Photo provided by Thomas ChillemiComics & Gaming, located at 7556 Gardner Park Drive in Gainesville, will once again hold a black party to celebrate Free Comic Book Day May 6.
The store invites local comic fans to take home titles from Marvel, DC, Valiant and other publishers for free.
A complete list of the free comic books can be found here.
"FCBD for me is about a celebration of the industry that I love," owner Thomas Chillemi said. "It brings families out to share in that passion."
Besides the free comics, the party includes a section for kids, a bounce house, raffles, door prizes, and features a sidewalk sale featuring 100 long boxes of comics priced at $1 each.
The store will also put on sale, for the first time, a massive collection of comics they recently acquired, which features many hard-to-find key issues.
The 501st Star Wars Stormtroopers will also be on hand for photo opportunities.
“The Gainesville store has been doing Free Comic Book since 2007; each year we have been able to reach a larger audience than the previous year,” Chillemi said. “I’ve been supporting FCBD since 2001, the year it began!”
Chillemi said his favorite memory of the FCBD was in 2015 when legendary Marvel artist Sal Buscemi signed fan's autographs for charity to raise funds for the Hero Initiative, a not-for-profit consortium of comic publishers who help provide a financial security for comic creators.
Free Comic Book Day, which traditionally takes place on the first Saturday in May, was launched in 2001.
This year, the FCBD event is from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday; customers can call 571 248-6722 for more information.
Support Bristow Beat - Donate Today!