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Joe Ferrara:
Atlantis Fantasyworld has a 32-year history that starts with its owner, Joe Ferrara...
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I love them all!
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I was born and raised in San Jose, California. As a kid I loved comics but stopped reading them when I got to high school. When I started college at Santa Clara University one of my roommates was Mike Friedrich. Mike was putting himself through college by writing comics, most notably Detective, and Justice League. This rekindled my interest in comics and I became an avid collector. I transferred to San Jose State University in 1971 where I received a BA in Music. I was making a pretty good living as a full time musician and never planned to do anything else.
However, on August 15, 1976, I moved from San Jose to Santa Cruz, California and discovered the only place in town to buy comics was in the back of a local record shop. Instead of driving to San Jose twice a week to buy comics, about a 70 mile round trip, I decided to use the 6,000 comics in my collection to start my own store. On November 27, 1976, Atlantis Fantasyworld opened it doors for the first time. After a few years my two occupations switched roles: Atlantis became my main support and music my hobby. I still play my music, entertaining every Friday at the Shadowbrook Restaurant in Capitola, California. I also have had the privilege of singing the National Anthem for the San Francisco Giants every year since 1981!
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Dottie Ferrara:
For many years I worked as a Quality Assurance Representative at Lockheed Missile and Space Co. In 1992 I resigned from Lockheed and became an active partner in the design phase of the “new” Atlantis. Working together, using all our own ideas, Joe and I designed the new store.
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The comics I read are Strangers In Paradise, Jane’s World, True Story Swear To God, Kabuki, Luba , Concrete and Terry Moore's Echo. All of these comics are considered Slice of Life books, except for Kabuki. These are my favorites because all the creator’s are masterful storytellers and talented artists. Also, I like Mike Grell’s Jon Sable and especially his Green Arrow series. Two of my favorite graphic novels are Stuck Rubber Baby by Howard Cruise and Bryan Talbot's One Bad Rat.
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Trisha:
Trisha is currently a student at UC Santa Cruz majoring in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. One day, she hopes to help save the world. Trisha is also involved in Dance and loves music and art. When not watching cartoons, she can be found hiking through the woods or reading an assortment of science fiction, fantasy or comics!
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Current favorite comic: |
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Fables
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Christina:
Christina is currently a student at UCSC studying Cultural Anthropology.
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Hillary:
Hillary is a writer, artist, and paranormal researcher, who holds a degree in History from Agnes Scott College. She belongs to the local production company Electric Children, plays in the band The Alliance, and is a charter member of the Bigfoot Discovery Museum in Felton.
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The Invisibles (Book 1) written by Grant Morrison with various artists - The Invisibles changed my life! This incredible series follows a teenage boy who is recruited by a diverse group of anarchists trying to save the world from the evil individuals who run it. For more insight into The Invisibles, I recommend reading Grant Morrison's letter columns originally printed with the comics, either online or as reprinted in Disinformation.com's Guide to the Invisibles.
Promethea (Book 1) - Written by Alan More and illustrated by J.H. Williams - The art and writing in Promethea are astonishingly beautiful. A college student named Sophie takes a metaphysical journey to learn magick and become the new incarnation of super heroine Promethea.
Books of Magic - Written by Neil Gaiman with various artists. The story of a boy introduced to his destiny and initiated into magic by mentors including The Phantom Stranger, John Constantine and Zatanna.
All Star Superman -Written by Grant Morrison and illustrated by Frank Quietly. Superman as you've never seen him before!
Finder: (Book 6, Mystery Date) Written and illustrated by Carla Speed McNeil -No other comic writer has envisioned such an original, developed, complex world as Carla Speed McNeil has in her brilliant Finder series. She explores cultural, political, and anthropological themes through the inhabitants of Earth in a distant future where animals and humans have evolved in totally new directions.
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Amy:
Amy Allen is a full-time student at UCSC studying Set Design for theater. The first comic book she ever read was "Like A Velvet Glove Cast In Iron" by Daniel Clowes.
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WALKING DEAD
Robert Kirkman
If you hate humanity, this one is for you! Zombies plague every town, city, and countryside as a restless bunch of refugees seek safe ground in this shocking R-rated soap opera on the human condition. So savage, yet there is a ring of truth to it all... very scary.
CARICATURE
Daniel Clowes
This man in a GENIUS! Never have I read a comic that shows you so much back story on a character in a single panel. His personalities are not necessarily people you'd want to hang out with, but observe. And what better way to stare at these interesting individuals than in the animosity of your own home.
RUNAWAYS
Brian K. Vaughan
Release your parental angst vicariously through the Runaways who manage to discover their yuppie parents are actually evil super-villains. Unfortunately, their parents are buddy-buddy with authority figures all over the world and so these So-Cal teens are forced to runaway and learn to harness their powers on their own. And they have a telepathic dinosaur... Awesome.
SWAMP THING: LOVE AND DEATH
Alan Moore
My favorite superhero (er, environmentalist?) of all time. A compassionate guy who'll let you pick the flowers and eat the fruit right off his back. This is the perfect book to read this spring under the shade of a willow tree. It entails a horrific corpse husband, a trip into Hades, and a psychedelic love trip. Beautiful.
DOOM PATROL
Grant Morrison
The world in which we live is a sick and twisted fun-house of amusing dementia and we are left to rely on the Doom Patrol. Their "gifts" may cause them alienation and trauma,
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Former Staff
Jackie:
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Stephani:
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MaryAnne & daughter Zoe:
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