Does anyone else remember Unknown Worlds comic shop in Toronto? 2 2

[DonSal1976]

I was recently looking through some old comics I hadn’t touched in decades and in-between one of the bags and the boards I came across a Halloween sale flyer from an old comic shop in Toronto called Unknown Worlds, circa late 1980s/early 1990s, and it triggered some great old memories. It was an amazing store and even to this day I can remember walking through the front door and taking in the strong smell of pulp that filled the air. I remembered it so vividly that I decided to draw a quick sketch of where everything was located. It had a massive tiered new comic rack, lots of back issue bins and the entire wall was covered in high end comics. It was marketed as a sci-fi/horror book shop and the entire back end of the store was geared specifically to that but I never actually went back there so I can’t for the life of me remembered what it looked like. The store had two big front windows but they were covered up with posters or something so the place was always very dimly lit which added to the ambience of the place. Sadly it closed down sometime in the early/mid 1990s. I was wondering if any other Torontonians on these boards remember this place?

 

[THE_BEYONDER]

Never heard of this shop.  It was always Dragon Lady & Silver Snail when I was a kid.

[KirbyJack]

When I heard the name, I thought, “maybe in an Overstreet ad?” But their logo rings no bells.

[shadroch]

A pet peeve of mine, but did you notice the shop puts its address, but not the town or city. 

[vheflin]

Comic shops in 80s were terrific, the high-end walls had great stuff.  Shop I went to had a FF #1 that sat on the wall for years, priced @ $1,000.  Spending that much on one comic book was 

[KirbyJack]

17 minutes ago, vheflin said:

Comic shops in 80s were terrific, the high-end walls had great stuff.  Shop I went to had a FF #1 that sat on the wall for years, priced @ $1,000.  Spending that much on one comic book was 

They were pretty terrific in the 70s, too. 

I can only imagine how terrific shops were in the 60s. I’d love to walk into Cherokee in 1968 with a thousand dollars.

[Domo Arigato]

5 hours ago, DonSal1976 said:

I came across a Halloween sale flyer from an old comic shop in Toronto called Unknown Worlds, circa late 1980s/early 1990s, and it triggered some great old memories. It was an amazing store and even to this day I can remember walking through the front door and taking in the strong smell of pulp that filled the air.

 

Was this the building?

 

 

[MagnusX]

I have been living in Toronto since 2003,
but never hear of them...

[ThothAmon]

I used to haunt the shops in TO during the mid/late seventies and early 80's and I don't recall going there.  Wish I had.

[bababooey]

9 hours ago, THE_BEYONDER said:

Never heard of this shop.  It was always Dragon Lady & Silver Snail when I was a kid.

Same, the distant third in that Queen St area was Bakka Books.  Of course for me "always" means one trip per summer for a couple years.  

[DonSal1976]

5 hours ago, Domo Arigato said:

 

Was this the building?

 

 

That looks like the right location. 👍🏻 Just west of Pape on the Danforth. Do you remember the store or are you just bringing up a picture of the address on the flyer?

Edited April 13, 2020 by DonSal1976

[Domo Arigato]

48 minutes ago, DonSal1976 said:

That looks like the right location. 👍🏻 Just west of Pape on the Danforth. Do you remember the store or are you just bringing up a picture of the address on the flyer?

I was just trying to bring up a picture of the address on the flyer.  I was never there.

 

[Guardian Comics]

On 4/12/2020 at 10:45 AM, THE_BEYONDER said:

Never heard of this shop.  It was always Dragon Lady & Silver Snail when I was a kid.

Mine mostly too but mixed in a little bit of Queens Comics in the beaches area and being from Scarborough...Fantasm Comics at Markham Rd. and Eglinton was where I picked up my first real back issues...X-Men #27 and #29.

[boppy99]

I can't remember that one, then again, I never went east of the Don River much.

I do remember Dragon Lady, Grey Region, Silver Snail, Yesterday's Heroes and The Beguiling. Maybe a half dozen others that I went to infrequently like Hairy Tarantula and 1,000,000 Comics.

I can't remember anything near Danforth & Pape though.

Most of the shops listed above are gone now, unfortunately...

[VintageComics]

8 hours ago, boppy99 said:

I can't remember that one, then again, I never went east of the Don River much.

I do remember Dragon Lady, Grey Region, Silver Snail, Yesterday's Heroes and The Beguiling. Maybe a half dozen others that I went to infrequently like Hairy Tarantula and 1,000,000 Comics.

I can't remember anything near Danforth & Pape though.

Most of the shops listed above are gone now, unfortunately...

Strangely, I don't remember the store either although by the early 90's  was dropping out of comics for a time but I did spend a lot of time there on the Danforth.

 

Does anyone remember a comic book store on Keewatin between Yonge and Mt. Pleasant just north of Eglinton?

I know there was one there that I visited in the mid 1980's but can't remember the name of it.

