Supershow History 101
Has it really been over 30 years???? We launched our ancestral shows, Baby Boomerama and The Zowie Show, in 1991. Eventually, the shows were merged into the Rocky Mountain Collectors Supershow. From there, it snowballed. Other shows were absorbed into the mix, and we've grown into the Toy & Doll Supershow we have today!
SCROLL DOWN to see lots of fliers from past shows, along with some video memories!
VIDEO TALKS BY BILL MUMY, MAUREEN McCORMICK, VAN WILLIAMS, DAWN WELLS AND DONNA DOUGLAS!
And an acoustic concert set from our first guest, Bill Mumy (April 4, 1992) with a "Fish Heads" finale!
SCROLL DOWN to see lots of fliers from past shows, along with some video memories!
VIDEO TALKS BY BILL MUMY, MAUREEN McCORMICK, VAN WILLIAMS, DAWN WELLS AND DONNA DOUGLAS!
And an acoustic concert set from our first guest, Bill Mumy (April 4, 1992) with a "Fish Heads" finale!
In the Beginning.....
In 1990, Kent Cordray took Dana Cain (me) to a comics show at the National Western Complex. It was adjoining the "Collector's Fair," a glorious, huge monthly marketplace where vendors gathered to sell antiques of all kinds, wonderful treasures, and oddities galore. I had never in my life seen an antique show. I had no idea they existed. I'd been to almost 100 science fiction conventions, and I'd run a few of those, but had never even HEARD of an antiques show.
On the way home, in the car, I had a cascading epiphany. We would run an antiques show - but it would be all stuff rom the 50s, 60s, and 70s. Toys, household goods, clothes, everything from the mid-century era! We'd call it Baby Boomerama! .... And so, it began.
I'll never forget the first one. It was in the old Regency Hotel - a stunning gold geodesic dome - the jewel of the I-25 corridor. We'd somehow filled the show floor, and it was utterly magical - a nostalgic mix of what would later be found in our toy shows and my Denver Modernism Show - mushed into one fantastic time tunnel-ish dream. I'd put together a soundtrack, and as the doors open, a looong line of amazed shoppers wandered in, listening to one of our childhood anthems - the theme song from Captain Kangaroo.
That first Baby Boomerama was, somehow, the same day as another event at the hotel - a Baby Pageant. And I remember some very confused parents coming up to the ticketing desk holding babies decked out in ridiculous finery, asking where to sign them up.
But the show was a big success. Everyone loved it. It was a blast. Kent and I were so happy that we literally sprinkled money all over our bed and rolled around in it laughing it tossing it into the air. LOL. I also remember the next day, the stress finally caught up with me and I had to call in sick to work because my whole body had just cramped up and I literally couldn't turn my head. BUT .... I was hooked. And I knew I'd be running LOTS more of those shows.
On the way home, in the car, I had a cascading epiphany. We would run an antiques show - but it would be all stuff rom the 50s, 60s, and 70s. Toys, household goods, clothes, everything from the mid-century era! We'd call it Baby Boomerama! .... And so, it began.
I'll never forget the first one. It was in the old Regency Hotel - a stunning gold geodesic dome - the jewel of the I-25 corridor. We'd somehow filled the show floor, and it was utterly magical - a nostalgic mix of what would later be found in our toy shows and my Denver Modernism Show - mushed into one fantastic time tunnel-ish dream. I'd put together a soundtrack, and as the doors open, a looong line of amazed shoppers wandered in, listening to one of our childhood anthems - the theme song from Captain Kangaroo.
That first Baby Boomerama was, somehow, the same day as another event at the hotel - a Baby Pageant. And I remember some very confused parents coming up to the ticketing desk holding babies decked out in ridiculous finery, asking where to sign them up.
But the show was a big success. Everyone loved it. It was a blast. Kent and I were so happy that we literally sprinkled money all over our bed and rolled around in it laughing it tossing it into the air. LOL. I also remember the next day, the stress finally caught up with me and I had to call in sick to work because my whole body had just cramped up and I literally couldn't turn my head. BUT .... I was hooked. And I knew I'd be running LOTS more of those shows.
Amazing Guest List!
Over the years, we've brought out SO MANY GREAT GUESTS, to Boomerama, the Zowie Show and the Supershow! Check out our GUEST LIST:
- Billy Mumy (our very first guest!) was at the 1992 Zowie Show!
- Tiny Tim (our first Baby Boomerama guest!)
- Dawn Wells (Mary Ann, Gilligan's Island)
- Donna Douglas (Elly May, Beverly Hillbillies)
- Maureen McCormick (Marcia Brady)
- Ed "Big Daddy" Roth
- Butch Patrick (Eddie Munster)
- Julie Newmar (Catwoman, Batman TV show)
- Jonathan Frid (Barnabus Collins, Dark Shadows)
- Van Williams (The Green Hornet)
- Dirk Benedict (Battlestar Galactica, A-Team)
- Linnea Quigley (Scream Queen, Return of the Living Dead)
- Dave Prowse (Darth Vader, Star Wars)
- The Honky Tonk Man (pro wrestler)
- Denise Nickerson (Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Dark Shadows)
- Lee Meriweather (Time Tunnel, Star Trek, Catwoman -1966 movie)
- Al Feldstein (MAD Magazine, EC Comics)
- David Hedison (Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Fly)
- Richard Hatch (Battlestar Galactica)
- Muriel Fahrion (creator of Strawberry Shortcake, Care Bears, Get Along Gang)
- Local celebs Randy Jay (Beloved KOOL 105 DJ) and LOTS of Elvis impersonators!
