Mound City Comic Collection Details on original owner revealed

[kimik]

Since Chuck recounts the fact that he had to sell most of the big books from the Church collection early on to finance his Mile High operations, wouldn't most of the value have been transferred to the buyers of the books that have held onto them for more than a decade? Remember, the Action #1 sold for $1000 - $2000 - even with inflation that does not equal the millions it would go for now. In the end, he did okay but nowhere near what he could have done if he had held them until today. Long time collectors like Bangzoom will do much better. (thumbs u

[DiceX]

If you buy that version...

 

You're the biggest fool this board has ever seen.

Q: How do you know that Chuck is lying?

 

A: His lips are moving.

 

The competition is pretty intense, though, no?

 

Hey, don't worry, you've got a HUGE lead. (thumbs u

 

I'm so glad you're back. I'm complete again.

 

 

[Sqeggs]

If you buy that version...

 

You're the biggest fool this board has ever seen.

Q: How do you know that Chuck is lying?

 

A: His lips are moving.

 

The competition is pretty intense, though, no?

 

Hey, don't worry, you've got a HUGE lead. (thumbs u

 

Pleasant little chap.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Thegoldenage]

I wonder what the IRS will take off the top.

[thehumantorch]

Don't understand that at all. They DID a helluva lot if you ask me. They got the books graded, they advertised the hell out of it, they auctioned it off, they procured the site, they answered questions, and they took care of the packaging, bookkeeping and numerous other things. I'd say they earned their money.

 

Agreed. They worked their arse off on this auction and definately earned their commission.

 

Flying down to Florida and meeting with CGC would not be cheap. I'm sure the two versions of bidding softwear took a cut. Sorting, grading, bagging and boarding all takes time and $$. Promoting the auction and answering questions on bulletin boards has got to be one of the most dangerous jobs in the world.

 

These guys did a great job and raised a ton of $$ for the owners of these books. They also were surprisingly honest.

 

 

[TheWatcher]

Since Chuck recounts the fact that he had to sell most of the big books from the Church collection early on to finance his Mile High operations, wouldn't most of the value have been transferred to the buyers of the books that have held onto them for more than a decade? Remember, the Action #1 sold for $1000 - $2000 - even with inflation that does not equal the millions it would go for now. In the end, he did okay but nowhere near what he could have done if he had held them until today. Long time collectors like Bangzoom will do much better. (thumbs u

 

He was selling the books for multiples of guide, unheard of at the time. He made plenty off of them but, yes, according to him he diid put most of the profits back into the stores

[tth2]

Not to defend our man Chuck, but anyone interested should take a look at his account of the Edgar Church find on his web site. If you buy that version, it was not the monumental ripoff that it seems. I do remember there being a lot of resentment over it from the get go, though. Partly, I think because of the counterculture vibe that comic collecting had in those days, which Chuck clearly played off of when he started Mile High. A score of that magnitude didn't sit well with a fair number of people.

 

I never understood the resentment towards Chuck on this issue? Edgar's family was going to trash all this stuff so thank godness Chuck was lucky enough to stumble upon the greatest collection that ever existed.

(thumbs u

[joe_collector]

Since Chuck recounts the fact that he had to sell most of the big books from the Church collection early on to finance his Mile High operations, wouldn't most of the value have been transferred to the buyers of the books that have held onto them for more than a decade?

 

Of course - Chuck has the business sense and forward thinking of a dead snail, and had he not had the Church books literally fall in his lap, he'd still be living out of his junked car.

 

Yeah, he's a real Church-made man.

[VintageComics]

Ok, more importantly, who was the girl working the auction?? Come on, this is important stuff!!

 

Jim?? Roy?? Help me out here!!

 

 

 

 

 

Rob's daughter, and she's as cute as she can be. (thumbs u

 

 

Married?? Engaged?? Looking for someone who sells plastic and cardboard for a living??

 

No idea. I thought she was in the 16 to 18 year old range, but someone said she was 22.

She was a very sweet girl with a great personality.

 

 

She's in her early 20's. I met her boyfriend tonite when I was over at the Weiman's getting some stuff sorted out.

 

She's a smart girl and wise beyond her years. She also likes to shoot guns.

 

Chew on that for a while, boys.

 

[DiceX]

Ok, more importantly, who was the girl working the auction?? Come on, this is important stuff!!

 

Jim?? Roy?? Help me out here!!

 

 

 

 

 

Rob's daughter, and she's as cute as she can be. (thumbs u

 

 

Married?? Engaged?? Looking for someone who sells plastic and cardboard for a living??

