fallen GA Keys of yesteryear........ 2 2

[rjpb]

Animal Comics #1 (First Pogo) used to be a top 100 Overstreet book. It is now so cheap *I* can even afford one.

 

Ohh, great one - In Overstreet #9 that book guided for as much as Detective #31.

[precodekeith]

I don't know about that list, but I almost hurled my breakfast when I saw the photo of Theo Holstein at the bottom of his ad...

 

Not to flog a dead horse, but...

[MrBedrock]

Animal Comics #1 (First Pogo) used to be a top 100 Overstreet book. It is now so cheap *I* can even afford one.

 

Ohh, great one - In Overstreet #9 that book guided for as much as Detective #31.

I want one to go with these...

 

[G.A.tor]

Animal Comics #1 (First Pogo) used to be a top 100 Overstreet book. It is now so cheap *I* can even afford one.

 

Ohh, great one - In Overstreet #9 that book guided for as much as Detective #31.

I want one to go with these...

pretty, pretty and pretty

[lou_fine]

Animal Comics #1 (First Pogo) used to be a top 100 Overstreet book. It is now so cheap *I* can even afford one.

 

Ohh, great one - In Overstreet #9 that book guided for as much as Detective #31.

 

Let's see now.....'Tec #31 is sitting at $70,000 right now while Animal Comics #1 is sitting at the lofty price level of $1,400.

 

Well, I guess this certainly disproves the often heard theory here that collectors just can't wait for a crash so that they can come in and buy their books at bargain basement prices.

 

After all, I would have to say that Animal Comics #1 has certainly crashed relative to the 'Tec 31, and I don't see a long line of collectors scrambling to pick up the book.

[tth2]

Very interesting discussion. The books that immediately jump to mind (and all have been discussed here) are:

 

Single Series 20

Feature Comics 26

Whiz #2

 

Single Series 20 and Feature Comics 26 primarily reflect the increasing importance of original-to-comics material and the corresponding decline of comics that simply reprinted material from other sources. As comic collecting matured, collectors took a greater interest in "their own".

 

Whiz #2 on the other hand reflects different dynamics: (i) cartoonish art style and more child-like stories that became considered to be less and less cool by super-hero collectors; (ii) dead character for several decades and unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce in the 1970s, which was unsuccessful in part because of the reasons in (i), and (iii) almost no transactions of unrestored "high grade" (by GA mega-key standards) copies. Maybe I've just been missing them, but while I can think of a number of public transactions of "high grade" Action 1s, Tec 27s and (lots of) MC 1s, I just can't remember any high profile Whiz 2 transactions.

[tth2]

Four Color 9

You're kidding, right? I think the 9.6 copy of FC 9 would break the $100K barrier and a 9.4 copy would bring at least $50-60K.

[VintageComics]

 

Whiz #2 on the other hand reflects different dynamics: (i) cartoonish art style and more child-like stories that became considered to be less and less cool by super-hero collectors; (ii) dead character for several decades and unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce in the 1970s, which was unsuccessful in part because of the reasons in (i), and (iii) almost no transactions of unrestored "high grade" (by GA mega-key standards) copies. Maybe I've just been missing them, but while I can think of a number of public transactions of "high grade" Action 1s, Tec 27s and (lots of) MC 1s, I just can't remember any high profile Whiz 2 transactions.

 

Tim, did you ever read that modern mini series Kingdom Come? They had an incredibly cool take on Captain Marvel. Just awesome.

 

1) I agree 100% that there was nothing cool about the character and his evolution and that is the main reason he fell behind.Superman and Batman both found an adult/dark side while CM stayed immature.

 

2) is Whiz #2 a harder book to find? I've only ever remembered seeing one, maybe two copies for sale.

 

R.

 

 

[ciorac]

Very interesting discussion. The books that immediately jump to mind (and all have been discussed here) are:

 

Single Series 20

Feature Comics 26

Whiz #2

 

Single Series 20 and Feature Comics 26 primarily reflect the increasing importance of original-to-comics material and the corresponding decline of comics that simply reprinted material from other sources. As comic collecting matured, collectors took a greater interest in "their own".

 

Whiz #2 on the other hand reflects different dynamics: (i) cartoonish art style and more child-like stories that became considered to be less and less cool by super-hero collectors; (ii) dead character for several decades and unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce in the 1970s, which was unsuccessful in part because of the reasons in (i), and (iii) almost no transactions of unrestored "high grade" (by GA mega-key standards) copies. Maybe I've just been missing them, but while I can think of a number of public transactions of "high grade" Action 1s, Tec 27s and (lots of) MC 1s, I just can't remember any high profile Whiz 2 transactions.

