Special Guest: Frank Cho

Frank Cho is a fan-favorite creator best known for his comic strip Liberty Meadows as well as his stunning art on Marvel's New Ultimates, Hulk, The Mighty Avengers, and Shanna the She-Devil, and Dynamite Entertainment’s Jungle Girl. Remarkably, the award-winning creator never received any formal training as an artist. He got his start writing and drawing a comic strip called University2 for The Diamondback, the student newspaper at the University of Maryland, College Park.

After graduation, Cho adapted elements of this work for use in a professionally syndicated strip, Liberty Meadows. Cho signed a fifteen-year contract with Creators Syndicate, which he later realized was unusually long and, perhaps jokingly, blamed on having a bad lawyer. Growing tired of newspaper censorship, Cho severed his contract with Creators Syndicate, and ultimately converted Liberty Meadows to a monthly publication.

Cho has won many awards for his comic strip work, including the prestigious National Cartoonists Society’s Awards for Best Comic Book and Book Illustration, the Eagle Award, the Charles M. Schulz Award for Excellence in Cartooning, Scripps-Howard Award for Best College Cartoonist, College Media Association for Cartooning, and the Max & Moritz Prize, for Best International Comic Strip. He has also been nominated for the coveted Harvey and Eisner Awards for his work in comics.

Visit Cho online at apesandbabes.com to learn more about the creator and his work.

Special Guest: Dara Naraghi

As a writer, Dara Naraghi has worked on comic books on all ends of the spectrum, from self-published titles to books based on multi-million dollar movie franchises. His debut graphic novel collection of slice of life stories, Lifelike, garnered many positive reviews from the likes of award-winning novelist Cory Doctorow, and writer/artist Sam Kieth. Working with IDW Publishing, he wrote the Terminator Salvation official movie prequel, which spent 3 weeks on the New York Times Best Sellers list.

Some of his other works include a contribution to the children's anthology Fractured Fables(Image Comics), the "bizarre noir" The Absurd Adventures of Archibald Aardvark (Image Comics), and the romance-themed Ghostbusters: Tainted Love (IDW). His latest projects includes Witch & Wizard: Battle for Shadowland and Witch and Wizard: Operation Zero (IDW), original graphic novels based on characters and settings from the James Patterson series of YA novels. This December, his debut work for DC Comics appears in the form of a Spectre story for the DCU Holiday Special 2010 anthology.

Dara is also a founding member of the Columbus, Ohio-based comic book writers/artists collective known as PANEL. To date, he has contributed stories to - and helped produce - 15 volumes of their comics anthology, which he self-publishes under his Ferret Press imprint. For information on his latest project, check out ferretpress.com.

Media Guest: Robyn Griggs

Robyn Griggs is as an actress, director and singer who started acting at the age of three and has been working in television and film ever since. Her first prominent TV role was playing Stephanie Hobart on ABC's soap opera One Life to Live and she later starred as Maggie Cory on NBC's Another World. Robyn's film work has focused on independent horror and thriller films, such as Abattoir, Ghost Tour, Minds of Terror, Zombiegeddon, Project 187, The Urn, Demon Hunters, Aberration Boulevard, Severe Injuries, Dead Clowns, The Absence of Light, Dead Planet, Murder is Like Sex, Hellweek, Slashers Gone Wild, and My Soul To Take. Robyn recently released her debut solo CD Scream and currently is directing her own film, The Squad.

Media Guest: Josie Lee

Josie Lee is a successful pin-up, fashion model, actress and media host who is best known for her appearances in pin-up calendars, commercials, trading cards, including Fashion TV, Playboy TV, Playboy magazine, Forbidden Science and Organ Grinder. Josie Lee will be featured on upcoming cover of Arlo Guthrie's album, and in limited edition Star Wars art books and DVD's by famed Lucas Film Illustrator, Matt Busch. Visit Josie Lee online at Model Mayhem to learn more about her work.

