It's Friday: Comic-Con 2009 Arrives

July 23rd 2009 marks the 40th anniversary of the Comic-Con International festival. The diverse guest list includes comic book writers, illustrators, science fiction writers and artists, and actors and actresses. The Comic-Con also promotes the latest films, novels, and artwork related to the genre.

Some of this years notable attendees are Ray Bradbury,

who has published more than 600 short stories over a period of sixty years. He has written short stories, novels, screenplays, plays, and poetry. His best-known books are The Martian Chronicles, The Illustrated Man, Something Wicked This Way Comes, and Fahrenheit 451. A novel, Farewell Summer, which is the sequel to Bradbury’s classic Dandelion Wine, was published in October of 2006. In September of 2007 his book Now And Forever: Somewhere a Band is Playing and Leviathan ’99 was released. In February 2009 another collection of short stories, We’ll Always Have Paris, was published. He was a guest at the very first San Diego Comic-Con in 1970, and wrote the Foreword for Comic-Con: 40 Years of Artists, Writers, Fans and Friends!, the new pictorial history celebrating the show’s 40th event.

Kevin J Anderson,

international bestselling author of nearly 100 books, with 20 million copies in print. He and Brian Herbert have co-authored 12 Dune novels. Anderson has also written the SF epic "Saga of Seven Suns" and two novels set in the DC Universe: Last Days Of Krypton and Enemies & Allies. He has written comics for DC, Marvel, Dark Horse, IDW, and WildStorm.

and Kevin Eastman,

already a Jack Kirby fan — Kevin Eastman's first drawing was on the house walls. First published cartoon was in Clay Greedes Comics Wave; first published comic: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (with co- creator Peter Laird); first Magazine purchased: Heavy Metal (and still acting publisher). Currently lives in Los Angeles with Pamela, two kids named Shane and Peter (also Kirby fans), as well as eight dogs: Pickles, Pudding, Pretzel, Pumpkin, Taco, Coco, Olive, and Mr. Man. Oh, and a hamster named Cindy.

Check out the entire guest list here.