Many young men and women grow up dreaming about the day they walk down the aisle and promise their unyielding love to another person. Unfortunately for comic readers, comic book weddings have given them some unrealistic ideals for what makes a perfect wedding. Between the cameo-filled splendor of Reed Richards and Sue Storm’s wedding in Fantastic Four Annual #3 to the 60-year build-up between Clark Kent and Lois Lane in Superman: The Wedding Album, comics have left pop culture fans with some high standards to live up to.
While attacks by supervillains like Dr. Doom, the Puppet Master, and the Enchantress would happily be avoided in the real world, who wouldn’t enjoy sharing their special day with the comic characters they know and love. Seeking to make the dream of a comic fueled wedding more attainable, Geppi’s Entertainment Museum warmly opened its doors to lovebirds in the Baltimore area and beyond over 12 years ago. Located at historic Camden Station, the massive venue featured nearly 60,000 artifacts ranging from movie posters and comics to figurines and other memorabilia. Simply put, this pop culture museum had something special for each and every fan. Which is why it’s no surprise so many couples choose this location to say their “I dos.”
Along with the breathtaking grandeur of the main hallway, complete with beautiful hardwood floors and mahogany paneling, the 16,000-square-foot museum also featured a winding staircase that led to a private gallery space perfect for accommodating guests. Whether it was your dream to marry alongside the Caped Crusader, party in a room with the highly coveted Action Comic #1, or dance the night away surrounded by significant moments in pop culture history, GEM and its staffers were eager to make each wedding related event one for the books.
Holly Blackett, a wedding consultant with Zuriana’s Elegant Occasions, once summed up the wedding atmosphere at GEM by saying, “Geppi’s Entertainment Museum offers an especially unique and entertaining museum experience. Host your engagement party, rehearsal dinner, or wedding reception in a one-of-a-kind space where you and your guests will journey through 250 years of American pop culture. Revisit much loved comic strips, books, radio and television shows, films, and cartoons that entertained you during your childhood or even in your recent past. Trust me, your inner child will thank you.”
The promise of such a remarkable setting is exactly what drew in pop culture aficionados and sweethearts, Liesa and James. After being introduced by mutual friends, Batman superfan Liesa knew James was the one for her pretty early on. “James didn’t blink when he first saw my bedroom with the Batman bedspread, which was an early indicator that he was the right one for me!” said Liesa.
Given their mutual love of pop culture and GEM in particular, embarking into holy Batrimony at the museum was an easy choice. “We had visited the museum before and we loved the idea that it would reflect our personalities so well and feel more personal than a standard hotel or wedding venue. Also, this way we could welcome not only adults but also their children to the reception, and give guests some fun and unique entertainment at the event,” said Liesa.
Although not a typical wedding venue, those in attendance of Liesa and James’ nuptials were more than intrigued. “They loved it! One of our friends posted a photo of her husband beaming with excitement in front of the glass case containing first issues of Superman and Batman comics. Her caption was ‘first appearance of Superman and Batman. Not first appearance of Jeff as a geek’,” said Liesa.
While marrying the love of her life was without question the biggest highlight of the day, Liesa shared that “cutting into our Batmobile wedding cake in front of the giant Batman statue was pretty special. It was amazing to have all of our friends and family gathered around the Batman memorabilia room, cheering us on as we cut into that cake, celebrating us for being the proud geeks we are.”
Those walking down the aisle weren’t the only proud geeks to be entranced by this one-of-a-kind gallery. Maryland native and photographer extraordinaire, Zach Egolf had the chance to photograph a wedding reception at GEM and found the experience “distracting in the best way possible.” Adding that he “could have spent hours in there, looking at all of the history.”
“I felt like I was stepping into the hallowed halls of some superhero base, or something like that,” said Egolf of entering the grand hallway at GEM. “There was so much on the walls; newspaper clippings, and cover art, and everywhere you looked there was another great artifact. My only regret was that I was hired there to shoot a wedding, and couldn’t really capture as much of my surroundings without people as I had wanted.”
To this day, Egolf and his second shooter reminisce over their time working at this memorable venue and rank it as one of their favorite shoots of all time. “Geppi’s provided such a unique experience for everyone there. Most of the people spent just as much time dancing and having fun as they did exploring the rich history on the walls and in each room. It’s a real shame that it closed, and truly a shame that more people didn’t book me there for their weddings [laughs].”
While the museum has officially closed to the public, all those who had a share in the nearly 13 year run looks back on the experience with fond memories. Whether you entered into wedded bliss, partied like a pirate, saved the day as a little hero or simply strolled down memory lane, Geppi’s Entertainment Museum was a haven for geeks of every generation and will be greatly missed.
Editor’s Note: Over the next few months, we’ll have retrospectives of some of the great exhibits and events held at Geppi’s Entertainment Museum, which closed to the public on June 3, 2018 in advance of Steve Geppi’s donation of comic books, original comic book and comic strip art, and other vintage pop culture treasures to the Library of Congress. Items from his gift to the nation will be on display at the Library of Congress beginning in Fall 2018.
Other Installments in our Retrospective Series
Geppi’s Entertainment Museum in Photos - Part I
Zombie Gras
Atlas At Last
Artistry of Amanda Conner
Cosplay Masquerade
Little Heroes
Alice in Wonderland
