Has anyone ever gone to this convention and if so, what did you think of it? Was it worth your weekend? I was thinking of attending this year.
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Monster Kid |
Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention in Aberdeen, Maryland |
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Has anyone ever gone to this convention and if so, what did you think of it? Was it worth your weekend? I was thinking of attending this year.
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Wich2 |
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I do know that Martin Grams is one of its movers and shakers, and he's a good joe.
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mmargrajr |
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I do not get on the board often. (Used to be once a year but now it's like once a month.) Apologies for the delay in replying. To clarify Wich2's
posting, I am on the planning committee, and there are a number of other hands involved.
It is not a horror and science-fiction. It is a nostalgia convention that cross of all genres from pulp magazines, classic TV shows, old-time movies, drive-in theaters, old-time radio, animated cartoons, and the like. Movie stars sign autographs and there is a vendor room like most other conventions. This year's guests include: Edd Byrnes (Kookie from 77 Sunset Strip) Kathleen Hughes (It Came from Outer Space and Cult of the Cobra) Patty McCormack (Academy Award nominee for The Bad Seed) Jon Provost (Timmy from Lassie, yes, the Timmy) Larry Storch (F-Troop and The Real Ghost Busters) Margaret Kerry (posed as the model for Disney's Tinkerbell, and one of the few Little Rascals still around) Events include a drive-in movie theater outside the hotel with "It Came From Outer Space" on the big screen. Bring your own lawnchair. Kathleen will be there at the film showing to answer questions. (Film shown courtesy of MCA/Universal.) We try to play a wide variety of nostalgic films, and a few that were formerly "lost." This year we are screening "The Gift of Gab" with Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi, the "lost" cliffhanger serial "Brenda Starr, Reporter" (1945), Hullabaloo (the 1940 film spoofing the War of the Worlds panic broadcast), Groucho Marx blooper reels (adults only), the Alfred Hitchcock Hour with Edd Byrnes as the convict who gets buried alive, an episode of TV's Dragnet that was supposedly "lost" till a few months ago, an episode of the live TV series "Climax!" with Steve McQueen, a 1957 all-star U.S.O. Christmas Tour, and the 1934 film short of Buck Rogers made for the Chicago World's Fair that pre-dates Buster Crabbe as the first Buck Rogers (the costumes are accurate to a tee!). There's more, but you get the idea. If you are looking for a convention that is 100% horror and science-fiction, this is not it. But if a presentation about "The Phantom" and watching the 1956 TV pilot (and in color!), watching the 1954 Egyptian version of Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, watching an old-time radio drama recreated on stage (attendees can play a role!) of a "lost" horror episode of Lights Out!, and a presentation about bloopers in major hollywood movies shown on the big screen is your cup of tea, then you might want to check it out. The web-site is http://www/midatlanticnostalgiaconvention.com Attendance last year grew noticeably from the year before. Not by leaps and bounds, but it did grow. If the cost factor because of the rise in gasoline is an issue, consider car pooling and splitting the cost of gas in half. Same for a motel or hotel room. Like any and all conventions, it's never expensive to attend if you use shortcuts like these. Don't let me twist your arm to convince you. But take a look at the schedule of events and such and make a decision. The pre-paid attendance this year has almost surpassed last year's, so I anticipate the crowd to be larger this year.
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Monster Kid |
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Yours truly is to be a dealer at the convention, selling my book, "Hollywood's Top Dogs: The Dog Hero in Film" because it ties in so nicely with
the guests they are having this year; Jon Provost ("Timmy" of LASSIE fame) and the speaker who will talk on SERGEANT PRESTON OF THE YUKON. Visit me
there! Also, I am looking forward to some of the rare films they are having like HULLABALOO.
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mmargrajr |
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There will be a radio station broadcasting live from the convention, and broadcasting coast-to-coast. If you are an author, ask for Neal Ellis when you are at
the convention. Authors have an opportunity to talk about the subject of their book and do a free promo about their book. Mike Nevins, in charge of a number
historical socities including one that is publishing his book on THE CISCO KID, will be talking about THE CISCO KID on the radio and they'll even be
playing a licensed episode of the radio program after his talk. So if you're an author attennding, ask for Neal and take advantage of the opportunity to
promote your book "live" on the air!
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