I ask fwooshmember questions
they answer them.
this week: Granpa
Grandpa
Lets see here…
How often do you fwoosh?
I use fwoosh every chance I get
Do you ever surf outside the Fwoosh?
What did you surf before discovering the Fwoosh?
I am a fwoosh man 100%
I check out other sites such as newsarama just to find anything new and exciting to post on grandpas den to try to keep all the fwooshers informed and up to date. Before that I was big into e-bay.
Do you type in bold print because it’s easier to see, or because you are randomly yelling? HA!
Yes, I, at times type in bold print and yep you’re right, I do it SO I CAN SEE WHAT I AM WRITING…MY EYES ARE NOT WHAT THEY USE TO BE.
How many custom figures do you own?
I own over three hundred custom figures and counting
How are they displayed
Custom figures are displayed in cases
Are they in any order?
keep all my marvel legends from my DC customs.
I have a few diorama type customs in cases.
The only things in the room are customs?
My entire room is custom figures and custom full-sized statues and Randy Bowen statues and of course comics.
What do you look for in a custom?
I look for detail in custom figures and a little bit of difference then the norm.
Are all the customs from fwooshmembers?
I will always be impressed with the over all talent on the fwoosh and I never grow weary of any custom made. My custom figures are my pride and joy they come from all the great guys on fwoosh
(Editors note: Granpa will post his collection when he is ready.
PLease stop asking for pictures. thank you.)
You have a lot of statues and similar items, do you have a favorite?
The full-size statue the Hulk, bronze by Bowen
Wow, is it signed?
I have about eight items signed by Randy,
Also I have signed items by Kirby and Lee.
What do you do in your free time?
I am with my wife and grandkids most of the time.
Do you like to cook?
I love to cook in fact I am not a bad cook at all! I really enjoy cooking and wanted to be a chef at one point and always wanted to be a cop but my wife stopped that idea.
Do you have any pets? My wife and I have two dogs and a cat. We have had them for 14 years and they are a big part of are family.
Are your grand kids into comics and action figures?
my grandkids are still young but I am working on them.
How many grandkids do you have? (unverified number of Grandchildren: 10)
I have more than I can count now, seems every other month there is a new one and I love them all. Nothing like kids!
Are you retired?
Yep I owned five stores within a 20 year span of time and it kept me busy and I loved it. They where all located in the Lake county area. My son to this point has followed in my footsteps. He is a great kid as all my sons and daughters are great.
Why were your stores a success?
I always treated my customers as friends and folks who love comics as I do. It was never a business to me. Sure it paid my bills, but my stores were like a giant fwoosh. We all love the same thing. You only live once so enjoy what you love.
Which do you prefer Marvel or DC?
I have always have been a huge marvel fan and always will be, but I do love the batman. I love all marvel stuff. I’ve been reading it since the early sixties and I love the current stuff marvel has out quite a bit. Marvel is great at current topics and that’s one reason they sell.
Which comic is your favorite?
Spider-man #14. Why? Because its the intro of the green goblin.
What would you change at marvel if you were editor-in-chief?
if someone dies they should stay that way, other wise I think they are doing there best job in years
Did you like that Dr. Strange miniseries? It felt old school.
Yep I think they were heading in the right direction with doc strange
Is there any part of the Spiderman saga that you did NOT agree with?
I have always loved Spidey thru the good times and bad.
Who can beat the Hulk?
no one can stop the hulk and this(WWH) will be one of the hulks better storylines in years.
Will comics stand the test of time?
Comic books more or less will be around forever in one form or another
Have you ever met Stan Lee or Jack Kirby?
I have met all the big boys. I went to lunch with Stan once. I have been around a lot until I retired. did all the big shows, etc……
What was Stan Lee like?
Stan is a super guy and loves everyone. He is like everyone’s grandfather!
Jack and Stan, they are the masters of the comic book as we know it
I only bought Marvel is that because Stan Lee told me to do that?
Is Stan Lee a huckster?
if not for Stan and jack there would not be much of a comic market today…they made dreams come true for all of us.
Do you have a collection thread?
