Wizard World Atlanta

[Defiant1]

Well, I just got back from Wizard World Atlanta. the show did better than I thought it would, but I'm not sure how much money is changing hands right here before Christmas. I bought.... nothing. I talked to Bill Sienkiewicz about possibly doing a sketch for me along the lines of what Neal Adams did, but I didn't have a photo reference with me. Also, I just don't feel like spending my bonus money before I actually get it. Another option was to sell my Thrilling Comics #32 at the show and use that cash to buy the sketch, but I looked up the guide price and I I'm not convinced I'd get out of it what I want to get out of it. Rather than drive back to the show, I've decided just to cut my losses of the $35 it cost to get in. There were things to buy, I just did want to pile up any more comics in my collection that i won't appreciate later.

I did talk to Chuck Rozanski. He thinks he got in the neighborhood of $1200 for his CGC 9.2 Miracle on Broadway comic. I also asked him about the Edgar Church copy of Wonder Woman #1. The exact whereabouts of the book is unknown, but he told me the story about it. He said that when he first bought the collection, the books were not selling, so he put some books in one of his stores. Three teenage girls bought the Wonder Woman #1 for their mom as a surprise because she collected Wonder Woman comics. Their mom was a waitress supporting the three girls and it took them months to save up the money to pay for it. It was a really cool story, but he said that after they bought the book, the family pretty much dropped out of sight and no one knows where they went. He said he's not worried about the book getting damaged because she was a good customer and knew that comics had value.

I Saw Georges Jeanty briefly, but he had a short line of fans so I just said hello. Bill Tucci was at the show, but I wasn't real excited about either his sketch book or Sienkiewicz's sketchbook. Normally I'd at least buy a sketch book from a talented artist if nothing else. I decided to pass on everything.

I almost bought a copy of Galaxia because of the Atlas revamp, but didn't want to spend $10. This is the issue I almost bought (someone else's scan):



Of course it isn't published by Atlas, but it does feature a later incarnation of one of their characters with a different name.

It was an interesting show, but just as disappointing as I thought it would be.Perhaps if it had not been the first of the month when I paid some bills, I might have bought something. I almost bought a 1st Animal man for $20 in VG, but decided I just do not want to collect any DC books no matter how key.

Defiant1

[vikingspawn]

Wow, $1200 for the MOB. So it definitely got sold then.

I was wondering how the WizardWorld shows are. There's one coming to Miami for the first time in February that I want to go to. First actual big comic convention in my city so I want to check it out.

I noticed the guest list has Rob Liefeld so far...

Did any of the comic companies have any presence there with booths or anything when you went?

DC/Dark Horse....Bongo?

Wondering how Wizard does it....

[Defiant1]

Although I don't care anything about wrestling, I did speak to Virgil who was slotted next to where Ted DiBiase was supposed to be sitting. I found out that Ted is still married to a girl I worked with in 1979. That was cool to find out their marriage has lasted this long. Ted was not at the booth. A lot of artists and celebrities were showing up late.

Defiant1

[Defiant1]

Dec 4, 2010 14:01:23 GMT -5 vikingspawn said:

Wow, $1200 for the MOB. So it definitely got sold then.

I was wondering how the WizardWorld shows are. There's one coming to Miami for the first time in February that I want to go to. First actual big comic convention in my city so I want to check it out.

I noticed the guest list has Rob Liefeld so far...

Did any of the comic companies have any presence there with booths or anything when you went?

DC/Dark Horse....Bongo?

Wondering how Wizard does it....

He said MOB sold at a 30% off sale. He also said he found another rare publication of Jim's in his collection. He wasn't sure if it was Defiant or Broadway, but settled on thinking it must have been a rare Nintendo comic.

I saw no publishers setup. In all honesty, the one day shows we have every three months or so were better than this show unless you care about unemployed actors or whatever new sci-fi show is currently being pushed. There were quite a few artists that weren't billed in the ads. I got the feeling they were squeezed in because the tables weren't going to be filled if they didn't. There were still a few vacant tables in the artists section 2 hours into the show when I left.

