Visit the newly remodeled Pop! Culture Connection in Greensburg, PA!

Pop! Culture Connection, located in Greensburg, PA, is one of the best all-around stores for vintage toys, and I've enjoyed watching it grow over the last three years.  The store recently underwent a fancy remodeling that impressed the heck out of me; it was always a really cool place to browse and gawk, but now it's become a high-end toy shop with a selection that always astounds me.  Seriously, I'm even in awe of the stuff that I have absolutely no interest in.

Since it's been a while since I first wrote about the shop, I decided to take some pictures during a recent trip to document the changes.

The merchandise on display never stays on the shelves for too long, but the store always has a host of impressive memorabilia.  Recently, the owner invested in some high-end display cases that line the walls.  Not only does this better protect and showcase the items on display, but it serves to organize things in a way that wasn't possible with the previous layout.

LEGOs might be more popular than ever, and Pop! Culture has more than its share.

This wall display - which doesn't show any of the game cartridges - is entirely devoted to Nintendo (with a few Pac Man items thrown in for good measure).

This windup Popeye toy is, I think, from the 1930s.  Think about that!  What a find this is.  It's got the key and everything - it looks to be in great shape for an 80-year-old toy.

The store has items from most decades of collecting, thought the '70s and '80s might be the most well represented.  Here's a vintage Thundercats line.

The number of box sets at the store is impressive.  Boxes are, of course, the hardest to find when it comes to old toys.

The Ninja Turtles display here is really impressive.  The Technodrome!  UGH!

And what's the Technodrome without Krang's robot body?  Unbelievable.  That Gizmo figure is pretty neat as well.

The store has some new items as well, such as this Back to the Future Hover Board!

Lookit all of these Megos.  They are so ugly.  But I love them.

There's plenty of comic related items in stock.  I'm told that the owner has an impressive comic collection as well, but very few books make it to the shelves.  Maybe one day I'll come across a Fantastic Four #1, and convince the owner to give it to me out of the kindness of his own heart.

So much weird, cool stuff here.  That Batmobile model is outrageous, as is the Superman guitar.  I've got my eye on one that Fantastic Four lunch box up at the top.

Movie monsters are well represented at the store.  Not pictured is some cool Munsters items.

What's the story with this rip-off toy?  It's obvious that it's Spider-Man, but perhaps it's *just* legally distinct enough to pass.  Also pictured are fake Captain America, fake Wolverine, fake Cyclops and fake Batman.  Perhaps they are the Fake Avengers.

Most of the store is redone and set up in working order.  The front still needs some work.  But look at that pinball machine!  Awesome.

In this picture, Larry apparently is measuring something.

The store has a few nice sports items as well, mostly (AS IT SHOULD BE) from the Pittsburgh area.  To the right of the picture, next to the Roethlisberger autographed football, is a program from the 1961 Pirates season...the year after they won the World Series.  A great piece to be sure.

If you are anywhere near the Pittsburgh area and enjoy seeing vintage toys and the like, do yourself a favor and visit Pop! Culture Connection.  It's like a museum of pop culture merchandise and it's well worth the trip.  Suffice it to say, I could easily go broke on any given day, but it's worth it just to see all of the items in stock.  The owner really takes great care of the inventory and it's quite a nostalgia trip.

Here's the (incredibly Google-able) address and other information:

Pop! Culture Connection
105 East Pittsburgh St.
Greensburg, PA 15601

Hours: 11:00-6:00 Tuesday-Saturday

Phone: 724-691-0179

Click here for their Facebook page

Click here for their eBay store

How is Paul Ryan (the artist) handling his newfound fame/infamy?

One of my first posts to this blog was of a side-by-side comparison of 2008 vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin to the Baroness character from GI Joe.  Well, apparently the Republican party is choosing its VP candidates based on comic book similarities, as this year's selection is none other than former Fantastic Four artist, Paul Ryan.

