These days, Comic-Con International is the nexus of nerd culture. No matter what you’re into, whether it’s film, TV, gaming, or actual comic books, it all converges in San Diego for four days every year. But it all started over fifty years ago, as just a small gathering of comics fans. Back in an era when geeks absolutely did not rule pop culture.
And right in the middle of it all in those earliest days was legendary comics creator Jack Kirby, who would have turned 105 on August 28. The new book by Mathew Klickstein, See You at San Diego: An Oral History of Comic-Con, Fandom, and the Triumph of Geek Culture, chronicles the convention’s origins. And at the center of the history of Comic-Con and this book is Jack “King” Kirby.
The Comic-Con book describes how Jack Kirby met with young fans in his home as early as 1969. One full year before Comic-Con officially began. In the book, many of those same fans talk about meeting him back in the day. Not only Kirby, but also Forrest J. Ackerman, the godfather of geek culture. In the excerpts below, you read about those early meetings with Kirby. And all the fond memories that his fans have of meeting “the King.”
Below is the official description for See You at San Diego: An Oral History of Comic-Con, Fandom, and the Triumph of Geek Culture:
“See You At San Diego is the comprehensive chronicle of Comic-Con International and modern geekdom itself as told through countless stories by nearly fifty of the most integral members of the Comic-Con and fandom scene. This full-fledged oral history, bursting with intimate reflections, hilarious observations, and at times, heartbreaking, often thought-provoking stories, is about how the geek at last inherited the earth and the story of the transformation of mainstream American pop culture into comic book culture over the past century.”
The names contributing to this oral history are many. Among them Neil Gaiman, Frank Miller, Kevin Smith, Bruce Campbell, and Felicia Day. Also, Scott Aukerman, Stan Sakai, Sergio Aragonés, Trina Robbins, the Russo Bros., Lloyd Kaufman, Tim Seeley, and Kevin Eastman. There are also over 400 photos included.Not to mention, forewords by Stan Sakai (Usagi Yojimbo) and Jeff Smith (Bone). Finally, there’s an afterword by Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA. See You at San Diego: An Oral History of Comic-Con, Fandom, and the Triumph of Geek Culture ships on September 6. You pre-order it right now by clicking on this link.