Media Guest: Cathy St. George

Cathy St. George is a model and actress whose film credits include Star 80 with Eric Roberts, The Man Who Loved Women with Burt Reynolds and Julie Andrews, Brewster's Millions with Richard Pryor, Beverly Hills Brats with Martin Sheen, and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind with George Clooney. Her television work includes The Real Housewives of Orange County, The Tonight Show, and Santa Barbara. As a model, she has appeared twice as a Playboy cover model among many major publications and served as the inspiration for comic title Saint 7 International Spy and Ken Kelley's striking cover to issue #33 of Red Sonja. St. George recently completed a new horror film called Grave Danger and a new filled called The Wishing Box, which is in post production.

Special Guest: Alan Evans

Alan Evans is the creator and artist of the #1 wrestling web comic, Rival Angels. Rival Angels began in 2007 and has become a hit with critics, fans and professionals having been nominated for such awards as Best Comic, Best Long Form and Best Character. In addition, Alan has done spot illustration work for several wrestling companies and flatting work for The Dreamer, DC Comics, Hi-Fi Color Design, Digital Webbing and many other independent studios. He loves drawing backgrounds, likes riding his bike and is also a fan of characters with the name, “Alan.” Visit Alan online to check out his latest work, including Rival Angels at RivalAngels.com.

Special Guest: Darryl Banks

Darryl Banks is a graduate of the Columbus College of Art and Design who began his comics career in 1989. In 1993, he started working with DC Comics on Legion of Superheroes and later on Green Lantern. Co-creating the Kyle Rayner Green Lantern, Parallax, and other characters was a great honor and challenge for Darryl's costume design skills. In addition to various other projects for DC, his work includes Tomb Raider: Epiphany from Top Cow, G.I. Joe Reloaded for Devil's Due, Johnnie Zombie for Midgard Comics, covers to Moonstone's Phantom, and many more. Currently, Darryl does concept art and toy design for clients that include Hawthorne Village collectibles, Hasbro, Mattel, Filsinger Games, Cartoon Craft LLC and many others.

Special Guest: Bob McLeod

Bob McLeod is best known as the co-creator of Marvel's New Mutants along with legendary and writer Chris Claremont. McLeod has also had a long and prolific career beyond the New Mutants as a writer, penciler, inker, and letterer. Among his notable projects, McLeod inked Dave Cockrum's pencils in the seminal X-Men #94, the first issue of the series featuring the "All New, All Different X-Men." He also inked Mike Zeck's pencils on the six-part Kraven's Last Hunt storyline that ran through all three of the Spider-Man regular titles for two issues each during 1987. In addition to his extensive work in comics, McLeod wrote and illustrated a children's book, Superhero ABC, published by Harper Collins. Look for McLeod's work along side writer Chris Claremont and penciler Al Rio in Marvel's New Mutants Forever limited series in comics book stores now. Visit McLeod online at bobmcleod.com to learn more about the artist and his work.

Media Guest: Michael Berryman

Michael Berryman is a horror genre icon who is best known for his gripping performance as Pluto in the uncompromising Wes Craven horror film The Hills Have Eyes. Berryman, who suffers from Hypohidrotic Ectodermal Dysplasia, a rare condition leaving him with no sweat glands, hair, fingernails or teeth, reminds one of a latter-day Rondo Hatton, who also suffered from a rare medical condition that distorted his features, giving him a look just right for horror movies. Berryman successfully built upon the success of his breakout role in The Hills Have Eyes and has enjoyed an extraordinary run as a star of fantasy, horror and sci-fi movies such as My Science Project, Weird Science, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, Armed Response, Evil Spirits and many more. The tall and lean Berryman has portrayed mutant bikers, evil undertakers, monsters and other frightening characters on camera, but in real life is one of the kindest most compassionate souls you will ever meet. Berryman will star alongside Edward Furlong in the soon-to-be released thriller Below Zero. Check out IMDB.com for a full list of Berryman’s film and television credentials.

