Well my friends, spring is in full swing and June is just around the corner. This means you’re probably looking forward to any number of things, from the start of beach season to the end of the school year. But if you’re a comic fan in the Philadelphia area, it also means something perhaps more exciting than any of that. That’s right, Wizard World Philly is just around the corner! This marks the eleventh year that local fans of all stripes have converged on the Philadelphia Convention Center in the middle of June for a weekend long celebration of comic books, sci-fi, and pop-culture, not to mention more celebrity guests than you can shake a stick at (though why you would want to shake a stick at any of these people is beyond me).
In a press release announcing the guest lineup, Wizard World CEO Gareb Shamus remarked that not only had the Philadelphia area embraced the convention to a remarkable degree, but that this year’s event will feature “an even larger and more prestigious lineup of stars and creators and more”. And as tempting as it might be to dismiss that as mere hyperbole, a quick scan of the guest list will likely disabuse you of that notion. This year’s headlining guests include such actors as Bruce Campbell (whose appearance was a highlight of the 2010 convention), Adam Baldwin, Pam Grier, Vivica A. Fox, Julie Benz, Billy Dee Williams and, in his Wizard World debut, pro wrestling icon Bill Goldberg. The list of celebrity guests also includes the likes of iconic action star Michael Biehn, the Dynamic Duo of Adam West and Burt Ward and Superman’s Margot Kidder, as well as such mainstays as Peter Mayhew and Lou Ferrigno.
Despite appearances, the convention’s focus is not solely on celebrity guests. It is, after all, a comic convention, and as such showcases a great variety of comics talent. Among those that I personally rank as highlights are Tony Bedard, Phil Jimenez and J.G. Jones. And of course, I would be remiss if I failed to mention the inclusion of such major figures as Amazing Spider-Man artist Humberto Ramos, zombie king Arthur Suydam and of course Bill Sienkiewicz. As you can plainly see by this point, the guests (whether they are figures in comics or media) are as diverse as the list is extensive. You can view the full list online.
In addition to a convention floor packed with fans, vendors and guests, there will also be a full schedule of panels, Q&A sessions and photo ops as well as a Magic: The Gathering tournament, the details of which are typically made available online as the weekend of the convention approaches.
If you’re thinking to yourself that sounds like an incredible weekend just waiting to happen, well then you’d be correct. That just leaves the question of admissions. Tickets will be available at the door at a rate of $35 for a day or $55 for the weekend. But why would you do that when you can save $10 by buying your tickets in advance on Wizard’s website? After all, any self-respecting pop-culture aficionado has been eagerly aning this convention for months anyway.
The convention hours are as follows:
Friday, June 17th: 12:00pm – 8:00pm
Saturday, June 18th: 10:00am – 7:00pm
Sunday, June 19th: 10:00am – 5:00pm
More information is available at http://www.wizardworld.com/home-pa.html
And be sure to check back with Comic Booked for all the Philadelphia Comic Con coverage you could hope for!
Tags: Adam Baldwin, Adam West, arthur suydam, Bill Goldberg, Bill Sienkiewicz, Billy Dee Williams, Bruce Campbell, Burt Ward, Comic Con, Comics, Convention, Gareb Shamus, Humberto Ramos, J.G. Jones, Julie Benz, Lou Ferrigno, Margot Kidder, Michael Biehn, Nick C, Pam Grier, Peter Mayhew, Phil Jimenez, Philadelphia Comic Con, Philly, Tony Bedard, Vivica A. Fox, Wizard, Wizard World 2011, Wizard World Philly, WWP
About the Author
Written by Nick Cavicchio
Comic Booked's Managing Editor and self-appointed Spider-Man guru. Nick is a geek of all flavors, loving comics, video games and everything in between. Despite having no idea how he landed this gig, he is enjoying every minute of it.
I want to go to this sooooo bad! Great preview!
I can’t wait for this con!
For the past few years I have gone to this, and although this year will be tricky I plan on being one of the first in line…again. This year more than any other year I am looking forward to it for two reason’s. One is the opportunity to cover the event to the best of my ability and two….Bill Sienkiewicz.
2 hour trip is so worth it. I am coming. Try and stop me.
Ok, so something like half of the east coast Comic Booked team is going to be there? It just got more awesome!