Gareb pretty much bought one show date a year from the guy who was doing the local shows. There was about 25-30% of the regular comic dealers I'm used to seeing and the show probably only featured about 75% of what our normal one day show would've have. It was cool seeing dealers that drove long distances. There was a guy from Kissimmee Florida that I'd never seen before. There was a guy from Michigan that i'd never seen before. Rozansk never comes to Atlanta (and he learned how bad our traffic is). Seeing Chuck was a shock. There was an art dealer with nice stuff. I have no idea who he was. His stuff was going to be more than I'd pay for anything, so I never even inquired what he was charging.... nothing was priced. There were a significant number of self published Indy creators that I'd never heard of... nor that I'd want to see. In that regard it reminded me of Heroes Con. No Harley Yee. No Shelton Drumm (Heroes Con). I think there was *censored* grading booth, but I don't care about that. I thought the show was really missing some big dealers. This show might lure more high end collectors if the big dealers from outside the Southeast were to make regular appearances. Really all the show did was lure a few new faces and increase the prices on everything. The prices the actors were charging for photos and signatures was stupid. $60 to get a photo with Adam West. Seriously, why the hell would someone consider that to be a wise way to spend $60. I thought about saying hi to MImi Rogers because I saw her at the Atlanta advanced screening of her Rapture movie years ago. I decided not to because in all seriousness... who cares? I would not go expecting to be blown away. It was okay, but I paid $35 and didn't find anything that really excited me. I'd rather go to a smaller show with better prices.

Defiant1

[gowaltrip]

Did the guy from Kissimmee happen to be Greg White? You made me look at the flier I had from him from my show I went to about 2 weeks ago in Richmond. He was honestly the only serious comic buying I did was with him. He told me he was taking a bath at the show and I thought his prices and selection was reasonable. He actually had quite a bit I wouldn't have minded having. The first book I got from him I thought was reasonably priced, so I bought it and didn't ask for a discount. Then there was another book I wanted and it was too high. He made me a decent offer, but I had to ask him to push it lower and I made an offer that was significantly lower than what he offered. He said, you've already bought something nice from me, so yeah. I thought he was pretty cool. I hadn't never seen him before and I would gladly shop with him again if I did.

Your boy from Tomorrows Treasures was at the Richmond show. He usually sits and reads his paper and rarely talks. The previous time I went he was talking a bit to a few of his pals, but not overly much. The last Richmond show he was off the chain! I actually stood nearby him and listened to him talk to someone. He was non-stop talking. I never seen him like this. It was like he missed his medication or something. He was real worked up about a few things and voicing his opinion to a friend. I just always find him to be an interesting character, so when I was nearby I would listen. Every time I walked by, he was talking up a storm. I seriously thought he was going to have a heart attack. I'm just so used to him sitting there reading his newspaper and looking like he could care less about the comic customers. His oddity always seems interesting.

Chuck was at my show too, but as I mentioned over at my board. He had the biggest pile of disappointing junk I ever seen. I couldn't believe the crap he brought with him. I was blown away by how weak he was.

[Defiant1]

Dec 4, 2010 23:52:39 GMT -5 gowaltrip said:

Did the guy from Kissimmee happen to be Greg White? You made me look at the flier I had from him from my show I went to about 2 weeks ago in Richmond. He was honestly the only serious comic buying I did was with him. He told me he was taking a bath at the show and I thought his prices and selection was reasonable. He actually had quite a bit I wouldn't have minded having. The first book I got from him I thought was reasonably priced, so I bought it and didn't ask for a discount. Then there was another book I wanted and it was too high. He made me a decent offer, but I had to ask him to push it lower and I made an offer that was significantly lower than what he offered. He said, you've already bought something nice from me, so yeah. I thought he was pretty cool. I hadn't never seen him before and I would gladly shop with him again if I did.

Your boy from Tomorrows Treasures was at the Richmond show. He usually sits and reads his paper and rarely talks. The previous time I went he was talking a bit to a few of his pals, but not overly much. The last Richmond show he was off the chain! I actually stood nearby him and listened to him talk to someone. He was non-stop talking. I never seen him like this. It was like he missed his medication or something. He was real worked up about a few things and voicing his opinion to a friend. I just always find him to be an interesting character, so when I was nearby I would listen. Every time I walked by, he was talking up a storm. I seriously thought he was going to have a heart attack. I'm just so used to him sitting there reading his newspaper and looking like he could care less about the comic customers. His oddity always seems interesting.

Chuck was at my show too, but as I mentioned over at my board. He had the biggest pile of disappointing junk I ever seen. I couldn't believe the crap he brought with him. I was blown away by how weak he was.

I didn't really talk to the guy from Kissimmee, but I just thought he had an interesting selection. I can't imagine there being a lot of dealers on the road from Kissimmee, so it was probably him. I don't even remember what he looked like. The tomorrows treasures guy was there and he had a lot of key books. He had three FF#1's, AF#15, two X-Men #1's, Batman #1, two Reform School Girls #1's. I've never seen him in Atlanta as far as I can recall. I always see him at Heroes Con. And yeah, Chuck is a small guy. I won't repeat something he said, but I thought it was a bit funny and a bit bold about his personal life. Then again, when I met Robert Beerbohm at Heroes con, he said something similar. I think I'd be more careful about what I say to complete strangers. Several people walked up and thanked Chuck for his newsletter. They all sounded like Chuck would know who they are because they order online. You could tell he didn't so I just started wondering how stupid his customers are.

Defiant1

[Brother J]

I don't know, I probably would have been pretty pissed if I had spent $35 to get into a comic show and then didn't find anything I wanted to buy! Wizard World Chicago was always a good show, I always felt like I got my monies' worth there.

I went to a local show this past weekend. I found a few decent books in the cheap bins, but nothing that really got me overly excited. I spent less than $30, including admission. I only spent $4 to get in, but it was an hour drive to get there, so I felt like it was just about a wasted trip.

[Defiant1]

Dec 5, 2010 14:32:50 GMT -5 Brother J said:

I don't know, I probably would have been pretty pissed if I had spent $35 to get into a comic show and then didn't find anything I wanted to buy! Wizard World Chicago was always a good show, I always felt like I got my monies' worth there.

I went to a local show this past weekend. I found a few decent books in the cheap bins, but nothing that really got me overly excited. I spent less than $30, including admission. I only spent $4 to get in, but it was an hour drive to get there, so I felt like it was just about a wasted trip.

It's hard to get pissed when I already know I'm looking for half-price needles in a haystack. I went there to see what it was like and I saw some dealers and options I rarely or never see. I went more to observe. I knew the show was overpriced and I knew there was only a remote chance of finding anything that interests me. I was a little surprised it wasn't as bad as I'd expected it to be. I could've spent money, but the regular one day shows offer better prices. The dealers were charged something like $800 for a 3-Day show, then it was cut back to a 2-day show with no refund. Chuck said the attendance was comparable to the New York show which shocked me. I'd expect a New York show to do at least 10 times that crowd size. Dragon Con does about 30 times what this show did in attendance. He said Boston was a flop because it coincided with an Obama vist to the city. He said secret service were everywhere and the convention area was gridlocked.

Even if attendance and table sales paid off for Wizard, I think there is a good chance that they'll only squeeze out one more show here. Atlanta does not have the money of New York or Chicago. I didn't see a lot of money changing hands between dealers and customers. You 've got to figure that local dealers have to sell (actually... give away) $800 of their best merchandise before they start to make money. Out of town dealers have to give away $800 plus travel expenses. I don't think the level of sales is going to be very enticing for tables to sell again next year. You gotta figure that most people were only buying a one day pass. I really expected Sunday to be a better day to name my price on things, but I went on Saturday anyway.

My purchases on a whim are getting fewer and fewer. A year ago, I would have bought the 1st animal man comic for $20. It was nicer than any copy I've ever seen in the city and I've only seen one or two. A year ago I would've bough an Atlas Western comic for $3 simply because it was Atlas and $3. I found one at an Antique shop last week and decided I just don't want to spend the money. I was getting really disgusted looking at my comics last night. I have so much crap. It's easy to look at the cool stuff and take pride in it. The flip side is all those late 90's indy books that i bought hoping for something cool and it never paid off. Some of the crap I might've gotten free or cheap, but it still takes up space and it's a pain to deal with.

