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http://www.thenerdelement.com/2019/07/10/bbc-studios-brings-virtual-reality-signings-fan-art-competition-reveal-and-exclusive-doctor-who-merchandise-from-bbc-shop-to-bbc-americas-san-diego-comic-con-booth/

The BBC Booth is always a staple at San Diego Comic-Con. The studio just released its plans for 2019 San Diego Comic-Con and we have the press release for you below. I know I will be stopping by the booth. I can’t wait to check out the VR game!

NEW YORK – July 10, 2019 – Attendees traveling through space and time to San Diego Comic-Con can visit BBC AMERICA’s booth (#4129) to discover an immersive virtual reality experience, in-booth signings, the reveal of the winning artwork from the Doctor Who Fan Art Competition, and exclusive Doctor Who apparel, figures, and more from BBC Shop. The Doctor Who team is currently in production on their next season coming to BBC AMERICA.

Doctor Who: The Edge of Time VR Experience

You don’t have to be part of the TARDIS team to help the Doctor save the universe! New and returning fans visiting the BBC AMERICA booth will be among the first stateside to demo the upcoming virtual reality (VR) game Doctor Who: The Edge of Time, releasing in September 2019.

A feature-length VR experience, the game will transport fans into a globally-beloved world of monsters and aliens, mystery and wonder, letting them embark on a brand-new and fully-interactive adventure, inspired by the show’s 55-year history and starring the Doctor’s current incarnation, played by Jodie Whittaker.

Doctor Who: The Edge Of Time will launch on PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift, Oculus, HTC Vive, and Vive Cosmos in September. Doctor Who: The Edge of Time is a Maze Theory production for BBC Studios.

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Signings

The BBC AMERICA booth will host signings with artist Kelly Yates and author Richard Dinnick:

• Kelly Yates will be at the BBC AMERICA booth on Thursday, July 18 and Saturday July 20 from 2:00pm-3:00pm. Yates, an illustrator best known for his work on Doctor Who comics for both Titan and IDW, inspired the exclusive Kawaii Collection available through the BBC Shop. In addition, he writes and illustrates the creator-owned books Amber Atoms and MonstHer.
• Richard Dinnick will be at the BBC AMERICA booth on Friday, July 19 and Sunday, July 21 from 2:00pm-3:00pm. Dinnick, author of Doctor Who: Myths and Legends and contributing author of the Doctor Who: The Missy Chronicles anthology, is a scripted writer for BBC, ITV, Disney XD and Amazon Prime. He has also written books and comics for Doctor Who and Lost in Space for IDW, BBC, Titan, and Legendary Entertainment, across all thirteen Doctors. He is currently working on his new TV show, Surface Tension and Rob (a retelling of Robin Hood) for Legendary.

Exclusive Merchandise

BBC Shop is bringing a slew of exclusive and first-to-market Doctor Who merchandise to San Diego Comic-Con:

Comic-Con Exclusives

• Funko POP! Figurine: Pting (Retail: $15.00)
• 3” Thirteenth Doctor TITAN Figurine (Retail: $10.00)
• 3” Thirteenth Doctor & Materializing TARDIS Kawaii Figurine (Retail: $20.00)
• Team TARDIS Hoodie (Retail: $50.00)
• Thirteenth Doctor and TARDIS Kawaii T-Shirt (Retail: $25.00)
• TARDIS Rainbow Galaxy T-Shirt (Retail: $25.00)
• Team TARDIS Kawaii Mug (Retail: $15.00)
• Blue TARDIS Tumbler (Retail: $20.00)
• Rainbow Fleece Pullover (Retail: $45.00) – BBC Shop exclusive
• POLICE BOX Pants (Retail: $45.00) – BBC Shop exclusive

First-to-Market

• Fan Art T-Shirt: Winner Design (Retail: $25.00)
• Fan Art T-Shirt: Runner-Up Design 1 (Retail: $25.00)
• Fan Art T-Shirt: Runner-Up Design 2 (Retail: $25.00)
• Fan Art T-Shirt: Runner-Up Design 3 (Retail: $25.00)
• Fan Art T-Shirt: Runner-Up Design 4 (Retail: $25.00)
• Noodle Bowl with Chopsticks (Retail: $10.00)
• Thirteenth Doctor and TARDIS Enamel Pin Set (Retail: $15.00)
• Pting Enamel Pin (Retail: $5.00)
• TARDIS and Dalek Steampunk Tattoos (Retail: $5.00)
• Thirteenth Doctor Costume Mini Backpack (Retail: $65.00)
• Thirteenth Doctor Costume Wallet (Retail: $35.00)

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Fan Art Contest

Check out @BritiansBest and @doctorwhoshop for timing and countdown information, as well as reveals of the winning artwork. And then visit the BBC AMERICA booth daily to purchase exclusive shirts featuring the winning designs.

