Gus'? Action 1 on eBay....

[Point Five]

On Mar-28-08 at 06:18:39 PDT, seller added the following information:

 

Interior pages are OFF-WHITE and SUPPLE WE WILL BE POSTING MANY INTERIOR PAGES at the request of our good friend Mr.Meyer

 

[comicdonna]

What's his user id on the boards?

[Silver Surfer]

$150k? Every page taped?

 

yeah....you may be right.....sounded good when I typed it at 5 am, before I had my coffee

1st post downgraded to $100k

 

Won't happen, only by shilling up to the reserve will we see this type of price. Who's going to drop that kind of coin given the fact that this copy is raw and the pattern of listing issues SA has displayed. I don't think there are too many collectors who buy $100,000 books who are not aware of what is said on the GA boards. The cropped right edge on the scan is BS.

[Point Five]

(from Harry's post in General...)

and would that copy grade out as a VG with tape on EVERY page??

 

i refuse to believe that anyone selling that book wouldn't get it graded to verify the grade and lack of resto.....what a crapshoot. but it certainly looks nice in any event..........

 

Very good points. With the "tape on every page" reference, it sounds like the spine and pages were either partially or completely split?

 

I don't think there's a chance this would slab out at a 4.0, let alone a 4.5.

[G.A.tor]

hopefully bluechip will chime in with the condition and what has and hasn't been done to the copy

[showcase4]

...just sent to me by email from Greg Jortner ( Gus' partner ). 2 books from the "Oregon Batman" collection. He wanted you guys on the Boards to see the quality of the books, as apparently some negative comments were made here previously.....

( I have a good rapport with Greg....never spoke to Gus / never want to really )

 

This further shows the influence of these Boards, as non-members are effected by what we say here, and how we say it

[jkrk]

(from Harry's post in General...)

and would that copy grade out as a VG with tape on EVERY page??

 

i refuse to believe that anyone selling that book wouldn't get it graded to verify the grade and lack of resto.....what a crapshoot. but it certainly looks nice in any event..........

 

Very good points. With the "tape on every page" reference, it sounds like the spine and pages were either partially or completely split?

 

I don't think there's a chance this would slab out at a 4.0, let alone a 4.5.

 

Anybody remember when Neatstuff offered Action 1-10 awhile back? Is it the same offering?

 

I always thought they had the consignment from a board member.

 

 

[G.A.tor]

the only negative comments I have read seem to be backed up with history to those comments

also, steve, ask him why they don't send those high grade books to cgc, surely that would bolster consumer confidence in the grade, and realize much higher prices relative to raw? I "assume" they did pick some of the nicer ones to send, and you see the grades (6.0 and 7.0, etc)... just curious

[G.A.tor]

(from Harry's post in General...)

and would that copy grade out as a VG with tape on EVERY page??

 

i refuse to believe that anyone selling that book wouldn't get it graded to verify the grade and lack of resto.....what a crapshoot. but it certainly looks nice in any event..........

 

Very good points. With the "tape on every page" reference, it sounds like the spine and pages were either partially or completely split?

 

I don't think there's a chance this would slab out at a 4.0, let alone a 4.5.

 

Anybody remember when Neatstuff offered Action 1-10 awhile back? Is it the same offering?

 

I always thought they had the consignment from a board member.

 

I don't recall that auction, but I do know that this action 1 was at neatstuff's booth in 2006, but it is owned by bluechip (to the best of my knowledge)

[nearmint]

Nice spines and color. Why not put those high quality images in the auctions? And why not add back cover scans? If these books are as nice as they describe, why not show them off with multiple quality scans. They'd make a hell of a lot more $$ on them. That Bat 55 has the potential to be a 5K book. Instead they get $2380.

 

 

[G.A.tor]

Nice spines and color. Why not put those high quality images in the auctions? And why not add back cover scans? If these books are as nice as they describe, why not show them off with multiple quality scans. They'd make a hell of a lot more $$ on them. That Bat 55 has the potential to be a 5K book. Instead they get $2380.

 

jeff, you know the answer to that question already

[nearmint]

Nice spines and color. Why not put those high quality images in the auctions? And why not add back cover scans? If these books are as nice as they describe, why not show them off with multiple quality scans. They'd make a hell of a lot more $$ on them. That Bat 55 has the potential to be a 5K book. Instead they get $2380.

