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08-08-2006, 04:23 PM
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#1 |
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WIZARD REPORTS 58K AT CHICAGO
Press Release
Wizard World, the country’s foremost touring event for pop culture and comic books, announced today that it once again exceeded attendance expectations with its tenth annual Chicago event at The Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, attracting more than 58,000 attendees over three and a half days, making this past weekend's convention the largest Wizard World event to date. Guest of Honor Jeph Loeb, a comic book writer (Superman/Batman, Batman: The Long Halloween, Ultimates 3) and a film/TV producer/writer (NBC’s Heroes, Lost, Smallville) headlined the event that saw fan turnout top last year’s 56,000 attendees – growth attributed to Wizard’s ongoing commitment to providing fans with the opportunity to meet some of the biggest stars in comics, film and television, and explore the worlds of comics, cards, toys, anime, manga, and gaming.Newsarama Note: As in years past, Newsarama has again requested from Wizard the method by which they arrived at their attendance number. Wizard has historically declined to release that information - or respond to requests. |
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08-08-2006, 04:30 PM
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#2 |
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There's no way that there were more people at this year's con than last year's. None.
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08-08-2006, 04:31 PM
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#3 |
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I can believe it. Friday's crowd was on par to last year's Saturday crowd....... At least it felt like it.
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08-08-2006, 04:58 PM
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#4 |
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there's no way that's possible... u could actually walk through the convention on sat this year, unlike last year
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08-08-2006, 05:08 PM
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#5 |
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Thursday was useless. I didn't hear a single exhibitor say that they enjoyed that preview night or had good sales. Friday and Sunday were also pretty dead. All the one-dayers showed up Saturday and sales were pretty brisk.
The only guess I can come up with is that they're counting the VIP and full weekend passes as four people. 58,000? It almost seems like they have some sort of amatuerish desire to keep the numbers growing so that they can pretend that they're on a growth pattern that San Diego is on. But really, the con was too close to San Diego this year, and they're keeping it that way for next year. It can only hurt the guest list, which will slowly hurt the attendance list. And throw in the coming debacle of Wizard World Philly vs. Heroes Con next year, I won't be shocked if Wizard starts to cut back on their shows again in the future. |
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08-08-2006, 05:12 PM
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#6 | |
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Quote:
You beautiful (expletive deleted)!  I love you including that part. |
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08-08-2006, 05:45 PM
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#7 |
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I really liked having the preview night. I got most of my shopping done then, and was able to focus on the signings and panels for the rest of the weekend.
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08-08-2006, 07:09 PM
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#8 | |
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Quote:
You'll notice they said it exceeded expectations, not exceeded last year's attendance and I'm inclined to agree with you. While they were definitely better organized and the layout on the floor was improved, it still felt MUCH less crowded than previous years. I was able to walk right in the door on Friday and Saturday which I've never been able to do before. I heard one of the retailers complaining that by the middle of Saturday afternoon she still hadn't needed to restock which at last years con she'd had to do on Friday. This year's con was lacking in talent and as a result panels. Jeph Loeb, the guest of honor, didn't even warrant a panel of his own while Kevin Smith, who shows up and tells the same stories year after year, get's more than 2 hours in the big room. I'd say tha Wizard might learn from it's mistake this year but once again, they've scheduled next year's con for 2 weeks after San Diego. I shouldn't really complain too much though. The lighter crowd actually let me get a lot more done and I was able to get a lot more sketches in artists alley than usual. But it would be nice if we were once again a premier convention for publishers. It's sad that publishers like Boom! (who I was looking forward to seeing) or Oni don't come out to Chicago with booths but we do get the IFL ring in the middle of the floor, front and center where everyone can see it. It came as no surprise to me when I found out that Gareb Shamus owns the IFL. |
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08-08-2006, 07:28 PM
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#9 |
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they said it exceed last year, it says 58,000 people this year, and 56,000 people last year, which would be comparing both years...
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08-08-2006, 11:35 PM
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#10 |
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I see that someone else commented -- but they did say that they did more than last year, by 2000.
