Meri H
19th April 2003, 12:01 AM
ELECTRONIC PROGRESS REPORT
-----------------------------------
PROJECT: A-KON 2003 (A-Kon 14)
Updated as of March 30, 2003
Here's the latest official news, for A-Kon 14! If you don't hear it HERE
(or on the official website), it might be junk!
-------------------
THE BASICS (Some New Stuff Here)
DATE: May 30-June 1, 2003
WHERE: Hyatt Regency Hotel at DFW Airport (International Parkway, DFW
Texas, 75261), in Terminal C
HOTEL PRICE: $115 per night for 1-4 people (plus tax)
* NEW INFO * ROOM RESERVATIONS: As of March 1, the Hyatt is SOLD OUT of all
rooms except a few they hold back called 'transient' rooms which they have
to sell at their full price of $179 plus tax per night. Call the Hyatt
directly at 972-453-1234 if you want these rooms. Mention A-Kon so at
least we know it's 'our' people in them (normally these rooms are held back
for stranded airline pilots, airline emergencies, cancelled flights, etc.
and they can only sell them at their listed rate. Also we want to avoid
noise issues, so let the hotel know you ARE with A-Kon, even if your NOT in
the block) Otherwise, see overflow hotel info listed below:
FIRST OVERFLOW HOTEL:
Ramada Limited, located at 2050 Highway 121 in Grapevine, TX. Their number
is 972-304-9611. Be sure to mention Project A-Kon and Phoenix
Entertainment when making your reservations, to assure the $115.00 per
night rate. The Ramada will provide FREE 24-HOUR shuttle service to the
Hyatt for your convenience. (We talked them into taking their shuttles
DIRECTLY to the Hyatt this year, not just to Terminal C! Yay us!) Again,
call the hotels directly to make reservations, as we're not sure their
online national systems will work with our blocks and we don't want to see
anybody get stranded. We are in negotiations with other hotels in the
nearby area, and shuttle services, as we're sure we'll need them as con
time approaches. There are only about 10 rooms left at the Ramada so we
know we will need them. Stay tuned.
KON PRICES: $35 until April 1st, $40 thereafter until mail-in cutoff of May
5. Credit Card Cutoff is May 10th. This price includes the Duel Jewel AND
Camino concert on Friday night. Price at the door for 3-day membership will
be $45. All memberships will include program book, and all pre-reg will
get a bag of goodies filled with whatever we can get to stuff in'em! (might
be CDs, shirts, comics, bookmarks, posters, whatever we can find!) We may
have enough special edition A-Kon promo posters to include one with all
pre-reg as well (we're working on that now)
SINGLE DAY PRICES AT-THE-DOOR: Friday Only (includes TWO concerts!) $27,
Saturday Only $27, Friday Only $20. If purchased separately, the 3 days
would be $74! The Pre-Reg price of $35 right now is more than HALF the
at-the-door price for comparable memberships! Pre-Reg NOW!
CHILDREN PRICE: 0-5yrs-FREE, 6-12yrs-$15, 13 and above, full price.
At-the-door prices for kids remains the same.
GROUP PRICE: 10 or more people registering together gets $5 off the current
membership price for all people in your party (children excluded-those are
already discounted)
BANQUET TICKETS: $28 (includes brunch, seating with the star of your
choice, awards ceremony, concert from the Sun String Quartet doing
selections of anime music, video presentations and giveaways)
Seats are Selling Out Fast! Get In NOW
T-SHIRT PRICE: $18 (M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL will be available. IF demand
warrants, we can get 4X shirts for $3 more)
DEALER PRICES: Room is SOLD OUT. Contact pre-Kon dealers liaison, Laura
Morris at lmorris2@twu.edu to get on a waiting list in case of cancellations.
(It does happen sometimes, but the list is already pretty long)
KOMIK MARKET: (our Artists' Alley) is SOLD OUT NOW. We are processing the
last of the ones to come in, and if you cannot be accommodated, we will
contact you to see if you still want your Kon membership before returning
your payment. Contact Mike Crocker at mothoc@tamu.edu for more info.
-------------------
WE HAVE WINNERS!
The winners (we did 2 - one from the Online Credit Card registration and
one from the mail-in registrations) of the drawing for a chance for a free
hotel room night' goes to: (drum roll please)
GENA CLARK, N. Richland Hills, Texas (Member number 194)
SHAWN UNRUH, Norman, Oklahoma (member number 227)
Expect a check for one night's hotel room stay (plus tax) within 2 weeks!
Congratulations!
