Interview: Dan Decker of THE CON MEN at Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock

One of the fastest-growing ways artistic folks supplement their bank account between gigs is by making appearances at festivals and conventions—more commonly known as “the cons.” What used to feel like a niche corner of fandom has turned into a full-on industry: a place where actors, voice artists, writers, creators, and makers can connect directly with audiences, share stories, sign autographs, take photos, host panels, and—yes—keep the lights on while they wait for the next project to roll around. For many, it’s not just a fun weekend; it’s a practical lifeline that bridges the gaps between contracts and creative opportunities. 

And as glamorous as the celebrity side may look from the outside, it takes an army to put these shows together. Behind every photo op and packed panel room are coordinators, talent handlers, stage managers, security, line control, vendors, tech crews, volunteers, and an endless list of people hauling tables, taping down cords, answering questions, managing schedules, and keeping the whole machine moving. When it runs smoothly, it feels like magic—but that “magic” is built on teamwork, planning, and a whole lot of hardworking humans making sure everyone has the best experience possible. 

Broadway World sat down with Dan Decker of Decker Media LLC to talk about life working The Cons and other endeavors that compliment this passion. 

BroadwayWorld: Why and how did the convention work start for you? 

Decker: Honestly? I wanted to go for free. I didn’t realize how much work it was…until I did it. But then it totally tickled my inner theatre kid and I was done—I was hooked. 

BroadwayWorld: That tracks. Theatre kids love organized chaos. 

Decker: Exactly. In 2024, I got accepted to volunteer at Arkansas Comic Con in Little Rock, and the next day after the season ended, they invited me onto the travel team. That changed everything. They cover hotels, reimburse gas receipts, and you get to work shows every four to six weeks. 

BroadwayWorld: What kinds of roles do you do at the cons? 

Decker: The first show? Line control—basically directing people through those zig-zag queue lines like Disney. I spent three days telling people where to stand to meet Skeet Ulrich. I said “Skeet” a lot. 

BroadwayWorld: And then it escalated? 

Decker: Big time. The second show I ever worked, I helped Tom Kenny—the voice of SpongeBob. His line can be four hours long. That man takes his time with fans. And you learn quickly: cons are fun, but they’re also business—this is how a lot of folks pay bills between projects. 

BroadwayWorld: Any unforgettable moments with guests? 

Decker: Two. One: hearing a very graphic story about a roadside accident…told in a voice that sounded just enough like Goofy to be off-putting. Two: getting ready to take Diedrich Bader to the airport, and he casually mentions seeing a field of goats and thinking, “They looked absolutely delicious.” I was not prepared for that sentence. 

BroadwayWorld: That is the most random thing I’ve ever heard. 

Decker: Truly. Solid life experience. Five stars. 

BroadwayWorld: How many cons are on your calendar this year?

Decker: I’ve already done two full shows—Northwest Arkansas and Central Carolina in Columbia, South Carolina. I also helped with setup and teardown for Little Rock Anime Fest. And for the year? Maybe ten…maybe eleven. There’s also a newer show in December called Cajun Con in Louisiana, hosted by Scott Innis—voice of Scooby and Scrappy in Zombie Island. 

BroadwayWorld: So what keeps you saying yes to all this? 

Decker: The experience. And eventually, I’d like to get paid for it—not just reimbursements. Sometimes volunteers get noticed by handlers or agents and get hired outside the convention company. So I’m showing up, doing a good job, and seeing what happens.  

BroadwayWorld: Well that sounds like a lot of fun. I’ve noticed though that you’ve got a lot of plates spinning—tell me about your business. 

Decker: Decker Media LLC is the umbrella I operate everything under. Right now, that includes a toy store that I run through eBay, plus a T-shirt side hustle. 

BroadwayWorld: And these are your designs? 

Decker: Mostly, yep! I design them myself—usually pop culture stuff like Star Trek and comic book themes. 

BroadwayWorld: So do you have a T-shirt press at home, or…? 

Decker: Nope—Cotton Bureau. They’re an on-demand printing service. I submit designs, and if they like it, they might feature it in their newsletter or on the front page, which gives you a huge boost. 

BroadwayWorld: That’s a pretty sweet setup. 

Decker: It really is. 

BroadwayWorld: You’re also busy outside of merch—tell me about the streaming and gaming side. 

Decker: Oh yeah—comic-cons keep me busy, but I also do a weekly livestream with friends. We run a D&D show, and we just finished an Alien role-playing campaign—like, the movie universe. 

BroadwayWorld: That sounds delightfully chaotic. How did it go? 

Decker: Shockingly, only one person died. I lost an arm, though. My character was the colony marshal—always severely injured—and as I got into my cryo pod, we realized I was infected with something. So if we ever do a sequel…we’ll see what happens. 

BroadwayWorld: And all of this is recorded? 

Decker: Yep. My friend Anthony runs a YouTube channel, so there are something like 900 hours of me in-character online at this point. We had a D&D campaign that lasted five years—level one to level twenty. 

BroadwayWorld: Five years?! That’s a whole era. 

Decker: It’s wild. I was on my third character because I died twice. Anthony runs it kind of like a video game—you get three lives. If you die on your third, you roll a new character, but you start at the same level, so you don’t fully reset. 

BroadwayWorld: So what else have you played?

Decker: We did a Warhammer role-playing campaign for about two and a half years. I played an ogre “gnaw-throat ripper,” and he ate…a lot. Now we’re starting another Warhammer story, and I’m playing someone who died as a mortal and got chosen by Sigmar—reforged ten times before the game even starts. Totally stripped of memory. All he has left is despair. It’s tragic! 

BroadwayWorld: I love how theatrical that is. 

Decker: Right?! And that’s the thing—these friendships go way back. I started working with most of them at the store in 2017, so we’re closing in on ten years, and playing together in some form for about eight. 

BroadwayWorld: And you’ve got a podcast too? 

Decker: Yep—my friend Adrian and I do a show focused on comic cons: The Conman Show. It started because every time we’d call to chat, it was entertaining enough that we kept saying, “We should’ve hit record.” 

BroadwayWorld: So now you do. 

Decker: Exactly. We record on StreamYard—“not a sponsor”—and aim for weekly, but we also keep a couple episodes recorded ahead as backup. We talk about comic-con work, but you can’t stay on that topic without drifting into pop culture tangents. 

BroadwayWorld: There’s also a bigger vision behind it, right? 

Decker: For sure. We each have our own LLCs, but we’re developing a shared umbrella too—Unconventional LLC. We tag the podcast as “an unconventional podcast” now and have fun with the branding, but the long-term idea is: what else can we build together? 

BroadwayWorld: With everything you’ve got going on, what’s next for Decker Media?

Decker: More structure, honestly.I need to build things out: the streams, the brand, the toy store, the merch. Decker Media is the container so I don’t have to start eight different companies. 

BroadwayWorld: Final question: what do you tell people who are curious about getting into the con world? 

Decker: Look locally. The algorithm will start surfacing smaller shows once it knows what you’re into, and there are worthy events everywhere—card shows, mini-cons, small festivals. Find the website, reach out to a coordinator, and ask how to volunteer. If you’re community-minded, it’s a perfect way to plug in. 

BroadwayWorld: And you’re not slowing down anytime soon, huh? 

Decker: Not unless they tell me to stop. Or my body does. Or my wife does—honestly, that might be the real deciding factor.