By the (stormy) sea
By Mark Voger, author
‘Zowie! The TV Superhero Craze in ’60s Pop Culture
I had a blast at Sea-Con in lovely Sea Bright, NJ, a Monmouth County burg situated between the Barnegat Bay to the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. The Jersey Shore Comic Book Show event was held at the Sea Bright Recreation Center on Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. It rained all day, and for a time, Ocean Avenue was closed off by police due to a flash flood (though the detour was manageable).
Still, Sea-Con carried on. For a small-scale show, it packed a wallop, with vendors, artists, “Star Wars” cosplayers, and a man who needed no introduction: Manasquan Batman.
Here he is toting a sign of the times. “People say, ‘Yeah! I’d vote for you,'” said Tommy Hill, who makes the rounds wherever Manasquan Batman is needed. His Instagram is HERE.
“Star Wars” cosplayers were everywhere, obliging anyone requesting a photo. Two groups were in force: the House Skirata Mandolorians and the 501st Star Wars Legion.
I overheard two helmeted “Star Wars” cosplayers talking. One said: “Aren’t you Oscar?” The other said, “No, I’m Lamar!” (I’ll bet this happens all the time.)
Actress Genoveva Rossi was likewise on hand at Sea-Con. She reported that “Attack of the Killer Chickens: The Movie” —which she wrote, directed and stars in — is on Amazon Prime Video. David Naughton (“An American Werewolf in London”) is in this horror comedy, which Rossi calls an homage to Troma and John Waters movies.
This is Christian Angeles, my next-table neighbor at Sea-Con. Angeles is the senior editor for the long-running, content-rich site Comics Beat, which covers comics, film, TV, manga, anime, you-name-it, with news, reviews, columns and interviews.
An around-the-corner neighbor was Kiam of Kiam Designs Shop. She creates shadow boxes of character art that light up. Superheroes and anime are her specialties. See some of Kiam’s work HERE.
A dealer had this piece of comic book history for sale: Sensation Comics #31 (1944). Eighty years old, this book is!
Another dealer specialized in ’60s superspy toys (“The Man From U.N.C.L.E.,” James Bond). He explained that the boxes above are all re-creations except for the “James Bond 007 Action Figure” box, which is worn but genuine. I’d never seen, nor even heard of, the kimono-clad Odd Job figure at far right.
The same dealer had another predilection — for Godzilla. One table was filled with a myriad of Godzilla toys.
Here’s what my table looked like. It was book-ended by my “Zowie!” and “Holly Jolly” posters.
To preserve the moment, here’s the promo I had on my home page.
P.S.: Veteran comic book artist Howard Bender (Action Comics, Spider-Man Seek & Find) was “the” voice of the Jersey comic book scene, but skeedaddled off to Pittsburgh. On those rare occasions when I do a show, Bender has asked me to “take some pictures,” so he can “see what everyone looks like.”
This post is it, Howard. Are ya satisfied?
Photo bombs
Harley Quinn photo-bombs Manasquan Batman!
A stormtrooper photo-bombs Christian Angeles!
Video
Here’s a video of Batman and the Joker surfing. Sea-Con … it just made me think of this.