Daily Business Report-July 20, 2020
The online event will be July 22-26
San Diego Comic-Con to hold its first virtual
event beginning Wednesday: Comic-Con@Home
San Diego Comic-Con, the world’s premier event of its kind, announced details of its first-ever virtual event, Comic-Con@Home.
For the first time in its 50-year history, Comic-Con organizers were forced to make the heartbreaking decision to cancel the annual celebration of comics and pop culture. Soon after the cancelation, they announced an online version to launch July 22, the official start date of the originally scheduled convention.
“We’re very excited about bringing Comic-Con online,” said David Glanzer, spokesperson for the nonprofit organization. The virtual event will be July 22-26.
The virtual event will exist on the www.comic-con.org website which, at 9 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time on Wednesday, July 22, 2020, will transform to Comic-Con@Home. The redesigned Home Page will be the means by which participants can access programming, the Online Exhibit Hall, and various events and interactive elements, as each will be supported by a variety of different platforms.
While programming for each day will be available on the website, Comic-Con is working again with Sched.com for those who would like to create their own daily schedule.
Joining in the fun is the Comic-Con Museum, which has long planned an interactive component to their efforts. They began offering activities through Comic-Con Museum@Home earlier this summer which will continue through the Comic-Con@Home weekend and beyond.
YouTube will host over 350 panels and programs as well as the 2020 Eisner Awards. The Online Exhibit Hall, with approximately 700 exhibitors, will exist on the GoExpo by Community Brands page. And for fans of Gaming, those activities will live on the Discord platform.
Fans will be excited to learn that DC Comics, longtime supporters of Comic-Con, will again provide exceptional artwork for the official event T-shirt. The event T-shirt will be accompanied by an assortment of official Comic-Con-related and Comic-Con Museum-related merchandise available on the Merch store page on the Comic-Con website.
Amazon and Prime Video are official sponsors of Comic-Con@Home and will be treating fans to additional activities from a variety of Amazon-owned platforms through their Amazon Virtual-Con portal. Prime Video is also the official sponsor of the Comic-Con 2020 print-at-home badge, which will allow participants to print and wear the free badge and take part in many fun, yet to be announced, interactive challenges.
Collaborator and sponsor IGN will stream roughly 34 Comic-Con@Home panels as well as produce extensive hosted shoulder content, hosted interviews and more, all in support of the online initiative.
Tumblr will serve as the platform for both the Comic-Con Art Show and the always popular Masquerade. The 46th annual Masquerade will open for viewing Friday, July 24, and winners announced on Saturday, July 25.
Films and anime have long been popular elements at Comic-Con. This tradition continues as both will employ the Scener Watch Party Platform, Funimation will exclusively host all of the anime watch parties including Black Clover and Fruits Basket. Scener is a Chrome browser plug-in that will allow fans the ability to simultaneously watch and discuss movies and anime.
Anyone who has visited Comic-Con is familiar with and may have participated in the outside activations (immersive experiences). Even they will be represented as FX will unveil the digital experience: FX UNLOCKED- where fans will engage with virtual activations for American Horror Story, What We Do in The Shadows, Cake and DAVE.
FutureTechLive! returns for a fifth year to present the virtual “World Builders” activation, featuring content by a global community of creators. In this unique experience, participants can explore new worlds in mixed reality, and unleash their imagination to create some of their own!
If that weren’t enough, there will be a number of activities including portfolio review, gaming, a SideWalk Art Challenge, a Cosplay Challenge, the SuperVolunteer Challenge, and even some shared recipes should you need a break and a little sustenance during the Comic-Con@Home weekend.
Comic-Con will also be offering an online version of its Souvenir Book, which will be available as a free, downloadable PDF, starting on Wednesday, July 22. The 260-page book contains new art and articles celebrating various anniversaries, including the 100th birthdays of Ray Bradbury and Ray Harryhausen, plus celebrations of EC Comics, Moomin, Jack Kirby’s Fourth World comics, and more. This year’s cover is by William Stout.
