ATLRetro

Dragon*Con usually gets talked about as a great place to meet and listen to the stars of the latest science fiction, fantasy and horror movies, TV series, fiction, comics and more. But scan the schedule and you’ll find plenty of Retro action as well. Shellie Schmals, of Minette Magnifique, has already dished out her own Burlesque Guide to DragonCon, but here’s the best of the rest. We apologize that we didn’t have time to add links to everything, but you can download the full DragonCon schedule here to browse for details or there’s a new DragonCon mobile app, too, for iTunes, Android Market and Blackberry. Hope to see you there this weekend!

GUESTS:

Ernest Borgnine. THE WILD BUNCH. THE DIRTY DOZEN. MCHALE’S NAVY. THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE. ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK. OK, he’s probably here for voicing Mermaid Man in SPONGEBOB. But need we say more to express how excited we are that Mr. Borgnine will be sitting on Dragon*Con’s Hall of Fame this year. And to make it even better, EMPEROR OF THE NORTH is screening at DriveInvasion on Sunday, too. Read more about this brutal tale of hobos that ride the rails in Philip Nutman’s DriveInvasion preview here, and hear him speak Sat. at 2:30 p.m. in International North (Hyatt). If you shell out the big bucks for one autograph, make it Ernie & cement your Cinema Retro street cred .

Martin Landau. MISSION IMPOSSIBLE. SPACE 1999. Bela Lugosi in Tim Burton’s ED WOOD. You know we’ll be on the front row when Anthony Taylor interviews him Sat. at 1 p.m. in the Capitol Ballroom at the Sheraton.

Carrie Fisher and Peter Mayhew. The actors behind Princess Leia and walking carpet Chewbacca will be making STAR WARS fans’ hearts go aflutter. Yeah, us, too.

William Shatner. Where’s Captain Kirk? Yes, the commander of the original ‘60s STAR TREK TV series is back at Dragon*Con. Glad we scored his autograph for only 10 bucks back in the ‘70s, even if we grumbled then about spending all that money on his record album to get it.

Stan Lee. He’s either the biggest icon of comics or you’re miffed that Jack Kirby got the short end of the stick. Whatever you think of him, he’s a living piece of comics history. Stan the Man speaks Sun. at 2:30 p.m. in the Marriott Marquis’s Atrium Ballroom.

OK, we’re still a little baffled about what ‘70s sit-com WKRP IN CINCINATTI has to do w sci-fi and fantasy, but whatever. Howard Hesseman and Loni Anderson are coming to Dragon*Con. Beau Bridges is there, too, even though we can’t exactly remember what sci-fi movie he was in either. Original, to us the one-and-only man of our dreams, Freddy Robert Englund signs once more. Journey back to your TIME TUNNEL memories with James Darren. We don’t know for sure if Christopher Lloyd and Lea Thompson (BACK TO THE FUTURE) will ride in a DeLorean in the DragonCon parade, but we wouldn’t be surprised. Seventh Doctor Sylvester McCoy will be in the house, and the timing couldn’t be more perfect with him set to play Radagast the Brown in Peter Jackson’s upcoming duo of THE HOBBIT movies. Original ‘70s TV INCREDIBLE HULK Lou Ferrigno is back, as well as Retro ‘70s TV con regulars Richard Hatch (the original BATTLESTAR GALACTICA) and Erin Gray (BUCK ROGERS),

COMICS & POP ART ALLEY: What could be more Retro than classic superhero comics which had their birth on the newsstands of the ‘40s and ‘50s?! We feel like we never get enough time to enjoy one of our favorite pastimes at Dragon*Con—a casually stroll through the tables and booths on the Comics & Pop Art Alley, especially since it’s now buried three levels down in the Hyatt. This year, you’ll find legendary horror master Bernie Wrightson (SWAMP THING, CREEPSHOW, HOUSE OF MYSTERY, HOUSE OF SECRETS, FRANKENSTEIN, the list goes on) and seminal Marvel artist Jim Starlin (CAPTAIN MARVEL, COSMIC ODYSSEY). You’ll also want to meet and check out the work artists inspired by Retro pop culture such as Glenn Barr; monster-loving ATLRetro Kool Kat Chris Hamer; Retro futurist Dean Motter (MISTER X, ELECTROPOLIS, TERMINAL CITY); and Atlanta classic and master of the super-hero spoof Bob Burden (FLAMING CARROT, MYSTERY MEN).. Be sure to stop by and say hi to H.C. Warner, whose Alcove Gallery was a Retro pop-art haven in Avondale for so many years. Most artists bring along their sketchbooks, so support the hard work they spend on the craft and take home an original piece created just for you. And there’s also a COMICS AND POP ART track where you can listen to these chaps talk about their craft and share their comics industry war stories.