 

jeff, you know the answer to that question already

 

[bluechip]

Got an email from Rick as I awoke and figured I would reply here. I knew people here would recognize the book, and was hoping for some reasoned dialogue on it.

 

As Steve points out, people outside this board are affected by what you say, and how you say it. And one of the most common things I've heard on this board is how many books that all but unknown to the public can still be worth mid-five figures or even six figures.

 

And, if I agree with you on that, as I do, I must say that in that context, yes, an action 1 in this condition can be worth six figures. Key words there "in that context." A reform school girl in nice shape can worth five figures, you say, okay, I'll agree. But cannot agree that an action 1 in sold shape can only be worth a few times as much. I KNOW that some people here would like very much for it to be that way.

 

After all, why wouldn't you want to be able to get an action 1 by flipping three esoteric books or slabbing a small stack of common silver age?

 

But I just don't see that being the case, that all buyers everywhere can be dissuaded they should stay away from the very few action 1s that come up for sale because it's not priced at a mere three times the value of a copy of reform school girl, or less than a 7.0 copy of Amazing fantasy 15

 

("Better grab it now because God knows when a similar copy of AF 15 will come along.... " "Oh.")

 

That said, if you want to slam each and every copy of action 1 that comes along in hopes that it will never increase, while only the books you want to sell do increase, I guess that's your right. I would appreciate it, of course, if people didn't slam the things I try to sell, because I love these books as much as you and hate to think of parting with them and, sometimes, if I'm selling, I have a good reason.

 

As for the pictures of the book, neither me nor Greg are trying to scam anyone by cropping out the right side. This was simply scanned on a scanner and that's how the scan came out. Period.

 

Additional pictures will show the book, absolutely, looks exactly as it is. There is nothing remotely hidden. It looks appealing all by itself. Nobody has helped this book or done anything that "enhances" its appearance in any way.

 

In fact, because of the sometimes venal attacks on tear seals, archival tape was used, and that does not look as good as it would if there were tear seals, istead. For those of you who follow up to look at the pictures, you'll see the archive tape is all the more obvious because he didn't use a color that matches the paper. Which means absolute zero chance that anyone would be deceived that it didn't have some tears. But my feeling is the tears inside, away from the art, do not detract from the value in any way close to how it does when those tears and missing pieces are on the cover and in the art.

 

As for the cover, because of the attacks on "color touch," I had Matt Nelson remove a dot of white out from the spine, as well as most of a felt marker spot at the top. I did that even despite the fact those dots had never done ANYTHING to improve the book. The person who sold it to me years ago did NOT use the word restoration, and guess what? I did not think, and do not think now, that he should've had to. I was then, as now, a grown-up boy smart enough to look at the cover and see what it was and what it wasn't.

 

Even though I think it's completely irrational to treat marks like that as color touch, I had Matt remove them. And guess what? The process of removing them made the book look less appealing than it was before. In the view of the anti-color touchers, it has been improved by the removal of the offensive marks. But to me, and to the unaffected eye, it doesn't. I really hate to damage books, but because of the mania, I was put in a position where I was better off damaging the book. Because of the forceful dialogue out out there which says, with a book such as this, it is better to CUT AWAY a corner with marker touch than to leave the corner intact.

 

Honestly, I had to shake my head a bit when people opined that the essentially unappealing, even ugly, Action 1 graded 2.0 -- with all its dirt and staining and numerous tiny pieces missing from the cover -- would have actually been worth less if those pieces were not missing, but instead, one or two of the missing pieces had tiny dots of color touch. ("Less!") That is textbook counter-intuitive, and I just don't see the larger population out there buying into that long-term.

 

I would personally prefer a book that has some small pieces missing via tears on the inside pages than to have a book with pieces missing from the cover in a way that it looks unappealing.

 

Anyway, I consigned these with Greg because I just don't have the time to field all the inquiries, and it appears that he has more ongoing contacts than I do with people here and abroad who are looking for these things. I took the time here because I am on this board from time to time and I know and respect many of you, even when I sometimes think you're being a teensy bit insane.

