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ED AND TOM KALB, MARTY HAY...................

Started by drdonaldblake,

23 posts in this topic

batman_fan

batman_fan

Posted
Posted

I have known all for many years. Bought my Batman 7 from Marty in 1989. Dealt with Tom and Ed while I was in Phoenix. Bought more books than I can remember from Tom. Only bought once from Ed (Batman 2 and 8). PM me for more details if you are interested.

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Thegoldenage

Thegoldenage

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hey all

 

these guys have advertised in the big guide for years

 

anyone ever dealt with them?

 

do they do the convention circuit?

 

anyone got pics of them?

 

I believe that Marty Hay still sets up at San Diego. Ed Kalb lists on ebay regularly, but I don't remember his ebay handle.

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joeypost

joeypost

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I have nothing but praise for all of them. Never had a problem with any of their books and grading is conservative, the books I received were listed as NM but I regularly received grades of 9.6 to 9.8 on more than half of the books I purchased from them.

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Deucedriver

Deucedriver

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Back in 1990-1993 I was stationed in the Phoenix area and my wife and I used to go to Tom's shop all the time. It was a great "real" comic shop. I think it was called "Books, Comics, and Records". Tom was hilarious to the informed and probably scary to the newly initiated.

 

My wife called it "grumpy guy" comics. Once you got to know him and he realized you weren't into the early 90's mob mentality the service and books were outstanding. Very fair grader and a true "fan" comic dealer. No BS - just how I like it.

 

At the time he was getting some run-around from a hospital and my wife was a nurse with answers and helped him out. We actually have a small photocopied comic he wrote as a joke about the Marvel/Image fan-boy comic boom, he gave it to my wife.

 

I wish I could find a shop like that again. A dying, if not dead, breed of store...

 

Sean

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adamstrange

adamstrange

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Tom was gruff, but a straight-forward, standup guy. I frequented his store in Phoenix for about 5 years and it had an eclectic mix of old, cool stuff. I rarely visited without buying something, even if it wasn't a comic book.

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HighVoltage

HighVoltage

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I haven't purchased anything within the past 2-3 years from any of the three guys that you mentioned, but in the past I've had pleasant dealings with all.

 

I've bought from Ed through mail-order, going back 20 years. He always packaged the books well & they were graded fairly, I thought.

 

Tom, his younger brother, has had a store in Mesa, AZ (on & off) for the past 15 years or so. When I lived there, I bought many a mid-grade & low-grade book from him (mostly Silver Age stuff). Tom's grading was accurate, I thought, but his grading was more generalized. I don't know what his thoughts are now, regarding hi-grade collectors, but at the time he really didn't like them & the speculator guys (like the EDGE-MAN - anyone remember him?) drove him crazy. In my opinion, a pretty good guy to talk comics with. He could certainly be a bit cranky, but there were certainly some whackos that came into his store - I suppose they would make anyone a bit short.

 

Marty is another good guy to talk comics with. He has a lot of knowledge about their history and you can talk about the stories within the books too - he is a fan of the material. Marty grades fair, but he can get cantankerous if he disagrees with you on a grade. I have a friend that just hates any kind of staple defect. One year, at the San Diego Con, he seriously considered buying a Hulk 1 from Marty, but turned the book down because he didn't like the damage around the staple areas. Marty had graded the book accurately, but he just did not understand why my friend wouldn't go for the book. It's a conversation/borderline argument that sticks in my mind to this day. It was funny to watch.

 

Again - I have had fair & pleasant transactions with all three men. I would be happy to deal with any of them again & consider them 3 of the better, long-time dealers from out west.

 

As to their ages? I would guess that Ed Kalb is in his early 50's. Tom is probably mid-40s. Marty is probably mid 50s. Somewhere in there.

 

Hope this helps...

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HighVoltage

HighVoltage

Posted
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Back in 1990-1993 I was stationed in the Phoenix area and my wife and I used to go to Tom's shop all the time. It was a great "real" comic shop. I think it was called "Books, Comics, and Records". Tom was hilarious to the informed and probably scary to the newly initiated.

 

My wife called it "grumpy guy" comics. Once you got to know him and he realized you weren't into the early 90's mob mentality the service and books were outstanding. Very fair grader and a true "fan" comic dealer. No BS - just how I like it.

 

At the time he was getting some run-around from a hospital and my wife was a nurse with answers and helped him out. We actually have a small photocopied comic he wrote as a joke about the Marvel/Image fan-boy comic boom, he gave it to my wife.

 

I wish I could find a shop like that again. A dying, if not dead, breed of store...

 

Sean

 

You hit the nail on the head in describing Tom. When you walked into the store, there Tom sat, immediately to your left, behind a makeshift small counter. He had a rough, 4-day unshaven face & his shirt was always open a few buttons too many. It WAS 190 degrees out, but YOWZA - the man had more chest-hair than I needed to see!

 

Tom was the kinda guy that would save stuff back for you if you were a regular & bring it out the next time you came in. He treated his regular customers right. And, yeah, NO BS at all! 27_laughing.gif

 

Kick-Butt Comics! How could I forget Tom's home-made books?! thumbsup2.gif

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Deucedriver

Deucedriver

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Right before I left Phoenix (re-stationed to Abilene, TX, ugh), my wife visited the store to get a few books and told Tom I was leaving. He said 'Send Sean over and I'll set him up with a few nice funny books..."

 

When I stopped by for my final visit (well, while living there, we visited again when we passed through Phoenix on the way to CA), he pulled out high grade copies of FF 48, Silver Surfer 4 and a House of Secrets 92. He gave me quite the deal (even for 1992) and I still have them today. I just can't seem to let them go...

 

Ahh, the memories of a real comic store...

 

Sean

 

P.S. My wife just looked over my shoulder, is chuckling, and has a big smile on her face. Must be the chest hair!

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batman_fan

batman_fan

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Back in 1990-1993 I was stationed in the Phoenix area and my wife and I used to go to Tom's shop all the time. It was a great "real" comic shop. I think it was called "Books, Comics, and Records". Tom was hilarious to the informed and probably scary to the newly initiated.

 

My wife called it "grumpy guy" comics. Once you got to know him and he realized you weren't into the early 90's mob mentality the service and books were outstanding. Very fair grader and a true "fan" comic dealer. No BS - just how I like it.

 

At the time he was getting some run-around from a hospital and my wife was a nurse with answers and helped him out. We actually have a small photocopied comic he wrote as a joke about the Marvel/Image fan-boy comic boom, he gave it to my wife.

 

I wish I could find a shop like that again. A dying, if not dead, breed of store...

 

Sean

 

You hit the nail on the head in describing Tom. When you walked into the store, there Tom sat, immediately to your left, behind a makeshift small counter. He had a rough, 4-day unshaven face & his shirt was always open a few buttons too many. It WAS 190 degrees out, but YOWZA - the man had more chest-hair than I needed to see!

 

Tom was the kinda guy that would save stuff back for you if you were a regular & bring it out the next time you came in. He treated his regular customers right. And, yeah, NO BS at all! 27_laughing.gif

 

Kick-Butt Comics! How could I forget Tom's home-made books?! thumbsup2.gif

 

Dead nuts on. Tom was always really gruff. It took me a few years (and spending some serious cash with him) before he would give me access to his better stuff. I bought a Daredevil Battles Hitler 1 from him which I still own, also a lot of my early silver age Batmans came from Tom. He could definitely be a to people he didn't know or people he thought were just fanboys. Anyone remember him calling people Crowf%cks?

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