A brief introduction:
My name is Paul Howley, owner
of the Eisner Award winning pop culture collector’s store known as “That’s
Entertainment” in Worcester, Massachusetts and a second store in Fitchburg,
Massachusetts. Some people have called me the “luckiest man in the comic book
business.” (I’m not) My stores have been around for over thirty years and it’s
been a long and interesting combination of events and people that have brought
these stores to this current place. It is not my intent to boast or brag about
my store or my life. I just want to tell you my story. In many instances, my
wife remembers things a little differently, but this is the truth as I remember
it.
The current cast of
characters:
Paul Howley: age 48
Mal Howley: age 48
Adam Howley: my son, age 21
Cassy Howley: my daughter,
age 17
Ken: the manager of our comic
book/collectibles stores
Dave: comic book expert
MY LIFE WITH COMIC BOOKS: THE
HISTORY OF A COMIC SHOP--Part 198
“The first Free Comic
Book Day event!”
Our collectible stores were gearing up for
two huge events; the special screening and ticket-giveaway for the Spider-Man
movie and the very first “Free Comic Book Day.” Free Comic Book Day was
conceived by Joe Fields, a comic book retailer, who thought that it would be
beneficial for the comic book industry to band-together to promote the comic
book art-form. Since this was going to be the first Free Comic Book Day, we had
no idea what to expect but we did the best we could to purchase the kind of comic
books that might encourage people to try reading some! (Contrary to what many
people think, although we give the comic books away for free, we PAY for them
all.)
Dave and Ken wrote the following text to
inform the media about the event:
That’s
Entertainment celebrates an American art-form with free comics for everyone!
On Saturday, May 4th, That’s
Entertainment at 244 Park Avenue in Worcester will be giving everyone who
visits a free comic book---with no purchase necessary.
Why?
That’s Entertainment is one of over 2000 comic book shops worldwide participating
in “Free Comic Book Day.”
“The goal of Free Comic Book Day,” said
David Hartwell, assistant manager of That’s Entertainment, “is to introduce, or
re-introduce everyone to the joys of comic books.”
“Comic
books are an original American art-form created in the depression era as
affordable entertainment for the masses,” Hartwell continued. “In the decades
since, comics’ unique blend of words and pictures has grown, matured, and
changed with the times, while providing us with some of the most enduring
characters and stories in our popular culture. Also, comics have been an
idea-factory for Hollywood---Superman, Batman, The Crow, Spawn, X-Men, Ghost
World, and now Spider-Man.”
Over
the course of Free Comic Book Day, participating stores will give away close to
two million comic books, ranging in subject matter from high-flying super-hero
adventures to intense slice-of-life to crime noir to kid-friendly humor and more.
Visitors to That’s Entertainment on May 4th will find a variety of
free comics to choose from, including ‘Star Wars Tales,’ ‘Justice League
Adventures,’ ‘Tomb Raider,’ ‘Ultimate Spider-Man,’ and many more.
Hartwell went on to explain why May 4th
was chosen as the date for Free Comic Book Day. “With the Spider-Man movie
opening the day before, public awareness of comic books will be high and we
think Free Comic Book Day will build on that momentum.”
“We’re
also bringing in some comic artists to the store just to make the day even more
special,” said Hartwell. “Paul Ryan, who has drawn the Spider-Man comic strip,
as well as dozens of other major characters, will be here to chat with fans and
sign copies of his work. We’ll also host creators Andy Fish, Tony Antetomaso,
and Scott Hamilton, who will all give demonstrations on how comic books are
created. It’s called ‘The Pro-Am Comic Jam.’ The creators will be on hand from
3PM until 6PM.”
“Along
with our fellow comic book retailers around the world, we at That’s
Entertainment want to spread the word that comics are alive and well in 2002,”
Hartwell continued. “That’s Entertainment is one of the largest comic stores in
the country, with about 10,000 square feet of display area and we’ve won the
industry’s national retailing award. We invite everyone to come to That’s
Entertainment on May 4th and see for themselves how vital, relevant,
powerful, and just-plain cool comic books are. Best of all, they’re FREE---and
we hope to give away a lot of comics!”
Next Chapter: The Spider-Man
movie ticket giveaway.
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