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Eerie #1 Expert Needed
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246 posts in this topic

23 minutes ago, oakman29 said:

I'm just happy to own one.

I’m familiar with the Cerebus #1 counterfeits too and think there’s a story to them but I think the story of the Eerie #1 counterfeit is older and far more interesting that makes it worth owning. That and the fact the counterfeiter had access to materials to actually make some improvements over the originals reproduction which in all other counterfeits is unheard of. I think the identity of said person that James Warren thought who did it was one of the great mysteries to the story. 

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On 10/18/2019 at 1:42 PM, The Lions Den said:

On more than one occasion, I've read that Jim Warren had most of the original run of Eerie #1 destroyed after he'd secured the copyright, and that he'd kept only ten copies.

On Page 43 of The Complete Illustrated History of The Skywald Horror-Mood, Al Hewetson confirms receiving a copy of Eerie #1 from Warren, wherein Warren calls Archaic Al his "#7 man", meaning the copy he gave Al was the seventh one he'd given away. There's even a picture of the Eerie #1 and the written notation. Stories like this one, from reputable sources with photographic evidence, would seem to be more credible than rumors and speculation... hm


I’ve got a few things going on today but I’ll post some things as I have time so first the above since The Lions Den was the one that bumped this thread.

So the print run on Eerie #1 is said to be in the same ballpark as the Heidi Saha magazine which runs from 200 to 500 copies. I’ve not seen anything to confirm an actual number for either magazine. Should you believe the number Archie Goodwin gave when he was interviewed but in the same interview gave the wrong name of the magazine that Warren was trying to beat to press? It was a lot of years ago so I would take actual numbers people have quoted with a grain of salt unless someone can produce solid evidence. But it doesn’t really matter the exact numbers other than it’s safe to say both magazines had 500 or fewer copies printed. So both qualify as scarce to begin with.

Now as to actual existing numbers and copies claimed destroyed. Surprise! Both Eerie #1 and Heidi Saha are said to have copies destroyed. No idea if either did. If James Warren himself said it, I’d be more inclined to believe it but it still wouldn’t satisfy how many copies escaped since some obviously have. In the case of the Heidi Saha magazine it’s said all remaining copies were destroyed with estimates of 100 or less copies left in existence. Given the rep of the Heidi Saha magazine I can understand James Warren not wanting to comment more on that magazines history at Warren. So Given the price of the Heidi magazine and how often copies show up it’s probably safe to say that Eerie #1 (original, not counterfeit) is even rarer since blue staple copies are out there  but originals are few and far between being sold at auction or private sales. There are a number of blue staple copies however being offered (wrongly) as originals which don’t count obviously.

 

I’ve read James Warrens and Archie Goodwin’s comments about Eerie #1 and don’t recall any comments about destroying copies which seems like something that would have been mentioned given the attention the ashcan got due to counterfeiting. I haven’t read everything though so did I miss them saying so?
 

 

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1 hour ago, N e r V said:


I’ve got a few things going on today but I’ll post some things as I have time so first the above since The Lions Den was the one that bumped this thread.

So the print run on Eerie #1 is said to be in the same ballpark as the Heidi Saha magazine which runs from 200 to 500 copies. I’ve not seen anything to confirm an actual number for either magazine. Should you believe the number Archie Goodwin gave when he was interviewed but in the same interview gave the wrong name of the magazine that Warren was trying to beat to press? It was a lot of years ago so I would take actual numbers people have quoted with a grain of salt unless someone can produce solid evidence. But it doesn’t really matter the exact numbers other than it’s safe to say both magazines had 500 or fewer copies printed. So both qualify as scarce to begin with.

