Bill Liebowitz, owner of Golden Apple Comics, who died Wednesday at age 63, was a friend and supporter of the adult video industry, even though he never sold its product.
One of the nation’s most high-profile comic book retailers, Liebowitz was an innovative businessman and an ebullient, widely-loved personality. His Golden Apple emporium on Melrose in West Hollywood is Mecca for comix fans from around the world, and a shrine to all forms of popular culture.
The store is famous for its in-store events, mostly involving comic book creators. But it also became known for personal appearances and promotions by glamour icons, B-movie scream queens and adult movie stars, from Nina Hartley to Mary Carey.
Liebowitz had many friends within the adult industry, such as superstar Christy Canyon, who has promoted her autobiography at the Golden Apple booth at recent Glamourcons and book fairs. He was an advisor to the X-Rated Critics Organization from its inception in 1985, and until the late 1990s he stage-managed its annual awards show.
AVN Senior Editor Mark Kernes was another Liebowitz friend, first meeting him in 1991. “Golden Apple Comics was the place to buy comic books in this town,” he recalled. “Imagine my surprise when, a couple of years later, Bill started hosting autograph-signing parties for porn stars— no under-18s permitted, of course! — and arranged for a phone interview with the aging Bettie Page during a premiere party for Bunny Yeager's book on the famous '50s model. And when Marilyn Chambers made her comeback, Bill hosted yet another ‘Meet The Fans’ get-together for her.”
Kernes added, “Bill was a long-standing advocate for free speech, a supporter of the Free Speech Coalition and a good friend to the industry. He will be sorely missed."
Daniel Metcalf, director of publicity for Wicked Pictures, was another friend of the Golden Apple owner, "Bill,” he said, “used Golden Apple to co-brand adult entertainment with popular culture long before it was chic to do so. He provided invaluable support to the XRCO through its formative years, and began having adults-only autograph signings at his Melrose facility years before other mainstream chains began to follow suit.
“He was a tireless defender of our right to enjoy adult entertainment, and when I asked him once where he found the passion to fight the good fight time after time, he simply said 'I'm a fan myself. When these movies come out, good, bad, or indifferent, I'm there.' He was a great businessman and even better friend."
