Comic-Con kicks of Wednesday with Preview Night, and CBLDF is ready to rumble! Kick Comic-Con off is style at our Comic-Con Welcome Party, bid on original artwork at the Comic-Con Art Auction, catch a CBLDF panel every day of con, and take home awesome convention exclusives! You’ll find us at booth #1918 all week with signed premiums galore, all in support of our important First Amendment work.
Take a look at what we have in store for you during Comic-Con…
CBLDF’s Comic-Con Welcome Party!
Kick-off Comic-Con with comics’ greatest creators at the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund’s Comic-Con Welcome Party, sponsored by Image Comics and comiXology, with a special gallery display from Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab! The fun starts at 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 21, at the Westgate Hotel, where CBLDF welcomes you to Comic-Con for a night of amazing creators, astonishing artwork, and outstanding exclusives! RSVP now: https://cbldf-sdcc2016.eventbrite.com
Meet Great Creators! Every year the greatest creators in comics drop in at the CBLDF Welcome Party. Dozens of creators are expected to stop by over the course of the night, with Rick Remender, Howard Chaykin, Joshua Williamson, Jason Latour, Tula Lotay, Nicola Scott, Leslie Hung, Caitlin Kittredge, Kyle Higgins, Ivan Brandon, Andy Belanger, and Jim Zub already confirmed!
Get the Exclusive Goods! The first 100 attendees will receive a free gift bag, with exclusive items from Image Comics, comiXology, and CBLDF!
Smell Awesome at the Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab/Trading Post! Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab will be debuting their Comics Code limited edition series, which will only be available at the CBLDF Welcome Party. Proceeds from every sale at the CBLDF Welcome Party benefit CBLDF!
Get First Dibs on CBLDF Exclusives! CBLDF has been working hard to put together an exclusive assortment for Comic-Con attendees! We have all-new Comics Code patches and pins commemorating five years gone!
Preview the Incredible Items in CBLDF’s Comic-Con Auction! Get a first look at the amazing original art up for grabs at Saturday’s CBLDF Comic-Con Auction, sponsored by IDW Publishing and the San Diego Comic Art gallery! Items include original art by Charlie Adlard, Berkeley Breathed, Cully Hamner, Denis Kitchen, Jim Lee, Paul Pope, and Matt Wagner; plus literary rarities from Neil Gaiman, Alan Moore, Paul Levitz, and other comics greats!
Get New Neil Gaiman Art From Neverwear! Neverwear has an ever-growing line of items based on the works of author Neil Gaiman and is an ardent supporter of CBLDF! Proceeds from sales at the CBLDF Welcome Party benefit CBLDF!
Come support Free Speech and experience the best party at Comic-Con during the CBLDF Comic-Con Welcome Party, Thursday, July 21, at the Westgate Hotel (1055 Second Avenue, San Diego, CA 92101), from 8:00 – 11:00 p.m.! This party is FREE for CBLDF Members. Non-members: Suggested $10 – $20 donation at the door, please. You can RSVP here: https://cbldf-sdcc2016.eventbrite.com
The CBLDF Comic-Con Auction, Sponsored by IDW Publishing & San Diego Comic Art Gallery
Join William Gibson, Gabriel Rodriguez, and IDW Publishing to support Comic Book Legal Defense Fund’s Comic-Con Auction, happening Saturday, July 23, at the Hilton Bayfront Sapphire AB.
The event kicks off at 8:00 p.m. with keynote remarks by science fiction visionary William Gibson, whose IDW series Archangel launches at IDW Booth 743 during the con. Gabriel Rodriguez, acclaimed artist of Locke & Key and Tales from the Darkside will be on hand creating live art that will be auctioned off at the end of the night.
Bid on original art including work by Rafael Albuquerque, Charlie Adlard, Gabriel Ba, Simon Bisley, Berkeley Breathed, Vanessa Del Rey, Colleen Doran, Cully Hamner, Denis Kitchen, Jim Lee, Fabio Moon, Paul Pope, Jeff Smith, Babs Tarr, and Matt Wagner; plus literary rarities from Neil Gaiman, Alan Moore, Paul Levitz, Garth Ennis, and other comics greats!
No badge is needed to attend this incredible event – it’s free and open to everyone!
Register to bid: cbldfauction.eventbrite.com
This auction is open to all — YOU DO NOT NEED A COMIC CON BADGE TO ATTEND!
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 3:00 p.m. PACIFIC TIME July 23 to be eligible. You will be contacted immediately after the auction with any winning bids.