Sorry no collection thread. I used to have a big collection of cgc comics and tons of old stuff…hulk #1, etc..
at one point I owned all the spider-man titles as well as fantastic four and most of the marvel main titles now I own maybe over half of that which are in a safety deposit box….I have maybe 100,000 comics here at home and more at my sons house from the early seventies and on. To be honest I lost track of the total combined amount.
My personal collection has gotten rather huge…I am going on three rooms now and to be honest that spans over fifty years of collecting
I love the thread in Multiplex, called “grandpa’s den”
Me too. The grandpas den is for all fwooshers and yes I post a lot on this thread but I do that to keep things going so folks can have fun….yes I would like to see a comic related forum but that’s up to the mods and I respect what they say and there opinions without them there would be no fwoosh. Kinda wish they would give me my own forum, the thread keeps me going health wise.
Pendragon Concepts does some heavy lifting for you in your “den” thread.
There is some who don’t like Pendragon’s opinion or remarks but this young man is comic smart and on the ball. We need opinions in life to keep life fresh and exciting and he loves DC comics and I love Marvel. Pendragon is a good guy.
all…fwoosh is my second home and all you guys are family in my eyes
I love the fwoosh. It rocks
My mom threw out my comic collection the first time, then
I’ve lost my entire collections twice since then. Has anything like that ever happen to you ?
When I started high school the first day I came home my mom had started a bon fire destroying not only my comic collection but my baseball card collection as well.
Then at one time in the early seventies I sold my entire comic collection for some good bucks. all I did was start over and brought the better comics that would go up in value. I used to be heavy in making a profit off of them.
from his thread;
I started with a five hundred square foot store. Worked a full time job to keep it going and my wife and sons helped me out working it. I took the profits from that store and opened another and another and so on. I worked the major cons in the summer time with my sons and brother put ads in the paper selling my comics and I started selling comics out of my house before any of my stores came about.
Have you any copies of "video jack"? (1980s)
sorry no Video Jack.
(Anybody got some Video Jack comics?)
How is your health?
My shop is run by by son due to my health issues and we keep everything separate.
My health to this point is not good but I try to stay positive and thank the lord for my family and the fwoosh. Why the fwoosh because its like a second family to me and even if I have not met one single person on the fwoosh you can just tell there all a great bunch of folks with good hearts and care about what goes and in this world and for there fellow fwooshers. Best damn forum anywhere in my opinion
What do non-comic people think of you?
Grandpa the Nutball! That’s me. Over the years folks just accepted that grandpa and comics go together!
What does your nurse look like?
I have a number of nurses that come and go and there all very nice ladies. I am to old to notice there looks and besides my wife is the looker
For someone who has a lot of physical problems you are one of the happiest guys I ever met.
.
You have no idea how lucky I am to have lived my dream of having comics being my hobby as well as my livelihood. life has blessed me in many ways.
I have to stay positive or I will be joining the big comic club in the sky
I have my rough days but I have a ton of love ones and you fwooshers to keep my old butt going. My health caught me off guard along with some other problems and to be honest I had so many meds in me I thought I was in the twilight zone and sometimes the meds drag me down and make me depressed.
I can read reviews, even page through a comic at my local comic shop and then wait until the trade comes out with a completed arc. Then I can order that book online; eventually, I’m guessing at some point in the future I can read it online. Do you see the industry changing to adapt to this possible consumer trend?
If anything trades have given life to the local comic shop. I know my business has increased quite a bit. I think the local comic shop is making a comeback of sorts. eason being there is some great superhero movies out there which bring in new customers. Any marvel movie is fine by me it sells comics and lets all of us have fun in life and we all need to have fun.
and the trades you had mentioned. The writing and of course the art is better now in my opinion also it depends where your shop is located and what kind of comic related material you carry along with the comic books. I have been lucky because I have been in business so long and have a great customer base to work with and two sons I can trust to run it.
some day the comic market might go the way of downloads but in my opinion nothing will ever replace sitting down in your easy chair and reading a good old comic book.
Thank you Granpa
here is his thread in the multiplex: