
Policemen in Seattle wearing masks made by the Red Cross, during the influenza epidemic. December 1918. (Photo: U.S. National Archives)

ECCC 2020 and Coronavirus
UPDATE: Emerald City Comic Con has rescheduled for August 21-23, 2020.
At this time of year, I would be preparing for the annual Emerald City Comic Con. Due to health concerns over the Coronavirus/COVID-19 and the relatively high profile Seattle currently has in this crisis, Emerald City Comic Con has postponed its event in Seattle which had been scheduled to be held at the Washington State Convention Center, March 12-15, 2020. The plan is now to see about holding this event sometime this summer. Time will tell. More information will tell. And, ultimately, the Coronavirus itself will speak for itself, thank you very much. If history of the Spanish Flu ((January 1918 – December 1920) is any indication, perhaps COVID-19 will take a dip in the summer only to come back even stronger by the fall. This, of course, strongly begs the question if all comics conventions and festivals, along with any mass gatherings, should just take a break for 2020. Perhaps a balance can be achieved. The main problem is that these sort of events take time and require precise planning so that makes a stronger case for firm cancellations instead of postponements. It will be interesting to see how this resolves itself since ReedPOP, the organizers of Emerald City Comic Con, are entering uncharted waters. The good news is that people are genuinely concerned and options are being considered. And speaking of good news, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has announced it will begin offering home-testing kits for people in the Seattle area for COVID-19 in the coming weeks.

Dan Dougherty and Friends
Emerald City Comic Con is, by all measures, the preeminent pop culture event in the Pacific Northwest. So many hardworking talented professionals depend upon ECCC as part of their livelihood. With that in mind, enterprising cartoonist Dan Dougherty has gotten creative with interacting with his fans and is holding his own online comic con. For the month of March, Dougherty has this offer: “A lot of people in the comic community are trying to make up for lost sales, and I’m no different. I’m offering a 10% discount on all purchases in my online store from now until the end of the month! This can be used as many times as you like and for your ENTIRE order! Just use the coupon code WASHYOURHANDS at checkout to apply the discount.” Find Dan Dougherty’s Beardo Comics and take advantage of the discount here. Every little bit can help displaced talent like Dougherty. Meanwhile, all we can really do is monitor the crisis and act appropriately.
The following is a statement from ReedPOP, organizers of Emerald City Comic Con:
4th of July: Top Ten List of What Has the Power to Unite the USA
Fireworks on July 4th, at Gasworks Park; People recording fireworks on cell phones; Space Needle in background, Seattle, Washington State, USA
Let’s start off with some music fun facts: Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” is one of the biggest songs of 2019, sitting on top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart for six straight weeks as of May 13. If you’re looking for an example of the power of pop culture and music, then this is it. The Billy Ray Cyrus-featuring remix also holds five of the top seven spots on Billboard’s list of the biggest streaming weeks in the publication’s history.
Don’t underestimate the power of that which can unite and that which we share in common. We all want family, friends and community, right? We all want good health. We all want to be inspired. So, here’s a list of that which can unite us and that which most, if not all of us, have in common one way or another as the USA celebrates the 4th of July in 2019:
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