Media Guest: Lou Ferrigno

Lou Ferrigno is a tough act to follow: Even with a $150 million budget and state-of-the-art CGI special effects, Marvel and Universal still brought Ferrigno back for The Incredible Hulk movie to voice the character he defined in live action in the 1978–82 television series on CBS. That says a lot about what the 6'5", 275-pound Ferrigno brought to that unforgettable role and a lot about the love that fans have for him after all these years.

Ferrigno first received acclaim at the age of 21 as the youngest man to win the title of Mr. Universe, a record that still stands today. He went on to win the contest the following year as well, making him the only man to win back-to-back titles. Those extraordinary accomplishments led to a starring role in the body-building film Pumping Iron, which also featured Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Ferrigno first portrayed the jade giant in the 1977 TV movie The Incredible Hulk: Death in the Family, and went on to star in The Incredible Hulk TV series from 1978 to 1982. He reprised that role in four feature-length Incredible Hulk films over the next two decades. With proven results at the box office and on television, Ferrigno is more popular and sought after than ever. Check out IMDB.com for a full list of Ferrigno’s film and television credentials and look for him on September 27th on the second episode of this season’s fan-favorite NBC show Chuck.

Special Guest: Joe Benitez

Joe Benitez is a comic book artist best known for his work on such titles as Justice League America (JLA), Superman/Batman, Detective Comics, Supergirl, and Titans for DC Comics and The Darkness for Image Comics. He also co-created and penciled the sci-fi series Weapon Zero and the dark fantasy mini-series Magdalena: Blood Divine for Image. In 2005, Joe published his first creator-owned mini-series Wraithborn through Wildstorm. In 2009, he stepped in to finish up Michael Turner's run on Soulfire. Joe is currently working on a new creator-owned book, Lady Mechanika, which will be published by Aspen Comics. Visit Joe online at wraithborn.com to learn more about the artist and his work.

Special Guest: Daniel Leister

Daniel Leister started drawing comics in his junior year of high school then attended Ohio State University and received his B.F.A. in 2000. After many years of submitting artwork to publishers and editors, he received his first published work, Celestial Alliance for After Hours Press, after coming in second place for the Marvel Talent search at the Chicago Comic Con. Daniel then picked up a run on the independent comic The Sire, also for After Hours Press and drew 4 issues of the series. From there he moved on to the acclaimed Wonderland series for Zenescope Entertainment. He is currently working on the ongoing series Hack/Slash for Image Comics with Tim Seeley. Daniel currently resides in Columbus, Ohio with his girlfriend and their two cats, Keller and Kattoo. Visit Daniel online at danielleiser.com to learn more about the artist and his work.

Special Guest: Nei Ruffino

Nei Ruffino is a professional colorist known for her dazzling and dynamic work for mainstream and indie publishers alike. For DC Comics, Nei has colored many best-selling titles including Birds of Prey, First Wave, Green Lantern Corps, Blackest Night: Batman, Blackest Night: Black Lantern Corps, Blackest Night: Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Superman and many more. For Zenescope Studios, she has colored 1001 Arabian Nights: The Adventures of Sinbad, Grimm Fairy Tales, and the Wonderland trilogy, including Return to Wonderland, Beyond Wonderland, and the Escape From Wonderland. Check out comicbookdb.com for a full list of Nei’s work and visit her Deviant Art site to see it in living color.

Special Guest: Eric Basaldua

Eric Basaldua is a mainstay of the Top Cow universe who started working at Top Cow in 2000 under the direct tutelage of founder Marc Silvestri. Eric is probably best known for his depictions of beautiful women and sexy artwork. He has worked on many fan favorite comic series, including Hunter-Killer, Witchblade, Tomb Raider, Freshman, The Magdalena, Blood Legacy: The Young Ones, The Darkness, Battle of the Planets, the Darkness/Vampirella crossover, and the Witchblade/Wolverine crossover. In 2008, Eric did the artwork for the first ever Virgin Comics/Top Cow crossover, Devi/Witchblade #1. Recently, he has provided various covers for Top Cow and Zenescope, as well as contributing to the recently released Witchblade Annual #1. Visit Ebas online at his Deviant Art site to learn more about the artist and his work.

