San Diego preparing for Comic-Con.
Comics and pop culture aficionados will soon descend on San Diego in droves for the Comic-Con International, an annual convention that’s long been an economic boon for the city but may move elsewhere in a few years.About 125,000 people annually attend Comic-Con, which features hundreds of exhibits, celebrity appearances, film screenings and industry panels over four days.
In recent years, the confab has been embraced by Hollywood as one of the premier events to haul out new action, fantasy, science fiction and animated movies and television shows.
This year’s sold-out gathering runs July 22-25 at the San Diego Convention Center.
But the future of Comic-Con in San Diego remains uncertain. Other cities such as Los Angeles and Anaheim have been trying hard to lure Comic-Con to their cities, starting in 2013.
According to a recent report, Comic-Con will inject nearly $163 million into San Diego’s economy during this year’s run.
To keep the show in San Diego, officials have offered Comic-Con organizers a half-million dollars in incentives to stay and are working to possibly expand the Convention Center.
Comic-Con began in 1970 as a one-day convention at the U.S. Grant Hotel in downtown San Diego. Since then, the event has become so popular it has outgrown even the Convention Center, spilling out to other venues.
Despite the uncertainty about its future home, the lineup for this year’s Comic-Con will be crowd-pleasing.
Industry insiders and a lucky few will get a taste of what’s in store at this year’s Comic-Con during a preview night on July 21, which will include a behind-the-scenes look at the new television series “Nikita.”
Highlights of opening day include the debut of DreamWorks’ animated “Megamind;” an inside look at Walt Disney Pictures’ “TRON: Legacy”; Sony Pictures Entertainment showcasing its new film “Salt”; Summit Entertainment giving a sneak peek of footage from “Red,” and an “insider scoop” of “The Expendables.”
July 23 is “Star War” day, with panel discussions and special programs. Also, Universal Pictures will present an exclusive look at the science fiction thriller “Skyline,” CBS with showcase its sitcom “The Big Bang Theory,” comics legend Stan Lee will discuss his work Sony Pictures will preview its upcoming films “The Other Guys,” “The Green Hornet” and
“Priest,” and the cast from “True Blood” will take part in a panel discussion.The 22nd annual Eisner Awards, considered the “Oscars” of the comics industry, will be given out at a ceremony at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront that Friday night.
The following day, Seth MacFarlane will discuss “Family Guy;’ NBC will premiere “The Event,” Warner Bros. will showcase the upcoming “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” Matt Groening will discuss creating “The Simpsons” and the cast of NBC’s “Community” will make an appearance.
Also on Saturday, the cast of “The Vampire Diaries” will answer fan questions, Universal will present two upcoming films “Paul’ and “Cowboys & Aliens,” writer- actor Kevin Smith will meet fans, Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage will discuss their show “Mythbusters” and Marvel Studios will give an inside look at “Thor” and “Captain America: The First Avenger.”
The last day of the convention features a cast question-and-answer session on the final season of “Smallville,’ a discussion by the creators of the game “Halo,” a panel on Marvel’s “Spider-Man” and an appearance by the cast and creators of the Fox television hit “Glee.”
Among the many celebrities rumored or scheduled to attend this year’s Comic-Con are Angelina Jolie, Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich, Liv Tyler, Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Eva Mendes, Seth Rogen, Chevy Chase, William Shatner, Jon Favreau, Sigourney Weaver and Danny DeVito.
USC Loss to UW
Football can be a brutal game, both physically and mentally. When you win, you are a champ. When you lose, you are a chump. It goes with the territory. One loss USC would like to take back would be this past Saturday’s Pac – Ten competition against the UW Huskies. It was raining, it was loud and it was UGLY! Many factors went in to the loss. Penalties, fumbles, and the most glaring of turnovers.
After waiting his turn for almost two and 1/2 years, Redshirt Sophomore, Aaron Corp, finally got his start. But with little fan fare. No official announcement from Pete Carroll as he did for his wunderkid Matt Barkley. According to Aaron, he was never officially told he would start. Matt was given two weeks, much support and a home opening game against a sub-par opponent – San Jose State. He was eased into the program, given support and confidence galore.
Aaron was thrust into a loud and hostile environment with a head coach ( Sarkisian ) who knew USC’s plays and knew what to expect. A vanilla lineup of only 5 different plays called by USC for the entire game, made the Huskies job that much easier . They knew where the ball was going and they were all over the receivers. There were 75 yards given up by USC for penalties and two significant fumbles going in to score. The field position was brutal on first downs and there were NO 3rd down conversions. An ugly game indeed. An article I read said it was like being thrown into a den of lions.
Being the QB, you live and you die by the win or loss. Aaron Corp did not perform to his abilities and he would be the first one to tell you that. That will be something he now has to live with. Being his Aunt and watching him play since the beginning, I can tell you that his performance on Saturday was uncharacteristic, to say the least. Here is a kid who only had 1 interception all Spring! He is known for protecting the ball and for making plays with his feet when the pass breaks down. For many, it was the first opportunity to see Aaron play. Unfortunately, everything went very, very wrong on Saturday and we did not get to see any of that ( other than the first drive of the game ). The impression made is not good and the armchair critics and coaches have already been heard. The brutal comments are out there and that is that.
The Aaron that I know is a winner, a fighter. He won’t make excuses and he won’t whine about anything. What’s done is done. We judge people by how they handle adversity and rise above. Aaron won’t complain, he will handle this and he will rise above it. He is a champion. Many champions before him have had their ugly games and glaring losses, only to go on to have successful careers.
As for me and his other family members, this one hurt. We can only hope that he gets another chance to show his true ability. We can only hope that if and when that chance comes, that Pete Carroll will stand behind his starter leading up to the game and not have anything left to be guessed. Not for him and not for the rest of the team. We can hope that the play calling will allow the players to play to win, not to lose. The pass game was bad but it was not completely the QB errors. With all of that incredibly talent on the roster, it is a shame to play so cautiously.
Pete said that this loss is on him. I would tend to agree.
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