 

No idea. I thought she was in the 16 to 18 year old range, but someone said she was 22.

She was a very sweet girl with a great personality.

 

 

She's in her early 20's. I met her boyfriend tonite when I was over at the Weiman's getting some stuff sorted out.

 

She's a smart girl and wise beyond her years. She also likes to shoot guns.

 

Chew on that for a while, boys.

 

 

They haven't kicked you out of St Louis yet?

I'll have to make a few phone calls.

 

 

 

[VintageComics]

I'm hanging around to make sure everything gets sorted on this end.

 

That and I want a picture of you in the passenger seat.

 

 

 

 

[DiceX]

I'm hanging around to make sure everything gets sorted on this end.

 

That and I want a picture of you in the passenger seat.

 

 

 

 

Funny since I drove and you were riding person_without_enough_empathy on someone's lap in the back seat.

 

 

[VintageComics]

I'm hanging around to make sure everything gets sorted on this end.

 

That and I want a picture of you in the passenger seat.

 

 

 

 

Funny since I drove and you were riding person_without_enough_empathy on someone's lap in the back seat.

 

 

[fantastic_four]

I agree. The fact that Chuck saved them from being thrown out, and had the foresight to keep records and allow the provenance and lineage to be traceable. He gets mess over this all the time.

 

Some people act like if you make a dollar on a book, you owe a cut to everyone that owned it before you because they helped to preserve it in the condition it's in. It just defies logical thinking.

If you buy something for a price agreed by both parties, the seller's ride on the boat is over. If it was bought for a buck and sold immediately for a million dollars, oh well.

 

It's called ethics and morals. Chuck was a pro and immediately knew that he was looking at $100K minimum in books, and he was looking at them only while the Churches were dealing with the sizable challenge of liquidating an estate. This was a time before there was a general public knowledge comics were worth anything at all--the fleecing of the Churches is one of those events that brought the kind of national attention in the media that eventually led to it becoming a part of more common public knowledge. The fact that "you know you've got $100K in books here, maybe even a million or more" never came out of his mouth is the lack of moral fiber and ethics that makes him deserving of derision, and it's the reason the Churches later sued him, which obviously was the wrong move since what Chuck did wasn't criminal or explicitly deceptive. Mound City sure saw the ethical dilemma as an auctioneer charged with trying to get his client the most money for their stuff, and the moral dilemma as a fellow human being preferring not to screw a family trying to deal with a dead relative.

 

In accredited professions, can't you get unacreditted for this kind of ethical breach? Lawyers, doctors, etc? Yea, doesn't take much training to be a comic book dealer, but that doesn't mean we can't all call Chuck out on his lack of character. I'd give him a few points back since Chuck was young and poor at the time if he hadn't wrote those "Tales from the Database" articles recently which clearly showed he still has no intention of manning up to his breach of ethical and moral value in not advising the Churches as to the scope of the value of Edgar's books. He portrayed the Churches as uncaring of Edgar's prized possessions and unappreciative of the fineness of said posessions. I find it likely that all that is true, but it doesn't forgive how he screwed them, and it displays an utter lack of class given that these people had just lost a relative.

[underthebigw]

I agree. The fact that Chuck saved them from being thrown out, and had the foresight to keep records and allow the provenance and lineage to be traceable. He gets mess over this all the time.

 

Some people act like if you make a dollar on a book, you owe a cut to everyone that owned it before you because they helped to preserve it in the condition it's in. It just defies logical thinking.

If you buy something for a price agreed by both parties, the seller's ride on the boat is over. If it was bought for a buck and sold immediately for a million dollars, oh well.

 

It's called ethics and morals. Chuck was a pro and immediately knew that he was looking at $100K minimum in books, and he was looking at them only while the Churches were dealing with the sizable challenge of liquidating an estate. This was a time before there was a general public knowledge comics were worth anything at all--the fleecing of the Churches is one of those events that brought the kind of national attention in the media that eventually led to it becoming a part of more common public knowledge. The fact that "you know you've got $100K in books here, maybe even a million or more" never came out of his mouth is the lack of moral fiber and ethics that makes him deserving of derision, and it's the reason the Churches later sued him, which obviously was the wrong move since what Chuck did wasn't criminal or explicitly deceptive. Mound City sure saw the ethical dilemma as an auctioneer charged with trying to get his client the most money for their stuff, and the moral dilemma as a fellow human being preferring not to screw a family trying to deal with a dead relative.

