Press Release:

HERO INITIATIVE HITS 2012 ORLANDO MEGACON

George Pérez, original covers and top costumers are among the highlights

Los Angeles, CA (February 7, 2012) Hero Initiative, the non-profit organization that aids comic creators in medical and financial need, will be adding to the craziness at the Orlando MegaCon, February 17-19 at the Orange County Convention Center located at 9800 International Drive in Orlando, Fla.

When you purchase your tickets for this amazing weekend, make sure you “Become the Hero!” and make a small donation to our cause. Down at the bottom of the page where it mentions, “Please support the Hero Initiative,” you can add in $1, $5 or $10 as you buy your tickets. Please purchase your tickets at: http://megaconvention.thundertix.com/orders/new?performance_id=57024

When you get to the convention, make sure you get your picture taken with the Hero Initiative costumers just inside the D1 lobby doors. These peeps know their stuff, and they’re some of the top costumers in the nation.

The one and only George Pérez will be at the Hero booth all weekend, located at #531. Make sure to get your sketches and signatures from George here! And while you’re waiting, you’ll have the first chance to see the NEW Fantastic Four #600 original covers, our newest “100 covers” project!

Art lovers will NOT want to miss the FINAL leg of Hero’s original JLA cover auctions! The last 34 covers go up on the block Friday, Feb. 17 at 6:30 PM in Room 240c. Be there!

And to top off your weekend, the Geeks of Comedy are there to tickle your funny bone. Check out their great comedy show Saturday, Feb. 18 at 10 PM in Room 221B&E.

Hero Initiative’s booth schedule, booth #531:

Friday, Feb. 17 (con hours 12-7)
All day: George Pérez
130-230: Nelson DeCastro

300-345: “100 JLA” book signing with Cully Hamner, Dan Jurgens, George Pérez, Mike Perkins, Alex Saviuk, Billy Tucci

Saturday, Feb. 18 (con hours 10-6)

All day: George Pérez

1030-1230: Allen Bellman

1240-130: Tim Sale

130-230: Phil Hester

Sunday, Feb. 19 (con hours 10-5)

All day: George Pérez

1130-1230: Darwyn Cooke

1230-130: Nelson DeCastro

130-230: Phil Hester

About The Hero Initiative

The Hero Initiative is the first-ever federally chartered not-for-profit corporation dedicated strictly to helping comic book artists and craftsmen in need. Hero Initiative creates a financial safety net for yesterday’s creators who may need emergency medical aid, financial support for essentials of life, and an avenue back into paying work. It’s a chance for all of us to give back something to the people who have given us so much enjoyment.

Since its inception, The Hero Initiative has had the good fortune to grant over $500,000 to the comics veterans who have paved the way for those in the industry today. For more information, visit www.heroinitiative.org or call 626-676-6354.

Press Release:

NERD NATION PODCAST TO SPOTLIGHT INDY CREATORS AT MEGACON!
Hero Initiative to appear

February 18th, 2012
The Nerd Nation Podcast will be hosting an Artists Alley Spotlight Panel at this years Megacon Convention. The focus will be on creating comics on a budget, the steps to take in putting together a team, and the creators books themselves.

The panel will break the mold of panels, stressing interactivity between the panelists and the audience, including one on one time with the creators. There will be a fan VS Indy creators trivia contest with dozens of prizes.

The panelists are….

Derrick Fish
www.thewellkeeper.com

Kate Carleton
www.naughtybicycle.com

Martin Pierro
www.cosmictimes.net

Mike Wagganer
www.mikewagganer.com

James Whynot
www.cosmictimes.net

The first 50 attendees will also recieve a Nerd Nation Swag Bag featuring promotional material from Megacon vendors and artists. The Hero Initiative will also be present to discuss the good work that they do and to give out information about the charity.The panel will be Saturday, February 18th at 6:30 PM in Hall 221 C.

Megacon is from February 17th-19Th at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. The Nerd Nation podcast goes live every Thursday 9:30 Pm EST on
www.blogtalkradio.com/nerdnation. They can also be downloaded on Itunes and seen at www.investcomics.com/nerd-nation

Press Release:

Tampa Bay Comic Con Gets Better Than Ever

January 25th, 2012 – The Tampa Bay Comic Con will return in March with greater grandeur than ever before with its brand new two-day format convention. On March 3-4, 2012, convention attendees will be able to experience a Tampa Bay Comic Con that offers more activities and special events than ever before, such as artist panels and after-hours events with convention guest creators and celebrities.

