HELLO —

Hello. Pull up a chair.

I figured this deserved more than a generic About Us page. So let’s do this properly.

I’ve been collecting my whole life — long before I knew that’s what I was doing. It started in 1977 with Star Wars.
One movie, one galaxy, and suddenly toys weren’t just toys anymore. A few years later, baseball cards entered the picture when the Big Red Machine went back-to-back. From there, the door never really closed. It just kept widening. By the late ’80s, I’d discovered something else I couldn’t shake — I could draw. Design and illustration became second nature, and comic books followed naturally. Not just for the stories, but for the covers. The composition. The color. The attitude. Each one felt like a small, framed piece of art. That’s when I realized I wasn’t just collecting things — I was chasing art and beauty.


That chase never left me.

Over the years, it showed up in all kinds of forms. Coins. Stamps. Non-sports cards. Ty Beanie Babies (yes, really). And most recently, magazines — the hobby I didn’t see coming but somehow makes the most sense of all. Maybe it’s my background in photojournalism. Maybe it’s timing. But magazine covers capture something special...a moment that can’t be recreated. Dwight Clark’s "The Catch". Michael Jordan’s "The Shot". Perfect fractions of a second, frozen forever. And honestly? The level of cover photography back then still hits harder than most of what we see today.

Looking back, the pattern is obvious. First comes the art. Then the hunt. Then the find. Then the anticipation...and somewhere in there I start calling it an “investment” so my wife doesn’t roll her eyes.


And let’s be honest — everyone loves an underdog story.

Magazine collecting is the underdog. Quiet. Overlooked. A little underestimated. While the sports card hobby grew into the loud kid in the classroom (the bully with all the attention), magazines stayed in the corner, doing their thing, waiting for the right moment. No hype machine. No chest-thumping. Just history, photography, and culture pressed between two covers. That’s part of the appeal.

That same path is probably familiar to you, too. Different entry point maybe, but same instinct. Once you’ve got the bug, it doesn’t really matter what you collect — it matters why.


Right now, I’m locked in on magazines. Comics will always be part of my history, but this community feels fresh. Underrated. Early. And that’s exactly why I built Meatball Mafia. This isn’t about hype or flipping or shouting about value. It’s about bringing like-minded collectors into the same room, sharing stories, surfacing great pieces, giving high-fives, and giving this corner of the hobby the respect it deserves.

If you’re here, chances are you get it.

Stick around. I’ll do my best to keep things interesting.