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Funny/Interesting Stories

Started by chrisco37,

38 posts in this topic

aardvark88

aardvark88

Posted
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Stv Fischler is only crabby when he catches his staff eating a hot dog & sitting on his mylared display of All Stars & Timely's, & crushing them at S Diego Comicon. Beware his wrath & be gr8ful IF he allows u the privelage of digging thru 1 short box of his hi-grade. frown.gif

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PovertyRow

PovertyRow

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I have three all from the same store: Outer Limits in Waltham, MA. Steve Higgins is the owner and he is a GREAT guy. Very fair and also a collector who really loves books. I have a lot of respect for his being able to turn his interests into a business. Anyway, here are the three stories:

 

Story 1: The Case Of The Seller Seeking NM

Steve told me about thisone. It is not knee-slapping funny mainly because it is too brief...but if you THINK about it the tagline will stay with you for some time.

A youth (meaning around 15 or so) brought him a GA book to sell. Cannot remember the title/# but suffice it to say, a GA book. Not a key, I remember that. Anyway, the youth is seeking a high price for it based on OS NM values. The book had some major issues - tears, writing on the cover, etc etc. When Steve pointed this out to him his reposnse was "Well, I didn't do that!"

 

Story 2: Michael (myself) Meets Steve for the First Time

I had recently switched from moderns to SA. I purused the yellow pages and found Outer Limits. (Priot to that the only comic book store I knew was Million Year Picnic in Cambridge - Jerry Weist used to own it - Tony (forget his last name but also a GREAT guy) became the owner some years later...anyway - I had just bought the previous weekend a nice run of Iron Man from 2-16 or so. All of them were very nice - easy VF books, especially since they were not THAT old in the early-mid 80's. I had bought them on a Sunday, not frpom Steve but from one who filled in for Steve on Sundays. Had no knowledge of Steve at this point. Went back the following Saturday, feeling already like a "customer" since I had bought 15 SA books the previous week. Steve was there - no idea he was the owner. (For thosae of oyu who know Outer Limits from the old days this was his old styore - not the new one a few blocks away). So I am purusing the wall books and see an X-Men #1. I notice that, in the mylar, there is a staple floating around on the bottom of the bag. So I said, with VERY poor phrasing, "There's a loose staple in that X-Men 1". I forget Steve's exact response but he thought I was insulting the book. I mean, looked like a 30-something hippie ion those days and he never laid eyes on me before. His reaction was not challenging but was more like "Well, if there is then that is what it is." I realized my gaffe and clarified "No - mean there is a loose staple floating around in the bottom of the mylar and it may damage the book next time it is pulled out of the mylar." He pulled the book down and very carefully removed the book from the mylar and removed the staple (the X-Men 1 had both staples intact). After returning the book to the mylar and the lylar to the wall we started just talking. The beginning of a long association of my going there every Saturday (when he was on) and spending about 4 hours just chatting - and buying whatever he had I was interested in. We still chat on the phone every once on a while although it has been about 4 years since I moved from boston to San Francisco.

 

Story 3: Can You Say Reality Check?

By this time Steve and I knew each other well and conversed pon all manner of topics comic-wise. LOIS AND CLARK had just premiered the previous week and it was opposite another show - forget the name - about a submarine, a talking Dolphin and also an interesting Superman hook - Stacy Haiduk was starring and she had played Lana Lang in the Canadian SUPERBOY series. Anyway, we were discussing the merits of the two shows with several regulars. Steve said "Well, come on? A submarine and a talking dolphin? An unbelieveable premise. LOIS AND CLARK was much better!"

 

I said to him, "Oh! I see! You have issues with a talking dolphin but none about a baby from Krypton stuffed into a spaceship, landing on Earth, and who can fly, is indestructible, super fast, has xray and heat vision?" The whole store, including Steve, totally lost it. It was a fun time.

 

God - I miss the East Coast.

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Illiterati-migration

Illiterati-migration

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SEAQUEST! That's the one! (Joanna, I can't believe you read that far! lol)

 

Ye cods, you guys need to watch "Sealab 2021" (or is it just 2020?) on Adult Swim on Cartoon Network... funniest, strangest cartoon I've seen in a looooong time. They take the old Seaquest animation and give them some new "twists". It's SO weird, but it's SO funny. Sunday and Thursday nights, usually around 11pm Est.

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g-man

g-man

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agree with the Outer Limits. Great place. Nice guy. Solid inventory. Anotehr good guy is Ted Van Liew from Superworld in Worcester (superworldcomics.com). Always pleasant and willing to do deals/trades. I have known him for over 15 years and went to my first show in Bostoin the same day he set up for the first time. I picked up a Star Trek #1 (GK) from him that I still ahve to this day. He is very knowledgable and stands behind his books.

I also had a recent pleasant transaction with Bob from Highgrade Comics at the most recent Boston show. We talked for a few about grading and such and he gave me a nice deal on a Spidey book. Top notch.

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PovertyRow

PovertyRow

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Anotehr good guy is Ted Van Liew from Superworld in Worcester (superworldcomics.com). Always pleasant and willing to do deals/trades.

 

Yes, Ted is a good one all right. About as loose as they come when it comes to making traders and deals, and a keen sense of humor. There's usually a photo of Ted's head stuck onto a cartoon body saying something ridiculously funny in his catalogues.

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linmoth

linmoth

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Hi Joanna: I learned along time ago that when people want something they are always "cool" as quoted from one of this forums members. I have collected comics for a very long time and been very blessed to have been part of some pedigee collection transactions and have a very nice Silver Age DC Collection. Always low profile, never introduce myself ( Not that anyone cares ) when dealing with so called high profile dealers. I like to see their true nature before I enter into any purchase. I don't care if it is a book that I covet, if the personality isn't there they can keep the comic for someone else. Do you still collect WW?

 

Best, Tom

 

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Joanna

Joanna

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Do you still collect WW?

 

Not right now, as I'm broke. But when I get money again, I'll probably be right back at it. Do you have some nice pedigree WW's? The really high grade stuff was always out of my reach. Not that it mattered much to me, as I just wanted to read the books in their original form. I love the stories, but I also love the ads and the fillers, etc. And in a book like Sensation, you get so many stories, and they're often about characters who don't have reprints or archives, so your only chance to read them is to buy the original. Man, it's fun to read a GA book for the first time. I always feel like I've stepped into a time machine, and am experiencing an era I never knew.

 

I agree with you about sizing up a dealer. Although I occasionally had some bad experiences with sexism, that wasn't the norm. I dealt with many people who were absolutely fantastic.

 

-- Joanna

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linmoth

linmoth

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HI Joanna: No I don't collect or have in my collection any Golden Age books. But I do have a funny story to relate. I had the oppurtunity to examine maybe 20 Mile High MLJ's, and maybe an AF 15 or two, before CGC, the books were truly astonishing. They were all in mylars with backing boards, and we all know how slippery those little devils can be. Well as fate would have it, I was so taken in the moment I kinda lost my grip and Shield Wizard 1, Top Notch 1 and a few others had gravity take over and as they hit the floor the owner turned a whiter shade of pale, an interesting song may be in there, luckily nothing was damaged. As I looked at the other books in the collection, he only allowed me to handle one at a time. Oh well, we still kid about it to this day, I guess you had to be there!

 

Best, Tom

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