 

Bottom line, I'll say that if it were just you guys getting what you want, I'd be happy to see everybody who wants an Action 1 to be able to get one by selling off a handful of esoteric books, or a small stack of common silver age. Hell, I have some of that stuff myself. But I haven't tried to exploit them in part because I just don't see that paradigm being a very strong one, at least not long-term, and I worry investments along those lines could turn sour in a fast and furious way. Many if not most well-financed collectors enter the hobby expecting to get one or both, and there's only so many of those who are gonna be convinced they are better off forgetting about the two biggest books and collecting something entirely different. So I just don't think one can count on or realistically hope that Action 1s or Detective 27s will be obtainable for as much as a handful of slabbed "Reform schools girls." If you've pulled that off in the past, then you've been lucky. But things like that will, in my view, increasingly be an anomaly. I'm not saying copies of "Reform school girl" will be worthless. But logic simply dictates that if any copy of that book is worth 10K or more, than any solid copy of action 1 is intrinsically worth at least ten times as much.

 

Didn't mean to get windy. But right now I am too busy and too tired to proof or cut this down. Hope this helps. Take care. And please, when you speak of this, and I know you will.. be kind.

 

Free (but beat to hell) 1940s action to the first person who IDs that reference.

[showcase4]

Hey blue....when I 1st started this thread, I had some not so nice things to say about the listing, which have since been deleted.......they were deleted because when I saw the listing, I did not know it was your book....had no idea. My negative comments were towards Gus and the listing itself....not the Action 1 ( AKA - Grail ).

So my point is, if you read my original post ---------

 

good luck on your sale (thumbs u

Steve

 

(PS....I still think my 7.5 Reform School Girl! sale was worth every penny of the $11k it brought )

[showcase4]

And please, when you speak of this, and I know you will.. be kind.

 

Free (but beat to hell) 1940s action to the first person who IDs that reference.

 

I won the Action Comic!...

 

famous movie line from 'Tea and Sympathy', said by Deborah Kerr

 

I won! I won!

please send the book to:

steve meyer

po box 76

finksburg, md 21048

 

 

[buttock]

I prefer the Bull Durham version.

 

 

[Shield]

 

Didn't mean to get windy. But right now I am too busy and too tired to proof or cut this down. Hope this helps. Take care. And please, when you speak of this, and I know you will.. be kind.

 

Free (but beat to hell) 1940s action to the first person who IDs that reference.

 

The Columnists.com - Chuck McFadden? When do you ship me the Action?

 

http://www.thecolumnists.com/mcfadden/mcfadden50.html

[Shield]

And please, when you speak of this, and I know you will.. be kind.

 

Free (but beat to hell) 1940s action to the first person who IDs that reference.

 

I won the Action Comic!...

 

famous movie line from 'Tea and Sympathy', said by Deborah Kerr

 

I won! I won!

please send the book to:

steve meyer

po box 76

finksburg, md 21048

 

 

 

Damn you Steve!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[showcase4]

 

Didn't mean to get windy. But right now I am too busy and too tired to proof or cut this down. Hope this helps. Take care. And please, when you speak of this, and I know you will.. be kind.

 

Free (but beat to hell) 1940s action to the first person who IDs that reference.

 

The Columnists.com - Chuck McFadden? When do you ship me the Action?

 

http://www.thecolumnists.com/mcfadden/mcfadden50.html

 

Sorry Shield.....your answer is incorrect, AND I beat you by about 4 minutes....

nanny nanny goo goo!

[bluechip]

Hey blue....when I 1st started this thread, I had some not so nice things to say about the listing, which have since been deleted.......they were deleted because when I saw the listing, I did not know it was your book....had no idea. My negative comments were towards Gus and the listing itself....not the Action 1 ( AKA - Grail ).

So my point is, if you read my original post ---------

 

good luck on your sale (thumbs u

Steve

 

(PS....I still think my 7.5 Reform School Girl! sale was worth every penny of the $11k it brought )

 

Thanks Steve. I concur with the Reform School Girl. I just wouldn't trade an Action 1 for a handful of books like that. Doesn't mean the girl aint' worth it. Just means the man of steel is worth much more.