fiendish

NOICE! Who's that cover artist?

+1

Gratz!

There were Marvels distributed by Whitman in 3 packs. They are most commonly referred to as Whitmans, but this is controversial as some people insist they were direct versions available at the early LCS. Whatever they are, the early books are very hard to find in high grade. I remember the Whitman three-to-a-bags being sold at Kmart and other mass retailers. The value proposition was that you were buying three comics for less than their total cover price. I think some enterprising LCS owners would buy these at Kmart, open them up and sell them for full cover (or in the case of Star Wars, marked up).

Rifleman #10: It's never not funny...

9.0. Slab that puppy.

Khaki Mosquito! I have all their albums...

That is a beauty!! They're gonna be mean to that cute doggie.

This is an awesome list. The one that jumps off the page for me is: You've got Jack Kirby (Jack Kirby!) going independent for a direct-only publisher. This set the tone for the 80s versus the 70s. The business changed, and as a result the content evolved. (In Jack's case, not always for the better.)

/agree with 3.5.

4.0-4.5, but we'd really need to see the back cover.

8.0-8.5

Sweet copy! Thanks for posting!

Cool thread, bro! Someone please post an FF 159. That classic Inhumans cover has got to be heating up lately! I had a Mead vinyl three-ring-binder in junior high school with that cover reprinted on it.

Sserpo?

Welcome, George!

We prefer winners in the US. The #1. My best understanding of Grant in a nutshell is #1 corrupt president & #1 drunken president. Not even close to #1 corrupt. Maybe in the top six. And less corrupt himself (like say, Nixon) than tolerant of or ignorant of corruption in his own administration (see: Reagan). His drinking days were mostly before the war. Drank less after. Of course, whiskey was harder to find then...

Just finished the memoirs of U.S. Grant, which was a bit of a slog. He's a witty writer when he wants to be, but so much of the civil war coverage is from his perspective, that is, in the rear with the gear. If you're looking for a first-person account of battles and such this ain't it. (His recounting of battle during the Mexican War is much more dramatic, as he was on the front lines for much of it.) Now reading The Great God Pan, cuz I like to change it up (while keeping it 19th Century).

A recurring theme ...all of them deeply creepy. *shudder*

I'm a new old member, in that I've been off the boards for over a decade. It's great to find that the community seems to be thriving and growing. Bob, in Los Angeles. I'm currently liquidating almost my entire collection on eBay, while keeping the best of the best condition for my first CGC submissions later in the Spring. I have collected GA Fawcett Cpt. Marvels, Silver superhero and almost anything bronze, including Marvel magazines. Bought too much overprinted stuff in the early 90s, but sadly, no NM 98 (that I can find yet, anyway... IRL I teach video games and have co-written a book on video game storytelling, which has obviously been informed from a lifetime of reading comics.

As a fan of the hobby it has to be tough at times separating personal story and character likes versus what is going to lead to sales afterwards. Totally agree. It's been very tough for me as well. I am not my customers. These two movie quotes help:

(these) CGC boards = fiendish eBay = choco_bob (not a purist; also selling video game residue)

I'm collecting DUST! I had to pack up everything when I moved to Long Beach in '04, so the whole collection is stacked in longboxes in our bedroom. I haven't cracked any of the boxes since then. My wife is very tolerant, but this year's project will be to convert volume to value. Fewer issues; higher value. This goes against everything I ever stood for, 'cuz I've always been a completist fool, but I don't have the time to manage the collection, and I want to enjoy it more, so I'm gonna get rid of all my [embarrassing lack of self control]: 1. stuff I bought on spec because I thought it would increase; rather than because I'd enjoy it 2. all my Image/Marvel stuff from the early 90s (at pennies on the pound) 3. complete (short) runs that I'll never read again. see you on eBay!

I was researching this "CGC" "slabbing" business a couple three years ago, and after a little poking around, found the CGC site, then these forums. I've been a way for quite a while but enjoyed the sense of community when I was actively reading and posting. I'll be better now. I promise.

I'm trolling used book stores for non-Tarzan Edgar Rice Burroughs paperbacks; the older, the better. I'm about halfway to a complete set. Also out-of-print PlayStation RPGs, like "Valkyrie Profile," which is REALLY HARD TO FIND for less than $50.