This year the OAFCON is dedicating one large area of our Ballroom to local and regional COMIC BOOK CREATORS. Writers, Artists, Editors and Publishers of small press independant comics will be on hand to visit with fans, view portfolios and share their products with the eager public!
BEST OF ALL.. the six-foot space for the COMIC BOOK CREATORS area is FREE. We ask that 2 or 3 creators share each table. We are going to fill 30 tables(60+ creators)
showcaseing the latest and greatest regional comics! If you are interested in appearing in this free space contact bbush3@cox.net for more info. IF YOU'VE CREATED COMICS NOW OR IN THE PAST come join our show!
OAFCON is host to one of the largest reunions of FIRST FANDOM Comic Book members. These are fans who entered comics fandom before 1970.
Each year more long time comic fandom members attend our show just to hang out, show off their collections and tell stories.
SEE our YOU TUBE OAF movie trailer that will soon be a fascinating documentary!
"Return of the OAF's" at YOUTUBE now!
The BILTMORE HOTEL is giving our convention attendees a GREAT deal..$69.00 room rates which includes FREE BREAKFAST FOR TWO !! Call 1-800-522-6620 and tell them you're with the OKLAHOMA COMIC BOOK SHOW ! http://www.biltmoreokc.com/
ADMISSION TO OAFCON IS JUST $5.00 PER DAY !!
OPENS SATURDAY 10-7 pm SUNDAY 10-6 pm
our Famous COMIC BOOK AUCTION is SATURDAY 6-8pm
for all convention details contact Bart Bush at bbush3@cox.net
PRO GUESTS AND FAN GUESTS OF HONOR attending OAFCON 2011:
GUEST OF HONOR:
MIKE CURTIS
OAFCON guest Mike Curtis is proud to be carrying on in the tradition of Oklahoman Chester Gould as the newest scripter of the DICK TRACY comic strip. Legendary artist JOE STATON does the pencils, SHELLEY PLEGER does inks and letters the strip, Sunday colors are by SHANE FISHER and Crimestoppers are written by Tracy Police advisor LT. JIM DOHERTY.
Curtis has been involved in comics most of his life, beginning with an early submission to DC. They didn't use it, but they did send back a postcard encouraging the 11-year-old's efforts. A lifelong interest in SUPERMAN led to his becoming the third/fourth largest collector in the US who actually displays in museum's libraries, etc. Through the years, he has advised DC on the hero's collectable history and of nonlicensed items, while finally becoming a comic pro through scripting RICHIE RICH for Harvey Comics.
For many years, Curtis wrote and later published his own slice-of-life character SHANDA THE PANDA through his company SHANDA FANTASY ARTS. His wife Carole preferred to write adventures with her comic KATMANDU. The couple published over 12 titles during a 20 year period.
Last year, Curtis teamed with Staton to go after a lifelong goal: producing the DICK TRACY comic strip. When Pulitizer Prize winner Dick Locher decided to retire, Staton and Curtis assumed the reins of Tracy's adventures in March of this year.
Curtis is the only former law enforcement officer to write DICK TRACY. Since March, he and Staton have revitalized the 80-year-old series, bringing back many of the strips' characters with new and different twists. This month, Tracy's origin is revisited, while such famous foes as Flattop and the Brow reappear.
When not at conventions, Mike and his wife Carole live on a farm in Greenbrier, Arkansas.
BILL SCHELLY
BILL SCHELLY is a comics and fandom historian whose latest book is THE ART OF JOE KUBERT (available at Amazon at $13 off cover price!) This follows Bill's well-received Man of Rock: A Biography of Joe Kubert (Fantagraphics, 2008). A participant in comicdom since 1964, Bill is perhaps best known as the author of The Golden Age of Comic Fandom, which was nominated for a Will Eisner Comics Industry Award in 1996. He has served as associate editor of Roy Thomas’s Alter Ego magazine (Twomorrows Publishing) since its inception. The Seattle-based author has written or compiled fourteen books, and a dozen introductions for DC’s prestigious Archive series of deluxe books. Bill also recently published The Founders of Comic Fandom for McFarland Publications and was the recipent of the 2011 Comic-Con Inkpot Award for 20 years of fandom research and books on our shared history. WELCOME BACK., BILL !!
