SDCC 2013: Everything CBLDF!

It’s here! Comic-Con International 2013 launches with tonight’s Preview Night, and CBLDF is joining the fun with exclusives galore at Booth #1920! We also have the best party of the show, the CBLDF Comic-Con Welcome Party and a spectacular assortment of panels and signings! Finally, don’t miss your chance to bid on fantastic original art at the CBLDF Live Art Auction!

Exclusive Premiums

QW_001_VARIANT_CBLDFAdventure time Variant

Starting tonight, you will be able to pick up Valiant’s first convention variant cover: the CBLDF Liberty Variant of Quantum and Woody #1, featuring a cover by Tony Millionaire! We will also have e will have an exclusive variant cover for Adventure Time #18, with art by the amazingly talented Chrystin Garland and created in partnership with our friends at BOOM! Studios. We will also have a limited number of copies of the retailer member exclusive CBLDF Comics Code Variant of Lazarus #1!

CBLDFPM-CVRRasingaReaderCover

For educators, librarians, and parents, we are extremely proud to have copies of Manga: Introduction, Challenges, and Best Practices, our new authoritative guide about manga, at Comic-Con. We will also have copies of Raising a Reader! How Comics & Graphic Novels Can Help Your Kids Love To Read!, our new resource about the learning benefits of comics.

Finally, don’t forget to pick up our brand new t-shirt: Bill Gaines Was Right!

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Events

Let’s take a look at CBLDF events throughout the week:

Thursday

Panels

CBLDF: Banned Comics!
Thursday, July 18 • 12:00pm – 1:00pm • Room 30CDE
Every year comics are banned in libraries all over the United States; learn how you can fight back! In recent years, comics that have been targeted for bans include all-ages classics like Bone by Jeff Smith and Dragonball by Akira Toriyama, as well as acclaimed books for adult readers like Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home, Neil Gaiman’s Sandman, Alan Moore’s League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and others. Learn more about what comics have been banned and challenged, why comics are banned, and how you can help by being a part of CBLDF’s efforts for Banned Books Week!

CBLDF’s Comics on Trial, Part 1-A National Disgrace: Moral Panic and the Birth of the Comics Code
Thursday, July 18 • 1:00pm – 2:00pm • Room 30CDE
CBLDF proudly debuts Comics on Trial-a new lecture series covering the history of comics censorship and the court cases that changed the medium. In part 1, witness how comics were under attack from the very beginning! Attacks in the popular media gave way to comics burnings in the 1940s. This sparked a wildfire of moral panic culminating with the U.S. government investigating comics before a national audience in 1954 where the face-off between Fredric Wertham and William Gaines changed the medium forever. CBLDF executive director Charles Brownstein tells the sordid tale.

Signings

5:00 p.m.: Chip Kidd

Chip Kidd is not only an author, editor, designer, and bon vivant — he is also a member of the CBLDF Advisory Board! And he will be appearing to sign copies of Batman: Death by Design, Neil Gaiman’s Make Good Art, and The Passion of Gengoroh Tagame, copies of all of which we will have on hand.

Comic-Con Welcome Party

CBLDF_PartyPostcardSDCC13-webStart your Comic-Con with the greatest stars in comics at the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund’s Comic-Con Welcome Party, sponsored by Image Comics, comiXology, and Aces Weekly, with special gallery displays from TFAW.com and Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab! The fun starts at 8:00 PM on Thursday, July 18, at the Westgate Hotel, when CBLDF welcomes you to Comic-Con for a night of amazing creators, astonishing artwork, and outstanding exclusives!

Meet Great Creators: Every year the greatest creators in comics drop in at the CBLDF Welcome Party. Confirmed attendees so far this year include John Layman, David Lloyd, Nick Pitarra, Paul Pope, Amy Reeder and Brandon Montclare, and Nick Spencer, and even more expected to drop in over the course of the night!

