This is the thirteenth in a series of articles by Art Cloos in which Scoop looks at comic collecting from the viewpoint of the dealer. Whether they are part-time dealers at shows or the biggest of the top players in the world of back issues, comic book dealers have been an integral part of comic fandom and its history, and this is an area we believe is in need of further exploration. This month we go across the Atlantic to take a look at the world of English comic collecting with Richard Makinson.

Richard Makinson

Interviewed by Art Cloos

Richard Makinson was born in 1961 in Ossett, a small town near Leeds in the north of England. 1966 saw the first airing of the Adam West Batman TV show and for Richard this brought about the purchase of Justice League #44, and marked the beginning of a lifelong love affair with US comics - in particular the characters from the Justice Society, soon discovered through the reprints in the JLA 80-page giants.

After numerous jobs as diverse as a wages clerk in the local prison to pro musician, Richard set up Quicksilver Comics in 1997 as a mail order and convention company, which soon took on an internet presence. In 2003, his store OK Comics was opened on Thorntons Arcade in city center Leeds, and has gone from strength to strength since.

Scoop: Richard, thanks lots for finding time across the pond to sit for a “What's Your Best Price?” interview. You are our first international dealer to be here and we are very happy to have you.
Richard Makinson (RM): No prob, man. It's either this or working. It's a pleasure, Art. Always glad to pass on any useful information I can to your readers.

Scoop: Can you remember the first comics that you had as a kid?
RM: The first ones I read were English "funny" comics such as the Beano and The Dandy. I guess I was missing something, because as soon as the Batman show started on TV, I got my mother to buy me Justice League #44, and I was hooked. I remember once telling my grandma not to buy any more "kids" comics; I think I was 5 or 6 at the time.

Scoop: So you came of age during the mid 1960s Batman TV and comic craze?
RM: I did. I loved Batman, the Legion, and the Justice League most, but I was buying most DCs, and then Marvels too from about 1967.

Scoop: Did you have a group of fellow reader-collector friends who were into this or were you the lone wolf?
RM: All my friends at school were into comics, too, even some of the girls were buying them. We used to trade them sometimes, and even get into scuffles at the market stall if more than one of us wanted the same book.

Scoop: Really? So there was some real passion there for comics?
RM: Yes, definitely. The popularity of American comics took off very quickly in the mid ‘60s over here.

Scoop: Was this due to the Batman TV show or was it happening before the show started in England?
RM: Certainly there was popularity before the TV show, but that was what set me off, and things really took off from there. It seemed to us at the time that we felt more grown up if we read US comics rather than UK ones, and they just seemed so collectable. Also distribution was very good, they were in all the newsagents shops all over the country.

Scoop: Did your tastes change as you got older?
RM: Yes, as I got older I got more into the Marvels. My brother and I pooled resources on Amazing Spider-Man and westerns. I remember sitting reading through the UK reprints of early Spider-Man en masse for many hours. Soon the Legion got replaced in my tastes by The Avengers. When the Silver Surfer came out I was so impressed with the writing and artwork, it was obviously aimed at older kids than the general range of DC books.

Scoop: How did your family react to your reading comics as a kid?
RM: They were OK with it. To be honest, I learned to read through them, and I was only spending pocket money. Every so often they would throw out the loose covers from the box I kept them in, though, and they drew the line at buying me them for Christmas.

Scoop: In the US the first true comic book conventions were starting up by the mid 1960s. What about in England?
RM: One started in Birmingham in 1968 organized by Phil Clarke. The early '70s saw London shows begin, but they would have been pretty small affairs. I was talking recently to a real comics old-timer here in the UK named Alan Austin. He told me that his first con he went to was 1970, but he was only 15 and his memories are hazy. He spoke of some photos of the first con in 1968 with some UK fans in amazingly good superhero costumes, something he’s not seen since over here. I think I've seen them online some time over the last few years (might be on one of Dez Skinn's sites, but I could be wrong).

Phil Clarke organized the first con in 1968 and he's still at each London comic mart (and maybe northern ones, too) but I don't have any contact for him, don't think he even has a computer. Phil also has memories of a tiny con that predates 1968 (or was it in '68? As I said, my memories are hazy) held in a room above a pub in London's Rosebury Avenue (again, if memory serves) that coincidentally was about 100 yards from Al’s last London bookshop. I think Phil was behind this, too.

The first comic marts were from about 1971 or 1972 started I think by Rob Barrow, but as you must know he's not exactly involved in fandom now... and they were held I think at Lyndhurst Hall, Camden Town, north London. Al told me that he’s sure there are people who have better memories of this than he does. He spoke of Mike Lake, who has an interest in this early fandom history stuff.

Scoop: Wow, this is fascinating. Is there any pictorial record of these shows that you know of?
RM: Alan said that you could find some additional information and some pictures at these links [here and here].

Scoop: Can you tell us what those early shows were like and your reaction when you went to your first one?
RM: I didn't get to a show until quite late on. London seemed so far away even as a teenager; in fact my first experience of a comic shop was on a school trip to London in 1975. The first show I went to was a local one in Leeds where I set up as a dealer, and ended up selling tons of stuff to an established dealer.

