News
02.21.2012 More Creator Guests!
Frank Cammuso
Frank Cammuso is an American author & illustrator of children's books. His notable works include the Knights of the Lunch Table series, Otto's Orange Day and Max Hamm - Fairy Tale Detective.
As well, Frank has worked as a political cartoonist for the The Post-Standard, newspaper in Syracuse, NY for the past 20 years. During that time his cartoons have been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today and Newsweek.
Ray Friesen
Ray Friesen is author & cartoonist who draws a series of humour-adventure graphic novels chock full of penguins, pirates and all sorts of silly things. His notable (and hilarious) works include Pirate Penguin vs. Ninja Chicken, Cupcakes of Doom, Another Dirt Sandwich and more.
John Gallagher
John Gallagher is a cartoonist, self-publisher, and award-winning designer, John has written and illustrated his online and printed graphic novel series Buzzboy since 1998 and has worked in graphic design, interactive media, and comics books creation for more than 20 years.
Jeremy Tankard
Jeremy Tankard is an award-winning author and illustration of children's books. He is publishing with Scholastic, Candlewick Press, Feiwel & Friends and Chronicle Books and his drawings can be found in Time magazine, Fortune and others. His notable works include Piggy Bunny, Boo Hoo Bird, Me Hungry! and more. Jeremy is based in Canada and is a graduate of the Alberta College of Art & Design.
02.21.2012 Tom Felton postponement
We regret to announce that due to a filming project, Tom Felton will be postponing his appearances at the Emerald City Comicon (March 30 – April 1), the Fan Expo Vancouver (April 21-22), and the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo (April 27-29).
The organizers of each convention hope that the fans understand this situation. The staff for Emerald City, Fan Expo Vancouver and Calgary Expo wish Mr. Felton all the best with his new film project and look forward to hosting him in 2013.
02.16.2012 Walking Dead Guests announced!
Jon Bernthal
Jon Bernthal made a name for himself as the morally ambiguous Shane Walsh in the hit post-apocalyptic series The Walking Dead. Having studied at the elite Moscow Art Theatre in Moscow, Russia, he eventually went on to earn his Master’s degree in Fine Arts from the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Over the past decade he has worked on over 30 stage productions as well as appearing on several hit television shows including Boston Legal, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and CSI: Miami.
Laurie Holden
Laurie Holden’s acting experience is a true testament to her incredible range as one of Hollywood’s leading actresses.
Known for her role as Andrea in the current smash hit series The Walking Dead, Laurie is no stranger to the world of science fiction and horror. She also starred on The X-Files for several seasons as Marita Covarrubias and has had roles in such productions as The Mist, Highlander: The Series and the film adaptation of Silent Hill. Other titles to her credit include Mary Travis in The Magnificent Seven, Adele Stanton in The Majestic and Agent Olivia Murphy in The Shield.
Laurie is also an avid human rights activist who is currently acquiring her Masters in Human Rights from Columbia University. She is a Founding Board Member for the Canadian chapter of the Somaly Mam Foundation which is a charity dedicated to rescuing, rehabilitating and reintegrating victims of sexual slavery and human trafficking.
Tony Moore
Tony Moore is an American comic artist known for co-creating The Walking Dead, The Exterminators and Fear Agent. Moore first gained notice through Battle Pope (also with Robert Kirkman) and recently has worked on the Franken Castle story in The Punisher, Ghost Rider and Venom.
02.14.2012 We've got Voice Actors!
Robert Axelrod
Robert Axelrod is an American actor known for his various roles in film and animation. Mr. Axelrod has appeared in more than 30 feature films including four with Charles Bronson, the Sci-Fi hit remake The Blob with Kevin Dillon and many others.
Mr. Axelrod is also an accomplished voice actor. He was the voice of Lord Zedd & Finster on the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers series, Rico on Robotech and has voiced countless Anime features including Akira, The Big O, Cowboy Bebop, and Brain Scratch. As well, He just finished narrating the mockumentary Safety First: The Rise of Women and voicing four Anime series, Gaiking, Danguard Ace, Captain Horlock, The Adventures of Nadja, and Fist of the North Star.
