Anthony Letizia

Anthony Letizia has been many things through the years, including an accountant, journalist, and playwright. From June 2014 to May 2019, he served on the board – as well as treasurer – of the ToonSeum, a nonprofit museum of the cartoon and comic arts in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. While there, Letizia curated two exhibits, “To Boldly Go: The Graphic Art of Star Trek” (October 2016 to January 2017) and “Popology: An Exhibit of Pop Culture and Comics” (September 2017 to November 2017), as well as co-curated “Wonder Woman: Visions” (November 2017 to February 2018).

After a decades-long hiatus, Anthony Letizia completed his M.A. in History at Duquesne University in December 2024. He has used his history background to make a number of presentations in recent years on the ways that popular culture intersects with the real world. The list includes: “Superheroes Battle Pollution on the First Earth Day” poster presentation as part of the Comics Arts Conference at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2024; “DC Comics and August 1986” at the Popular Culture Association Conference in Chicago in March 2024; and “Green Arrow as Social Justice Warrior” as part of the Comics Arts Conference at WonderCon in Anaheim in March 2023. He also organized/moderated a panel at the Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle in August 2022 entitled “A Green Arrow History of Seattle” and made a brief “Marvel Comics History of the 1960s” presentation at the virtual Popular Culture Association conference in April 2022.

Although still an accountant by day, at night Anthony Letizia is a strong proponent and true believer in the power of Geek Culture. He can be reached at anthony@geekfrontiers.com.

 

Geppi’s Entertainment Museum

Steve Geppi opened his Baltimore-based pop culture museum in 2006, where it remained until its collection of entertainment paraphernalia was donated to the Library of Congress in 2018.

The Science Behind Pixar

The process of creating computer-generated animated films with three-dimensional characters are explored in a traveling exhibit that premiered at the Museum of Science in Boston in 2015.

Collections in Black: A Celebration of Black Comic Book Culture

The temporary exhibit at the August Wilson Center in Pittsburgh spotlighted African American achievements in the comic book industry with original art and Black superhero comic books.

Seattle Homicide Detective J.P. Beaumont

Created by author J.A. Jance, the fictional J.P. Beaumont made his debut in the 1985 mystery novel Until Proven Guilty and has remained a staple of the Emerald City for the next forty years.

Gaaays in Spaaace

The nonprofit organization advocates diversity and inclusion within both Hollywood and the aerospace industry through a Space Camp scholarship program and annual Star Trek convention.

A Klingon Christmas Carol

The Charles Dicken’s tale was adapted for the stage and translated into the fictional Star Trek language of Klingon in 2007, while another holiday classic received the same treatment in 2019.

Ditko: The Play

The life and career of legendary comic book artist Steve Ditko is explored by playwright Lenny Schwartz, with performances in New York City and Ditko’s hometown of Johnstown, Pennsylvania.

Hunger Action Heroes

A joint venture between Feeding San Diego and the Comic-Con Museum, Hunger Action Heroes raise awareness around hunger and food rescue by integrating the popular arts into their efforts.

Sea Monsters: Delving into the Deep Myth

The Maritime Museum of San Diego featured an exhibit on sea monsters that ran from May 2022 through August 2023 located in the hull of the Star of India sailing ship, itself a relic of the past.

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

The Disneyland attraction was officially made part of Star Wars mythology in the 2019 novel Galaxy’s Edge: Black Spire and captures the essence of what life is like on the outskirts of the galaxy.

The Seattle Gum Wall

Since the early 1990s, both residents and tourists have been leaving their gum on the walls of Post Alley, located near Pike Place Market, creating a tourist attraction in known worldwide.

Magic: The Gathering

The popular trading card game began as a tale of two cities on opposite ends of the country, with Richard Garfield designing the game in Philadelphia and a Seattle-based company producing it.