Ant-Man

That Kirby print was part of a lot that just sold on Heritage yesterday. Nice pickup.

After the last Overstreet was published, I sent a correction e-mail to them for their various lists. You really can see the increase in non-standard comics as the ages progress. Bronze has a few price variants, but Copper is where things pick up. 2nd (or later) printings, along with Gold, Blue, Platinum, Exclusive editions. Modern is arguably a 50/50 split between the big demand/standard books and the variant cover, retailer incentive, initial print/recalled books. The presence of publishers outside of the Big Two is also on the increase as time moves on. Only three books in the Top 25 Bronze Age outside of DC or Marvel. In Copper, I believe DC and Marvel combine for six in the Top 25, Thanks to variants, I believe DC and Marvel are more of a 50/50 split with all other publishers in the Top 20 Modern. Based on those lists alone, the hobby has definitely gone through some changes.

I passed on all of those with the intent of checking back later, depending how the morning went (mostly for NTT 2). When I saw that it was gone, I thought I might see you post a photo of it today.

You are both correct. For what it's worth, I believe Night Nurse #1 is a Top 20 Bronze Marvel book these days.

Spider-Ham was also featured as a back-up in Marvel Tales from around #201 - #218 or 219. I believe these are new, but it's been a long time since I looked. Not hard to find in the wild, but as long as you brought it up ...

There is/was a thread in CG about the boards themselves being slower than usual. Maybe the shutterbugs don't post as much any more? Not here to stoke that debate. I thought there were plenty of Golden Age books in the room (not my area of collecting), but I cannot say if it's the same stock that was at C2E2. I don't travel to cons around the country, or frequent dealer websites. If I see the same book(s) twice a year, they are going to look new to me. There was plenty of Silver Age in the room. I can't afford the ultra-high grades, but I made a few mid-lower grade purchases (raw). Most of the slabs that I looked at were priced (at least) a GPA grade above the most recent sale, which is fine, but I was not a buyer. Key books in low grade slabs were not plentiful. I bought one slab all weekend. Lots of Bronze/Copper, on walls and in $0.50 - $5.00 boxes. Maybe not the independent publishers of the early Copper Age, but I did see some "underground" and "adult" boxes around the show. Saw quiet a few magazine boxes as well, but cannot comment on the contents. I can't keep up with Moderns and all of the variants, and I wouldn't know if a rare book fell into my lap. I needed three full days to check out every dealer and decide what I was buying, and from whom. Day Four is reserved for walking the show with my daughter. We went to Artist Alley and I think I saw one lone artist working on a sketch, with maybe three recognizable comic book artists overall. Everyone else was selling prints or something other than comic art. This is a far cry from Alleys of yore. The 'vibe' was subdued in the main hall. Recent shows had more announcements over the loud speaker for photo opportunities and loud music blaring from some steampunk clothing vendor. If that's the vibe that people think is missing, I'm ok with subdued. I feel fortunate that Chicago is currently supporting two major shows, and hope that it continues to do so. Many factors will play into that decision, and I will ride the wave wherever it takes me.

The video game area, the "merchandise" hall & the lobby were very crowded. Plenty of room if you want to look at comics.

Free candy with every purchase?

Metal Men

This year, I overheard a woman trying to buy a single $1 book with a credit card. The seller would/could not (don't remember), but she was quick to note that she didn't have any cash. I suppose you could get away with not having cash at a convention, but not if your buying $1 items, one at a time.

Has anyone ever submitted a mini-comic for onsite grading? I know the larger magazines are not done onsite, but I'm not sure about the smaller books that require a special well to fit in the standard case.

I think letter pages were more prevalent when people actually read the comics.

Fangoria Print Magazine to Return at Halloween Fangoria was a very popular horror publication during the ’80s and ’90s, featuring content on contemporary horror movies and directors, plus pinup posters of the scary villains like Freddy. The publication switched to website-based content, but now it’s coming back to print. In 1979 Fangoria began as a fantasy film magazine known as Fantastica. But the fantasy publication was unsuccessful and needed revamping to continue. In the first issue an article about special makeup artist Tom Savini and his work on Dawn of the Dead was a favored piece. Based on that feedback, editor Robert “Uncle Bob” Martin reshaped the magazine as Fangoria (nicknamed Fango by readers) to provide news on horror cinema, mainly current projects. As the 1980s cranked out successful horror franchises and virtually un-killable villains, Fango had an endless supply of material. Building on that success, Fangoria started hosting horror cons, created awards and a hall of fame, a website was developed, and some “best of” special editions and licensed tie-in magazines for individual films were printed. The magazine company has also produced some movies and distributed foreign and indie films. In more recent times the magazine covers both current projects and horror history. The return to print will be a quarterly publication with the first issue publishing at Halloween time. This news came after Cinestate finished a deal to acquire all assets and trademarks for Fangoria from the Brooklyn Company. Cinestate CEO Dallas Sonnier hired writer-producer Phil Nobile Jr. to serve as editor in chief and creative director. “There needs to be a Fangoria,” said Nobile. “The magazine was a constant presence in the genre since 1979 – and then one day it was gone. That felt, to us, tragically incorrect. Fango was, for multiple generations, a privileged window into the world of horror. It gave us access to filmmakers’ processes and secrets, opened our eyes to movies we might have otherwise missed, and nurtured a wave of talent that’s out there driving the genre today. I’m proud and excited to be part of the team that’s bringing this institution back.” Cinestate now controls all material from the over 300 issues of Fangoria, the material of which is now moving to their offices. Cinestate will also develop Fangoria further with movie, podcast, and horror novel projects.

Not sure if the OP was looking for a more technical definition, but if we look at Overstreet grading definitions ... 2.0 Good (GD) ... "is often considered a reading copy". I don't think you can have missing panels, coupons or Marvel Value Stamps and still be a 2.0. The water wrinkle/crinkle probably throws you into the 4.0 Very Good (VG) grade. Even then, you are allowed minor soiling (if you equate soiling with water wrinkle/crinkle). That stops being allowed at a 5.0 Very Good/Fine (VG/F).

There is a list of 73 sellers that are accepting the coupon, but I don't think any of them sell comics.

My only mag purchase from WW Chicago, courtesy of Mark Scott.

Wait until they launch the 72 continuous-hour schedule, 4pm Thurs - 4pm Sun. If they don't already have a booth, Red Bull would certainly be interested.

Any boardies purchase a one-day pass through Groupon? Tickets were supposed to be mailed by 8/10, but I'm still waiting.

Stories, Layouts & Press, Inc. out of New York. Publishers of such titles as Star Warp, GASM Magazine and Welcome Back Beatles.

I thought this one was kind of cool. The World of Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine, 1977. 100 pages of stories and history, with a few glossy pages scattered throughout the mag.

Verily, thou dost speakith the truth.

I bought this same rack pack (to borrow from the trading card hobby) a decade(?) ago. No particular reason, just thought it was cool. Knowing my thrifty habits, I doubt I paid north of $20-something. Doesn't mean you can't aim higher.

This title does not seem to get as much love as the other Warren titles. Since it only lasted 14 issues, I'm guessing that the sales reflected the same. This is the final issue.

JCP Features (one-shot). While I definitely associate Archie with the smaller, digest-sized publications, I never think of them when it comes to magazines.

WGN was out there Saturday morning during setup. Saw an interview with James O'Barr, the organizer, etc.. Did any boardies make it onto the small screen? I had never even heard of this town before the thread was started. Hope it's a positive experience for everyone.