Bang a Gong! Comic Con!

Okay, I'm going to depart from the usual Dave's Long Box paradigm and get a little autobiographical on your ass and tell you about my trip to this year's Comic Con in sultry San Diego.



Nerd Vegas. Nerd Prom. Geek Mecca. The Terrordome. Comic Con International. Whatever you call it, it's the biggest comic/sci-fi/toy/movie/whatever convention in North America (I think) and it's usually pretty fun. I think if I spent the whole four days there I'd probably be ready to commit lightsaber seppuku, but one day of immersion in the Lazarus Pit of Pop Culture recharges my batteries and helps make me feel connected to the Hive Mind again.

I went on Friday this year, avoiding the Saturday crush. I got in as a guest on my friend Bob's pro pass, so no waiting in line and no entry fee for me, which is never a bad thing. Picked up some vintage Sternako Nick Fury comics, found that issue of Scurvy Dogs I was looking for (because pirates are the new monkeys), and generally just got a lot of crappy comics like Weird War Tales #119, the only comic which features monster-on-lion sodomy. I also finally found my beloved Detective Comics #479, the comic that got Young Dave Campbell into Batman in a big way. I'll be reviewing/fawning over that issue shortly.

Most of all, though, I just wandered around checking out the different booths and did some people watching. Marvel Comics was conspicuously absent - what's the deal with that? Are they so in bed with Wizard that they only do the Chicago show? Their absence from the Con was baffling, and it wasn't the first year they weren't there. The Ghost Rider motorcycle looked pretty cool, as did the life-size Lego Chewbacca. Hasbro had a covered Optimus Prime semi-truck there, guarded by blondes in tight shirts. Did they ever unveil that thing, or was it just a regular truck? I'm guessing the latter. There were the usual assortment of cosplay geeks, booth babes, beseiged pros, and minor celebrities. Look, freakishly tall Peter Mayhew! There's Ray Park! And Elizabeth "Showgirls" Berkley and her pissed-looking boyfriend. The stormtrooper quotient was pretty low this year, which made me a little nostalgic for years past when you couldn't swing a replica gaffi stick without smacking one of them.

--------

"...if I spent the whole four days there I'd probably be ready to commit lightsaber seppuku..."

--------

I've come to realize that I am a total wuss when it comes to talking to professional comic creators that I admire. I couldn't work up the nerve to stop Steven Grant on the floor and tell him how much I dig his stuff. Same with Peter David, Tony Millionaire, and Jill Thompson, who has nice hair, BTW. The list goes on. I just felt like such a fanboy that I couldn't bring myself to say hi, which sucks for me. I'm sure they wouldn't have minded, I don't know what my problem is.

Apparently I didn't have any trouble talking to cute cosplay girls, like the female Captain America and Ultimate Jean Grey (above) and the Black Cat (below). I don't know what that says about me - probably nothing flattering.



Man, I look fat. I'm taking prednisone right now, so my face has bloated to Phil Collins proportions. Get Dave a bucket of fried chicken, stat!

So, that was the Con for me.

The high point of my trip to SoCal was actually not Comic Con. On Saturday my friends Bob Lindenmayer (master prop collector and web designer for yes, My Little Pony and Transformers) and Ken Christiansen (ninja artist and my partner in sequential art crime, lord of Badflip Productions) and I all spent an afternoon at the home of the legendary Bob Burns, the ultimate movie prop and artifact collector. Ever.

I'm not only a comic geek, I'm also a big genre movie geek, so this was really special for me. My friend Bob L and Bob Burns are really tight, so we were invited over to Mr. Burns' home to check out his stuff. He has a huge add-on to his house that holds a Smithsonian's worth of movie stuff from every era. I swear to God, I gasped when I walked through the door.

Bob Burns has everything. Everything. I'm getting goose bumps just writing this, I really am.

--------

"Man, I look fat."

--------

Where do I start?

The Kroenen costume from Hellboy. Rohan armor and a life-size Uruk-Hai from The Lord of the Rings. Six or seven alien masks from the cantina scene in Star Wars. The Syd Mead designed Sulaco marine ship from Aliens, as well as a huge marine drop-ship miniature. Darth Vader's severed hand, with lightsaber. A giant chrome hunter-killer from Terminator. Everything from Alien - eggs, face-huggers, masks, claws, miniatures. Numerous Nautilus models from 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, one of which is five feet long. Lasers and blasters from every sci-fi movie you can think of. The frickin' time machine from George Pal's original Time Machine movie. The Creature from The Black Lagoon. Space helmets up the proverbial ass. Tons of Rick Baker's props from American Werewolf in London. Jet packs. Collectible toys. Matte paintings. Miniatures and maquettes and statues and costumes from hundreds of movies. The costumes from the 1940's Captain America and Captain Marvel serials. Rick Deckard's gun from Blade Runner. I could go on and on. I often do.

And this blew me away - the original stop-motion armatures from King Kong and Mighty Joe Young. Bob said that whenever Ray Harryhausen visits he puts them in different poses, and he just leaves them like that until Ray stops by again. You know, like it's no big deal.

It was the high point of my year, and such a great honor to be allowed to root through all his stuff. Bob and his charming wife Kathy Burns made us popcorn, got us some pop, and regaled us with a million stories and anecdotes. They were the most gracious, friendly people you'd ever meet. As Bob L said, "Yeah, they're quality." I think they just really enjoy sharing their passion with people who appreciate it, and I was just floored by their generosity and hospitality.

Okay, I'm gushing, but it really was an unforgettable and moving experience for a geek like me. Seriously, I almost cried I was so happy. I forgot all about Comic Con and just bathed in the film history.

Here's a shot of me with Oscar winning special effects artist Rick Baker's werewolf from American Werewolf in London. This is the puppet that they used during the London rampage sequence at the end of the film. Fucking brilliant.



I hope Mr Burns doesn't mind if I post a picture of all of us. Here's Bob Burns, Bob Lindenmayer, me, and Ken Christiansen in the middle of the legendary "Bob's Basement." Behind us are a bunch of alien heads from the Alien films. Over to the left you can just barely see a big-ass Popeye statue, and behind that -- you see those boots on the wall? Those are Boris Karloff's Frankenstein boots from the classic 1931 Universal movie. You see what I mean? Movie history.



How does he get all this stuff, you ask? People give it to him, because they know it will have a good home. Jim Cameron, Rick Baker, Guillermo del Toro, Peter Jackson... they all love the guy, and now I do too.

All hail Bob and Kathy Burns! They probably have no idea how much my afternoon with them meant to me. Have I mentioned the twenty foot tentacle from 20,000 Leagues in his garage...?

All that, and I got to hang out with two of my favorite homies? Best. Weekend. Ever.