Get the Exclusive Goods: The first 300 attendees will receive a free gift bag, with exclusive releases from Image Comics. The first 100 attendees will also receive a copy of the rare comiXology variant of Invincible #100!  RSVP Now to guarantee your gift bag.

Smell Awesome at the Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab Trading Post: BPAL will make their only Comic-Con appearance at the party, setting up a one-night-only display of fragrances, including world premiere fragrances benefiting CBLDF!

Get First Dibs on CBLDF Exclusives: Here’s your chance to get copies of the extremely rare CBLDF Liberty variants of Adventure Time #18, with art by Chrystin Garland, or Quantum and Woody #1, with art by Tony Millionaire, only available at Comic-Con!

Preview the Incredible Items in CBLDF’s Comic-Con Auction, Sponsored by TFAW.com: Get a first look at the amazing original art up for grabs at Saturday’s CBLDF Comic-Con Auction, including pieces by Jim Lee, Paul Pope, Jill Thompson, Charlie Adlard, Richard Case, Francesco Francavilla, and many, many more!

Come support Free Speech and experience the best of Comic-Con at the CBLDF Comic-Con Welcome Party, Thursday, July 18, at the Westgate Hotel (1055 Second Avenue, San Diego, CA 92101), from 8:00 – 11:00 PM! This party is FREE for CBLDF Members. Non-members: Suggested $10 – $20 donation at the door, please. You can RSVP here.

Friday

Panels

CBLDF: Raising a Reader
Friday, July 19 • 12:00pm – 1:00pm • Room 30CDE
An all-star panel of kids comics creators and educators discuss ways to get children excited about reading, encourage creativity, and cultivate a love of literature using great graphic novels and comics. Panelists include Jennifer Holm and Matthew Holm (Babymouse), Kazu Kibuishi (Amulet), Raina Telgemeier (Smile), Dave Roman (AstronautAcademy), Alex Fajardo (Peanuts), Charles Brownstein (CBLDF), and Meryl Jaffe (Johns Hopkins University). Q&A to follow.

CBLDF’s Comics on Trial, Part 2: Counter Attacks: How Prosecution of Retailers Changed the History of Comics
Friday, July 19 • 1:00pm – 2:00pm • Room 30CDE
In 1970 two Manhattan bookstore clerks were arrested and convicted of selling obscene material for Zap #4, featuring work by R. Crumb, Spain and other underground greats. Later in that decade, convention promoter and high school English teacher Phil Seuling was busted for selling a book in the same series, hastening a chain of events that would create the comics specialty market, where the CBLDF has been defending retailers since 1986. Learn the true story of how retailers have been prosecuted for selling comics and how their struggle changed the face of the medium from CBLDF executive director Charles Brownstein in the second part of CBLDF’s Comics on Trial.

Signings

12:00 p.m.: Chip Kidd and Anne Ishii

1:00 p.m.: Meryl Jaffe and Jennifer L. Holm

2:00 p.m.: Raina Telgemeier

3:00 p.m.: Lee Moyer

4:00 p.m.: James Asmus

5:00 p.m.: Tim Leong

Friday is the big one, to paraphrase the great Walt Simonson. We will see the return of Mr. Kidd, alongside translator/editor Anne Ishii, signing The Passion Of Gengoroh Tagame. Then we have CBLDF Board Member, and award winning author, Jennifer L. Holm and Meryl Jaffe, appearing to meet folks and promote the Fund’s latest educational publication, Raising a Reader. They are followed by the much-loved Raina Telgemeier, who will be signing a new print featuring her “Lil’ Liberty” design, created to promote our Kid’s Literacy initiatives. At 3:00 p.m., designer and illustrator Lee Moyer will join us, signing an awesome new literary pinup calender! Following him, author James Asmus will be on hand to sign the Quantum and Woody #1 variant we announced last week. Finally, designer Tim Leong, late of Comic Foundry and Wired, will be in-booth to sign his new book Super Graphic, and a print of his brand new infographic, detailing the reasons graphic novels are challenged!

