This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Will the second Salt Lake Comic Con be happening in January?
That's the hint being given by SLCC organizers, both on the event's Twitter feed and in an item on Forbes.com.
"I can give you this clue: 'Returning in January 2014,'" read a tweet posted Wednesday evening. The tweet linked to the Forbes.com article that concludes with this tidbit: "Organizers have been elusive with details, but have hinted strongly at a coming program of some level in January 2014."
Last week, SLCC founder Dan Farr told the "Radio From Hell" crew at X96 that the September date worked well for the event — drawing some 85,000 attendees to see a raft of stars that included William Shatner, Adam West, Dean Cain, Kevin Sorbo and Stan Lee.
Farr did hint that SLCC may stage some smaller events throughout the year, leading up to the second Comic Con.
A small event in January could be a nice appetizer, but staging a full-scale Salt Lake Comic Con then would present some major obstacles.
For starters, the SLCC venue, the Salt Palace, is usually booked for most of January, with the Outdoor Retailers Winter Market. The market only lasts for four days, but the set-up and tear-down occupies the site for weeks.
Then there's the competition from that other major cultural event that happens every January: The Sundance Film Festival, which last year had nearly 46,000 people attending during its 11-day run.
And Utah's winter weather may be a hardship on the cosplayers. The hobbits won't be able to go barefoot, and the various Wonder Women and slave girl Princess Leias would freeze in their tights. Unless you want everyone dressed as Chewbacca or a character from "Game of Thrones," that's going to be a problem. (Or, as Mrs. Cricket notes, you can set up a really big coat-check at the already overworked registration desk.)