2010 is here, and we can all collectively say goodbye to a decade of complete government failure and incompetence, topped off with bailouts for the most scummy and worthless bottom feeders on the planet while us “working stiffs” are once again left footing the bill. Not even a vulture would feast on the scraps of the last decade, and I for one couldn’t be happier it’s been shot in the back of the head and left to rot in the sun. But for all of the jaw-dropping incompetence our so called elected leaders have shown us these past ten years, there will remain one thing that made me proud and gave me reason to smile time and time again… The Cinema Wasteland Movie and Memorabilia Expo draws the best fans in the world, and we’re all celebrating the show’s tenth anniversary this year!
After ten years and sixteen shows, I’ve never once strayed from my original vision of what a Wasteland Show should be. It’s not about greed or having that one big douchebag guest who thinks I’ll pay them some sort of over bloated appearance fee because it’s not and I won’t. A Wasteland Show is all about celebrating the independent horror and exploitation cinema of the late 50’s through the early to mid 1980’s with like minded fans… Or, as I see it, we celebrate the little guys with drive and imagination. Something I haven’t seen from Hollywood in over 25 years. We simply stayed our course for sixteen shows in a row and the best fans on the planet found us as time went along. We’ve gone out of our way to search out and invite guests you won’t see a dozen times a year at other cons; and we pack so much into a three day weekend we’ve never jammed less than 60 hours worth of free-with-admission talks, panels, and movies into every show we’ve ever run.
This April 9th, 10th and 11th, things will be no different. We’ll do what we’ve always done and do it to the best of our ability for every fan that walks through the doors.
Cinema Wasteland did zombies at our first show when we ran the first ever Dawn of the Dead reunion, (celebrating one of my favorite zombie films), and we’ve featured a couple of our undead friends pretty much every show since. Ten years and sixteen shows later I wanted to keep that zombie theme going and bookend our “Decade of Convention Domination” with another of my personal favorite zombie films. It’s been 30 years since Lucio Fulci’s ZOMBIE (aka Zombi 2) hit American Drive-In’s and Grindhouses. I’m not the only fan who loves a thirteen inch splinter to the eye, so we’ll be presenting the ZOMBIE cast and crew along with a who’s who of famous movie zombies this April. The complete up-to-date Guest List is posted on the web site with the balance of guests to hopefully be posted by the end of the month.
We had the last of our road trips for the 2009 season at the beginning of December while family, friends, and the Holiday’s got in the way the remainder of the month. You should start to see a few Films and Events posted in the next couple of weeks now that things have settled down and the Holiday’s are over. We’ve got some great stuff in the works for April’s show, so check the site in the next couple of weeks and make those plans to join us now for April’s show.
A New Year, but the same old reminders to end things with…
TICKETS: We’ve said it a thousand times, but until we’re proved wrong, we’ll say it a thousand more times. For everything we offer our attending fans, there is no better bargain out there than an advance ticket to a Cinema Wasteland Show; and no better time to plan to be with us for our next show than right now. No “hidden fees” at a Wasteland show guarantees every fan through the door is treated just like the person standing next to you in line; and your ticket in gets you everything we have to offer except for an autograph from our guests. Order before 3/5/10 and you can get an advance 3-Day Pass for only $35.00. And don’t forget that a 3-Day Pass gets you into the Dealer and Guest Room half an hour before single day pass holders without paying ridiculous “early admission fees” other conventions rip people off for. Fans actually get rewarded for saving money at a Wasteland show! You can also save $5.00 on any single day pass ordered in advance before 3/5/10 and get in for only $15.00 per day. (HINT: Two single day passes in advance is a two day pass special when you think about it.)
HOTEL: One thing you can always count on is that the hotel will be sold out by show time. The hotel is booking rooms quicker than normal for the April 2010 show, so avoid the headache of having to stay down the road by making your room reservations today. Reserve your room by calling The Holiday Inn direct at (440) 238-8800. Remember you MUST ask for “The Cinema Wasteland Rate”, or they will tell you that they are ”sold out” and have no rooms. AND PLEASE only reserve as many rooms as you plan on using. If you need to book more than one room, please call Lynn Ebner directly at 1-440-783-3006 and she will take care of your multiple room reservations.
