Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, November 22, 1993 TAG: 9311220047
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CODY LOWE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Now there is a universe of comics - or graphic literature - that seems dominated by dark worlds of supernatural evil, monsters and machines, death and destruction, and female characters who make Dolly Parton seem, well, a bit under-endowed.
It is a universe of intricately detailed fantasy worlds where aficionados lose themselves in Twilight Zones even Rod Serling never dreamed of.
Sunday, however, hard-core comics fans took a break from the dreamlands inhabited by the likes of X-Men, Venom, Punisher and Batman to the real business of their hobby.
It was Roanoke Valley Comicon '93. Upwards of 300 people packed a meeting room at the Salem Civic Center to buy and sell, barter and trade all kinds of goodies related to comics.
About 30 exhibitors were on hand with thousands of titles available to those trolling for bargains.
Derek Shaw brought his sons Philip and Andrew for precisely the same reasons most of the others came. Philip - a serious collector - was hoping to fill in a few blank spots in his collections. Andrew found gifts - "Star Wars" collectibles - for a friend.
"We've been to five or six shows in the last year," Derek Shaw said. He pronounced Sunday's a good one, but felt "the $4 entrance [fee] is a little expensive."
That didn't seem to deter the bargain hunters, though.
The crowd - mostly older teens and adults, and predominantly male - got to see some of their favorite artists and dream about buying some of the classic comics on display at vendors' tables - some of which go for thousands of dollars.
Most of the selling was in a slightly lower price range, though - about a buck a book.
Shelton Drum of Charlotte, N.C., had a little of everything. Comic books - including a Marvel Comics No. 1 printed in 1939 that he said was worth about $15,000 - as well as newer titles for under a dollar. He had action figures, trading cards and books.
He was trading at flea markets before The crowd - mostly older teens and adults, and predominantly male - got to see some of their favorite artists and dream about buying some of the classic comics on display at vendors' tables - some of which go for thousands of dollars. 1977 when he started what is now the granddaddy of comics shows, the annual "Heroes' Convention" in Charlotte, N.C., that draws between 7,000 and 10,000 each Father's Day weekend.
Drum now owns five comic books shops in the Carolinas and even has a weekly satellite-broadcast TV "catalog" show.
Drum was an inspiration for the Roanoke Valley Comicon, said Jack Slattery, one of its organizers.
Though the show makes a profit, it's "not a great deal of money," Slattery said. It is a chance to tap into the interest in the genre, however, and promote Mystery Graphics Press, which he runs with partner Vijay Mistry.
Such shows provide a place for newcomer publishers to meet directly with their target audiences - a critically important connection in a field where about 800 new titles are coming out each month to compete for buyers' attention.
Kevin Kent, a Dairy Queen manager in Rocky Mount, and Jonathan Hatchey, a high-school student in Roanoke, were promoting their Litterbox Comics. Though there were also offering parts of their personal comics collections for sale at a booth Sunday, they were really there to drum up business for their "Necessary Evil" book.
As a small independent producer, "shows like this are really our only outlet," Kent said.
The shows also provide variety that's just not available at every store, several shoppers said. And there's a lot out there.
Susan Bowers of Kernersville, N.C., displayed a sample of the "He Said/She Said" comic series. On one cover was "The Gennifer Flowers Story." Turn the book upside down and flip it over and you get "The Bill Clinton Story."
"The idea is to get both people's stories in one volume," she said with a smile. Other titles in the series include "The Amy Fisher/Joey Buttafuoco Stories" and "The Woody Allen/Mia Farrow Stories."
by CNB