Comic-Con Begins

Comic-Con Begins is a six-part podcast series chronicling the triumphant tale of the planet's mightiest pop culture extravaganza, the San Diego Comic-Con, and the generative fandom community that bubbled up in its wake. Mere months after Woodstock, the Manson killings, the Moon landing, the final episode of Star Trek, and the release of David Bowie's melding of science fiction and rock-and-roll "Space Oddity," a nerdy group of teenage hippies, proto-punks, and artists banded together to establish an intimate annual get-together to celebrate their idols - and each other. What began as a means to hang out with the likes of: Ray Bradbury, Jack Kirby, Charles Schulz, June Foray (and unlikely early guests such as Frank Capra, Chuck Norris, and Dr. Timothy Leary) blossomed before the founding members' wide, bespectacled eyes into the billion-dollar franchise Comic-Con has become today. Created by pop culture historian Mathew Klickstein, Comic-Con Begins features deeply personal and at times wildly outrageous reminiscences from the Comic-Con's foundational contributors -- along with a slew of uber-geeky celebrity special guests -- and is hosted by cosplay pioneer and scream queen Brinke Stevens. Excelsior.