Posted in: Comics | Tagged:

Will You Help Keep JHU in NYC, ASAP?

Published Mon, 12 Mar 2018 19:00:48 -0500

Last updated Tue, 13 Mar 2018 03:43:12 -0500

JHU is the comic store in Manhattan that everyone calls Jim Hanley's, even though it isn't.

There used to be the comic book store, Jim Hanley's Universe, that opened in 1985 in Staten Island, before opening in Manhattan, and became the focal point for the comic book industry in New York. which was Marvel, DC, Archie, Harris, Wizard and more. Comic book stars shopped there. Others worked there. Sometimes they switched places.

Kevin Sussman who plays comic store owner Stuart in The Big Bang Theory worked there. So did comic creators Jamal Igle, Vito Delsante, Evan Dorkin, Rachel Freire and many more. The store also bred. Former manager Peter Dolan who owns Main Street Comics is also the president of ComicsPro. And employees of Jim Hanley's Universe became the owners of JHU Comics, the rebranded two-store chain started using the assets of the former business.

Its current location on 32nd Street is coming to the end of its five-year lease and they are wondering what happens next.

One answer is a Go Fund Me appeal. They have a place, close to where they are now – and it means a major change for the store. They say,

We have found a great new (and affordable) space a few blocks from our current location, in a residental neighborhood. We will be moving from a highly commerical area, and are looking to reestablish ourself as a mom and pop shop. However the new space needs some major work. Floor, lights, bathroom, an awning and more. This is where we need your help.

It's not a store saving, It's a transformation, Creating a comic book store that will survive into the future.

About an hour in, they currently have $550 of the $30,000 they need, but it has just gone live, with Dean Haspiel amongst those who have thrown in $50.

Will you be next? I mean, DC Comics executives should be throwing down four-figure sums each purely over the guilt of moving to Portland…