The thing is, it was obvious to everyone that went to the show that a) there were fewer people, b) there were fewer dealers, and c) there were fewer people in artist's alley. And really, that's okay. With Otakon (or however you spell it) happening the same weekend and the show being only 10 days after San Diego, nobody would have said that a small dip in attendance would have been surprising, or even unexpected. But instead, Wizard seems to be again disingenuous. When the whole Atlanta/Heroes debacle happened last year, they were caught in a lie that they never admitted to, and now (as in their reporting on recent cons) they talk of numbers that weren't there. |
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08-09-2006, 12:37 AM
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#11 |
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I called it. I knew Wizard would claim that more people showed up this year. I even called the number, 58,000, on another board. And I am now calling BULLSHYTE on Wizard World.
There is absolutely NO WAY that WWC '06 was bigger than '05 or even '04, hell even '03. This years Saturday crowd was the same size, if not smaller, than last years Friday crowd. Typical of Wizard to fudge the numbers to try to make themselves appear to be as important as San Diego. |
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08-09-2006, 01:04 AM
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#12 |
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I thought Saturday was as busy as previous years, but less so on the Sunday.
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08-09-2006, 02:31 AM
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#13 |
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I don't believe the numbers. No way did that many people go to the Spike TV Con, excuse me Wizard World Chicago.
I suppose Lou Ferrigno and the TNA wrestlers drew in those big numbers. Or maybe it was Richard Kiel and Dirk Benedict. |
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08-09-2006, 04:59 AM
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#14 |
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With so much animosity towards WW Chicago and the low numbers I still wonder what was the reason for having the Sam Loeb auction in a con with less people and frankly poorer people...and dont tell me that the size of SD would drown it out because that is crap - its a great cause and a GREAT amount of talent....I could see easily $150,000 being brought in for those pages easily in SD.
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08-09-2006, 09:59 AM
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#15 | |
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Quote:
Take that, Chi-Town! |
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08-09-2006, 10:49 AM
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#16 |
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I'm assuming that the Sam Loeb auction was at Wizard World because Jeph has a good relationship with the folks at Wizard, so he wanted to spread the love that way.
Maybe? |
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08-09-2006, 11:47 AM
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#17 | |
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Quote:
Yes that is my first thoughts as well - but why would he do that when this was a charity event...I guess raising money and awareness wasnt the primary concern. And my shot at Chi-towners wallets is truth - many retailer buddies see huge dips in sales over SD...for the same con-exclusive merch so that's not a low blow - juts in case you thought it was unfounded. |
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08-09-2006, 01:07 PM
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#18 | |
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Jeph has said it was at Chicago cause Sam really liked the Chicago convention hence it being there and not San Diego |
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08-09-2006, 06:12 PM
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#19 | |
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Wow that has to be one of the most ignorant things I've read in a long time.
