Charity: Temple Isaiah
By Heidi Simmons
“Working in the entertainment industry all my life, it’s been about being creative,” said Christopher Spellman, Founder of Comic Con Palm Springs. “As a writer, producer, my career has been all about putting together creative projects at a very high level.”
For Spellman, Comic Con was a challenge that fit with his skill set and was motivated by his desire to benefit the community all the while enjoying a genre he loves best. Nearly 15,000 people attended the inaugural event. Families, fanatics, nerds, young and old, flocked to the Palm Springs Convention Center in August!
“We’re very proud of Comic Con Palm Springs and happy about how our first year turned out,” said Spellman. “The event exceeded our expectations. A lot of it was serendipitous and luck.” Spellman rarely uses the first person pronoun “I” and doesn’t take direct credit for its success.
Spellman has spent nine years working in and around the comic book industry. “Comic Con Palm Springs was all about families,” said Spellman. “We wanted it to be family driven. We admitted two kids twelve and under free with the purchase of one adult ticket. We reached out to the Star Wars group, The Lego people and Zombie walk. It was about bringing cool photo ops and making it fun for everyone.”
Comic book conventions have become popular across the country and around the world. “We didn’t want it to be just a two-note, institutional comic con. It was about bringing in talent, panels, music and partnering with local organizations and charities. Of course, having comic book icon Stan Lee participate was a home run.”
For the last 16 years, Spellman has worked as a talent manager and packaging producer. However, recently, Comic Con Palm Springs has turned into a full-time job. Though he still has his hands in show business, he admits that this new venture is time consuming. “It all falls under one big umbrella,” Spellman said.
Spellman first came to Palm Springs in 1974 and his family bought a home here in 1977. He has always considered Palm Springs home and now resides in the city full time after living in Los Angeles and New York.
Unmarried and with one, tortoiseshell, long-haired cat he adopted from a local shelter, Spellman is a fan of vacationing at home in Palm Springs. His favorite movie is Star Wars and his favorite bands include Journey and Pink Floyd. An English literature major in college, Spellman loves the poetry in the lyrics of Pink Floyd. “I’m very boring. I mostly stay at home. I like movies and I like to read,” said Spellman.
Beyond his creative self, there is an astute businessman. Spellman insisted that Comic Con Palm Springs be in August.
“I lived here when all the businesses closed during summer because no one was around,” said Spellman. “I know families who have to work multiple jobs to make ends meet. This event was a way to create jobs and generate business at a time of year when it would be most welcome and needed for families and business.”
Aware that his community has both working class and well-to-do people, Spellman modeled Comic Con Palm Springs ticket prices after Planet Comic Con in Kansas City, to make it affordable to locals and attract first-time attendees.
“There are very few cities that host comic conventions that are also world-wide destinations,” said Spellman. “We have a special formula here. This is Palm Springs! It’s a unique environment. Setting a comic book convention here is a perfect recipe. Place and event converge and you get to participate in a fantasy world!”
The comic book industry and other cities are certainly aware of the tremendous success of the event and are watching closely for what comes next.
“We are closer to Hollywood than San Diego. We have ties to local celebrities plus we have international film festivals, which make the event especially inviting,” said Spellman. “There is a lot of potential as well as momentum to make this convention even more significant. We are looking to expand and we hope to have up to four different events throughout the year by 2018.”
Spellman’s passion comes through when he talks about the impact the event had on the community. “Seeing the smiles and joy of attendees is very rewarding,” said Spellman. “Bringing so many people together who are having a good time, and also, to be contributing to the greater community makes me happy. It puts a smile on my face.”
The youngest member on the board of Temple Isaiah, Spellman has a passion for helping children. “The local Jewish Federation feeds the hungry, helps local kids and families,” said Spellman. “It’s great to do something that makes a difference in the lives of those in our own home town.”
