Anthrocon 2006



Anthrocon 2006 took place from June 15 to 18, 2006 at the Westin Hotel and David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. For the first time in its ten year history, Anthrocon was not held in July, but rather in June. The convention was moved from Philadelphia (where it was in 2005) to Pittsburgh.


 * Theme: Making History
 * Attendance: 2,489
 * Charity: Western Pennsylvania National Wild Animal Orphanage

Venue
After the Adams Mark was scheduled for demolition, Anthrocon was forced to seek new accommodation on very short notice. While the Wyndham Philadelphia locale was adequate during the 2005 convention, it was determined even before July 2005 that a new location would be required. As Philadelphia was showing no signs of providing an affordable venue that was acceptable to the demands and budget of a large-scale convention on terms that the convention directors could accept, the decision was made to switch to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The new facility, which features a separate hotel and convention space, appeared to alleviate most issues which had come up in the past conventions as well as provided enough space for a substantial Dealers Room, Artists Alley, and other 'permanent' programming space.

Guests of Honor
Anthrocon's Guests of Honor for 2006 were:
 * Writer/animator/cartoonist/artist Scott Shaw!
 * Science fiction and fantasy author Diane Duane
 * Filk musician Tom Smith

Board of directors

 * Dr. Samuel Conway (Uncle Kage) - Chairman of the Board
 * John "K.P." Cole - Programming
 * Brian Harris - Charity Auction, Masquerade
 * Karl "Xydexx" Jorgensen - Publications
 * Peter Kappesser - Art show
 * Phaedra "Wyldekyttin" Meyer - Dealers' Room
 * Douglas Muth (Giza) - Operations
 * Tigerwolf (George Nemeyer) - Internet Room
 * Phillip "Bennie" Pollard - Registration
 * Steve "SimbaLion" Hopps - Audio/Video

Interesting facts

 * A lone brick - all that remained from old Adams Mark hotel - was sold at the charity auction for $200.
 * $5,845 was raised for the Western Pennsylvania National Wild Animal Orphanage
 * Pre-registered attendance counts topped at 2,489 people. This is a record over that of Anthrocon 2004. It also caused the "death" of one of the registration badge printers, specifically the printer which was responsible for the six-hour waits in the registration line at Anthrocon 2003.
 * The total of all on site registrations and one day passes over the entire 10-year history of Anthrocon was approximately 15,000.
 * 191 fursuiters attended the fursuit parade
 * 2 the Ranting Gryphon was a notable appearance.

Problems
While for the most part the fan reception of Anthrocon 2006 was very positive, there were some problems.


 * Many had issues with Anthrocon's move to a union-run establishment, which was forced upon it mostly due to size constraints. Some dealers chafed at the requirement of waiting for Teamsters to unload their work from the loading dock rather than doing it themselves - not that they were inefficient while working, but there were only a few of them and they were sometimes on breaks. Some got around this by carrying in material via the door from the hotel, which was permitted as long as the cart they carried their goods on was small enough to fit inside an airplane overhead baggage compartment. According to PeterCat: the Teamsters "required a break every 2 hours and a 30-minute unpaid lunch period after 4," but were easier to deal with than volunteers in many respects. There were similar problems with food in the convention area, which had to be bought at the concession stands, and many snuck food in to avoid paying $7 for a cheeseburger.
 * Many room signs (some of which were original works of art) put up by fans were unceremoniously removed by hotel staff, in part because at least one was held on with duct tape, which could be expected to damage the paint on removal. One person retaliated by removing the room numbers from six rooms, which cost Anthrocon $400 in damages (negotiated down from $600). Anthrocon also took a $6,000 charge when it turned out that dealers would have to pay $52 each (rather than $10) for city taxes, a cost absorbed by the con.
 * Spazfox's show turned out not to have nearly adequate space (a larger room was eventually booked for 2007). The fursuit parade also conflicted with the end of the art show auction as it wound through the dealer's room.
 * The Frozen Oasis party on Friday night was forced to close around 50 minutes after it started due to complaints from hotel management and at least one person in another room. Party members asserted that some of the Dorsai Irregulars threatened to remove con badges from those entering and leaving the room unless it was shut down. It was suggested that future parties be moved to a room in a separate hotel so that they would not be directly associated with the convention.
 * There was also the standard couple of dislocations, broken bones, and one person getting wheeled off in an ambulance after supposedly overdosing on an "experimental drug" in private. Most of this appeared to happen on Sunday, after the convention programming had concluded.

Media coverage
Anthrocon 2006 was covered in the local media, beginning in February with a news brief item Fur Ball In the Works in the Pittsburgh City Paper. Coverage tended towards neutral-to-positive.


 * 'Furries' Descend On Golden Triangle/The Furries Are Here from WTAE-TV 4
 * Furries Descend On Pittsburgh broadcast and article from KDKA.
 * It's a furry weekend in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
 * All about 'furry fandom' at confab in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
 * Animal Passions in the Pittsburgh City Paper.

Anthrocon 2006 was featured in the Guinness Book of World Records 2008 as the "Largest Furry Fan Club"

Events

 * WikiFur Meetup at Anthrocon 2006