My 50 Year Junk Obsession 9 9

[MusterMark]

That con was a loooong time ago. Here's what I can remember. It was a small local con as we used to have often here. Chuck shows up with many box fulls of the Church books. Might have been his first public saleof them. He was asked why he traveled so far for a small one day show and apparently spilled the beans on his recent find.

 

I remember seeing a lot of people by his table so I went over to take a look. He had one table full of boxes of books. Guys were very aggressive and hogging boxes. I remember seeing them grabbing a lot of average GA DC's. I was amazed at the condition as I had never seen old books that nice. I moved to the boxes toward the edge of the table. This was mostly late '40's early '50's stuff (my interest at the time). I bought all the censorship books I could find (SOTI ect). I did get a lot of misc stuff like some Avon one shots, Fox books, a couple Atlas war and crime (very little Atlas and no horror books) and other books that just interested me.

 

I remember guys grumbling that he was charging 2-4 times "guide" but they were so nice we bought them anyway. I spent all the rest of my money (maybe $200) at his table. It kills me now to think of what I had to leave but consider myself lucky to get what I did get. That summer I saw him at San Diego con but by then, the word was out and I didn't get much. To this day, I have rarely seen books so beautiful..

 

You can read his account (which is pretty accurate) in his Tales from the Database on his web site. It is in section 13 of the Mile High collection installment. I don't think he published his list until after the Casual Con show.

 

Unfortunately, over the years, I sold and traded a lot of them away. They wern't known as "pedigree" books back then. There are probably quite a few floating around out there that are unknown. One I remember well was The Dead Who Walk oh, I wish I had that one back... Epic day!

 

O my what a story!!!!! Gives me goose bumps just thinking about it.

 

 

[BB-Gun]

This one needs no introduction. This is a good short run and all of them are pretty good. I think I have all of them now.

 

 

I put that War Fury in with my horror comics.

[BB-Gun]

This sweaty gruesome War Fury interior art is by Rudy Palais. Heck illustrated another interior story as well.

Edited March 7, 2015 by BB-Gun

[BB-Gun]

This one needs no introduction. This is a good short run and all of them are pretty good. I think I have all of them now.

]

 

I put that War Fury in with my horror comics.

 

Rudy drew Death Kiss for that Horrific.

[jimjum12]

That con was a loooong time ago. Here's what I can remember. It was a small local con as we used to have often here. Chuck shows up with many box fulls of the Church books. Might have been his first public saleof them. He was asked why he traveled so far for a small one day show and apparently spilled the beans on his recent find.

 

I remember seeing a lot of people by his table so I went over to take a look. He had one table full of boxes of books. Guys were very aggressive and hogging boxes. I remember seeing them grabbing a lot of average GA DC's. I was amazed at the condition as I had never seen old books that nice. I moved to the boxes toward the edge of the table. This was mostly late '40's early '50's stuff (my interest at the time). I bought all the censorship books I could find (SOTI ect). I did get a lot of misc stuff like some Avon one shots, Fox books, a couple Atlas war and crime (very little Atlas and no horror books) and other books that just interested me.

 

I remember guys grumbling that he was charging 2-4 times "guide" but they were so nice we bought them anyway. I spent all the rest of my money (maybe $200) at his table. It kills me now to think of what I had to leave but consider myself lucky to get what I did get. That summer I saw him at San Diego con but by then, the word was out and I didn't get much. To this day, I have rarely seen books so beautiful..

 

You can read his account (which is pretty accurate) in his Tales from the Database on his web site. It is in section 13 of the Mile High collection installment. I don't think he published his list until after the Casual Con show.

 

Unfortunately, over the years, I sold and traded a lot of them away. They wern't known as "pedigree" books back then. There are probably quite a few floating around out there that are unknown. One I remember well was The Dead Who Walk oh, I wish I had that one back... Epic day!

 

...thanks for taking the time to post. What a lot of people won't realize is that back then, double and triple guide on a lot of books was 10 to 15 bucks. One book that sticks in my mind because it's a favorite cover is Detective Comics 71..... IIRC it's on his CBG list @ $35 in '77 in NM..... There are still a LOT of MH books out there that have never been put up for sale again. I do remember seeing some Atlas horror on the list...like the later Venus issues..... maybe he felt they weren't worth lugging around. Boardie MarkWoodcock committed the original list to a more user friendly format a few years ago.... but God only knows how many pages back that would be. GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

[sfcityduck]

And finally another cool flea market score. A 1950's wooden Dell comics store rack. One of several old comic racks I've turned up over the years. I switch it up all the time. I just had it full of Christmas comics. My non-collection friends always find it fun.

Bob

Someone just put one of those Dell racks up on ebay, albeit in much worse shape than yours and probably at a much higher price ($1,200), but I'm sure it will sell. And before my mention of eBay sets off the usual whines complaining about the site, I want to say that there are still incredible deals and finds to be made on eBay. I just picked up this rack on eBay ... for cheap: Edited March 7, 2015 by sfcityduck

[Robot Man]

That con was a loooong time ago. Here's what I can remember. It was a small local con as we used to have often here. Chuck shows up with many box fulls of the Church books. Might have been his first public saleof them. He was asked why he traveled so far for a small one day show and apparently spilled the beans on his recent find.

