The Dark Knight Rises’ Michael Uslan headlining at Denver Comic Con

Denver Comic Con Announces High Caliber Celebirty Guests, Artists, Exhibitors And Educational Opportunities

Michael Uslan, The Boy Who Loved Batman

It’s unusual to see “a suit” i.e. an executive producer, one of the money men, as a featured guest at a comic book convention.   If they appear, it certainly wouldn’t be anything announced in the opening paragraph of a press release.  But Michael Uslan is no ordinary producer, he is “The Boy Who Loved Batman,” and as his book by that name chronicles, he is the man who trusted that boyhood love to bring The Dark Knight to the big screen when nobody, absolutely nobody, thought there was any merit in the idea of making a movie about Batman.

Feb. 8th, 2012, Denver CO: Denver Comic Con and Literary Conference is
excited to announce a legion of celebrity guests, renowned comic book talent and international exhibitors for the Mile High City’s first full scale comic and pop culture convention. The 3 day event will kick off on Father’s Day weekend with a cast of talent that reads like the who’s who of Hollywood Heroes, Sci Fi, and Animation, including; Kristin Bauer (True Blood), Michael Uslan (Exec. Producer – The Dark Knight Rises, The Dark Knight, Batman Begins), Billy West (Futurama, Ren & Stimpy, Looney Tunes), Tom Kane (Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Wolverine and the X-Men, The Powerpuff Girls), Jasika Nicole (FRINGE, She’s Out of My League, Take the Lead), Mark Ryan (Transformers), Steven Seagle (Ben 10, Generator Rex, Ultimate Spider-Man), and Greg Weisman (Gargoyles, The Spectacular Spider-Man, Young Justice).
Exciting new comic book guests include Eisner Award winner Georges Jeanty (Buffy The Vampire Slayer), Amy Reeder (Batwoman, Madame Xanadu, Fool’s Gold), Mike Grell (Green Arrow, Green Lantern, Action Comics), Peter Gross (Unwritten, Lucifer, Book’s of Magic), Ethan Nicolle (Axe Cop, Chumble Puzz) and Golden Age artist Allen Bellman (Captain America Comics, The Human Torch, Sub-Mariner Comics) among others.

Since September 2011, the locally based Comic Book Classroom (an after school program teaching underserved children to read through comics) has gradually built an impressive roster of talent for their largest fundraiser to date – Denver Comic Con. Set to take place at the Colorado Convention Center in trendy downtown Denver, the benefit boasts a high caliber celebrity lineup coupled with education and literary opportunities spanning the five days surrounding Father’s Day weekend.

In just a few short months, CBC has amassed over 275 local volunteers for the pop culture conference, highlighting the best and brightest artists of Denver and from around the world, with an array of programming opportunities, colorful exhibitions, and the recent addition of Tokyo Japan’s own Manga University (Manga Publisher and educator). Denver Comic Con also boasts visually appealing appearances from the cosplay community (elaborately costumed capers), video gaming competitions, workshops, autograph signings, and special programming, all culminating in a fan-centric awards ceremony on the last day of the con. All of the proceeds raised from the Denver Comic Con will benefit the CBC, which is currently active in 8 Colorado area schools.

Throughout the weekend the comic convention will feature an overwhelming number of celebrity guests ranging from the red carpet to the book publishing bullpen. With a number of respected names already listed, the convention is putting its best foot forward for its first year including Kristen Bauer best known as Pam, the icy, foul-mouthed, scene-stealing vampire on HBO’s hit series, True Blood. The three day event will also feature Michael Uslan, best known for his Hollywood credits in the Batman franchise such as the The Dark Knight and the much anticipated trilogy-ending finale, The Dark Knight Rises. He is a perfect fit for the con as he is an authority on comic book history as instructor of the first accredited university courses on comic books (Indiana University 1971) as well as the first textbook on comic books (The Comic Book in America).

The Denver Comic Con will also feature a number of big guns from the animation world including star voice actors Billy West and Tom Kane. West is best known for his voice-work on Ren & Stimpy, Doug and Futurama where he originated fan favorites, Philip J. Fry (Futurama) and Stimpy (Ren and Stimpy). Tom Kane, best known as the Voice of Yoda in Star Wars The Clone Wars, has a tremendous vocal range that has led to a busy career. Every week, he records literally dozens of movie trailers, commercials, network TV promos, video games and cartoons. In addition to voicing Yoda, he has voiced lead roles in The Powerpuff Girls, Robot Chicken, Kim Possible, The Avengers, Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, Iron Man, The Wild Thornberrys, Wolverine and the X-Men and many more. Lastly, Colorado’s own Steven T. Seagle will be returning to Denver for a spotlight appearance at the con. Seagle is a comic book and television writer known for his work as the creator of the international boys’ action series BEN-10 franchise and his numerous shows are part of regular programming on the Cartoon Network and in a forthcoming series from Marvel/Disney.

Preceding the Denver Comic Con on June-13th-15th, event producers are also hosting a one-of-a-kind literary conference featuring keynote speaker Scott McCloud and special guests, James Bucky Carter, Robert Weiner and Charles Hatfield for the inaugural Rocky Mountain Conference on Comics and Graphic Novels at the Hyatt Regency directly across from the Convention Center. Attendees will have the opportunity to discuss the academics of graphic storytelling with some of the nation’s top comic-centric literary talent and scholars.

The Denver Comic Con and Literary Conference is set to take place on Father’s Day weekend on June 13th-17th. For ticketing information, hotel discounts and for up-to-date announcements about the convention check out the official website at http://www.denvercomiccon.com  and http://www.comicbookclassroom.org to learn more.
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See related:
You can’t make any money with Batman: How Batman Almost Never Left the Bat Cave