Rutgers-Camden to host own Comic Con

CAMDEN Wham! Bam! Gadzooks!

It's Camden Comic Con, a free celebration, open to the public, of all things comic. The hosts April 5 are the Art Students League at Rutgers-Camden and the Rutgers-Camden Center for the Arts.

The event, which will be held at the Campus Center and is a first for Rutgers-Camden, will feature creators and artists; panel discussions; vendors, including comics and memorabilia sellers; live music, and family-friendly activities, including arts, crafts and other children's activities.

"We are bridging the worlds of serious and novice fans, and bringing everyone together," said Miranda Powell, program assistant for arts education and community arts for the Rutgers-Camden Center for the Arts. "Here's the spoiler alert: Everybody wins."

Featured guests include: Bob McLeod, cocreator and illustrator of The New Mutants for Marvel Comics; Bryan Glass, the multiple Harvey Award-winning cocreator and writer of The Mice Templar for Image Comics and Furious for Dark Horse Comics; writer, artist, and comics historian Rob Kelly, cocreator and writer of the award-winning Web comic Ace Kilroy, author of the book Hey Kids, Comics!: True-Life Tales From The Spinner Rack; and Mark A. Robinson, creator of I Love Trouble at Image Comics, and a writer whose credits include The Incredible Hulk, Ghost Rider, and Ms. Marvel for Marvel Comics, and Dragon Age for IDW Comics.

In addition, Marc Lombardi, a writer, editor, production assistant, and talent coordinator for GrayHaven Comics, and Jan Marc Quisumbing, a creator, illustrator, and writer at Janimal Draws, will conduct portfolio reviews for aspiring artists.

Comic Con will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Campus Center, on Third Street between Cooper Street and the Benjamin Franklin Bridge.

For more information on the participants and the panel discussions, including times, visit camdencomiccon.tumblr.com. or call Powell at 856-225-6202.

- Rita Giordano