San Diego Comic-Con

For other uses, see Comic-Con.

Comic-Con International: San Diego
File:Comic Con.svg
Status	Active
Genre	Multi-genre
Venue	San Diego Convention Center
Location(s)	San Diego, California
Country	United States
Inaugurated	1970
Attendance	125,000+ in 2007
Organized by	Comic-Con International
Filing status	Non-profit
Website	http://www.comic-con.org/

Comic-Con International: San Diego, commonly known as Comic-Con or the San Diego Comic-Con, is an annual multigenre fan convention founded as the Golden State Comic Book Convention and later the San Diego Comic Book Convention in 1970 by Shel Dorf and a group of San Diegans. It is traditionally a four-day event (Thursday through Sunday—though a four hour preview night on Wednesday is open to guests pre-registered for all four days) held during the summer in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Comic-Con is both the name of the annual event and the common name of the organization.

Comic-Con International also produces two other conventions, WonderCon and the Alternative Press Expo (APE), both held in San Francisco, California. Since 1974, Comic-Con has bestowed its annual Inkpot Award to guests and persons of interest in the industries of popular arts as well as to members of Comic-Con's Board of Directors and convention committee. It is also the home of the Will Eisner Awards.

Originally showcasing comic books, science fiction/fantasy and film/television (as was evident by the three circled figures appearing in Comic-Con's original logo), and related popular arts, the convention has expanded over the years to include a larger range of pop culture elements, such as horror, anime, manga, animation, toys, collectible card games, video games and webcomics. The convention is the largest of its kind in the world, filling to capacity the San Diego Convention Center with over 125,000 attendees in 2007. Although Comiket in Tokyo, Japan is four times larger in terms of attendance than Comic-Con, its focus is solely as a gather for the buying, selling, and trading of dōjinshi (self printed comic books and fanzines), somewhat akin to a huge swap meet, and is not a convention in the American sense.

History and organization

The first convention drew 300 people and was held at the U. S. Grant Hotel in 1970. Other locations in the convention's early years included the El Cortez Hotel, University of California, San Diego, and Golden Hall, before being moved to the San Diego Convention center in 1991. The convention is organized by a panel of thirteen board members, sixteen to twenty full-time and part-time workers, and eighty volunteers that assist with different committees. Comic Con International is a not-for-profit organization, and proceeds of the event go to funding Alternative Press Expo (APE) and WonderCon. The convention is currently scheduled to remain in San Diego until 2012.

Events

File:Comic Con.jpg

Sign inside the San Diego Comic-Con.

Along with panels, seminars, and workshops with comic book professionals, there are previews of upcoming feature films, portfolio review sessions with top comic book and video game companies, and such evening events as awards ceremonies and The Masquerade; a costume contest, and the Comic-Con International Independent Film Festival which showcases shorts and feature length movies that do not have distribution or distribution deals.

Traditional events include an eclectic film program, screening rooms devoted to Japanese animation, gaming, and the Comic-Con International: Independent Film Festival, as well as cartoonist Scott Shaw!'s "Oddball Comics" slide show and animation expert Jerry Beck's program featuring TV's "worst cartoons ever", as well as over 350 hours of other programming on all aspects of comic books and pop culture.

Like most comic book conventions, Comic-Con features a large floorspace for exhibitors. These include media companies such as movie studios and TV networks, as well as comic-book dealers and collectibles merchants. Like most comics conventions, Comic-Con includes an autograph area, as well as the Artists' Alley where comics artists can sign autographs and sell or do free sketches. Despite the name, artists' alleys can include writers and even models.

Academicians and comic industry professionals annually hold the Comics Arts Conference at Comic-Con, presenting scholarly studies on comics as a medium. Educational forums such as the Comics Arts Conference help Comic-Con maintain its non-profit status.

Exclusive collectibles

In the 21st century, the convention has drawn toy and collectibles designers who sell "Comic Con Exclusive" products. Such companies have included Gentle Giant Studios, Hasbro, Mattel, and Sideshow Collectibles. Most such exclusives are licensed properties of movie, comic book and animation characters.

