,' I said, 'secretly; I'm a closet cartoonist.' I came down and was stunned at the existence of the whole world. ... That was a world that I had left, and I found it very exciting, very stimulating". Nostalgia '72, held July 22–23, 1972, at
5088-567: The board of directors for the Grand Comics Database . A stroke late in Bails' life affected his vision and cut into his ability to pursue work on Who's Who, but until his death he was still adding hundreds of new records each week and consolidating and revising old records. Bails also wrote introductions and forewords to a number of collections of Golden Age and Silver Age DC Comics books. In 1985, DC Comics named Bails as one of
5184-481: The careers of every person to have contributed to, or supported the publication of, original material in U.S. comic books since 1928. With many creators largely unknown before the advent of comics fans and fandom in the 1950s and 1960s, Bails was one of the earliest proponents of documenting these individuals' credits. He wrote to a large number of creators and was able to encourage many to share their recollections, credits and, in some cases, personal records to assist in
5280-506: The company was the main producer of comic book conventions nationwide. For instance, in 1986, Creation produced large-scale comics conventions in at least six cities, including Philadelphia, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and New Brunswick, New Jersey. (The New York show featured a special tribute to Marvel Comics ' 25th anniversary; guests included Stan Lee and Jim Shooter .) During this time, Creation branched out from comics and began producing conventions for
5376-429: The convention business worldwide. Most 2020 conventions scheduled for after mid-March of that year were canceled, and many were displayed online only in 2021. Wizard World had only six in-person conventions in 2021, and that August the company announced it would be selling the convention events business to FanExpo , with the final Wizard World Chicago show occurring in October. Jerry Bails Jerry G. Bails
5472-553: The convention is the "largest convention of its kind in the world"; and is also the largest convention held in San Diego. According to the San Diego Convention and Visitor's Bureau, the convention has an annual regional economic effect of $ 162.8 million, with a $ 180 million economic impact in 2011. However, in 2017, SDCC lost its record of the largest annual multigenre convention to São Paulo 's Comic Con Experience (first held in 2014). Internationally,
5568-693: The country in a self-styled nine-stop "Spirits of Independence" tour. The antecedent to these new "comic festivals" may have been Berkeleycon 73, held April 20–22, 1973, at the Pauley Ballroom, ASUC Building, University of California, Berkeley . Berkeleycon was the first convention devoted to underground comix (which had their unofficial mecca in the San Francisco Bay Area ). The first exclusively small press conventions were CAPTION , which debuted in Oxford, England, in 1992;
5664-485: The creators behind them. Released in standalone form as "a single-page news-sheet," On the Drawing Board #4 (#1-3 being applied to the columns appearing in those issues of A/E ) debuted on October 7, 1961. Bill Schelly described, in 2003, its impact: Suddenly, fans had a way to see what was coming up on the newsstands. In some cases, they also found out the names of the writers and artists of certain features, in an era before such credits were routinely given. While there
5760-490: The data, ultimately embracing the internet through the medium of the online Who's Who "Bails Project" website. The online database also attempts to cover foreign creators, the small press and alternative publishers of comic books which have received U.S. distribution. Members of Bails' "advisory board" for the Who's Who include Craig Delich, a long-time friend and teaching colleague of Bails and Ray Bottorff Jr., who also serves on
5856-613: The debut of the "new Justice Society," the Justice League of America in the pages of The Brave and the Bold #28 ( 1959 ), Bails felt his "efforts [had] finally paid off," and his career as an active fan began. He soon bombarded the DC offices with suggestions for new superhero revivals. For instance, in Justice League of America #4, the letters page is filled with missives from Bails under different pen names. He did everything he could to fool editor Julius Schwartz, including mailing
