As a child in New York, Albert Moy read to his parents because they knew little English. Moy recalls reading from the comic strip “Peanuts” and how his mother, who came from Guangzhou in China, mispronounced the name Snoopy at every turn. Moy grew to love comic books and began collecting original comic art in 1982. Moy lists Charles Schulz, the Peanuts creator, as one of his favorite artists and a note of regret surfaces in his voice as he conveys a story about missing an opportunity to see his childhood idol at an award celebration. “There was a dinner. He (Schulz) was there. The Cartoon Art Museum said, ‘Come on out.’” Moy held the artist in such regard that he felt intimidated to meet him. “I was scared! I was afraid my dreams of him would be shattered.”

It’s this type of reverence for comic art and the people who produce it that has propelled Moy to become one of the best-known comic art dealers in the world. He started his art business in the 1980s. He would go to comic book conventions and purchase more art than he sold, but that never bothered him because he was adding to his collection.

In those early days before the internet explosion, he sold at comic book shows and through a publication called the Comic Buyer’s Guide. He would buy art collections, keep the best stuff and sell the remainder. “I was a collector and I started selling so I could buy (art) for my collection. That was the most joyous time – getting the art made me happy.”

What was it about original art that captivated him? “When I collected (comic) books, it was always because of the artist. I never knew the art existed because I thought the artists always kept it. My brother introduced me to the art of Neal Adams and I became a big Adams fan. If Adams drew a comic, I would buy it. When I actually saw the original artwork, I fell in love with it.”

Moy has such an astute memory that he can recount the first three pieces of original art he purchased at a Creation Comic Book convention in 1982 when he was 17. He also remembers tearing a page out of a comic book as a kid and hanging it up on his wall next to his bed because he liked the art so much. Years later, he found the original artwork from that page and bought it.

Not too long after that, he realized he could make money at his hobby through buying, trading and selling art, and he has been at it since. He sells via his website www.albertmoy.com and at comic book conventions throughout the country, including a show in Baltimore. Moy works hard. He has a wife and two children, keeps a full-time job and spends up to 60 hours a week above that on his art business. Moy understands the exhilaration of finding a cherished piece of art and helps his customers in that respect. “The reason I’m successful is because I have a passion for it (art). It gives me joy to see collectors getting their favorite pieces, their pride-and-joy, holy-grail pieces.”

Moy has a unique insight about his vocation, “If I didn’t collect, I’d be a failure. If I didn’t have a collection, I wouldn’t be able to afford anything. The reason I was successful is because I held onto things, and things have gone up in price. If I didn’t have a passion for it, it’d be like dealing cards. What’s the sense of that?”

Moy eventually expanded his business to include representing comic book artists. He represents a number of the biggest names in the industry including arguably the most popular artist in comics – Jim Lee, who has rendered X-Men, Superman and Batman. As the representative for these artists, Moy markets and sells their artwork, and this adds another dimension to the services he provides collectors.

The field of original art collecting has grown since Moy started in the 1980s. The internet has made the hobby accessible to people throughout the world, and with auction houses dealing in collectibles, original art prices have skyrocketed. Whereas Moy purchased his first pieces of art for $25 each in 1982, original pages and covers can cost thousands today. Moy has sold a Jim Lee All Star Batman & Robin cover for $25,000 and a Frank Frazetta painting for $95,000. Yes, these are prices paid for individual works.

The market has also become much more competitive for art dealers, and it’s harder for Moy to purchase collections. Collectors are able to sell their own stuff on the internet, and they are much more demanding as buyers. Many now want high-resolution color scans of artwork before making a purchase, and Moy has had to keep pace with the technology.

Still Moy stays ahead of the pack because of his passion for the hobby, his hard work and a keen business sense. Richard Delmando has known Moy since the early 1980s and helps Moy at shows such as Comic Con International in San Diego. Delmando says of Moy, “He’s really knowledgeable and he’s a savvy salesperson. He knows his comics and artists.”

Albert Moy’s brother Devyn Moy finds himself amazed at Albert’s business prowess. Devyn says, “At first I was like ‘Why do you do this?’ and ‘Who would pay money for this?’ These things were a lot of money. But I see that as time keeps going, he just collects, collects, collects. His collection keeps building. Even his wife didn’t understand it at first. She was like it’s a hobby, and he enjoys it so let him do it. But she knows now. She’s been helping him out at a couple of conventions, and she sees what’s going on. I mean I think she’s understanding more of it, and I think she appreciates it more now.”

Because he’s well known in the art collecting community, people ask Albert Moy to predict which artists he thinks will be hot in terms of money value. Moy advises against this type of thinking. He says, “If that’s your first thought, don’t even bother. This hobby is more about your passion for the item. If it’s just about the money, there’s no enjoyment in it. So I always tell people to buy what you love because no matter what, you love the piece, and if you love it, it’s priceless.”