The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books . Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman , the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics , to be a successor to the Kirby Awards , which were discontinued in 1987.
83-579: The Harvey Awards are now nominated by the Harvey Awards Nomination Committee. The winners are selected by an open vote among comic-book professionals. The Harveys are no longer affiliated with Fantagraphics. The Harvey Awards Executive Committee is made up of unpaid volunteers, and the Awards are financed through sponsorships. Since their inception, the awards have been hosted at a string of comic book conventions , starting at
166-774: A 2007 illustrated novel , and continued as a comic book series. It was created by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden . Like Baltimore , Joe Golem: Occult Detective began as an illustrated prose novel (2012's Joe Golem and the Drowning City ) and later continued as a comic book series. It was created by Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden and exists in a shared universe with Baltimore called "The Outerverse". Alan Moore has described Mignola's style as " German expressionism meets Jack Kirby ". His style has also been likened to an amalgamation of Hal Foster and Alex Toth . Mignola worked as an illustrator for Francis Ford Coppola 's 1992 movie Bram Stoker's Dracula . He
249-550: 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,
332-559: A conscious level. That is the beauty of it. I was raised Catholic. I was taught a bunch of stuff. I find religion fascinating, but at no time does any of that tie my hands. I get to play with stuff without getting too reverential. There's some Miltonian stuff to the geography of my Hell, the Hell I'm doing is much closer to the world I created in The Amazing Screw-On Head . It's this pile, this jumble of old buildings for
415-642: 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
498-651: 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
581-401: A decade later in 2008's The Drowning . Since then it has had several short stories and beginning in 2013 it became an ongoing series with Scott Allie as the lead writer with Mignola. Lobster Johnson was the next spinoff, debuting as a back-up feature in 1999's Box Full of Evil . The series got its own title later in 2007's Lobster Johnson: The Iron Prometheus . It returned again with
664-628: 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
747-681: 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
830-558: 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
913-669: 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
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#1732779763936996-532: 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
1079-593: 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
1162-464: 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
1245-427: Is an American comic book writer best known for creating Hellboy for Dark Horse Comics , part of a shared universe of titles including B.P.R.D. , Abe Sapien , Lobster Johnson , and various spin-offs . He has also created other supernatural and paranormal themed titles for Dark Horse including Baltimore , Joe Golem , and The Amazing Screw-On Head . Mike Mignola was born September 16, 1960. He
1328-553: Is one of the covers that a lot of people kind of go back to. I wish I had something profound to say about it. But at the time, it was just another job." In contrast, Mignola did not address his cover illustration of the Joker , and the accompanying cover text, for Batman #429. His visual depiction of the Joker anticipated prospective advertisements for his work in Gotham by Gaslight , yet
1411-490: Is the main series continuing after the catastrophic events at the conclusion of the Plague of Frogs cycle. Guy Davis left the series in 2011 with the conclusion of Hell on Earth: Gods . Tyler Crook became the new ongoing artist beginning with Hell on Earth: Monsters , but he is joined by several regular artists, most notably James Harren and Laurence Campbell . Continuing where Hell on Earth left off, The Devil You Know
1494-565: Is written by Mike Mignola and Scott Allie with Laurence Campbell serving as the regular artist. Sir Edward Grey, Witchfinder (more commonly known simply as " Witchfinder ") began with a teaser story in 2008's MySpace Dark Horse Presents #16 , followed by a full miniseries in 2009. It follows the stories of the occult investigator, Sir Edward, agent of Queen Victoria . The Frankenstein began with Frankenstein Underground in 2015. Set in 1956, this miniseries follows Frankenstein (in
1577-515: The Hellboy series and features interviews with industry figures like Guillermo del Toro and Neil Gaiman . The documentary has been noted for its comprehensive portrayal of Mignola's impact on the worlds of comics and film. As of 2014, Mignola resides in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter. Regarding the influence of his religious upbringing on his artwork, Mignola explained in a 2014 interview, "No, I don't believe in anything, really. Not on