Now as to actual existing numbers and copies claimed destroyed. Surprise! Both Eerie #1 and Heidi Saha are said to have copies destroyed. No idea if either did. If James Warren himself said it, I’d be more inclined to believe it but it still wouldn’t satisfy how many copies escaped since some obviously have. In the case of the Heidi Saha magazine it’s said all remaining copies were destroyed with estimates of 100 or less copies left in existence. Given the rep of the Heidi Saha magazine I can understand James Warren not wanting to comment more on that magazines history at Warren. So Given the price of the Heidi magazine and how often copies show up it’s probably safe to say that Eerie #1 (original, not counterfeit) is even rarer since blue staple copies are out there  but originals are few and far between being sold at auction or private sales. There are a number of blue staple copies however being offered (wrongly) as originals which don’t count obviously.

 

I’ve read James Warrens and Archie Goodwin’s comments about Eerie #1 and don’t recall any comments about destroying copies which seems like something that would have been mentioned given the attention the ashcan got due to counterfeiting. I haven’t read everything though so did I miss them saying so?
 

 

Great post Brett; thank you!  

The only thing I can add to this is to attempt to answer your question about Jim Warren destroying copies of the Eerie #1. It would seem that Warren would tell certain people that he'd destroyed copies of Eerie #1, but I don't recall him ever directly admitting it in any of the interviews I've read. To me, the Skywald article is one of the most convincing accounts relating to this event, because I consider Al Hewetson to be a very credible source and he backed it up with photographic evidence.

IMO, it does make sense that Warren would get rid of the majority of the copies in his possession, since his only goal was to secure the copyright, and the book itself certainly doesn't live up to his usual standards. If there's one thing I've learned about Jim Warren, it's that he had very high standards for his magazines. I could actually see him being embarrassed by what he would consider a substandard effort...

Unfortunately, CGC decided not to certify copies of this book for the exact reasons we've been discussing. That's a shame, because they undoubtedly would've been able to shed light on this subject by being able to distinguish the differences in all the various versions, and over time, the true scarcity of this unusual book would have become much clearer. 

It's also interesting to note that there's an Eerie #1 ashcan up on Clink right now. The other thing is that it's in NM condition---very unusual given the age and scarcity of an allegedly original copy. It will be very interesting to see how high it goes...  (shrug)

 

Edited by The Lions Den
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I would be amazed if the print run was 500 for the ashcan. I think that number is only thrown out as it was the standard low print run for the Warren special editions (Vampirella HardCover for example). I would guess 200 at the top end. A liberal estimate of surviving copies might be 1/4 that if none were ever destroyed in house. Very rare bird.

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Yes he may very have destroyed copies. Or maybe he said he did and didn’t. Who knows. That part of the story doesn’t really matter so much to me because it’s over and done. So if it’s true that less than 100 copies of the Heidi Saha magazine exist today maybe Eerie #1 has less than 50. No idea. I can confirm 3 copies now that have been in collections since the 1960’s and very early 1970’s pre dating the counterfeit. I’m also comfortable that the deal I had to buy one over a year ago was legit and the ComicConnect copy recently sold was also legit. I bid on that one and inquired of its provenance before bidding.

Edited by N e r V
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6 minutes ago, RedRaven said:

I would be amazed if the print run was 500 for the ashcan. I think that number is only thrown out as it was the standard low print run for the Warren special editions (Vampirella HardCover for example). I would guess 200 at the top end. A liberal estimate of surviving copies might be 1/4 that if none were ever destroyed in house. Very rare bird.

Based on my own tracking of the Heidi Saha magazine and original copies of Eerie #1 I would say my best guess (and it is just that, a guess) that it’s probably true that 100 or less copies exist of Heidi Saha and less than 50 copies of Eerie #1 originals exist today. That’s based on how often I’ve seen them come to market. Be advised though that many end up in collections like mine meaning they are off the market for good.

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Just now, The Lions Den said:

In your opinion, do you think the copy for sale on Clink is the real deal? 

Have not seen it. Originals if buyers are comfortable with its background are 2k+ these days...

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You’ll notice that no one at Warren be it James or Archie Goodwin has ever mentioned there being a second printing and yet Overstreet made the mistake decades ago and countless dealers still think the blue staple edition is a second printing. Well only if “second printing” means counterfeit copy...lol

Gawd, I cringe every time I see it. Just saw the my comic shop listing today with the “second printing”.

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