Gareb Shamus


Gareb Shamus is the founder and former chairman and CEO of Wizard Entertainment and the co-founder and CEO of ACE Comic Con. He was the publisher of ; InQuest Gamer: The Gaming Magazine; ToyFare: The Toy Magazine; Anime Insider; FunFare; "In" Power, a kids entertainment magazine; Wizard Specials; Toy Wishes, a holiday toy shopping guide; Bean Power, a Beanie Babies magazine; and Sportslook, a sports card magazine. He also co-founded and served as CEO of International Fight League Inc.. He produced several televised MMA fights with partners Fox Sports Networks and MyNetworkTV. He is the owner of The Pivot Gallery in New York City and an exhibited artist in America and Europe.

Early life and education

Gareb is the second oldest of three brothers, Ilan, Kenny and Stephen Shamus. As a child, he collected comic books and sports cards. His early loves were Spider-Man, Batman, and Mad magazine. As a teenager, he gravitated to more mature comics created by artists like Todd McFarlane and Frank Miller. Shamus studied economics at the University at Albany, SUNY and graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and a minor in art in 1990.

Wizard Entertainment

In the 1980s, Shamus' parents opened a sports card and comic book store in Nanuet, New York, where Shamus worked. When he graduated from college, he started comic book newsletter, , for the store’s customers. It became so popular that in 1991 he turned it into a monthly magazine. After only one year, Wizard went worldwide, published in over fifty countries and in multiple languages, and Shamus became a celebrity in the comic book world. Over the next few years he launched more magazines covering toys, games, animation and everything “superhero”.
As Wizard Entertainment, Shamus bought the Chicago Comicon in 1997, and expanded its scope and boosted attendance from a few thousand to 25,000 the following year. There are 21 Wizard World comic conventions and pop-culture conventions in the United States.

Painter

Shamus is an emerging contemporary painter. He resides in the West Village.

Selected exhibitions