Military Emporium - My First Game Store
Military Emporium (which later became known as Model Emporium) in El Cajon, California was my first game store. It was located across the street from Parkway Plaza. I would ride my 10-speed Nishiki bike down there on the weekends and during summer vacation as often as I could.
Greg was the shop proprietor and he ruled his domain with a surly and disdainful fist. I remember being very afraid when I first went there to purchase my Ral Parthra Dungeons & Dragons figures and dice. My friend Bill told me not to touch anything... or I would be yelled at. I was to only state the code of the figure that I wanted and it would reluctantly be given to me in exchange for my money. Even under such a tense environment, I was immediately taken with the shop.
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| Traveller miniatures purchased at Military Emporium circa 1981(-ish) |
Greg was the shop proprietor and he ruled his domain with a surly and disdainful fist. I remember being very afraid when I first went there to purchase my Ral Parthra Dungeons & Dragons figures and dice. My friend Bill told me not to touch anything... or I would be yelled at. I was to only state the code of the figure that I wanted and it would reluctantly be given to me in exchange for my money. Even under such a tense environment, I was immediately taken with the shop.
The store was an alluring mix of games, dice, miniatures, models, wargames, role-playing games, paints, brushes, historical posters, books, flags, a few bits of fusty surplus, a mannequin with a WW2 uniform on it, and military band march music which filled the air. The fantasy RPG paraphernalia was viewed with scorn as a necessary evil to get the bills paid.
As I grew up Greg's and my relationship evolved, thank goodness. He still made fun of my fantasy games, and I made fun of his pink Seven Years War Prussians. When I was old enough I helped out around the store during a few of the busy Christmas seasons.
After college I drifted away from gaming. I would still stop by the store from time to time to say hello to Greg. We'd chat for a bit and I'd get the latest news from the shop (and the length of my friend Martin's mohawk). But one cheerless, cloudy day I went to visit the store... and it was gone.
Little did I know that my passion for games and wargaming would reignite and I'd still be playing with miniatures decades later... and that I'd love historical wargaming so much. Oftentimes when I play I think back to my time spent at Military Emporium and of Greg making fun of us from his perch behind the counter. I'll bet that he'd be pleased to see the direction that my interests have taken.
So... here's to you, Greg, and your amazing, wonderful store: Military Emporium!
p.s. - Eternal gratitude and bragging rights are for anyone who can identify those figures up there. They are about 10mm big as I recall. Let me know in the comments section. Thanks!
p.s. - Eternal gratitude and bragging rights are for anyone who can identify those figures up there. They are about 10mm big as I recall. Let me know in the comments section. Thanks!
I fondly remember visiting Military Emporium back in high school during the 80s and "walking the gauntlet" under Greg's watchful glare. He had a great selection of British miniatures (Games Workshop) and Japanese anime model imports. Back then, my ideal evening would involve a visit to ME followed by pizza and arcade games at the nearby Chuck E. Cheese.
ReplyDeleteAs for the miniatures pictured above, I believe they are 15mm Martian Metals Traveller Space Marines dating from the late 70s. I still have a couple of these Space Marines along with a few other Martian Metals sets from one of my all time favorite SF RPGs.
Ted - That's right! I totally forgot that I used to purchase Robotech/Macross plastic model kits from him... in addition to Crusher Joe cars, etc. Upon reflection, I think that I gave a lot of my money to that store. Ha ha!
DeleteAlso... thank you so much for identifying those miniatures! I just Googled your suggestion and you are 100% correct. They are, in fact, Martian Metals Traveller 2903 15mm Imperial Marines Miniatures.
Well done!
- Jeff
I bought a bunch of macross stuff and wargames , mostly Metagames microgames and a few GDW ones
ReplyDeleteHe was a huge Canadian Football fan iirc
That's right! He used to carry a lot of the Microgames. I purchased many of them from him: Lords of the Underearth, WarpWar, GEV, etc.
DeleteI had forgotten about his zeal for Canadian Football. What a character!
I miss Greg. And his store.
me too, I have soem wargames in teh basement that I bought from him actually and most of the microgames , they have moved from Santee, to Canada ! 17 addresses later !
DeleteThat's great! I still have my vintage games from that store as well. As a matter of fact, I still have my first miniatures that I purchased from his store!
DeleteHere it is: http://squadpainter.blogspot.com/2009/01/so-i-was-thinking-about-it-and-i.html
Hi SquadPainter. Fund this post after googling my first gaming shop. Spent years purchasing all manor of games and model kits from Greg and even worked for him for 3 years. Reading your post brought about many memories.
ReplyDeleteHi Nemoyy911. Yes, I gave him most of my yardwork money on a weekly basis. Ha ha!
DeleteBut what a store it was! It was unique. Eclectic. Smart. Mysterious. Here was a place far removed from the Milton Bradley offerings of the day. You had to think to enjoy these games. You had to read, build, and paint. In the summertime we rode our 10-speeds there in 90-100º weather to scoop up our treasures and scheme about what we were going to get next time. Straining back up Avocado Blvd in the oppressive heat was only made tolerable by whatever goody we had in our backpacks to open once we arrived home.
I bumped into Greg on eBay recently. What are the odds?? It was great to hear from him. ^_^
Thanks for your comment! I'm so pleased that people are sharing their experiences at Military/Model Emporium.
Jeff
Whats his ebay id?!!!
DeleteI loved this store. Bought Macross and other models there too!
ReplyDeleteYes! I purchased a number of Macross models from him as well. I didn't do a good job with them... they never looked quite as cool as the box. But my skills were never up to Hobby Japan level. I'd do a much better job now; there's so many more resources available today.
DeleteI recently attended Historicon and played in a SYW game. I know that would have put a smile on Greg's face!