eMoviePoster.com

Every so often we receive a message or email along the lines of the following:

"In the late 1960's, I used to purchase comic books from a Bruce Hershenson in Great Neck, New York. His grading standards were top notch. Are you that same Bruce Hershenson?"

I AM that very same Bruce Hershenson! I started selling old comics (which I bought from local kids or resale shops) through the RBCC, the main adzine in the comic book hobby, in 1967 or 1968. By the time I was in 12th grade I was able to move to my own apartment and live entirely on my own, completely paying my own way, all through my comic book business! Shortly after graduating high school, at the age of 19, I became a publisher, first some "pro-zines" (including Badtime Stories by Berni Wrightson), three comic books entirely by the legendary Steve Ditko, and then, after I turned 20, I co-published (with Ron Barlow) 12 full-color EC reprint comics (long before ANY other classic comic books were reprinted).

As to how I graded comic books back then, I always wanted to be known as a "harsh grader", because (then and now) I felt certain that THIS, more than anything would make me stand out from many other dealers who were willing to "over-grade" in the search of a quick buck. I wanted buyers to be pleasantly surprised when they opened their package, and NEVER be disappointed, and I continue to do so with eMoviePoster.com, and I know that to this day I come really close to making that happen every single time (and the few times someone is disappointed in any way, we do all we can to make them happy!).

In 1972, before I was 21, I discovered poker in Las Vegas (I had played in "home games" for years) and I was hooked. The following year I moved to Las Vegas (and for a couple of years I ran my comic book business from there, while playing poker full time as well! In 1976 I quit comics completely, and in 1981 I won one of the tournaments at the World Series of Poker (two years earlier, I won an even at the Super Bowl of Poker, and here is an image of me with friend and poker legend Tommy Hufnagle, moments after winning the tournament)!

In 1983 I again had a major career shift, leaving Las Vegas to more to Philadelphia and trade stock options for my own account on the floor of the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, and I traded at a dizzying pace, making and losing several fortunes, but coming out on top! In 1989 I stopped trading options and turned my movie poster collecting hobby into a full-time business, which I have continued to the present day (since 1999 on the Internet, as eMoviePoster.com), publishing 43 full-color movie poster books along the way!

You can learn a little more about me at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Hershenson (but realize I did not write what is there, so it is not 100% accurate, and far from a complete history!).

And over the years, I have often confused with a noted conservative American political commentator, "Bruce Herschensohn", but of course, he spelled his name differently (and he was actually "Stanley Bruce Herschensohn", but he never used the "Stanley", and who can blame him?)! That "Bruce Herschensohn" had earlier been a film director, producer, and writer in Los Angeles, and in 1964 he directed "John F. Kennedy: Years of Lightning, Day of Drums", and in 1986 and 1992 he ran for the Senate in California! It seems that being named "Bruce Hershenson" or "Bruce Herschensohn" causes you to have several different careers!