 

Go back a few years and remember when the Mile High Whiz 2(1) sold for nearly $200K? I do. I held the book in my hands, and it was stunning.

Below is a picture of John Snyder holding it in his office. I took this photo.

 

[action1kid]

Yes. I remember too. The Dentist sold it to Steve Geppi.

[nearmint]

dead character for several decades and unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce in the 1970s,

 

But, a feature film is in the works, with both writer and director signed on, and The Rock anxious to play Black Adam.

[MrBedrock]

dead character for several decades and unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce in the 1970s,

 

But, a feature film is in the works, with both writer and director signed on, and The Rock anxious to play Black Adam.

Who will play Mr. Mind?

[ciorac]

dead character for several decades and unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce in the 1970s,

 

But, a feature film is in the works, with both writer and director signed on, and The Rock anxious to play Black Adam.

Who will play Mr. Mind?

 

Schommy?

[seank]

dead character for several decades and unsuccessful attempt to reintroduce in the 1970s,

 

But, a feature film is in the works, with both writer and director signed on, and The Rock anxious to play Black Adam.

Who will play Mr. Mind?

 

Adam Sandler?

 

Seriously, though, I think The Rock would make a great Black Adam.

[tth2]

Go back a few years and remember when the Mile High Whiz 2(1) sold for nearly $200K? I do.

Yup, I remember that too, and I remember being blown away by the price at that time. But this underscores my point, because that was 13 years ago ago, I believe, and it hasn't changed hands since and doesn't appear likely to change hands again anytime soon. And of course we don't know if it was unrestored.

 

Can the collective wisdom of these boards come up with any other notable unrestored HG Whiz 2 sales since then? I honestly think this book has been hit in part by the "out of sight out of mind" phenomenon.

[innocuous]

Is Famous Funnies A Carnival of Comics GA? If so, how has it performed over the years?

[lou_fine]

Is Famous Funnies A Carnival of Comics GA? If so, how has it performed over the years?

 

Like other early strip reprint books from the origins of the modern comic book period, it has not done very well to say the least.

 

A quick look at the OS guide shows that top of guide is now at $13,000 versus $12,000 back in 2004. Anything below this, however, does not look very good. For example, in VF condition, the book has actually gone down from $5,480 in 2004 to only $4,800 in 2008.

 

The picture does not look any better going forward, as it appears to be tough for this book to even acheive guide, as based upon recent Heritage auctions over the past few years.

[tb]

Is Famous Funnies A Carnival of Comics GA? If so, how has it performed over the years?

 

Like other early strip reprint books from the origins of the modern comic book period, it has not done very well to say the least.

 

[...]

 

The picture does not look any better going forward, as it appears to be tough for this book to even acheive guide, as based upon recent Heritage auctions over the past few years.

 

If you count "unsold" lots, I get 32 hits in Heritage's database (some duplicates, of course). 6 of those sales were over $6,000. I've never understood the prices paid for this book given how common it appears to be...

[showcase4]

Is Famous Funnies A Carnival of Comics GA? If so, how has it performed over the years?

 

Like other early strip reprint books from the origins of the modern comic book period, it has not done very well to say the least.

 

A quick look at the OS guide shows that top of guide is now at $13,000 versus $12,000 back in 2004. Anything below this, however, does not look very good. For example, in VF condition, the book has actually gone down from $5,480 in 2004 to only $4,800 in 2008.

 

The picture does not look any better going forward, as it appears to be tough for this book to even acheive guide, as based upon recent Heritage auctions over the past few years.

 

Carnival of Comics is considered pre-Golden Age....a time period from roughly 1933 - 1937. Books from this time period are not main stream, and that has contributed to pricing being flat, or even declining. I used to be very active in this market, and when I was a buyer, I was happy to find something on my Wantlist due to rarity.......but when it came time to sell, it was always a nail biter to find a few buyers who would competitively bid, and pay more than I had in it. This is one reason I only collect Golden and Silver Age now.........who needs that.

Steve

[rjpb]

The pre-Golden Age milestone books like Carnival of Comics have a fairly limited audience I imagine. While there will always be some interest from historically minded collectors - the superhero books (even with more obscure heroes) remain the focus of most big dollar book hunters - the obvious exception being pre-hero DC books - but even there it is probably the later "heroic" incarnations of these titles which drive interest in the earlier books. How much interest in early More Fun books would there be if the title had remained a humor/adventure book until its demise?

 

 

I think we are in the process of classic covers eclipsing minor keys - and eventually the guide will reflect that. A prime example - even though it guides for more - would an AA #25 (1st Dr.Midnite) really sell for more than an AA #61 in the same condition?

Edited April 29, 2008 by rjpb