• Thursday, July 18: Runners up announced
• Friday, July 19: Runners up announced
• Saturday, July 20: Grand prize winner

Join the Family!

At the BBC AMERICA booth, scan your badge, and receive an exclusive Doctor Who button plus enter for your chance to win a daily giveaway. Come back each day to collect all five pins.

The post BBC STUDIOS BRINGS VIRTUAL REALITY, SIGNINGS, FAN ART COMPETITION REVEAL, AND EXCLUSIVE DOCTOR WHO MERCHANDISE FROM BBC SHOP TO BBC AMERICA’S SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON BOOTH appeared first on The Nerd Element.

https://nerdist.com/article/halloween-date-change-petition/

If you’re anything like me, you spent the majority of the calendar year looking forward to Halloween. October 31 is basically a holy day for freaks and weirdos, a day to celebrate the creepy-crawly things that go bump in the night. Forget Christmas or Thanksgiving or other joy-inspiring celebrations. Halloween is a time to embrace your inner demon or witch and enjoy the evil delights the world has to offer.

But because this planet Earth, where apparently we can’t have nice things, there’s a current petition going around that’s hoping to change the date we celebrate Halloween. According to CNN, almost 60,000 people have signed a petition created by a nonprofit called the Halloween & Costume Association that would move the holiday from October 31 to a fixed date: the last Saturday of the month, whatever the numerical date may be. Their argument? That this would create a “safer, longer, stress-free celebration.”

Let’s consider this for a moment. Currently, Halloween falls on the 31st and doesn’t take into consideration the actual day of the week. Because it’s not a national holiday, and is instead a day families may choose at will to celebrate, this allows a certain freedom. Most towns set their own rules for trick-or-treating–including start and cutoff times–so there’s a sense of informality to the holiday already. The Halloween & Costume Association is arguing that by changing the holiday to a set date, it can allow longer times and more fun for dressed up kids.

Unfortunately, those good intentions come with a cost. Mostly, that Halloween on October 31 is a longstanding tradition most folks won’t be eager to just ignore. It also ignores All Hallows Eve, a pagan tradition originated by the Celts and honored for thousands of years. Moving the holiday would ignore that religion and those customs in favor of a more homogenized version of the holiday, which is certainly a problem.

The Halloween & Costume Association has stayed mostly mum on their end, refusing to reply to CNN for a comment. Hopefully this petition amounts to nothing, and we can continue our countdowns. Less than 100 days until Halloween!

Images: Universal Pictures 

The post A Bunch of Lame Parents Want to Change the Date of Halloween appeared first on Nerdist.

https://www.themarysue.com/things-we-saw-today-disney-shaming/

It’s been almost a year since a rant against childless Disney park patrons went viral but apparently, we’re not done with that conversation yet.

Back in October, a Facebook post was making the rounds about the horrors of “CHILDLESS COUPLES WITHOUT AT DISNEY WORLD!!!!” The author of the post was infuriated by “IMMATURE millennials” who “THROW AWAY THEIR MONEY ON USELESS CRAP!!!!!” The direct target of this mother’s ire was a (and I’m going to drop quoting the capitalization here because that much caps lock is exhausting) “c**t in some very slutty shorts” minding their own business, trying to buy a Mickey pretzel. Apparently, this young person is the sole reason why the line was too long for this mother to want to stand it, why she wouldn’t buy her son a Mickey pretzel, and why that young boy was then reduced to tears.

Any reasonable person translates this to: A woman took her young son to a place that is designed around standing in lines, saw a 20-or-30-something person wearing something she didn’t approve of, having the audacity to have made life choices that didn’t involve children, and decided to blame that person for her anger. And yet, here we are, about 9 months later (a full gestation, if we’re the kind of person who can only think in terms of children), still seeing people trying to defend this sort of pointless rage.

The New York Post published an article this weekend titled, “Sorry, childless millennials going to Disney World is weird.”

Counterpoint: No it’s not, and everyone should stop trying to tell other people how to have fun.

There’s a lot of nonsense in this op-ed–starting with, again, just the general need to police other people’s fun–but the absolute worst part is the declaration that by going to places like Disney parks, millennials are doomed to “stupidity and culture ignorance.”

By going to Disney, this dude writes, “You’re skipping great films such as Booksmart and The Farewell to relive second grade. And your annual (or more, God help us) trip to Disney World costs as much — and more in some cases — than a trip to Europe, South America or Canada, where you would meet people different from yourself. People for whom the only color of the wind is see-through. Fanny-pack-less people.”

Taking the second point first, millennials (a generation that spans a 15 year age difference, so it’s hard to see full life trends in its younger end) are having children at lower rates, which means that many of us are able to visit both Disneyland and Europe in the span of a year or two.