The Winner of the WEB BANNER CONTEST is: Komi Meshihara
The Winner of the BLACK AND WHITE AD ART is: Fez
The Winner of the POSTER ART contest is: Arik Renee Avila
The Winner of the COLOR AD ART contest is: Scortia
Congratulations to all the winners! And thank you all for your entries,
this year the decisions were rather tough in places!
The ANIME MUSIC VIDEO CONTEST is also still ON, so get those entries in!
See details online!
--------------------------
PARKING ISSUES:
We know parking will be TIGHT (very) at both the Hyatt parking lot and
Terminal C, (the closest airport parking lot) so we are urging those of you
who are coming and staying to use the remote or infield lots and ride the
busses or airtrans into the hotel. (The AirTrans are those little rail cars
you see running around the airport) These are free and leaves the Hyatt
lots available for those who are just coming for a few hours or maybe the
day and then leaving. If you park in a lot that gives you another ticket
for entry(some do), you will need to REMEMBER to get the hotel to validate
BOTH tickets you get - the first one gets you into the airport area, the
other one is for the lot itself. If you come and stay less than 16 hours,
the parking is validated at the hotel's concierge/bell desk near the front
door. If you are here longer than that, the validation comes from the
hotel's front desk registration counter. (don't know why, it's just the
way they do things). Remember to bring all parking tickets WITH you into
the hotel (don't leave them in your car-you can't get them validated that
way).
-------------------
(some repeat info, some new)
GUESTS (Guests mentioned in previous e-updates are listed at the end).
Again, this is not a complete listing, more come in all the time! Check
the website at www.a-kon.com for the latest info on guests and bios and
details! Mike Battle does a great job of keeping it updated on a regular
basis!
NEW BRIAN STELFREEZE - Renowned Comic Artist, cover artist, anime fan,
co-founder of Studio Gaijin, and all around darn cool dude!
NEW GREG AYRES - Voice actor, lead role in Saiyuki, and has been in Steel
Angel Kurumi, Neo Ranga, Full Metal Panic and more. His first guest
appearance at A-Kon (thanks to Monica Rial)
TADASHI NEGISHI - former editor of Shonen Jump, he will be doing art
portfolio reviews - Take this opportunity to have your art assessed and
tips given by one of the editors of the largest comic in the world!
BOB BERGEN - his first visit to A-Kon, Bob is the current voice of Loony
Tunes (Marvin the Martian, Porky Pig, Sylvester, Tweety, and others), and
the Oscar winning "Spirited Away" (the frog, the faceless spirit), Lupin
III, Akira, and has a voice credit list as long as anything we've ever
seen! We're going to talk real nice to him and SEE if he will run a short
version of his voice acting class, which he's been doing for the past 16
years. We are honored to welcome Bob to A-Kon for his first anime show.
Check his website (with voice samples even!) at www.bobbergen.com
FRED PERRY - very popular comic artist/author, a longtime A-Kon guest and
we're happy to have him!
ROBERT DEJESUS - Well-known artist of comics and badges, we welcome Bob
back as an official A-Kon Guest!
AND: (from previous e-newsletters)
JONATHAN CLEMONS - Author of anime books (Anime Resource Guide, and more)
HELEN McCARTHY - Author of anime books, Miyazaki expert
P.N. ELROD - book Author
NEWTON EWELL - Artist, Game illustrator
STEVE KYTE - British artist, anime & fine art
TRISTEN CITRINE - award-winning cosplay diva,
DRAGONBALL Z - Numerous actors/actresses from DB and DBZ
DUEL JEWEL - J-Rock Band
TIFFANY GRANT - voice actor, Evangelion, MUCH more
AMANDA WINN LEE - voice actor, Evangelion, also MUCH more
JASON LEE - voice actor
BRUCE LEWIS - artist, publisher, Cheap Disposable Entertainment
KYLE HEBERT - voice actor, DBZ, Yu Yu Hakusho, etc.
SCOTT MCNEIL -voice actor, Gundam Wing, and much more
LISA "HONEY-CHAN" NELSON - cosplay
CHRISTOPHER PATTON - voice actor
NOBOYUKI TAKAHASHI - publisher, producer
JONATHAN TARBOX - Senior Editor- Raijin comic
J SHANON WEAVER - voice actor, Samurai X and more
EDWARD LUENA - comic artist 'Crow of the Bear Clan'
ARIK RENEE AVILA - artist Dementia7
MONICA RIAL - voice actor, Gasaraki & many more
RIKKI SIMONS - voice actor "Gir" on Invader Zim, artist
TAVISHA WOLFGARTH SIMONS - artist - Character Designer, Illustrator,
AMY HOWARD WILSON - voice actor, 'Nova' from Star Blazers, Nadesico
Also appearing will be folks like Steve Bennett & Doug Smith from IC
Productions (formerly Studio Ironcat), Elin Winkler, Pat Duke and more from
Radio Comix, Ben Dunn and more from Antarctic Press, and MANY more, will
make appearances and participate in many A-Kon activities. A-Kon.com has a
more complete listing of participating companies.
And more will come in future emails…
------------------
EVEN MORE GAME SHOWS
This year we have Not one, not two, but FOUR Gameshows brought to us by
our friends at For Randy Productions.
We will have the finale, the final rounds, the final chances to match
the Stars, as ANIME MATCH GAME retires after A-Kon. Be Sure to catch this
fun filled audience participation game ONE LAST TIME!
FANBOY FEUD - just like the game show, 100 people were surveyed, top 5
answers are on the board. Try and find the most popular answers.
Knowledge of anime and anime fandom in particular is recommended - teams
chosen prior to the show. A For Randy Production hosted by Greggo!
ANIME PRESS YOUR LUCK - Big Bucks, No Whammies! Stop! Those 5 words
echoed throughout the 80's as contestants pressed their luck all the way to
fortunes, unless they were unluckyu and landed on the dreaded Whammy, which
would make them lose everything. A For Randy Production gameshow, their
newest, gives 3 lucky congoers the chance to spin their way to cash and
prizes! The Whammies are all parodies of your favorite anime series, so OF
COURSE the audience wants to see you land on them!
WHOSE LINE IS IT - Improv comedy sketches, not quite a 'game show' but a
darn fun panel. Hosted by David Wiseman.
WIN LOSE OR DRAW - Another for Randy Productions, it's the quick darw
game that everyone can play. Featuring con guests disguised as artists,
the game requires the ability to deduce the anime person, place or thing
being drawn from a bunch of squiggles and stick figures. This game proves
that the pen is truly mightier than the sword!
----------------
HOTEL FOOD INFO:
The hotel will again offer 24 hr. food service like last year, some
concession stand, some in the bar/restaurant Brighton Tap Room. That went
over extremely well, we ate them out of house and home (yay!) and we find
this service to be extremely valuable to our fans. The other food
establishments, the buffet restaurant (Papaya's), Brighton Tap Room
(burgers, sandwiches, pastas), and Room Service, will all be available to
serve con-goer's needs.
NOTE: Due to the security in place since 9-11, the restaurants and food
outlets normally available at Terminal C are unfortunately no longer
available to the general public due to their location behind the security
checkpoints.
------------------------
CREDIT CARD GROUP REGISTRATION
NEW THIS YEAR - Groups can now use the credit card online system to
register, HOWEVER you need to know that it all has to be put on ONE CARD,
and you will use separate forms for each individual registration. At the
end of the entire transaction, the discount will be taken for the $5 per
membership discount. Again, contact magespell@aol.com for any questions
regarding this.
ALSO NEW - The online system can process out of country memberships (like
Canadian, etc.) This was not available last year and is a new addition to
their processing systems. Thank MageSpell for providing this service as well.
If you have any questions about the online credit card process, email
MageSpell at magespell@aol.com
--------------------
GET ON THE MAILING LIST - PASS THE WORD
TO JOIN the EMAILING LIST, go to www.a-kon.com and on the homepage is a
place you can join our mailing list and receive the scoop! If you have
other questions you can email info@a-kon.com or send a request to Project:
A-Kon, 3352 Broadway Blvd. #470, Garland, TX 75043. You can fax us at
972-278-8498 as well (but we will get this slower as it's in a different
location than our office). Don't miss out on the most current info
available. Tell all your friends!
To unsubscribe from this newsletter, go to www.a-kon.com and at the
bottom of the homepage is an 'unsubscribe' box. We give no info to 3rd
parties.
----------------------
MEMBERSHIP MADNESS & REGISTRATION WOES
Please when filling out the membership form, either use separate sheets or
the back of the paper to give us ALL names of people getting memberships.
We need REAL FIRST AND LAST names (we file pre-made badges by people's real
names, in order to retrieve them as efficiently as possible - ther is no
way we can find one 'Ranma' badge among 15 of them and know it's YOURS
without that information. We simply cannot process things without having
everybody's real names available. This info is not printed on the front of
the badge, and will help us in case you lose your badge (*gasp*) during the
kon. There are numerous Davids, Johns, Jens, and others, so we really need
that full info.
And since we've gotten so big with pre-reg, we're working on a new system
that SHOULD make the lines go faster this year. APPLAUD NOW! We encourage
people to pick up their pre-reg stuff on Thursday night if possible to
avoid the longest lines, which are always Friday morning. NOTE: Watch The
New Signage as pre-reg and on-site purchase are now separate desks in order
to break up the lines somewhat and make them go faster. Pre-Reg will be
handled by last name order, so again, WATCH THE NEW SIGNAGE so you don't
waste time being in the wrong line. Also we will be having in-line
registration forms so that we can gather the most current information on
people. This is mostly for on-site purchase people, as we already have the
info on pre-reg people. Badge clips, lanyards, etc. will be in the
pre-registration goodie bag that you will get when you pick up your badge.
-----------------------
WEAPONS POLICY FOR COSPLAYERS
Due to the war situation and such, there MAY be changes to the weapons
policy as late as during the con itself. At the moment things are like this:
If you came to A-Kon last year, the current year's policy has not changed
except for the additional restriction of 'No Wrist Spikes'. (this comes
from the hotel, not us). This means: Nothing REAL - no live steel of any
kind, if it has an edge (whether sharpened or not), is pointy, or made of
metal, it is not allowed to be worn in con areas. (You CAN buy from the
dealers room, have it wrapped or boxed, and taken immediately to your room
or car.) This includes 'disguised' weaponry like double-katanas disguised
as a cane (we had one of those last year), cane-swords, throwing stars,
etc. 'Real' weaponry also includes whips, nunchuk, guns, or anything else
that is considered weaponry by the police. Rattan, wood, should be okay,
things that are obvious fake (pink blasters, plastic guns that LOOK plastic
or cannot be real by today's standards - the big cross/gun carried by the
Trigun priest, for example) are okay. If there is any question on this,
our Security's decision stands and if you are asked to put something away,
please be kind about it, we're not trying to harass you, and it's not
personal.
As long as we are at Orange Alert status or below, the above situation
stands. IF we would go to RED alert status or beyond (yes, there is a
"beyond"), then NO WEAPONRY AT ALL is allowed out anywhere. We're trying
to determine what this means exactly for the vendors and fans, and at this
moment don't have clear guidelines on it. We are alerting you to this
possibility so that there are no nasty uprisings or surprises on-site
should things in the 'real world' go bad during the show. It's real
unlikely, but we'd rather warn you of the possibility, than have everybody
be surprised in a bad way during our fun. Just keep it in your mind and be
flexible to change and courteous if it happens. (We don't expect it though).
---------------------
We'll be sending more thorough and frequent updates now that the con is
fast approaching! Watch this space!
Use the handy coupon below for ordering your A-Kon 14 memberships! It's
really worth it to you (and very helpful to us) for you to pre-reg so you
get ALL the goodies!
-------------------------------------------------------------------
PLEASE PRINT CLEARLY (or type, and use more paper if necessary)
SEND ME ___________ A-Kon 14 Full Memberships at $40 ea.
(make checks payable to "Phoenix Entertainment")
Also send _________Banquet Tickets at $28 ea.
And I want _______ T-Shirts at $18 ea. Size: _______ (S,M,L,XL,2XL,3XL,4XL
($21 for 4x) are available and will be stuffed in your pre-reg pack )
(if ordering multiple shirts for people, tell us who gets what size!)
NAME(s)___________________________________________ _________
(if ordering multiple tickets, please give us first AND last REAL names
of ALL attendees so we can make packets-use more paper if necessary.
Memberships without legal first and last names cannot be processed.)
Name(s) you want on Badge (if you use a nickname)
__________________________________ (LIMIT 20 letters this year)
ADDRESS_____________________________________ Apt. #________
CITY, STATE, ZIP_____________________________________________
E-MAIL ADDRESS:_____________________________Age: __________
Send me info on: ____Banquet ___Gaming ___Dance
__ Art Show ___Costume Contest ___Group Discounts ___Komik Market
____Other (what?)_________________________
Mail this coupon plus your check/Money Order (make checks payable to
Phoenix Entertainment) to:
Project: A-Kon, 3352 Broadway Blvd. #470, Garland, TX 75043
--------------------------
FEEL FREE TO CROSSPOST THIS MESSAGE WHEREVER THERE MAY BE ANIME FANS!
Meri Hazlewood
Chairman
A-Kon fast approaches!
Pre-Reg Now!
www.a-kon.com
--
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edited by Steve Pearl- Moderator, rec.arts.anime.info
Email submissions to anime-info@cybercomm.net and questions about the newsgroup
to anime-info-request@cybercomm.net
-----------------------------------
PROJECT: A-KON 2003 (A-Kon 14)
Updated as of March 30, 2003
Here's the latest official news, for A-Kon 14! If you don't hear it HERE
(or on the official website), it might be junk!
-------------------
THE BASICS (Some New Stuff Here)
DATE: May 30-June 1, 2003
WHERE: Hyatt Regency Hotel at DFW Airport (International Parkway, DFW
Texas, 75261), in Terminal C
HOTEL PRICE: $115 per night for 1-4 people (plus tax)
* NEW INFO * ROOM RESERVATIONS: As of March 1, the Hyatt is SOLD OUT of all
rooms except a few they hold back called 'transient' rooms which they have
to sell at their full price of $179 plus tax per night. Call the Hyatt
directly at 972-453-1234 if you want these rooms. Mention A-Kon so at
least we know it's 'our' people in them (normally these rooms are held back
for stranded airline pilots, airline emergencies, cancelled flights, etc.
and they can only sell them at their listed rate. Also we want to avoid
noise issues, so let the hotel know you ARE with A-Kon, even if your NOT in
the block) Otherwise, see overflow hotel info listed below:
FIRST OVERFLOW HOTEL:
Ramada Limited, located at 2050 Highway 121 in Grapevine, TX. Their number
is 972-304-9611. Be sure to mention Project A-Kon and Phoenix
Entertainment when making your reservations, to assure the $115.00 per
night rate. The Ramada will provide FREE 24-HOUR shuttle service to the
Hyatt for your convenience. (We talked them into taking their shuttles
DIRECTLY to the Hyatt this year, not just to Terminal C! Yay us!) Again,
call the hotels directly to make reservations, as we're not sure their
online national systems will work with our blocks and we don't want to see
anybody get stranded. We are in negotiations with other hotels in the
nearby area, and shuttle services, as we're sure we'll need them as con
time approaches. There are only about 10 rooms left at the Ramada so we
know we will need them. Stay tuned.
KON PRICES: $35 until April 1st, $40 thereafter until mail-in cutoff of May
5. Credit Card Cutoff is May 10th. This price includes the Duel Jewel AND
Camino concert on Friday night. Price at the door for 3-day membership will
be $45. All memberships will include program book, and all pre-reg will
get a bag of goodies filled with whatever we can get to stuff in'em! (might
be CDs, shirts, comics, bookmarks, posters, whatever we can find!) We may
have enough special edition A-Kon promo posters to include one with all
pre-reg as well (we're working on that now)
SINGLE DAY PRICES AT-THE-DOOR: Friday Only (includes TWO concerts!) $27,
Saturday Only $27, Friday Only $20. If purchased separately, the 3 days
would be $74! The Pre-Reg price of $35 right now is more than HALF the
at-the-door price for comparable memberships! Pre-Reg NOW!
CHILDREN PRICE: 0-5yrs-FREE, 6-12yrs-$15, 13 and above, full price.
At-the-door prices for kids remains the same.
GROUP PRICE: 10 or more people registering together gets $5 off the current
membership price for all people in your party (children excluded-those are
already discounted)
BANQUET TICKETS: $28 (includes brunch, seating with the star of your
choice, awards ceremony, concert from the Sun String Quartet doing
selections of anime music, video presentations and giveaways)
Seats are Selling Out Fast! Get In NOW
T-SHIRT PRICE: $18 (M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL will be available. IF demand
warrants, we can get 4X shirts for $3 more)
DEALER PRICES: Room is SOLD OUT. Contact pre-Kon dealers liaison, Laura
Morris at lmorris2@twu.edu to get on a waiting list in case of cancellations.
(It does happen sometimes, but the list is already pretty long)
KOMIK MARKET: (our Artists' Alley) is SOLD OUT NOW. We are processing the
last of the ones to come in, and if you cannot be accommodated, we will
contact you to see if you still want your Kon membership before returning
your payment. Contact Mike Crocker at mothoc@tamu.edu for more info.
-------------------
WE HAVE WINNERS!
The winners (we did 2 - one from the Online Credit Card registration and
one from the mail-in registrations) of the drawing for a chance for a free
hotel room night' goes to: (drum roll please)
GENA CLARK, N. Richland Hills, Texas (Member number 194)
SHAWN UNRUH, Norman, Oklahoma (member number 227)
Expect a check for one night's hotel room stay (plus tax) within 2 weeks!
Congratulations!
The Winner of the WEB BANNER CONTEST is: Komi Meshihara
The Winner of the BLACK AND WHITE AD ART is: Fez
The Winner of the POSTER ART contest is: Arik Renee Avila
The Winner of the COLOR AD ART contest is: Scortia
Congratulations to all the winners! And thank you all for your entries,
this year the decisions were rather tough in places!
The ANIME MUSIC VIDEO CONTEST is also still ON, so get those entries in!
See details online!
--------------------------
PARKING ISSUES:
We know parking will be TIGHT (very) at both the Hyatt parking lot and
Terminal C, (the closest airport parking lot) so we are urging those of you
who are coming and staying to use the remote or infield lots and ride the
busses or airtrans into the hotel. (The AirTrans are those little rail cars
you see running around the airport) These are free and leaves the Hyatt
lots available for those who are just coming for a few hours or maybe the
day and then leaving. If you park in a lot that gives you another ticket
for entry(some do), you will need to REMEMBER to get the hotel to validate
BOTH tickets you get - the first one gets you into the airport area, the
other one is for the lot itself. If you come and stay less than 16 hours,
the parking is validated at the hotel's concierge/bell desk near the front
door. If you are here longer than that, the validation comes from the
hotel's front desk registration counter. (don't know why, it's just the
way they do things). Remember to bring all parking tickets WITH you into
the hotel (don't leave them in your car-you can't get them validated that
way).
-------------------
(some repeat info, some new)
GUESTS (Guests mentioned in previous e-updates are listed at the end).
Again, this is not a complete listing, more come in all the time! Check
the website at www.a-kon.com for the latest info on guests and bios and
details! Mike Battle does a great job of keeping it updated on a regular
basis!
NEW BRIAN STELFREEZE - Renowned Comic Artist, cover artist, anime fan,
co-founder of Studio Gaijin, and all around darn cool dude!
NEW GREG AYRES - Voice actor, lead role in Saiyuki, and has been in Steel
Angel Kurumi, Neo Ranga, Full Metal Panic and more. His first guest
appearance at A-Kon (thanks to Monica Rial)
TADASHI NEGISHI - former editor of Shonen Jump, he will be doing art
portfolio reviews - Take this opportunity to have your art assessed and
tips given by one of the editors of the largest comic in the world!
BOB BERGEN - his first visit to A-Kon, Bob is the current voice of Loony
Tunes (Marvin the Martian, Porky Pig, Sylvester, Tweety, and others), and
the Oscar winning "Spirited Away" (the frog, the faceless spirit), Lupin
III, Akira, and has a voice credit list as long as anything we've ever
seen! We're going to talk real nice to him and SEE if he will run a short
version of his voice acting class, which he's been doing for the past 16
years. We are honored to welcome Bob to A-Kon for his first anime show.
Check his website (with voice samples even!) at www.bobbergen.com
FRED PERRY - very popular comic artist/author, a longtime A-Kon guest and
we're happy to have him!
ROBERT DEJESUS - Well-known artist of comics and badges, we welcome Bob
back as an official A-Kon Guest!
AND: (from previous e-newsletters)
JONATHAN CLEMONS - Author of anime books (Anime Resource Guide, and more)
HELEN McCARTHY - Author of anime books, Miyazaki expert
P.N. ELROD - book Author
NEWTON EWELL - Artist, Game illustrator
STEVE KYTE - British artist, anime & fine art
TRISTEN CITRINE - award-winning cosplay diva,
DRAGONBALL Z - Numerous actors/actresses from DB and DBZ
DUEL JEWEL - J-Rock Band
TIFFANY GRANT - voice actor, Evangelion, MUCH more
AMANDA WINN LEE - voice actor, Evangelion, also MUCH more
JASON LEE - voice actor
BRUCE LEWIS - artist, publisher, Cheap Disposable Entertainment
KYLE HEBERT - voice actor, DBZ, Yu Yu Hakusho, etc.
SCOTT MCNEIL -voice actor, Gundam Wing, and much more
LISA "HONEY-CHAN" NELSON - cosplay
CHRISTOPHER PATTON - voice actor
NOBOYUKI TAKAHASHI - publisher, producer
JONATHAN TARBOX - Senior Editor- Raijin comic
J SHANON WEAVER - voice actor, Samurai X and more
EDWARD LUENA - comic artist 'Crow of the Bear Clan'
ARIK RENEE AVILA - artist Dementia7
MONICA RIAL - voice actor, Gasaraki & many more
RIKKI SIMONS - voice actor "Gir" on Invader Zim, artist
TAVISHA WOLFGARTH SIMONS - artist - Character Designer, Illustrator,
AMY HOWARD WILSON - voice actor, 'Nova' from Star Blazers, Nadesico
Also appearing will be folks like Steve Bennett & Doug Smith from IC
Productions (formerly Studio Ironcat), Elin Winkler, Pat Duke and more from
Radio Comix, Ben Dunn and more from Antarctic Press, and MANY more, will
make appearances and participate in many A-Kon activities. A-Kon.com has a
more complete listing of participating companies.
And more will come in future emails…
------------------
EVEN MORE GAME SHOWS
This year we have Not one, not two, but FOUR Gameshows brought to us by
our friends at For Randy Productions.
We will have the finale, the final rounds, the final chances to match
the Stars, as ANIME MATCH GAME retires after A-Kon. Be Sure to catch this
fun filled audience participation game ONE LAST TIME!
FANBOY FEUD - just like the game show, 100 people were surveyed, top 5
answers are on the board. Try and find the most popular answers.
Knowledge of anime and anime fandom in particular is recommended - teams
chosen prior to the show. A For Randy Production hosted by Greggo!
ANIME PRESS YOUR LUCK - Big Bucks, No Whammies! Stop! Those 5 words
echoed throughout the 80's as contestants pressed their luck all the way to
fortunes, unless they were unluckyu and landed on the dreaded Whammy, which
would make them lose everything. A For Randy Production gameshow, their
newest, gives 3 lucky congoers the chance to spin their way to cash and
prizes! The Whammies are all parodies of your favorite anime series, so OF
COURSE the audience wants to see you land on them!
WHOSE LINE IS IT - Improv comedy sketches, not quite a 'game show' but a
darn fun panel. Hosted by David Wiseman.
WIN LOSE OR DRAW - Another for Randy Productions, it's the quick darw
game that everyone can play. Featuring con guests disguised as artists,
the game requires the ability to deduce the anime person, place or thing
being drawn from a bunch of squiggles and stick figures. This game proves
that the pen is truly mightier than the sword!
----------------
HOTEL FOOD INFO:
The hotel will again offer 24 hr. food service like last year, some
concession stand, some in the bar/restaurant Brighton Tap Room. That went
over extremely well, we ate them out of house and home (yay!) and we find
this service to be extremely valuable to our fans. The other food
establishments, the buffet restaurant (Papaya's), Brighton Tap Room
(burgers, sandwiches, pastas), and Room Service, will all be available to
serve con-goer's needs.
NOTE: Due to the security in place since 9-11, the restaurants and food
outlets normally available at Terminal C are unfortunately no longer
available to the general public due to their location behind the security
checkpoints.
------------------------
CREDIT CARD GROUP REGISTRATION
NEW THIS YEAR - Groups can now use the credit card online system to
register, HOWEVER you need to know that it all has to be put on ONE CARD,
and you will use separate forms for each individual registration. At the
end of the entire transaction, the discount will be taken for the $5 per
membership discount. Again, contact magespell@aol.com for any questions
regarding this.
ALSO NEW - The online system can process out of country memberships (like
Canadian, etc.) This was not available last year and is a new addition to
their processing systems. Thank MageSpell for providing this service as well.
If you have any questions about the online credit card process, email
MageSpell at magespell@aol.com
--------------------
GET ON THE MAILING LIST - PASS THE WORD
TO JOIN the EMAILING LIST, go to www.a-kon.com and on the homepage is a
place you can join our mailing list and receive the scoop! If you have
other questions you can email info@a-kon.com or send a request to Project:
A-Kon, 3352 Broadway Blvd. #470, Garland, TX 75043. You can fax us at
972-278-8498 as well (but we will get this slower as it's in a different
location than our office). Don't miss out on the most current info
available. Tell all your friends!
To unsubscribe from this newsletter, go to www.a-kon.com and at the
bottom of the homepage is an 'unsubscribe' box. We give no info to 3rd
parties.
----------------------
MEMBERSHIP MADNESS & REGISTRATION WOES
Please when filling out the membership form, either use separate sheets or
the back of the paper to give us ALL names of people getting memberships.
We need REAL FIRST AND LAST names (we file pre-made badges by people's real
names, in order to retrieve them as efficiently as possible - ther is no
way we can find one 'Ranma' badge among 15 of them and know it's YOURS
without that information. We simply cannot process things without having
everybody's real names available. This info is not printed on the front of
the badge, and will help us in case you lose your badge (*gasp*) during the
kon. There are numerous Davids, Johns, Jens, and others, so we really need
that full info.
And since we've gotten so big with pre-reg, we're working on a new system
that SHOULD make the lines go faster this year. APPLAUD NOW! We encourage
people to pick up their pre-reg stuff on Thursday night if possible to
avoid the longest lines, which are always Friday morning. NOTE: Watch The
New Signage as pre-reg and on-site purchase are now separate desks in order
to break up the lines somewhat and make them go faster. Pre-Reg will be
handled by last name order, so again, WATCH THE NEW SIGNAGE so you don't
waste time being in the wrong line. Also we will be having in-line
registration forms so that we can gather the most current information on
people. This is mostly for on-site purchase people, as we already have the
info on pre-reg people. Badge clips, lanyards, etc. will be in the
pre-registration goodie bag that you will get when you pick up your badge.
-----------------------
WEAPONS POLICY FOR COSPLAYERS
Due to the war situation and such, there MAY be changes to the weapons
policy as late as during the con itself. At the moment things are like this:
If you came to A-Kon last year, the current year's policy has not changed
except for the additional restriction of 'No Wrist Spikes'. (this comes
from the hotel, not us). This means: Nothing REAL - no live steel of any
kind, if it has an edge (whether sharpened or not), is pointy, or made of
metal, it is not allowed to be worn in con areas. (You CAN buy from the
dealers room, have it wrapped or boxed, and taken immediately to your room
or car.) This includes 'disguised' weaponry like double-katanas disguised
as a cane (we had one of those last year), cane-swords, throwing stars,
etc. 'Real' weaponry also includes whips, nunchuk, guns, or anything else
that is considered weaponry by the police. Rattan, wood, should be okay,
things that are obvious fake (pink blasters, plastic guns that LOOK plastic
or cannot be real by today's standards - the big cross/gun carried by the
Trigun priest, for example) are okay. If there is any question on this,
our Security's decision stands and if you are asked to put something away,
please be kind about it, we're not trying to harass you, and it's not
personal.
As long as we are at Orange Alert status or below, the above situation
stands. IF we would go to RED alert status or beyond (yes, there is a
"beyond"), then NO WEAPONRY AT ALL is allowed out anywhere. We're trying
to determine what this means exactly for the vendors and fans, and at this
moment don't have clear guidelines on it. We are alerting you to this
possibility so that there are no nasty uprisings or surprises on-site
should things in the 'real world' go bad during the show. It's real
unlikely, but we'd rather warn you of the possibility, than have everybody
be surprised in a bad way during our fun. Just keep it in your mind and be
flexible to change and courteous if it happens. (We don't expect it though).
---------------------
We'll be sending more thorough and frequent updates now that the con is
fast approaching! Watch this space!
Use the handy coupon below for ordering your A-Kon 14 memberships! It's
really worth it to you (and very helpful to us) for you to pre-reg so you
get ALL the goodies!
-------------------------------------------------------------------
PLEASE PRINT CLEARLY (or type, and use more paper if necessary)
SEND ME ___________ A-Kon 14 Full Memberships at $40 ea.
(make checks payable to "Phoenix Entertainment")
Also send _________Banquet Tickets at $28 ea.
And I want _______ T-Shirts at $18 ea. Size: _______ (S,M,L,XL,2XL,3XL,4XL
($21 for 4x) are available and will be stuffed in your pre-reg pack )
(if ordering multiple shirts for people, tell us who gets what size!)
NAME(s)___________________________________________ _________
(if ordering multiple tickets, please give us first AND last REAL names
of ALL attendees so we can make packets-use more paper if necessary.
Memberships without legal first and last names cannot be processed.)
Name(s) you want on Badge (if you use a nickname)
__________________________________ (LIMIT 20 letters this year)
ADDRESS_____________________________________ Apt. #________
CITY, STATE, ZIP_____________________________________________
E-MAIL ADDRESS:_____________________________Age: __________
Send me info on: ____Banquet ___Gaming ___Dance
__ Art Show ___Costume Contest ___Group Discounts ___Komik Market
____Other (what?)_________________________
Mail this coupon plus your check/Money Order (make checks payable to
Phoenix Entertainment) to:
Project: A-Kon, 3352 Broadway Blvd. #470, Garland, TX 75043
--------------------------
FEEL FREE TO CROSSPOST THIS MESSAGE WHEREVER THERE MAY BE ANIME FANS!
Meri Hazlewood
Chairman
A-Kon fast approaches!
Pre-Reg Now!
www.a-kon.com
--
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Edited by Steve Pearl- Moderator, rec.arts.anime.info
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