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Meet Michael Bell at Retro Con 2024!
Yoooo Joe! If anyone is qualified to take over Neil Ross’ spot on our guest list, it’s this man! Please welcome veteran voice actor Michael Bell to Retro Con 2024!
An actor of more than 50 years, one of Michael’s most popular characters is field commander Conrad “Duke” Hauser on the classic 80’s cartoon GI Joe: A Real American Hero by Marvel/Sunbow Productions! In addition to playing Duke, Michael also voiced Major Bludd, Scrap-Iron, Xamot, Clutch, Tollbooth, and Blowtorch on the show. He reprised his Duke role for the very last scene of GI Joe Renegades in 2010, and for a hilarious GI Joe parody episode of Community in 2014!
Michael was also a big part of the original Transformers cartoon, celebrating its astounding *40th Anniversary* this year! Michael voiced such well-known characters on the show as Prowl, Scrapper, Sideswipe, Bombshell, First Aid, and Swoop! “Me Swoop no see nothing!” He also reprised the characters of Sideswipe and Scrapper for the Transformers: Devastation video game in 2015, and Prowl for a recent 40th Anniversary re-recording of the very first episode of Transformers!
Other notable characters Michael voiced include Lance and Sven on Voltron, Zan, Gleek, and the Riddler on Super Friends, Drew Pickles and Chas Finster on Rugrats, the title character in Ruby-Spears’ Plastic Man cartoon, “The Fear” in Metal Gear Solid 3, Raziel in The Legacy of Kain/Soul Reaver series, Handy, Lazy, and Grouchy on The Smurfs, Bruce Banner on The Incredible Hulk, Allstar Seaworthy on Snorks, Mark on Speed Buggy, Lawrence in the Ratchet & Clank series, and way too many more to list!
Michael also provided dubbing work on the original 1977 Star Wars, voicing General Willard on Yavin 4, and he overdubbed Peter Criss’ dialogue in the infamous TV movie ‘KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park’!
You may have also see Michael Bell on-screen! Look for him on classic tv shows such as Three’s Company, Star Trek: TNG and DS9, the Monkees, CHiPs, Get Smart, Mission Impossible, M*A*S*H, and Charlie’s Angels!
Meet the man behind the characters at Retro Con 2024, September 7th & 8th in Oaks, PA!
Follow Michael Bell Online!
Website: http://www.michaelbellvoices.com/
Meet Voice Actor Neil Ross at Retro Con 2024!
We’re kicking off our guest list with a voice acting great… Please welcome the esteemed Neil Ross to Retro Con 2024!
A fifty plus year veteran of voiceovers and radio, Neil has so many classic characters under his belt, it’s tough to pick a foremost role! He played unruly swabbie Shipwreck on the hit 80’s cartoon series GI Joe: A Real American Hero, one of the most popular Joes on the show. He also voiced other featured characters on the program such as Dusty, Buzzer, and Monkeywrench, as well as incredulous reporter Hector Ramirez, who is notable for being a crossover character in GI Joe, Transformers, Jem, and Inhumanoids!
Neil was also a big part in the Generation 1 Transformers cartoon, with his largest role being the rugged Autobot Springer in season 3 of the show. He also voiced surly Dinobot Slag, Hook and Bonecrusher of Constructicons/Devastator fame, Crosshairs, Pointblank, and Sixshot!
“And I’ll form… the head!” Switching over to Voltron, Neil played two of the main characters on the popular ‘Lion Force’ version of the show- Commander Keith and Pidge! He reprised the role of Keith for Voltron: The Third Dimension, and also voiced Voltron himself in a nostalgia-fueled “Happy Honda Days” series of commercials back in 2018.
Neil had another popular role in the 1990’s where he played the demented Green Goblin on the 1994 Spider-Man TV series, reaching a whole new generation of fans! You may also have heard Neil as Clyde in the 1982 Pac-Man cartoon, Leoric on Visionaries, Ace McCloud on Centurions, Herc Armstrong on Inhumanoids, FLUFFI on Bionic Six, Dr. Doom on Fantastic Four, the Clamp building announcer in Gremlins 2, and he voiced the title character in Rambo: The Force of Freedom! Yes, we had to include the image of Rambo riding on the back of a great white shark in Neil’s promo pic…
It’s been a full eleven years since Neil has been at Retro Con, and we’re looking forward to showing him how much we’ve grown since then. And we’re hoping you’ll come out to meet him too!
Neil has written his own autobiography entitled Vocal Recall: A Life in Radio and Voiceovers, chronicling his upbringing in the UK, time in the military, and his long career in the voiceover realm. You can buy it directly on his website, with net proceeds donated to Broadcasters Foundation of America & The Actors Fund!
Retro Con 2023 Weird Toy Contest!
NEW CONTEST ALERT!!
