A Superman trick-or-treating bucket sits on the bar, brought into focus as the bartender flicks on the tribal mask lamp on the alcohol display behind it. It is 8 o’clock on a Wednesday night at Eastside Tavern, and the place is deserted, save for a few employees. A sense of the usual crowd isn’t hard to get, though. Posters adorn the walls, advertising comic books, Star Trek memorabilia and various other geek paraphernalia.

Skip Harvey, the bartender and a self-proclaimed “third-generation geek,” is right at home. Knowing the crowd will not arrive for another hour or two, Harvey takes a break from his bartending to discuss an incredibly hot topic both in Columbia and the world of geeks at the moment — himself.

Morgan Spurlock’s recent documentary, “Comic-Con Episode Four: A Fan’s Hope,” focusing on the comic convention hosted in San Diego every year, featured Harvey at his most vulnerable. A comic geek to the core, Harvey traveled to the convention hoping to advance toward his goal of becoming a comic book writer. It didn’t turn out quite as he’d hoped, but it was beneficial all the same.

Harvey said his favorite moment as a geek happened during his first visit to Comic-Con. When he walked in the first time, he looked at the empty baseball stadium across the street and compared it to the thousands of people at the convention.

“I remember thinking, ‘We won,’” he says. “The people that used to beat us up in high school or junior high won’t even leave the house because we’ve totally won.”

Because of Spurlock’s commentary, Harvey is now receiving some attention in the comic world.

“I’ve run into a lot of people who didn’t know I did this,” Harvey says, referring to encounters he has had in Columbia since the publication of the documentary.

The attention isn’t just in his hometown either. Recently, in an Austin, Texas comic book store, New York comedian Demetri Martin approached Harvey to say hey.

“I was shocked when he came up to me,” says Harvey, who studied at MU. “Although there’s a pretty good chance he mistook me for someone else.”

Harvey tugs at his True/False Film Fest T-shirt, lost in speculation of whether he can fairly suspect the famous comedian knew who he was. But regardless of the newfound attention, Harvey’s daily life must go on.

“I eat, sleep and breathe geek,” he says. “It’s what got me in the movie and keeps this ball rolling.”

Before leaving home in the mornings, he makes sure to collect his comics with him.

“I bring them everywhere I go,” he says, noting this is especially the case on Wednesdays, which is new comics day at a local comic book store. He and his friends continuously look forward to this event.

“It doesn’t matter if your power’s getting shut off, you’re a month and a half behind on rent or you’re eating Ramen noodles,” he says. “You’ll still come up with a way to get comics.”

After packing his satchel, Harvey runs errands (like returning Storm Trooper costumes) before heading to the KOMU-TV station, where he works in production. When the station is on air, Harvey is constantly on the floor, directing or making graphics. On commercial breaks, he catches up on comics.

“I used to get in trouble for that,” Harvey says. “But several of my bosses are comic geeks, and after the movie came out, they were like ‘OK, well, I guess we get it now.’”

After he ends work at the station, Harvey heads straight to Eastside Tavern, where he alternates as a bartender and a DJ, loving the sci-fi/horror/fantasy theme.

“(Eastside is) a dive bar with a specific identity,” Harvey says. “It’s comfortable and gives people a lot of opportunities. The owner, Sal Nuccio, considers himself an outcast. He takes chances on people.”

Harvey said this is great, because the weird guys usually end up being successful.

“You have to have passion about something to be successful,” he says.

During his shift at the bar, Harvey has time to interact with his fellow geeks. Once, they spent an hour and a half (that’s right, 90 minutes!) discussing their safety plan for a zombie apocalypse.

“Real geeks plan for any contingency because they know at any moment there could be a robot, alien or zombie invasion,” Harvey says. “Everybody’s got a plan.”

Harvey and his pals have a decisively well thought-out plan, too, which he is graciously letting everyone in on.

“We’re booking it to KOPN across the street,” he says.

The radio station has a fire escape that can be unbolted, and only one narrow flight of stairs.

“It would be so easy to keep zombies out,” he continues.

He even provides an answer for the question of food.

“There’s a Chinese restaurant next door, and we can get to it without going outside,” he says. “We’re ready for this.”

Zombie jokes aside, Harvey takes his status of a geek very seriously.

“My grandfather got off the boat a geek,” he says, diving into the family history, which has taken him to where he is today.

Harvey’s grandmothers were both artistic, and he attributes some of his personality to them. His father’s mother had the foresight to save her son’s comic books, knowing he would never truly outgrow his childhood passion.

She was absolutely correct. Harvey’s father met his mother while they were preparing for a geek convention.

“My mom was trying to play the Star Trek theme song on the piano,” Harvey says. “But she kept playing one note wrong. Everybody down there was probably getting really irritated, and finally my dad walked over and pounded on the right key. It was the beginning of their love/hate relationship.”

Harvey’s parents saw at least one Star Wars episode on _every single_ date, totaling 77 times. His mother says he was a geek from the point of conception.

“I hope I live up to the kind of geek my parents have been,” Harvey says. He is certainly on the right track.

Although Harvey might not have instantly become the stuff of comic book legends at Comic-Con, he hints at a local project in the makings. He says an anthology book of local artists and writers might be coming soon, but didn’t want to give out any more details. He did, however, say he wants to showcase people’s artistic talents.

“Working is what people do to pay the bills,” he says. “(Art) is the only thing that advances the human condition.”