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My dark-horse million-dollar comic....

Started by Big Moov,

31 posts in this topic

Big Moov

Big Moov

Posted
Posted

Don't laugh lol. I bought this one about what, 5 years ago? Jumped all over it. Didn't haggle at all. $10K.

 

For those of you who remember the thread I started a week ago, lol, this is just kind of an elaboration, furtherance, expounding of my thought process that I started in that thread as to what kind of comics I like.

 

It is.....More Fun Comics #31, Mile High, CGC 9.6, single highest obviously....first appearance of Superman.

 

Superman appeared in 3 other ads, but More Fun 31 was the earliest Registry Date. May 2. And MF 31 was the comic DC used in their lawsuit to argue ownership. They even copyrighted a black & white image of Superman, and made a few figures and cartoons of him in b & w, just in case they lost the lawsuit.

 

Exact same picture as the cover of Action #1. Large too, 2/3 page. Only difference is it's in black-and-white, and it's not on the cover. But no question that it's the first printed image of Superman.

 

Thoughts??

 

My thought is that the comic hobby is, in some cases, behind the times. Which is fine. It's a much newer hobby that other hobbies. For instance, there is absolutely no question that the first appearance of Wolverine is in Hulk 180. Not 181. That's just an example. I don't care what the selling prices are. I've actually opened-up Hulk 180 and seen a large pic of Wolverine, clear as day.

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Big Moov

Big Moov

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One last thought...to clarify as well to address a possible bias issue...as well to just talk about comics I like (you listening Hepcat?) lol.

 

Yes, at one point I bought all kinds of comics. I had about 10 different Hulk 180's. Everything from non-CGC to CGC 9.6. But then I figured-out that there were probably dozens of 9.6's in existence, even though at that time there were only about what, 5 or so on the census (around 2005-2008??).

 

Anyway I decided to sell all my stuff like that and focus only on Golden Age. Preferably single highest graded 1st appearances of minor characters, and stuff like that. You can still acquire stuff like that for $10K or even $5K at times. Though the openings are getting less and less from what I've noticed.

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G.A.tor

G.A.tor

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An ad is great... First printed image, cool. But the hobby has defined (young or not, it's 50+ yrs old from a truer collecting standpoint) first appearance as the first time the character appears in a story within a comic. That's what folks want today, that's what folks wanted yesterday, that's what folks will want tomorrow.

 

 

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Timely

Timely

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It's not even the 1st "printed" image of "Superman", as Siegel & Shuster printed up copies of a Superman book in 1933.

 

Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster - "Reign of the Superman" -- Science Fiction Fanzine V1#3 And Others (1933). Appearing five years before Action Comics #1, this was the first "Superman" story ever written by Jerry Siegel and the first Superman image drawn by Joe Shuster. The fanzine, edited by Siegel, is 8 1/2" x 11" and was reportedly mimeographed on a machine at the duo's high school. The issue credits Siegel as editor and Shuster as artist -- the byline "Herbert S. Fine" is a combination of Siegel's mother's maiden name and the name of one of his cousins. Of course, this Superman was a different character than the costumed hero who later appeared in comic books; this one was bald and a villain! Siegel once commented, "A couple of months after I published this story, it occurred to me that a Superman as a hero rather than a villain might make a great comic strip character... Obviously, having him as a hero would be infinitely more commercial than having him a villain." It's been noted that this was in keeping with a pulp tradition in which supernatural characters were inevitably evil. This copy is somewhat fragile, though considering this item's age and the method of production, one would hardly be found in mint condition. The paper is age-darkened and a bit chipped at the edges. Though the contents page calls for 27 pages, there are actually only 22. John McLaughlin speculated "it's likely that the contents page was prepared prior to filling out the rest of the issue, and those 'phantom' pages never printed. Comparison with another known copy confirms this." The last page is detached, and this copy has no cover. Also included in this lot are V1#1 and V1#2 of Science Fiction (October and November 1932), also with Siegel and Shuster contributions. These are in similar condition to V1#3, though a bit more heavily chipped and with some pages detached at the staples. The latter two were folded and sent through the mail, they have an address and canceled stamps on the back. This fanzine ran for a total of five issues, and speculation is that no more than 50 copies were printed (compare this to Action #1, of which tens of thousands of copies were produced). McLaughlin's assessment of the item: "In the realm of modern SF, fantasy and popular literature a more important printed work does not exist."From the John McLaughlin Collection.

 

http://comics.ha.com/itm/memorabilia/jerry-siegel-and-joe-shuster-reign-of-the-superman-science-fiction-fanzine-v1-3-and-others-1933-appearing-five-yea/a/752-50590.s

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Iksar

Iksar

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I've heard of this book, and I happen to think it's the most undervalued comic in the hobby. If a pristine Action 1 is worth $3M, I certainly think the first officially printed image of Superman should be worth quite a bit much more than the paltry three grand or whatever.

 

The early S&S ashcans are cool, but the iconic cover of Supes lifting the car is the image anyone, in or out of the hobby, would instantly recognize.

 

I've been looking for this book for over a decade. No luck. Overstreet also needs to note that MF 31 has a May cover date.

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Point Five

Point Five

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Superman appeared in 3 other ads, but More Fun 31 was the earliest Registry Date.

This board will really see some fireworks if CGC starts noting "5th appearance of Superman" on every Action #1. :banana:

 

 

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Sqeggs

Sqeggs

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Looking at GPA, a 3.5 sold for $1,378 in August 2012 and a 3.5 (possibly the same copy?) sold for $1,076 in August 2013.

 

A 4.0 (the Billy Wright copy) sold for $1,912 in February 2012.

 

It's hard to see much upward movement from those scraps of data. Given the presence of the Action 1 ad isn't news -- Overstreet has been noting it for at least 15 years -- it's hard to see what would cause prices of this book to take off.

 

You never know (I still don't understand what caused the rather sudden run up in prices of IH 1), but I'm not sure this book is a great candidate for long-term price appreciation.

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lhcomics

lhcomics

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I think it was a great comic to take a gamble on. Mile High 9.6 1st Superman ad. Don't see him ever selling comic for less than what he paid.

 

As far as the up side it could be big. Not million $ big but this comic will always command a premium.

 

Heck I'd pay $10K today for it and crack it just so I could see the ad.

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MrBedrock

MrBedrock

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Thoughts??

 

Why settle for only one million? Maybe it will be worth a bazillion million one day :wishluck:

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