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Mile High Collection

Started by groovetuber,

59 posts in this topic

heinlein99

heinlein99

Posted
Posted

It's been a while since I read the story - and it's a perfectly interesting tale - but from what I recall, Chuck had to raise cash FAST to cover expenses, make it to the next show, keep his business going, etc. (I'm going by his version of the tale, so make of that what you will). So he apparently called up some of his big-collector buddies and let them take certain choice issues, and they didn't pay extravagant prices for them.

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Dark Knight

Dark Knight

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The thing that cracks me up is that Chuck WASN'T even the first person called.

 

The first guy who was called (I guess from what I read) didn't even want to go look at them.

 

Dang, sucks that the first person passed on viewing the collection. He must've been kicking himself daily ever since he passed on the viewing

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ComicSupply

ComicSupply

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The thing that cracks me up is that Chuck WASN'T even the first person called.

 

The first guy who was called (I guess from what I read) didn't even want to go look at them.

 

Dang, sucks that the first person passed on viewing the collection. He must've been kicking himself daily ever since he passed on the viewing

 

That is, if he ever knew that he passed on it. I guess what you don't know won't hurt you. I am sure if he did know, it would hurt just a million.

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adamstrange

adamstrange

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Posted
It's been a while since I read the story - and it's a perfectly interesting tale - but from what I recall, Chuck had to raise cash FAST to cover expenses, make it to the next show, keep his business going, etc. (I'm going by his version of the tale, so make of that what you will). So he apparently called up some of his big-collector buddies and let them take certain choice issues, and they didn't pay extravagant prices for them.

 

The initial buyers all paid "record" prices but the books were so good that they were still able to find buyers at even higher prices. Those "record" prices would look pretty darn sweet to any of us looking at today's prices.

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joe_collector

joe_collector

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How could Chuck have made millions if he let people cherry pick the collection at bargain basement prices? If that's the case, then maybe Chuck isn't the ogre he is made out to be. He found an incredible collection and bought it for cheap and he passed the best stuff on to other dealers for rock bottom prices. Doesn't sound like Chuck maximized his profit.

 

lol, the only reason Chuck did that was because he was destitute and needed "investors" to pay off the original 9-cents per book sale price. So rather than lose the books, he made a deal.

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Old Fashion PB and J

Old Fashion PB and J

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That guys lucky. Ive spoken with him a few times the past 3 months. He keeps coming to NJ. Hes a nice guy, positive to speak with and loves his job. I dont buy comics from his store, and I didnt sell him my books. I have nothing negative on the guy, im sure he may have a bit of an ego but hell he has a great job and a solid business. I wish I could travel the US going to comic shows and buying comics the rest of my life.

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VintageComics

VintageComics

Posted
Posted
How could Chuck have made millions if he let people cherry pick the collection at bargain basement prices? If that's the case, then maybe Chuck isn't the ogre he is made out to be. He found an incredible collection and bought it for cheap and he passed the best stuff on to other dealers for rock bottom prices. Doesn't sound like Chuck maximized his profit.

 

lol, the only reason Chuck did that was because he was destitute and needed "investors" to pay off the original 9-cents per book sale price. So rather than lose the books, he made a deal.

 

Yup. I think he would buy a few hundred or thousand books, sell them off and then come back and buy a few more. Imagine piling thousands of books into a car or van without the storage capabilities that we have today.

 

R.

 

 

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Guardian Comics

Guardian Comics

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Roy: He had to take them all in two trips. The real miracle here is that the books were mostly loaded in the back of the van, without bags, boards, and even boxes (he didn't bring nearly enough) and just piled loosely from floor to ceiling in piles. Can you imagine the books shifting when taking a turn? It's amazing so many survived in top condition, but now you know why some of them are 7.0's :)

 

And yes Chuck couldn't even raise the initial investment without selling off some books from his first trip beofre he could return and pay in full. The 2nd trip is when he got the good stuff and had to sweat it out for a week before he could return again, knowing that he had left without the Action's, Tec's, All Americans and Timely's.

 

Jim

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binarysunrise

binarysunrise

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Roy: He had to take them all in two trips. The real miracle here is that the books were mostly loaded in the back of the van, without bags, boards, and even boxes (he didn't bring nearly enough) and just piled loosely from floor to ceiling in piles. Can you imagine the books shifting when taking a turn? It's amazing so many survived in top condition, but now you know why some of them are 7.0's :)

 

And yes Chuck couldn't even raise the initial investment without selling off some books from his first trip beofre he could return and pay in full. The 2nd trip is when he got the good stuff and had to sweat it out for a week before he could return again, knowing that he had left without the Action's, Tec's, All Americans and Timely's.

 

Jim

 

Why'd he leave those behind in the first place? Clearly the sellers didn't know squat about comics....

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heinlein99

heinlein99

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Roy: He had to take them all in two trips. The real miracle here is that the books were mostly loaded in the back of the van, without bags, boards, and even boxes (he didn't bring nearly enough) and just piled loosely from floor to ceiling in piles. Can you imagine the books shifting when taking a turn? It's amazing so many survived in top condition, but now you know why some of them are 7.0's :)

 

And yes Chuck couldn't even raise the initial investment without selling off some books from his first trip beofre he could return and pay in full. The 2nd trip is when he got the good stuff and had to sweat it out for a week before he could return again, knowing that he had left without the Action's, Tec's, All Americans and Timely's.

 

Jim

 

Why'd he leave those behind in the first place? Clearly the sellers didn't know squat about comics....

 

The Church heirs weren't going to be back in the house til the next weekend. And they apparently kept showing him more and more stuff after the initial roomful of comics, so he didn't know he wasn't packing up the best stuff on the first day.

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ft88

ft88

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Plus his multiples were in the 1.5 to 2x range and he was getting ostracized for that. Funny how we place today's values on yesterdays market.

 

Anyone coulda bought microsoft stock in the 70's and become a billionaire.

 

I don't care what he paid for them, at least he recovered them from owners who were about to throw them away and probably threw away boxes of Dells, pulps, and other books that mysteriously weren't part of this collection.

 

I don't feel sorry for the guy nor think he's a hero but luck is where preparation meets opportunity.

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