That's Entertainment (comic shop)

This article is about a comic shop. For other uses, see That's Entertainment.
That's Entertainment
Company typePrivate
IndustryComics
Pop culture
Collectables
GenreRetail
Founded1980; 44 years ago (1980)
FounderPaul Howley
Headquarters
Worcester, Massachusetts
,
U.S.
Number of locations
2
Area served
New England
Key people
Paul Howley
ProductsComics
Video games
DVDs
Magic: the Gathering
Toys
Role-playing games
Vinyl Record Albums
Trading Cards
Autographs
OwnerPaul Howley
WebsiteThatsE.com

That's Entertainment is a comics and collectibles store in Worcester, Massachusetts.[1]

The store was first opened by Paul Howley in 1980[2] at a 2,000 sq ft (190 m2) location on Chandler Street in Worcester. On October 12, 1989, he added a second location with the purchase of a comic shop in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. At the start of business on July 1, 1992, That's Entertainment had been moved into its present location, a 20,000 sq ft (1,900 m2) former auto dealership[3] on Park Ave. in Worcester, and a 10,000 sq ft (930 m2) retail and events space was created.[4] The store stocks comic books, including alternative comics and new indy titles,[5] trade paperbacks, and related items. The store also carries other trading cards, including sports cards and Magic: The Gathering, along with anime, role-playing games, vintage video games and systems, and other toys and collectibles.[6][7]

In 1997, That's Entertainment was one of three stores that received a "Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award" from San Diego Comic-Con. The award, named for comic book creator Will Eisner, recognizes "an individual retailer who has done an outstanding job of supporting the comics art medium both in the community and within the industry at large".[8][9]

That's Entertainment's "reluctant acceptance of life after the on-line auction" was the subject of a six-page article in the May 2000 issue of the national magazine Inc. The article, by writer Anne Marie Borrego, was titled "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and (Almost) Love eBay." Borrego examined how That's Entertainment specifically, as a traditional brick and mortar collectibles retailer, was contending with the sudden growth of on-line competition in the collectibles market.[10]

  1. ^ Manning, Doreen (2010-04-15). "That's E! celebrates that vinyl sound". Worcester Magazine. Archived from the original on 2011-09-28. Retrieved 2011-04-19.
  2. ^ "My Life with Comic Books: the History of a Comic Shop.". Archived from the original on 2008-04-23. Retrieved 2008-06-07.
  3. ^ Warshaw, Michael (2005-05-05). "Rational Absurdity and Diner Food". Worcester Magazine. Retrieved 2008-06-09. [dead link]
  4. ^ "My Life with Comic Books: the History of a Comic Shop.". Archived from the original on 2008-04-23. Retrieved 2008-06-07.
  5. ^ Alternative Comics Indy Friendly Stores listing
  6. ^ Yelp
  7. ^ "Comic book maven celebrates 30 years of That's Entertainment, Published in Worcester Telegram & Gazette, Tuesday, April 12, 2011". Retrieved 2011-04-13.
  8. ^ Comic-con.org Awards Archived 2007-09-11 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ http://www.sequentialtart.com/article.php?id=455 Sequential Tart
  10. ^ Borrego, Anne Marie (2000-05-15). "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and (Almost) Love eBay". Inc. Magazine. Retrieved 2008-06-08.