In the media

Comic-Con has served as the setting for Mark Hamill's Comic Book: The Movie, and for the "I Love You, Too" episode of the HBO television series Entourage, the latter of which, while set at the event, was not filmed there. Comic-Con also served as an excuse for the fictional characters Seth Cohen and Ryan Atwood's trip to Tijuana, Mexico in the first season of TV series The O.C. The convention also featured prominently as a setting for the Numb3rs episode "Graphic". In Season 4 of Beauty and the Geek, an episode was featured where the contestants travelled to Comic-Con 07 and were given a challenge to create their own superheroes.

Quotes

Mark Evanier on the first Comic-Con venue:

I never stayed in the old U.S. Grant [hotel] but it was the scene of the first San Diego Con, which I attended way back in 1970, back when we thought it was mobbed to have 500 comic fans in the same place at the same time. The hotel was undergoing a massive renovation then as well, but was merely upgrading from Extremely Shabby to merely Somewhat Shabby. The place I still miss is the El Cortez Hotel, where the con was held for several years in the seventies. I'd say the place was a dump but that would be demeaning to dumps. Still, it was a fun dump, run by a management that didn't seem to care all that much what we did to it.

Evanier on an early spillover venue:

In the seventies, when we all started going to San Diego Comic Book Conventions, back when they called them that, [the Hotel San Diego] was a frequent venue for con events. Some years, before it outgrew any available hotel ballroom, the Inkpot Awards presentation was held there. There were many memorable parties and gatherings, such as in 1982 when a group of Jack Kirby's friends staged a memorable surprise birthday party for him in one of its halls. Perhaps some year, you were either so hard up for money or so desperate for an available room (or both) that you even booked into its sadly deteriorating accommodations. It was one of the cheaper places to sleep and con-goers took advantage of that up until June of 2001 when the building was declared structurally unsafe and was closed down".

Issues

Capacity attendance at Comic-Con in 2006 and 2007 has caused crowding issues. Concerns have been that the event is possibly too massive for the San Diego Convention Center, Comic-Con's home through at least 2012. In 2006, Comic-Con for the first time was sold out on Saturday and potential attendees were denied entry. In response, for 2007, Comic-Con introduced a new three-day membership that did not include Saturday. Nevertheless, the 2007 show went on to sell out Saturday, as well as Friday and Sunday for the first time. Additionally, both the four-day and three-day memberships sold out for the first time. For 2008, the three-day memberships were abandoned and the convention decided to sell memberships only in advance, with no on-site registration.

In 2008, all memberships were sold out before the convention for the first time ever. This sellout has given rise to the new phenomenon of Comic-Con memberships being scalped for exorbitant prices on websites such as eBay.

In April 2008, David Glanzer, Comic-Con's director of marketing and public relations, commented on the organization's desire to remain in San Diego:

We've been approached by other cities, [but] I don't think anybody wants to leave San Diego. I certainly don't. It's a perfect fit for us. It's expensive, whether it be paying for the street signs that tell you what streets are closed, or for any police or the hall or any of the myriad things, it's expensive. But it's a great city. There's been some talk of expansion of the center, which we would certainly welcome. Hopefully if everything lines up, we will be here for many more years.

Criticism

In the 2000s, the prevalence of video games and major-studio movies has drawn criticism from those who believe that Comic-Con is losing its focus on comic books and instead has become a showcase for large entertainment corporations. Some comic-book retailers have said that the large corporate presence had driven booth prices up significantly.

