Missouri Comic Con kicks off in Springfield

Yahoo

16-02-2025

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — This weekend, thousands are gathering at the Springfield Expo Center for the Missouri Comic Con, which is hosting a number of big names.
While at the con, Ozarks First spoke with a unique comic book collector.
Frank Facio lives in Springfield and first started collecting comic books when he was a child, but stopped for decades after losing his sight. Now, Facio is back in the game.
'I like comic books so much, I wanted to get back into it,' says Facio. 'I can still enjoy it, even though I can't read it or see the pictures and the covers.'
Facio's wife will describe comic books to him, and he can then determine which ones he wants to buy.
'I also like to buy them already graded so that way I know when I'm buying a 9.8 or a 6.0 or something, then I know that's what it is because obviously grading is subjective,' says Facio.
Many people who make a living buying and selling comic books are at the con. Mario Russo, who has sold comics since the 80s, says cons like this one make his life possible.
'There are the big shows sure. And there are six, eight, ten, twelve a year. But in between, if you do this full time, you need the smaller venues to do it to make a living out of it,' says Russo.
Facio spent some time at Russo's comic book stand. He says his inability to see does not hinder his knowledge of comics.
'He was reading the titles and the numbers in the grade. And of course, I tell him, 'Oh yeah, that's so and so'. That's because these are older books and I know a lot of the older books that I can rattle off,' says Facio.
Many notable people are attending this weekend's Comic-Con, including Tom Kenny, the voice of Spongebob Squarepants, Jim Cummings, the voice of Winnie the Pooh and actor Ron Perlman.
Caitlin Every says this is something she appreciates about the Missouri Comic Con.
'I think it's a cool opportunity for people locally to meet big celebrities too, that don't normally come to areas like this,' says Every. 'So I think it's cool, People get to meet people they've always looked up or maybe have always watched on TV.'
Each person who spoke with Ozarksfirst says the best part about Comic Con is the community.
'It's really good because you can just talk about stuff I know. And even though I can't see the art anymore or whatever, that's okay,' says Facio. 'I mean, knowing that I have it is good enough for me.'
Facio also says that nowadays, he has apps that use AI to describe the covers of comics to him.
Missouri Comic Con runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, February 16th. A link to buy tickets can be found here.
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