Anthrocon (abbreviated AC) is the world's largest furry convention, taking place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania each June or July. Its focus is on furries: fictional anthropomorphized animal characters in art and literature. The convention was first held in 1997 in New York State, and draws over 3,000 attendees annually.

Background

Founded in 1997 as Albany Anthrocon (AAC) in New York State, with a membership of about 500, the convention moved to Valley Forge, Pennsylvania in 1999 and to a larger hotel, the Adams Mark, on the outskirts of Philadelphia in 2001 as its attendance continued to grow. Membership in 2003 was announced as 1,949. In 2004 it was 2,406, making it by far the largest furry convention at that time.

Due to the unforeseen sale of the Adams Mark Hotel in November 2004, Anthrocon chose the Wyndham Franklin Plaza in Philadelphia as the site for its 2005 convention. Attendance that year dropped slightly to 2,373, due in part to higher parking fees, a different and unfamiliar hotel (the Wyndham Franklin Plaza in downtown Philadelphia), and possibly due to Hurricane Dennis's effect on the southern United States which closed many airports and prevented people from traveling. In June 2005, a contract with the Westin Convention Center Hotel in Pittsburgh was signed, and Anthrocon was scheduled to be held at the adjoining David L. Lawrence Convention Center between June 15-18, 2006. Despite concerns that the move to Pittsburgh and temporary date shift would decrease attendance, it actually rose to 2,489, which was enough to ensure the future of the convention for July 5-8, 2007.

The chairman of the convention since 1999, Dr. Samuel Conway (nicknamed "Kagemushi" or "Uncle Kage" among attendees), oversees the operations of the Anthrocon with the help of a small staff and a number of volunteers who donate their time and energy throughout the weekend to assist the multitude of small tasks which arise. Since 1997, Anthrocon has donated more than $86,000 to animal-related charities.

As of 2007 Anthrocon is featured in the Guinness World Records (2008 Edition) as the "largest furry fan club" in the world. At closing ceremonies of the 2007 convention it was announced that another claim has been made for the record of "most mascots in a parade". The Guinness Worlds Record organization was to be present in 2008 to verify the new record.

In 2008, Anthrocon became the first furry convention to have an attendance exceeding 3,000 members, the official count reaching 3,390. In 2009, attendance rose 11% to 3,776, and the fursuit parade count jumped to 640—a 41% increase. Anthrocon brings approximately $3 million to the Pittsburgh economy, and is among the city's top ten largest conventions.

Typical Anthrocon programming and events

There are areas open most of the day to accommodate sales by Dealers and Artists as well as an area to congregate and socialize (see "The Zoo" below).

Anthrocon provides a number of specialized 'tracks' of programming with similar furry based themes and scheduled 'events'.

The programming tracks involve discussions and work groups focused on the application of furry in Art, Comedy and Improv, Computer Gaming, Costuming (Fursuits), Music, Puppetry, Role-Playing (both gaming and real-life), and Writing.

The scheduled events that take place are the Charity Auction, the Masquerade, the Fursuit Parade, nightly dances, Art Show Auctions, and special presentations by Uncle Kage and "2 the Ranting Gryphon".

Locations, Attendances and Charity Donations by Year

Year	Location	Attendance	Charity Donation	Charity
1997	Albany, NY	300 est	$2,200	Therapy Dogs/K9 Friends
1998	Albany, NY	600 est	$3,092	Whiskers
1999	Valley Forge, NY	842	$3,600	Great Valley Nature Center
2000	Valley Forge, NY	1,128	$6,534	The National Greyhound Adoption Program
2001	Philadelphia, PA	1,457	$7,237	Reins of Life
2002	Philadelphia, PA	1,648	$13,280	Canine Partners for Life
2003	Philadelphia, PA	1,949	$8,348	Support Our Shelters
2004	Philadelphia, PA	2,404	$7,200	Forgotten Felines & Fidos (FFF)
2005	Philadelphia, PA	2,370	$6,470	Greater Philadelphia Search & Rescue
2006	Pittsburgh, PA	2,489	$8,407	Western Pennsylvania National Wild Animal
2007	Pittsburgh, PA	2,849	$7,608	Animal Friends
2008	Pittsburgh, PA	3,390	$13,154	Pittsburgh Parrot Rescue
2009	Pittsburgh, PA	3,776	$8,993	Animal Rescue League Wildlife Rehabilitation