BILL SCHELLY
BILL SCHELLY is a comics and fandom historian whose latest book is THE ART OF JOE KUBERT (available at Amazon at $13 off cover price!) This follows Bill's well-received Man of Rock: A Biography of Joe Kubert (Fantagraphics, 2008). A participant in comicdom since 1964, Bill is perhaps best known as the author of The Golden Age of Comic Fandom, which was nominated for a Will Eisner Comics Industry Award in 1996. He has served as associate editor of Roy Thomas’s Alter Ego magazine (Twomorrows Publishing) since its inception. The Seattle-based author has written or compiled fourteen books, and a dozen introductions for DC’s prestigious Archive series of deluxe books. Bill also recently published The Founders of Comic Fandom for McFarland Publications and was the recipent of the 2011 Comic-Con Inkpot Award for 20 years of fandom research and books on our shared history. WELCOME BACK., BILL !!
LARRY LATHAM
After 30 years producing and directing animation for television in Los Angeles, I decided to branch out. I was nominated for an Emmy (for the two-hour pilot for Disney's "Talespin") and earned a University of Oklahoma Outstanding Alumni award, and the money was great. But my life-long passions for weird fiction, film-making and world history needed an outlet, and programs for pre-schoolers were never going to provide that. I began writing locally, used my experience from my animation to sell my first article to Animation World Network. I am writing and illustrating my own online graphic novel, Lovecraft is Missing, and I blog there about germane topics.
JACK & CAROLE BENDER
Jack and Carole Bender are in their second decade of producing
the Alley Oop comic strip for 650 newspapers worldwide with a
combined readership of 26 million daily.
Jack has drawn Alley Oop since 1991 and Carole began as
letterer and assistant in 1992. After teaming with Dave Graue as
writer for 10 years, Carole became the sole writer in 2001. She also
does all the finish work on the computer including shading, colouring
and electronic filing.
The Benders, who live in Tulsa, are the only husband-and-wife
team in the comics.
The Alley Oop comic strip, Sunday and daily, also is available
on the Internet.
JOHN WOOLEY
First, on March 15, John Wiley & Sons officially released my new biography: Wes Craven - the Man and His Nightmares. I was a fan of Craven even before he optioned (but, unfortunately, never filmed) my novel Old Fears, which Ron Wolfe and I co-wrote back in the early '80s, so getting to do this project was a real joy for me. As it unfolded, I found myself in a position to write about things that have been kicking around in my head for decades, ideas having to do with the connections between art and exploitation, for instance, as well as what youthful exposure to the concept of an endless, burning hell full of tortured souls might have on a writer or filmmaker. I'm proud of the book, proud of the exhaustive research I was able to utilize (unearthed mostly by one of the best researchers in the business, Rachelle Vaughan), proud of the fact that Wes Craven himself consented to a pretty thorough interview. Plus, it's my first book to be available on Kindle
Shot in Oklahoma: A Century of Sooner State Cinema, my look at the history of Oklahoma filmmaking, from the University of Oklahoma Press. Beginning at the very first part of the 20th Century, when Edison's boys headed down from New Jersey to get some authentic cowboys and Indians in front of their lenses, it wraps up with a look at several of the theatrical features that came along in the wake of the Movie That Changed Everything, the Tulsa-lensed Blood Cult. Acknowledging that picture's rightful place in film history - it was actually the first made-for-home-video feature -- was especially important to me. Of course, it was fun to write about as well, as were such off-trail movies as Just Between Us, This Stuff'll Kill Ya, and the amazing Prince of Peace.
COUNT GREGORE
For 52 years Oklahoma late-night horror movie fans have watched COUNT GREGORE and his ghoulish friends entertain us at every commercial break.
John Ferguson as Count Gregore started in 1959 on WKY-TV late night Saturdays with SHOCK THEATRE and the classic Universal horror films. Over the years his character developed into more skits and humorous happenings. Fortunately for us COUNT GREGORE will be at OAFCON signing autographs, poseing for photos, and telling great stories of his acting career.
MICHELLE NOLAN
As a life long comic book collector, it seems Michelle has always been a major part of Fandom. She has worked conventions, helped out the American Association of Comic Book Collectors (AACC), written articles for almost all of our major industry trade papers and magazines, and even self published fanzines as far back as 35 years ago.
LOVE ON THE RACKS is Michelle's latest book. For the better part of three decades romance comics were an American institution. Nearly 6,000 romance comics were published between 1947 and 1977, and there was a time when one of every five comics sold in the U.S. was a romance comic. This is the first book devoted entirely to the rarely studied world of romance comics. The text includes information on several types of romance comics and their creators, plus the history, numbers, and publishing frequency of dozens of romance titles. The author examines several significant periods in the development of the romance genre, including the origins of Archie Comics and other teen romance publications, the romance comic "boom and bust" of the 1950s, and the genre's sudden disappearance when fantasy and superhero comics began to dominate mainstream comics in the late 1970s.
Come visit with Michelle and pick her brain for obscure comic book information. She's a walking encyclopedia!
KENNETH SMITH
My editorial connection at Dark Horse for their new CREEPY and EERIE cover-market alas has not panned out, with the downsizing they've gone through. But that connection was also the only in-house source of information I had for how the horror-line was doing generally. I encourage any dealers or fans who are big on the hard-copy, magazine- or anthology-format horror market to bring me recommendations about the places they find the most interesting and exciting fiction and art getting published.
In fact I have been gradually filling out an artbook of my work in the genre of Horror, producing a lot of concept-pieces for rendering as acrylics or oils. I am working--at various speeds--on several such artbooks, at the same time I'm gathering up work to start self-publishing again. With some technical assistance Angela has been shaping up my dormant website, kennethsmith.com, for art, for self-publications under the imprints of Phantasmagoria Publications and Memnon Press, for collectable books of graphic art and other interests, etc. I have taken out an ad in Heritage Auctions' PRICE GUIDE TO COMIC ART to move an occasional original along. And I've also been active at doing tutorials via Skype, which keep me fairly occupied now that THE COMICS JOURNAL has lapsed from existence as a periodical and its website has turned to more fannish material.
I will be bringing a selection of my original oils and acrylics for display, with a lot of sketches and drawings for sale at my tables and other art for sale at auction; the full line of my Phantasmagoria books, prints and portfolios, limited-edition and otherwise; some specially attractive collectables getting cleaved from my own collection; etc.
RACHEL CAINE
Caine grew up in west Texas and graduated from Socorro High School in El Paso, Texas, in 1980. She is a 1985 graduate of Texas Tech University with a bachelor's degree in accounting (with a minor in music). Rachel Caine has been writing and publishing novels and short stories since 1990. She is a former professional musician who has the distinction of having played with such musical legends as Henry Mancini, Peter Nero, and John Williams.
In addition to a daunting writing schedule, she returned in September 2008 to a full-time job as a Director of Corporate Communications for a large multinational company, having taken an eight-month hiatus for most of 2008 to complete pressing deadlines.She lives in north Texas with her husband, artist Cat Conrad. Caine again left her job to return to writing full-time in April 2010. Caine does most of her writing in a coffee shop near her home.She says she finds Caramel Mocha "very inspirational." Caine listens to music while she writes, the playlist changing from project to project. RACHEL WILL NOT BE AT OAFCON ON SATURDAY ! LOOK FOR HER ON SUNDAY !
