‘Retired’ host returns to Steel City Con in Monroeville

Monroeville Convention Center soon will be packed with artists, pop culture enthusiasts, costume creators and a familiar face that rivals many of the celebrity guests.

Mike “Zombo” Devine of Shaler makes his return to Steel City Con Aug. 11-13 after a brief retirement from hosting such events.

The usually silver-haired and silver-suited starter of guest question-and-answer panels and charity quick sketches has been a part of the convention for more than a decade.

He stepped down after the December show to focus more on music and other interests. However, requests to return began to flood his inbox and the Polkamaniacs front man and sound engineer decided to pick up the Monroeville mic once more.

“‘Retirement’ is not even a close word,” said Devine, 64. “I was just shifting gears a little bit. The thing that really brought me back was a lot of the people who kept in contact with me all started emailing me, Facebook messaging me, ‘Where are you?’

“All I was doing was checking social media. You don’t miss the Con until you’re gone. I missed it more than I thought I would. It’s like Christmas three times a year.”

Steel City Con takes place in December, April and August.

Devine’s absence was noticed at the early April convention when Kyle Williamson took over event room operations. He has handled conventions at multiple cities across the country and has been an instrumental part of numerous SSC shows prior to this year. Many April attendees said he did a very strong job.

“When you have great guests and a great crowd, it’s a pleasure to host them,” Williamson said at the time. “I think fans all over are great. I hesitate to say that any place is better than another. There is definitely a great concentration of fans here at Steel City, and they have a Max & Erma’s nearby for tortilla soup.”

Williamson will be on hand in a more supportive role this month. He is also filming for the YouTube page Fandom Spotlite.

“He’s a pretty laid-back dude,” Devine said of Williamson. “It’s just very natural (for us). Having a second person in that room a second pair of legs is great.

“The most important thing about this job is two things: don’t be a big fanboy. You got to keep your cool, and you’re just a conduit between the celebrity and the audience.”

Steel City Con announced Devine’s return via its official fan forum Facebook page, to the delight of fans and artists, alike.

Responses to the post included “Best News” from renowned artist Ed Beard Jr.

“Been to a ton of Cons, and this guy is the best I’ve seen run the panels,” wrote fan Dwayne Raimer. “Truly missed and jumping for joy for his return.”

SSC co-owner Bob Stein said everyone is excited to see Zombo back.

“He has done many shows and has a quite a following, especially because he has a band, Polkamaniacs,” Stein said.

The event room stage will have a different layout for Devine’s return. It will look more like a late-night talk show, with couches and possibly a desk.

“I’m really excited about the new look on the stage and just another great round of celebrities,” Devine said. “I usually have a routine that I get ready with before each celebrity.”

That routine includes doing research, finding video highlights and press clippings. He quickly transitions from ice breaker questions to audience inquiries.

“I really like everything audience-based,” he said.

Cosplay pros Samurai Jill and Sarah Spectre ran the costume contest in Devine’s stead. That is not expected to change.

Celebrities booked for this month include boxing legend Mike Tyson; Hollywood icons William Shatner, Marisa Tomei and Katey Sagal; the devil himself, Tom Ellis from “Lucifer”; Danica McKellar, Winnie Cooper from “The Wonder Years”; “The Walking Dead” stars Michael James Shaw and Cassady McClincy; World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels; and rapper, producer, actor and Wu-Tang Clan member Method Man.

Featured artists include Megan Withey, Joe Corroney, Bill Morrison and Steranko.

More information is available at steelcitycon.com.