Director is drawn to comics business

Kevin Smith is not only the irreverent actor, writer, director and producer of such indie hits as “Clerks” and “Chasing Amy,” he’s also an entrepreneur. A few years back he opened a successful comic book store, Jay and Silent Bob’s Secret Stash Comic Emporium, in Red Bank, N.J., and he recently unveiled the West Coast version in Westwood.

“It’s an evolved comic book store,” says co-owner Bob Chapman, who operates Graffiti Designs, an Orange County-based company that produces merchandise based on Smith’s movies -- T-shirts, toys, even the Buddy Christ figure from “Dogma.”

A comic book thread runs through Smith’s films. In “Chasing Amy,” two comic book authors find success with their Bluntman and Chronic comic book based on their stoner friends Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith.) And in “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back,” the two travel from New Jersey to Hollywood when they learn a studio is basing a movie on the comic book.

“The store on the East Coast is primarily comics,” says Chapman. “With this one, we realize we are in Westwood and we realize we need to cater to a wider audience.” Thus, beyond comics, the store carries such merchandise as “inaction figures,” which Chapman describes as “basically cartoon renditions of characters from Kevin’s movies.”

The 2,200-square-foot store also features a little Smith mini-museum of props and other items from his movies.

Smith, says Chapman, has been popping into the store “more than I would expect.” And if fans happen to miss one of Smith’s visits, there’s a good chance they’ll catch Mewes, who is on the store’s payroll.

“He is a big comic book fan and he works there,” says Chapman. “He used to work in Red Bank. He’s there talking to people and unloading things. That’s kind of cool.”