CAT CONRAD
CAT CONRAD originally hails from Oklahoma. His background includes a degree in fine arts from the University of Science & Arts in Chickasha, Oklahoma. From there, Cat learned just how far his art degree would take him … across town and into a 10-year stint as an industrial chemist who could be paid as a lab rat. Prolonged exposure to hazardous materials did little to improve Cat’s humor,in 1991 he eschewed the “underground” movement and moved to Texas! Currently, in addition to being an award-winning painter, scholar and punning linguist, He has been a featured auctioneer at numerous conventions throughout the Southwest, including the famed five and a half hour marathon auction of WorldCon 51 that was so incredible that even Guinness record keepers couldn't be convinced!
ROBERT BEERBOHM
Robert Beerbohm has been able to pay himself to read comic books for a living for over 40 years now. The last 14 years since 1997 he has been asked to compile the "Origin of the Modern Comic Book fronting the main pricing index to the long running Overstreet Comic Book Price since #27. In addition he co-created the Victorian and Platinum Era sections of the same price guide being the final arbiter of the data and visual aid in the fronting articles as well as personally compiling the prices indexes to both sections since their inception. In 1998 he re-discovered the earliest known comic book published in America in Sept 1842 by Wilson & Co out of New York City titled "The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck" which used the original printing plates from the first English language translation published by Tilt & Bogue, London, which, in turn, was from the first French pirate edition from Paris in 1833 which in turn had come from the 1828 Geneva Switzerland first printing created by Rodolphe Topffer, the inventor of the "modern" comic book.
ROGER HILL
I'm going on 60 plus years of age and still collecting. I'll be coming to the convention with high hopes of finding some more EC related goodies that I need for my collection (which isn't much these days). But you never know what will show up at OAF. Anybody with old original artwork, EC comics, or old comic or science fiction fanzines, should bring them along. I still need a Boris Karloff autographed picture for my Hollywood memorabilia collection. Anybody got one? And I'm still looking for rare movie material or old magazine articles on Lon Chaney Sr., KING KONG and silent movie star Charles Ogle (Edison's Frankenstein of 1910).
I'll be bringing a little bit of original art, a few comics, and a few things for show and tell. Oh, by the way, recently I've been buying some of the old files from the estate of Calvin T. Beck (publisher of CASTLE OF FRANKENSTEIN). Going through them I discovered an old form letter (printed with the old blue Ditto process) from OAF, signed by Bart Bush, soliciting the publisher to join the OAF organization for $2.00. Who would have thought? I doubt that Beck joined....he was too cheap! ha!
ERIC J. GROVES
Eric Groves is an Oklahoma City attorney.He has collected and traded comics since childhood. He is most certainly pre-code. He joined OAF in 1969 after
attending his first comic convention in Houston. Eric is a special advisor to the
Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide.
At OAF Con, Eric will offer an excellent selection of Golden Age and Silver
Age comics along with some Platinum Age books. He will also have a
wide variety of big little books for sale and, maybe, some pulps.
KEN CAVINESS
Fantastic Four #17 got me hooked on collecting comics. I set up at the OKCons in Tulsa and Oklahoma City during the mid ‘70’s to pay my way through college. After college, I got a regular “civilian” job as an accountant, but put my comics, LPs, sports and non-sport cards in The Book Barn, in Joplin MO. That started the multi-media company that has now grown to 41 stores in 5 states under the brands: Vintage Stock, Movie Trading Company and our newest brand in St. Louis…. BAM!
BAM! stores are over 25,000 sq ft of EXCITEMENT…. Comics, DVDs, Video Games, Movie Theater, Books and Music.
My main interest is EC comics and obscure Neal Adams items.
BUCK WALTON
Buck Walton has been dealing in pop culture items for 40 years. Now retired from a 40-year teaching career, he writes a weekly column, Memory Ranch, for the Coffeyville Journal. Movie posters, comic books, and related items will be a part of what he’ll bring to OAF Con 2011. He is looking forward to seeing you there. Until then he’ll be selling at The Tulsa Flea Market and as “buckw” on ebay.
JOHN MCMAHON
One of the largest Oklahoma dealers of collectible books, pulps and comics will be attending this year. John is currently involved with Reverse Karma Press publishing old Pulp fiction. He also attends PULP conventions and has been involved with TULSA comic fandom for decades. Come see his large impressive selection of old children books and very rare pulps!