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#17327916391015952-421: The earliest comic book conventions, which were held later in the year. Attendees included Ronn Foss, Don Glut, Don and Maggie Thompson , Mike Vosburg , and Grass Green . Comics historian Bill Schelly notes that the Alley Tally and "even larger fan meetings in Chicago ... helped build momentum" for these earliest conventions. (The Chicago gathering occurred May 9–10, 1964; it featured "several dozen" attendees,
6048-614: The easy formulation of a fanzine, created through submissions by each of its fifty-strong membership, who could all contribute short submissions on a regular basis. Compiled in the regular APA mold by a 'central mailer' (in which role Bails first served), copies of the membership's individual submissions could then be collated and mailed out to everyone. "Now," explained fandom historian Bill Schelly, "fans could get into print and retain editorial control of their material, without publishing their own fanzine." Bails also worked on and published extensive cross-referencing systems allowing researchers
6144-406: The entertainment behemoth was deliberately trying to cause its competitors to fail. However, many praised Wizard's professional and standardized method of producing conventions. In 2015, however, Wizard lost $ 4.25 million in revenue and cut back from 25 to 19 convention events in 2016. By 2018, the company was producing thirteen annual conventions around the U.S. The COVID-19 pandemic harmed
6240-424: The event at the cheapest possible prices. Once inside the convention, the audience would then be exposed to the widest range of comics material, thus building the readership of the future. The festival began under the name Comics 99 . In addition to the annual Bristol-based Comic Festival, secondary events were held in London in the fall of 2003 and 2004. Comic Festival was succeeded as an annual convention by
6336-503: The exact same dates as the previously scheduled 2010 New York Comic Con. After a public outcry, Wizard moved the dates of its 2010 New York convention to October 1–3. (Ultimately, the "Wizard World New York Experience" conventions were not successful; the company omitted New York entirely in 2012 and gave up the New York market after 2013.) In 2013, Wizard produced conventions in 13 cities, expanding to 20 in 2014. This increase of Wizard-produced conventions resulted in accusations that
6432-438: The fans, sometimes in exchange for a fixed appearance fee, and may sometimes draw illustrations for a per-item fee. Commercial conventions are usually quite expensive and are hosted in hotels. This represents a change for comic book conventions, which were traditionally more oriented toward comic books as a mode of literature, and maintained less differentiation between professional and fan. The first official comic book convention
6528-406: The festival, first for Comic Relief and then for the benefit of ChildLine . Comic Festival was preceded as an annual British comic convention by the United Kingdom Comic Art Convention , held annually (usually in London) from 1985 to 1998. By 1999, the comics audience in the UK was in decline; Comic Festival's aim was to reach non-comic readers, children, and families, and to enable them to enter
6624-419: The first four issues of Alter-Ego , before turning it over to fan-artist Ronn Foss (and, initially, Foss' wife, plus his friend "Grass" Green ) who edited issues #5-6. Roy Thomas edited a further four issues solo, and issue #11 almost a decade later in collaboration with Mike Friedrich . In 1998, Thomas wrote to publisher John Morrow, and shortly after Thomas relaunched the second volume of Alter Ego on
6720-461: The first issue of the 20-page Bails-published The Comicollector , the self-styled "companion to ALTER-EGO" (as the masthead declared it), and "first comics advertising fanzine." Included among adverts from the "stalwarts of fandom" (including Bails, John McGeehan and Ronn Foss among others) was a review of the first issue of The Fantastic Four by Roy Thomas, originally destined for the pages of Alter-Ego . After publishing The Comicollector for
6816-515: The first person who signed up for the event. Continuing the momentum from the previous year, Bails, Shel Dorf , and the members of the Michigan Science Fiction Society formed the "organizing committee" of the multigenre convention Detroit Triple Fan Fair (DTFF), which was held July 24–25, 1965 at the Embassy Hotel, in Detroit, Michigan. The DTTF was held annually in Detroit until 1978. Meanwhile, in New York City, teacher/comics enthusiast Dave Kaler had taken over as ACBFC Executive Secretary;