1660-625: The New York Times quoted Harvey Awards co-chair John Lind as explaining “We decided to balance the induction class with some of the past creators who may have been overlooked.” In October 2020, the Harvey Awards were presented during a virtual ceremony broadcast "as part of New York Comic Con and MCM Comic Con ’s Metaverse, hosted by Vivek Tiwary and featuring appearances from Gene Luen Yang , Neil Gaiman , Jill Thompson and Damon Lindelof ". The Harvey Awards are awarded in
1743-954: 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
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#17327797639361826-969: The Chicago Comicon , and subsequently moving to the Dallas Fantasy Fair , Wondercon , the Pittsburgh Comicon , the MoCCA Festival , the Baltimore Comic-Con , and currently the New York Comic Con . The Harvey Awards were created as an industry award voted on entirely by comics professionals (as opposed to awards such as the Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Awards and the Eagle Awards , which were also voted on by fans). The new awards established several categories that were new from their predecessor
1909-875: 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
1992-575: 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
2075-714: The Kirby Awards , including awards for inking, lettering, coloring, and production design. The Harvey Awards were initially sponsored by Fantagraphics , the Texas-based retailer Lone Star Comics , and the Eastern Region Comic Book Retailers Association (ERCBRA). Fantagraphics established the relationship with Harvey Kurtzman , designed the ballots, and compiled a mailing list of more than 1,000 comics professionals. Employees at Lone Star Comics were in charge of tabulating
2158-468: 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,
2241-623: 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;
2324-1018: 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
2407-525: 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
2490-402: The miniseries The Burning Hand in 2012, followed by various short stories. B.P.R.D. was the third spinoff, but it was the first one which was conceived to be more than just a one-off side story, but rather a series of stories. It began with 2002's Hollow Earth , which continued on from Hellboy: Conqueror Worm . Beyond that followed a series of short stories designed to explore what
2573-518: 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
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2656-589: 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
2739-406: The B.P.R.D. series could be. 2004's Plague of Frogs was the story that solidified what the series was, and would set the direction for future books to come, so much so that the first major story cycle is collected in omnibus editions titled B.P.R.D.: Plague of Frogs . A vast majority of the stories in this era were co-written with John Arcudi and drawn by Guy Davis . B.P.R.D.: Hell on Earth
2822-522: The Bold . Hellboy was made into a feature film in 2004 by director Guillermo del Toro . Mignola was closely involved with the movie's production, and a sequel was released in 2008. Hellboy has been made into two direct-to-video animated films, Sword of Storms in 2006 and Blood and Iron in 2007. Mignola's The Amazing Screw-On Head debuted in 2006 on the Sci-Fi Channel , starring
2905-649: 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,
2988-541: The Dallas Fantasy Fair was cancelled at the last minute in July 1996, the awards banquet/presentation was also cancelled. The awards were later mailed out to the recipients. WonderCon hosted the awards from 1997 to 1999. The 2000–2002 awards were presented at the Pittsburgh Comicon , with Evan Dorkin serving as master of ceremonies. Jeff Smith was the keynote speaker of the 2000 awards. Frank Miller gave
3071-490: The Family " and "Dark Knight, Dark City". Writer Brian Augustyn and Mignola crafted the Gotham by Gaslight one-shot in 1989. In an early 2000s interview, Mignola was asked if his 1988 cover art and cover text for Batman #428 anticipated the telephone vote for the death of the second Robin ( Jason Todd ). Mignola responded: "It's so amazing to me that people are still talking about that damn thing. I didn't know if he
3154-596: The Family," particularly Batman #429, which prompted debates over Mignola's intentions. Through the early 1990s Mignola worked on covers and backup features for various DC and Marvel Comics. He collaborated twice with writer Howard Chaykin . In 1990–1991, they produced the Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser limited series for Epic Comics , with inker Al Williamson . This was followed with the Ironwolf: Fires of
