JUST GOT BACK FROM SAN JOSE SUPER-CON
Just got back from Super-Con 2009 in San Jose.

Buzz was kind enough to sign JSA #12 and #22.

Ernie Chan was kind enough to sign Conan the Barbarian #117: "In The Lair Of Mullah-Kajar!"

Mick Gray was kind enough to sign Justice Society Of America #18 and Justice League of America: Kingdom Come

Special: The Kingdom #1.

Pablo Marcos was kind enough to sign Infinity Inc. #39: "The Saga of Solomon Grundy!", Avengers #161: "Attacked By

The Ant-Man!", The Mighty Thor #252 - #253.

I picked up a couple of prints featuring Simon Garth the Zombie from Mr. Marcos.

Steve Leialoha was kind enough to sign Captain America #221.

Both Ernie Chan and Pablo Marcos signed The Secret Society of Super-Villains #1 and The Avengers #166. In both

cases, Ernie would do the cover and Pablo would do the interior art.

Alex Nino signed my copy of Welcome Back To The House Of Mystery.

Joe Rubinstein was kind enough to sign The Incredible Hulk #225 and Marvel Two In One Annual #2: "To Duel A Mad

God!" The artist mentioned to me that the Peter Parker head on the splash page of MTIO was redrawn by John Romita

Sr.

I was glad to chat with:

Renee Witterstaetter, former Marvel Editor, and current agent for Michael Golden. I think she was surprised that I

was more interested in her past Editorial work than getting in line for Michael.

Rich Koslowski, creator of the 3 Geeks. I was delighted to see him at the con and catch up on his current work.

Bruce Dern, actor. The first time I remember seeing Mr. Dern onscreen was in Alfred Hitchcock's Family Plot.

He was kind enough to share what it was like in the early days of his career, guest-starring on various shows of the

1960s, including "The Big Valley," "Gunsmoke," "The Fugitive," and "The Outer Limits".

"The Zantee Misfits" was a favorite of mine, I admitted that the alien bugs scared me so much, that I kept my feet

off the ground while watching this particular Outer Limits.

Mr. Dern mentioned that the misfits had batteries in them, and they did creep him out during filming.

Location filming for "The Zanti Misfits" was shot where Star Trek would later shoot "Arena" and "Shore Leave".

Although Tony DeZuniga could not attend because of the flu, his wife was there, and she was glad to see me. I

picked up color prints of Conan the Barbarian, Supergirl, and Spider-Woman. Mrs. DeZuniga said that I could bring

these to the next Wondercon, and have her husband sign them for me. Get well soon, Mr. DeZuniga!

As another attendee put it, the main reason I was looking forward to Super-Con was to meet John Wesley Shipp.

Prior to the CBS TV series, my previous exposure to the character was in the Super Friends cartoon, and a few 1970s

comic book. He was the character who could run fast.

Although it ran for only one season, suffered from numerous pre-emptions by CBS in favor of NCAA Basketball, and was

unceremoniously shuffled off to air unannounced after Saturday Afternoon Golf, I loved The Flash TV Series.

What would happen if a police scientist got zapped by lightning and chemicals in 1990?

We saw Barry Allen learning to overcome the shock of his new powers and turning them into a force for good.

During the season, viewers saw the relationship between Barry and Tina grow, and also witnessed some fine acting

from John Wesley Shipp and Amanda Pays. Nary a false note between the Star Labs scientist and her patient.

Comic book fans got to see new versions of Captain Cold, the Trickster, and the Mirror Master, as portrayed by

Michael Champion, Mark Hamill, and David Cassidy.

We also got a few giveaway Easter Eggs in the form of throwaways mentioning: "Gorilla Grodd," "Carter Hall," "Hotel

Infantino,"and "Police Chief Julius Schwartz".

I was very happy to meet the actor who brought this version of the Scarlet Speedster to life on the TV screen and

can only hope that current genre shows such as "Smallville" and "The Big Bang Theory" will consider featuring Mr.

Shipp as a guest-star.

The actor was kind enough to share some behind-the-scenes stories about the series, including: what his stuntman

went through while shooting the water tank scene in "The Trickster" episode, what it was like to wear a hot costume,

and rearrange his scene shooting schedule to better budget his time.

Even after The Flash TV series ended, and he made appearances on "All My Children," NYPD Blue," and "Dawson's

Creek," most folks stil remember him primarily for The Flash. The actor made the police scientist and the Scarlet

Speedster so darned likable (no mean feat.)

Here's hoping that in the age of Blu-Ray, we'll get a special edition of The Flash TV Series, and some special

features along the lines of interviews with the actors, producers, and writers of the series.

Hey, Warner Bros., I got the DVD set, but I'd definitely put my wallet where my mouth is for a dream package like

this!


Among the 50 cents/1 dollar comics I picked up at Super-Con:

All-Star Squadron Annual #2

Bat Lash #7

DC Super-Stars Presents Secret Society Of Super-Villains #14.

G.I. Combat #108" The Wounded Don't Wait!"

The Green Arrow by Jack Kirby

Justice League of America #118, 142, 144

The Shadow #4: "Death Is Bliss!" and #9: "Night Of The Falling Death!"

Superman #226: When Superman Became King Kong!"

Amazing Adventures #23 and #33

Astonishing Tales #22 and #24

Captain America #189

Conan The Barbarian #37: "Curse Of The Golden Skull!"

Dead Of Night #7: "What Lurks On The Thirteenth Floor?"

Ghost Rider #6: "The Menace Of The Second Zodiac!"

The Incredible Hulk #179: "Once More -- The Missing Link!"

The Incredible Hulk #193: "The Doctor's name Is Samson!"

Marvel Team-Up #37: "Murder Means The Man-Wolf!"

What If #13: "What If Conan The Barbarian Walked The Earth Today?" Having found this particular issue, I asked

Ernie Chan to sign it for me. He paused to savor the art from thirty years ago.

What If #15: "What If Nova Had Been Four Other People?"