The Retro Con household has an unhealthy obsession with offbeat/quirky toys, and now we want to see YOUR weirdness! Come witness the strange, the bizarre, the unexpected… at the Retro Con 2023 Weird Toy Contest!
The contest will be held in the Panel room on Saturday at the show. No sign-ups are required, you can simply show for line-up with your toy just before contest start time (full show schedule very coming soon). Your toy can be officially licensed, unlicensed, vintage, new, or even bootleg. We’re also allowing “toy adjacent” items to be entered, which are those tie-in items associated with a toy line or brand, such as lunchboxes, gumball machines, electronic toothbrushes, model kits, pharmacy rack toys, and of course… He-Man slippers like the ones shown in our picture!
If your toy involves a gimmick you’d like to demonstrate, you’re welcome to do so. Custom toys however will *not* be allowed as they’re too easy to purposely design “askew”. We also request that your toy be suitable for a family-oriented crowd. We reserve the right to decline any toy we feel is inappropriate for the contest. So leave your Shape-shifter Punisher at home!
Top prize for the contest is a brand new in box Super Shogun Optimus Prime by Super7! Shogun Optimus stands at a commanding 24″ inches tall, has rolling wheels on his feet, and a launching fist just like the old Shogun Warriors! 2nd Prize is the currently sold-out GI Joe Classified Serpentor figure, and 3rd Prize is the Comic Con (or “Cosmic Con”) exclusive ALF figure by NECA!
A big thanks to our friend Mike from The Breaux Show for hosting the contest!
Meet Sgt. Slaughter at Retro Con 2018!
We welcome back to Retro Con a true living legend: The one and only Sgt. Slaughter!
A wrestler for over 40 years, Sgt. Slaughter became a household name when he joined the WWF in the early 1980s with his signature “Cobra Clutch” move. Inspired by the Sarge’s drill instructor persona and wild popularity, Hasbro decided to incorporate the Sarge into their GI Joe: A Real American Hero toy line, comic, and animated series in 1985! Voicing himself, his cartoon debut was in the Season 2 Arise Serpentor Arise mini series, where we learn the Sarge is one of the GI Joe team’s greatest warriors and trainers. The character is easily a fan-favorite and is still regularly talked about by Joe fans to this day.
Sgt. Slaughter will be at the show all weekend for autograph and photo ops. We’ll have his prices up on the website very soon. Come to Retro Con and meet one of the true icons of pop culture!!
Win Free Stuff at the Retro Con 2018 Trivia Contest!
We’ll once again be hosting our annual trivia contest at Retro Con 2018!
Hosted once again by our good friend Mike Breaux of The Breaux Show, the contest will be held in the panel area at the convention on Saturday! (Time To Be Determined)
No sign-up is required and there are no age restrictions- Anyone can watch or play! We will reveal each item one at a time, then ask a trivia question related to it. Directly after we will randomly call on a person in the audience with their hand raised to answer. If they get it right, they win the prize on the spot. If not, we ask a different audience member until the prize is claimed!
So stop by the panel area Saturday to test your knowledge of all things geek and win cool prizes!!
Garry Chalk to Attend Retro Con 2018! Sponsored by CNS Art!
“Well, that’s just Prime…”
Thanks to our good friend Candice Santora, we proudly welcome actor Garry Chalk to Retro Con 2018!
Garry is best known for voicing the noble leader of the Maximals, Optimus Primal, in the popular 90’s iteration of Transformers: Beast Wars! Garry voiced the character in all three seasons of the show, as well as both seasons of the follow-up series Beast Machines.
Garry is known for numerous other animated roles as well! Man-At-Arms in the 2002 Masters of the Universe series, Guts Man on the 90’s Mega Man cartoon, Pathfinder and Metal Head in the DiC GI Joe series, Grounder on 1993’s Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, Optimus Prime in the 2000’s era Transformers Armada Trilogy, Slash on Reboot, and King Hippo on the Saturday morning classic Captain N: The Game Master!
Garry has also been an on-screen actor for over 30 years! You can find him in such shows and movies as Arrow, Stargate SG-1, Watchmen, Supernatural, Freddy vs Jason, Godzilla (2014), The X-Files, Psych, The Fly II, Power Rangers (2017), and many more. You can check out Garry’s wide filmography HERE!
We’d like to give a very special thanks to Candice Santora, who has very kindly offered to sponsor Garry’s trip to Retro Con!! She is the official artist for Garry and you can check out her art page HERE!
We’d also like to thank Sherry Fowler for her assistance!
Please join Garry Chalk’s official fan group on facebook!
https://www.facebook.com/groups/chalk.fans/
Meet Gregg Berger at Retro Con 2018!
We welcome Gregg Berger as our latest guest for Retro Con 2018!
Gregg is best known for voicing the mighty leader of the Dinobots: Grimlock! He voiced the fan-favorite character in all of the G1 Transformers series, Transformers: The Movie (1986), several Transformers video games, and recently revisited the character in Machinima’s new Transformers: Power of the Primes web series!