3237-487: The Harvey Award ceremony was moved to the New York Comic Con . The first year, only a small reception honoring the legacy of Harvey Kurtzman was held, and no nominations or voting took place. Darwyn Cooke was posthumously awarded Harvey Awards Hall of Fame induction, presented by Adam Kubert and accepted by Cooke's widow Marsha. In 2018, the 30th anniversary of the awards was celebrated with a full ceremony held during
3320-592: The Harvey Awards gala was held on October 4, at an invite only gala in New York City during New York Comic Con. In addition to announcing the winners in the individual nominated categories, seven creators were inducting into the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame including Mike Mignola and Alison Bechdel . The inclusion of an additional five creators inducted posthumously, Will Elder , Jack Davis , Marie Severin , John Severin , and Ben Oda , served to correct past omissions. In regards to these additional inductees,
3403-740: The Hellboy Universe, the Frankenstein monster takes his father's name) as he ventures into the Pellucidar-like Hollow Earth . This also canonized Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus . The series was further expanded in 2020 with Frankenstein Undone , a direct sequel to Shelley's novel. Numerous spinoffs have been published that are set in the Hellboy universe: Baltimore began with
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3486-505: 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
3569-581: The Joker in Conrad Veidt 's 1928 portrayal of Gwynplaine for The Man Who Laughs . A scene from Tim Burton 's Batman , released in June 1989 (United States), additionally featured Jack Nicholson 's Joker in a top hat , but without a monocle . Two years later, Jack Shaheen published an assessment of Islamophobia pervasive in Jim Starlin 's plot and Jim Aparo 's interior pencils for "Death in
3652-736: 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
3735-604: 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
3818-615: 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
3901-432: The Pittsburgh Comicon). The award winners were announced at the convention. In 2004 and 2005, the presentation was held at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art MoCCA Festival in New York City . In 2006 the awards' presentation was moved to Baltimore Comic-Con , where it was subsequently held annually through 2016. During this era, Paul McSpadden served as the Harvey Awards administrator. Beginning on October 7, 2017,
3984-503: The Revolution graphic novel in 1992. Prior to 1994 Mignola's career had been spent doing work-for-hire illustration for corporate publishers. That year, Dark Horse Comics released Hellboy: Seed of Destruction , Mignola's creator-owned project. Though he wrote the story himself, it was scripted by John Byrne . The next Hellboy story, The Wolves of Saint August , was completely written and drawn by Mignola. Since then all Hellboy stories have been written solely by Mignola with
4067-402: 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
4150-416: The ballots. The nominations for the first Harvey Awards were announced in May 1988, and the awards were presented at the Chicago Comicon in July 1988. The Dallas Fantasy Fair hosted the awards from 1989 until the Fair's demise in 1996. The 1993 Awards presentation took place shortly after Kurtzman's death; weekend events at the convention were geared toward raising money to keep the awards going. Because
4233-414: 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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#17327797639364316-463: 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
4399-506: 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
4482-501: 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. Mike Mignola Michael Mignola ( / m ɪ n - ˈ j oʊ - l ə / ; born September 16, 1960)
4565-481: 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,
4648-415: The convention. Beginning that year, the Harvey Awards were revised to six new categories for the main awards and three possible Special Awards. The main award nominations go to works instead of individuals. The nomination process was also revamped to be done by a selection committee instead of an open vote. Final selection for the main awards was still done by an open vote by industry professionals. In 2019,
4731-501: 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;
4814-513: The cover text still adhered to the " Death in the Family " storyline. This Elseworlds Joker is only briefly discussed in Gotham by Gaslight as a man who married ten wealthy widows, poisoned all ten with strychnine , and then ingested the poison himself when police attempted an arrest, resulting in partial facial paralysis. Mignola included a black-and-white police sketch in Gotham by Gaslight that did not replicate his Batman #429 cover art, choosing instead to root that Elseworlds incarnation of
4897-421: 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,
