Pam’s Pictorama Post: Another on the fly post as we finish day one of the SPX con and head into the second and final day. Today we hopped out of the hotel early and jumped into an uber to explore a rather promising bookstore I had read about.

While Second Story Books (here) has several stores, it happens that their warehouse venue is right near our hotel. I didn’t know what to expect and it is hard to say what it compares to.

It is very large, with bookshelves in rows that run about 7 feet high. The sorting system was a bit opaque at first. I saw many interesting old volumes but was frustrated at first to find that Fiction mostly meant books of relatively recent vintage.

I began to think that maybe it was another interesting and perhaps ill conceived decision and that nothing would come from it. However, as I got the hang of the different classifications and nooks and crannies where early long forgotten fiction might reside, my pile began to slowly grow. Between Kim and I (mostly me) I feel like we are more or less taking home our body weight in books, as shown above. The real news is that when we checked out everything was 50% off the price marked and that made me want to go back and buy even more!

We came back to the con having just opened its doors and so we dove in to get an overview. Now, given how comics adjacent I am, perhaps I should not say this, but I rarely purchase new comics at cons. Maybe there is something I have read about and waited to pick up, or the book of a friend, or a reprint I want but considering that 96% of every con is small presses or individuals hawking their wares, I really don’t transact with them. Frankly I don’t find it an enviroment which encourages finding new work that interests me.

However, much to my surprise, right out of the bag Dot of the Mid Century caught my eye. This book by Art Hondros, a series I think of 5 now, is his attempt to honor the story of his great aunt who lived in Baltimore and was employed repairing manniquins. (When I think about it it surprises me a bit that manniquins break routininly enough to employ someone repairing them, but then again I have seen a lot of busted manniquins too.)

Well, I haven’t read it but Art looks like he can draw the heck out of a story. While I was talking to him about Dot, Kim was looking at another book, Legion of the Damned which is adapted from a lost silent film from 1928 by William Wellman starring Gary Cooper and Fay Wray! Wow! We purchased both and I spent the rest of the day telling everyone about him as he seems like quite a find. (He knew Kim’s work but seems to have only ever read Hollywoodland – a fine book but a bit rarified as not the easiest to get. Ed: the subsequent reading gives Dot the thumbs up and Legion of the Damned not so much.)

This con is big – larger than New York’s MoCCA although smaller than Comic Con and without the big budget films, animation and COS play element. It is pure comics albeit small press ones.

Eventually we needed to collapse and have lunch in the hotel restaurant. While we were nibbling on our shrimp roll and crab dip, Gary Groth brought Tim Lane over to meet Kim. Kim is a big fan of Tim’s work and the feeling is mutual so they jumped right into a conversation until it was time for them to go off to lunch. While Kim headed up to the room I went in search of a warm cardigan with a friend who stopped by. Despite the DC heat and humidity, it is freezing in the hotel – especially in the rooms where the panels are being held. I was tipped off and since even the Amtrak seemed over-ac’ed I found my way to Uniqlo and bought and oversized cardigan which I gratefully wrapped around me at Kim’s pan

I think Kim and I were pretty surprised at the energy in the room and were regretting not getting a smidge more down time. Like a sprint that turns into a marathon. Signing gave way to a panel – John Kelly, Kim, Denis Kitchen, along with two younger women who both seem very interesting Raquelle Jac and Heather Loase. The subject was underground comics at their origin versus now.

We are kicking today off with a tour of Warren Bernard’s personal collection – I am very excited for some Felix! After that it is more con ahead and then finally home to Deitch Studio NYC and Cookie and Blackie.