I’ve been going to JoeCon for a long time. My first visit was in San Francisco in 2003, and I’ve been going, more or less, ever since (besides three or so shows that I missed along the way).
The panels and panelists all deserve a huge amount of credit for taking time out of their busy schedules to talk to fans and provide information that isn’t always available elsewhere. Every once in a while, too, a panel appears at JoeCon that completely changes my perspective and entertains me in a way that I haven’t been entertained recently.
The Behind the Scenes of G.I. Joe’s first Micro Movie was one of those panels. Carson from 3DJoes spent the entire panel with G.I. Joe marketing guru Kirk Bozigian, showcasing never before seen behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the 1990’s live action commercials, all interspersed with other information about the commercials, while making sure to show the actual commercials along the way as well. The result was a panel chock-full of laughs, cheers, and a real appreciation for the work that went into making G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero the landmark, retail-altering brand it was back in the 80’s (and 90’s).
There was fantastic insight from Kirk Bozigian himself, unbelievable behind the scenes footage, and so much great stuff along the way. I can’t give Carson enough props for what he worked hard to put together. This was one hell of a way to celebrate JoeCon’s last harrah, and I truly hope there’s more to come. Carson has put a terrific video up on YouTube. You need to stop what you’re doing and go watch it right now. It’s just incredible.
With the plethora of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero books hitting Kickstarter in recent years, there’s been an awesome wealth of content available for us long time fans. One avenue that hasn’t been fully explored, however, is the advertising and marketing side of things, but Phil Reed from Battlegrip.com has that covered.
The Kickstarter for Modern Army Action Figures was just recently launched and explores the great advertising of vintage Real American Hero product. One would argue a huge amount of G.I. Joe’s success in the 80’s was due to its unique look at marketing and advertising, and Phil’s got some great stuff here.
Go check out the book on Kickstarter and throw some support its way!
The first volume of the Creating G.I. Joe book series funded a short while ago and there have been rave reviews about its contents. Volume 2 promises even more great material, and it’s got only FOUR DAYS left to fund!
It needs just over $2,000 to break through, so it could really use a last push in these final few days to get over that funding hump. There’s guaranteed to be some great art and conceptual work inside, so if you’re a G.I. Joe fan, or even just a toy fan, you should definitely check it out.
Click here to hit the Kickstarter and consider throwing some funding its way. Almost there!
At any given time throughout 2015 it felt like a pretty slow news year for G.I. Joe, but as always, when you stop and look back, suddenly things don’t look quite so small.
Granted G.I. Joe product at retail was pretty much focused to a singular burst in late summer as the 50th Anniversary exploded, then faded, even though we got Convention product and FSS figures earlier in the year. With all that being said, it still feels like there were plenty of “banner moments” in G.I. Joe news for the year that was.
News was breaking right up until the last moment, and I’m actually a bit worried that if I post this prior to December 31st I might end up missing something!
Click the “read more” link below to check out the full list!
What started off as a little get together for G.I. Joe fans in a certain region has now grown to a full fledged G.I. Joe celebration .
Every year, the folks from Codename: Iowa run a fantastic G.I. Joe themed gathering and convention entitled Assembly Required, which has attracted G.I. Joe celebrities like Ron Wagner, former Hasbro designer Matt Brandenberg, and recently featured a fantastic display case from G.I. Joe DeClassified. They have fun activities for adults and kids as well as items for sale, and of course, their now famous “Minimalist” prints.
Check out the full review for this latest excellent series of Minimalist prints after the “jump”!
What started off as a little get together for G.I. Joe fans in a certain region has now grown to a full fledged G.I. Joe celebration .