Wait, there's another Paul Ryan?  From Wisconsin?  And he's an unapologetic ultraconservative just like Sarah Palin, teamed up with an historically moderate yet now supposed rightest-of-the-right-wing presidential candidate in John McCain/Mitt Romney?  Weird.

Paul Ryan the artist was my absolute favorite artist growing up in the early-to-mid '90s - something that was undoubtedly a result of him drawing my favorite book growing up in Fantastic Four.  Ryan's artwork, I think, still holds up even though the stories now seem a bit goofy in places, and I wish that he would return to the FF in some capacity, even just for an anniversary issue or something similar.  Ryan spends his time these days on the Phantom comic strip, so he's still got a presence, though I miss his work in comic books.

I'm sure Mr. Ryan is getting a lot of attention these days due to mistaken identity.  But he can take some solace (I guess) in the fact that at least one person, upon hearing that Paul Ryan had been selected as the official Republican vice presidential nominee, looked at the news with incredulity and said, "the comic book artist?"

Pictures from the 2012 Comic-Con, part 9

Well, it's come to this - the ninth and final installment of this year's Comic-Con pictures.  How did I run out of pictures to show so soon?  And what in the world will I write about now?  I suppose that is a question for another day, for now...we will view and discuss the final pictures from this year's San Diego Comic-Con.

Sideshow Collectibles seems to push the envelope more and more each year. And to think that at one point I thought their $500 Thing bust was extreme!  Take a peek at this Terminator statue!  It can be yours for only...$6000!  Wow.  Where would you put this thing?  I guess anywhere you wanted.

Is this a He-Man costume?  I'll just assume that it is.

It was nice of all these scoundrels to line up for a picture like this.

These must have taken a while to make.

What th...26%?  Who is voting for the Foot Clan??

I was disappointed that this wasn't a Frankenberry thing.

It's been a while since I've seen Bartman referenced.  The Simpsons have changed quite a bit since the early years.

This is a great Batgirl costume!  It looks hand made but very well done.  The yellow is really striking.

What the heck.

There was a Frankenweenie display outside of the convention hall; movie models galore were on display.  This was one scene...it's surprising how much this looks like it's just a film grab from the movie.

Girl Punisher!

Well, Indiana Jones came out on Blu-Ray.  Perhaps it will ease our minds from Indy 4.

Harley Quinn takes a call.

The guy under the mask even looked like Rick Moranis.

Internet meme girl!

The guy did a pretty good Kermit impression as well.

Big Boy here had an extra hamburger in his bag just for Larry, which was nice.  He's very shocked by FUBAR, but I guess that happens.

How many times do you think people told him "I am the law"?  I wonder what he thought of the Stallone movie.

Here's another shot of the convention floor.  What a great, wild time Comic-Con was for all of us.  It was, as always, a lot of work and a pretty huge commitment.  There were disappointments and great, great triumphs.  In all, I had a fun time with fans of all kinds, brought together for five days of excitement and just a little bit of hero worship.  For good or ill, Comic-Con is a celebration of fandom and I enjoyed the revelry as much as most.

When I attended the 2006 Comic-Con, I couldn't imagine it growing any larger.  The 2012 version, though, was just that - bigger and more bombastic.  It spread outside of the convention halls and into the streets of downtown San Diego, to the point that people and companies were buying out office space in the surrounding area just to get in on the atmosphere.  This makes me wonder where Comic-Con will ever stop - in 10 years, will it be a city-wide event?  Will it expand past the point of containment?

I'm not sure if I'll apply to attend the 2013 version of the show.  It takes a lot of time and money to attend as an exhibitor, and I'd enjoy spending my summer doing something other than dealing with constant deadlines.  But the draw of Comic-Con is also great.  The allure is almost palpable, the shine almost tangible.  I've got a few more weeks until I decide if 2013 will be the year for me.  But I am sure that I will, some day, be back for more.

Just not on a Segway.

Thanks for the memories, Comic-Con!