Bart Bush

Bart Bush, who opened the first comic book store in Oklahoma and was responsible for bringing fandom to the forefront in this state, died September 2.The news was confirmed by Bush's family on his Facebook account.
Bart was among founders of the Oklahoma Alliance of Fans (OAF), which was formed during a meeting in a garage in 1967. Members of the group, including Bush, helped stage four Multicon pop culture conventions that took place in Oklahoma City in the 1970s and 1980s and, in recent years, his annual OAFcon convention in Norman gained a reputation as a must-attend event for serious collectors.
Born James Barton Bush in 1951, Bush grew up in Ponca City and had his imagination stoked by comics and magazines he purchased at stores in the city. Profiled by Alter Ego in two issues of the magazine in 2019, he said a shopping center within walking distance of his childhood home included a grocery store, a TG&Y store and a drug store, all of which sold comics.
After earning degrees in psychology and journalism at the University of Oklahoma in 1973, Bush teamed with Don Maris to open Down Memory Lane in Norman. It was the first comic store in Oklahoma and one of the first in the nation. Prior to comic specialty shops, readers purchased comics from newstands and "spinner racks" at grocery stores, drug stores and convenience stores.
Bush told Alter Ego it was a difficult business and profits were slim as adjustments were made for the type of merchandise you hoped to sell.
"The business did survive but changed over the years: different locations, different names and product lines, always wishing to serve the collector's best interest," Bush told author Bill Schelly, who conducted the interview for Alter Ego. "But after 37 years in the retail comic industry, I retired in 2011."
Tulsa-based author and historian Michael Vance was among many who weighed in with positive comments after Bush's death.
"As a pioneer and father of comics fandom, Bart Bush has no peer," Vance said, adding that, in addition to opening the first comic shop in Oklahoma, Bush helped organize and stage the first comic conventions in the state. "He supported budding artists and writers who went on to become professionals. He was a major collector himself, owning possibly the largest collection of Dick Tracy art and related items in the world. But, more important than all of this, Bart was a nice guy - a very nice guy."
Bush's more recent convention, OAFcon, sprang from the desire to hold a reunion show in 2007 on the 40th anniversary of the start of the group (OAF) he co-founded. OAFcon proved popular enough that it became an annual event and drew collectors from across the nation.
Author John Wooley said he has known Bush since they got together with others in Paul McSpadden's garage in 1967 for the beginnings of what became OAF. "Paul had sent out invitations to every comic-book collector he could find, mostly through fanzines," Wooley said. "It may be hard for people in these social media-saturated days to wrap their heads around, but finding like-minded people outside your immediate geographic sphere was tough. Those of us who started the Oklahoma Alliance of Fans found one another through amateur publications, cranked out on mimeograph and duplicating machines and mailed all around the country. Bart Bush was right in the forefront of all of that."
Wooley said his friend embodied what being a comic book and nostalgia fan was all about. "He was perpetually enthused about something or other he'd found, forever posting pictures of stuff from his collection with his smiling face in the shot," Wooley said.
"Over the years, whether he was putting on OAFCons, dealing comics at his store, printing and mailing out fanzines, or just talking to like-minded people, Bart Bush was a living and breathing example of what the often-misused term 'sense of wonder' really means. He was a terrific guy and a great friend."
Bart was preceded in death by his parents Dr. Jordan Morgan Bush and his mother, Mrs. Beverly Bush and his older brother, Curtis M. Bush. Bart is survived by his loving and proud wife, Barbara Winton Bush, his son Richard Tracy Bush and his wife Cayla, and two beloved grandsons Sam and Jackson Bush. Additionally, Bart was loved by his sister and brothers-in-law, and many nieces and nephews.
A gathering of friends and family will celebrate Bart's love of life and his sweet uniqueness in the Spring, if Covid and Trump are gone. Also, Bart would enthusiastically encourage you to plan your vote for November. IRIE