Special Guest: Raven Gregory

Raven Gregory is the writer/creator/co-creator of The Gift, The Waking, The Tide, Fly, Like a Machine, ImagiNation, Walking in the Ghost, and the one his most popular and well known series Zenescope's Grim Fairy Tales Presents: Return to Wonderland, the sequel Beyond Wonderland, and the final part of the wonderland trilogy Escape From Wonderland. In addition to his work for Zenescope, Raven has also written for Viper Comics, Heavy Metal and many other publishers. His upcoming works include a new spin off from the Grimm Fairy Tales series, as well as the brand new Charmed series based off the hit television show. Visit Raven online at zenescope.com to learn more about the creator and his work.

Special Guest: Brian Pulido

Brian Pulido is a multi-talented creator, writer and producer of pop cultural entertainment and merchandise. Pulido is the creator of Lady Death and over 100 other characters, including a new line of characters at Avatar Press. As the former President of Chaos! Comics, Pulido was the top selling independent comic publisher of the 1990s. Before comics publishing, Pulido worked as an assistant director in New York and Los Angeles, making music videos for brands as diverse as Kiss, Coca Cola and C&C Music Factory. Brian graduated New York University's School of Film and Television. He resides in the wilds of Arizona with his wife Francisca and his dogs Midnight and Raven, crafting a new vision to bring high quality, low budget film making to Arizona and the rest of the world. Find out more about Brian at his Eternal Entertainment website and check out what he's doing at Avatar on the Pulido at Avatar page.

Special Guest: Gary Kwapisz

Gary Kwapisz was one of the first wave of Fantagraphics trouble-makers, and there he helped to cause much mayhem in the comics business. He left them with his reputation at such a low ebb that he was forced to trick Larry Hama into giving him work on Crazy magazine. There to help it in its demise and cancellation, he rode Larry's coattails to the Conan books, where he spent eight happy years working on the big barbarian's books, mostly Savage Sword. From there he went on to work on characters such as Airboy, the Punisher, and Harvey Pekar. After 15 years in the comic biz, he decided to look into the wider world of illustration to see what it had to offer, and in ten years he worked on many projects, as diverse as Sesame Street and the Jurassic Park movies. After many years, his love of history and comics has brought him back to the comics biz, partnered with his old partner Chuck Dixon. Gary and Chuck have formed their own publishing company, History Graphics Press.

Special Guest: Arvell Jones

Arvell Jones is part of an amazing group of comic book industry talent that came from the Detroit area in the mid-1970s. The group also included Rich Buckler, Al Milgrom, Keith Pollard, and Jim Starlin. Arvell first began working at Marvel on titles such as Iron Man, Thor, and Iron Fist with his early appearances in Marvel Premiere. In the early 1980s, Arvell also did some work for DC Comics, including its Super Team Family and Superman Family titles. The comic book that Arvell is most associated with is DC's All-Star Squadron, which he worked on with his friend Roy Thomas. Arvell is now a successful television producer, but he still does comic book commissions and attends conventions to meet his fans when his schedule allows.

Special Guest: Brett Pinson

Brett Pinson is a professional comic book writer who got his start with the self published title Boomtown Scabs. Brett has continued writing, coloring, lettering and publishing with new titles The Expendables and the Adventures of Carl. Brett’s work also appeared in Incessant Yarns with two comic stories about Socrates Papadopoulos, Gunslinger, published in 2010 with 2 new stories. Brett is also a part of the Detroit Iron Circle with Kevin Leen and Tony Miello publishing comics for Wolfman Mac’s Chiller Drive-In. Brett also does Animation Style Art cells which he will have along with his other work at Mid-Ohio-Con. Visit Brett at boomtownpress.com to read more about the creator and his work.

