This month’s Dallas Fan Days expands to three days to better accommodate its growing fan base and give attendees more choices. With actor Bruce Campbell topping the media list and comic book legend Stan Lee leading the artists’ roster, the show will kick off at 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 19, and run through Sunday, Oct. 21, at the Irving Convention Center in Irving, Texas.
To protect customers from bad weather, outside lines will be routed through the center’s covered garage, and an outdoor food court in that area will ease congestion in the exhibit hall. A large influx of attendees at Dallas Comic Con in May caught organizers by surprise, but they hope these and other changes will alleviate some of the issues that resulted.
“Basically, the number of customers doubled from 10,000 in February to 20,000 at our May show, causing some longer than expected lines and making it hard for some fans to see everything they wanted,” said Ben Stevens with C2 Ventures, which produces three shows annually at the Irving facility. “By moving the lines, adding concessions and scheduling a third day, we hope to create a more inviting and fun experience for our customers.”
Friday attendees will be among the first to witness the reunion of Star Wars bad boys Ian McDiarmid and Dave Prowse, who led the evil empire as “The Emperor Palpatine” and “Darth Vader,” respectively, in several of the popular movies. Also on hand Friday to sign autographs and meet fans will be actors Anne Lockhart from the original Battlestar Galactica and Donnie Dunagan, the voice of “Bambi” in the Disney classic. Fans unable to attend on Friday can catch all four actors on Saturday and Sunday.
Returning for his third appearance at our shows is Stan Lee, co-creator and writer of the Amazing Spider-man, Iron Man, Thor, Fantastic Four, Incredible Hulk and X-Men. In addition to being the former president of Marvel Comics, he’s well known in the industry as a writer, editor, actor, producer and publisher. Mr. Lee will sign autographs all three days and conduct a Q&A session at 6:30 p.m. Friday in the fourth-floor auditorium.
The three-day event will feature 300 vendor booths in the exhibit hall and fourth floor lobby, as well as two dozen artists, including Ralph Bakshi, award-winning animator and director of Fritz the Cat, Heavy Traffic and Wizards; legendary artist Al Plastino, co-creator of Supergirl, Brainiacs and Legion of Super-Heroes; and Eisner Award-winner Frank Cho, creator and artist of Liberty Meadows.
Campbell, who stars as “Sam Axe” in television’s Burn Notice, appears Saturday only. He also played “Ash” in the Evil Dead series, and starred in Bubba Ho-Tep, Sam Raimi’s Spider-man movies and Sky High. In addition to signing autographs, Mr. Campbell will do a Q&A session starting at noon Saturday.
Media guests appearing Saturday and Sunday include Robert Englund of “Freddy Krueger” fame; Lance Henriksen, best known as “Bishop” in the Alien movies; Felicia Day from The Guild; and Sean Astin, who played “Sam” in The Lord of the Rings movies. Also, voice actress Tara Strong, whose credits include My Little Pony and Rugrats, Steven Yeun from The Walking Dead, and Warehouse 13 actor Eddie McClintock.
Making a rare convention appearance will be Gina Torres from the short-lived but highly popular Firefly series/Serenity movie, along with her on-screen husband, Alan Tudyk. Also appearing both days are Starship Troopers stars Dina Meyer and Casper Van Dien.
During Fan Days, the actors will be available to sign autographs, talk with fans and answer questions during special panel discussions, which are free to attend as space allows. Media guests charge a fee for autographs and fans also may pay to have their photo taken with select actors by a professional photographer.
Admission to Dallas Fan Days is $20 Friday, $30 Saturday and $20 Sunday. A three-day pass also is available for $60. Children’s tickets are $5 when accompanied by a paying adult. VIP passes for this show are sold out. Tickets may be purchased at the box office beginning at 1 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. Sunday. Coupons for $5 off can be found in The Dallas Observer, Fort Worth Weekly and other North Texas newspapers.
Show hours are 2 to 8 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. The Irving Convention Center, 500 W. Las Colinas Blvd., is at the intersection of SH114 and Northwest Highway in Irving, Texas.
For more information on events and schedules, please visit the website at www.fandays.com.
