In a normal year, May is when the convention scene begins to take off. But as we all know, 2021 is far from a normal year. With an increasing number of people receiving some form of vaccine to guard against COVID-19, we’re hoping things are looking up. Only time will tell.
The Fantastic Pulps Show & Sale — Canada’s premier pulp event — has been postponed until 2022. A small show held at the Toronto Public Library, it helps to satisfy the hardcore collector and the curious alike with twenty-five dealers’ tables crammed with vintage pulp, affordable reprints, collectible paperbacks, posters, and much more.
If you’re a fan of silent and early sound films or a collector of motion pictures and related items, then Cinevent is for you. According to the convention’s Facebook page, the convention’s traditional Memorial Day gathering has been postponed until the fall.
Working with their host hotel — the Renaissance Columbus Downtown Hotel in the heart of Columbus, Ohio — Cinevent 52 will take place October 28 – 31. It will be held in conjunction with the first annual Columbus Moving Picture Show. The conventions will start accepting registrations later this year.
May is also the month for Pittsburgh’s 3 Rivers Comicon. New Dimension Comics owner Todd McDevitt and his general manager, Jon Engel, launched the convention in 2016 to “put comics back into Comicon.”
This year’s 3 Rivers Comicon will take place May 22 – 23 in Homestead, Pennsylvania. However, due to COVID-19 restrictions, the convention will be held outdoors on East Waterfront Drive at The Waterfront.
The convention will have free admission from 12 noon until 7 PM. It will be held rain or shine. Vendor tables will be under tents. The wearing of masks will be mandatory.
For those who can’t wait until noon, 3 Rivers Comicon will offer early-bird shopping from 10 AM until 12 PM. The cost for early admission will be five bucks.
To learn more about the 2021 3 Rivers Comicon, please visit the convention’s Facebook page.
If you attend this year’s 3 Rivers Comicon, you might even find a copy of Street & Smith’s SHADOW COMICS #88, dated July 1948 and featuring cover art by Bob Powell. The cover story, “Death Rises Out of the Sea,” was adapted by writer Joe Bates Smith and Powell from the November 18, 1945 episode of the Shadow radio show. Street & Smith’s SHADOW COMICS ran for a total of 101 issues.
Currently, the PulpFest organizing committee is monitoring mitigation efforts resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic and consulting with our host hotel. At the same time, we are continuing to work toward mounting PulpFest 2021 from August 19 – 22 in Mars, Pennsylvania at the DoubleTree by Hilton Pittsburgh — Cranberry.
The Summer 2021 edition of PulpFest will celebrate the anniversaries of two trend-setting Street & Smith rough-paper magazines. Both LOVE STORY MAGAZINE and THE SHADOW played significant roles in the evolution of American popular culture and genre fiction. PulpFest 2021 will have panels and presentations on both pulps and a whole lot more.
Click the programming button at the top of our webpage to learn more about “Love in the Shadows.” Click our registration button for membership information.
PulpFest will continue to assess developments. Pennsylvania’s guidelines for large indoor gatherings are evolving as more and more people receive a Coronavirus vaccine. We will advise you about any changes to our plans through our website and social media pages. So please stay tuned to pulpfest.com and our social media sites.
