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Some announcements about the 2011 Comic-Con International San Diego: mostly a reminder that four-day passes and single-day tickets go on sale on November 1 at 9 am PST. (Preview Night has been sold out since this year’s show.) The fact that this is all being announced to the minute — very much like Hoteloween — suggests that there will be a ticket rush of Bieber-like proportions. How quickly will passes sell out? The Beat will be hitting refresh quite often! What’s the over/under on a one-day four-day pass sellout? Ticket prices have been raised slightly this year — a four-day pass is $105 and a one-day pass is $37. Last year, they were $100 and $35, respectively.

ALSO: Tomorrow is the Small Press Deadline!

Applicants for Small Press tables at Comic-Con must apply by this date. You must submit a current example (with a copyright date of 2010/2011) of your publication with your application to be considered for Small Press space. Click here to download a 2011 Comic-Con Exhibitor Application, which must accompany your entry.

And just so folks know who they will be seeing when they go to the show, the first 20 guests have been announced and they are:

Jordi Bernet (Spanish comics artist known in the U.S. for the hardboiled Torpedo series and for DC’s Jonah Hex)
 
Patricia Briggs (Author, Mercy Thompson and Alpha and Omega series)
 
Jo Chen (Award-winning cover artist for Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Runaways)
 
Alan Davis (British writer/artist on such titles as Captain Britain, Excalibur and JLA: The Nail; currently artist on Avengers Prime)
 
David Finch (Artist known for Cyberforce, Avengers, New Avengers, and Brightest Day covers; he’s now writing and drawing Batman: The Dark Knight)
 
Dave Gibbons (British artist on the classic Watchmen comics series, and Give Me Liberty/Martha Washington; writer/artist, The Originals graphic novel)
 
Kim Harrison (Author, Rachel Morgan, Madison Avery series)
 
Jonathan Hickman (Writer, Fantastic Four, Secret Warriors, and S.H.I.E.L.D.)
 
John Higgins (Long-time British artist on 2000 AD titles; colorist on the classic Watchmen comics series)
 
Charlie Huston (Crime/horror novelist, Hank Thompson series, Joe Pitt Casebooks; comic book writer, Wolverine: The Best There Is, Moon Knight)
 
Jamal Igle (Artist (Marvel, Image, Devils Due, Disney), whose latest work includes Supergirl)
  
Richard Kyle (Writer, Graphic Story Magazine, highly influential fanzine of the 1960s; coined the term “graphic novel” in 1964)
 
Rebecca Moesta (Co-author (with Kevin J. Anderson), Star Wars Young Jedi Knights series, Crystal Doors series; author, Buffy novels)
 
Christopher Moore (Author, humorous vampire novels, including Bite Me: A Love Story, You Suck: A Love Story, Bloodsucking Fiends: A Love Story, etc.)
 
Bill Schelly (Historian of comics fandom; books include The Golden Age of Comics Fandom, biographies of Joe Kubert and Otto Binder, etc.)
 
Frank Stack   (Pioneering underground cartoonist (as “Foolbert Sturgeon”), artist on many of Harvey Pekar’s American Splendor stories as well as the graphic novel Our Cancer Year)
 
Mark Tatulli  (Cartoonist with two ongoing syndicated strips: Lio and Heart of the City)
 
Roy Thomas (One of the first fans to become a pro: published early 1960s fanzine Alter Ego, went on to be editor-in-chief at Marvel and write titles such as Conan; currently editing revived Alter Ego magazine)
 
Maggie Thompson (Editor of Comics Buyers Guide; co-creator of Comic Art, one of the earliest comics fanzines in 1961)
 
Scott Westerfeld (Author, Uglies, Midnighters series)


 One notes a healthy number of AUTHORS on the list — maybe a few more than usual in these kinds of initial announcements, maybe not. And while this would be a fine list for any convention all by itself, you know it will inevitably swell to insane levels — although it would be nice to think that 130,000 people would sign up just to see Maggie Thompson.

And while we’re using up our San Diego linkage for the day, here’s a website we ran across the other day where fans are wondering which hotel to stay at to see “comics industry folk.” Yes, people it can happen. Not only can…it will.

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1 COMMENT

  1. Didn’t 4 day passes sell out in November last year? When did tix go on sale last year?

    My prediction is Nov 26.

    Esp since preview night is already sold out.

    Damn, I hope I can find my receipt.

  2. Trev, I think the ‘official’ sellout was early, but not that early. But then they pulled back and announced they were not sold out, but then, like this year’s NYCC, some retailers and the internet had some tix to sell.

    So, who won last year’s contest? O.o

  4. @trev, @michael, Last year they sold tickets in stages, starting in September or October with the 4-day passes. The ones with preview night went early, then the rest of them were gone by November. Then a month or two later they started selling the one-day passes.

  5. Get your SDCC passes now! Don’t wait! You don’t want to miss out on the chance to attend a panel on Glee or Weeds.

  6. All passes were on sale at the same time last year, IIRC. 4 day passes sold out round about late November or December, I think? It seems The Beat archive for that period did not survive the server move so I can’t find the guessing contest that was held around that time for when it would completely sell out. The whole thing sold out in March.

  7. One of the themes for 2011 will be “50 Years of Comics Fandom,” featuring Maggie T., Roy Thomas, Richard Kyle, and more names to come.

  9. Yeah, let’s all make sure we have tickets so we can see what will happen on this coming season of The Big Bang Theory. Also, maybe there will be a comic creator or two. But probably not.

  10. I believe that Jo Chen, Alan Davis, David Finch, Dave Gibbons, Jonathan Hickman, John Higgins, Jamal Igle, and Frank Stack all count as comics creators . . .

  11. Good start for the SDCC ’11 Special Guest list; it’s nice to see this particular “Pop Culture Fest” keeps in mind the International aspect of its name—
    although I wish the authorial guest pool would skew more towards the SF side as per its original COMICS-SCIENCE FICTION-FILMS
    directive… (Like Richard Morgan, Connie Willis, Charles Stross and Samuel Delany of recent years, say.)

    Glad to have bought my passes back in July! And happy to have the opportunity to add Frank Stack’s signature with the others in that OUR CANCER YEAR copy…

    So, who won last year’s contest?
    Um… wasn’t that me? But never did get my Prize Package, if so; I’m happy to “win” if just for bragging rights. ;)

    Double or nothing— put me down this year for Feb. 11th when ALL passes Sell Out.

  13. I was a little confused and maybe some others were also, but it’s not Pacific Standard Time as you stated, rather Pacific Daylight Time.