Locations and dates

Dates	Location	Attendees	Notable guests	Notes
March 21, 1970	U.S. Grant Hotel	145	Forrest Ackerman, Mike Royer	Minicon staged to raise funding for August convention
August 1–3, 1970	U.S. Grant Hotel	300	Ray Bradbury, Jack Kirby, A.E. Van Vogt	Known as Golden State Comic Con
August 6–8, 1971	Muir College, University of California, San Diego Campus, La Jolla, California	800	Kirk Alyn, Leigh Brackett, Ray Bradbury, Edmund Hamilton, Jack Kirby
August 18–21, 1972	El Cortez Hotel	900+	Bob Clampett, Harry Harrison, Jack Kirby, Katherine Kurtz, Mel Lazarus	Known as San Diego's West Coast Comic Convention
August 16–19 1973	Sheraton Hotel, Harbor Island, California	1,000+	Neal Adams, Ray Bradbury, D.C. Fontana, June Foray, Mike Friedrich, Carmine Infantino, Jack Kirby	Officially called San Diego Comic-Con; first five-day Comic-Con; first celebrity brunch
July 31–August 5, 1974	El Cortez Hotel	2,000	Majel Barrett, Ray Bradbury, Milton Caniff, Frank Capra, Bob Clampett, Chuck Jones, Jack Kirby, Walter Koenig, Russ Manning, Russell Myers, Charles Schulz, Larry "Seymour" Vincent	First Masquerade Ball, emceed by June Foray
July 30–August 3, 1975	El Cortez Hotel	2,500+	Robert Bloch, Will Eisner, Mark Evanier, Gil Kane, Jack Katz, Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Dick Moores, Chuck Norris, Don Rico, Jerry Siegel, Jim Starlin, Jim Steranko, Theodore Sturgeon	Gabriel Wisdom (dressed as Thor) emcees Maquerade Ball, with Charlene Brinkman (later known as Brinke Stevens), as dancer
November 7–9, 1975	El Cortez Hotel	1,100	Jock Mahoney, George Pal	Three-day follow-up to summer Con. Comic-Con incorporates as nonprofit.
July 21–25, 1976	El Cortez Hotel	3,000+	Sergio Aragonés, Mel Blanc, Milton Caniff, Rick Griffin, Jack Kirby, Dale Messick, Joe Shuster, Noel Sickles, Don Thompson, Maggie Thompson	Vaughn Bodé, scheduled to appear, dies just before Con.
July 20–24, 1977	El Cortez Hotel	4,000+	Carl Barks, C. C. Beck, Walter Gibson, Robert A. Heinlein, George Clayton Johnson, Michael Kaluta, Jack Kirby, B. Kliban, Joe Kubert, Harvey Kurtzman, Timothy Leary, Stan Lynde, Alex Niño, Trina Robbins, Bill Scott, Theodore Sturgeon
July 26–30, 1978	El Cortez Hotel	5,000	Neal Adams, Alfredo Alcala, John Buscema, Ernie Chan, Howard Chaykin, Shary Flenniken, Alan Dean Foster, Gardner Fox, Melinda Gebbie, Steve Gerber, Russ Heath, Burne Hogarth, Greg Jein, Bob Kane, Jack Kirby, Lee Marrs, Paul Mavrides, George Metzger, Gray Morrow, Stanley Mouse, Clarence "Ducky" Nash, Grim Natwick, Dan O'Neil, Wendy Pini, Ted Richards, Spain Rodriguez, Gilbert Shelton, Dave Sheridan, Alex Toth, Frank Thorne,Boris Vallejo, S. Clay Wilson
August 1–5, 1979	Convention and Performing Arts Center and U.S. Grant Hotel	6,000	Kelly Freas, Milos Jittlov, Jack Kirby, Harvey Kurtzman, Victor Moncoso, Nestor Redondo, Marshall Rogers, John Romita Sr., Mort Walker, Len Wein, Marv Wolfman	US$12,000 in receipts stolen from the home of Con's Treasurer
July 30–August 3, 1980	Convention and Performing Arts Center and U.S. Grant Hotel	5,000	John Byrne, Chris Claremont, Mike Grell, Paul Gulacy, Jack Kirby, Larry Niven, Joe Orlando, Richard Pini, Wendy Pini, Jerry Pournelle, Osamu Tezuka, Adam West, Wally Wood
