For years, Bay Area comic and movie fans have been leaving the Bay Area for the giant Comic Con show.
But now, the show is coming here, thanks to a local tech legend. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is bringing the show to downtown San Jose — turning it into something of a geek paradise brought to us by one of history’s most famous geeks.
“This is always a scary day for me when you introduce something new," Wozniak, 65, said during an interview with NBC Bay Area at the San Jose Convention Center. "Oh my gosh, you always wonder how the public is going to react. You know what it is, you put your whole life into it, but now others get to enjoy it."
Wozniak, who was born in San Jose, said he had an idea to bring together fans of science fiction, fantasy and superheroes.
“I love fun and entertainment,” he said. "I have modified my formula, ‘Happiness minus smiles equals frowns’ to ‘happiness is the things we need in life plus entertainment like this plus people. Happiness equals the three Fs: food, fun and friends.’”
As for his predictions on what Apple might have in store for fans at its Monday launch, Wozniak said: “I wouldn’t even know — I’m actually going to be on an airplane… Whatever it is, we all want it — I’m the one who lines up for Apple products still. If they ever get boring I won’t. I judge them for what they are.”
When asked what he expects next from the company he co-founded, Wozniak said: “It’s a new Apple since Steve Jobs' death ... I admire Tim Cook and the rest of the company … I hope something we don't ever think of right now would come out of Apple: Whoa! It's that whole mentality, the product has to be so good you're taken over by emotion the minute you see it."
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Wozniak is going to be in a panel with Oculus VR founder Palmer Luckey at ComicCon this weekend. Pre-orders for Oculus will deliver on March 28th. Luckey says the Rift is already back-ordered, and he seems relaxed about early adopters getting to try it out before it becomes a full-blown consumer product.
When asked whether Apple is interested in the latest buzzword, “VR,” Wozniak said: “We have no idea what Apple is doing in VR, but it would make a lot of sense.”
Vendors from all over the country are getting ready to bring everything from nostalgic movie cars — yes, there’s a replica “Back to the Future” Delorean – to waxy famous people
"I get chills inside just seeing what I'm seeing, and remembering those things" Wozniak said of the "Back to the Future" booth. Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd are making appearances over the weekend. William Shatner of Star Trek fame is expected to speak at a panel Friday evening.
Wozniak hopes the festival lineup fires up the imagination of techies, no matter where they are from. "Think about the imaginary world giving us ideas about where we could take the world where it isn't at today — that's what developing products is all about."
It’s also about big business, giving comic and movie fans what they want.
Comic Con runs through the weekend at San Jose Convention Center. You can find tickets online.
LIVE WITH STEVE WOZNIAK! We are at Silicon Valley Comic Con chatting with the Apple co-founder on why he brought Comic Con to San Jose. #SVCCPlus hear what Woz has to say about Monday's Apple launch!
Posted by NBC Bay Area on Friday, March 18, 2016
