Seeking advice on buying a small GA collection

[Snake Eyes]

One of the worst water damaged books in the Mad 4 below

 

 

 

[Snake Eyes]

 

 

 

[Snake Eyes]

 

 

 

 

[flatrock02]

 

Great find Heath

[*paull*]

I think you made out well on this deal. You'd have no problem making money on these books.

[mrmitchgro]

Great VOH 12! Definitely not one you come across everyday.

[red rocks-migration]

any weird fantasy? I'd love a bunch of those in g!

[Snake Eyes]

Great VOH 12! Definitely not one you come across everyday.

 

Thanks much...I did not realize the significance of the book (outside of it just being early EC Horror) until I sat and went through them and the Overstreet Guide...never would have guessed it was the first such book . Better lucky than well-informed I guess

 

any weird fantasy? I'd love a bunch of those in g!

 

Unfortunately no, got Frontline Combat instead...hoping maybe some turn up down the road, as the seller mentioned going to sci-fi cons with her grandfather during childhood :shrug: So far though, no Sci Fi titles to be found

 

 

[kimik]

Congrats on the find. Are there any CSS in the mix?

[mrmitchgro]

Great VOH 12! Definitely not one you come across everyday.

 

Thanks much...I did not realize the significance of the book (outside of it just being early EC Horror) until I sat and went through them and the Overstreet Guide...never would have guessed it was the first such book . Better lucky than well-informed I guess

 

any weird fantasy? I'd love a bunch of those in g!

 

Unfortunately no, got Frontline Combat instead...hoping maybe some turn up down the road, as the seller mentioned going to sci-fi cons with her grandfather during childhood :shrug: So far though, no Sci Fi titles to be found

 

 

Another interesting note on VOH 12 is that for some unknown reason, Mr. Gaines only set aside a single copy for his personal collection (there are 12 Gaines File copies of most issues!). So that makes it even tougher to find in higher grades.

 

Any idea from the fellow boardies on who owns that copy BTW? I've always wondered that...

[Snake Eyes]

Congrats on the find. Are there any CSS in the mix?

 

Yep, if I remember correctly they are in the last batch with the Frontlines, Impacts, etc.

[Kahnadah]

For what it's worth, if you had put these up at $20-30 per book (for the more low-guide-priced ones) I'd have lept all over them! If you got them for $13 per, you did good.

 

Thanks,

James

[Crowzilla]

Another interesting note on VOH 12 is that for some unknown reason, Mr. Gaines only set aside a single copy for his personal collection (there are 12 Gaines File copies of most issues!). So that makes it even tougher to find in higher grades.

 

Any idea from the fellow boardies on who owns that copy BTW? I've always wondered that...

 

I don't think that is quite correct. I believe Gaines set aside the full dozen, but over the years he gave away copies or they had been pilfered so that when the package was opened most were missing.

 

[Doohickamabob]

The VOH 12, TFTC 20, and Crypt of Terror 19 make this lot a total score. Add to that the Shock SS #1, and early issues of other titles, and this is a really enviable find.

 

Also: Mad #4 with water damage is still cool. Mad #4 is my favorite early Mad cover and if memory serves it has the story "Superduperman!" which was the catalyst for Mad becoming popular and starting to turn a (significant) profit for EC, ultimately saving the company.

 

[mrmitchgro]

Another interesting note on VOH 12 is that for some unknown reason, Mr. Gaines only set aside a single copy for his personal collection (there are 12 Gaines File copies of most issues!). So that makes it even tougher to find in higher grades.

 

Any idea from the fellow boardies on who owns that copy BTW? I've always wondered that...

 

I don't think that is quite correct. I believe Gaines set aside the full dozen, but over the years he gave away copies or they had been pilfered so that when the package was opened most were missing.

 

Could be :shrug: I was just going off what I read from Cochran's telling of the story. I can't find a copy of that, but this is from comicpedigrees.com:

 

The comics sat in Gaines’ closet for decades, each carefully wrapped in brown paper until one day in the early ‘90s when he decided to unveil the collection with the help of Bob Overstreet and Russ Cochran. Ironically, Gaines had saved only one single copy of Vault of Horror #12, the issue credited with the birth of EC’s New Trend, and the most valuable horror comic of all time.

 

[kimik]

Congrats on the find. Are there any CSS in the mix?

 

Yep, if I remember correctly they are in the last batch with the Frontlines, Impacts, etc.

 

Very nice! Is there a copy of #22 in the mix? Those books will make some nice cover group shot photos. (thumbs u

[Doohickamabob]

Ironically, Gaines had saved only one single copy of Vault of Horror #12, the issue credited with the birth of EC’s New Trend, and the most valuable horror comic of all time.

That's an honor that it shares with Crypt of Terror #17. They were both released in the same month during the spring of 1950.

[excelsior1986]

Wow, very cool find my friend. It looks like you lucked out since most golden age collections i come across are 50's dells. Congrats.

[Snake Eyes]

Hard to believe that I posted this thread almost two months ago. Again, my thanks to all the comments and shared knowledge

 

Some additional information has come to light since I originally obtained the books that I figured might make for an interesting read over the next few days.

 

So here goes...

 

The books were purchased from individuals that were essentially strangers to me. However, since that time, they have returned on occasion to the comic book store that is owned by a couple of friends and helped broker the deal (the partner I mentioned in my first post was the store itself).

 

On their visits to the store, we have learned a bit more about this young couple, the provenance of the books, and a back story that has been bouncing around my head for a few days. What better place to share than here, right?

 

[Snake Eyes]

 

 

So I mentioned the early Superman that turned into paper soup at the beginning of the thread. Asking the young couple (not sure they want their name public). It turns out that the EC comics were found in the house pictured above. You are looking at what was once a gorgeous lakehouse in rural Alabama.