Special Guest: Scott Simmons

Scott D.M. Simmons is a comic book and sketch card artist, who also does work for Star Wars licensees with his art appearing on Topps sketch card sets, Celebration V mini-cereal giveaways, and Celebration V Store clothing. Scott is a comic book artist for the indie series Wannabez and his own series Knights of P.O.W.E.R., as well as the upcoming graphic novel called The Dead Cell. His inking work appears in over 40 pages of Image Comics' recent Hack/Slash Volume 8: Super Sidekick Sleepover Slaughter tradepaperback, and the origin story within the independently published Halloween Man: Superdeformed collection. He also enjoys working on various card sets from 5finity, Breygent, and SadLittles. He has contributed artwork for Moonstone's upcoming Voltron: United and Drawn hardcover book, the New Comic Day: 52 and Then Some tradepaperback, and the cover of Mr. Jigsaw #7. His other credits include Jenny Everywhere, as well as some CDs, magazines, and educational books. He is also a news and photo contributor for Comic Related. Visit Scott online at scottdmsimmons.com to see more of his work.

Special Guest: Beau Smith

Beau Smith has been writing comic books since 1985, and they haven't found a way to stop him yet. He has worked for all of the major publishers including DC, Image, Marvel, Chaos, Dark Horse, Knight Press, AC Comics, Wildstorm, Top Cow, and Axis on many of the leading characters and titles in the world of comics. In addition to writing comics, Beau has also done significant video game and film work. In the late 1970s, Beau was personally deemed president for life of the Sgt. Rock fan club by Sgt. Rock creator Robert Kanigher. Basically, if it's manly, Beau has had a hand or two in it, and his passion for writing rivals that of his lust for cold beer and pretty women. Visit Beau online at flyingfistranch.com to read more about the creator and his work.

Special Guest: Uko Smith

Uko Smith first gained recognition after graduating from the Columbus College of Art and Design for his distinctive use of line work and stylized realization as well as his erotic pin-up work and sensual style. Uko has appeared in Heavy Metal magazine as the Featured Artist of the Month and his work as been featured in Julie Strain's Nightmare on Pin-Up Street, Jade Magazine, Marquis, Aphrodisia, and many others. Other work of Uko's can be found in the world of sketchcards from DC Legacy, Marvel Masterpieces, The Complete Avengers, and The Women of Marvel. He also produces self-published works such as sketchbooks, prints, original works, and T-shirts, along with a steady load of freelance work for various companies such as Green Ronin. Look for Uko's latest work on IDW Publishing's FX 2: Lost Land and visit Uko online at ukosmith.com to read more about the artist and his work.

Special Guest: Jamie Snell

Since the age of five when Star Wars first hit the big screen, Jamie Snell knew he wanted to be a comic book artist. After years of drawing X-Wing Fighters, Wolverine and other comic favorites, Jamie studied illustration and graduated from Columbus College of Art and Design. Jamie has been working on and off as a freelance illustrator for over 10 years. Some of his credits include various sketch card sets from Topps (Star Wars: CW Movie and Seasons 1&2, Galaxy 4&5, ESB Widescreen, Terminator Salvation, Heroes Season 2, Indiana Jones Masterpieces & Crystal Skull, Lord of the Rings Masterpieces 2), 5finity: Voltron sketch cards, IDW Publishing: Beastwars Source book, Image Comics: Popgun Anthology Vol.1 , and various other inking projects. This year Jamie had the privilege of producing two exclusive Star Wars posters for Lucas Films, Ltd, and Acme Archives: Celebrations V (Official Star Wars Convention) official print and the upcoming release for the 30th Anniversary of Empire Strikes Back on starwarshop.com. Visit Jamie on line at ragelion.com to learn more about the artist and his work.

