When Kurt Loyd grew up in Hood River, he loved comics and the community they brought. He remembers picking up a “Little Archie” comic after school and reading it on the way home. His friends loved comics, and they bonded by talking about their favorite ones. When he was a teenager, his family moved to Texas. In Dallas, he found a new community around comics. He and his friends would ride their bikes to comic stores and conventions. The conventions Kurt attended in the 1970s were focused specifically on comics, usually in hotel ballrooms, with table after table of comics to page through. There were often comic writers and artists there, but none of the peripherals that have become staples of contemporary fan conventions. When Kurt was 18, he left Texas and didn’t take his comic collection with him, though he always planned to send for it.
Finding His Voice Through Radio
During his teenage years in Dallas, Kurt got involved in radio. He had a friend who was working at a community radio station, and the music director needed a part-time assistant. Kurt was hired, and he quickly realized that radio was where he belonged. “Radio taught me to communicate,” Kurt shares.
He learned so many skills that served him well throughout his life from radio. His initial job was to file records, catalog what played, and generally do whatever tasks the music director needed. After a short time, he was asked to do a brief on-air segment. “I never wanted to do anything else,” he said. For the 20 years he spent in radio, most of that was on-air and in production. He learned to see a big project in pieces so that he could break it down into smaller tasks, delegate, and get it done.
In the late 1990s, radio stations were deregulated, and the radio world completely changed. Kurt ended up transitioning to start-ups, typically working on the UX (user experience) side. But the start-ups ended up being a bubble, and that didn’t last long. Kurt ended up starting a production company in Milwaukie specifically for low-income producers, so that almost anyone could come in and use the studio. It was at that time that Kurt was making the cult-classic short TV show “Super Atomic TV” using shorts from midcentury advertisements and informational films that were edited together in humorous ways.
Building Boss Kitty and Returning to Comics
Kurt’s next work adventure was with his wife, Simi. A friend of the family had a yarn dyeing business, and Simi tried it. She ended up having a gift for it. Initially, she made Christmas gifts, and then they decided to put a few hundred dollars into it and share a table at a yarn show with another vendor. It did really well, and they continued that pattern – putting some money in, doing a show, and then reinvesting it.
Simi and Kurt Lloyd ended up starting a yarn business called Boss Kitty Hand-Dyed Yarns and Fibers. One of the hallmarks of the brand is the video and livestreams created by Simi, “Boss Kitty,” and produced by Kurt. During COVID, they had to pivot when yarn and fiber fairs stopped. So, they bought some webcams and a video camera, and Kurt was able to easily set up a studio to put content online. “Boss Kitty” videos and livestreams became very popular during the pandemic and helped the business grow. They have expanded into some subscription services, and Simi continues to make incredibly beautiful multicolored yarn.
Creating Comics Community in Salem
Since starting Boss Kitty, Kurt has also made his way back to comics. Simi worked at Dark Horse Comics, an important Portland indie comics publisher. Kurt started meeting people in the comics community, going to comics conventions in Portland run by a friend, and decided that he wanted to work to serve everyone who loves comics. He decided to try running a comic swap in Salem, a city that didn’t have any comics events at the time.
Capital City Comic Swap is the result of Kurt’s work to bring a 1970s-style comic book show back. With help and support from the folks at Mid-Valley Comic Art Expo and Omega Frog Comics, Kurt was able to put together the first event in May 2025. It went extremely well, and August 22, 2026, will be the third iteration of the comic swap. Kurt has found this outlet for the comics community to be endlessly fulfilling.
“There’s an importance to this community,” he said. “They have so much emotional resonance to them that transcends generations.” He really enjoys seeing all the multigenerational family groups that come and spend hours poring through the comics. Kurt also likes that the comics event is “quieter and more focused on the books than other conventions.” Kurt has followed a lot of different paths in his life, but he’s currently happy with the work he does on behalf of the comics community, so be sure to come out and check out a Salem comic swap in the future!
