The Russ Cochran Comic Art Auctions - a 30 years Retrospective 2 2

[Terry Doyle]

 

Comic Art Auction Catalog # 19 (November 14, 1984), comprising of 20 pages.

 

Interestingly, this auction offered double the amount of EC art normally featured (a total of 8 x complete books' worth of art).

 

Of special note is the Frazetta solo story, "Squeeze Play", from Shock Suspenstories # 13 - which carried an opening bid of $7,000.

 

Also, towards the end of the catalog, Russ featured 4 pages of art for direct sale.

 

Selected highlights as follows . . .

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

 

From this auction I bought item # 10, "Lost Battalion!", a 7-page Johnny Craig war story from Two-Fisted Tales # 32.

 

Unusual to see a Craig war story in a Kurtzman-edited title. Even more surprising is the fact that it's a ghost story.

 

I later sold the artwork to an American friend working over here in the UK.

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

 

Take special note of item # 40 . . .

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

[wurstisart]

Terry,

this is an awesome thread. Great work.

 

Maybe I am the only one thinking this way, but folks....this was 30 (!!!) years ago!

Back then a car would cost a fraction of what they cost now. Same with houses and so on.

 

To me these prices show, comic art was already a serious business back then.

Someone putting 4 or 5 K down for a piece of pen and ink art, you have to give those collectors credit. There might have been many comic fans back then, but who would pay that much for a piece of artwork?

The guys that spent that much were TRUE lovers of the original comic art and the industry in general ! All the power to them!

 

[jbud73]

 

This is a 'work of art' not a 'piece of art'. Amazing. Thanks for posting this. Awesome thread.

[Terry Doyle]

 

Art Auction Catalog # 20 (March 27, 1985), comprising of 16 pages. Selected highlights to follow . . .

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

 

From this auction I bought item # 30, "Well Trained" a 7-page George Evans story from Shock SuspenStories # 15. I later traded-away this story art to Ken Danker as part of a deal towards an EC cover.

[Terry Doyle]

 

Probably the best (non-Timely) Schomburg cover I've seen come up for sale.

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]