Tag: comic-con museum

Six decades of Comic-Con celebrated at museum!

Lovers of Comic-Con in San Diego should head over to Balboa Park. The Comic-Con Museum recently opened a new exhibit called Cover Story: Six Decades of Comic-Con.

The lower level of the museum now features tons of artwork representing years of creativity and fun at the world’s biggest and best popular arts convention.

Visitors can look closely at original art used for the covers of Comic-Con souvenir books and other publications, beginning back in 1970 when the event was attended by only 300 fans. There are fine examples of interior art, too. You’ll see the work of legendary artists, from Jack Kirby to Frank Miller to Alex Ross.

Fans of DC and Marvel superheroes will love this exhibition. As will fans of fantasy, and science fiction, and comic strips, and cartoons . . . All things pop culture are celebrated!

Here are only a few examples…

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Comic-Con Museum celebrates Will Eisner Day!

Are you a fan of Comic-Con? You should know that Will Eisner Week is March 1-7, 2026. The theme this year is Dream Big: Read a Graphic Novel!

San Diego’s amazing Comic-Con Museum will be celebrating “Will Eisner Day” with a special event. Four panels will be held in the museum’s theater on March 4, from 12 pm to 4 pm. Participation is included with museum admission, and free for museum members.

The panels are: Cats vs. Dogs: Panelists’ Pet Comics; Will Eisner Hall of Fame 2026; Graphic Novel Adaptations from Literature; and Graphic Memoirs by Women.

Administrator of the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, Jackie Estrada, will be among the panelists!

If you’re a creator seeking inspiration, a lover of graphic novels, or simply curious about this certain-to-be-awesome, one-of-a-kind event, check out this webpage for more information!

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Tokidoki trading event at Comic-Con Museum!

Have you seen the tokidoki exhibition at San Diego’s amazing Comic-Con Museum? If your answer is no, you have several weeks until the exhibition closes. TOKIDOKI: Twenty Years of Kawaii & Chaos goes away at the end of January.

Meanwhile, people who love tokidoki collectibles have the opportunity to attend a free trading event at the museum! The “kid-organized meetup” will be held on Saturday, January 24th, 2026 inside the Comic-Con Museum’s café! Everyone is welcome. Bring any tokidoki figures or merch you’d like to possibly trade!

I visited the museum today and saw the event announcement. As I wandered about the tokidoki exhibition, I “collected” a handful of cool photos…

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Creating the beloved Luanniverse!

When I was a kid, one of the best things about Sunday morning was opening up the newspaper to find the funny pages. Lying there on the carpet, going through the comic strips, was like falling through two-dimensional doors into so many magical universes.

I must admit that as a boy I often skipped over the comic strip Luann. But now I have a new appreciation for the Luanniverse, because yesterday I enjoyed an exhibit at San Diego’s Comic-Con Museum: Growing Up Luann.

I hadn’t realized Luann’s universe was so vast and complex. Luann herself, and the strip’s large cast of characters, experience evolving relationships, lifelike troubles and humorous situations that stimulate in the reader a range of emotions. But Luann’s essential happiness is never far away.

The award-winning strip was launched in 1985 and continues to this very day. That’s forty years of living. Fortunately, time in Luann’s universe unfolds very slowly!

What interests me most about the comic strip is its evolution–both the art and Luann’s story. By reading the displays, one can follow the creative process undertaken by Luann’s creator, writer and artist Greg Evans.

Visitors to the exhibit learn how fleshing out a beloved character and her universe took years of dreaming, experimentation and work. And how the effort has resulted in worldwide popularity and the National Cartoonist Society’s ultimate award, a Reuben.

Are you fascinated by the creative process? Do you love art? Do you love Luann?

Pay this exhibit a visit!

A bit of what you’ll discover…

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

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Students speed paint at Comic-Con Museum!

Super cool! These great comic book paintings at the Comic-Con Museum were created by students from Westview High School!

Students of Westview art teacher Keith Opstad produced these speed paintings during the San Diego Comic-Con Museum’s First Annual Educator’s Night in 2024.

These really are speed paintings? Made while teachers from around San Diego watched? Wow–that’s truly amazing!

Iron Man, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn and Batman make a splash on a wall inside the museum’s second floor Makerspace.

I noticed that today, in the Makerspace, guests could use beads to create a starry sky and constellation, then tell a story about it! The activity is called Constellations Across the WHOniverse. Why? An epic Doctor Who exhibition is now showing at the Comic-Con Museum!

UPDATE!

During my next visit to the Comic-Con Museum, I noticed Superman had appeared, too!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

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Star Wars prop auction at Comic-Con Museum!

How would you like to own an original Stormtrooper stunt helmet that was screen-used in Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope? It’s one of six known.

Or how would you like to own an original lightsaber hilt prop used for the portrayal of Darth Maul in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace? Yes, that double-bladed lightsaber that impaled Qui-Gon Jinn.

Or how would you like to own an original prop droid hand worn by Anthony Davis in his portrayal of C-3PO in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back? That would be undeniably cool!

These and other rare Star Wars props can be bid upon between now and July 27th, 2025.

The auction items are now on display at the Comic-Con Museum in San Diego’s Balboa Park. They’re part of an exhibition titled Echoes From the Galaxy.

Even if you have no intention to place a bid, Star Wars fans need to visit the museum just to see some important bits of cinematic history!

