Images from the Smash Bros 64 event, Slamfest '99, have been uncovered
The marketing campaign for Smash 64 didn't stop there, though.
Back in April, 1999, an event took place in Las Vegas, which had people dressed in what seems to be the same costumes for Mario, Donkey Kong, Yoshi and Pikachu used in the commercial, live in a wrestling stage, with the event being televised. However, video footage for that event seems to be non-existent, with only a mere few images remaining as evidence of the event happening.
Recently, a member of the Lost Media Wiki by the name of bozo_ssb has opened up several threads regarding a new discovery at Reddit, a gallery of previously unseen images from the Slamfest '99 event provided by the organizer of the event, Ed Espinoza. The images have been uploaded to Imgur for posterity, and while the video footage of the event still remains elusive, their efforts still continue to reach out to people who might have any kind of new media regarding the event, be it images, audio or video recordings, and with some luck, even the whole event recorded.
Here's some more details regarding the new discovery and how people can contact them in case of having new media regarding the event:
bozo_ssb said:What is Slamfest '99?
Slamfest '99 was an official promotional event for the N64's Super Smash Bros. that took place in Las Vegas on April 24, 1999. It featured a real-life, staged wrestling match between costumed performers dressed as Mario, Pikachu, Yoshi, and DK, and was broadcasted live on Nintendo's website via RealPlayer. The costumes used were the same as those seen in the well-known North American commercial for the game.
Despite the live broadcast, and despite it being available to be rewatched in RealPlayer for several months afterward, no video footage of Slamfest '99 is known to survive anywhere on the modern-day internet - it's completely lost. With little evidence of the event even occurring, it has languished in extreme obscurity for over two decades, even among hardcore Nintendo fans. Since May 2020, a group of fans and archivists from the Lost Media Wiki have been actively searching for the lost broadcast footage (of which I'm a member).
If you're interested in learning more, check out the Slamfest '99 article on SmashWiki for more details on the event, as well as LSuperSonicQ's video series that chronicle the ongoing search effort.
Image Details
These 31 new photographs were provided courtesy of Ed Espinoza, Slamfest '99's producer. They were scanned from his personal collection, and he was gracious enough to offer them to the search team to be shared around. Ed has previously been interviewed by GameXplain to talk about his memories of Slamfest '99's production.
These photos reveal new details that had never been seen before in the search, such as the performers' rehearsals, the gameplay stations to preview Smash 64, the surrounding stage area and production equipment, clear images of the referee and announcer, and much more. Very few photographs of the event have surfaced previously, so acquiring a collection this large is substantial news.
Can I help the search?
Yes! If you have any video footage, images, or information surrounding Slamfest '99, we would be greatly interested to hear from you - please reach out to me (/u/bozo_ssb) here on Reddit, and I'll relay it to the rest of the search team.
Before anyone brings it up, we are already aware of a certain Youtuber who claims to possess footage of the event on an obscure video format. In addition to a history of producing troll content, they have not provided a shred of proof to back up their claims, and we will not be taking them seriously until they do so.
Anyone is welcome to join the search effort in the Slamfest '99 On-The-Hunt channel in the Lost Media Wiki discord. Feel free to message me if you need any help accessing the channel. Hope to see you there!
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