Defiant1

[vikingspawn]

The show coming down here is charging $40 bucks.....looks like the same guests are coming. Adam west....and Robin...

I though these conventions you walk in with a goodie bag and walk around booths collecting stuff. I was looking forward to finding company exclusives and digging out back issues but there's really only about 2 stores down here and I know they aren't participating. Maybe dealers will drive down here? I dunno....

I must find out....this new con is the only actual comic centric convention down here....the other conventions held here are mainly cosplay and Anime stuff.

[Defiant1]

I'm betting that some of these dealers contracted to do multiple shows. I can't see Rozanski touring the US on these Wizard shows unless he had another reason. As Gowaltrip said, he brought nothing special and there was very little of that. I don't think he brought enough comics to even sell $800 worth of stuff. I didn't really see any convention freebies. That was more common ten years ago. I didn't even see any cool freebies at Dragon Con this year. Dragon Con shifted over to being a multimedia convention long ago and few or no big comic dealers even show up anymore. From what you describe, I'm betting your show will be worse than the Atlanta show unless they can get some middle Florida retailers to attend. Again, I think Wizard expanded because the magazine has little chance of surviving with the market the way it is. I think they mistakenly assumed they could take their model for Chicago and take it anywhere. Someone would be doing big comic shows in Atlanta if the money was here to attract a huge crowd. The owner of Dragon Con listened to criticism and created a big comics show for a few years. He dissolved it last year and it's no longer being held. He's also separating himself from his stores and was trying to get the managers to buy them. He hired someone to run the chain and the first thing that guy did was fire one of the managers who had worked at a store for 20 years. I think it's only a matter of time before the stores that are left start closing. One 2 store chain consolidated into one store at a worse location. The husband and wife owners ended up getting in a disagreement about the new store's location and it prompted their divorce. I kinda feel bad because I was telling the guy the new store location wasn't a good idea because it's harder to get to from the major roads. He evidently agreed. His wife was concerned about working in the store alone and the risk of being robbed in a higher profile location. There's no way to plan for a nutcase walking in with a gun, but it could still happen where she is now. He's living out of state now and she has the store. My last 10 minute conversation with her led me to believe that business is down. It's about the only store with any notable back issue selection. The other stores are almost exclusively new comics. As someone who buys older comics, it's pointless for me to even go to a comic book store. The new comics don't interest me and the old stuff that is available has been picked over for a decade. I haven't seen a major Silver age Marvel key in a store in a long time. The two Strange Tales #110 in good were the only ones I've seen and I bought both of those the same visit in which I discovered them.

Defiant1.

[Brother J]

I think Chuck Rozanski's main goal at comic shows he attends is to buy books, at every major show I've ran into him at, I've seen him rooting through the same bargain bins that I was looking through. Plus I'm sure he buys such a large quantity that the dealers give him a discount on top of the already cheap prices. Most shows that I've seen Mile High set up at, they were only selling trade paperbacks, so I was actually surprised to hear they had regular comics to sell.

[Defiant1]

Thinking back, my friend Sean opened a store in Atlanta in the 90's hoping that people would walk in with Golden and Silver age books wanting to sell them. He wanted to use his friend's store as a model for his. His friend was in Florida. There's a big difference though. Florida is/was a retirement state. People move down there and die. All the collectibles that they held rfor years surface and it is possible to have really good key books sift in to a retail store. In Atlanta, there are companies that manage estate sales and they can siphon off anything worth a d**n before a store ever sees it. The comics they uncover probably go to contacts out of state that already have top dollar cash in hand. That's my theory based upon years of digging. I honestly wanted to go around to elderly neighborhoods and offer to haul off their years of clutter for free. My friend Sean did buy a Batman #1 that someone found in an attic for $18,000 and flipped it two months later for $30,000. Finds like that are rare.