You mistake animosity for dissapointment. There are those of us who are frustrated that Wizard has taken what was once a much smaller and much better con, and turned it into a circus and parade of advertisement for Gareb Shamus' side projects. Add to that the fact that in order to make more money for himself, he's crowded the convention circuit so badly that pro attendance is spread out between a much larger number of cons than before. Even with all it's faults, there are a large number of people who prefer the Chicago con to San Diego these days, now that SD is courting Hollywood more and more while letting the attention it used to shower on it's comic creators fall to the wayside. |
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08-10-2006, 02:00 AM
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#20 |
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Brady Killer...... While I teased about the Chicago con, my discontent is placed solely at Wizard, I find your post to be ignorant, and heres why-
1) After Heroes and SDCC, which had amazing guests, and Wizard World which focused more on Spike TV than comics, not only are the attendance numbers bogus, but it's no wonder why there was a dip. 2) What convention exclusives were available, aside from the Civil War alternate, that you couldn't get at SDCC also? Besides, how many 50 to 100 dollar alternate covers of wolverine origins or civil war does someone need? 3) If you don't know about Chicago, don't speak about Chicago. We have some of the wealthiest suburbs in the nation, such as Highland Park, Northbrook, Kennelworth, and Lake Forest among others, where you will find no shortage of houses from 1 to 20 million dollars in cost. So there is no problem with anyone being able to afford an auction in chicago. The only thing that could have potentially hurt the auction is that from what I heard, it was run as poorly as everything else, because Wizard still can't figure out how to run a show. 4) When I was a kid, I went to the show always. It used to be great, than Wizard took over and ruined it. Wizard has put a bad taste in many people's mouths, SDCC still has a good reputation, and it also has a much better guest list, so I would expect there to be more traffic. In fact, this year, Wizard has had the weakest guest list ever. The best media guests didn't even sign autographs, they just came to talk, what kind of crap is that? Erica Durance coming just for the auction, I can understand, but Wizard put her picture everywhere, and didn't exactly explain why she was there, they hyped her just as anyone would a media guest that you could get an autograph from. And from what I hear, it required an act of god to get a ticket for a Thomas Jane autograph. My point, Wizard is disorganized, they ran a weak show, and had a weak turnout, and nothing else but Gareb Shamus and Wizard was to blame. Before you make ignorant comments, get your facts straight. |
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08-10-2006, 02:41 AM
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#21 |
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I was on attendance on Friday, with my son for the first time...I've been there in the past, and personally have enjoyed going there, finding the comics/figures/etc. that I have been looking for...but for a child, it was down right pitiful...my son's brightest moment was when he LEFT Wizardworld...
If you see it from a Dad's perspective, it was down right terrible, spending money to bring in IFL, IFC, whatever the hell that is!!! Granted, the women tossing the shirts to the crowd caught my attention, but for a child it was pitiful. WizardWorld definitely had a varity of boothes, but honestly, who really gave a !@#$ about the SPIKE TV booth with the free brochure and bag...or the IFC and the women tossing out T-Shirts to the loudest and most obnoxious males (yes, I yelled once before my girlfriend hit me)... These conventions are intended to be geared towards the child within us, and the children around us, but all I saw this year was a quick way to not make me want to bring myself, nor my son there next year. Wizardworld staff, if you are reading this, print this article, and remember these steps for next year: (1). If you are bringing actors there, bring ones that we can relate to...what's popular? You want to bring actors, try getting any of them from the new Battlestar Galactica tv series, not the old...Bruce Campbell will always draw a crowd!!!... (2). Think of the children, both young and old...I kept my son away from several locations due to the women at the booth's (Zenescope, though I love their comics!!!). Sorry to rant for so long, but this year's WizardWorld was both upsetting to me, and a disappointment to my 9 year old. Do better next year, or your overall count for the convention will go down by two, where as San Diego's will go up by that number... ***Oh, and as for Bradykiller, Chicago does have some of the wealthiest suburbs around, as MHELLER1974 pointed out. Want a guided tour? I'll show you some of the houses I worked on that surpass $20 million...*** |
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08-10-2006, 09:27 AM
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#22 |
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I'm not seeing the numbers and if they can't account for their findings, I'll bet the findings are bunk.