Quinton Flynn
Quinton Flynn is an American voice actor who is best known for his work in video games and animation. He has provided the English voices for Raiden in the Metal Gear Solid series, Axel in Kingdom Hearts, Iruka-sensai & Deidara in Naruto, Carl in Blood+ and others. As well, he had voiced such famous animated characters as Johnny Question, Spiderman, Speed Racer and The Human Torch just to name a few.
Flynn is a well known in the entertainment industry for his skills as an impressionist and improvisationalist, having played the role of Paul McCartney and tested for NBC’s Saturday Night Live and Comedy Network’s The Daily Show.
02.09.2012 Writers Announced!
Max Brooks
Max Brooks is the author of the two bestselling books The Zombie Survival Guide & World War Z. As well, he has written for Saturday Night Live, for which he won an Emmy and released a graphic novel The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks in 2009.
Peter David
Peter David is an American writer of comic books, novels, television, movies and video games. His notable comic book work includes an award-winning, 12-year run on The Incredible Hulk, as well as runs on Aquaman, Young Justice, Supergirl, and Fallen Angel.
His Star Trek work includes both comic books and novels, such as Imzadi, and co-creating the New Frontier series. His television work includes Babylon 5, Young Justice, Ben 10: Alien Force and Space Cases, which David co-created.
Robert J Sawyer
Robert J. Sawyer is a Canadian Hugo Award-winning and Nebula Award-winning Science Fiction writer. He has authored 20 Science Fiction novels including Flash Forward, The Terminal Experiment and the WWW series Watch, Wake & Wonder.
Jim Zubkavich
Jim Zubkavich or "Zubby" is a trouble-making Canadian artist-writer boy. His latest comics are Skullkickers (Image Comics) & Makeshift Miracle (Udon Comics). Zubby also works as a Project Manager for UDON Entertainment and as a Professor of Animation History and Digital Painting in Seneca College’s Animation Arts Centre.
02.06.2012 Stan Lee is Coming to the Calgary Expo!
Stan Lee
Emerging from the brokenness of the Great Depression and persisting through the adversity of WWII, Stan Lee, born Stanley Martin Lieber, has become an icon in the comic-book industry and a model of strength, determination and resilience.
As a child, Stan had an insatiable appetite for reading and writing, interests that led him to his first job as an obituary writer for the local news service and composing press releases for the National Tuberculosis Centre. He launched his arts and entertainment career in 1939 with Timely Comics. His duties were menial to begin with - refilling ink wells, erasing pencils from finished pages and delivering lunches to the artists. Unbeknownst to Stan, Timely Comics would eventually develop into one of the world’s leading comic book production companies – Marvel Comics, instigating Lee’s career as the most notorious comic book creator since the industry’s inception.
Stan, along with Jack Kirby, would go on to create such outstanding characters as Thor, Iron Man, X-Men and The Fantastic Four. In August of 1962 Lee co-created Spiderman with Steve Ditko, launching one of the most well-known, well-loved and well-received comic book heroes of all time.
A notable difference in Stan's characters was the human element of imperfection – something that had previously been absent from most super-hero archetypes. His heroes were not only visions of strength and stamina, they also struggled with angst, sadness, fear, loneliness and yes, heartache. These character flaws propelled the Marvel Revolution as fans, maintaining their admiration for their superhero archetypes, also began to relate to them on a more personal level. This cultivated a sense of community between the creators, the characters and the fans, forever changing the way that comic books would be written.
For over 60 years the entertainment industry has felt the presence of Stan Lee’s profound devotion to art and literature. In 2010 the Stan Lee Foundation was formed, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting literacy, cultural awareness and artistic diversity throughout the States. His influence has encouraged thousands of aspiring writers and artists to pursue their ambitions and enhance their talents.
01.29.2012 Star Trek TNG EXPOsed
It may not be possible to beam aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise but you’ll be getting the next best thing at the 2012 Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo when we bring together the nine principle cast members from Star Trek: The Next Generation®.
Yes, you read that correctly.
Sir Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Marina Sirtis, Brent Spiner, Michael Dorn, LeVar Burton, Gates McFadden, Wil Wheaton and Denise Crosby will all be joining us at the Calgary Expo April 27-29, 2012.
We are also very proud to present Star Trek® TNG EXPOsed – a full-cast reunion of Star Trek: The Next Generation® to be held at the Calgary Stampede Corral on the evening of Saturday, April 28, 2012. This auspicious occasion marks the 25th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation® and will be the first time in over twenty years that the cast has participated in an event such as this.
