Art Rhode's 83rd birthday

2023

Reposted and updated from his 70th birthday in 2012.

My Dad turns 83 today. When I originally wrote this, coincidentally, the Avengers movie opened the same day. Both events remain rather personally surprising.  I still think of Dad as somewhere around 60 (and I'm that age now) and never expected to see 36 Marvel films, nor that they would make "MCU the first film franchise to cross $30 billion." And even though it's May 4th, I don't think he's ever seen a Star Wars movie.

Back in the 1970s, I started reading comics as a kid - my parents bought DC's Superman, Mad magazine and Archie regularly. The Avengers were my favorite though, because, thanks to a cousin, I had some of the early issues and got hooked on Marvel. Mom never went over to the Marvel side, but Dad and I would both read them. When I got old enough, I'd bike up to 7-11 and buy whatever I could find on the spinner rack.

By the time I was in high school, Dad and I were delivering the Sunday NY Times for extra pocket change. On Fridays (new comic book day back then), we'd go to the Bergen Mall in Paramus and I'd buy comics at Collectors Comic Shop while he and Mom went to the bank to deposit his paycheck. After I finished the comics late on Friday night, usually in my bed after 11, I'd pass them along to Dad to read before stacking them up in the corner. I kept this up into college, until the stacks coming home would be 3 or 4 feet high and too much for anyone to get through. At one point, I was trying to have a complete collection of Avengers, but gave up for various reasons (especially Heroes Reborn), so Dad's got a good familiarity with that particular comic book.

There were also tons of books around the house because we're all great readers. Dad and I still swap books whenever see each other.  

Without his support, there would be no ComicsDC, editing for IJOCA, editing books on Pekar and Thompson, meeting Watterson, judging Herblock and RFK political cartoon awards, scores of friendships, and a thousand other comics-related parts of my life.

We're not that big on family celebrations, so I just mailed him a card and gave him a call. However  I've got my own bully pulpit here, so I'll say

Happy Birthday, Dad, and thanks for everything.