4980-406: 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
5063-503: 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
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#17327797639365146-516: The exception of They That Go Down to the Sea in Ships , which was co-written by Joshua Dysart. Makoma (2006) was the first Hellboy story not drawn by Mignola, featuring the art of Richard Corben . Corben would return to draw many flashback stories for the series. Other artists have also had a hand in drawing flashback stories including Jason Shawn Alexander , Kevin Nowlan and Scott Hampton . In 2007, following after 2005's The Island , British artist Duncan Fegredo took over art duties on
5229-438: 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
5312-515: 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;
5395-499: The following categories: As of 2020, awards are presented in six main categories: Special Awards chosen by the Harvey Awards Executive Committee: Comic book conventions 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
5478-406: 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
5561-410: 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
5644-410: 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
5727-450: The keynote speech at the 2001 award ceremony, in which he vilified the comic book speculating industry, in particular Wizard magazine . He ended his speech by tearing up a copy of Wizard . Tony Millionaire gave the keynote speech at the 2002 awards ceremony. In 2003, due to a cancellation by scheduled keynote speaker Neil Gaiman , funding shortages forced the cancellation of that year's ceremony and banquet (which had been scheduled for
5810-1069: 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,
5893-634: 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
5976-404: The ongoing story arc of Hellboy from Darkness Calls onwards. Mike Mignola returned as the full-time artist for Hellboy in 2012 for the series' conclusion, Hellboy in Hell . In 1998 the first Hellboy spinoff, Abe Sapien , was launched. It was not written by Mike Mignola, but it did feature his Hellboy short story " Heads " as a back-up. Abe Sapien did not take off properly until
6059-651: 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
6142-601: The penciler on titles such as The Incredible Hulk , Alpha Flight , and the Rocket Raccoon limited series. In 1987, he began working for DC Comics as well. He drew the Phantom Stranger and World of Krypton limited series. With writer Jim Starlin , Mignola produced the Cosmic Odyssey miniseries in 1988. Mignola drew covers for several Batman stories, including " Batman: A Death in
6225-542: 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
6308-662: The voices of Paul Giamatti and David Hyde Pierce . Mignola worked on the script for the R-rated Hellboy reboot film (2019), that was directed by Neil Marshall , and starred David Harbour as Hellboy. Mignola also co-wrote the screenplay for a 2024 reboot film titled Hellboy: The Crooked Man alongside Chris Golden. In 2022, Mignola's career was highlighted in the documentary Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters . Directed by Kevin Konrad Hanna and Jim Demonakos , this film explores Mignola's journey in creating
6391-417: 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
6474-583: Was also the production designer for the Disney feature film Atlantis: The Lost Empire in 2001 and a concept artist for 2002's Blade II and Pixar 's Brave . Mignola was hired by Bruce Timm to provide character designs for Batman: The Animated Series in 1991. His redesign of Mr. Freeze was used for the series. Mignola's design of the 1880s Batman costume from the comic Batman: Gotham by Gaslight appeared in Batman: The Brave and
6557-440: Was going to live or die, because I did the cover ahead of time. So the idea was: I'll draw him dead, and if he lives, then it's just a cover of him being badly hurt. I've gotta say---I don't think I was giving it a lot of thought. I never imagined I'd be talking about it all these years later." When asked if fans continued to question him about that cover, he replied, "You know, it does crop up. When people talk about my career, that
6640-954: 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,
6723-957: Was raised Catholic . Mignola was born in Berkeley, California . He began his career in 1980 by illustrating spots in The Comic Reader . His first published piece was in The Comic Reader #183, a spot illustration of Red Sonja (pg. 9). His first published front cover was The Comic Reader #196 in November 1981. In 1982 he graduated from the California College of the Arts with a BFA in Illustration. In 1983 he worked as an inker at Marvel Comics on Daredevil and Power Man and Iron Fist and later became
6806-672: 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
6889-692: 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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