It was much slower and smaller than last year, side rooms were closed off and the front of the show was almost completely epmty. WWC had nothing going on and after 6 years in a row I think I'll be heading up to SD for now on. |
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08-10-2006, 05:50 PM
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#23 |
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Hmmm
I go to Chicago to meet my friends talk to artist and buy comics.. and for that Chicago is one of the best shows. Almost every booth had comics to offer. Buy sell or trade Comics were on hand and deals were there to be had. I don't care what else was going on, all of it was just filler for me. I don't stand in lines for autographs on my books, I'd much rather shake their hand and buy em a drink at the sports bar. The exclusives were a joke, but again I could care less since I'm not there for exclusives. No crowds in artist alley? GOOD! there wasn't a creator or artist there that I coudn't meet and talk to as long as I didn't get in a line! You waited for hours to meet Mike Turner? or Joe Quesada, Buzz, Choi, Turnbell, Mayhew and many others.. oh well bummer for you. Meanwhile I played a game of pool with Mike, did a shot of Yeiger with Joe, had a round of beer with Mayhew and made fun of some guy who was inhaling his cigar like a cig with Buzz. (the guy started turning a shade of green later that night LOL!) You want a COMIC BOOK convention go to Shytown. Otherwise yea you would do better to go to the SanDiego Hollywood Rich snub Con. Maybe you could all get together and compare Rolex's. Meanwhile I'll be heading back to Chicago and hanging with the Po-Folks.searching the bargain bins and talking comics. By the way, my Rolex has a diamond bezel does yours? |
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08-10-2006, 10:33 PM
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#24 | ||
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Quote:
The Spike booth didn't bother me too much especially since they were really there to promote the new Blade series. The IFC ring was what really annoyed me. They've always had a wrestling ring but this year it was switched over to IFC which is owned by Gareb Shamus, publisher of Wizard Magazine. Quote:
Agreed. Instead of dragging out the tired old sci fi stars who charge $20 a pop for their autograph, why not bring out someone who's actually still working. They had Thomas Jane and Kristen Bell this year but didn't give them a panel so we could ask them questions. |
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08-15-2006, 10:30 PM
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#25 | |
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Quote:
I'm sort of tired of argueing on these boards. I just want to get along, but as I am a Chicagoan born and raised (although I now live in the East) I took this comment as a bit of insult. Here is the link to one of the wealthiest areas in the entire country. It is located a full 20-30 minutes from Rosemont, Illinois, where WW Chicago is held. http://www.villageofkenilworth.org/ The North Shore of Chicago is one of the richest areas in the counrty...period. It is where our friend Alex Ross lives. I went to high scholl there (Glenbrook South in Glenview) and most of my friends drove Corvettes and one even drove a Delorean. (I had a '72 Ford Torino...green...and rusty) The average cost for a home in the North Shore is well over 1 Million. That is for a small place. I have lived on the East Coast now for a while and I find very little places to be as expensive as Chicago proper or the nicer suburbs. I am not trying to be mean or spiteful, but I just have to say that your statement was not well thought out nor was it acurate in any way. I am also an exhibitor that was at WW Chicago and SDCC. I run a small publisher called Markosia. We publish a number of books but are most well known for STARSHIP TROOPERS (shameless plug). The fact of the matter for us is that Chicago...more people or not this year...was a fine show. You see, there may be 110,000+ people who attend the SDCC, but a small percentage are still coming for comics. I would guess (and it is not based on anything and therefore could be wrong) that less than 20% of the attendees at SDCC are coming for comics. You've got gamers, movie fans and tons of other folks. I work my booth hard and I sell. In SDCC, I can go quite a while between comic book readers. I get remarks like, "I don;t read comics" or "I'm not into those things." Who can blame them? SDCC is a pop-culture event. If I could avoid SDCC altogether, I would. As a small exhibitor, the only thing I look forward to is Producer Day. That is Saturday morning and afternoon. That is the day during SDCC when the L.A. movie producers decend upon the show looking for properties to buy and option. From that standpoint, Markosia dfid well. From a sales standpoint, we did poorly. At Chicago, almost all of the attendees are there for comics. They are buyers and they dig small press. This is a much cheaper all around show for us so we end up actually making more money. Also, the WW staff are accomidating and friendly for the most part. The SDCC crew are harder to deal with. Here is something new I have heard from other exhibitors... No upgrades are allowed anymore at SDCC. It is too big and they are not going to allow any upgrades anymore. So, if we grow as a company, we still are stuck with a 10x10. In the end, I have a blast at both shows. There are very few people (readers) who go to both so it is a chance to meet a ton of readers. The only problem I have at all really is that the shows are too close. I am wrecked for days after everything is said and done. I am seriously just starting to recover. From an exhibitor point of view, even if the numbers are not right from WW Chicago, there are still more comic buyers in Chicago. Just don't mess with us Chicago boys.  |
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