Bonds25 Posted September 9, 2004 Posted September 9, 2004 Surely I'm not the only one out there who'd plunk good money down on an EC? Are you trying to tell me that ALL those heritage sales aren't REAL??!? Nope, you're not the only one.
*paull* Posted September 9, 2004 Author Posted September 9, 2004 I'm definitely not knocking ECs. Like I said, they are some of the greatest comics ever created. There's just too many for me to get involved in collecting them. I will say this about ECs... how much better would the covers have been if they were full bleed, and didn't have that annoying colored background behind the logo? That's probably the only thing I can fault Gaines for. The books are great and I wish I had a ton of them, but enough time, effort and money goes into the esoteric stuff that I can't get started with ECs. I have a few mid-grade ECs with Krigstein art that I love, but I'm not looking to expand at this point.
PUNYHUMAN Posted September 9, 2004 Posted September 9, 2004 Awesome looking books !!! Really sharp,esp. the colors on those covers!!! again great books!!
rjpb Posted September 9, 2004 Posted September 9, 2004 I definetley own fewer ECs than I would if they had not all been reprinted. Currently the only originals I have are a couple of Crime Suspenstories, a VG 20 and a F/VF 22. I've traditionally been a cover collector when it comes to pre-code books, but I've been picking up more books for their interiors lately - and ebay has definetly brought the prices down on non-classic cover horror books. I just picked up a solid VG+ Thing 6 for the 2.0 guide price.
reddog4063 Posted September 10, 2004 Posted September 10, 2004 this thread has almost singlehandly made me a horror fan in a single day.
rjpb Posted September 10, 2004 Posted September 10, 2004 Here's a scan of the Thing #6 I just bought on ebay. While the front cover looks alot better than a VG, the book has had a spine roll pressed out, leaving a big crease in the back cover, and has tanning in the page margins, as well as a nearly 1" tear at the bottom of the last few pages. All this was aknowledged by the seller in his listing. The book looks far glossier in person than it did in the listing.
*paull* Posted September 10, 2004 Author Posted September 10, 2004 That Thing cover is a beauty! I don't have any in my collection, but I have seen some really nice covers on a number of the books in the run.
shrunkenhead Posted September 10, 2004 Posted September 10, 2004 I agree, that Thing book looks great, certainly would have graded way higher if not for the tears you mentioned. Still, fantastic stuff!
precodekeith Posted September 10, 2004 Posted September 10, 2004 I dunno, I like the ECs a lot.....generally speaking, they ain't my favorite of the genre, as I do like the crazier "knock-offs" too, but I certainly think that a mid to high grade EC is worth owning. I've got a few slabbed. TFTC #33 is one of my all time favorite comics, period (origin of cryptkeeper story, and a gorgeous cover). I remember reading a reprint of that book to shreds when I was a kid. I can see why the constant reprinting is a turn-off to some, but I don't see how frequent reprints detract from collectability...though I know and understand that a lot of people feel that way. But still, are copies of Action Comics #1 or early spideys rendered less collectible because they've been reprinted a bazillion times? I just don't see it... Surely I'm not the only one out there who'd plunk good money down on an EC? Are you trying to tell me that ALL those heritage sales aren't REAL??!? I didn't say EC's weren't collectible! Nowhere did I state that! There's a huge market for 'em. I sometimes set aside an entire area to report EC sales alone in the Market Mania column of my fanzine. What I said was that for MY money, if I have a choice between an EC reprint for a dollar, an EC LG original for say $35, and a low/mid "other guy" for about $35, then I am going to buy the "other guy" and the reprint, and take a pass on the original EC. Simple. More bang for the buck.
sfilosa Posted September 10, 2004 Posted September 10, 2004 rarely see the Star (Startling Terror Tales, Terrors of the Jungle, Blue Bolt, etc.) in high grade. And when I do, they are going for a premium. There are some tough to find Cole Star books... Shocking Mystery Cases #51 comes to mind Actually, there are a few graded copies of Shocking Mystery Cases #51. I have the Bethlehem copy but it is ungraded as of yet. Front cover is near perfect, but back cover has 2" crease. Once I get power, I can try to post. Yes, 20% over guide probably won't cut it for CGC 8.0's. I was pointing out that while these books (L.B. Cole cover) might have less interested now than 10 years ago (even Metro said this in their June Market Report), maybe the interested has wanned because "OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND". In other words, why have interest in something that can't be obtained.
*paull* Posted September 10, 2004 Author Posted September 10, 2004 (edited) Wow... that SMC #51 must be amazing... I'd love to see it. I don't want to go so far to say that it's scarce, but it seems to be a little tougher to find, maybe because they reside in collections (mine is a beater place-holder for now). I think the same can be said for Blue Bolt #115... I doubt this book was printed in any less quantity, but it's harder to find because people hold onto them. Edited September 10, 2004 by paull
shrunkenhead Posted September 10, 2004 Posted September 10, 2004 Zoiks! Wow, holy #*@#$!!! Something tells me you paid more than a 20% premium on that baby!
goldust40 Posted September 10, 2004 Posted September 10, 2004 Fabulous OTT cover by Cole. Those Star covers were never short of melodrama (and garish colors).
*paull* Posted September 11, 2004 Author Posted September 11, 2004 Wow.... the condition of that book is ridiculous! Back cover crease or not, a Star book in that kind of condition is very rare. The books are usually not a problem to locate in the G to VG range, but anything VF or over is very, very tough.
sfilosa Posted September 11, 2004 Posted September 11, 2004 The books are usually not a problem to locate in the G to VG range, but anything VF or over is very, very tough. You said a mouthful, pal! I KNOW!!! Heritage hasn't had a Star L.B. Cole cover book in CGC 8.0 (or higher) in any auction in over six months.
*paull* Posted September 12, 2004 Author Posted September 12, 2004 I hope that you're not trying hard to put together a collection of 8.0 Star Coles... you're not only going to go broke, but crazy also! Please tell me that no one here won this auction: http://cgi.liveauctions.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2266918825&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEDW%3AIT This qualifies as one of the most ridiculous auctions of the year.
rjpb Posted September 12, 2004 Posted September 12, 2004 The ending price on that Tomb of Terror 15 is steep, but I don't see it as ridiculous - at least not compared to the prices on alot of high grade slabbed Silver, Bronze and Modern books. I think I've seen VG copies sell for around $200 on Ebay a couple of times - after Black Cat #50, it's probably the most wanted Harvey horror book.
*paull* Posted September 12, 2004 Author Posted September 12, 2004 (edited) Here's another recent purchase of mine... Startling Terror Tales #10 (1954) with a Cole cover, of course. I'd grade this at about a 7.0 which is, as we have discussed here, a pretty high grade for a Star book. There's nothing better than Cole's primary colors on a black background (as in Mask #1, Mask #2, Blue Bolt #111, etc.) Edited September 12, 2004 by paull
