"This was my hobby. This was my love": The Hartford Courant profiles retailer Art Massa, owner of The Eye Opener comics store in Newington, Conn.:

"But this is no rags-to-riches story. The comic-book industry, hurt by a glut of titles, too little advertising and too many competitors for the attention of children, has been in decline for a decade. Massa barely keeps his head above water, relying on his day job as a plumber to pay the bills. He jokes that all he has to show for 17 years in business are piles of comic books that amount to 'a whole lot of toilet paper.'

"And he's having the time of his life.

"'I still read every chance I get,' Massa said. 'I still enjoy 'em as much as I did when I first discovered them.'"