As I sit here with snow outside and temperature in the sub-teens in mid-November, I again consider why I would possibly want to retire in Iowa… the winters are so long and brutal, which leads again to a series I am writing about local treasures or reasons to remain in the Cedar Valley for the rest of my life…
For this piece to make sense we must go back into the past to my childhood… it was then that I developed a life long love of the comic books that spoke to adventure and fantasy… Funnies like Archie and Jughead were not for me… give me War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Superman, Batman, Spiderman and so on…
I have no doubt that my current reading habits, which are prolific and my sense for what the Western canon of great literature is, was informed by Classics Illustrated Comic Books. This is not just true for me but a whole generation of other boomer kids were informed by Classics Illustrated.
It was not just fine literature distilled into accessible comic form that I read… I also studied DC, and later as I became more discriminating, Marvel comic books like a Talmudic scholar trying to understand the inner lives of Super Heroes and Villains and the macro-world in which they existed.
Back in my youth, the little towns in North Carolina did not have full featured comic book stores, but instead a twirling rack upon which the monthly released comics were mounted. The beginning of the month always had the best stuff, including, in order of purchase Spiderman, Fantastic Four, Daredevil, Captain America, and later in the month when I became a bit more desperate, The Hulk, Thor, The X-men and finally when I had no other choice, Dr. Strange. Back then, comics were only 12 cents a pop and it was easy to scrounge up a dime and 2 pennies when required!
I raised my two sons to read comic books and to this day they are still huge fans. On the other hand, my daughters showed little interest in comics and occupied themselves with other matters.
What made it so easy getting access to comic books for my boys was the proximity to one of the best comic book stores in the known universe and that is Cedar Falls’ own Limited Edition Comics located on College Hill.
The best part of the store is the man who owns and manages the enterprise, Rob Rogers II. There is probably no one in the known universe who has such encyclopedic knowledge of comics, graphic novels, associated films and, believe it or not, he even functions at a higher level when it come to all things Star Wars. In fact, he owns enough Star Wars memorabilia and costuming to open a museum, which he has, on occasion, contemplated doing so. In addition, he is incredibly nice, helpful and accessible. Besides, he resembles Wolverine and everyone in my family loves Rob!
The shop is replete with weekly releases and collected “trades” from the entire universe of comics and graphic novels. Spanning from the items that kids can safely read to the darker more adult publications. In addition, there is an extensive collection of comic/graphic novel/star wars figurines. The above splash panel is a photograph of the small lead figurines Rob sold me to display back in the days I had an office at the University. There’s also lots of other objects of desire including magic cards and other table gaming appurtenances.
I saved the best for last… In addition to the aforementioned comic book/graphic novel/star wars etc. business, under the Nom de Guerre, Wild Hair Salon, Rob will give you the best haircut in town, which is an essential element in anyone’s survival kit! His mom, Char, is also frequently at another chair in the shop cutting away at someone’s head. Getting a haircut at Rob’s is always an adventure. Besides getting caught up on all things Super Heroes and Star Wars with Rob, who is the consummate insider, there is also a steady stream of comic book fans who stream in during the haircut, adding their own two bits of wisdom and who generally leave with a pile of comics that’ve been accumulating in their personal pull boxes kept for them by Rob.
Rob’s Limited Editions Comics/Wild Hair Salon is truly a local treasure. I actually think the place is fascinating enough to serve as a back drop for one of those idiosyncratic fun movies! Go visit Rob… You’ll love it…