Included in the evening’s program, which will be hosted by the Calgary Expo’s mascot Emily Expo, is a 90 minute panel discussion and Q n’ A session moderated by InnerSPACE hosts Teddy Wilson, Ajay Fry and Cynthia Loyst, music by Johnny Summers Little Big Band and a video presentation in honour of the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation®. A commemorative guide will produced solely for this event along with exclusive merchandise.
This is a separate ticketed event with tickets going on sale through Ticketmaster on February 18, 2012 at 10 AM MST. Although the cast will be participating in various panels throughout the course of the weekend, Star Trek® TNG EXPOsed will be the only opportunity to see all nine of the cast members in one incredible panel.
Tickets will be available at www.ticketmaster.com and range from $40-$125 CDN.
01.29.2012 Star Trek The Next Generation 25th Annivesary!
LeVar Burton
By the time that LeVar Burton landed his role on Star Trek: The Next Generation as Lt. Commander Georgie La Forge, he had already been nominated for an Emmy award, appeared in several film and television productions and was the popular host of the successful children’s series Reading Rainbow.
Apart from his role on TNG, LeVar is known and highly esteemed for his riveting portrayal of Kunte Kinte in the provocative series Roots. The role earned him an Emmy nomination for Best Actor in a Drama Series. He later went on to reprise the character in the 1988 television film Roots: The Gift.
LeVar also won a Grammy award in the category of Best Spoken Word Album for his work on the Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr. Additionally, his work on Reading Rainbow earned him several awards including the Peabody award in 1992 and two Daytime Emmy awards.
Denise Crosby
Best known for her role as Security Chief Tasha Yar in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Denise Crosby, the grand-daughter of infamous crooner Bing Crosby, has had a prolific acting career for over 30 years.
Some of her television roles include appearances on NYPD Blue, The X-Files, Mad Men, Dexter and Bones.
On the big screen she has appeared in several films including Pet Cemetery, Deep Impact and 48 Hours – which was her debut film.
Denise’ talent also extends to the stage as she is an accomplished thespian having acted in such theatrical productions as Orpheus Descending, Epitaph For George Dillon and Beggars in the House of Plenty.
Michael Dorn
It’s a fateful stroke of poetic justice that a boy, whose first love was that of aviation, would eventually grow up to be the Chief of Security on the Starship Enterprise.
Michael Dorn, also known as the stern and honourable Klingon Warrior Lieutenant Worf in Star Trek: The Next Generation, was not only profoundly interested in the art of flying, but also cultivated his interests in music and acting from the time he was a child.
Having studied radio and television production in university, Dorn also played in rock bands and is an accomplished bass player, pianist and flautist.
He began his career in show business as a production assistant on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and eventually made his way in front of the camera through various commercials and minor television roles. Eventually he was cast in Rocky as Apollo Creed’s bodyguard , after which he began work as Officer Jebediah Turner in CHiPs.
Apart from his prevalent role in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Dorn has had great success as a voice actor, supplying voices for various video and computer games, as well as animated shows including the vastly popular Disney cartoon Gargoyles.
Jonathan Frakes
With an authoritative presence and an impish glimmer in his eye, it’s no wonder that the man who launched his show business career as Marvel’s Captain America ultimately ascended the ranks to stardom as one of science fiction’s most outstanding characters – Commander William T. Riker.
As “number one” to the infamous Captain Picard, Riker bore a striking contrast for Star Trek fans who, until TNGs debut in 1987, were used to the cold logic of their beloved Mr. Spock. A ladies-man, musician and poker player, Riker was risky yet rational, passionate yet principled.
Behind the camera, Frakes has found prolific success as a director, having taken the helm for Star Trek: First Contact and Star Trek: Insurrection amongst many other films. On the small screen his accomplishments in the Star Trek franchise have also been triumphant, directing several episodes of TNG, Deep Space Nine and Voyager.
Outside the world of Star Trek, Frakes has been involved with numerous other projects including Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction?, Disney’s Gargoyles, Roswell and special guest appearances on The Family Guy.
Jonathan Frakes will be appearing on Saturday and Sunday only.