ITEM LIST As of 7/22
(Please note: Order subject to change.)
| Artist | Piece | |
| 1 | Frank Miller | Sin City Comic Book Expo Print #10/500 |
| 2 | Andrew Griffith | Captain Phasma |
| 3 | Janet Lee | Cover Concept Art for Alice in Wonderland Movie Adaptation |
| 4 | Jeff Smith | Bone Coda with Bone Cousins Drawing on title page |
| 5 | Neil Gaiman, Fabio Moon & Gabriel Ba | How To Talk To Girls At Parties, signed & sketched |
| 6 | Chuck Palahniuk | Fight Club 2, #1, signed |
| 7 | Chuck Palahniuk | Fight Club, limited edition signed HC |
| 8 | Alan Moore | Swamp Thing #37 Script Reproduction Signed (First Constantine!) |
| 9 | Garth Ennis | Battler Britton #4 Script Signed |
| 10 | Paul Levitz | Dr. Fate #1 signed script |
| 11 | Alan Moore | Twilight of the Superheroes Proposal Script Reproduction Signed |
| 12 | Garth Ennis | Punisher V6 #36 (MAX) Script Signed |
| 13 | Paul Levitz | Stalker Original Typed Pitch, signed with notes by Ditko |
| 14 | Paul Levitz | Great Darkness Saga, original typed plot for Ch. 1 Signed |
| 15 | Marv Wolfman | Crisis on Infinite Earths novel, signed |
| 16 | Alan Moore | Swamp Thing #51 Signed Script Reproduction |
| 17 | Lewis LaRosa | Bloodshot #10, p. 2 |
| 18 | Tyler Crook | Bad Blood #5, p. 8 |
| 19 | Tyler Crook | Witchfinder: The Mysteries of Unland #5, p. 6 |
| 20 | Mark Buckingham | The Unwritten #50, p. 21 |
| 21 | Erica Henderson | Little Shop of Horrors (’86) Chorus Girls & Audrey II |
| 22 | Cully Hamner | Shade #3, p. 18 |
| 23 | Brian Stelfreeze | Black Panther |
| 24 | Colleen Doran | A Distant Soil #1 Aria, p. 25 |
| 25 | Matt Wagner | The Shadow: Death of Margo Lane #3, p. 9 |
| 26 | Matt Wagner | Shadow: Year 1 HC with full color painting |
| 27 | Gabriel Rodriguez | Micronauts #1 Cover Original Art |
| 28 | IDW Artist Edition | Daredevil Born Again: Signed & Numbered LE |
| 29 | IDW Artist Edition | Mike Zeck: Classic Marvel Stories |
| 30 | IDW Artist Edition | Gil Kane Amazing Spider-Man Signed & Numbered LE |
| 31 | IDW Artist Edition | Walter Simonson’s Manhunter Remarqued Edition |
| 32 | Graham Nolan | Phantom Sunday Strip Original Art |
| 33 | Berkeley Breathed | Bloom County Strip, 5/2/83 |
| 34 | Brendan Cahill | Transformers (IDW) #27 Pg 18 |
| 35 | Brenda Hickey | Jem and the Holograms #8 Sketch Cover |
| 36 | Gabriel Rodriguez | Star Trek / Green Lantern: Spectrum War #1 Cover |
| 37 | Eric Talbot | Judge Dredd #2: Judge Death Sketch Cover |
| 38 | Matt Frank | Mars Attacks Classics Vol 2 TPB Cover Original Art |
| 39 | Jeffrey Brown | Cat Triptych #1 |
| 40 | Jeffrey Brown | Cat Triptych #2 |
| 41 | Jennifer Hayden | Story of My Tits original art |
| 42 | Kevin Eastman | Original Art, Arriving At Con! |
| 43 | Rafael Albuquerque | Spider Man |
| 44 | Charlie Adlard | Walking Dead #110, p. 19 |
| 45 | Terry Moore | Rachel Rising #34, p. 5 |
| 46 | Simon Bisley | BAD BOY interior p. 16 |
| 47 | Karl Story (w/ Chris Sprouse) | Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne #1, p. 35 |
| 48 | Paul Pope | Dark Knight Study |
| 49 | Stephane Roux | Harley Quinn & Power Girl #6, p. 8 |
| 50 | Stephane Roux | Harley Quinn & Power Girl #5, p. 18 |
| 51 | Vanessa Del Rey | Catwoman |
| 52 | Jim Lee | Original Art, Arriving At Con! |
| 53 | Frank Brunner | Spider-Man |
| 54 | Adi Granov | Wolverine Portrait |
| 55 | Gabriel Ba | Casanova Pin-Up |
| 56 | Fabio Moon | How To Talk To Girls At Parties, original bookplate art |
| 57 | Brian Haberlin | Faster Than Light single issue script with thumbnails/layouts |
| 58 | Brian Haberlin | 16 x 20 oil painting on 17 x 24 canvas |
| 59 | Babs Tarr | Double Sided Sketchbook Page |
| 60 | Shane Davis | Original Sequential page |
| 61 | Ted Naifeh | Armored Maiden |
| 62 | Sanford Greene | Thor vs. Iron Man |
| 63 | Brooke Allen | Lumberjanes #2, p. 10 |
| 64 | Mike Lilly | Original Art, Arriving At Con! |
| 65 | Khary Randolph | Teen Titans Go! #22, p. 3 |
| 66 | Dan Parent | Original Art, Arriving At Con! |
| 67 | Denis Kitchen | Original Art on Chipboard |
| 68 | Ryan Ottley | Invincible Returns #1, p. 4 |
| 69 | Charlie Adlard | Hellfire Club #4, p. 10 |
| 70 | Gabriel Rodriguez | Live Art |
CBLDF Panels