“This type of online event is a first for us,” Glanzer continued, “and we are grateful for the support of all involved. Our hope is that Comic-Con can provide a small respite from the confines of various stay-at-home orders. While we can’t be together in person, we can be together online.”
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Randal ‘Randy’ Mills appointed CEO
of Sanford Burnham Medical Discovery Institute
Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute announced the appointment of C. Randal “Randy” Mills as chief executive officer, effective immediately. Mills joins the institute with decades of experience as an entrepreneur and transformational leader in the biomedical industry.
Mills previously served as president and CEO of the National Marrow Donor Program/Be The Match, the global leader facilitating and supporting bone marrow transplantation within the U.S and around the world. Prior to that, he was president and CEO of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), the state’s $3 billion regenerative medicine agency.
“I am excited and humbled to serve as CEO at this pivotal time in the Institute’s history,” said Mills. “I’m inspired by the immensely talented people of this organization and the contributions Sanford Burnham Prebys has made to improving human health over the past 40 years. It is our responsibility to now build upon that exceptional work.”
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Qualcomm teams with EvoNexus
to jumpstart 5G startups
San Diego startup incubator EvoNexus has teamed up with Qualcomm for its first virtual incubator, supporting early stage companies developing 5G technologies in a wide range of fields. Companies from across North America can choose to participate remotely or take advantage of office and lab space in San Diego, Orange County, and Silicon Valley.
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San Diego biotech snags $137 million
for precision attack on cancer
Local pharma company VelosBio has raised $137 million to develop drugs that selectively target cancer cells while sparing healthy ones. The company, which employs 25, is testing this approach in an initial clinical trial of various leukemias and lymphomas, and will share its findings in December.
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Becton Dickinson & Co. wins FDA approval
of 15-minute, hand-held COVID-19 test
Becton Dickinson & Co. (BD) recently won Food and Drug Administration emergency-use authorization for its portable COVID-19 test that delivers results in 15 minutes. The company, which has large operations in San Diego, aims to bring faster, cheaper testing to doctors’ offices, urgent-care centers, and other medical facilities.
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Researchers discover two paths of aging
and new insights on promoting healthspan
Identifying a master aging circuit allows biologists
to genetically engineer prolonged life
By Mario Aguilera | UC San Diego
Molecular biologists and bioengineers at the University of California San Diego have unraveled key mechanisms behind the mysteries of aging. They isolated two distinct paths that cells travel during aging and engineered a new way to genetically program these processes to extend lifespan. The research is described July 17 in the journal Science.
Our lifespans as humans are determined by the aging of our individual cells. To understand whether different cells age at the same rate and by the same cause, the researchers studied aging in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a tractable model for investigating mechanisms of aging, including the aging paths of skin and stem cells.
The scientists discovered that cells of the same genetic material and within the same environment can age in strikingly distinct ways, their fates unfolding through different molecular and cellular trajectories. Using microfluidics, computer modeling and other techniques, they found that about half of the cells age through a gradual decline in the stability of the nucleolus, a region of nuclear DNA where key components of protein-producing “factories” are synthesized. In contrast, the other half age due to dysfunction of their mitochondria, the energy production units of cells
“Our study raises the possibility of rationally designing gene or chemical-based therapies to reprogram how human cells age, with a goal of effectively delaying human aging and extending human healthspan,” said Nan Hao, senior author of the study and an associate professor in the Section of Molecular Biology, Division of Biological Sciences.
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San Diego American Indian Health Center
announces new leadership team
The San Diego American Indian Health Center has named Kevin M. LaChapelle as its new CEO as part of a new leadership team.
LaChapelle holds expertise in implementing culture-focused performance improvement in clinics, ambulatory surgical centers, and hospitals. He is skilled in identifying performance gaps, defining strategy, and creating measurable change.
LaChapelle previously served as national director of care experience, patient Ssafety and risk for Kaiser Permanente; consulting adviser for Press Ganey & Associates; corporate director of The Sharp Experience, The Sharp University, and Consumer Research at Sharp HealthCare; director of support operations at Scripps Health; adjunct professor at National University and Walden University. He also served as a police officer and an elected school board member.
