HERITAGE AUCTION BONANZA !!!! LETS SEE THE STATE OF THE OA MARKET

[WYLDCHYLD]

Well, let's see now...here's my thoughts on the Heritage Auction:

 

Overall, I'd say the market just proved that even in a dire economy, there is a LOT of folks willing to drop lots of cash for art they enjoy...myself included...

 

First of all, let me just say "hammer price" means nothing...it's when you add the "juice" that you see what was *actually* spent...

 

Here's just a few examples from every angle:

 

Things that went stronger than I expected:

 

-Cockrum X-Men cover (but I know a few folks that said they'd fight for this *particular* issue, so it's not that surprising)

-Wally Wood EC art (geez...that Superduperman splash went nuuuts...)

-Disney strips

-Miller Spiderman Annual #14 (well *I* didn't expect it...)

 

Stuff that went about as strong as I expected:

 

-Byrne X-men art (always strong)

-Peanuts Dailies (I agree, the Sunday was a weak example)

-Kirby FF Ann-11/Avengers Tabloid covers (I REALLY loved the FF one...if they were from the main run, they'd have gone higher...)

-Kirby Thor cover- strong for a cover of Thor in T-shirt and jeans...

 

 

Best examples of "over-expectation":

 

-2 Ditko Spidey pages- (it's all good stuff, but to break $25k-30k+ they should have the "better known" villians, not the "little guys"...) I figure these were $20k range

-Dr Strange page- Scarce stuff, but It's very little Doc on the page (1 panel of his head?) to justify a high price

-Peanuts Sunday (not a "great" example, that's why the daily strips did better)

-Swamp Thing #3 splash- It's Swampy's back...it sold for about what it should

 

So happy to see it FINALLY sell:

 

-Kingdom Come t-shirt art...a nice piece, but not a $75K piece as was always asked for it...

 

Bargains of the day:

Sometimes folks "hold back" at an auction when they're waiting for another lot to come up that they want to bid hard for...unfortunately, when this happens, folks realise that they passed up a major bargain in the lots they passed on earlier...this especially sucks when you don't win the lot you "saved up" for...

 

Some examples:

 

-Flash Gordon Sunday (...for sure...)

 

-Buscema FF Cover (I should've been hitting the "bid" button on this one...)

 

-Tomb of Dracula cover- (yeah it went cheap, but I'm partial to the Colon ones...)

 

-X-Men #1 pages - sure they've been "plentiful" in the last few auctions because the book was broken up, but learn from history folks...these pages dry up eventually, and if you look at recent history:

a DD-1 page with NO DD on it- $32k+ (recent Heritage auction)

a decent JIM #83 page with Thor- $50k (private sale)

Amazing Fantasy #15 page-(None of us will ever own any)

These pages will eventually be a solid investment... $25k for that Iceman page was a steal...

 

-I'm sure a few other pieces I forget...

 

As for the pages "withdrawn from the auction" lots #200-215

-These were all pages from Marvel Spotlight #5 (1st Ghost Rider) pulled by the owner due to personal reasons (pulled before the catalog was printed)

[spider9698]

Nice summary Jon

 

[bocaratondefense]

There were 4 pieces I had my eye on and all went for great prices, IMO.

 

TOD 5; utter steal

Iron Man 174; Luke McDonnell name kept the price down - one of the 20 best Iron Man covers in the last 30 years

Rarebit Fiend; while not a great example went for a good price

Justice Society cover; bid (no vig) was 1/3 what I was offered this piece for December 07

 

 

All of those were very reasonable. The TOD #5 was a deal. That one along with FF #114 were bargains of the auction.

[WYLDCHYLD]

Thanks...

 

I did forget a few things of course (like the BWS Conan page hitting $9500, etc), but I hope I gave some food for thought here...

[comicartcom]

Walt Kelly WDCS 45 cover sells for 24K hammer. Not bad for a Golden age cover.

 

that depends on how you feel about Steve.. I "found" that cover in 1989 with several Barks covers as well that were retrieved from a dumpster in Poughkeepsie. I split that deal with Pete Koch and I traded that a couple others to Russ. For that cover I got about 25k in trade in 1989. No investment value apparently

[WYLDCHYLD]

Depends on how you look at it Richie...you got $25K in "trade" back then...it broke $28,680 in CASH now...

 

Admitedly, there are things I've over-paid/traded for in the past that have eventually caught up to today's values myself, but it's not such a bad thing to see it at least "hold" value...

[Bronty]

yeah but 1989 is a looooooooong time ago

[WYLDCHYLD]

True, but I really haven't seen Disney/cartoon character art appreciate the way the superhero art has over the past 20 years..(Barks ducks oil paintings not withstanding).

[comicartcom]

Depends on how you look at it Richie...you got $25K in "trade" back then...it broke $28,680 in CASH now...

 

Admitedly, there are things I've over-paid/traded for in the past that have eventually caught up to today's values myself, but it's not such a bad thing to see it at least "hold" value...

 

no man that's a major loss over time

 

realistically a true "investment" doubles in value every 10 years. That makes the 28k a loss over 20 years, and what I had gotten back then included a Frazetta painting (Uncle Creepy portrait), the Shock #8 cover & a Flash Gordon page from 1934.

 

that piece represents a major loss over time

[tb]

that depends on how you feel about Steve.. I "found" that cover in 1989 with several Barks covers as well that were retrieved from a dumpster in Poughkeepsie. I split that deal with Pete Koch and I traded that a couple others to Russ. For that cover I got about 25k in trade in 1989. No investment value apparently

 

comicartcom, this sounds very interesting. I collect early Barks originals and would love to hear how those covers were discovered? I believe WDCS 134 and the "Rags to Riches" Four Color must have been among them. Was the "Christmas for Shacktown" cover which Geppi owns also included?

 

My guess is that the Kelly cover ended up in Europe and that it will be a very long time before it resurfaces. Disney originals, not least comic book originals, have indeed performed very poorly over the last 20 years. I know several of the people (all Europeans) who buy them and none of them think much about a financial return. The buyer today was clearly not motivated by any desire to make a profit. Still, I can definitely understand why he made the investment. I would have loved to have bought it myself, kept it for the next 20 years, and sold it for whatever loss it would lead to in 2029.

[clemso]

Wow, I thought the FF 3 chapter page went cheap. That is so historic. Where are you going to get a page with the Thing in that costume?

 

I agree with Jonathan's assessment regarding the X-Men1 pages, the lesser two image wise will probably be seen at dealers tables for double the $ They were the last batch unless either page 2 is up in the next auction or Josh unloads the 6 that he has. The Iceman page was cool and memorable.

 

Clem..

 

 

 

[delekkerste]

First of all, let me just say "hammer price" means nothing...it's when you add the "juice" that you see what was *actually* spent...

 

Of course it means something - if you're the seller, you're getting *less* than the hammer price. There are two sides to every market, and strong sale prices only tell half the story - time will tell if the buyer or the seller got the better end of the deal. I suspect that some of the strong prices paid in the summer of 2008 will stand as high water marks for years to come.

 

As for this auction, there were some strong prices among the lots I was tracking, but there was a lot more that I saw on the softer side. Even the results being described as meeting expectations - well, let's just say that I doubt you'd see any dealers pricing the material that low if it was in their hands. To me, the writing is on the wall - already, only the best material can still fetch summer 2008 prices (and, who knows - maybe those prices would have been even higher last year). For now, anyway. No one said that change would happen overnight - remember the fine art bust of the last decade took 6 years to unfold (and those were much better circumstances). I wouldn't get too cozy just yet.

 

I wasn't bidding to win anything in this auction, but if I had thought the Perez New Teen Titans Drug Awareness Special cover (+ some pages) was going to sell so cheaply, I would have paid more attention. It was offered with a 5-figure reserve the last time around - $3,107 was an absolute steal for what was, for me, one of the most memorable books of the '80s. :doh:

[westform]

Weakest cover in the run in my opinion; so wasn't suprised at the low price.

 

This was a nice price for a very decent cover:

 

Jack Kirby and Frank Giacoia Captain America #207 Cover Original Art (Marvel, 1977)....

 

Sold for: $7,170.00 (includes BP)

[comicartcom]

 

comicartcom, this sounds very interesting. I collect early Barks originals and would love to hear how those covers were discovered? I believe WDCS 134 and the "Rags to Riches" Four Color must have been among them. Was the "Christmas for Shacktown" cover which Geppi owns also included?