6912-571: The flipside of issues of TwoMorrows Publishing 's Comic Book Artist . A third, standalone volume was launched as a separate magazine (with similarly revived fanzine the Fawcett Collectors of America as a section) in 1999, and continues to 2011. Shortly after the launch of Alter-Ego , Bails founded The Comicollector , which launched in September 1961. The major motivating force behind comics fandom "was to bring fans together for
7008-473: The genres of horror and science fiction; it was known particularly for its Doctor Who conventions. After 1988, the company stopped producing comic book conventions to emphasize its other, more profitable, fan conventions. Both the Heroes Convention and the multigenre Dallas Fantasy Fair debuted in 1982. HeroesCon is one of the largest independent comic book conventions still operating; during
7104-637: The heyday of the Dallas Fantasy Fair, it was one of the largest comics conventions in the country, third in attendance behind San Diego Comic-Con and the Chicago Comicon. (The Dallas Fantasy Fair went defunct in 1995.) Comic book conventions spread to Canada and Switzerland in 1985; also debuting that year was the United Kingdom Comic Art Convention (UKCAC), first held September 21–22, 1985, at
7200-410: The industry for pandering to dealers and spectacle. As frequent participant Evan Dorkin stated, "The New York shows are extremely unfriendly to both creators and fans. ... There is limited programming, limited professional appearances at these shows." In March 1996, Great Eastern, at a very late time, cancelled what had been advertised as a larger-than-usual New York show, scheduled to be held at
7296-546: The letters from all across the country. In particular, Bails petitioned for the monthly publication of the JLA , and a year later for the revival of the Golden Age Atom as an all-new "6"-high" hero (to better reflect the name), which "whether as a result of Jerry's prodding DC or by mere coincidence" revival occurred in January 1961. Largely unbeknownst to Bails and Thomas, comics fandom had been underway for years in
7392-1342: The most successful inaugural comic book festival to that date. 1974 also saw the first OrlandoCon , organized by regional chairman of the National Cartoonists Society Jim Ivey; guests included C. C. Beck , Roy Crane , Hal Foster , Ron Goulart , and Les Turner . OrlandoCon ran annually for 20+ years until 1994. In 1976, there were 20 comic book conventions held throughout the United States; many of them attracted thousands of attendees. About this time specialized shows began being organized, emphasizing on such topics as so-called " underground comics ", EC Comics , women in comics, and individual creators like Frank Frazetta . In August 1979, FantaCo Enterprises publisher Thomas Skulan produced FantaCon '80 at The Egg convention center, Empire State Plaza , in Albany, New York. The first annual Albany-area horror and comic book convention, FantaCon ran annually until 1990. Beginning about 1980, Creation Entertainment expanded its conventions beyond New York, producing cons in San Francisco and Washington, D.C. By 1983,
7488-685: The name " Alter-ego " for a more ambitious version of a newsletter — a " fanzine ," appropriating some of what he had learned from Julie about science-fiction fandom to what he had already planned." Schwartz had, indeed, given Bails copies of Xero #1-3, as well as personal advice and memories based on his own involvement in the earliest science fiction fandom of the 1930s, in which Schwartz played an important — perhaps even integral — role. Working with Thomas and in conjunction with Schwartz, Bails contacted other comic book letter writers and invited them to subscribe to and participate in Alter Ego . Thomas
7584-761: The news that Jack Kirby was defecting from Marvel to DC, and DC's announcement that it was reviving Captain Marvel . On August 1–3, 1970, Shel Dorf produced the Golden State Comic-Con , held at the U.S. Grant Hotel , in San Diego. Official guests were Forrest J. Ackerman , Ray Bradbury , Jack Kirby , Bob Stevens , and A. E. van Vogt , and it drew 300 people. The three-day show evolved into San Diego Comic-Con , and now attracts 130,000 or more attendees. The Creation Convention debuted in 1971, organized by 14-year-old Queens schoolboys Adam Malin and Gary Berman, and held over Thanksgiving weekend at