Saturday

Panels

CBLDF Presents: Defending Manga
Saturday, July 20 • 12:00pm – 1:00pm • Room 30CDE
For those in the know, manga is a powerful form of storytelling that has its roots in Japan but reaches out to speak to the inner life of audiences all over the world. Unfortunately, manga is also one of the most misunderstood forms of expression in the modern cultural landscape, and for librarians, educators, and aficionados looking to share their passion for this amazing medium, overcoming those misunderstandings can be a daunting task. Comic Book Legal Defense Fund executive director Charles Brownstein is joined by experts to discuss the history of manga, its genre and demographic categories, and the issues affecting its readers in a panel that will provide audience members with more tools to defend this amazing category against uninformed attacks.

CBLDF’s Comics on Trial, Part 3: War on Thought Crime: How Artists and Readers Are Prosecuted For Comics
Saturday, July 20 • 1:00pm – 2:00pm • Room 30CDE
In 1994, a Florida jury convicted cartoonist Mike Diana of creating obscene material in his hand-made zine Boiled Angel. As part of his sentence he was forbidden from drawing in his own home. In the last decade, an increasing number of individuals, including Christopher Handley and Ryan Matheson, have been targeted and prosecuted by law enforcement for reading manga that the government claims is deviant and obscene material. In the conclusion of CBLDF’s Comics on Trial series, CBLDF executive director Charles Brownstein walks through the disturbing current battleground where individuals are being prosecuted for the ideas they draw and read.

CBLDF Live Art Auction!
Saturday, July 20 • 7:30pm – 9:30pm • Sapphire Ballroom CD, Hilton San Diego Bayfront
The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund hosts its biggest auction of the year, the Comic-Con Live Art Auction! This year’s auction will feature lots for bidding curated by some of comicdom’s top editors, dealers, and fans. With an amazing array of everything from pin-ups, original pages, sketches, and concept art, there is something for every taste and every price range, featuring work from such luminaries as Jim Lee, Charlie Adlard, Jock, Yoshitaka Amano, Jill Thompson, Jeffrey Brown, Tim Seeley, Cliff Chiang, Jonathan Case, Brandon Graham, James Stokoe, and more! Preview images and bidding instructions are available to see at the CBLDF’s booth in the Comic-Con Exhibit Hall!

Signings

12:00 p.m.: Anne Ishii

3:00 p.m.: Lee Moyer

5:00 p.m.: Tim Leong

CBLDF Live Art Auction

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund hosts its biggest auction of the year at Comic-Con — the CBLDF Live Art Auction, happening on Saturday, July 20! Author and activist Cory Doctorow kicks off this year’s auction with a special introduction. Then, the bidding for a treasure trove of fantastic original art begins! Register here for your bidder number to join the fun!

The CBLDF Live Art Auction is your chance to take home pieces by luminaries such as Jim Lee, Neil Gaiman, Charlie Adlard, Jock, Yoshitaka Amano, Jill Thompson, Jeffrey Brown, Alan Moore, Paul Pope, Cliff Chiang, Jonathan Case, Brandon Graham, James Stokoe, and dozens more! The embedded slide show and list below reveal many of the pieces being auctioned so far. But more art will be added up until the auction begins, including a set of pieces curated by Geoff Johns! YOU DO NOT NEED A COMIC CON BADGE TO ATTEND! (Remote bidding instructions follow the list of pieces.)

CBLDF's SDCC 2013 Art Auction album on Photobucket

The CBLDF Live Art Auction is sponsored in part by TFAW.com. The auction kicks off at 7:30 p.m. and continues until 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 20, at the Sapphire Ballroom CD, Hilton San Diego Bayfront.

