Origin Story

Every superhero has an origin story. This is mine: I became engrossed in the world of comic books at age 5 when I received Action Comics # 463 featuring Superman.  In the same year, I saw Star Wars for the first time.  These events  shaped my future.

Comic books played an important role in my formative years.  School never came easily for me and reading was always difficult.  But I found the combination of words and images in comic books helped my reading comprehension.  Comic books made me want to read more.  My imagination soared with images of superheroes and crime fighters, of secret agents and fighting robots.

In high school, I found community at my local comic book store: Fred’s Comics in Glendora, CA.  There, I developed friendships that have lasted for years.  This camaraderie strengthened my love for comics and for reading.  The hours spent reading, playing games and debating hero strengths with my friends at Fred’s Comics has left an indelible mark and has inspired many aspects of my shop. I hope that Brian’s Comics will create and provide community, too.

My fondness of movies and technical prowess lead me to Hollywood.  I worked for years behind the scenes as a camera technician for such movies as ‘Iron Man’ and ‘Terminator: Salvation’. It was also during this time that I met my wife, Jennifer, who is the Jarvis to my Iron Man and the Alfred to my Batman; I often say that she’s the brains of the operation.  I introduced Jennifer to the world of comic books, and she showed me the magic of Harry Potter.

In 2008, we moved to northern California for Jennifer’s job as a college counselor, and found a home for ourselves and our two dogs, Vader and Granger, in the city of Petaluma. And, I found myself serving time on Alcatraz!  It was here that the idea for Brian’s Comics was born. I vowed if I ever got off of The Rock I would open a place where fans from all walks of life could come and enjoy comics.  After putting in four years in the Audio Tour and Information Desk, I escaped from Alcatraz to see my dream come true.

Shortly after we opened in 2013, we adopted our new dog: Kirby!  (Yes, he is named after Jack Kirby, the greatest comic book artist of all time!)  He spent the first weeks of his life growing up in the shop and has become a very good shop dog.  He even gets into the spirt of things and helps sell the comics!  Maybe he will be here the next time you visit!