Special Guest: Marc Sumerak

Marc Sumerak has worked as a writer and editor with Marvel Comics for the past decade. Some of his recent writing work includes Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man, Hulk: Broken Worlds, Weapon X: First Class, and the highly publicized backup story in Models Inc. #1 starring fashion icon Tim Gunn. Sumerak is perhaps best known for his work on Power Pack and Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius, which was nominated for both an Eisner and a Harvey Award and is a fan favorite title loved by children of all ages. A Cleveland-based writer, Sumerak has worked with a number of clients including DC Comics, American Greetings, the Elks, SAMHSA, PBS Kids, Pepperidge Farm, Tyson Foods, Triple-A Baseball, SEGA, the U.S. Army, and more. Visit Marc online at sumerak.com to learn more about the creator and his work.

Special Guest: Chris Yambar

Award-winning creator Chris Yambar is best known for his work on such titles as Bart Simpson Comics, Radioactive Man, I Dream of Jeannie, Mister Magoo, and Elfquest. He has also received acclaim for his own over-the-top characters such as Mr. Beat, the Fire-Breathing Pope, El Mucho Grande—Wrestler for Hire, Suicide Blonde, Spells, Meow Wow!, Twerp and the Blue Baboon, Faith: Warrior Princess, Bambeano Boy, Misfits, McBride—the Faerie King, Suckulina: Vampire Temp, Life Maxx, Edison's Frankenstein 1910, and Buttler—Everyone's Favorite Impacted Pup. In late 2007 Chris signed an animation development deal with Cinemanix which is now working on test animation for several of his creator- and co-creator-owned properties. Visit Chris online at yambar.com to learn more about the creator and his work.

Special Guest: George Broderick, Jr.

George Broderick, Jr. began cartooning at age five when he peddled drawings of Mighty Mouse, Woody Woodpecker and Popeye from the back of his little red wagon to the unsuspecting neighborhood moms for a nickel a sketch, which George still considers one of the highlights of his freelance career. George has worked as a professional in comics since 1982. Since then, he has written stories for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, among many others. George's most recent art work includes Courageous Man Adventures, Stardust & Thor, Suicide Blonde, El Mucho Grande, and Christmas Eve for Comic Library International, the Simpson’s Radioactive Man for Bongo Comics, Mummies, Ghosts, Kolchak, The Night Stalker and Suckulina for Moonstone Books, and Popeye the Sailor from Premium Pop Comics/CLI 2.0. Visit George online at georgebroderick.com to learn more about the artist and his work.

Special Guest: Thom Zahler

Thom Zahler is the writer and artist of the indie fan-favorite Love and Capes which chronicles the adventures in love of an ordinary bookstore owner and her accountant boyfriend….who also happens to be a superhero The Crusader. Love and Capes has been hailed by critics, fans and professionals alike, including Mark Waid, Kurt Busiek, Gail Simone, Alan Davis and Tony Isabella. Love and Capes has been a three-time participant in Free Comic Book Day and collections of the title have been published by IDW Publishing. Thom is a graduate of the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art. His client list includes companies such as Marvel Comics, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, Prilosec, and Toon Tumblers. He is also the writer and artist of the Cleveland Indians' Slider comic strip. He has written and drawn three graphic novels: Raider: From the Shadows, Raider: A Cold Day in Heaven, and Raider: Dead Men's Tales.

Special Guest: Mark Evanier

Mark Evanier is an acclaimed writer whose work in comics and television has been at the forefront of pop culture for forty years and counting. In television, Mark has written for animated cartoons, including Scooby Doo, Plastic Man, Thundarr the Barbarian, Richie Rich, The Wuzzles, Dungeons & Dragons, and Garfield and Friends, a series for which Evanier wrote or co-wrote every episode and acted as voice recording director. He has been nominated for three Emmy Awards and was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award for animation by the Writers Guild of America. In comics, Mark is probably best known for his collaboration with Sergio Aragonés on Groo the Wanderer and his book Kirby: King of Comics, for which he won an Eisner Award in 2009. Visit Mark online at newsfromme.com to learn more about the creator and his work.