 

My guess is that the Kelly cover ended up in Europe and that it will be a very long time before it resurfaces. Disney originals, not least comic book originals, have indeed performed very poorly over the last 20 years. I know several of the people (all Europeans) who buy them and none of them think much about a financial return. The buyer today was clearly not motivated by any desire to make a profit. Still, I can definitely understand why he made the investment. I would have loved to have bought it myself, kept it for the next 20 years, and sold it for whatever loss it would lead to in 2029.

 

yes both oif those and others. I traded Russ the Christmas for Shacktown cover on the same trip to West Plains as the #45 cover and of course, had and sold others and Pete had gotten Rags to Riches with other covers

 

One sad thing we found was a small 2x8 inch piece that represented the remaining art extant of the Walt Kelly Walt Disney's Christmas Parade #1 cover. It was cut up to be used for an advertisement

 

[robert frey]

Weakest cover in the run in my opinion; so wasn't suprised at the low price.

 

This was a nice price for a very decent cover:

 

Jack Kirby and Frank Giacoia Captain America #207 Cover Original Art (Marvel, 1977)....

 

Sold for: $7,170.00 (includes BP)

 

 

 

i agree- that is a lot of romita for a kirby cover

[dem1138]

I liked that cover but obviously wasn't paying 7K for it. It's actually a pretty cool piece. If you got the catalog, you saw that it was the Kirby cover, with the Romita Cap head overlay.

[J.Sid]

First of all, let me just say "hammer price" means nothing...it's when you add the "juice" that you see what was *actually* spent...

 

Of course it means something - if you're the seller, you're getting *less* than the hammer price. There are two sides to every market, and strong sale prices only tell half the story - time will tell if the buyer or the seller got the better end of the deal. I suspect that some of the strong prices paid in the summer of 2008 will stand as high water marks for years to come.

 

:

 

 

No, Jon's right. When talking about a Heritage auction, people know there's juice involved. The 'hammer' price for any given item only affects one individual. The entire rest of the world is looking at the final cost. It's confusing to start throwing around the 'hammer' numbers just to skew your agenda.

[westform]

I am paying 15 to 25k right now for the better Kirby Captain America 70's covers.... and I believe I am probably not the top buyer for each and every one of them, so I neither think this was a decent price or a decent cover... but, as always, to each his own.

 

For me, it goes back to the previous discussion about the Best. While Kirby 70's may not be the best to everyone... I would rather focus on the best examples of that limited run. The best of this particular segment of the OA market. Partly because I like them better, and partly because they will hold their value better. DF

 

I liked that cover but obviously wasn't paying 7K for it. It's actually a pretty cool piece. If you got the catalog, you saw that it was the Kirby cover, with the Romita Cap head overlay.

[Vanderbilt-migration]

First of all, let me just say "hammer price" means nothing...it's when you add the "juice" that you see what was *actually* spent...

 

Of course it means something - if you're the seller, you're getting *less* than the hammer price. There are two sides to every market, and strong sale prices only tell half the story - time will tell if the buyer or the seller got the better end of the deal. I suspect that some of the strong prices paid in the summer of 2008 will stand as high water marks for years to come.

 

:

 

 

No, Jon's right. When talking about a Heritage auction, people know there's juice involved. The 'hammer' price for any given item only affects one individual. The entire rest of the world is looking at the final cost. It's confusing to start throwing around the 'hammer' numbers just to skew your agenda.

 

Please dont confuse Deli with logic. He has too much builit into his bet against America.

[dem1138]

I am paying 15 to 25k right now for the better Kirby Captain America 70's covers.... and I believe I am probably not the top buyer for each and every one of them, so I neither think this was a decent price or a decent cover... but, as always, to each his own.

 

For me, it goes back to the previous discussion about the Best. While Kirby 70's may not be the best to everyone... I would rather focus on the best examples of that limited run. The best of this particular segment of the OA market. Partly because I like them better, and partly because they will hold their value better. DF

 

I liked that cover but obviously wasn't paying 7K for it. It's actually a pretty cool piece. If you got the catalog, you saw that it was the Kirby cover, with the Romita Cap head overlay.

 

Well then, which do you consider "the better Kirby Captain America 70s covers"?