Jim Drucker (born 1952 or 1953 (age 71–72))[1] is a former commissioner of the Continental Basketball Association, former commissioner of the Arena Football League, and founder and owner of NewKadia.com, the world's largest online-only comic-book seller.[2]

Jim Drucker
Born1952 or 1953 (age 71–72)
Brooklyn, New York City, U.S.
Alma mater
Known for
SpouseFran Drucker
FatherNorm Drucker

Biography

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Drucker was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Ukrainian parents and is Jewish.[1][3] His father, Norm Drucker, was a New York City public school teacher and principal, and then a long-time referee in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and American Basketball Association (ABA).[1][4][5][6]

Drucker grew up in East Meadow in Long Island, New York.[1][6][7] He attended SUNY Buffalo, obtaining a bachelor's degree in political science and communication, and then a law degree from Duke Law School.[7][1][6] He next taught at the Temple University School of Law.[6][1] He is married to Fran Drucker and now lives in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania.[7]

Drucker was commissioner of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), a precursor to the NBA G League, from 1978 to 1986; while in the position, he acquired additional coverage by offering the first-ever million dollar half-court shot.[1][5][6][8] He was ESPN's on-camera legal analyst from 1989-1994.[9][7]

He was commissioner of the Arena Football League (AFL) for three seasons, starting in 1994, [6][10][11] during which time, the league expanded from 11 to 18 teams.[6]

In 1999, with his own collection of 850 comic books, Drucker founded NewKadia.com, the world's largest online-only comic-book seller.[6][9][12] In 2017, it sold 250,000 comic books.[1][6]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Jesse Bernstein (May 8, 2019). "Jim Drucker’s Life Leads Him From Basketball to Comic Books," Jewish Exponent
  2. ^ "Comics store zones in on Internet success". 10 January 2012.
  3. ^ David McKibben (August 10, 1996). "Piranha Football--Call Them the Lord's Players". Los Angeles Times.
  4. ^ Smith, Sam (March 24, 1985). "CBA Boss Shows How to Score with Fans". Chicago Tribune.
  5. ^ a b Rosen, Charley (2011). Crazy Basketball: A Life in and Out of Bounds. U of Nebraska Press. ISBN 978-0803217935 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Michael Bradley (July 2019). "Meet Norristown's Unlikely Comic Book Mogul; Jim Drucker is the owner of NewKadia Comics, the world's largest online-only comic book retailer". Main Line Today.
  7. ^ a b c d Mastrull, Diane (February 22, 2015). "An online comic dealer with a superpowered sales platform". Philadelphia Inquirer.
  8. ^ "The Sporting News; Volume 193". Sporting News Publishing Company. January 23, 1982 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ a b "World's Largest Comic Book Store - NewKadia.com - Welcomes Shopper #15,000,000 on July 31". Newswire.
  10. ^ Television Guide; Volume 42. Triangle Publications. January 23, 1994 – via Google Books.
  11. ^ Cable Television Programming; Issues 186-212. Paul Kagan Associates. January 23, 1993 – via Google Books.
  12. ^ Puleo, Gary (January 10, 2012). "Comics store zones in on Internet success". The Times Herald. Archived from the original on March 17, 2021. Retrieved January 23, 2020.