Special Guest: Steve Scott

Steve Scott is a renowned comic book artist known for his work on Indiana Jones for Dark Horse, X-Men for Marvel and most recently an exclusive Green Lantern special project for DC Comics. Steve first made his mark on the comics industry with his work at Malibu Comics, his wildly popular stint on Razor for London Nights, as well as New Warriors, Hour Man and Justice League of America. Recent projects at Marvel and DC include working with industry legends Louise Simonson and Chris Claremont on Magik and Exiles, as well as work on Fantastic Four, Avengers, She-Hulk, and The Hulk. Steve also recently finished a Kyle XY one-shot for Disney/ABC with writer Jeff Parker, Indiana Jones and the Tomb of the Gods for Dark Horse, and a Batman Dark Knight adaptation, featuring the only artwork of Heath Ledger's unforgettable turn as the Joker, which appeared as a special feature on the Blu-ray disc of the film. Steve is currently penciling Batman Confidential for DC Comics that will ship this October. Visit Scott's Deviant Art site to see more of the artist's fantastic work.

Special Guest: Renee Witterstaetter

Writer, editor, producer and publisher Renee Witterstaetter began the comic phase of her career working on such titles as Superman at DC Comics and Silver Surfer, Conan The Barbarian and Conan Saga at Marvel, then going on to spearhead the reintroduction of She-Hulk at Marvel, among other titles. She then moved over to Topps Comics where she was the editor on X-Files, Jurassic Park, Xena and Hercules and the co-creator with artist Michael Golden of the successful series, Spartan X.

She is the author of numerous books, boxing articles and feature articles including the books Dying for Action: The Life and Films of Jackie Chan from Warner Publishing, The Fantastic Art from Vanguard Productions and The Art of the Barbarian from Image/Eva Ink/Heavy Metal, as well as the best-selling biography Excess: The Art of Michael Golden from Vanguard Productions, which sold out and just went into a second printing. Her newest books include a biography and retrospective on artist Mark Texeira entitled Tex: The Art of Mark Texeira, as well as the Michael Golden art books, Heroes and Villains and MORE Heroes and Villains, the sketchbook Mark Texeira Babes and Brawn, and the upcoming art book Joe Jusko: Savage Beauty.

A member of the Society of Illustrators in Manhattan, Renee is currently working on two new books on Mr. Golden entitled Dangerous Curves and Bad Dog as well as instructional books. Visit Renee at evainkpublishing.com to learn more about her and her work.

Special Guest: Sean Forney

Sean Forney is a professional illustrator and comic book artist who recently completed color work on My Adventures with Spider-Man by Marvel and Identity Direct. His pinup work can be seen in Moonstone’s Voltron: United and Drawn and Image’s Hack Slash: My First Maniac. He created Star Wars promotional material including the official t-shirt and patch design for LucasFilm/Disney/Blue Planet Gear for the 2009 and 2010 Star Wars Weekends at Disney Hollywood Studios. Sean works with The Artifact Group coloring Bakugan illustrations for the national toy line. Sean co-created and illustrated Scarlet Huntress and a children’s book tie-in called Little Red Riding Hood: Origins of a Huntress. Sean’s early work was for Twisted Gate Entertainment which included drawing two short Scarlet Huntress stories for the anthology books The Portal #1 and #2, and covers for various titles. He has worked for various comic book companies including Sundragon Comics, Funky Ninja Comics, Stormchaser Comics, Camp Comics, Paper Dragon Ink, Fusion Studios, and more. He illustrated When the Cops Come Knockin’: An Illustrated Guide to the Law, character dossiers in G.I. Joe versus Cobra Fall Special: Rise of the Headhunters through Fun Publications, colored covers for Arrow Comics’ Wild Planet, and worked on comic strips for the Microsoft Developers’ program. See more of Sean’s work on the web at smcomics.com.