7680-651: The organization produced Academy Con I (officially known as "Comi Con: Second Annual Convention of Academy of Comic-Book Fans and Collectors"), held July 31 – August 1, 1965, at the Broadway Central Hotel . With Kaler's management, the academy produced three successful "Academy Con" shows in New York during the summers of 1965–1967, attracting industry professionals such as Otto Binder , Bill Finger , Gardner Fox , Mort Weisinger , James Warren , Roy Thomas , Gil Kane , Stan Lee , Bill Everett , Carmine Infantino , and Julius Schwartz . As befitting
7776-565: The purpose of adding to their comic book collections." Inspired in part by the science-fiction fanzine /"adzine" The Fantasy Collector , comics fandom had "a need for a publication devoted primarily to the field" rather than the occasional advertisements of comics for sale that appeared in The Fantasy Collector . Bails' initial thought was "to run such ads in each issue of A/E , but it soon became clear that it couldn't be published often enough." Accordingly, in September 1961,
7872-542: The release of Tim Burton 's movie Batman in 1989, which began the convention circuit's newfound enthusiasm for movies. Great Eastern Conventions produced comic book conventions for almost 20 years, but most actively during the years 1987–1996. In New York City, the Great Eastern shows filled the gap after the mid-1980s demise of the annual Comic Art Convention and Creation Conventions . From 1993 to 1995, Great Eastern hosted two New York City shows annually at
7968-466: The resulting idea was soon named 'The Alley Award ', "named after Alley Oop " by Thomas "because surely a caveman had to be the earliest superhero chronologically." (Bill Schelly notes no one "bothered to ask the NEA Syndicate for permission to utilize V. T. Hamlin 's comic strip character." ) The Alley Awards were tallied yearly for comics produced during the previous year, with the last year
8064-479: The shape of comics fandom, and arguably shaped it anew, Xero had a significant role to play in Bails' work. Bill Schelly writes that, while important building blocks, the science fiction fanzines should be considered in the context of comics fandom. He notes that Don and Maggie Thompson's Comic Art and Xero were published by double-fans [science fiction and comics] and were read mainly by sf fans who generally had little interest in (or disdain for) new comics, even
8160-433: The term "panelologist" for comics fans and their hobby, implying a study of the panels which make up comics. Bails served as the Academy's first Executive Secretary, later passing his role on to fellow fan Paul Gambaccini (who termed himself "ExecSec2" ), who later gave way to Dave Kaler . Under Kaler's leadership, the Academy produced three successful conventions in New York City during the summers of 1965–1967. Despite
8256-508: The very earliest superhero comics fanzines . "On January 26, 1961," wrote Roy Thomas in 2003, "I received a letter from Jerry mentioning his idea for a "JLA newsletter" . . . [to which he was intending] to try to enlist Julie Schwartz's cooperation" in February 1961. The projected title and scope of The JLA Subscriber "gave way to something more ambitious" and, returning from visiting the DC offices in New York, Bails: "had come up with
8352-417: The world's largest comic book convention, in terms of attendees, is Japan's Comiket (first held in 1975), which boasts an annual attendance of more than half a million people. Italy's Lucca Comics & Games (first held in 1965) and France's Angoulême International Comics Festival (first staged in 1974) are the world's second and third largest comic festivals, respectively. In 1961 or 1962, Jerry Bails
8448-416: Was "microfilming rare, hard-to-find Golden Age comics," which film could then be loaned/viewed rather than the tangible comics themselves, reducing considerably wear and tear. Alongside Jules Feiffer 's Great Comic Book Heroes (1965), Bails' microfilm library was the major source of "substitutes for the real" comics themselves, which were rarely reprinted. To accommodate readers who did not have access to
