Dragon Con
| Dragon*Con | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Status | Active |
| Genre | Multi-genre |
| Venue | Hyatt Regency Atlanta, Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Atlanta Hilton and Towers |
| Location | Atlanta, Georgia |
| Country | 
United States |
| First held | 1987 |
| Filing status | For-profit |
| Attendance | 30,000+[1] |
| Official Website | |
Dragon Con (also Dragon*Con) is a North America multigenre convention, held annually in Atlanta, Georgia. The 30,000-plus-member[2] convention takes over a six-square block area of downtown Atlanta adjacent to the 1996 Summer Olympics Village, and is hosted by an 850-member volunteer staff. Dragon Con has hosted the 1990 Origins Convention and the 1995 North American Science Fiction Convention (NASFiC). Like many World Fantasy Conventions, it is operated by a private corporation, and has been the subject of considerable controversy by a small segment of smof fandom[citation needed] since it has been scheduled on Labor Day Weekend, which is often a date for domestic Worldcons. It raises thousands of dollars each year for local and national charities.[citation needed]
History
Dragon*Con was launched in 1987, as a project of a local science fiction and gaming group, the Dragon Alliance of Gamers and Role-Players (DAGR), founded by Ed Kramer. The name "Dragon" for both the club and the convention was derived from Ed's Dragon Computer (a European version of Radio Shack's venerable Color Computer), which hosted a local Bulletin Board System ("The Dragon") that initially served as a central hub for both organizations. The inaugural Dragon*Con flyers debuted at the 1986 Atlanta Worldcon, ConFederation. However, by the following year Dragon*Con had been selected to be the host of the 1990 Origins convention.[3]
The inaugural Dragon*Con featured Guest of Honor Michael Moorcock, Robert Asprin and Lynn Abbey, the late Robert Adams, Ultima creator Richard "Lord British" Garriott, co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons Gary Gygax and Toastmaster Brad Strickland. Miramar recording artist Jonn Serrie delivered his keyboard arrangements from within a real NASA flightsuit and Michael Moorcock jammed onstage with Blue Öyster Cult's Eric Bloom, performing the Moorcock-written tunes "Veteran of the Psychic Wars" and "Black Blade". The late Thomas E. Fuller's Atlanta Radio Theatre performed H.P. Lovecraft's "Call of Cthulhu" live at the con and on live radio.[4]
In 2002, the 1st annual Dragon*Con parade was inaugurated. By the sixth year in 2007 over 1000 participants, most in costumes from all aspects of fandom marched along Peachtree Street from Woodruff Park (at Auburn Avenue) to the Hyatt, ending on Courtland Street at the Marriott and Hilton.
The 2007 Dragon*Con experienced growing pains. Hyatt hotel officials at various times during the crowded evening hours on Friday and Saturday would not allow anyone to enter the hotel until people left the hotel providing more room. Spontaneous photography of costumed attendees on the the Centennial level was restricted after large events emptied the ballroom, a policy that has been in place in previous years.
Programming
The 4-day event comprises approximately 850 hours of panels, seminars, demonstrations, and workshops, with over 30 specialized
programming tracks that include writing, art, gaming, NASA space science,
robotics, filk, costuming,
Star Trek, Star Wars, Stargate, X-Files, Battlestar Galactica, Firefly, Dr. Who, Ghost Hunters, Myth Busters, Buffy the Vampire
Slayer, Anne McCaffrey's Pern,
Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time,
J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the
Rings, MST3K, British and American SF television,
Awards
In 1998, Dragon Con established the Julie Award, in honor of Julius Schwartz, bestowed for universal achievement spanning multiple genres, selected each year by an esteemed panel of industry professionals. The inaugural recipient was science fiction and fantasy Grandmaster Ray Bradbury. Additional recipient awards, presented by Schwartz each year, included: Forry Ackerman, Yoshitaka Amano, Alice Cooper, Will Eisner, Harlan Ellison, Neil Gaiman, Carmine Infantino, Anne McCaffrey, Jim Steranko and Paul Dini. It is also the host of the Dragon Con Independent Short Film Festival, the Futura Award (paying homage to the Fritz Lang masterpiece Metropolis), and the Georgia Fandom Award. Fan Award winners include Brian Canfield Mitchell.
References
- ^ http://www.dragoncon.org/
- ^ http://www.dragoncon.org/
- ^ http://dragoncon.org/history.php
- ^ http://dragoncon.org/history.php
- ^ Programming Tracks. Dragon Con. Retrieved on 2007-08-31.
- ^ Boese, Christine. "DragonCon: All hope abandon, ye who enter here", CNN.com, 2002-08-19. Retrieved on 2007-08-31.
- ^ White, Rusty. "Dragoncon 2003: An Introduction To FREAK!", 2003-08-24. Retrieved on 2007-08-31.
- ^ Newitz, Annalee. "Sex with storm troopers", Salon. Retrieved on 2007-08-31.
External links
- Dragon Con's official web site
- Daily Dragon
- DragonConTV (fan films & spoof videos created for Dragon Con)
- Yahoo groups board (Oldest Fan run posting board)
| Preceded by 5th North American Science Fiction Convention ConDiego in San Diego, |
List of NASFiCs 6th North American Science Fiction Convention Dragon*Con in Atlanta, |
Succeeded by 7th North American Science Fiction Convention Conucopia in Los Angeles, |
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