July 23-26, 1981	El Cortez Hotel	5,000	Jerry Bails, Dave Berg, L. B. Cole, Jim Fitzpatrick, Harlan Ellison, Dick Giordano, Bil Keane, Julius Schwartz, Bill Sienkiewicz, Dave Sim, Jim Shooter	Gary Owens emcees Masquerade Ball
July 8–11, 1982	Convention and Performing Arts Center and Hotel San Diego	5,000	Carl Barks, Terry Beatty, Brian Bolland, Max Allan Collins, Will Eisner, Mike Grell, Chuck Jones, Hank Ketcham, Jack Kirby, Walter Koenig, Frank Miller, Arn Saba, Leonard Starr, Ken Steacy, Robert Williams, Bill Woggon
August 4–7, 1983	Convention and Performing Arts Center and Hotel San Diego	5,000	Douglas Adams, Ray Bradbury, Bob Clampett, Floyd Gottfredson, Jack Kirby, Harvey Kurtzman, Norman Maurer, Grim Natwick, George Pérez, Trina Robbins	First year the Con tried a theme for the souvenir programs. Arn Saba MC'd the Masquerade Ball.
June 28–July 1, 1984	Convention and Performing Arts Center and Hotel San Diego	5,500	Greg Bear, Howard Chaykin, Stan Drake, Burne Hogarth, Greg Jein, Ollie Johnston, Jack Kirby, Bob Layton, Brant Parker, Marshall Rogers, Mike Royer, Robert Shayne, Dave Stevens, Curt Swan, Frank Thomas, Al Williamson, Bill Woggon	The Con was held earlier than usual due to the Los Angeles Summer Olympics. Sergio Aragonés hosted the Masquerade Ball.
August 1–4, 1985	Convention and Performing Arts Center and Hotel San Diego	6,000	Ben Bova, Jack Cummings, Jack Davis, Gil Kane, Jack Kirby, Harvey Kurtzman, Alan Moore (in his only U.S. convention appearance), Dan O'Bannon, Jerry Ordway, Alex Schomburg, Julius Schwartz, Jerry Siegel, Louise Simonson, Walt Simonson	The Con moved a step further towards professionalism, and adopted Rick Geary's toucan design as the official logo, and hired a general manager, Fae Desmond
July 31–August 3, 1986	Convention and Performing Arts Center and Hotel San Diego	6,500	Poul Anderson, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Greg Evans, Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Dale Messick, Frank Miller, Moebius, Mart Nodell, Harvey Pekar, Lynn Varley, Jim Valentino, Doug Wildey
August 6–9, 1987	Convention and Performing Arts Center and Holiday Inn	7,000	Harlan Ellison, Miguel Ferrer, Ward Kimball, Jack Kirby, B. Kliban, Françoise Mouly, Bill Mumy, Mike Peters, Robert Silverberg, Art Spiegelman, Bernie Wrightson	Debut, Convention Events Guide. Country Joe of Country Joe & The Fish performs.
August 4–7, 1988	Convention and Performing Arts Center and Omni Hotel	8,000	Robert Asprin, Art Adams, Jules Feiffer, Ray Feist, David Gerrold, Matt Groening, Jack Kirby, George R.R. Martin, Matt Wagner	"Supergroup" Seduction Of The Innocent debuted - featuring Bill Mumy, Steve Leialoha, Miguel Ferrer, Chris Christensen, and Max Allan Collins. The Japanese animation department debuted.
August 3–6, 1989	Convention and Performing Arts Center and Omni Hotel	11,000	Paul Chadwick, Howard Cruse, Neil Gaiman, Ron Goulart, Mark Hamill, Gilbert Hernandez and Jaime Hernandez, Ollie Johnston, Selby Kelly, Jack Kirby, Syd Mead, Fred Rhoads, Jerry Robinson, Bill Sienkiewicz, Frank Thomas, Gahan Wilson
August 2–5, 1990	Convention and Performing Arts Center and Holiday Inn	13,000	Peter David, Will Eisner, Kelly Freas, Michael Kaluta, Jack Kirby, Harvey Kurtzman, Mel Lazarus, Carl Macek, Grant Morrison, John Romita Jr., Mark Schultz, Van Williams	Final year at Convention and Performing Arts Center
