Tons of events, corporate sponsors, dedicated fans, traffic, people descending from all parts of the country and world, and lots of bright lights. Super Bowl? No, it's a political convention. I'm on my way to Denver for the DNC convention, and it feels like I'm going to a Super Bowl weekend.
I've been to Super Bowl a few times and the weeks leading up to it are always spent figuring out which events to go to, how to snag a hotel room, securing a rental car in a scarce market, and coordinating with friends and acquaintances who are going to be in the event city. This week has been no different and I'm amazed at how similar the lead-up to the two events has felt.
Former veterans of their craft are everywhere, talking heads will abound, and the real bigwigs are determined by who can get tickets to which events and parties. Sounds like Super Bowl to me. But instead of seeing washed up athletes everywhere, we'll see staffers from administrations past in every hotel lobby. "Isn't that Sean Salisbury?" is replaced by "hey look, there's Chuck Todd", and instead of the Playboy party, we have to settle for the GQ soiree. I'm not complaining; it should be fun.
My flight leaves New York in an hour, and provided that we land on time, I'll get to Denver in time to check-in to my hotel, go to a forum on grass roots voter outreach, a screening of "Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?" with a talkback with director Morgan Spurlock, a Citicorp reception, dinner with some friends, a party thrown by Rahm Emanuel and Dick Durbin, and then the aforementioned GQ/Maker's Mark party. Should be a full day and a nice combination of interesting and fun (and educational). Like a nerdy version of Super Bowl.
Marc Mitchell is an attorney who has managed the financial, business, and legal affairs of several influential entertainment companies. Mitchell is the founder and CEO of Celebrifantasy, an online news portal and celebrity fantasy league, and the Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Dominion Media, a film and TV production company. Until recently, he was also the Chief Operating Officer of UrbanDaddy, a leading online lifestyle publication. He is currently a member of the New York Finance Committee for Barack Obama.