Cable network The SCI FI Channel is joining in the nationwide Free Comic Book Day event, which is set for May 4, 2002 (see 'Free Comic Book Day'). On Saturday, April 27, the SCI FI Channel will present 'Super-Hero Saturday,' which will feature a day-long marathon of super-hero movies and TV shows, including the airing of the complete 153-minute DVD cut of Superman: The Movie. Interspersed between the programs will be ads promoting comic books and directing viewers to their local comic stores on May 4 for Free Comic Book Day.
On May 4 the comic shops that will be providing a free comic book to anyone who walks in to the store will also be distributing free postcards featuring Neal Adams art that will promote the new seasons of two of the SCI FI Channel's most popular series, Farscape and Stargate SG-I. The postcards will direct fans to enter a contest at www.scifi.com in which they can win the original Neal Adams art.
This is the kind of cross-promotion that can benefit both parties (comic retailers and the SCI FI Channel) and help turn Free Comic Book Day into a bigger event. If FCBD can be done annually, and can build promotional partners each year, including any companies that are interested in reaching the consumers that shop at pop culture stores, whether comic publishers or not, the additional promotional weight that could be brought to bear over time is staggering.