Themes and Guests of Honor by Year

Every year the convention has several Guests of Honor - prominent individuals who are compensated for their attendance and travel expenses. Past Guests of Honor at Anthrocon have included:

Year	Theme	Guests of Honor
1997	An East Coast Furry Convention	artist Daphne Lage artist Watts Martin
1998	Here There Be Dragons	artist Jim Groat artist Jeffery A. Carver
1999	Join the Furry Revolution	artist Vicky Wyman artist S. Andrew Swann
2000	Furries of Myth and Legend	artist Sara "Caribou" Palmer author Paul Kidd
2001	Furries in Flight	comic-book artist Dan DeCarlo (creator of Josie and the Pussycats) syndicated cartoonist Bill Holbrook
2002	Inventions	author Lisanne Norman (of The Sholan Series) artist Heather Bruton
2003	Creatures of the Night	artist Guy Gilchrist artist Mark E. Rogers
2004	Summer Games	artist Stan Sakai (creator of Usagi Yojimbo) artist Michael Gagne
2005	Heroes	Peter Laird (co-creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) Timothy Albee (director "Kaze, Ghost Warrior")
2006	Making History	artist Scott Shaw! (creator of a number of comic book and cartoon characters) Diane Duane (author of several series including So You Want to Be a Wizard
2007	Looking to the Future	voice actor Rob Paulsen writer Mark Evanier artist Carolyn Kelly
2008	It's a Jungle Out There	animator and Disney Legend Floyd Norman
2009	OMG Aliens	character developer and artist Joe Harris character artist and story designer Ben Balistreri illustrator and television producer Bob Boyle
2010	Modern Stone-Age Furries
2011	The Anthropomorphic Institute of Magic
2012	A Midsummer Night’s Dream

The "Zoo"

The Zoo is a customary area of the Anthrocon convention space in which attendees may lounge freely, eat and drink, rest, draw, chat, and generally "decompress" from the bustle and crowding of the rest of the convention events going on around them.

The Zoo has existed as such in Anthrocon programming since 2000, except in 2005 as there were no rooms available to dedicate for the space, and because the hotel lobby bar was available for essentially the same purpose. There were also an open hotel restaurant and adjacent sitting areas throughout the lobby, ballroom, and mezzanine floor balconies which served as de facto Zoo space during the 2005 convention.

As attendance of Anthrocon grows, it will become more and more crucial to provide adequate loitering space for attendees to congregate which is not immediately around doorways, elevators, and other public hotel-space which must be shared with hotel staff and guests not attending the convention.

As a large part of the 'experience' of Anthrocon is interpersonal socialization, the more customary convention programming is ultimately unable to suffice by itself. This, combined with the effects of jet lag (due to attendees traveling from across the country and even as far away as Japan), and sleep deprivation due to attempting to attend as many events as possible and meet as many people as possible within the general 4-day time frame of the convention, gives rise to a definite need to have space more or less devoted to small-group socialization, and relaxation without the need to return to a hotel room (an increasingly arduous and lengthy endeavor as the ratio of attendance to convention space goes up).

References

External links

• Anthrocon – official website
• PeterCat's Furry InfoPage – Includes schedule and links for other furry fandom conventions
• Anthropomorphic Fandom Convention Information Sheet – Historical attendance figures for all furry fandom conventions
• Invasion Of The Furries – News article about Anthrocon 2001.
• Furries Descend On Golden Triangle – WTAE-TV report about Anthrocon
• It's A Furry Weekend – Pittsburgh Tribune-Review article about Anthrocon 2006
• Anthrocon 2004 Report – 2004 GOH Michael Gagne's convention report
• Kelly Frey "Interviews" Some Furries – WTAE-TV Video Interview At Anthrocon 2007
• Anthrocon at WikiFur