Although the horrors of hours and even days without internet or cable have faded from the memories of most New Yorkers, the truth is areas of Staten Island, New Jersey and Long Island suffered terrible damage in Hurricane Sandy, and some places are STILL getting back power.

One of the casualties of the storm was Krypton Comics, on Midland Avenue, which had been open for 21 years. Owner Arthur Palomba, Jr. posted this on the webpage:

Everyone, The hurricane wiped me out .  All gone, 7 feet of seawater went through my store, destroyed 90% of everything.  I cannot come back from this. So, I will be officially closing my doors on SUNDAY 11/11. All cleaned up, everything’s out. If anyone wants to keep in touch with me, you can e-mail me [email protected] or [email protected] . If anyone wants to buy anything from my eBay store, just click on the link to the right. Good luck to everyone, your friend for the past 21 years,  Artie.

Although we aren’t familiar with the store, we’re told it was a classic small operation, as the website boasted “At Krypton Comics of Staten Island, you’ll experience what makes a privately-owned business truly great: you’ll get to deal DIRECTLY WITH THE OWNER! That’s right, you’ll never hear, “I can’t make that decision” or “I’m not authorized to do that.” Probably not the kind of place I would have shopped too much, but to lose any store is sad.

Staten Island is still served by a branch of Jim Hanleys and Comic Book Jones, both of which have bounced back with no damage following the storm.

We’ve heard about another store that maybe have had some difficulties reopening, which we’re investigating. Although Krypton is the only one that we know was wiped out, many area shops lost a week’s worth of business, and are working with their supply chain to level things out. As the holiday shopping madness continues, even more incentive to support your local comics shop.

8 COMMENTS

  1. That sucks to hear Sandy wiped out the store, hopefully he had insurance to get some $$$ out of it in the end…

  2. According to Google Maps, they were four blocks from the waterfront, which is the Lower Bay of New York harbor.

  3. My husband went to Krypton every Wednesday to purchase comic books and just hang out with Artie and a bunch of other guys/collectors that were regulars. We went to check on the store about a week after the storm (down time from clearing out our own destruction) and saw Artie and some regulars. It was the saddest thing to see him trying to salvage some of the items and seeing the water line above my head. Insurance does not cover comic books. He lost everything in this storm. I wish him lots of luck in his new found retirement.

  4. I was a regular at Krypton since Artie opened (I was 9 years old), right up until I moved to the west coast this past August. I was lucky to be able to do business and become friends with such a cool, fair guy. Artie always took care of his customers. Seriously, if you wanted something and he didn’t have it, he found it and got it, fast. “Gotta have it!” he would say. Not only that, but at a fair price. If another store exists that operates like Krypton did, I’d be surprised. “Cash is king,” Artie would always say, but it didn’t feel like that to shop there. It felt like you were dealing with a friend. Probably because you were.
    Well, it was a good ride, at least, and you made a lot of friends along the way. Enjoy your retirement, Art! I hope all is well!

  5. Artie you were the best. There will never be another like you. Your store was special. You are a gentleman. To find an honest businessman who genuinely appreciated and took care of his customers is such a rarity. With all the discounts and freebies you gave thru the yrs its a wonder you made any money! Lol. But thats the kind of guy you were. so sorry to see you go. God bless you friend. You really deserve the best.

  6. Artie has always been a gentleman and a great friend. He was actually the first person I met when I moved to Staten Island way back in 1992. Way back in the beginning. My kids grew up in that store. I was away for a while and felt so sad when I went to look for his store when I got back. It was always comforting to feel that somethings wouldn’t change.. That Krypton was always there… . It’s the end of an era….. And i cherish those memories just hanging out – sometimes for hours – in his store… Hopefully I see you soon Artie…

  7. I used to love going to krypton, It was the highlight of my week it’s very sad to hear that it was destroyed. The atmosphere was very welcoming, the owner very sociable and nice. You can tell that a lot of love was put into it which made it feel very homey. There will never be another place like this one. You will be greatly missed!

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