July has arrived and summer is upon us. Here’s hoping everyone had a great 4th of July weekend. Travel is slow for us this month, so I’m looking forward to a couple of nice grillin’ days before things get busy again by mid August.
Check out the FILMS and EVENTS page for some film titles and event banners for the October show. I started to post some the films we’ll be screening this October, and once again we’ve got a couple of great drive-in gems (as well as the usual inept, cheesy clunkers) lined up for our late night double features and weekend screenings.
I’m also in the process of sorting out what might be more talks, panels, and events than I ever crammed into a weekend schedule before. By all means, head on over to the site and see what we have to offer this early in the game. Hopefully I’ll be finishing up with my watching, reviewing, and selecting independent movie submissions by the end of the month so I can have the entire film schedule complete and ready to go by early to mid August.
No bad news on the guest front naturally, but what else would you expect from the one convention out there with only four or five guest cancellations after ten years and fifteen shows? The list looks great to me, but give it until the end of the month and I might even have a great surprise guest to add to the 10th Annual Fall Show’s line-up…
Here’s a few reminders to end this month’s update with:
OUR FRIEND, DR. CREEP, CAN USE YOUR HELP: As the host of Shock Theater and Clubhouse 22, Dr. Creep (Barry Hobart) created fond memories for generations of fans. Over the years, he’s dedicated more hours than you could count to causes like Muscular Dystrophy and his own children’s charity, Project Smiles. I’m sure most of the friends and fans that grew up on Dr. Creep have no idea of his current situation, but caring more for others than his own well being has finally caught up to our friend. He’s been ill the last couple of years, and in addition to caring for his mother and disabled son, he is now finding it tough to afford the medication he needs for his own condition. On July 18th from noon to 10pm there will be a benefit in Springfield’s Snyder Park (1900 Snyder Road, Springfield, OH. 45504) to benefit Barry. This will be an entire day of bands, entertainment, and fun, hosted by local cable TV host (and Wasteland staffer) A. Ghastlee Ghoul, and open to anyone willing to attend. For anyone wanting to sell stuff, there are vender spots available for only $30. For more information, please check out: www.myspace.com/drcreepbenefit
We were hoping to make Dr. Creep’s benefit but our van is down for the count and needs to get in the shop before we can get anywhere right now. We limped it along to make our last two conventions since they were close to home, but it’s burning some serious oil right now and looks like a messy and pain in the ass [read: expensive] repair is in order. Zero idea of how long it will be in the shop, but very glad we have the month of July to get it fixed. Please don’t let our transportation hardship keep you from attending Dr. Creep’s benefit though. He knows we love him either way, but it’s really shaping up to be a grand day of music and fun for everyone involved.
FLIERS and POSTCARDS: Updated fliers and postcards for October’s show are ready to go. If you’d like to help spread the Cinema Wasteland word, right now is a great time to start. And we don’t expect you to download one flier off our site and print it off yourself. Just say the word and we’ll be more than happy to send you a stack of fliers or postcards for the October show to pass out. Bars, specialty shops, video stores, tattoo shops, college campuses, music stores… All good places for Wasteland attendees to hang out. If you frequent any place that you think may be a good place to put a stack of cards and you’d like to help spread the Wasteland word, then by all means, get in touch and I’ll be more than happy to send off a stack. As always, any help in spreading the word about the show is truly appreciated.
TICKETS: For everything we offer our attending fans, there is no better bargain out there than an advance ticket to a Cinema Wasteland Show we can find; 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 9/4/09 and you can get an advance 3-Day Pass for only $35.00. And don’t forget that a 3-Day Pass always gets you into the Dealer and Guest Room half an hour before single day pass holders without paying “early admission fees” other conventions charge fans. You can also save $5.00 on any single day pass ordered in advance before 9/4/09 and get in for only $15.00 per day.
HOTEL: One thing you can always count on is that the hotel will be sold out by show time. And we take up every available room these past couple of years too. 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. (And keep calling if we fill up as show time draws close. A room could open up at any time.) 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.
July is the halfway point between the last Spring Show and October’s 10th Annual Fall show. Things are running as smoothly as can be expected on our end, and our Guests all seem extremely excited about the upcoming show. It took me a long time to figure out I was developing a “Cinema Wasteland formula” when it came to scheduling and running the best weekend I could for the 2,000 fans we average every show, but I’ll be damned if I’m not proud of what I’ve accomplished over the past ten years. I’m really looking forward to continuing that Wasteland weekend formula for another few years as we finish up with hotel contracts that will take us through October 2013 and our ultra-lucky thirteenth anniversary show.
Don’t forget that ALL attendees for the October 2009 and April 2010 shows will get to vote for their top five return guests for our official 10th Anniversary Show next October 1-3, 2010. See the blurb below for more, and I’ll catch you all again next month.
FANS PICK TOP FIVE 10th ANNIVERSARY GUESTS: This October will mark our 10th Annual Fall Show and begins the Cinema Wasteland Movie and Memorabilia Expo’s tenth complete year of Convention Domination. For our big 10th complete year Anniversary Show next October 1-3, 2010, attending fans will get to choose the top five guests they would like to see return for the anniversary show. We’ve not only had more first time guests than any show I’ve ever attended as a fan myself in twenty years, 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 two shows will get a chance to vote and I’ll add up ballots by hand to pick the winners. Ballots will be available at Registration and everyone attending will get a chance to vote for their top returning guest choices.
