Comic Book Heaven (2014) - full transcript

[phone rings]

Comic Book Heaven

When do you want to come?

Well today I'll be here till 6 o'clock.

Oh, I'm not far. How you goin'
to come - by motorcycle, helicopter?

No, why would you call?
You don't need an appointment.

My name is Joe.
I'll be here tomorrow.

You can call first if you like.
That's okay, I don't care.

Call me early tomorrow morning
when you wake up

and we'll see if we can work something out.

Okay? All right, bye, bye.



The farmers had the right idea.

In the '30s, '40s, and '50s, they put
the comics in the outhouses,

you know, because they were rough paper

to wipe their asses.

And that's all comics were really worth.

They really weren't worth more than that.

But in this country
because there's so many wealthy people

they make junk worth money.

[music]

No we ain't got lamps...

We have comic books.

Well, I hate to tell you this,
but most people are shit.

That's the category they fit under.

Here's a Classic X-Men,
here's two Buckaroo Banzai...



there's a Secret... uh... something.

I'm ready to do business. I'm all set up.

It was a very hot business from
the middle '70s until the middle '90s.

On a Saturday...

I'd be running the register sometimes
for three to four straight hours.

We'd have 25 people in the store.

And sometimes my wife
had to stay at the door,

not let anyone in.

And the people would wait.

Two people went out,
she'd let two people in.

So naturally of course,
I felt I was smart businessman.

I was running a good business.

Seventeen, eighteen... all right,
you got $20 - how's that?

- We're cash only. Is that all right?
- Yeah, of course it is.

Uh, be careful... don't hurt yourself.

That's very heavy, that shit.

Ooh, yeah...

[blues guitar]

The business hasn't
been healthy for a while.

Probably the electronics
had a lot to do with it.

What is it - iBox? Xbox?

All the games must
have had a big hand in it.

And besides the kids can't read anymore,
they're a bunch of morons.

So what are you going to do?

Whad'ya mean, graphic novel?
He's seven years old.

He don't need no graphic novels.

Just get him some books.

Would we be better off if the
electronic games were never invented?

Absolutely.

I think computers was far enough.
We didn't need to go beyond that.

But we did - it's too late now.

In the Marvel books they
used to refer to a past book,

about something that happened.

And they'd write something
smart, snappy, you know.

And it was connected.

And people looked for those books,

and the back issues were a business,
were a real business - the back issues.

We used to have conventions for stores.

And Marvel used to throw one,

and DC used to throw one.

And they had this girl working at Marvel.

She was becoming a big shot.

She said, forget about the back issues.

She said, this is going to be
a new book business.

So I said,
what the hell is she talkin' about?

Well, she knew what she was talkin' about.

Marvel was going to put out
more and more books

to try and eat up all the money,

so that the back issues don't count.

They didn't care that this was going to
help put all the stores out of business.

They didn't have enough brains
to know that's what they were doing.

In other words, it's not just
the electronics that killed the business.

It's the greed of people
that also killed the business.

I don't read that many comics.

Being as I own the store, I'll fall in
and read something once in awhile.

I always liked Punisher.

'Cause Punisher kills
them dead... no trial.

Too many criminals get away with being bad.

Punisher gives them their due.

If they deserve to be killed,
he kills them.

I like that...

I like that.

I can't... I can't change my plan.
My plan is to get out.

- Nah, get some kid to, like,
do some cataloging for you...

- Hey, listen... hey, listen.

I want to get out while I'm walking,
talking, and squawking...

- Sure, sure, sure
- ... and driving at night,

In other words, meaning, um, you know...

In October, I'll be 81.

- Nyah...
-So I'm doing pretty goddamn good.

[rock and roll guitar]

I'm working over 65 years...
you think it's time I quit?

- Yeah, you could.

- Okay. Take it easy... all right.

I should be outta here,
I shouldn't be thinking about it.

I should be outta here... away!

Gone! Forgotten!

Richie Rich, #61 - let's see what they say.

Richie Rich, #61...

P... Q... R...

I'm having a shit day.

And it's already the third Friday
where it's pffft!

And this is worse than the last two, so...

I had planned on getting out in July.

Then they advertised me in the papers
and I started to do better business.

But I shouldn't have been here past October.

I'm again staying two months longer
than I needed to be.

These are pillowcases.
What the hell are they here for?

Now did I need to overhaul the store,
bring in a lot of other merchandise?

Yes. But I didn't do it because
I thought I was getting out.

After when I decided there was no use...

that was 10 years ago - I was 70 years old.

So I figured,
how much longer can I be here?

I wound up to be here ten years longer.

My wife passed away over 9 years ago.

So that was another main reason
why I stayed.

Well I did need something to do.

I mean I was pretty, uh...

I was pretty upset, shall we say.

Er... it's... uh...

... I still am, to some degree, you know?

Well, I shoulda tried
a different something else

or just retired, and tried retirement.

I was afraid to be retired
with nothing to do.

I think a lot of people are.

You can be sorrowful.
You can mourn, you can grieve.

You know...
but you have to go on with life,

'cause it's normal to go on with life.

- What're you gonna do without me, George?
- I don't know.

- You'll live through it, I think.
- Gonna be tough.

- Yaah, but you'll do it.
- Go see you in Brooklyn!

- Huh?

- I told you.. have a
garage sale by your house.

- No. No, no, no, no.
This is not for garage sale.

People I know are making fun of me.

They tell me, "Why don't you
just throw the stuff out?"

I'm from the old school, you know?
I don't like throwing everything out.

You know, sometimes
you get to a certain point,

you don't know where to start.

It's like I'm still trying to do businesss,
so I try to keep it, uh, uh...

But I gotta stop that idea, just get the
stuff together and get the hell outta here.

[music]

I have trouble getting rid of stuff.

I didn't never thought
I would have that problem,

... but I do.

In other words, not because I need
this stuff or because it's valuable.

I just don't seem to be able to know
how to throw stuff out enough.

Young people throw everything out.
They don't give a shit.

I talk to a lot of people.

And I don't see very many people
that are really, thoroughly happy.

It's a modern world.

It's much harder to be happy now
than 50, 60 years ago.

Now people want what everyone else has.

And it gets to be difficult.

I'd like to be content with
my life if I can.

Am I?

Not necessarily.

But the point is that...
listen, that's the way life is.

[music]

I'm enjoying it, not having to
get up in the morning, et cetera.

But eventually you get tired of that.
It becomes a little bit of a bore.

Show people I'm agile, come on.

It shows people I'm still alive!

♪ I put some whiskey into my whiskey ♪

♪ I put some heartbreak into my heart ♪

♪ I'll leave this world, Lord ♪

♪ And I won't look back ♪

♪ I put some whiskey into my whiskey ♪

♪ I put some heartbreak into my heart ♪

♪ I put my boots on that old dance floor ♪

♪ I put three rounds, Lord, in my Eleanor... ♪

subtitles: Iladi Elladi