Tim Nguyen continues serving as CFO, having served in this role for the past two years. He has more than 23 years of health care experience.
Young Suh, M.D., has also been named to the leadership team as medical director. Suh earned a Bachelor of Medical Science, Doctor of Medicine from the University of Alberta, and interned at the Royal Columbian Hospital in British Columbia, Canada.
Chelsea Richardson, .M.D. continues to serve as the dental director and has served in this role since 2008
Bob Henley, Ph.D., has been named SDAIHC’s behavioral health director. He is a licensed California Psychologist and has worked in the behavioral health field professionally since 1988 providing counseling and psychotherapy services to individuals, couples and groups.
Martin Furey joins SDAIHC as program development director. Furey has worked within the nonprofit sector for several decades in the areas of program administration and development for both UC San Diego Health and the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine.
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Pacific Southwest Association of Realtors
announces 2021 board of directors
The Pacific Southwest Association of Realtors (PSAR), one of the largest real estate trade groups for San Diego-area Realtors, has announced its 2021 board of directors following recent voting by members.
Ditas Yamane will serve as 2021 PSAR board president, succeeding Robert Cromer, who is currently serving as 2020 board president. Max Zaker and Sam Calvano will serve in 20201 as president-elect and secretary-treasurer, respectively.
Directors serving on the 2021 PSAR board will include Peter Mendiola, Jason Lopez, Yvonne Cromer, Mike White and Laurie MacDonald, along with the recently elected Mike Anderson, Merrie Espina, Rafael Perez, Amy Ruiz, Amber Tannehill and Andrea Martino as the affiliate director. Anderson, Espina, Perez, Ruiz, Tannehill and Martino were recently elected for two-year terms (2021-2022).
Founded in 1928, PSAR has 3,200 members. It operates service centers in Chula Vista, El Cajon and Clairemont. For information, visit www.PSAR.org.
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Veteran broker Paul Klink moves to
Kidder Mathews, teams with Mickey Morera
Veteran industry leader Paul Klink has joined Kidder Mathews’ San Diego office as an executive vice president. Klink specializes in institutional industrial properties, and will be joining forces with Mickey Morera, Kidder Mathews’ executive vice president and the managing director of the San Diego office. Together they will focus on major institutional and corporate assignments.
Klink is a 35-year veteran in the commercial real estate industry. His career has been primarily focused on providing local and institutional clients the entire suite of commercial real estate services including investment sales, leasing, and asset management. Before that, he was the executive managing director of investor services for Cushman & Wakefield.
Klink and Morera have known each other for over 20 years and have often discussed working together. They plan to build a business for an exclusive host of institutional investment clients who recognize the senior level of experience and service they provide.
Morera is a well-known top producing broker in the San Diego region with 30 years of commercial real estate experience. He specializes in landlord and tenant representation of corporate headquarters and R&D/flex and industrial facility sales and leasing.
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S.D. Women’s Week Leadership Conference Goes Global
New virtual format with no boundaries features Daymond John, Linda Cureton, Ed Smart, Amy Trask
San Diego Women’s Week, celebrating 11 years of inspiring, empowering and connecting women is now virtual with leadership events for all ages and professions. Attendees enjoy virtual networking, keynote speakers, panel discussions, and more, all wrapped around creative solutions to everyday issues affecting leaders in the workplace and in their daily lives.
WHEN: Wednesday, Aug. 26 – Friday, Aug. 28, 2020
WHO: Keynotes for 2020 Leadership conference include:
- Daymond John from Shark Tank: Powershift, Transform Any Situation, Close Any Deal, and Achieve Any Outcome.
- Linda Cureton, Former CIO – NASA: Managing and Leading in a Tough Environment.
- Ed Smart, Father of Elizabeth Smart: Two Miracles, and Standing up for Yourself.
- Amy Trask, Former NFL Team Executive – Los Angeles Raiders: Leadership Vulnerabilities.
WHERE: Wednesday – Virtual Women and Wine 6-7:30 p.m.
Friday – Virtual Leadership Conference 8:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Click here for complete list of speakers and additional details.