Gates McFadden
Although Gates McFadden is primarily known as the brilliant and beautiful Dr. Beverly Crusher in Star Trek: The Next Generation, her talent and experience extends to worlds far beyond the universe of Star Trek.
Gates studied at Brandeis University where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Arts. She then moved to Paris where she studied under renowned thespian Jacques Lecoq. Her expertise in dance and the fine arts led her to Jim Henson productions where she worked as a choreographer for cult-fantasy film The Dark Crystal as well as the Director of Choreography and Puppet Movement for Labyrinth.
Other roles to her credit include appearances on The Cosby Show, Mad About You and a series of commercials for Microsoft.
Marina Sirtis
Marina is an established actress in both film and television. Amongst her 70 titles is that of Councillor Deanna Troi in Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Born in London, Marina involved herself in the theatre from a very young age and appeared in several major films before beginning her journey with Star Trek. Other titles to her credit include Death Wish 3, The Wicked Lady and Blind Date. Following TNG, Marina began work on the hit television series Gargoyles as the voice of Demona. She has also had guest appearances on popular television productions including The Outer Limits, Stargate SG-1, Earth: Final Conflict and Grey’s Anatomy.
Brent Spiner
Brent Spiner has over 70 titles to his credit but it his role as the beloved android Lieutenant Commander Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation that has left a lasting impression in the minds of pop culture enthusiasts.
Born in Houston, Texas, Brent involved himself in drama at a young age, eventually moving to New York City where he would perform in Broadway and Of-Broadway productions. After moving to Los Angeles, Brent appeared in several shows including Night Court, Cheers and Tales from the Darkside before landing his role as Data. He has since appeared in productions such as Independence Day, Frasier, The Big Bang Theory and Friends.
He has released two albums, the first album, Ol’ Yellow Eyes was released in 1991 and pays homage to the musical stylings of Frank Sinatra. The second album, a derivative of a radio musical with Maude Maggart, was released in 2008 under the title Dreamland.
Brent Spiner will be appearing on Saturday and Sunday only.
Patrick Stewart
He has taken charge of ships that explore the uncharted reaches of the ocean’s expanse and ships that pass through space to “seek out new life and new civilizations”. He has had dominion over countries, commanded armies, and has even uttered the occasional, “bah, humbug!” There is no denying that Sir Patrick Stewart’s career is both illustrious and influential, having spanned the course of over five decades.
Best known for his role as Captain Jean Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men films, Stewart has created an image of authority for himself, often portraying characters who, though stern at times, necessitate respect, ethical awareness and wisdom. Of course there are always exceptions – two notable examples being his outstanding 2007 performance as MacBeth at London’s Gielgud Theatre and Dr. Jonas in 1997’s Conspiracy Theory.
Beyond film and television, Stewart is a successful voice actor, having appeared in animated works such as Family Guy, American Dad and Steven Spielberg’s The Prince of Egypt.
However, before Xavier and Picard, before Avery Bullock and his other animated endeavours, Patrick Stewart was, and still is, one of the most eminent stage actors in the history of theatre. He has appeared in more than 60 productions with the Royal Shakespeare Company and his one-man production of A Christmas Carol demands that he take on no less than 40 roles – a project that earned him a Drama Desk Award for Best Solo Performance in 1992 and the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Entertainment for Solo Performance in 1994. In 1999 he was nominated for a Screen Actor’s Guild Award in for his portrayal as Scrooge in a television film version of A Christmas Carol.
Patrick Stewart will only be appearing on Saturday and Sunday.
Wil Wheaton
Wil Wheaton, once a child actor on Jello-O commercials, has now become a cult-favorite amongst sci-fi and gaming fans with a Twitter following of nearly two million people.
Famous for his role as the child prodigy Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Wil has enjoyed a lengthily career in show business for the past three decades. His career in film began as the voice of Martin Brisby in the classic animated film The Secret of NIMH. He then went on to work on such films as Stand By Me and Toy Soldiers.
After his run on TNG, Wil went on to work on various independent films including The Good Things and Jane White is Sick & Twisted. As a voice actor he has worked on several productions including Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Kurokami: The Animation.
Recently he has appeared in the successful web series The Guild as well as the smash hit television show The Big Bang Theory. He also has a recurring role on the sci-fi series Eureka.
Wil is an avid writer whose blogs have gained a widespread following. He has penned several books including Dancing Barefoot and Just a Geek.