Gregg can also be heard as Skyfire and Long Haul in G1 Transformers, Spirit and Firefly on GI Joe, Cornfed Pig on Duckman, The Gromble on Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, Mr. Little on The Littles, Agent K on Men in Black: The Series, and he has been the voice of lovable pooch Odie for over 35 years!
Gregg is known for on-camera work as well! You may have seen him in Police Academy: Mission to Moscow (he’s even on the poster!), as well as Spaced Invaders (“They blew up our new off-ramp!”).
Gregg will be at the show both days for autographs and photo ops. Prices will be posted as we get closer to showtime.
Retro Con 2017 Show and Panel Schedule
Saturday October 14th, 2017
9:00am: Preregistrant Check-in Begins
10:00am: Show Opens
10:30am: Panel- The Rad Years Podcast (Cybertronic Spree guests) (Panel area)
11:30am: Panel- Mr. Lobo and OSI 74: Fall Sneak Preview (Panel Area)
12:45pm: Raffle Session 1
– A-Team Van Lego & Funko Pop Set
– Dr. Who TARDIS/Donkey Kong Jengae
– Playmobil Ghostbusters Ecto-1
– Masterpiece Optimus Prime
1:00pm: Karaoke Contests Sign-ups (Lobby)
1:00pm: Trivia Contest! Hosted by The Breaux Show (Panel Area)
2:00pm: Costume Contest, 14 and Older! Hosted by Eric “The Smoke” Moran (Panel Area)
3:15pm: Truly Outrageous Karaoke Contest! Hosted by Nagi Oki (Panel Area)
4:45pm: Raffle Session #2
– Destro Helmet
– Filmation He-Man signed by John Erwin
– Lego Slave-1
5:00pm: Panel- Captain Kyle’s Cosplay Spotlite (Panel Area)
6:00pm: Show Closes
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Sunday October 15th, 2017
9:00am: Show Opens
11:15am- Panel- The Breaux Show and SEO Toy Review (Panel Area)
12:00pm: Raffle Session #1
– Giant Size Skeletor
– Playmobil Ghostbusters Firehouse
– Transformers Generations Fort Max
12:00pm to 3pm: James Rolfe/AVGN signing (Guest Section)
12:15pm: Kids Costume Contest, 13 and under! (Panel Area)
1:15pm: Panel- Behind the Characters: Rob Paulsen & Arthur Burghardt (Panel Area)
2:00pm: Panel- The A-Team! W/ Dwight Schultz & Dirk Benedict
2:45pm: Raffle Session #2
– Super Nintendo Classic Edition
– NES Classic Edition/Yarn NES Controller
– Lego Sandcrawler
3:15pm: Panel- James Rolfe/Angry Video Game Nerd (Panel Area)
4:00pm: Show Closes
Arthur Burghardt to attend Retro Con 2017!
We are pleased to announce our first guest for Retro Con 2017: Arthur Burghardt!
Arthur’s most prolific role is that of shrewd arms dealer Destro in the original Marvel/Sunbow GI Joe series!
As owner of M.A.R.S. Industries, he was the primary weapons-provider for all of Cobra. Though considered part of the Cobra command hierarchy (along with his romantic love interest The Baroness), Destro and Cobra Commander were often at odds with each other, suggesting their alliance was more a matter of convenience than solidarity.
Destro’s intriguing mix of coldness, honor, and calm demeanor, not to mention the cool metal mask he wears to honor his ancestors, has made him a fan-favorite for over 30 years!
Another hugely popular voice of Arthur’s was that of the original Transformers combiner giant: DEVASTATOR!!
As the amalgamated form of the six Constructicons (Scrapper, Hook, Long Haul, Scavenger, Bonecrusher, and Mixmaster), Devastator didn’t always have much to say, but Arthur’s booming voice always made for a commanding appearance nonetheless! Devastator is arguably the most popular combiner in all of Transformers. Arthur played the character in the original Marvel/Sunbow G1 cartoon series, as well as the 1986 theatrical movie.
Arthur also gave voice to two other notable GI Joe characters: jetpack-wearing Sergeant Stalker, and cold weather operative Iceberg!
And he played one of the main players on Challenge of the GoBots: the courageous Guardian Turbo!
“Time to go!!”
Arthur will be at Retro Con all weekend for autograph and photo ops. We will post up a price list as the show draws closer. Come meet the voice of some of the most iconic characters of the 80’s!!
PRE-REG HAS ENDED! BUY AT DOOR!
Vendor Table Info Below!
Sponsors!
Retro Con would like to thank all those that helped to sponsor this show!
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98.5 WXPM The Phoenix
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The Retro Network
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Rediscover The 80s
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Friends of Retro Con!
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The Breaux Show
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Fandom Spotlite
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Toy Spotlite
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The Very Best
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retrocons.com 