Final 2016 San Diego Comic-Con Report Howdy, I had planned to not write any further about our experiences at this year's San Diego Comic-Con International, but I have received letters from several very insightful and heartfelt readers of my newsletters who expressed in no uncertain terms that they were of the opinion that I should never attend another SDCC. On many levels I agree with that premise, but I thought I would take a moment just to weigh in on a few random thoughts on the matter. First, it was pointed out to me that my passion that has led to my supporting the San Diego convention for the past 44 years has clearly not resulted in any reciprocation by the convention staff. As one reader so cogently pointed out, a true love affair requires genuine commitment by both parties. In this instance, the staff of the convention has been completely indifferent to our needs. As a case in point, when Freeman (the decorator hired by the convention) failed to deliver our freight to us in time for us to set up our booth on Tuesday, not one representative of the convention offered to help, or was even was available for us to contact. They simply left us high and dry. Chuck sitting in our empty booth all day Tuesday Nor did anyone from the convention stop by to offer assistance (or even to just commiserate) on Wednesday as we desperately scrambled to set up our booth filled with 100,000 comics, in just 8 hours. Why? In all honesty, I believe that they are not helping us because they would just as soon that we left the show forever. To explain, I have been around for a long, long, time. The San Diego Comic-Con that I first attended 44 years ago was a fan-driven convention run by fans, for fans. As the convention grew, however, professional managers were brought on board to help. In no time at all, those professional managers took over the operating Board, and after easing out most of the fans, they became their own bosses. This control of the Board allowed them to then chart a path that greatly expanded the convention by courting the Hollywood studios. On some levels this growth was very much needed in order for us to attract enough fans to cost-justify moving from the old Civic Center convention space into the then brand new San Diego Convention Center, but that was not the only motive. Simply put, greatly increasing the size of the show also provided justification for these managers to also increase their own compensation well into six figures. Comic-Con International may be set up as a "Not For Profit" charity, but as the San Diego Union Tribune discovered during their search of public records a few years back, nothing prevents the Board of a non-profit from paying themselves salaries "in line with industry standards for organizations of a similar size." The bigger they make the show, the more that they can justify paying themselves. It is just that simple. All of the above having been said, is it any surprise that those of us who still advocate maximizing the comics aspect of the show are considered to be annoying anachronisms? That isn't to say that they will not always keep some degree of comics program on the agenda, but rather that comics and comics retailers are considered much more of a necessary evil than a core element of the convention. The real money flows from Hollywood, and Hollywood (by far) brings in the most attendees willing to pay whatever it takes to have bragging rights about having seen those all-important Hall H presentations. Hollywood studios also have the marketing budgets to not even blink at having to pay insane booth rental charges, and obscene drayage costs and set-up fees to the decorators to have their booths set up for them. The studio bigwigs could care less, as to them it is all OPM (other people's money). By this point, I am certain that you are wondering why I keep attending San Diego. Well, the main reason is that I have built close personal relationships at the show with hundreds of comics fans, comics creators, and comics retailers. Many of these relationships go back decades, to when I was a young man in my twenties and thirties. Just contemplating the thought of never being able to see these friends again in that one magical environment fills me with profound sadness and regret. In a nutshell, that is why I have put up with the ridiculous cost increases and utter indifference heaped upon us by the convention staff for these many years. My love affair has never been with the actual convention, but rather with those fellow travelers who attend the show with me. They are my tribe, and my flame for them burns just as brightly today, as it did 44 years ago. I am telling you all of this only so that you will more clearly understand why simply walking away from this show isn't as easy for me as it might seem. Attending San Diego is somewhat of a business decision, but it also reflects a personal commitment on my part to the comics fans of Southern California, and also to my peers in the comics world in general. If I can figure out some way to make attending next year's event less financially draining than it was this year, I will try to return. 'Nuff said... As I did yesterday, I will close today's newsletter with a quick mention that our new 40% off TRUFAN codeword sale is now in effect for you on all ten million of our back issue comics and magazines. Pam and Josh put on another awesome grouping of older issues yesterday, many of which are in scarce higher grades. All of these older issues can be purchased at 40% off when TRUFAN is utilized. See today's Premium New-In-Stock link for our latest additions of Silver and Bronze. Happy Collecting! Chuck Rozanski, President - Mile High Comics, Inc. July 26, 2016 Current Newsletter