Harvey T. "Pop" Hollinger (October 13, 1886 – March 6, 1977) was one of the first

comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

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. He set up his retail and mail order shop for new and used comics in

Concordia, Kansas Concordia is a city in and the county seat of Cloud County, Kansas, United States. It is located along the Republican River in the Smoky Hills region of the Great Plains in North Central Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the population of th ...

, in the late 1930s.

Biography

Early life

Hollinger was born in rural

Chapman, Kansas Chapman is a city in Dickinson County, Kansas, Dickinson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 1,377. History The first settlement was made at Chapman in 1868, and the ...

, and lived there through his high school years. After high school, he purchased a

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and

camera A camera is an instrument used to capture and store images and videos, either digitally via an electronic image sensor, or chemically via a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. As a pivotal technology in the fields of photograp ...

, then proceeded to travel the Midwest earning money for gas and food by selling photos he took along the way. In 1905, Hollinger married and in the same year enrolled at

McPherson College McPherson College is a private college associated with the Church of the Brethren and located in McPherson, Kansas, United States. It was chartered in 1887 and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. History During their 1887 annual m ...

McPherson, Kansas McPherson ( ) is a city in and the county seat of McPherson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 14,082. The city is named after Union (American Civil War), Union General ...

. He played

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and

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for the

McPherson Bulldogs The McPherson Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent McPherson College, located in McPherson, Kansas, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing in the Kansas ...

until he graduated in 1912 with a liberal arts degree. In 1914, Hollinger and his family moved to

, to accept the position of teacher of applied sciences at

Concordia Junior-Senior High School Concordia Junior-Senior High School is a public secondary school in Concordia, Kansas, United States operated by Concordia USD 333, and serves students of grades 7 to 12. It is called the "Junior-Senior" high school because the junior high ...

where he created the Industrial Arts program. In 1933 he retired from his teaching job to become self-employed running a service station and operated a secondhand store as a sideline in the basement of a local

grocer A grocery store (American English, AE), grocery shop or grocer's shop (British English, BE) or simply grocery is a retail store that primarily retails a general range of food Product (business), products, which may be Fresh food, fresh or Food p ...

. In 1939, Pop transitioned to selling mainly periodicals and comic books. Pop Hollinger ran his used comic book store from 1939 until 1971. Pop bought and sold old comic books throughout the Golden Age and Silver Age. During World War II, Pop was asked to return to high school teaching as many of the instructors had joined the fight.

Comic books

Hollinger entered into the comics trade through his retail store and expanded into mail order. Originally a side business, he became so successful that he began working on ways to trade comics and began experimenting with restorative methods. His restoring attempts included using tape and staples and were primarily done to enhance the longevity of the reading experience rather than to boost the collector value. Hollinger referred to this process as 'rebuilding' and to the comic books as 'rebuilt comics'.

Inventions

Hollinger held several patents, including a Tray Dispenser (patent 4323168), a method and apparatus for dispensing flexible trays.

References

External links

Pop Hollinger review on YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hollinger, Pop 1886 births 1977 deaths American comic collectors People from Chapman, Kansas People from Concordia, Kansas Comics retailers (people) Businesspeople from Kansas 20th-century American businesspeople