At the forefront of the convention additions will be an all-new, full-scale, video game tournament held by SuperCon 2k Series! For the first time, attendees will be able to go head-to-head with other attendees in games such as “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3”, “Halo Reach”, “Soul Calibur 5” and “Super Smash Bros. Brawl”.

The buzz and palpable excitement surrounding the Tampa Bay Comic Con’s success and expansion is perhaps only matched with their announced “guest of honor”: Jim Steranko. As an artist for many Stan Lee written comic book stories during the “Silver Age” of comic books (primarily Captain America, Nick Fury and X-Men), Steranko played an integral role in “modernizing” the genre to meet the changing and maturing tastes of readers during the turbulent late 1960s. Steranko single-handedly revolutionized the comic book industry when he employed artistic techniques never seen before in comics such as “op-art” (optical effects), “pop art” and surrealism.

As another event open to attendees, the Tampa Bay Comic Con will make available a small amount of tickets to an exclusive dinner party with Jim Steranko and J. David Spurlock at the posh and quintessential Italian steakhouse, “The Palm”. The purchase of a reservation will include a full-course, world-class meal at The Palm, five autographs from Jim Steranko and of course the priceless experience of such an occasion. Dinner reservations can be made through Tampa Bay Comic Con (“Show Schedule” section) or through its eBay partner, “AstonishingComicsFL” ( http://stores.ebay.com/Astonishing-Comics-of-Florida). This event is by early reservation or invitation only.

Other Tampa Bay Comic Con guests will include: Mike Grell who is a legendary artist widely known for his work on “Green Lantern”, “Warlord” and “Green Arrow”. Mark Ryan, an actor and writer known for his work in the film series “Transformers” and writer of “The Pilgrim”. Mike Mayhew, a highly acclaimed artist known for his extremely precise and photo-realistic art style. Pablo Marcos, a Peruvian-born comic book artist admired for his widespread work for Marvel Comics, perhaps best known for his work in titles such as “Conan the Barbarian” and “Vampirella”. Mike Perkins, who’s more recent work, includes “Captain America” and Stephen Kings, “The Stand”. J. David Spurlock, artist, author and founder of Vanguard Productions.

Tampa Bay Comic Con will be held on Saturday and Sunday, March 3-4, 2012 at the Doubletree Hotel in Tampa, FL from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Saturday and 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM on Sunday. Convention admission is $10.00 for adults and free for children (12 and under). Reserve hotel rooms at the Doubletree Hotel through the Tampa Bay Comic Con for special discounted hotel room rates. The address is:

4500 West Cypress Street
Tampa, FL 33607

Please e-mail: inquiries@tampabaycomiccon.com
http://www.TampaBayComicCon.com

Jeff Kinney signs at Barnes & Noble on Thursday February 16, 2012 at 6:00 PM.

Author Event
Mr. Kinney is here in conjunction with the Celebration of Reading event. A portion of the proceeds from the books purchased for the signing will be used to help promote literacy.

Special Instructions
Wristbands will be issued starting at 10:00 am. You must purchase a copy of at least one of his books to get a wristband. Only one book can be brought from home to be signed. Due to the expected crowd size, Mr. Kinney will only be signing his name. Photos are allowed during signing, but no posed pictures.

Barnes & Noble – Bonita Springs
23130 Fashion Drive, Estero, FL 33928
239-947-8724

Gene Luen Yang

Press Release:

Gene Luen Yang is a comic artist, graphic novelist and educator. He teaches computer science at a high school in Oakland, California. Mr. Yang’s interest in comics started in 5^thgrade when he started reading and drawing them. It was further inspired in high school after he took a comics class.

In 2006, Mr. Yang was named a finalist for the National Book Award in the young people’s literature category for his graphic novel, American Born Chinese. This was the first graphic novel to be nominated for a National Book Award. He also won the 2007 Michael L. Printz Award for young-adult literature for the same novel, a first for a graphic novel.