8544-584: Was also involved in the tabulating of information about the people involved in both comics and comics fandom. Described in the ACBFC charter, Who's Who in Comic Fandom was the first concerted effort to provide a centralized store of data on the ever-increasing number of comics fans. It was released in April 1964 by Bails and L. Lattanzi. The volume opened with Bails' chronologies of both early comics fandom and
8640-590: Was born on June 26, 1933, in Kansas City , Missouri . A fan of comic books from a very early age, Bails was a particularly avid fan of All-Star Comics , and its premiere superteam (the Justice Society of America ) of whom he was "a fan since the first Justice Society adventure appeared in All-Star Comics #3 (Winter 1941)." He wrote in 1960 that by 1945, he "began my campaign to collect all
8736-657: Was considerable interest in developments at DC (especially the revival of Hawkman ), fans also closely followed the entrance of other companies into the costumed hero sweepstakes: Archie Comics , Gold Key , Charlton , and Marvel . In March 1962, issue #8 of On the Drawing Board was retitled The Comic Reader , and the (generally) monthly title became "a mainstay of fandom." With issue #25 Bails ceded his editorial duties, first to Glen Johnson, and later individuals, including Mark Hanerfeld . New York teenager Paul Levitz revived The Comic Reader in 1971, and it continued until 1984. Established in large part solely to deal with
8832-675: Was forwarded to former Justice Society writer Gardner Fox , and from Fox's reply of July 9, 1953, the two corresponded regularly. Bails was working steadily toward re-building his personal collection of the early issues of All Star Comics , and was finally able to convince Fox in early 1959 to sell him Fox's personal bound copies of All-Star Comics #1-24. In November 1960, a letter from young comics fan Roy Thomas to Julius Schwartz similarly inquiring about back issues of All-Star Comics led to Schwartz also putting Thomas in contact with All-Star writer Gardner Fox. Fox informed Thomas that "he had sold his bound volumes [of All-Star Comics ] to
8928-879: Was held in 1964 in New York City and was named New York Comicon. Early conventions were small affairs, usually organized by local enthusiasts (such as Jerry Bails , known later as the "Father of Comic Fandom", and Dave Kaler of the Academy of Comic-Book Fans and Collectors ), and featuring a few industry guests. The first recurring conventions were the Detroit Triple Fan Fair , which ran from 1965 to 1978, and Academy Con , which ran from 1965 to 1967. Many recurring conventions begin as single-day events in small venues, which as they grow more popular expand to two days, or even three or more every year. Many comic-cons which had their start in church basements or union halls now fill convention centers in major cities. Nowadays, comic conventions are big business, with recurring shows in every major American city. Comic book conventions in name only,
9024-446: Was named co-editor, and asked to contribute "a Mad -style parody, "The Bestest League of America." By March 28, Bails had prepared the ditto masters , and shortly thereafter "200 or more" copies of the first issue of the 21-page Alter-Ego #1 (now with a capital "E") were posted to Bails' ever-growing list of fans. The issue featured a "Bestest League" cover by Thomas and Bails, in homage to Mike Sekowsky 's cover for The Brave and
9120-672: Was vital for the formation of the Academy of Comic-Book Fans and Collectors (ACBFC), the first official organization of comic book enthusiasts and historians. The ACBFC brought fans of the medium together, administered the first industry awards, and assisted with the establishment of the first comic book conventions. The academy's first order of business was to administer the Alley Awards , which traced their origin to "a letter to Jerry dated October 25, 1961", by fellow enthusiast (and future comics professional) Roy Thomas , in which he suggested to Bails that his fanzine Alter-Ego create its own awards to reward fandom's "favorite comic books in
9216-692: Was £7.50 for both days. UKCAC ran annually until 1998. A number of still-extant conventions debuted in 1987, beginning with the Wonderful World of Comics Convention , held at the Oakland Convention Center, in Oakland, California. Later to be known as WonderCon , the convention was founded by San Jose native John Barrett , co-owner of the retail chain Comics and Comix . The multigenre Dragon*Con also debuted that year, hosted by
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