I have shared this post in a few other places, so I wanted to let my blog-reading friends know as well:
***
“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans…”
—John Lennon
How very true those words are. At the beginning of 2026, I had no plans to embark on a major change of direction for my life. Less than a month into the year, however, I was stunned with the news that I had a very rapid-onset form of leukemia. I insisted that tests be repeated, but the results didn’t change.
In the almost three months since that diagnosis, I have had to make many changes in my life. The first two doctors offered me no real chance of successful treatment and told me to plan accordingly. The third, an oncologist, was convinced that treatment was possible.
Under his guidance, I have begun a treatment plan that is already generating some positive results. My cancerous white blood cell count is down to almost normal numbers. My red blood cells are down significantly as well, as is my immune system, and there are some lasting side effects that hamper may ability to undertake tasks the way I used to, but survival is a work in progress.
What it means, though, is that I can no longer devote myself to Dr No’s Comics & Games SuperStore in the way that I have for so many years (the store began its fiftieth year of operation in March, and I’m incredibly proud of that). I was having to ask the staff to take over more of my duties, and I felt like I wasn’t leading the store the way I have for many years.
A few fellow retailers and friends knew of my health issues, and some reached out to express an interest in buying the store to ensure that it continues to serve our comic book and gaming community whether I could guide it or not. It was long-time friend and customer Ryan Schwanke who came to me with a plan to do the three things most important to me: (1) to keep the store operating the way it has for decades, as one of the most fully stocked comic shops in the nation; (2) to fulfill my vision of expanding the store with even more merchandise lines, more merchandise selection, and more connection to our comics and gaming community; and (3) to keep this amazing staff together, letting them help to guide the store into its second half-century.
Ryan and his friend and business partner Jason McCarthy are set to pick up where I have left off with Dr. No’s. As of May 1st, they will be the new owners of the store. They have kindly asked that I continue as a part of the team, offering them guidance and consulting with them, and I will do so. But in order to focus on my own challenges and to share my own joys with my wife, friends, and family, I will be passing this wonderful store on to new owners.
Rest assured, my friends: Ryan and Jason share my vision of what the store should be, and Ryan already has decades of knowledge of how Dr. No’s works and what talents out staff bring to their roles at Dr. No’s. Please welcome them, as I do, and thank them for keeping our comic shop vision going forward in years to come.
I will definitely be on hand for Free Comic Book Day on May 2nd to welcome newcomers and to express my appreciation for all of you amazing friends who have helped make Dr. No’s so successful in its first half-century—and that includes some remarkably talented professionals,, both writers and artists, who will be on hand to make sure everyone experiences the joys of comics. May 2nd will be a celebration of comics as well as a celebration of Dr. No’s distinctive past and exciting future.
And I look forward to crossing paths with many of you in months to come. I will remain an active part of Dr. No’s as health and schedules allow, and I can’t wait to see what Ryan, Jason, Buck, Izzy, Shelley, Tom, and Jair have planned for the store’s future.
Thank you all for the support and friendship you’ve given me over the years. And take it from me—we’re all going to love what’s coming next!
—Cliff Biggers