 

In accredited professions, can't you get unacreditted for this kind of ethical breach? Lawyers, doctors, etc? Yea, doesn't take much training to be a comic book dealer, but that doesn't mean we can't all call Chuck out on his lack of character. I'd give him a few points back since Chuck was young and poor at the time if he hadn't wrote those "Tales from the Database" articles recently which clearly showed he still has no intention of manning up to his breach of ethical and moral value in not advising the Churches as to the scope of the value of Edgar's books. He portrayed the Churches as uncaring of Edgar's prized possessions and unappreciative of the fineness of said posessions. I find it likely that all that is true, but it doesn't forgive how he screwed them, and it displays an utter lack of class given that these people had just lost a relative.

 

Actually, in many states there are now laws that specifically target this type of behavior. New York is one of them. If someone portrays themself as an expert in a field (and I believe the term is defined loosely to include anyone who makes a living buying and selling an object), it is illegal for them to lie about an objects value or make an unfair (I'm sure the standard is more objective than this) offer. The Church's would have won hands down in this environment.

[fantastic_four]

Actually, in many states there are now laws that specifically target this type of behavior. New York is one of them. If someone portrays themself as an expert in a field (and I believe the term is defined loosely to include anyone who makes a living buying and selling an object), it is illegal for them to lie about an objects value or make an unfair (I'm sure the standard is more objective than this) offer. The Church's would have won hands down in this environment.

 

I don't believe Chuck lied, did he? Well, going by his own portrayal of the events he didn't anyway. He also claims the Churches came up with the sales price, which was what, $2000 I think? He implicitly relates that he just didn't divulge the true value of the books, which sounds plausible and likely. He relates in Tales of the Database that he did attempt to show them a price guide, but that's a sly, half-assed way of avoiding the truth--he could have easily summed up a minimum value of the collection for her, as there's no doubt he was already doing in his own mind.

[jimjum12]

Not to defend our man Chuck, but anyone interested should take a look at his account of the Edgar Church find on his web site. If you buy that version, it was not the monumental ripoff that it seems. I do remember there being a lot of resentment over it from the get go, though. Partly, I think because of the counterculture vibe that comic collecting had in those days, which Chuck clearly played off of when he started Mile High. A score of that magnitude didn't sit well with a fair number of people.

 

I never understood the resentment towards Chuck on this issue? Edgar's family was going to trash all this stuff so thank godness Chuck was lucky enough to stumble upon the greatest collection that ever existed.

 

They didn't exactly fly off the shelves either.It took him years to sell them all. A WHOLE lot of that stuff was considered unsellable junk back in the 70's. GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

[MoundCityAuctions]

why $600k? i thought the books hit $1mm. was that w/ BP? did mound take that big a piece?

 

That's entirely an educated guess on my part. I was curious how much estate auction houses typically take before this auction ever began, so I browsed maybe a half-dozen web sites and found figures that ranged from 20% to 40%. I suppose I was assuming that Mound City would be getting around 25% + the extra 5% to 15% juice from the bidders. I have no actual idea what their cut is.

 

I think the $1 million was before the buyer's premium. A 25 percent seller's premium seems high. With a premium of that size, the auctioneer would receive well north of $300,000 before expenses. Whether that's reasonable, I don't know. Whatever the consignor ends up netting, it's sure going to beat $5,000.

 

25% sellers premium is not bad for not really doing anything at all.

Not really doing anything at all????? You must be joking. We have been working like sled dogs for months on this auction.

[MoundCityAuctions]

Ok, more importantly, who was the girl working the auction?? Come on, this is important stuff!!

 

Jim?? Roy?? Help me out here!!

 

 

 

 

My wife (Tina), my daughter-in law (Lisa), my sister-in-law (Karen) and the one you are most likely asking about my daughter (Karen, but she goes by Ali). How to tell? Was she little, cute and saying yep a lot and pointing at bidders?

[MoundCityAuctions]

Ok, more importantly, who was the girl working the auction?? Come on, this is important stuff!!

 

Jim?? Roy?? Help me out here!!

 

 

 

 

 

Rob's daughter, and she's as cute as she can be. (thumbs u

 

 

Married?? Engaged?? Looking for someone who sells plastic and cardboard for a living??

 

No idea. I thought she was in the 16 to 18 year old range, but someone said she was 22.

She was a very sweet girl with a great personality.

 

You just had to kill it with the great personality,didnt you

 

I wish I could hook my son up with her. Dad would definitely approve.

 

Pictures anyone?

See my web site on the front page.