"[6] Having left school to support his mother,[3] between 1964 and 1969, he undertook a number of "manual-labor jobs,"[5] while "dodging truant officers.

"[6] He "enrolled in vocational school," but did not feel challenged – later recalling that "I had missed 45 days at the half, and I was on the honor roll"[6] – and again dropped out.

[6] Later he worked for Lester White's Detecto Electronics "install[ing] burglar alarms and doorbells," before joining the U.S.

"[6] In the early seventies Geppi was a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses and conducted many free home bible studies.

"[6] After "setting up at comic book conventions as a part-time dealer," he ultimately realised that he could make more money that way than at his job with the postal services.

"[6] Geppi recalls that his colleagues "all laughed their heads off,"[6] while The Journal of Antiques and Collectibles quoted him as saying: "I remember when I left the Post Office, some of the people there said, 'See you in September,' since they were so sure I'd be back,” he said.

"[4] Geppi "stocked his store with collections he found through the classifieds, traveling the countryside in his beat-up blue Ford van.

"[6] One of the "last loyal customers" when New Media began having fiscal difficulties, Geppi made a deal: "[t]he owner was going into retail," so Geppi agreed to provide Schuster with "free books for a period of time in return for his account list," buying parts of the company, and founding Diamond Comic Distribution.

[6] In June 1994, Success magazine featured Geppi on its cover, celebrating his "$250 Million Empire," and highlighting his co-ownership of the Baltimore Orioles.

[7] After Phil Seuling established the direct market c.1972, he maintained a virtual (if ill-run) monopoly on comics distribution until a lawsuit brought by New Media/Irjax in 1978.

[8] Irjax, "a paper distribution company formed by Hal Schuster... his father, Irwin, and his brother, Jack" achieved "a sizeable chunk of the direct-distribution market,"[8] but ultimately "filed for Chapter Seven bankruptcy in early 1982.

"[9] Described by Mile High Comics' Chuck Rozanski as "brilliant," Steve Geppi had been a subdistributor for Hal Schuster in the late 1970s.

"[9] Geppi himself, according to Mike Friedrich "was someone whose work you could trust, who had a good reputation for honesty in the field [as a collector, retailer and distributor].

"[10] Plant had, since 1970, been selling underground comics, a field which Geppi and fellow-distributor Buddy Saunders had tended to steer clear of.

[10] After making $19 million in sales in 1987, Geppi's Diamond bought West Coast distributor Plant's business[11] in 1988 "and went national"[6] thereby assuming control of "40 percent of the direct-sales market.

[12] Diamond reacted by outbidding Capital City for exclusive deals with Marvel's main rivals DC Comics, as well as Dark Horse and Image.

Capital City's response saw it sign exclusive deals with Kitchen Sink Press and Viz Comics, but a year later faced the choice between bankruptcy and selling up.

[12] When Marvel's Heroes World endeavour failed, Diamond also forged an exclusive deal with Marvel – giving the company its own section of comics catalog Previews (not least because the DC/Dark Horse/Image deal gave contractual prominence to those companies) – making "Geppi... the sole king of comics industry distribution in the summer of 1996.

"[9] In 1983, Geppi was criticised for taking exception to certain adult-themed titles and scenes, effectively causing the cancellation of a series called "Void Indigo" for its excessive violence.

[14] Geppi's galleries showcase much of his private collection, including comics, movie posters, toys, original artwork by individuals including "Carl Barks, Gustav Tengren (sic), Alex Ross, Murphy Anderson, Joe Shuster, Joe Simon and Charles Schulz.

Its collections included newspapers, magazines, comic books, movies, television, radio and video game memorabilia, including comic books, movie posters, toys, buttons, badges, cereal boxes, trading cards, dolls and figurines.

Cochran, like Geppi, was a particular fan of Carl Barks' Disney comics, and had previously-published EC reprints in association with Disney-reprinter Gladstone Publishing.

In early 2009, the future of Gemstone Publishing was unclear, after reports of unpaid printing bills, particularly from the EC Archives.

"[23] Geppi hinted at "new developments" for the Overstreet Price Guide in 2010, and stated that while "no final decision has been made regarding The EC Archives or our comic books featuring Disney's standard characters... it seems certain that both lines will continue in some form.

"[23] In February 1993, he was profiled for "a local business magazine," and the article ultimately caught the attention of Ernst & Young.

[6] Celebrating his win at the Camden Club, Geppi was introduced to "prominent local attorney" Peter Angelos, who had also "[grown] up in one of Baltimore's ethnic neighborhoods," and the two had mutual friends.

The group "paid $173 million for the team," and Geppi was "the third-largest investor" behind Angelos and novelist Tom Clancy.

"[3] As well as his business interests, Geppi holds – or has held – positions on the board of "a number of local charitable organizations."