PULP RADIO: Before TV, all the cool science fiction and fantasy series were on the radio. The Atlanta Radio Theater Company brings back those golden years with two audio stage shows, RORY RAMMER, SPACE MARSHALL: MURDER AT THE PURGE, by Ron Butler, Fri. at 7 p.m. and a double feature of SARABANDE FOR A CONDEMNED MAN by Kelley S. Ceccato and H.P. Lovecraft’s THE MUSIC OF ERICH ZANN, Sun.  at 7 p.m. Both performances are in in Regency VI-VII (Hyatt).

GOLDEN DAYS OF SF FANDOM: What was it like to be a science fiction fan back in the 1930s, ‘40s, ‘50s? Hear First Fandom member Dr. William C. Martin, an 87-year-old retired professor whom Professor Morte has dubbed Atlanta’s Forry Ackerman, share his memories at 11:30 a.m. Fri. morning in the Fairlie Room on the motor lobby level of the Hyatt.

DEALERS: Sometimes we lament there are so few books at Dragon*Con, but we thank our lucky Retro stars that McFarland Publishers will be back with their amazing library of books about movies, comics, vintage monster magazines and other pop-culture goodness. We’ll also be hitting Dark Horse Comics which reprints many classic comics and Chaosium Games for our H.P. Lovecraft fix. Then there’s that discount book dealer which always has those great Marvel and other collections for awesome cutrate prices—sorry we don’t remember their name but look for them. And we’re counting on finding some old comics we didn’t even know we had to have, vintage movie posters (Hollywood Joe’s Movie Memorabilia sounds promising, though we wish Eric Caiden of Hollywood Book & Poster was coming this year). There’s always at least one guy with vintage books, and we hope we’ll also find some more Virgil Finlay prints of classic pulp magazine covers like we did last year. Finally, Sparkle! shrinks classic pin-up girls and fairy tale illustrations again into bottle cap necklaces and magnets, and we love that we don’t have to drive to Lawrenceville to see what fun stuff they’ve dreamed up.

TV TIME MACHINE: Find out all the behind-the-scenes trivia and debate the merits and nuances of your favorite old sci-fi TV shows from both Hollywood and across the Pond. We’re not exactly sure how Gerry Anderson shows end up on the AMERICAN SCI-FI CLASSICS track, but be sure and check that track not just for programming on your favorite US shows but also UFO. BRITISH SCI-FI MEDIA features panels on  classic DOCTOR WHO and other UK shows and movies, including SPACE: 1999 and a tribute to Christopher Lee (Fri. 10 p.m. Macon Room, Sheraton). Unbury Spooky ’60s/‘70s soap opera DARK SHADOWS and the Johnny Depp/Tim Burton remake in a panel Fri. at 7 p.m. in the Montreal/Vancouver room at the Hyatt Regency (DARK FANTASY track). Remember JOHNNY QUEST in an ANIMATION track panel at 5:30 p.m. on Sun. in the Dunwoody Room at the Hyatt.

STEAMPUNK SHENANIGANS: There’s an entire track for that so we won’t detail it here. It’s called ALTERNATE HISTORY, and it’s mostly in the Westin, a fine modernist example of 1970s round skyscraper atrium architecture.

BLADE RUNNER MEETS JEFFERSON STARSHIP: Or rather the current incarnation of the classic rock band performs a sci-fi/electronica/rock opera/mosh of BLOWS AGAINST THE EMPIRE and the Vangelis score to the Ridley Scott/Harrison Ford movie Sat. at 11:30 in Centennial II-III. The band also performs a greatest hits concert midnight on Sunday night in the same location.

ROCKY HORROR: Lips Down on Dixie serve up their annual Dragon*Con live performance to the movie at 1:30 p.m. Sun. morning (or late Sat.) in Centennial II-III at the Hyatt.

PARTIES: OK, that’s why many of you come to Dragon*Con. Friday: What’s more Retro and Now than zombies, but placing them in a prom setting dials it back to Retro, so Zombie Prom, 10 p.m. Grand Ballroom (A-F), Sheraton, after the 8:30 p.m. Zombie Walk, of course. Plus, we hear Luke Godfrey & the SplatterCinema gang will be there applying make-up, so that’s extra bloody rad. Saturday: There had better be Daleks, Daleks and more Daleks, a platoon of Cybermen and The Master at the British Sci-Fi Media Tracks Villains Party at 10 p.m., also in the Sheraton Grand Ballroom. Sunday: OK, we have to agree with Shellie, it’s The Grand Pirate and Time Traveler’s Ball at the Westin Peachtree Ballroom.