Pam Grier, star of “Smallville” and “Jackie Brown,” will be a celebrity guest at September’s Spa-Con 3.
Pam Grier, who became a superstar in what were known as “Blaxploitation” movies in the 1970s and 1980s, will be a celebrity guest at the Third Annual Spa-Con multi-genre comics and pop culture convention in Hot Springs September 21 – 23.
Spa-Con fans may know her best for her recent role in the hit science fiction series Smallville, but she is also famous for her award-winning role in Jackie Brown, Quentin Tarrantino’s homage to the “Blaxploitation” movie genre.
“Hot Springs is honored to welcome Ms. Grier to our convention,” said Bill Solleder, marketing director for Visit Hot Springs and one of the founders of Spa-Con. “She will certainly be a stellar addition to Spa-Con 3.”
Grier was one of eight special guests announced by Spa-Con organizers. She joins Sean Maher, star of the hit movie “Serenity” and the TV series “Arrow,” Arvell Jones, a renowned illustrator for Marvel Comics, and Nightingale Vixen, the well-known cosplay performer, who were announced previously as guest celebrities for the convention.
Chief among the other celebrities announced today is Veronica Taylor, a voice actress who is the voice of Ash Ketchum from Pokemon. She also is the voice of other notable animated characters including April O’Neil from the 2003 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series and Sailor Pluto in the Viz Media dub of Sailor Moon.
Pam Grier, a native of Winston-Salem, N.C., was discovered by director Jack Hill, who cast her in his women-in-prison films The Big Doll House (1971), and The Big Bird Cage (1972). She became a staple of early 1970s “Blaxploitation” movies, playing big, bold, assertive women, beginning with Jack Hill’s Coffy (1973), in which she plays a nurse who seeks revenge on drug dealers.
Other Spa-Con guests announced today include:
• Nipah Dubs, an award-winning cosplayer with over seven years of experience styling wigs, sewing, making props and armor, and promoting the art of cosplay.
• Chad Maupin, a comics and visual artist known for his work developing the brands Fayettechill and Houndstooth Clothing Co.
• David Lasky, a comics and visual artist who will be returning to Spa-Con in September.
• Bill Tsutsui, president and professor of history at Hendrix College, who will present a special panel at Spa-Con 2018. He has either written or edited eight books, as well as numerous articles on modern Japanese history.
• Ross Watson, an award-winning game designer and author. He has designed and written for video games, board games, card games, miniature games, and several roleplaying games.
• Yale Stewart, a cartoonist from St. Louis, best known for creating, writing, and illustrating the award-winning webcomic, JL8.
“Altogether, we will have more than two dozen celebrity guests at this year’s Spa-Con,” Solleder said. “We had over 5,000 people in attendance last year.”
Spa-Con, presented by Visit Hot Springs and the Garland County Library, will be held at the Hot Springs Convention Center, with an array of activities that will include laser tag, an escape room, video games, panel discussions, workshops, cosplay contests and interaction with the celebrity guests.
Weekend passes and VIP passes for Spa-Con 3 are on sale now at www.spa-con.org. For more information, call Bill Solleder at 501-321-2027.