Mr. Yang’s other graphic novels include Prime Baby which addresses the topic of sibling rivalry with a science fiction twist, Eternal Smile with Derek Kirk Kim and Level-Up, illustrated by Thien Pham. One reviewer notes that Level-Up “confronts the tension between staying true to yourself on the one hand, and being committed to familial duty on the other.”

Join us for an evening with Mr. Yang on Thursday, January 26, @ 6:30 PM in Meeting Room A for a workshop on How to Make Comics and an opportunity to ask him about his work.

Alachua County Library
401 East University Avenue, Gainesville, FL 32601
(352) 334-3900

Marc Tyler Nobleman signs at Books & Books on Saturday, February 4, 2012 at 7:00 pm.

Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, two misfit teens in Depression-era Cleveland, were more like Clark Kent—meek, mild, and myopic—than his secret identity, Superman. Both boys escaped into the worlds of science fiction and pulp magazine adventure tales. Jerry wrote stories, and Joe illustrated them. In 1934, they created a superhero who was everything they were not. It was four more years before they convinced a publisher to take a chance on their Man of Steel in a new format—the comic book. The author includes a provocative afterword about Jerry and Joe’s long struggle with DC Comics when they realized they had made a mistake in selling all rights to Superman for a mere $130.

Marc Tyler Nobleman’s Boys of Steel captures the excitement of Jerry and Joe’s triumph, and the energetic illustrations by Ross MacDonald, the author-artist of Another Perfect Day, are a perfect complement to the time, the place, and the two young visionaries.

Books & Books
265 Aragon Ave, Coral Gables, FL 33134

Press Release:

ORLANDO MEGACON MEDIA GUEST LIST IS GETTING BIGGER

MegaCon, the largest comic book, anime, gaming and multi media event in the Southeast, is pleased to announce the addition of guests and events to its February 17^th – 19^th, 2012 show. MegaCon will take place at the Orange County Convention Center at 9800 International Drive in Orlando, FL.

TOM FELTON just added to the Megacon Media Guest list.  Tom played Draco Malfoy in all eight of the award winning Harry Potter movies. He also recently portrayed Dodge Landon in the award winning Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

Other media stars include:

Star Trek Voyager – Robert Picardo (The Doctor), Tim Russ (Tuvok)

Vampire Diaries – Joseph Morgan (Klaus), David Anders (John Gilbert), Lauren Cohan (Rose)

Babylon 5 – Bruce Boxleitner (John Sheridan), Peter Jurasik (Londo Mollari), and Stephen Furst (Vir Cotto)

Star Wars – David Prowse (Darth Vader), Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca), Richard LeParmentier (Admiral Motti) and Daniel Logan (Boba Fett)

Warehouse 13 – Eddie McClintok (Pete Lattimer), Sal Rubinek (Artie Nielson), Kate Mulgrew (Jane Lattimer

Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel – Charisma Carpenter (Cordelia Chase), Nicholas Brendon (Xander Harris)

StarGate – Tony Amendola (Natchok Var), Paul McGillion (Dr. Carson Beckett), Corin Nemec (Jonas Quinn)

Wayne’s World, True Lies, Krull the Conquerer, Warehouse 13 – Tia Carrere

Ghosthunter’s International – Scott Tepperman, Paul Bradford

Robot Chicken – Matt Senreich, Zeb Wells

Other events include:

Friday evening Indy Film Festival, Zombie Walk, Friday evening reception at the Doubletree International for MegaCon Hotel guests, Lightning Fast Speed Dating, Live music by Emerald Rose, Frenchy and the Punk, and Vic Mignogna, Saturday night anime dance, anime viewing room, Saturday night party at the Rosen Plaza, all three days Paint and Take, RPG, LARP, Card gaming and much more…

MegaCon sponsors: I AM 3D, Funimation, Comics Guaranty Corporation and Students of the Unusual

Check www.MegaConvention.com frequently for more updates.

MegaCon 2012

Orange County Convention Center – West Building

Orlando, Florida

Contact Info: info@megaconvention.com or www.megaconvention.com

Joey Lauren Adams from Chasing amy, Mallrats, Big Daddy and Dazed and Confused!
Michael Rooker and Madison Lintz from the Walking Dead!
Holly Marie Combs and Brian Krause from Charmed
Oliver Robins from Poltergeist

More to be announced!

for more information on May-Hem, visit here!

Check out the hotel here!

For info and tickets for UHW check out Spooky Empire’s website here!