AUCTION LIST

1 Zombie Doctor Jeffrey Brown
2 Beanworld Larry Marder
3 Star Wars Dan Brereton
4 Batman Matt Wagner
5 Superman M Wagner
6 What th’ Crackers? M Jantze
7 Shadow Matt Wagner
8 House of Night Joelle Jones
9 Superman 80 Page Giant Andy McDonald
10 Huntress Joe Quinones
11 Astro City Brent Anderson
12 Avengers Terry Dodson
13 Superman Jim Lee
14 Batman Jock
15 Hellfire Club Charlie Adlard
16 Angel (1) Franco Urru
17 B.P.R.D.: Devil’s Engine (pg 3) Tyler Crook
18 B.P.R.D.: Devil’s Engine (pg 13) Tyler Crook
19 Prime/CAP AM Norm Breyfogle
20 Clone Wars Tom Hodges
21 Galactus Andy McDonald
22 Betty And Veronica Dan Parent
23 Teen Sue and Johnny Storm (set) Charlie Adlard
24 Ebenezer Scrooge Roger Langridge
25 Girl Profile Yoshitaka Amano
26 Samurai Yoshitaka Amano
27 Firefly Phil Noto
28 Hunger Games Chris Houghton
29 Five Weapons Jimmie Robinson (Bomb Queen, Five Weapons)
30 A Distant Soil Colleen Doran
31 Wolverine Mark Texeira
32 Goon Splash Eric Powell
33 Lucifer Scott Hampton (w/ Lettering by Scott Klein)
34 TOME, Vol 1 HC – Remarqued by Ben Templesmith Ben Templesmith
35 It Will All Hurt, p.70 Farel Dalrymple
36 It Will All Hurt, p. 6 Farel Dalrymple
37 Amanda Palmer Sketches Jill Thompson
38 Welcome Back Cotter Rick Estrada
39 Galena Erik Jones
40 Superman Brian Buccellato
41 Ex Machina/Starman Tony Harris
42 Astro City Brent Anderson
43 Em from Revival Tim Seeley
44 Wolverine & The X-Men sketch Nick Bradshaw
45 Hawkeye Ron Chan
46 Cliff Chiang
47 Colleen Coover
48 The Black Beetle Francesco Francavilla
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50 Steve Lieber
51 Bean World (2) Larry Marder
52 Characters from Dear Creature Jonathan Case
53 A Matter of Life Jeffrey Brown
54 Multiple Warheads Brandon Graham
55 Prophet Issue, page 9 Simon Roy
56 Orc Stain Issue 6 Page 18 James Stokoe
57 AMAZING Catwoman sketch Jonathan Case
58 Wonder Woman Jill Thompson
59 Lemire Creations Jeff Lemire
60 Angel (2) Franco Urru
61 Nicholas Was Neil Gaiman
62 Thor: Viking 3, working script, signed Garth Ennis
63 Swamp Thing 51 Signed Alan Moore
64 TWILIGHT Signed Script Alan Moore

REMOTE BIDDING

If you are unavailable for the live auction, but still interested in bidding, please send a list of the pieces you are interested in with the HIGHEST donation you would be willing to bid. If the high bid on the auction floor is below your highest bid, your final bid will be 10% higher than the last highest bid on the floor.

Your bids should be delivered to Betsy Gomez (betsy.gomez@cbldf.org) by MIDNIGHT PACIFIC TIME July 19th to be eligible. You will be contacted immediately after the auction with any winning bids.

Sunday

Panels

CBLDF’s Banned Comics Jam!
Sunday, July 21 • 12:15pm – 1:45pm • Room 5AB
Celebrate Banned Comics with Jeffrey Brown (Darth Vader and Son), Chris Burnham (Batman Incorporated), Terry Moore (Strangers in Paradise), Tim Seeley (Hack/Slash), and special guests who will create live art, paying homage to the cartoonists, authors and characters who’ve created the great banned books of our time. Some of the greatest authors have been banned, from Judy Blume and Neil Gaiman to Alan Moore and Mark Twain. Join the CBLDF and these great creators as they talk censorship and make once-in-a-lifetime art about the banned greats! Get a chance to watch live art made before your eyes, learn about censorship, and bid to win the pieces made here to benefit the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

Signings

3:00 p.m.: Lee Moyer