 

My 'go to' store was Shooting Star Comics - two locations on Yonge St. One at Young and Finch area in North York and one up in Richmond Hill north of Major Mackenzie. That was my primary store in the late 80's.

Edited April 14, 2020 by VintageComics

[Larryw7]

Does anyone here remember stories of a comic shop in Canada where the owner of a store offered happy ending massages from women in his stock room? I know it sounds ridiculous, but a couple of collectors mentioned it to me, and I even vaguely remember a thread here that mentioned it. If not, sorry!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 14, 2020 by Larryw7

[jjonahjameson11]

8 hours ago, VintageComics said:

Strangely, I don't remember the store either although by the early 90's  was dropping out of comics for a time but I did spend a lot of time there on the Danforth.

 

Does anyone remember a comic book store on Keewatin between Yonge and Mt. Pleasant just north of Eglinton?

I know there was one there that I visited in the mid 1980's but can't remember the name of it.

 

My 'go to' store was Shooting Star Comics - two locations on Yonge St. One at Young and Finch area in North York and one up in Richmond Hill north of Major Mackenzie. That was my primary store in the late 80's.

Yes, I remember Unknown Worlds...would always stop by the shop after grabbing some Greek Food on the Danforth with the family.  For those who aren't familiar with the area, the store was located in the heart of Toronto's Greek Town.

Never bought any back issues from them as they were always slightly pricier than the other downtown Toronto stores.

Roy, there was a store on Yonge St, slightly North of Eglinton...it was the 2nd Silver Snail location and was in operation for several years, but less than a decade.  Not certain if that's the store you're referring to.

Shooting Star...good ol' Jimmy was the owner.  After he closed both stores, he moved even further North in Markham and opened another store called Kaos Comics.  Very small storefront...if you blink, you'll miss it.

Edited April 14, 2020 by jjonahjameson11

[jjonahjameson11]

14 hours ago, boppy99 said:

I can't remember that one, then again, I never went east of the Don River much.

I do remember Dragon Lady, Grey Region, Silver Snail, Yesterday's Heroes and The Beguiling. Maybe a half dozen others that I went to infrequently like Hairy Tarantula and 1,000,000 Comics.

I can't remember anything near Danforth & Pape though.

Most of the shops listed above are gone now, unfortunately...

Actually, has anyone ever bought comics from Yesterday's Heroes?  I found that store to be utterly, hopelessly cluttered and disorganized. 

Snail, Beguiling, and Hairy T are still around.  Not sure about Grey Region.

[Ares]

On 4/12/2020 at 10:42 AM, DonSal1976 said:

I was recently looking through some old comics I hadn’t touched in decades and in-between one of the bags and the boards I came across a Halloween sale flyer from an old comic shop in Toronto called Unknown Worlds, circa late 1980s/early 1990s, and it triggered some great old memories. It was an amazing store and even to this day I can remember walking through the front door and taking in the strong smell of pulp that filled the air. I remembered it so vividly that I decided to draw a quick sketch of where everything was located. It had a massive tiered new comic rack, lots of back issue bins and the entire wall was covered in high end comics. It was marketed as a sci-fi/horror book shop and the entire back end of the store was geared specifically to that but I never actually went back there so I can’t for the life of me remembered what it looked like. The store had two big front windows but they were covered up with posters or something so the place was always very dimly lit which added to the ambience of the place. Sadly it closed down sometime in the early/mid 1990s. I was wondering if any other Torontonians on these boards remember this place?

 

I think remember the store. They were on the Danforth for years

I think they later on they moved to a location at Greenwood and Danforth

IIRC It was at a street corner very close to Greenwood Subway Station. It was close to an Aunts house so I would go to store when in area. 

Sadly the owner passed away a few years ago

[VintageComics]

53 minutes ago, jjonahjameson11 said:

Roy, there was a store on Yonge St, slightly North of Eglinton...it was the 2nd Silver Snail location and was in operation for several years, but less than a decade.  Not certain if that's the store you're referring to.

Was the 2nd Snail location on Yonge St?

I seem to remember that the store I was at was on Keewatin between Yonge and Mt. Pleasant. My grandparents dropped me off there one Sat afternoon. I was probably 14 and it blew my mind to see Silver Age comics on the wall.

54 minutes ago, jjonahjameson11 said:

Shooting Star...good ol' Jimmy was the owner.  After he closed both stores, he moved even further North in Markham and opened another store called Kaos Comics.  Very small storefront...if you blink, you'll miss it.

Jimmy and his Mrs. are still together 30 years later.

I used to work at VW Richmond Hill back in 1989 and would walk down to his Richmond Hill store every Friday with a fresh paycheck. A few years ago  I somehow randomly found his latest store was in Richmond Hill and that he was still in business, just north of his old location from the 1980's in a strip mall.

We recognized each other after not seeing each other for exactly 30 years. It was surreal and he hadn't changed a bit. I used to be one of his best customers for a while and it was nice to see them. Not sure if he is still there.