BUD PLANT
I'm driving in after the Houston Book Fair the week before and will set up a couple tables worth of old comics and illustrated books, comics-related stuff, best of the cool new books from Bud's Art Books, etc. Looking forward to seeing everyone.
Also, I'm just announcing that I'm offering Bud Plant Comic Art for sale. Time to move on. I'm busy working in my local co-op bookstore (I have my own "comic book room" there), doing comic book shows and antiquarian book shows (mostly on the West Coast) and selling on the internet. You are welcome to spread the word around, I hope to shake loose some potential buyers with good synergy from their existing business, be they publishers or catalogers or mail order dealers or ??? SEE YOU AT OAFCON
CONFIRMED COMIC Creators:
Charles Martin (Literati Press)
Ocie Taylor (Skribbleboy Comix Art)
Kyle Chaney (Plan B Comics)
Scott Sackett (Big Easy Score)
Don Rosencrans (Welcome to Ralton)
Aaron Ballinger (Equinox Comics)
Cary & Sarah Stringfield
Richard Jenkins (Sky Ape)
Joey Belden (many mini comics)
Mike Kennedy (Weird Zombie Horror; Celtic Knights)
Jeff Provine (The Academy, Out of Context)
Karen Martin (Literati Comics)
Eric Gorman (Literati Comics)
Jerry Bennett
Jackson Compton
Greg Harms (Third Empire Studio)
David Doub ( Dusk Comics; Mystery Masque)
We have confirmation of attendance for FIRST COMICS FANDOM MEMBERS: AARON CAPLAN, BUDDY SAUNDERS, RICK PAYNE, BRUCE SHULTS, STEVEN FEARS, DON MARIS, GRANT IRWIN, IKE WILSON , JIM GRAY , SCOTT HURST, ROLAND AUSTIN, BRUCE WEBSTER, WILT CONINE, MICHAEL MORGAN, MINDY JONES, MARK LAMBERTI, TANNER MILES, DAVID J. SMITH, CHRIS KETTLER, AND ??????
NEW DEALERS ... Jim Decker ( Milwaukee), Jim Gerlach ( New Mexico), Brian St. John (USA), Matt Howlett (OKC) and several others..just to name a few ..and Greg Huneryager returns!!
AND THE OHC will be at OAFCON....
Now on exhibit at the Oklahoma History Center - Did you know that Chester Gould, creator of the classic Dick Tracy comic strip, grew up in Pawnee, Oklahoma? Discover this and more in The Uncanny Adventures of Okie Cartoonists, an interactive, kid-friendly exhibit on Oklahoma’s comic illustrators and writers at the Oklahoma History Center! Oklahomans have played a major role in the evolution of comic books, comic strips, and editorial cartoons. You will discover how industry pioneers such as Chester Gould, award-winning editorial cartoonist Jim Lange of The Oklahoman, and current Supergirl and Superman writer Sterling Gates have created, drawn, or written some of the most recognizable characters in American popular culture. The exhibit will only be on display through December 2011.
View this and many other exhibits at the Oklahoma History Center which features five galleries; outdoor exhibits; interactives; research center; free parking; café; seasonal special events; and a museum store. Discover the people and stories that truly make Oklahoma unique and learn the stories of triumph and tragedy, hope and heartache, famous and infamous around every corner.
Oklahoma History Center
800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive, Oklahoma City, OK 73105
(I-35 and I-40, adjacent to State Capital at N.E. 23rd St. and Laird Ave.)
405-522-0765, http://www.okhistorycenter.org/
Hours: Monday - Saturday from 10am to 5pm. Admission
Adults: $7
Seniors (age 62+): $5
Students: $4
Children (5 & under): Free
Family: $18.00
Veterans and Active Duty Military: Free
OHS Members: Free
SEE PICTURES OF OUR PAST OAF CONVENTIONS BELOW:
