Mike Carbo, the man behind the legendary Big Apple Comic Cons, NY Comic Book Marketplace shows and National Comic events held his FINAL show on March 31, 2012 after decades of comic con fun ! Through the years I have met legends from comics, music, TV, media and spent more money on collectibles, comics and art than I want to remember!
Like you guys, I first attended as a fan then as a member of the fan press with my podcasts TheIndyCast.com and website theRaider.net - seeing legends like Stan Lee, Julie Schwartz, John Romita, and actors like David Carradine wearing an American flag bandana and throwing kicks out front while smoking a cigarette, have Kristen Bell call Hayden Paniteirre over to look at my blue eyes and say they were the best she'd ever seen! That was a Mike Carbo show - a mix bag of celebs, dealers and craziness -- where it was small and intimate so that you could walk up chat with your favorites, find great deals and watch Mike Carbo bounce around the room like the Flash!
I went to NYC on the Friday night before the last show for a cocktail party - where I met the Fonz - Henry Winkler, Stan Lee, got a bear hug from George Perez and chatted with ComiCONN exhibitor - Anthony Snyder (and son of the late great Jimmy "the Greek") from Anthony's original comic art. The highlights were having an hour long debate on the greatest rock guitarists with Indy pre-production creator and art legend - Jim Steranko - who I interviewed on the IndyCast years ago and remembered me by name! I had an hour long discussion with Steranko on who were the seminal rock guitarist of the 1950s & 60s and he challenged me to go make a list and tell him on Saturday! Always the showman - Mike Carbo - who looks like a mix of Mick Jager, the William Hartnell version of Dr. Who and a Dr. Suess character all rolled into one - didn't disappoint and went out with a bang - as he ran around the ballroom! Hanging with Fonz - Henry Winkler chatting about Yale and the best pizza in New Haven, CT (Pepe's BTW) and what about Shia acting like Fonzie in "Crystal Skull" - a surreal moment come to life if there ever was one! Talking comics with Ming Chen and Mike Zapzic from AMC TV's "Comicbook Men" which I auditioned for and was their "Indy expert" . Ming asked a question I never thought of - "Why does Willie get on the plane and go with Indy in TOD"?
It was a night that brought in big names and crazed fans to say farewell - there was something for everyone at that cocktail party on Friday night and it would be going to Saturday's show -- where I dug up some Indiana Jones "ART"-tifacts and cool comics! On Saturday, Sketch Getter B was chasing down some original art from Rich Buckler, found a nifty old time Batman comic art page, Erik was getting a Starfire sketch from George Perez - all the time chatting with fans and dealers. Thanks to Anthony Snyder's Original Art. I landed some pages from Marvel's Indy comic issue #33, Dark Horse's Indy and the Sargasso Sea Pirates #1, and original Indy sketch from artist Ron Frenz all a great prices.
The highlight was chatting with the Marvel legend - Stan Lee - who at 89, has so much energy. Best of all he signed the flyer that had the Avengers art from Chris Giarrusso (he loved it, by the way) for my 3rd Annual ComiCONN happening in Trumbull, CT on 8/18 and wished me luck! EXCELSIOR! 'nuff said!On the way out I bumped into the living legend - Mike Carbo who was getting his photo with comic royalty - Lee, Steranko and Carmine Infantino - and then Mike broke into singing the theme song to the "Merry Marvel Marching Society"! The whole time a camera crew was filming him for a documentary. A movie I can only hope that will be in 3-D, as a 2-D film cannot capture the marvelous madness of Mike Carbo!
A great day and great years of memories - Thanks Mike Carbo!
'nuff said!
Mitch