It’s time for Comic-Con, and that means it’s time for CBLDF to lay down some education with panels at both the convention center and the San Diego Central Library! Whether you’re looking for the latest censorship news, tips for using comics in education, information about censorship and the law, or the always exciting CBLDF Live Art Jam, we’ve got it and more!
THURSDAY
CBLDF: Navigating The Powers & Perils of Banned Books
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. • 30CDE
CBLDF Editorial Director Betsy Gomez will lead a panel of librarians, educators, and creators in a lively discussion of how and why graphic novels are attacked by censors. They’ll detail how and why graphic novels can be successfully integrated into classroom curricula, and they’ll provide tools that educators can use to counter these attacks. Participants will leave the panel better enabled to advocate for their instructional materials and their students. Panelists include Carla Riemer (Librarian, Claremont Middle School, Oakland, California), Katherine Keller (TDRL Evening & Weekend Supervisor, University Libraries, UNLV), and Matthew Holm (artist, Babymouse, Squish, Sunny Side Up), and Judd Winick (Hilo: The Boy Who Crashed to Earth; The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius).
CBLDF: She Changed Comics
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. • 30CDE
Meet the women whose work changed what’s possible for free expression in comics! From the turn of the 20th century to today, women comics creators have inspired today’s landscape of increasingly diverse and empowering comics storytelling. Join CBLDF Editorial Director Betsy Gomez; contributors Casey Gilly and Caitlin McCabe; Ramona Fradon (Aquaman, Brenda Starr), Wendy Pini (Elfquest), and Lee Marrs (Wimmen’s Comix) for an examination of the women who changed the format!
FRIDAY
CBLDF: Comics in the Courts
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. • 30CDE
Some of comics’ greatest clashes never appeared within the panels — they were decided by a gavel! CBLDF board member Dale Cendali, an intellectual property icon known for litigating high profile cases (including in the Supreme Court), walks through the history of comics in the courts, examining some of the most important cases about such topics as the evolving nature of the protectability of characters, using real people to inspire characters, termination of rights and other hot issues. Slides showing the nature of the works at issue will be used in the presentation.
CBLDF: State of Censorship 2016
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. • 30CDE
Although free expression is seen as a basic human right, censorship is rampant in the United States and around the world. CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein presents an overview of the censorship crises facing cartoonists in 2016, from the violence and legal prosecution occurring around the globe to domestic attacks on comics and young adult books in libraries and schools across the country. Learn how comics and books are being challenged and what you can do to fight back!
At the San Diego Central Library
Events/Community Relationships for Comics and Librarians
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. • Shiley Special Events
Sven Larsen (VP of marketing, Papercutz), Betsy Gomez (editorial director, Comic Book Legal Defense Fund), and Lizette Serrano (director of library and educational marketing, Scholastic) explain how librarians can build programming to foster a love of graphic novels in their communities in a Q&A session moderated by Dawn Rutherford (teen services coordinator, Sno-Isle Libraries).
Censorship of Kids Comics
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. • Shiley Special Events
Censorship is affecting more comics than ever, especially comics made for young people. Recent months have seen attacks on award-winning books like This One Summer and Drama, as well as increased targeting of diverse books. CBLDF Editorial Director Betsy Gomez leads a discussion with Gina Gagliano (First Second) and Carla Riemer (Librarian, Claremont Middle School, Oakland, CA) about what books are challenged, who’s affected, and what you can do stop the spread of censorship!
