Stan Lee is coming to Cincinnati in a week or so for Cincinnati's Comic-Con. I was thinking about buying a ticket to meet Stan and/or get his autograph. However, I had a few questions:

1. Has anybody done the Stan Lee VIP experience before? It costs around $350 and you get a few things among which are an autographed item and a photo with Stan Lee. Is it worth the extra money?

2. You supposedly can buy an autograph ticket for $100 instead of opting for the VIP experience. Should I go this route instead? Stan apparently has a limited schedule the weekend of the convention. Is it possible that I could buy a ticket and NOT get his autograph because he has to leave? Are the lines usually really long for his autograph?

3. What would be a good item to get autographed? If I decided to get a comic book autographed, what should I use - a sharpie? What is the best spot on a comic book to put an autograph?

4. Anything else I should know?

Sorry - I don't have a ton of experience with comic books and comic book conventions. I was hoping somebody here on these boards could help me. Maybe some of you have met Stan Lee in the past or have done the Stan Lee VIP experience. I appreciate any help or guidance that you can give me!

Thanks!

 

1. I've never done the VIP ticket before, to ME it isn't worth the extra money. But that's just personal opinion. If I could afford it, I'd probably go for it.

2. Stan was in Louisville for FandomFest this year and his line was rather long. I didn't go for it, so I don't know if everyone in line got an autograph, but I've heard this may be his last con appearance ever (or at least his last con appearance in this area), so I'd expect even longer wait times. Of course, showing up early and expecting to wait can mitigate the frustration.

3. I'd only get a comic autographed that he personally had written, or at least co-plotted, or something. I don't get wanting his autograph on the latest issue of Amazing Spider-Man or something, I'd sooner have him autograph a Spider-Man action figure if I didn't have a Silver Age Spidey or FF issue on me. As for where to put the autograph, he'll probably scrawl his name before you have a chance to yell anything at him, but I've always thought the bigger and more centrally located the autograph is, the better.

4. Wear comfortable shoes?

If a pile of money drops on me this week (unlikely), I might show up there myself. Was planning on it, but the funding doesn't look favorable right now.

 

Stan will already have a sharpie for comic book or other item you already have. Just be prepared to a clog in the line. He'll greet you, sign what you have, and you'll be on your way. Just don't expect anything special.

 

Okay, so he was at Denver Comic Con in June and I paid the $100 to get a photo with him.

How they did it is your ticket will have a time stamp on it. You're expected to be in line rought 15 minutes before your "scheduled time (and I use it loosely because they did say Stan likes to take breaks between groups) and then they just move the lines like an assembly line until everyone has gotten their photo with him. You can also have up to 4 people in the photo under one ticket.

The photos were guaranteed. In fact, my scheduled time was 6:45, but the 6PM line didn't start moving until closer to 6:30. They had everyone's photo taken arond 7:20ish. You could also buy digital copies of your photo for an extra $10.

Now for autographs, it worked in the same manner, at least it did according to one of my friends. You won't need a sharpie because he already has a full set of them with him. As for what to bring, that is up to you. If I ever get the chance to meet him again (which I doubt since NYCC is supposed to be his final convention apperance, but you never know) I'm going to have him autograph the first Spider-Man Omnibus.

 

I'll bet he loved the fact you were wearing a Batman T-shirt...  

 

lol He never noticed. I don't have any Marvel T-Shirts and getting his photo that day was a last minute decision.

No, what was funny was in his panel the first question someone asked him was who would win, Batman or Superman.  

 

What did he say?

'They wouldn't fight because their mothers have the same name! Excelsior!'

 

Thanks for reading, true believer!!

 

He said, "Are you seriously asking me a DC question?"

He made a joke about it and then talked about how DC doesn't have a sense of humor.

There was also someone that asked him how he created Deadpool and the entire audience groaned.

 

I met him about 10 years ago! Stood on line close to three hours, but it was worth it. Of course that was when he came to speak at the local college.

 

I just wanted to follow up and give my thoughts on the whole Stan Lee experience now that it is over (in case anybody cared). I opted for the expensive $350 Stan Lee VIP experience instead of the $100 autograph only route. I did so because I wanted to cut down the time waiting in line (I had two of my kids with me) and I was a bit worried about getting the autograph (Stan was leaving early and there was no guarantee that everybody that wanted a $100 autograph would get one). So what did I get for $350? A picture with Stan (pretty much like the one Dr. Kane posted above), 2 recent comics, a Spider-Man print signed by Stan, a Stan Lee t-shirt, an autograph by Stan (on an item provided by me), and the ability to skip ahead in line in front of people just getting the photo or autograph. Was it worth it? Yes and no. It definitely was nice skipping ahead in line and saving time that could be spent elsewhere at the convention. Also, I ended up being 4th or 5th in line for the autograph which gave me a prime spot to see Stan make his entrance and take a few quick photos (once he took his seat you weren't allowed to take pictures). However, if I had to do it all over again, I probably would have just got the $100 autograph. My fears of not being able to get an autograph were unfounded. I'm pretty sure that everybody who wanted an autograph was able to get one before Stan left the convention. Smkspy was right - they get everybody in and out really quick and there is hardly anytime for interaction with Stan. All in all though, it was a fun experience - I've never been to a comic book convention before (only Transformers conventions).

I attached a pic below of my haul from the convention. I got Stan to sign the very first comic book I ever bought - Amazing Spider-Man #319. It isn't worth anything, it's in terrible shape, and Stan didn't personally write it but it has huge nostalgic value to me for being my first comic. I also picked up Transformers #3 (Spider-Man makes an appearance) and a complete G1 Metroplex with box and foam (for $80).

Anyways, thanks to everybody in this thread for your help and advice!

 

As long as you enjoyed meeting him, that's what matters.

 

Awesome. Glad you got your autograph.