A soft chime dings as a client walks into Blue Moon Comics in downtown San Rafael. The sight of shelves of books and memorabilia is almost always accompanied by that of Sam Shiffler, a man with close-cropped grey hair and signature brow-line glasses.
Sam will have been co-owner of the store for 28 years this coming July. His years behind the counter have been spent welcoming in customers new and old with the same easy-going smile, always down to talk about comics, music, or life.
“I love this place,” says a customer, turning to Sam. “I’ve been coming here for what, twenty years?”
The regular, Roberto, was born in Sao Paulo, Brasil, says Sam. The shop owner is quick to explain how he introduced Roberto to friends from the same city, and how group now all keep in touch, occasionally going out for breakfast. “That’s what it’s all about, you know? We’re all here for a community.”
Sam Shiffler’s story didn’t start in San Rafael though, in fact, it didn’t even start in California.
Sam was born in Iowa, where he was raised with his sisters ‘Debbie’ and ‘Meg’. His love for comics began there, as a kid, trading with friends to read about Captain Atom and the Fantastic Four. But as he grew up, so too did tensions between the US and Vietnam. The summer after graduating high school, he joined the Navy, ever aware of his draft drawing nearer and nearer as war in Vietnam continued.
“I hated it, but you look back and there’s the people you met, the places you got to go and see, all these different countries.”
He would leave the service at 21, continuing to explore new places by moving to California. He would work many different jobs, repairing windows or bustling around a restaurant depot, all while dreaming of opening a record store. When offered co-ownership of a comic store in Marin, he agreed, bringing a playlist and speaker with him to his place behind the counter. He would eventually split from this adventure to make his own way in the industry. His store changed names, co-owners, and locations, but Sam Shiffler stayed.
Looking out the windows of Blue Moon Comics offers a glimpse at the edge of Fourth Street, the ever declining downtown of San Rafael. As less and less people walk the streets, and businesses leave left and right, remaining in place increases in difficulty. Covid-19 meant shutting down, with Sam working deliveries and exploring the online marketplace to survive.
The world of comics has been growing a place for itself online, with different apps and websites popping up over time. “We saw the beginning of that, and then the end of that,” he says, in reference to ComiXology, a platform for reading and downloading comics that Sam says quickly spiraled after Amazon bought it in 2022. “I don’t keep track of the digital stuff anymore,” says Sam. He understands the fans who read online for ease, or for lack of space on their shelves, but his world of comics resides within the square feet of Blue Moon.
The comics themselves have changed, too, but Sam doesn’t mind. Some fans claim that the world of superheroes has been destroyed by the ‘woke agenda’, with names like Kamala Khan (a Pakistani-American hero who first appeared in 2013) and America Chavez (a lesbian Latina superhero from 2011) taking over from classics like Superman and Green Lantern. Sam says that he doesn’t have many clients complain, though, and that most of the bad comments come from online. “You’ve always gotta have new characters. You need that. If it pisses you off, just stop,” he says. “Go get another hobby.”
Sam has other hobbies, too. He never forgot about his love of music, describing spending his free time at Yoshi’s, a “premier location for great Japanese cuisine and Jazz music” according to its website. According to Sam, it’s his “happy place.” Sam enjoys sticking to smaller, local venues, having seen a great many shows over the years and feeling no need to see them again.
Being local doesn’t matter for family, though, with Sam often visiting his sisters and the families they’ve grown throughout California. “I saw them more often when I had a car though, which is a whole other story.”
Zach Adams, science teacher at San Rafael High School and long-term client of Blue Moon Comics, says it’s alright, because “the store is his baby.”
Mr. Adams has been shopping at Blue Moon since he was in seventh grade, walking to the shop’s Novato location after school. He got his first work experience a few years later, pricing Magic the Gathering cards and cleaning for Sam in return for comics. “It’s something I know he’s done for other people, and it was honestly really cool.”
Today, Mr. Adams is part of a group of regulars that come to the store on Wednesdays, as soon as new releases arrive. “It definitely has that community feel, and it’s always nice to see new faces walk in,” he says.