July 4–7, 1991	San Diego Convention Center and Pan Pacific Hotel	15,000+	Clive Barker, Dan DeCarlo, Harlan Ellison, Neil Gaiman, Keith Giffen, Joe Haldeman, Jack Kirby, Joe Kubert, Lynn Johnston, Jim Lee, Don Maitz, Sheldon Moldoff, Rick Sternbach, Jannie Wurts
August 13–16, 1992	San Diego Convention Center and Double Tree Hotel	22,000	Clive Barker, Francis Ford Coppola, Creig Flessel, Bill Griffith, Ray Harryhausen, Jack Kirby, Jim Lee, Rob Liefeld, Todd McFarlane, Frank Miller, Diane Noomin, Rowena, William Shatner, Gilbert Shelton, Lewis Shiner, Mr. T, Gary Trousdale, Vernor Vinge, Kirk Wise	Con hosts Jack Kirby's 75th birthday party. Phil Foglio begins long run as Masquerade Ball emcee.
August 19–22, 1993	San Diego Convention Center and Doubletree Hotel	28,000	Murphy Anderson, Jim Aparo, Peter Bagge, Dan Clowes, Nancy Collins, Paul Dini, Garth Ennis, Neil Gaiman, Ferd Johnson, Jack Kirby, Rick Kirkman, Don Martin, Frank Miller, Olivia, Jerry Scott, Marc Silvestri, Dave Sim, Vin Sullivan, Michael Whelan, Robert Williams, Roger Zelazny
August 4–7, 1994	San Diego Convention Center and Hyatt Regency	31,000	Mike Allred, Majel Barrett-Roddenberry, Greg Bear, David Brin, Dave Dorfman, Evan Dorkin, Al Feldstein, Rick Geary, Stan Goldberg, Robert Gregory, Matt Groening, Chad Grothkopf, Dan Jurgens, Lurene Haines, Frank Miller, Leonard Nimoy, James O'Barr, John Pound, Lucius Shepard, Mickey Spillane, J. Michael Straczynski, Rumiko Takahashi, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Kevin VanHook
July 27–30, 1995	San Diego Convention Center	34,000	Mike Baron, Simon Bisley, Charles Burns, Alan Davis, Ramona Fradon, Frank Frazetta (as a guest of rock singer Glen Danzig's Verotik comic book line), Neil Gaiman, James Gurney, Greg Hildebrandt, Tim Hildebrandt, Ryoichi Ikegami, Gil Kane, Batton Lash, Stan Lee, Terry Moore, Irv Novick, Harvey Pekar, Paul Pope, Stan Sakai, Don Simpson, Joe Sinnott, Tom Sito, Jeff Smith, Andrew Vachss, Charles Vess	(Comic Con officially changed its name to Comic Con International, and introduced its new "eye" logo designed by Richard Bruning
July 4–7, 1996	San Diego Convention Center	36,000	Donna Barr, Paul Chadwick, Steve Dillon, Evan Dorkin, Mort Drucker, Ben Edlund, Garth Ennis, Dave Gibbons, Joe Giella, Jim Lee, Todd McFarlane, Dave McKean, Jim Mooney, Cassandra "Elvira" Peterson, Kurt Schaffenberger, Francois Schulten, Marie Severin	The second time that Comic Con falls on July 4th, this time due to the Republican National Convention.
July 17–20, 1997	San Diego Convention Center	40,000	Brent Anderson, Dick Ayers, Reggie Bannister, Steve Bissette, Terry Brooks, Kurt Busiek, Tia Carrera, Evan Dorkin, Sarah Dyer, Lou Ferrigno, David Hasselhoff, Gilbert Hernandez, Jaime Hernandez, James Hong, Steven Hughes, Sammo Hung, Joe Kubert, Peter Kuper, David Lapham, Carol Lay, John Leguizamo, Joseph Michael Linsner, Linda Medley, Todd McFarlane, Ralph McQuarrie, Jason Mewes, Michael Moorcock, George Pérez, Brian Pulido, Alex Ross, R.A. Salvatore, Kevin Smith, George Tuska, Jhonen Vasquez, Paul Verhoeven, Mark Waid, Al Williamson, Michael Jai White
