Member-only story
Comicon 2019
Photos by Tom and Nadin Abbott
Comicon started at the El Cortez hotel fifty years ago. About 300 people attended the convention, and it was mostly heaven for comics collectors. It was a place to talk comics, and exchange some from the Golden Age of comics. It had somewhat of an educational flavor, and from early on it had a teaching function.
The event has grown to the largest convention held at the San Diego Convention Center from those humble beginnings. In the fiscal year 2018, the San Diego Convention center generated $1.1 Billion for the regional economy. Of that, Comicon generated $147.1 million with 135,000 attendees. Many of these people stay at local hotels and consume goods and services which translates to funds for the city of San Diego general fund
This is a large part of the general fund, and this translates to money for public safety, roads, and other spending lines. Comicon has gone from a very small little event, which at times people made fun off, to a critical event. It is well beyond Comicon. The Metropolitan Transit system wraps the trains with specially themed events and it is the busiest time of the year.