Looking For Something Cool To Do In Chicago Next Saturday Night?

Our pals over at Chicago Comics are throwing an in -store par-tay next Saturday night and our man The Mighty Mark Fitch will be in the building doing beer bongs and generally making merriment for all. Swing by Chicago Comics, say hi to Eric & Eric, the rest of the staff and our man in Chi Town, Fitchie. We’ll be giving away C2E2 t-shirts, raffling prizes, selling discounted tickets to the most massive con to hit downtown Chicago in decades (and they do not have a service charge on them no matter what Fitch says). Don’t miss out, Chicago Comics, C2E2 and Mark Fitch juggling chainsaws.

Here’s the invite form Chicago Comics:

Saturday Night Wizard World Party!
Wash the stink of Rosemont off you with booze!
Host: Chicago Comics
Date: Saturday, August 8, 2009
Time: 8:00pm - 11:00pm Location: Chicago Comics (3244 N Clark Chicago, IL)
Phone: 7735281983

Chicago Comics is having a party after Wizard World on Saturday Aug. 8th from 8-11PM!! All are welcome! Free drinks, food, grillin', DJ Arped spinning his little heart out, and special gifts and prizes courtesy of the fine gents at C2E2. Come celebrate the end of one era and the beginning of a new one with fine malted beverages, grilled flesh, and a bevy of comic nerds!

DramaFever Launch Party!

NYAF friend David Hou is currently working on a new site, DramaFever.com. An online video portal for high-quality, subtitled Asian prime time television -- all 100% legal thanks to ground-breaking partnerships with top Asian networks including MBC America and KBS Internet Co., Ltd, it’s going to be the Hulu of Asian Dramas.

The public launch date of DramaFever.com is Thursday, August 6, and to celebrate, DramaFever will host a launch party this same day in New York City at Circle Nightclub. The event is free and open to the (21+) public. Guests will receive gift bags from sponsors Ito En, Theme Magazine, TimeOutNY magazine, mark. cosmetics, MiN New York, and La Vie Zen Spa, and there will also be special performances by Asian American artists Magnetic North, Kelly Zen-Yie Tsai, and Taiyo Na.

DramaFever Launch Party
August 6, 7-9 PM
Circle Nightclub
135 W. 41st St.

Get your drama on!

Caturday!

C2E2 Ticket Sales Are Live!!!!

Click here to go to the ticket site and maybe you can be a founding member of C2E2!

-L

NYAF Goes To Japan!

UPDATE 3! Team USA - Liz and Dia - just took home the Brother Award at the World Cosplay Summit! The WCS gives out the Brother Award for Best Costuming. Huzzah and Kudos, Liz and Dia! UPDATE 3!

UPDATE 2! In addition to LJinto's photos on Flickr, Ms. Anna Fischer is posting pictures of the trip to Japan as well. Be sure to visit both LJinto's and Anna's accounts for regular updates. UPDATE 2!

UPDATE! Want to cheer Team USA on? Leave a message on the NYAF Message Board! Send your support to Liz and Dia from the USA! UPDATE!

ORIGINAL POST...

After visiting Chicago, Baltimore, and San Diego, I'm back home in New York. My whirlwind convention tour had its highs (spotting David Tennant at breakfast) and lows (my inability to sleep during redeye flights), but it's come to an end, and you can now expect a loudening drum beat as we close the distance to NYAF.

But while I'm back in NYC, not all the NYAF staff is. NYAF friends Anna Fischer, Renee Gloger, and LJinto along with World Cosplay Summit Team USA -- India Davis and Elizabeth Licata -- are right now in Tokyo, sightseeing and causing chaos in the lead up to this year's World Cosplay Summit.

To the right's a photo LJinto sent over of Dia, Renee, Anna, and Liz (left to right) in a tranquil garden. LJinto's got more photos of the girls online over at Flickr, including some shots of them visiting Tokyo's giant Gundam. Check his images out, and follow Team USA as they tour through Japan over on their official LiveJournal page. Be sure to send them your love from the USA.

And if you want to go to Japan, sign up for the Yume Cosplay Prize right now at www.nyanimefestival.com, as the winners of NYAF's Masquerade this year will be heading out to the Tokyo Anime Fair!

Streaming Medium - Our New Virtual Radio Show

For reasons that are complicated to explain as they are deeply rooted in frivolity and merrymaking, I’m happy to introduce to you the latest venture from the clowns that bring you NYCC, C2E2, NYAF (and play in the same sandbox as PAX and UFC Fan Expo – meaning US!) – Streaming Medium, the first ever radio show/pod cast/audio incarnation of the Medium at Large blog.