The Early Years!
These were the fliers for our VERY FIRST Baby Boomerama Collectors Show & Festival, held May 4-5, 1991 at the Regency.
We loved it so much that we launched The Zowie Show in August, that same year!
We ran a second Baby Boomerama and a second Zowie Show that Fall!
Word was getting out about how cool the shows were!
Word was getting out about how cool the shows were!
In 1992, we added Celebrity Guests to our shows, starting with BILLY MUMY at the April Zowie Show, and TINY TIM at the June Baby Boomerama! Later that same year, we brought out Julie Newmar (Zowie Show) and Maureen McCormick! (Boomerama).Talk about a year of INCREDIBLE MEMORIES!!!!
By 1993, we were going strong - still running 4 shows a year - all with celebrity guests!
...And our Amazing 1994 Show Roster!...
In the mid-1990s, the two shows merged into the Collectors Supershow!
We moved back to the Regency for a while. Later, We staged a huge GUEST REUNION for our 25th Show in April, 1998- and moved to a new location that some of you may remember - the Radisson Greystone Castle - right across the street from where we held our Ramada/Delta shows for so many years.
A New Century
The Supershow went on hiaitus for a few years, when Dana and Kent broke up. During that time, the new century began, and eBay became a driving force in the collectibles world. But in 2002, Dana had a dream one night about running a show that was all "Toys, Dolls and Trains." The next day, she (not kidding you guys) started getting tons of "messages" from the Universe about doing the show. She looked for a pen to start writing down ideas for a venue. She found one under the couch, and the pen was from the Embassy Suites on E. Hampden. She called them first, and the gal in charge was the SAME woman who Dana had loved working with years before at the Holiday Inn. (I mean... The show was CLEARLY meant to come back.) And, I can't believe I used to be able to rent a venue for $200.....
Eventually, the "Second Sunday" branding took a back seat to our new name - a name that would be replaced eventually - and then gloriously resurrected! It's the name we use now, but we used it first in 2004. Our show became the TOY & DOLL SUPERSHOW!
By December, 2004, we were morphing into the Collectors Supershow, and we brought out the first guest we'd had in years - the fantastic Lee Meriwether! All of these shows were being held in SE Denver, on Hampden, just east of I-25. We launched in the Embassy Suites, and held a few shows at the Marriott on the corner of I-25 and Hampden, eventually moving there for a while, as it rebranded to become the Four Points Sheraton.
Mid-2000s: We Add More Shows and Move North!
In 2005, Dana took ownership of the Hello Dollies show in Longmont, and Toys Along the Rockies, a longstanding show at the Adams County Fairgrounds. Eventually, both shows would become part of the Toy & Doll Supershow.
A major milestone in Supershow history was our 2006 move to the Ramada Plaza Convention Center in Northglenn. Attendance doubled immediately. It was our home until 2023 - except for 2019, when we moved to the Denver Mart (RIP, Mart!) during the hotel's remodeling and purchase by the Delta by Marriott.
Dana also purchased the Majesticon Comic Con in 2006, which was side-by-side with the Supershow, for years, before being sold to StarFest. Many Majesticon dealers still participate in the Supershow to this day.
Dana also purchased the Majesticon Comic Con in 2006, which was side-by-side with the Supershow, for years, before being sold to StarFest. Many Majesticon dealers still participate in the Supershow to this day.
I'm sure the vendors appreciated Special Guest David Hedison more than Klepto the Elf. Ha! 2007 was a great year for our show! It began with the legendary Al Feldstein (MAD Magazine, EC Comics) at the April 1 Supershow/Majesticon! And the Doll & Bear Expo got a facelift when we moved it out of the Boulder County Fairgrounds and into our beautiful, carpeted Ramada! We ran it as a separate show for a while, before merging it into the Supershow.
By 2010, the Doll & Bear Expo was folded into the Supershow, running concurrently.
Recent Years
Things were going swimmingly! In 2019, Dana bought the Tri-State Doll Sale , and we couldn't wait to debut our greatly expanded Toy & Doll Supershow Doll Room at the Mart in April, 2020. Well, we all know what happened next ... Our show was postponed and cancelled and moved so many times during the Pandemic! Our plans to stay at the Mart were dashed when Covid shut that iconic venue down the forever. But finally, we came back in 2022, ready to celebrate 30 years (a year late).
I hope you've enjoyed this look back. What a long, strange trip it's been... I love you all so much, and I'm eternally grateful for your enthusiasm and support. - Dana Cain
Video & Photo Memories
Video of Bill Mumy's talk
and acoustic concert (with "Fish Heads" finale!)
Zowie Show, April 4, 1992
video shot and edited by Phil Satterley
Video of Maureen McCormick's Q&A at the
Fall 1992 Baby Boomerama
video shot and edited by Phil Satterley
Fall 1992 Baby Boomerama
video shot and edited by Phil Satterley
Video of Donna Douglas's talk at the
1993 Baby Boomerama
30th Anniversary of The Beverly Hillbillies
video shot and edited by Phil Satterley
1993 Baby Boomerama
30th Anniversary of The Beverly Hillbillies
video shot and edited by Phil Satterley
Video of Dawn Wells's talk at the
1993 Baby Boomerama
30th Anniversary of Gilligan's Island
video shot and edited by Phil Satterley
1993 Baby Boomerama
30th Anniversary of Gilligan's Island
video shot and edited by Phil Satterley
Video of Van Williams's talk at the
1993 Zowie Show
video shot and edited by Phil Satterley
1993 Zowie Show
video shot and edited by Phil Satterley