Card collectors, prominent sports figures, and a popular Pokémon voice will unite in Jackson for the first-ever rendition of the Mississippi Card Show.
The function, put together by VXV Events — organizers of Mississippi Comic Con, Mississippi Anime Festival, and a variety of live events across the Midsouth and Midwest — will be held Saturday, July 19, at the Mississippi Trade Mart in the state fairgrounds.
Along with a multitude of vendors and dealers from across the region who specialize in sports cards and collectible card games, the following special guests will also be present at the Mississippi Card Show:
Dwight Gooden: Having been home to the New York Mets Double-A ballclub (the Jackson Mets) from 1975-90, many in the area were Mets fans when Gooden made his debut for the major league club in 1984.
As a 19-year-old rookie, Gooden won the first of his four All-Star selections on his way to being named the National League Rookie of the Year, followed by the Cy Young Award in 1985 and leading the Mets to the World Series title in 1986. Over this 16-year career, Gooden pitched over 2,800 innings, cementing his legacy as one of the league’s best pitchers. Gooden was inducted into the New York Mets Hall of Fame in 2010. The club retired Gooden’s number 16 jersey in 2024.
Pierre Thomas: Thomas signed as an undrafted free agent with the New Orleans Saints ahead of the 2007 season, joining the team alongside Mississippi’s Deuce McAllister and former Heisman-winner Reggie Bush. Thomas worked his way up the depth chart, taking over the starting position midway through the 2008 season.
Thomas’s contributions helped lead the Saints to a 13-0 start to the 2009 season, on the way to the franchise’s first-ever Super Bowl championship, where Thomas produced the team’s first touchdown on his famous screen pass trickery. In 2013, Thomas was the Saints’ nominee for the league-wide Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award for his numerous charitable contributions.
Michael Haigney: Haigney, an American voice actor, voice director, and English-language adaptation writer for the 4Kids Entertainment dubs of the Pokémon anime series, will set up shop in Jackson for the event. Haigney was the original voice director for the Pokémon anime and the first four movies and was responsible for adapting the scripts for the English audience.
As a voice actor, Haigney provided the voices for dozens of Pokémon heard throughout the early series and films, such as Ash’s Charmander and Snorlax, Misty’s Psyduck, and James’s Koffing and Weezing. His voiced Pokémon can also be heard in several video games, such as Pokémon Puzzle League and the Super Smash Bros. franchise of games. These days, Haigney hosts his own podcast, Original Pokéman.
Ron Simmons: Simmons was recognized as an All-American while playing for the Florida State Seminoles before playing professional football for the NFL’s Cleveland Browns, the CFL’s Ottawa Rough Riders, and the USFL’s Tampa Bay Bandits. Following his football career, Simmons entered the world of professional wrestling, where he is recognized as the first Black world champion in professional wrestling history with his 1992 WCW World Heavyweight Championship win.
In addition to being a singles champion, Simmons won numerous tag team titles with a number of partners throughout his career, most recently with John Bradshaw Layfield as the Acolytes Protection Agency (APA). Simmons’s popularity led to numerous appearances for the WWE following his in-ring retirement. Simmons was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2012 by his former APA running mate, Layfield.
Lex Luger: Following a football career that saw Luger playing alongside Ron Simmons for the Tampa Bay Bandits, Luger entered the world of professional wrestling in 1985. After years of paying his dues and working his way up the card, Luger helped kick off the “Monday Night Wars” between the WWE and WCW when he made his debut for WCW on its premiere episode of Nitro, the day after he appeared at a WWE house show.
Following his multi-championship career, Luger suffered a neck injury that left him with severely restricted mobility. Luger’s road to recovery has been well-documented, culminating in his induction earlier this year into the WWE Hall of Fame.
Passes for the day-long event, which begins at 10 a.m., are available online for $15 apiece. Those not able to purchase tickets online will be able to buy them at the door the day of the event. Children 10 and under will attend free with paid adult admission.