August 13–17, 1998	San Diego Convention Center	42,000	John Broome, Eddie Campbell, Nick Cardy, John Carpenter, Mark Crilley, Colleen Doran, Patrick MacNee, Lorenzo Mattotti, Terry Moore, Paul S. Newman, Richard Pini, Wendy Pini, James Robinson, John Severin, Joe Simon, Paul Smith, Vin Sullivan, Naoko Takeuchi, Chris Ware, Joss Whedon (and most of the cast of Buffy The Vampire Slayer), Robert Williams
August 9–11, 1999				Professional Expo before Comic Con
August 12–15, 1999	San Diego Convention Center		Forrest Ackerman, Sergio Aragonés, Samuel R. Delany, Paul Dini, Arnold Drake, Will Eisner, Mark Evanier, June Foray, Neil Gaiman, Matt Groening, Mike Mignola, Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo), Scott Shaw, Art Spiegelman, Jim Starlin, Jim Steranko, Dave Stevens, Jill Thompson, Barry Windsor-Smith	Seduction Of The Innocent performed
July 20–23, 2000	San Diego Convention Center		Don Hertzfeldt
July 19–22, 2001	San Diego Convention Center
August 1–4, 2002	San Diego Convention Center		Ben Affleck, Avi Arad, Asia Argento, James Cameron, Emma Caulfield, Guillermo del Toro, Ang Lee, Jason Lee, Lucy Liu, Mike Mignola, Jamie King, Timothy Olyphant, Ray Park, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Seann William Scott, Bryan Singer
July 17–20, 2003	San Diego Convention Center		Avi Arad, Sean Astin, Kate Beckinsale, Sal Buscema, Will Eisner, Neil Gaiman, Paris Hilton, Dave McKean, Alfred Molina, Dominic Monaghan, Andy Serkis, Elijah Wood
July 22–25, 2004	San Diego Convention Center	100,000	Kevin J. Anderson, Sergio Aragonés, Greg Bear, Claudia Black, Ray Bradbury, Ben Browder, Kurt Busiek, Roger Dean, Eliza Dushku, Will Eisner, Corey Feldman, June Foray, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Donato Giancola, Matt Groening, Sid Haig, Corey Haim, Paris Hilton, Christopher Judge, Jude Law, Mike Mignola, Frank Miller, Bill Plympton, Michael Shanks, Amanda Tapping, Tim Thomerson, Marv Wolfman, Rob Zombie	Comic-Con expands into Hall H of the San Diego Convention Center and now occupies the entire exhibit space.
July 14–17, 2005	San Diego Convention Center	113,000	Forrest Ackerman, Sergio Aragonés, Ralph Bakshi, Ray Bradbury, Beau Bridges, Ben Browder, Bruce Campbell, Shaun Cassidy, Ken Foree, Sid Haig, Ray Harryhausen, Alexandro Jodorowsky, Christopher Judge, Richard Kelly, Stan Lee, Todd McFarlane, Natalie Portman, Joel Silver, Bryan Singer, Kevin Smith, J. Michael Straczynski, Amanda Tapping, Marv Wolfman, Rob Zombie
July 20–23, 2006	San Diego Convention Center	123,000	Forrest Ackerman, Avi Arad, Sergio Aragonés, Kristen Bell, Ray Bradbury, Nicolas Cage, Bruce Campbell, Thomas Haden Church, Gabrielle Carteris, Richard Ian Cox, Guillermo del Toro, Snoop Dogg, Kirsten Dunst, Ken Foree, James Franco, Jorge Garcia, Basil Gogos, Topher Grace, Seth Green, Matt Groening, Sid Haig, Ray Harryhausen, Don Hertzfeldt, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Paris Hilton, Bryce Dallas Howard, Hunter Jackson, Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Judge, Richard Kelly, Kazuo Koike, Ali Larter, Tobey Maguire, Eva Mendes, Frank Miller, Terry Moore, Kenn Navarro, Masi Oka, Edward James Olmos, Diamond Dallas Page, Sam Raimi, Brande Roderick, Takashi Shimizu, Bryan Singer, Kevin Smith, Frank Spotnitz, Jason Statham, J. Michael Straczynski, Hilary Swank, Danny Trejo, Milo Ventimiglia, Nobuhiro Watsuki, Wayans Brothers, Billy Dee Williams	San Diego Convention Center reached maximum occupancy; potential attendees were denied entry on Saturday.
