October 23-24, 2009
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
This interdisciplinary symposium offers multifaceted insight into the genre of the superhero for novice and aficionado alike. Exhibition curator Ben Saunders has assembled an exceptional panel of experts and industry insiders, including keynote speakers Danny Fingeroth (author of Superman On The Couch and Disguised As Clark Kent) and Charles Hatfield (author of Alternative Comics: An Emerging Literature). Guests panelists include Kurt Busiek (author of numerous Superhero titles for Marvel and DC and creator of the award-winning Astro Cityseries), Matt Faction (an Eisner Award-winning comic book writer of The Invincible Iron Man and Uncanny X-Men), and Gail Simone (writer on Marvel’s Deadpool, DC’s Birds of Prey, co-creator of Welcome To Tranquility for Wildstorm, and current Wonder Woman scribe).
Understanding Superheroes is made possible by the generous support of the following institutions, UO departments, and programs: The Oregon Humanities Center; the College of Arts and Sciences; the Arts and Administration Program; The Department of Art History; The Comparative Literature Program; The Department of Creative Writing; The Center for the Study of Women in Society; The Department of English; The Harold Schnitzer Family Program in Judaic Studies; the Knight Library, Department of Special Collections; The Office of the Vice President For Research and Graduate Studies; and the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art.
Supported in part by Copic Markers Products/Imagination International Inc.
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Understanding Superheroes Conference
Schedule of Events
Friday, October 23, 2009
9:00 a.m.
Registration: Lobby, Erb Memorial Union (EMU)
10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Three Discussion Panels
Panel One My Best Enemy: The Signifying Super-Villain - With Trevor Dodge, Andrew Grace, and Kom Kunyosying (River Rooms, EMU)
Panel Two Queer Power: Superheroes and Sexualities - With Ramzi Fawaz, Michael P. Harrison, and Jenée Wilde (Ben Linder Room, EMU)
Panel Three Being and Super-Beings: Existentialism, Temporality, and Eschatology - With Beth Davies-Stofka, Jonathan Tanner, and Douglas Wolk (Fir Room, EMU)
12:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Break
4:00 p.m.
Keynote Lecture by Writer/Editor Danny Fingeroth
Disguised As Clark Kent: Jews, Comics, and the Creation of the Superhero
(180 Prince Lucien Campbell (PLC))
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Saturday, October 24, 2009
8:30 a.m.
Bagels and Coffee
9:00 to 10:30 a.m.
Keynote Lecture by Professor Charles Hatfield
What Jack Kirby Did To The Superhero
(180 PLC)
11:00 a.m.
Writing The Contemporary Superhero
A Comic-Creator Panel with Kurt Busiek, Matt Fraction, and Gail Simone
(180 PLC)
12:30 p.m.
Lunch Break
1:00 to 2:00 p.m.
Book Signings at Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art
2:30 to 4:00 p.m.
Three Discussion Panels
Panel One Wearing The Flag: Nationalism, Regionalism, and Race - With Brannon Costello, Corey Creekmur, and Dyfrig Jones (182 Lillis)
Panel Two Beyond The Movies: Superheroes and Other Media - With Luke Geddes, Jonathan Gray, and William Kuskin (282 Lillis)
Panel Three Secret Identity Politics: Religion, Ethnicity and Superheroes - With Harry Brod, Josh Plencner, and Matt Yockey (129 McKenzie)
4:00 to 4:30 p.m.
Coffee Break
4:30 p.m.
Keynote Lecture by Professor Henry Jenkins
“The Man Without Fear”: David Mack and the Formal Limits of the Superhero Genre (180 PLC)
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