Want to learn more? Perhaps place your own bid? Here’s the Julien’s Auctions webpage concerning this special auction.

You’ll see a very wide variety of Star Wars memorabilia, from posters to patches to signed photos. And, of course, some amazing one-of-a-kind collectibles!

The live auction will take place at 10 am on July 27th, 2025, which is the final day of San Diego Comic-Con.

Some of the cool things on display…

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If you’d like to view my coverage of Comic-Con so far, which includes hundreds of cool photographs, click here!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

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Super fun Lucha Libre exhibit opens in San Diego!

A super fun exhibition opened in San Diego today at the Comic-Con Museum in Balboa Park. It’s all about Mexican lucha libre wrestling!

Sangre, Sudor, y Mito: The Art and Tradition of Mexican Lucha Libre features so much cool stuff, I hardly know how to describe it all!

Young and old, lucha libre fans and those who are merely curious–all will enjoy seeing actual masks and costumes worn by wrestling stars, not to mention artwork, posters, comic books, championship belts, collectibles and more.

Fans of Chula Vista’s own legendary Rey Mysterio, popular favorite and many-time international champion who continues to work for WWE, will love seeing how he is generously represented in the exhibit, too!

I was fortunate to get a sneak preview this morning. The exhibition is substantial, taking up the entire second level of the Comic-Con Museum. It has been assembled with the help of Museo de Lucha Libre Tijuana Mexicana.

Topics explored in the exhibition include lucha libre’s origin in Mexico; its impact on the popular culture through many generations; its mythic qualities; the varieties of male luchador and female luchadora characters; luchadora pioneers and their ongoing struggle for recognition and equality; how lucha libre has become increasingly influencial around the world . . .

Yes, anything and everything concerning lucha libre is celebrated!

In essence, lucha libre performers are living, breathing superheroes (or villains). Certain legendary luchadores are revered by millions of fans throughout Mexico. How formidable are these masked wrestlers? Movie posters have them battling gangsters and even vampires!

Lots of fun! Bring the kids!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

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Lucha Fest kicks off Comic-Con Museum exhibit!

The Comic-Con Museum will be opening an exhibit celebrating Mexican lucha libre wrestling on May 22, 2025. The exhibition is titled Sangre, Sudor y Mito and will feature masks and costumes worn by legendary luchadores, collectibles, original art, video and much more.

To kick things off, Lucha Fest is being held in San Diego at the Soap Factory this afternoon.

The free, family-friendly event features food, music, art, lowriders and live lucha libre wrestling! Lucha Fest is supported by the Comic-Con Museum, Museo de Lucha Libre Tijuana Mexicana, and the Office of the Consulate General of Mexico in San Diego.

I arrived as it opened, which turned out to be much too early. The wrestling, I learned wouldn’t begin for a couple hours, so I walked around checking things out for a short while.

A highlight of Lucha Fest is the official unveiling of a huge mural across the street, which features legendary luchadores, including Chula Vista’s own Rey Mysterio. It was created by prolific local artist Dentlok. I had photographed the mural in early April, not knowing anything about it. See those photographs here.

The Soap Factory is a mostly outdoor venue east of downtown San Diego. It has many cool murals. I’ve focused my few photos today on the fun event as it barely got started. (Yes, I neglected to photograph the ring–there was nothing going on at the time.)

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

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Star Wars blood drive at Comic-Con Museum!

“May the Fourth” be with blood donors in San Diego!

The Comic-Con Museum in Balboa Park will be hosting a May the 4th Blood Drive, in partnership with the San Diego Blood Bank. The event will take place at the museum from 10 am to 4 pm.

Not only will this event include awesome Star Wars cosplay by local fan groups, but donors will get a free Comic-Con Museum ticket and a coupon for a complimentary Soapy Joe’s car wash!

The San Diego Blood Bank could really use your life-saving donation. You can schedule an appointment here. Walk-ins are also welcome!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

The amazing Doctor Who exhibit in San Diego!

How do I convey how awesome the Doctor Who exhibition is at the Comic-Con Museum?

If you’re a Doctor Who fan or anyone in San Diego who loves science fiction, it’s an absolute, positive must see!

I haven’t been a regular watcher of the long-running BBC show, but when I visited the Comic-Con Museum in Balboa Park today, I was blown away. The museum has hosted epic exhibitions in the past, but this one, Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder: Where Science Meets Fiction, might have the most wow moments.

The exhibition celebrates all fifteen Doctors and displays their distinctive costumes. A variety of props can be viewed up close. Best of all, visitors come face to face with dozens of life-size robots and creatures that have been used in the making of Doctor Who!

Most of the alien creatures are utterly bizarre. Some appear to have been hatched in a nightmare. (See my previous blog post about the exhibition’s awesome Monster Vault by clicking here.)

As fans know, scary-looking creatures in the show can actually be allies of the Doctor. When you travel by TARDIS across time and space, you never know who or what you’ll meet!

The exhibition, like the show, is mostly about wonder. Displays explain how Doctor Who story ideas are often based on actual scientific and technological advancements. Concepts like artificial intelligence, evolution and multidimensional reality are utilized in fantastic ways. Indeed, the show began in 1963 as an educational program. Curiosity is an essential element of Doctor Who.

I took a few sample photos. There’s so much to see, you could spend a good hour exploring Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder: Where Science Meets Fiction.

Visitors begin by stepping through a TARDIS…

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!