Special Guest: Joshua Warner

Joshua Warner is a professional cartoonist whose credits include such titles as penciling and inking on Sundragon Comics’ The Mighty 1, Arrow Comics’ Wild Planet, and Fun Publications’ GI Joe vs. Cobra. Josh has also served on inking duties for Fun Publications’ Transformers: Wings of Honor and SMComics’ Scarlet Huntress. Josh is also the creator, artist, and self-publisher of the critically acclaimed comic book, MOOS MIHT: The Adventures of Mighty Moose as well as his anthology series Incessant Yarns. The first trade paperback debuted at Wizard World Chicago 2009. Production has begun for an animated cartoon of Mighty Moose featuring the voice of Aaron Douglas (Battlestar Galactica) as the lead character. For more information about Joshua go to HangingChadEntertainment.com.

Special Guest: Andy Bennett

Andy Bennett is comic artist whose recent releases include art for Moonstone Books' Kolchak the Night Stalker / Sherlock Holmes mini-series and The Avenger Chronicles, as well as IDW's Lifelike graphic novel. Andy is a long-standing member of Ohio's independent comics powerhouse, PANEL, which will launch its 16th critically-acclaimed anthology exclusively at this year's Mid-Ohio Con. Andy's newest work can be found in Moonstone's The Phantom: Generations #13. Visit Andy online at B3NN3TT.com to learn more about the artist and his work.

Special Guest: Dave Aikins

Dave Aikins is a Nickelodeon Publishing artist for books and DVD/Video game covers featuring SpongeBob Squarepants, Dora the Explorer, Diego, The Backyardigans, and Ni Hao Kai-Lan. He is also the illustrator of Twilight Creations' popular Zombies!!! board game series. In the world of comics, Dave was cover artist for Moonstone's Kolchak- Night Stalker of the Living Dead mini-series and did interior art in Moonstone's The Avenger Chronicles. New for 2010 is the first volume of The Zombie Art of Dave Aikins, collecting 92 pages of Zombie art goodness!, as well as the newest Zombies!!! game expansion. Dave's new kids books for 2010 include Dora Super Babies' Dream Adventure, SpongeBob SquarePants: The Best Mom, and Kai-Lan and the Ladybug Festival. Released in August, Dave illustrated Dora's Birthday Surprise, the very first Dora the Explorer Little Golden Book celebrating Dora's tenth anniversary. Check out Dave on the web at daveaikins.com to learn more about the creator and his work.

Special Guest: Billy Tan

Superstar artist Billy Tan has been thrilling comic fans most recently with his art on Marvel's Shadowland, continuing his remarkable run on iconic titles that have included New Avengers, Daredevil, Thor, Spider-Man and the Uncanny X-Men. Starting his career at Top Cow with Code Name: Strike Force, Tomb Raider, and Witchblade, Billy joined Marvel in 2003 as the artist on the groundbreaking series X-23. He was inducted into Marvel's second lineup of "Young Guns" in 2006, a list of artists exclusive to Marvel Comics and featured on the publisher's most prominent projects and titles. Billy was in good company with Clayton Crain, Simone Bianchi, Pascal Ferry, Ariel Olivetti, and Leinil Yu, and he was soon was teamed with writer Ed Brubaker on Uncanny X-Men. Check out Billy's catalog of work at marvel.com.

Special Guest: Tony Moore

Tony Moore is a comic book artist from a small town in Kentucky, known for his penchant for the gruesome and gritty, and a leaning toward genre works. Tony's career in comics began in 2000 when he and Robert Kirkman created the irreverent Battle Pope under their Funk-O-Tron publishing banner. Together Robert and Tony went on at Image Comics to do Brit and, most notably, The Walking Dead, which garnered Eisner Award nominations in 2004 for Best New Series and in 2005 for Best Cover Artist. The fan-favorite zombie title The Walking Dead is being produced for a live action TV series that will premier on AMC on Halloween 2010. Tony has co-created and illustrated Fear Agent for Dark Horse and The Exterminators for DC's Vertigo Comics imprint, and has recently worked on Deadpool, Ghost Rider, and The Punisher at Marvel Comics. Visit Tony online at tonymooreillustration.com to learn more about the artist and his work.