page_title: DashCon
section_title: Convention
hierarchical_section_title: DashCon / Convention
caption_attribution_description: English: Marriott's Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel &amp; Convention Center.
context_page_description: DashCon was a fan convention catering primarily to users of the blogging service Tumblr, with a particular emphasis on fandoms. Held over the weekend of July 11, 2014, in Schaumburg, Illinois, the inaugural convention quickly became infamous for allegations of mismanagement and corruption among organizers, an alleged abrupt demand by the hotel for an upfront payment of cash for use of its facilities, and celebrity guests being forced to drop out of the convention after they were informed by the hotel that they would be responsible for paying for their rooms. A small ball pit placed in one of the halls became a meme after organizers offered attendees, along with raffle and concert tickets, an "extra hour" in it as reimbursement for a canceled panel.
  Organizers for DashCon initially stated that they were going to hold a second DashCon in 2015 despite the issues faced by the inaugural edition, but officially announced via a Tumblr post in September 2014 that DashCon LLP was going to be dissolved and all its assets liquidated, meaning that they were not going to hold a second convention.
context_section_description: The convention was organized by DashCon LLP, a Hudson, Ohio-based limited liability partnership owned by Megan Eli and Roxanne Schwieterman. DashCon was held from July 11 to 13, 2014, at the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Hotel. Among the guests originally scheduled to attend were actor Doug Jones, webcomic artist Noelle Stevenson, and the cast of Welcome to Night Vale.
  On the evening of July 11 – the first night of DashCon – early reports began to surface from attendees that events occurring at the convention were poorly planned and attended, a vendor had left due to poor sales, and minors had been admitted into 18+ rated panels. The convention itself also began to experience unexpected financial difficulties: a DashCon staff member claimed that the staff of the Renaissance purportedly informed them that they would need to pay $20,000 upfront for the use of the facilities, or shut the convention down. DashCon organizers claimed to have verbally negotiated to pay the venue gradually throughout the convention using ticket sales, rather than issuing an upfront payment despite their contract suggesting otherwise.
  At 9:00 p.m. CT, as a result of this unexpected development, the DashCon organizers began to publicly solicit donations among a crowd of around 1,000 attendees (itself much lower than the original estimate of 3,000 to 7,000 attendees), and online via PayPal, to cover costs, with a goal of collecting at least $17,000 by 10:00 p.m. to prevent the convention from being shut down. Organizers speculated that the abrupt change in plans was because the hotel's management "[did not] like the people at the con". Attendees were seen performing a three-fingered salute from The Hunger Games, chanting lines from High School Musical, and singing Queen's "We Are the Champions" and "Do You Hear the People Sing?" from Les Misérables. While organizers managed to raise the necessary funds, the incident raised suspicion among attendees over the possibility of the crowdfunding drive being a scam (which included disputes over the authenticity of an image of the bill, printed on hotel stationery, which was released by a staff member), or being further proof of the alleged mismanagement and corruption.
  Several guests – including Noelle Stevenson (who had to moderate her own panel because the scheduled moderator was absent), the Baker Street Babes (who produced an all-female Sherlock Holmes podcast), and the Welcome to Night Vale cast – were also informed by the hotel that they would be responsible for paying for their own rooms, despite previously being told that the rooms would be paid for by the convention itself. Stevenson would ultimately join the WTNV cast for the night in accommodations obtained via Airbnb. The appearance by the Welcome to Night Vale cast was ultimately canceled; organizers reimbursed those who had purchased tickets for the panel with tickets to a raffle of various autographed collectibles, admission to a concert with the Chicago-based Doctor Who-inspired rock band Time Crash, and an "extra hour with the ball pit".
caption: Overhead view of the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Hotel, where the convention was held
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