July 26–29, 2007	San Diego Convention Center	125,000+	J. J. Abrams, Danny Antonucci, Sergio Aragonés, Kate Beckinsale, Tobin Bell, Johnny Yong Bosch, Darren Lynn Bousman, Blair Butler, Nicolas Cage, Steve Carrell, Dane Cook, Carlton Cuse, John DiMaggio,Sammantha- Jolie DiMaggio, Robert Downey, Jr., Warren Ellis, Jon Favreau, Renee French, Neil Gaiman, Jenny Goldberg, Chris Gore, Matt Groening, Laurell K. Hamilton, Allan Heinberg, James Farr, David Hewlett, Adam Hughes, Hunter Jackson, Al Jean, Scarlett Johansson, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Milla Jovovich, Bryan Konietzko, Alex Kurtzman, Maurice LaMarche, Brennan Laughter, Stan Lee, Damon Lindelof, Joseph Michael Linsner, Maddox, Seth MacFarlane, Bill Morrison, Olivia Munn, Kenn Navarro, Michael J. Nelson, Leonard Nimoy, Masi Oka, Roberto Orci, Gwyneth Paltrow, Hayden Panettiere, Kevin Pereira, Harold Perrineau, Lily Renee Phillips, Paul Pope, George A. Romero, Rowena, Katey Sagal, Andy Samberg, M. Zachary Sherman, Kevin Smith, Yeardley Smith, Cole Sprouse, Dylan Sprouse, J. Michael Straczynski, Roy Thomas, Liv Tyler, Rob Van Dam, Kevin VanHook, Jhonen Vasquez, Gerard Way, Billy West, Tom Wisdom and more.	All multi-day and single-day passes for Friday, Saturday and Sunday were sold out, for the first time ever on Friday and Sunday.
July 24–27, 2008	San Diego Convention Center	Approx. 130,000+	Tori Amos, Sergio Aragonés, Dan Aykroyd, Mike Barker, John Barrowman, Mike W. Barr, Carlos Bernard, Ed Boon, Ray Bradbury, Kipleigh Brown, Ed Brubaker, Blair Butler, Eddie Campbell, Chris Carter, Jon Cassar, Howard Chaykin, Kristin Chenoweth, David X. Cohen, Gareth David-Lloyd, Russell T. Davies, Felicia Day, John DiMaggio, Sammantha-Jolie DiMaggio, Cassidy Freeman, Bryan Fuller, Keith Giffen, Howard Gordon, Chris Gore, Burn Gorman, Seth Green, Matt Groening, Greg Grunberg, Neil Patrick Harris, Justin Hartley, Jon Heder, Bryan Hitch, Eric Horsted, John Howe, Larry Hryb, Ernie Hudson, Jamie Hyneman, Hugh Jackman, Al Jaffee, Thomas Jane, Al Jean, James Kerwin, Kristin Kreuk, Tite Kubo, Mila Kunis, Hansi Kürsch, Maurice Lamarche, Ali Larter, Yuri Lowenthal, Ludacris, Seth MacFarlane, Rachael MacFarlane, Allison Mack, Chase Masterson, Peter Mayhew, Rose McGowan, Derek Mears, Steven Moffat, Naoko Mori, Bill Morrison, Olivia Munn, Noel Neill, John Newton, Masi Oka, André Olbrich, Hayden Panettiere, Kevin Pereira, Tara Platt, Gavin Purcell, Keanu Reeves, Paul Reubens, Robert Rodriguez, Adam Savage, Katey Sagal, Wendy Schaal, Zachary Levi, James Franco, Jason Statham,Jet Li, Judd Apatow, Rick Gomez Ethan Van Sciver, Robert Smigel, Will Smith, Barry Sonnenfeld, Ray Stevenson, Joe Staton, Jessica Mae Stover, Kiefer Sutherland, Mark Wahlberg, Billy West, Joss Whedon, Wil Wheaton, Connie Willis, and more.	All multi-day and single-day passes sold out weeks ahead of the event for the first time ever.

See also

• Fandom
• Science fiction convention
• Comic Art Convention

References

• San Diego Comic Convention Souvenir Book 1994 (offline)
• The "Secret Origin" of San Diego's Comic-Con International

External links

• Official website
• Humorous Comic-Con documentary
• The early days of Comic-Con, Variety, July 11, 2008