That’s right, Streaming Medium, a radio show. Why? Why not say I! So what is it? Is it a podcast? Kinda. A radio show? Sorta. What we know is it will be the crew that brings you your favorite pop culture shows talking about the shows, giving you updates from the world of pop culture, interviewing guests, taking your comments and calls and streaming it all online twice a month.

The first episode will be available via the blog on Tuesday August 4th (assuming we can get it all edited in time!) and the first and third Tuesday of the month after that (assuming we can all be together to record it). We’ll also work on getting it up on iTunes as a podcast subscription in the coming weeks.

So how you can join in on the fun?

You can record questions or comments on our toll free voice mail line by calling here: 877-547-6398. When we have guests, you’ll also be able to record questions for them by calling here, just know that if you leave a message, it may end up on the broadcast.

Prefer email? Send us a note at: streamingmedium@reedexpo.com

So call or write and help us out with the first episode of Streaming Medium and then check back on Tuesday the 4th of August to listen!

-L

The Book vs The Kindle

From my good pals at Green Apple Books in San Francisco:

C2E2 Tickets On Sale! The Cheapest Ticket for the Best Show. Be A Founding Member!

In two days, tickets for the first ever C2E2 will go on sales via our web site (C2E2.com) – Tuesday at noon Chicago time. OK, this is not like Washington crossing the Delaware or Armstrong walking on the moon, but it is a pretty big deal. For the first time in as long as anyone I’ve spoken with can remember, a massive con will spring up right in the middle (ok, more like the edge) of downtown Chicago. Yeah, a con actually in Chicago and a kick ass con it will be!

We wanted to make sure and reward the fans that were the first to buy tickets and support us. So for the first 100 fans to buy tickets on Thursday will forever be known as the Founding Members of C2E2 and all 100 of C2E2’s Founding Members will receive a public thanks and have their names displayed both online at www.C2E2.com as well as printed in C2E2’s official Program Guide. Even better, all of C2E2’s Founding Members will be provided priority entrance to C2E2’s show floor, so that not only will they be the first fans to purchase C2E2 tickets, but they will also be the first fans to set foot inside C2E2. And, through a gracious partnership with Chicago retailer Chicago Comics, all C2E2 Founding Members will additionally receive 20% off a future Chicago Comics Purchase.

Cool eh? I will also personally drive all of you to the con. OK, maybe not, but the rest of it is pretty cool.

But even if you are not one of the first 100 we have set ticket prices insanely low that everyone can afford C2E2. In fact, I’m pretty sure we are about the cheapest ticket of any major con out there. Consider this a thanks to all the fans of the Midwest for the support…..

Starting Wednesday until September 1st C2E2 tickets will be available at a special Early Bird price:

Weekend Pass - $45
Single Day Pass - $20.

Seriously, $20 bucks for the biggest con to hit the Midwest in years? And no hidden convenience fees!

Sorry, I just couldn’t resist that one.

Buy your tickets, tell your friends, be a founding member!

-L

San Diego Comic-Con – Cool, Conflicting…..

Just back with the C2E2/NYCC team from a few chaotic days in San Diego and I’m not sure whether to applaud or just shake my head over what I saw in San Diego. What an insanely impressive gathering of all things that are pop culture. My buddy Chris Carle at IGN.com was telling my Friday night how that day he had interviewed 30 people, almost all of which he never though he’d get to talk to, ever, let alone all in one day in one place. The show is amazing.


We sit back at NYCC/NYAF/C2E2 global headquarters throughout the year and feel like we’ve done a good job with our shows. A good job pleasing our fans and customers. A good job growing the events. Then you head to Mecca and see just how far we have to go! So it is cool, don’t get me wrong. Amazingly cool. But conflicting and ultimately inspiring.

Peter asked a good question – isn’t it odd there are no comic shops in San Diego?

While there I had about 25 various meetings and we are working on some fairly big things for both NYCC and C2E2. Nothing I can say just yet, but trust me, Chicago, you will not be disappointed come April and New York, we may have something even bigger in store for you fans come 2010…..

Talked with Alex Ross’s main man Sal and got some updates on how the official C2E2 posters are coming along. Alex is working on two different versions and already has them sketched (and if you’ve seen his sketches, that’s pretty far a long!) they both sounds awesome and feature the city of Chicago prominently in them.

In other C2E2 guest related news from San Diego, Jeff Smith got signed up for additional projects with his publisher Scholastic, nice that he’ll have some cool new stuff to talk about as our Guest of Honor in April.

Lastly in show updates, has anyone noted the release date of Iron Man 2? Think about it, that’s all I’m saying.

Glad San Diego is behind me, now it’s all eyes on NYAF and C2E2 and speaking of C2E2, check the next post for an update on ticket sales.

-L