Defiant1

[Defiant1]

Dec 5, 2010 18:40:46 GMT -5 Brother J said:

I think Chuck Rozanski's main goal at comic shows he attends is to buy books, at every major show I've ran into him at, I've seen him rooting through the same bargain bins that I was looking through. Plus I'm sure he buys such a large quantity that the dealers give him a discount on top of the already cheap prices. Most shows that I've seen Mile High set up at, they were only selling trade paperbacks, so I was actually surprised to hear they had regular comics to sell.

I don't even know how to describe what he brought. If I recall, it was mostly 60's and 70's books that nobody is looking for. There was someone setup with almost all newer TPB's. If your specialty is new comics, that's what you have to do at big shows. You need to be making $10-$20 sales every sale. You'd have to sell a long box or more of $3 comics to break even on expenses. If you sold one at a time every 5 minute it'd take 20 hours to do that. I saw no dollar boxes at this show. I don't even remember seeing a $2 box.

I did see the first DC Rudolph Treasury comic. I got a little ecited until I saw the sign which read "Complete Marvel & DC Treasury set - $1200" I asked if he could sell just the Rudolph and he said no. He was selling them for someone else. It had about 5 hardcovers in the set, but I'm not paying $1200 for a set.

Defiant1

[Defiant1]

On another board, a dealer that attended said this about the show:

"From a dealer's viewpoint, it was a terribly underattended show for a Wizard show. Many of the other dealers I talked to were scratching just to make table space. Most of the customers I had were not buying high dollar books, but dealers like Dale and Chris probably had higher end customers. It was the smallest amount of dealers I've seen at a Wizard show, and many said they would not come back.
One thing that hurt me somewhat is that as a small-time dealer, I don't take credit cards. More than a few people asked if I take plastic, and when I told them "no" they didn't even bother to look. One customer on Saturday picked out a couple of books, and then went to the ATM machine to get cash, and came back saying it was down. "

Defiant1

[Defiant1]

Someone online said that Rozanski posted this as his review of the Atlanta show...

"While the weather in Atlanta is not very warm, the Wizard World convention was a great success. That's not to say that attendance was very high, or that the dealers made any money. In point of fact, not one dealer with whom I spoke made a profit at this show, as not only were there dearth of customers, but those fans who did show up seemed to have almost no money to spend. As a case in point, I rode up the escalator on Sunday morning with a couple of fans who were quite excited to be at the convention, but who had only brought the price of admission. They were there to meet the celebrities and wander the dealer's room, but they had just finished their Christmas shopping, so they had nothing left to spend on items for themselves. Quite a few of the fans who did come to the convention were readers of this newsletter, however, and they universally expressed to me that they greatly enjoyed our service and that they would probably be placing an order with us soon. Expecting folks to have a lot of disposable income left over the week after all the Black Friday sales, however, is just not realistic. I'm not sure how the 4 other conventions that were held across the country last weekend fared, but I rather doubt that any of them were great financial successes for the attending dealers."

If you'd been standing by me for my 15 minute chat with him, that review summarizes our exact conversation along with the people walking up and thanking him for his subscription service.

Defiant1

[Defiant1]

Got an email saying this recently...

"...THIS MAY BE THE LAST SHOW OF THE YEAR! IF WIZARD FINDS A NOV/DEC DATE THIS WILL BE THE LAST SHOW OF THE YEAR TILL THE SUPERBOWL SHOW!! .....NOW IF WIZARD DOESN'T DO A SHOW IN THE WINTER...I WILL DO NOV/ DEC ONE DAY SHOW !!! EITHER WAY, THERE WILL BE A SHOW IN ATLANTA NOV/DEC..MY ONE DAY OR WIZARD'S 3 DAY!"

This email was from the guy who sold his winter show date to Wizard.
You'd think Wizard would have already committed at this point.

Defiant1

[Defiant1]

I was shocked to see that Wizard has an Atlanta show scheduled for 2014. I thought the last one wasa big enough flop that they'd have given up here.

www.wizardworld.com/atlanta.html

Defiant1