Pittsburgh Comicon
40°24′N 79°48′W / 40.4°N 79.8°W
| Pittsburgh Comicon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Status | Nonactive |
| Genre | Multi-genre |
| Venue | Radisson Hotel Pittsburgh ExpoMart (1994–2008) Monroeville Convention Center (2009–2014) David L. Lawrence Convention Center (2015–2016, 2019) |
| Locations | Monroeville, Pennsylvania (1994–2014) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (2015–2016, 2019) |
| Country | United States |
| Inaugurated | 1994 |
Most recent | 2019 |
| Attendance | c. 10,000 (2011)[1] |
| Organized by | Comics World (1994–2014) Wizard World (2015–2019) |
| Filing status | For-profit |
| Website | www |
The Pittsburgh Comicon, later known as Wizard World Comic Con Pittsburgh and since succeeded by Steel-City Con, was a comic book convention held in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1994[1] by Michael and Renee George. It was traditionally a three-day event (Friday through Sunday) and featured a fan-friendly experience that allowed the fans to interact with comic professionals at all levels.
Though it primarily focused on comic books, the convention featured a large range of pop culture elements, such as professional wrestling, science fiction/fantasy, film/television, animation, anime, manga, toys, collectible card games, video games, webcomics, and fantasy novels. Given Pittsburgh's connection to George A. Romero's zombie apocalypse films (with Romero's Dawn of the Dead being filmed in the Monroeville Mall),[2] horror fans were also welcomed at the convention to meet and greet with the film's actors that regularly attended.
The show also made a concerted effort to promote local-area talent and publishers. The show raised money for various charities; over the years the show had supported local literacy organizations, the Comic book Legal Defense Fund, local Food Banks, and had raised more than $250,000 for the Pittsburgh chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.[3][4]
History
[edit]
Windber, Pennsylvania-based comics retailers Michael and Renée George (proprietors of Comics World) staged the first Pittsburgh Comicon in April 1994[5] at the Radisson Hotel Pittsburgh ExpoMart in Monroeville. It was the first major show staged in Pittsburgh for the comic community since the 1970s. From the beginning, a major focus for the show has been giving to charity, the Make-A-Wish Foundation in particular, which is the primary beneficiary of the Annual Comicon Auction.
The Pittsburgh Comicon hosted the Harvey Award ceremonies from 2000–2002,[6] with Evan Dorkin serving as master of ceremonies.[7] Jeff Smith was the keynote speaker of the 2000 awards.[7] Superstar creator Frank Miller gave 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.[8][9] Tony Millionaire gave the keynote speech at the 2002 awards ceremony.[7] In 2003, due to a cancellation from scheduled keynote speaker Neil Gaiman, funding shortages forced a cancellation of that year's Harvey Awards ceremony and banquet (which had also been scheduled for the Pittsburgh Comicon), although award-winners were still named.[7]
The 2000 edition of the show raised $26,000 for the Pittsburgh chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.[5] The 2003 show raised $27,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.[3] The 2007 show raised $30,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and $5,000 for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.[10]
In 2006, Comic Geek Speak was named the Official Comics Podcast for the Pittsburgh Comicon and has held that title ever since.[11]
In 2009, the show moved from the defunct Pittsburgh ExpoMart to the new Monroeville Convention Center, welcoming Stan Lee as their guest of honor to inaugurate their first show in the new venue.
In 2015, Pittsburgh Comicon was acquired by Wizard World, becoming Wizard World Comic Con Pittsburgh. In addition, the convention moved to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh.[12] Wizard World held the convention there for two years, but did not hold one in 2017[13] or 2018. The convention returned to Pittsburgh in 2019.[14]
After the 2019 show, the official website URL, PittsburghComicon.com, redirected to the Steel City Con, held at the Monroeville Convention Center, leading to the assumption that the Pittsburgh Comicon was defunct.[citation needed]
Dates and locations
[edit] | This section is missing information about attendance & guests. (November 2012) |