SATURDAY
CBLDF: Sex, Violence, and the Law
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. • 30CDE
What does the law allow comics to say? CBLDF and FIRE team up for an in-depth look at the legal precedents that have been set that concern free speech and how they impact comics. Join FIRE President Greg Lukianoff and CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein for a freewheeling discussion and Q&A for creators, fans, and students about what the limits are for free expression in comics.
CBLDF: Banned Books Week
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. • 30CDE
Engage your community with Banned Books Week! This year’s Banned Books Week celebrates diversity, which is disproportionately targeted by censors. Join CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein, Erwin Magbanua (San Diego Public Library), Katie Monnin (Associate Professor of Literacy, University of North Florida), and Candice Mack (Los Angeles Public Library) to learn about why comics and books by diverse creators and featuring diverse characters are challenged, how to report and fight censorship, and how to make a celebration of Banned Books Week in your community!
SUNDAY
CBLDF E.C. Lives! Art Jam
12:15 – 1:45 p.m. • Room 5AB
Sixty years ago, E.C. Comics threw in the towel, shuttering everything but Mad Magazine when the Picto-Fiction titles failed to reach an audience. Although defeated by the Comics Code and the moral panic of the 1950s, E.C. left an indelible mark on the comics medium that’s still felt to this day. Join special guest artists, who will create art in tribute to the E.C. tradition before your eyes. These great creators will share their perspectives on censorship and make once-in-a-lifetime art to benefit the Fund’s important work defending the right to read comics. Get a chance to watch live art being created, learn about censorship, and bid to win the pieces made during the panel! All proceeds benefit the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.
CBLDF Autograph Sessions
CBLDF already has amazing signed premiums, but you can also come by booth #1918 to meet some of the spectacular creators who make your favorite comics and help us fight for the freedom to read!
THURSDAY
12:30 – 1:30 p.m. — Jody Houser (Faith)
FRIDAY
12:00 – 1:00 p.m. — Ronald Wimberly (CBLDF Liberty Variant cover artist,Faith; The Prince of Cats)
SATURDAY
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. — Jody Houser
2:00 – 3:00 p.m. — Ronald Wimberly
3:00 – 4:00 p.m. — Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon (Casanova, How to Talk to Girls at Parties, Two Brothers)
SUNDAY
3:00 – 4:00 p.m. — Gabriel Bá and Fábio Moon
CBLDF Exclusives and the Convention Survival Kit
Comic-Con 2016 is almost here! We’ve been busy at CBLDF HQ, and we’ve got something for your SDCC shopping list: CBLDF EXCLUSIVES! All proceeds from our exclusives benefit CBLDF’s important First Amendment work, so you aren’t just getting something cool and rare — you’re helping us continue the fight! Come by booth #1918 to pick the following rare goodies…
FAITH #1 SDCC Liberty Variant
Valiant is proud to support CBLDF with the FAITH #1 SDCC Liberty Variant — a limited-edition release of the first issue of Faith “Zephyr” Herbert’s history-making ongoing series! Featuring a brand-new cover by Glyph Comics Award-winning artist Ronald Wimberly (Prince of Cats, She-Hulk), the FAITH #1 SDCC Liberty Variant will debut on Wednesday, July 20th exclusively at Comic-Con International in San Diego, California, and will be limited to just 1,000 copies. Pick up yours at CBLDF booth #1918!
The Comics Code Seal Patch and Pin
We have two new collectors items to decorate your favorite jean jacket, messenger bag, or lanyard: the Comics Code Seal of Approval Embroidered Patch and the Comics Code Seal of Approval Enamel Pin! Celebrating 5 years of freedom from self censorship under the Comics Code, this limited edition patch and pin will help you wear your support of CBLDF and the right to read comics!
The CBLDF Convention Survival Kit!
Current Members and anyone joining the CBLDF onsite can come by booth #1918 to pick up the 2016 Convention Survival Kit! STAY HYDRATED with the CBLDF water bottle! STAY HEALTHY with hand sanitizer! SHOW your support for free speech with a CBLDF lanyard! STOW your goods in a CBLDF tote bag! GET THE TOOLS to fight censorship with the CBLDF pencil — the ultimate anti-censorship device!
We’ll see you at booth #1918 for Comic-Con International in San Diego!