From Back to the Future Holy Grails to 90s Con Budgets
Years ago, convention halls were practically my second home, and let’s just say my wallet certainly felt the burn. I managed to collect some truly incredible pieces over the years, including treasured autographs from legends like Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, and Stan Lee. In fact, one of my absolute prized possessions is an actual Mattel Hoverboard signed by Christopher Lloyd, Michael J. Fox, Bob Gale, Tom Wilson, and Lea Thompson. For anyone who grew up idolizing these icons on the big and small screen, shelling out the cash felt worth every single penny at the moment. I distinctly remember dropping over three hundred dollars just to secure a couple of Stan Lee signatures and a photo op alongside him. My ultimate holy grail photo op featuring Michael J. Fox, Lea Thompson, and Christopher Lloyd together ran me a cool one thousand dollars after making the road trip down to Philadelphia, not even factoring in the hotel stay, convention tickets, or meals along the way.
Looking at the current landscape of convention pricing, people often ask if I think things have gotten completely out of hand. Honestly, it's not entirely horrible, especially considering events like the upcoming 90s Con happening right in Hartford, Connecticut, from October 16th through the 18th. A standard ticket to walk the floor and soak in the nostalgia sits right around $60, which feels pretty reasonable for a weekend event of that scale. Naturally, the real financial gymnastics start when you look at the headlining photo ops, like the massive full-cast reunion package for Full House. Checking the breakdown, a group shot featuring Jodie Sweetin, Candace Cameron Bure, Andrea Barber, Dave Coulier, John Stamos, and Lori Loughlin costs $495.
When you do the math on that massive Full House group photo, it actually boils down to less than $100 per cast member, which completely shifts the perspective. That ticket price includes a physical 8x10 print, and the best part is that the photo op allows up to four people in the frame together. If you split that cost evenly with a group of friends chipping in, it drops to about $125 each and if someone blinks, you could probably just edit your friends out using AI later anyway. If you want to mix and match smaller pairings, you can grab a dueling photo op with John Stamos and Dave Coulier for just over $200, or opt for a Stamos and Lori Loughlin package sitting around $215. For individual moments, each celebrity generally hovers around the $100 mark for a standalone photo, with John Stamos commanding $130 on his own.
The nostalgia trip doesn't stop there, either, as the convention floor will host plenty of other iconic television and movie casts. Fans of A Goofy Movie can catch Jason Marsden, while the beloved ensemble from Step by Step is slated for a group photo op priced at $365 featuring Patrick Duffy, Christine Lakin, Staci Keanan, Angela Watson, Christopher Castile, Sasha Mitchell, and Josh Byrne. Meanwhile, devotees of Sabrina the Teenage Witch can meet Melissa Joan Hart alongside Nate Richert and Jenna Leigh Green for $175. Once you start factoring in additional guests like Tara Reid making an appearance, your convention budget starts expanding very quickly. If I were heading to this con, my personal wishlist would definitely home in on Stamos, Coulier, and Jason Marsden, but by the time you toss in a few extra favorites like Melissa Joan Hart, you are easily staring down a $500 weekend.
Of course, none of those baseline photo prices cover the separate cost of collecting individual autographs throughout the weekend. While group photo listings don't always spell out autograph details upfront, guests typically sign right at their designated tables unless a specific convention operates under strict alternative rules since I've never attended this particular one before. A quick check online confirms they do indeed offer table side signings where you pay as you go. To put it into perspective, let's say you go for John Stamos with a photo and an autograph: since he generally charges around $100 per autograph, you're looking at $60 to enter the con, $130 for a photo with him, and another $100 for his signature, so you'd want to bring $400 just to be safe. On the other hand, if you're aiming for the ultimate experience with the full cast of Full House, you should realistically bring around $1000. Even with the inevitable extra spending on signatures and memorabilia, diving back into the convention scene for a heavy dose of '90s nostalgia sounds like a pretty solid way to spend a weekend, just make sure your budget is ready for it!