Scoop: So you started young selling comics?
RM: I first started selling at school when I was 7. I only sold British stuff as I couldn't bear to part with my DCs. One penny each, half allowed on exchange. When I left school I started selling my collection with a view to becoming a "proper" dealer like the ones I had started buying from in the US, guys like Koch and Passaic Book Center.

Scoop: Both of whom are legends in the hobby. One thing we have learned in these interviews is that many dealers (and collectors) had a time when they left comics to do other things, was that true for you too or not? It was for me for a while during grad school and finding that first teaching job
RM: Yes, like most people I did do that, as music became my new passion in 1977 with the advent of punk rock. I had to sell my comics to buy a guitar and amp so I could join a band. I continued to run both things alternately until I could afford to do both at once.

Scoop: So you were in a band? Did you record any music?
RM: Yes, a few demos and a couple of albums, never really got anywhere though, so I went back to comic dealing and now I just play mostly locally for fun

Scoop: When did you go back to comics?
RM: I had a go at dealing in 1980, then again for good in 1997. I got laid off from work, and had to do something, so I sold my car and bought batches of what we call Non-Distributed books from Passaic and Koch - books that never made it into our stores. They sold really well straight away, and things took off from there.

Scoop: I know you have made many trips to the US as we have met at NYCC for several years in a row. What was your first US comic convention and what was it like for you?
RM: My first show was Wizardworld Chicago in 1999 - seeing all those dealers with so many books I'd never seen before was incredible - unfortunately of course I didn't have a great deal to spend - I remember one guy had a box full of fairly early Millie the Models - I tried to buy them all with a credit card, but he didn't have a machine - I don't think I've ever seen most of those books since.

Scoop: You have a store I believe? When did you open it and where is it located?
RM: The store we opened in 2003 is in the center of Leeds, which is our nearest city. It's basically for the new product; we can't afford the necessary space to display the back issues, so all the old stuff is kept in my warehouse space near where I live.

Scoop: Are there many comic shows in Europe proper and do you travel to any of them?
RM: There are lots of shows in Europe for foreign language editions - books such as Asterix, but they don't interest me. Terry O’Neill did a show last year in Denmark. He said there was plenty of interest in Disney stuff over there, but I've never actually been to a European show. There is a dealer in Germany who sets up at the small London shows, so there is definitely interest in the US books. I have a few European customers.

Scoop: You mentioned English comics before. Can you tell us a bit about them? Are they still produced today? Is there a market for vintage English comics?
RM: The Dandy has just stopped publishing (it started in the late ‘30s). The Beano is still going. There is a market for vintage UK comics. There's a store up here that specializes in them, and an online auction site. too. The last Beano #1 that sold (came out in 1938) went for about $18,000. Compare that with an Action Comics #1.

Scoop: That is not such a bad price at all. Do you sell a lot of them?
RM: No, I don't deal in UK comics myself. I grew out of them 40 years ago.

Scoop: What would you say to someone who wanted to become a comic dealer in England today?
RM: If you get a book that you've never seen before, keep it until you get another one. I've let books go too many times only to never see them again. Seriously though, understand your business totally and try not to get too attached to your books, otherwise you'll never make any money.

Scoop: Is there a future for new comic dealers there?
RM: Yes, there is. We've proven that you can succeed in a relatively small town even though there are three shops all selling the new books. You just need to be careful with your ordering and not get left with too many unsold copies.

Scoop: Do you see digital comics as a danger to the back issue hobby or as a possible aid to it?
RM: Certainly not a danger to back issues; I can't even imagine trying to read books in that form. You can't possibly replace the experience of collecting and owning comics with a digital equivalent.

Scoop: You are one of the few dealers who has not mentioned the impact of CGC on the hobby. I am sure you have an opinion on it…
RM: Well, I understand why CGC exists, but the fact that you can't take the books out without invalidating the grade does bother me, it just doesn't seem right. A big part of the hobby is reading and appreciating the books, being obsessed by grade to me isn’t what it should be all about.

Scoop: As a dealer how do you see the prices for high graded CGCs affecting the hobby? Is it good for the hobby or only good for the dealers who get those prices?
RM: I don't think it is good for the hobby, it alienates the casual buyer by the higher prices; basically it becomes grade-obsessed. I'm not obsessed by grade. I wish values were still low, so I could afford to buy everything I've ever wanted, which is full sets of DC and Timely Golden Age.

Scoop: Which brings us to the question, “Do you still collect today”?
RM: I'm doing what I always wanted, collecting early Action and Detective. Got to get them before it's too late!

Scoop: Where do you see the future of the hobby 10 years from now?
RM: Well, I see Gold & early Silver high grade getting bigger than ever, but the more common, lower grade stuff will come back down in value, overall, more of a split between the grades will keep things more affordable for the average collector, I think.

Scoop: Richard, thanks so very much for taking the time to give Scoop a fascinating look into the world of English comic collecting.
RM: Thanks, I enjoyed doing it.