But even those who are underpaid and overworked (another common experience in this generation) can manage to find time to enjoy both a Disney reboot and an indie movie. Also, not only are millennials watching movies like Booksmart and The Farewell, but guess what! Both of those movies were written and directed by millennial women. We’re not just having fun–we’re making fun!

Also, fanny packs are cool again. So there.

If you’re going to take the time to dictate what people should and shouldn’t enjoy, at least take the time to do a little research.

• A new Gallup poll shows that 40% of Americans believe that their god created humans a mere 10,000 years ago. Cool. Cool cool cool. (via Gizmodo)
• The Baltimore Sun has a powerful response to Donald Trump’s racist attacks on the city: Namely, that it’s “better to have a few rats than to be one.” Hard agree. (via Baltimore Sun)
• This is very cool!
  

   

  View this post on Instagram

   

  This is Elizabeth Warren’s selfie strategy. As she runs for U.S. president, Warren has managed to stand out in the Democratic field not only by issuing more detailed policy plans than any of her major rivals, but also through distinctive choices about how she spends her time. She has sworn off private fund-raisers, and surprises donors by calling them out of the blue. The selfie line is another practice that has helped her gain attention. The concept is simple: @elizabethwarren will stick around and take a picture with anyone who wants one. Her campaign estimates that since entering the race, she has taken pictures with 38,000 people. Her approach seems to be making a difference — many of the photos are winding up on social media, helping spread the word and expand her reach. Read more about Warren’s picture-taking plan at the link in our bio. Video by @tamirhasacellphone. #🤳

  A post shared by The New York Times (@nytimes) on Jul 25, 2019 at 11:33am PDT

• As is this!
  

  Real amputee Jedi?! YES! #cosplay LOVING my lightsaber attachment for my bionic arm while trying to safely keep my fingers crossed for an audition for @starwars one day. #BionicActress Spent my whole life wanting to be Luke AND Leia 😍 @HamillHimself #RepresentationMatters pic.twitter.com/eB0mZ3Xuyr

  — 🤖 Angel Giuffria ¯_(ツ)_, (@aannggeellll) July 23, 2019

• Russi Taylor, who voiced a range of beloved characters from Minnie Mouse to The Simpsons’ Martin Prince, has passed away at 75. (via AV Club)
• On the differences between violence against men vs. women in Quentin Tarantino’s movies. (via THR)
• The mom blogger who “invented” gender reveal parties has updated her thoughts on the phenomenon. (via BuzzFeed)

What did you all see out there today?

(image: Angela Papuga/Getty Images)

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—The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling.—

https://www.blackenterprise.com/white-university-of-mississippi-students-pose-with-guns-in-front-of-emmett-till-memorial/

A shocking image surfaced on Instagram: Three white University of Mississippi students posing with guns next to a memorial sign dedicated to the black teenager, Emmett Till, who was murdered in 1955.

According to The New York Times, two of the students in the photo have been identified as Ben Leclere and John Lowe. All three are members of the fraternity Kappa Alpha.

In the photo, one of the students holds a shotgun. Another brandishes an AK-47. The memorial sign is bullet-ridden. According to ProPublica, which first reported on the photo—it isn’t clear if the students shot the sign.

NYT reports that the students have been suspended by their fraternity. “The photo is inappropriate, insensitive, and unacceptable,” and “does not represent our chapter,” stated the Kappa Alpha fraternity chapter.

However, the fraternity is known for prior racist activities. As per ProPublica, “The fraternity, which honors Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee as its “spiritual founder” on its website, has a history of racial controversy, including an incident in which students wore blackface at a Kappa Alpha sponsored Halloween party at the University of Virginia in 2002.”

The photo has since been turned over to the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. The students have not been suspended from the university. A spokesperson from the university told The New York Times that while the photo was “offensive,” the students did not violate the school’s code of conduct.

Last year, the U.S. Department of Justice said it was reopening the murder case of Till 63 years after the 14-year-old was brutally murdered for allegedly whistling at a white woman in Mississippi. Federal officials announced that it launched an investigation into the case based on “new information” received about Till’s kidnapping, torture, and murder.

News that the DOJ was reopening Till’s case was first reported by the Associated Press after the Justice Department sent a report to Congress in March under the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crimes Reauthorization Act of 2016, a bill authorized by President Barack Obama granting feds the ability to investigate unsolved civil rights murders committed before 1970.

New revelations about Till’s death were published in the 2017 book The Blood of Emmett Till by historian Timothy B. Tyson.

Till was a native of Chicago visiting relatives in Money, Mississippi, when he was accused of making sexual advances toward Carolyn Donham, 21, at a grocery store. Her then-husband, Roy Bryant, and his half-brother J.W. Milam were charged with killing Till but were acquitted by an all-white jury. Bryant and Milam later admitted to a reporter the next year that they beat and shot the teen before dumping his body in the Tallahatchie River. They were not retried due to double jeopardy laws.

—Additional reporting by Selena Hill