Wizard World Portland Comic Con Attendees To Receive ‘The Walking Dead #1’ Limited Edition Exclusive Variant Cover By Steve Lieber, January 23-25

Eisner Award Winner To Draw Second Cover In 2015 Series Available At Oregon Convention Center For Full-Price Attendees; VIP Fans Get Additional B&W Sketch Cover At Registration

 Wizard World, Inc. (OTCBB: WIZD) and Skybound, Robert Kirkman‘s imprint at Image Comics, announced that Eisner Award winning artist Steve Lieber will draw the second in a yearlong series of Limited Edition Exclusive Variant Covers of The Walking Dead #1comic, to be provided free to all full-price attendees at Wizard World Portland Comic Con, January 23-25. Skybound’s The Walking Dead created by Kirkman, the groundbreaking, Eisner Award winning comic book series, continues to captivate audiences worldwide.

The exclusive The Walking Dead #1 edition will be produced in extremely limited quantities and is available at registration to fans at the Oregon Convention Center only while supplies last. VIP attendees will receive an additional black & white sketch version of the comic.

Lieber, whose publishers include DC Comics, Marvel, Dark Horse, Image, Scholastic and many others, The Portland resident has worked on characters like Batman, Superman, Hellboy and Road to Perdition, but he’s best known as the artist of the graphic novel Whiteout and its Eisner-winning sequel, Whiteout: Melt, which were adapted by Warner Brothers as a movie starring Kate Beckinsale. He recently completed two Alabaster graphic novels at Dark Horse, and is currently illustrating Superior Foes of Spider-Man for Marvel.

“Having a local artist like Steve Lieber draw this excellent cover is a nice bonus for Wizard World Portland Comic Con fans,” said John Macaluso, Wizard World CEO and President. “His success as an Eisner Award winner shows in this design.”

The artists for future books will be announced as they are selected. A similar series in 2013 featuring exclusives of The Walking Dead #1 proved to be wildly popular with fans. The full schedule of 2015 Wizard World shows is available atwww.wizd.me/PRSchedule2015.

Stars of “The Walking Dead” TV series scheduled to attend Wizard World Portland Comic Con include Steven Yeun, Sarah Wayne Callies, Michael Cudlitz, Josh McDermitt, Michael Rooker and Jon Bernthal. Other top celebrities on hand include Stephen Amell (“Arrow”), Evan Peters (X-Men: Days of Future Past), Tyler Posey (“Teen Wolf”), Karl Urban (Star Trek Into Darkness, Dredd), Ming-Na Wen (“Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), WWE® Superstar Daniel Bryan® and many others.

In addition to Lieber, Artist Alley at Portland Comic Con will feature Neal Adams (“Batman,” “Green Lantern”), Julian Totino Tedesco (“X-Treme X-Men,” “X-Force”), Chris Claremont (“Spider-Man,” “The Avengers”), Dean Haspiel (“Bored to Death,” “Billy Dogma”), Ethan Van Sciver (“Green Lantern,” “Justice League”), Arthur Suydam (“Marvel Zombies,” “Army of Darkness”) and more.

Wizard World Comic Con events bring together thousands of fans of all ages to celebrate the best in pop-fi, pop culture, movies, graphic novels, cosplay, comics, television, sci-fi, toys, video gaming, gaming, original art, collectibles, contests and more. Wizard World Portland Comic Con show hours are Friday, January 23, 3-8 p.m.; Saturday, January 24, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday, January 25, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.