FLIERS and POSTCARDS: Updated fliers for April’s show are ready to go. Postcards will be available after I talk to our unconfirmed guests later this month. If you’re a fan of what a Cinema Wasteland Show is all about, then help us spread the word about April’s show. If you frequent any places that you think may be a good place to put a stack of fliers or cards and you’d like to help spread the Wasteland word, then by all means, get in touch and we’ll be more than happy to send off a stack. Bars, specialty shops, video stores, tattoo shops, college campuses, music stores… All are great places to find horror movie fans who get into what we do. As always, any help in spreading the word about the show is not just truly appreciated, but helps keep the show running twice a year since I’m more than willing to just stop running it if the bills don’t get paid.
FANS PICK TOP FIVE 10th ANNIVERSARY GUESTS: Next October 1-3, 2010, the Cinema Wasteland Movie and Memorabilia Expo will wrap up it’s tenth complete year with it’s 11th Annual Fall Show. And we’re letting you attending fans choose the top guests you would like to see return for the big 10th complete year anniversary show.
We’ve not only had more first time guests than any show I’ve ever attended as a fan myself, but over 30 of them have never made a second appearance at CW or any other con out there. Add in the fact that we’ve had all kinds of popular guests that haven’t been with us in three years or more right now, and the selection is wide open to pick your favorites for a return visit. The only catch? NO EMAIL OR WEB VOTING. Since I couldn’t care less what somebody who has never actually attended a CW Show thinks about a CW Show, only those who attend the next show and didn’t vote at the October 2009 show will get a chance to vote.
We got a great response at the last (October 2009) show from attending fans and I’d like to thank everyone who cast a ballot. If you missed the October show or forgot to cast your ballot for your top returning guest choices last show, we will be handing out ballots again at the April 9-11, 2010 show. We’re going to ask that if you only vote once total, but since we have so many fans that only make one out of the two shows a year, we’re doing it again in April to cover as many CW fans as possible. Yes, we do actually value your opinion IF you actually attend our shows from time to time. Really. Ballots will once again be available at Registration and everyone who didn’t vote at the October 2009 show will have their chance to vote before we add up and invite back the winners.
WASTELAND T-SHIRTS: Did everyone attending the October 2009 show get a t-shirt if they wanted one? We didn’t have a shirt available for two or three shows, but came back with one last show. Since we didn’t print one for a couple shows, we printed up about fifty extra shirts than we normally would… And found a box of about fifty shirts when cleaning up the warehouse last month. Looks like we’ve got at least a couple of every size Small, Med, Lg, XL, XXL and XXXLarge, so if you’d like to order one, the price is $15.00 postage paid for any size in stock. To order your October 2009 Cinema Wasteland Movie and Memorabilia Expo t-shirt, CLICK HERE.
Once again, I’d like to wish everyone all the best in the New Year.
Stay warm, and we’ll talk again in thirty,
Ken
Cinema Wasteland
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FROM ALIENS TO ZOMBIES:
We Specialize in B Movies and Memorabilia
Cinema Wasteland
P.O. Box 8
Berea, OH 44017
Complete Merchandise Catalog: $3.00 (in USA and Canada)
Web Site: https://www.cinemawasteland.com
Phone: (440) 891-1920
Email: zombies@cinemawasteland.com
THE CINEMA WASTELAND MOVIE & MEMORABILIA EXPO
America’s Drive-In and Independent Movie Show
April 9th, 10th and 11th, 2010
Strongsville, OH. (Just minutes from downtown Cleveland)
DEALER AND GUEST ROOM – MIDNIGHT MOVIES – SPECIAL EVENTS
See our Web Site for Dealer, Guest, and Event information NOW!