 

I remember seeing a lot of people by his table so I went over to take a look. He had one table full of boxes of books. Guys were very aggressive and hogging boxes. I remember seeing them grabbing a lot of average GA DC's. I was amazed at the condition as I had never seen old books that nice. I moved to the boxes toward the edge of the table. This was mostly late '40's early '50's stuff (my interest at the time). I bought all the censorship books I could find (SOTI ect). I did get a lot of misc stuff like some Avon one shots, Fox books, a couple Atlas war and crime (very little Atlas and no horror books) and other books that just interested me.

 

I remember guys grumbling that he was charging 2-4 times "guide" but they were so nice we bought them anyway. I spent all the rest of my money (maybe $200) at his table. It kills me now to think of what I had to leave but consider myself lucky to get what I did get. That summer I saw him at San Diego con but by then, the word was out and I didn't get much. To this day, I have rarely seen books so beautiful..

 

You can read his account (which is pretty accurate) in his Tales from the Database on his web site. It is in section 13 of the Mile High collection installment. I don't think he published his list until after the Casual Con show.

 

Unfortunately, over the years, I sold and traded a lot of them away. They wern't known as "pedigree" books back then. There are probably quite a few floating around out there that are unknown. One I remember well was The Dead Who Walk oh, I wish I had that one back... Epic day!

 

...thanks for taking the time to post. What a lot of people won't realize is that back then, double and triple guide on a lot of books was 10 to 15 bucks. One book that sticks in my mind because it's a favorite cover is Detective Comics 71..... IIRC it's on his CBG list @ $35 in '77 in NM..... There are still a LOT of MH books out there that have never been put up for sale again. I do remember seeing some Atlas horror on the list...like the later Venus issues..... maybe he felt they weren't worth lugging around. Boardie MarkWoodcock committed the original list to a more user friendly format a few years ago.... but God only knows how many pages back that would be. GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

That's true, by today's standards those prices seem so low. But it is all relative. Minimum wage was $2.00 an hour. My total living expenses were about $300.00 a month. I was pretty much living paycheck to paycheck. My disposable income was very little. I actually had a life that didn't revolve around comic books. Bringing $250 to a comic con was really living large! Chuck said he made around 4 grand at that show. Consider what that collection cost? He really made out.

 

I don't recall seeing many big keys. Just lots of miscellaneous stuff and a lot of DCs. I was more than happy to get the "scraps" because I got what I really wanted at the time.

 

I do remember that he sucked all the money out of the room when he set up. Dealers were just leaving their tables un-attended as they made a beeline for Chuck. Nobody but Chuck made any money that day.

 

Sure wish I could have bought more because the secret was out after that...

[jimjum12]

...... yeah....he doubled his investment with that 1 day show..... what a fantastic thing to have happen to you. I think I'd rather find the Mile High collection than win the Lottery. GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

[Robot Man]

And finally another cool flea market score. A 1950's wooden Dell comics store rack. One of several old comic racks I've turned up over the years. I switch it up all the time. I just had it full of Christmas comics. My non-collection friends always find it fun.

Bob

Someone just put one of those Dell racks up on ebay, albeit in much worse shape than yours and probably at a much higher price ($1,200), but I'm sure it will sell. And before my mention of eBay sets off the usual whines complaining about the site, I want to say that there are still incredible deals and finds to be made on eBay. I just picked up this rack on eBay ... for cheap:

Wow! Awesome rack! I've never seen one like that. Very easy to date. I actually prefer the folding racks like that. They take up a lot less room if not in use. Funny thing, my Dell rack is complete as pictured. But, about a year later, I found another one of the blue panels with wording on it at an antique show all by it's self. I bought it and put it at the bottom so now mine has 3 blue panels. I recently picked up a cool 1950's Little Golden Book wire hanging rack. Only one I've ever seen. I will try and shoot a photo and post it later.

[jimjum12]

And finally another cool flea market score. A 1950's wooden Dell comics store rack. One of several old comic racks I've turned up over the years. I switch it up all the time. I just had it full of Christmas comics. My non-collection friends always find it fun.

Bob

Someone just put one of those Dell racks up on ebay, albeit in much worse shape than yours and probably at a much higher price ($1,200), but I'm sure it will sell. And before my mention of eBay sets off the usual whines complaining about the site, I want to say that there are still incredible deals and finds to be made on eBay. I just picked up this rack on eBay ... for cheap:

Wow! Awesome rack! I've never seen one like that. Very easy to date. I actually prefer the folding racks like that. They take up a lot less room if not in use. Funny thing, my Dell rack is complete as pictured. But, about a year later, I found another one of the blue panels with wording on it at an antique show all by it's self. I bought it and put it at the bottom so now mine has 3 blue panels. I recently picked up a cool 1950's Little Golden Book wire hanging rack. Only one I've ever seen. I will try and shoot a photo and post it later.

Little Golden Books .....post 'em if ya got 'em I just got back from the Williamsburg Film Festival that has a focus on old vintage movies with a focus on westerns. My comic dealer buddy there has a friend / partner who usually brings LGB's but didn't this year. He'll usually have real nice first print examples. GOD BLESS...-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

[Robot Man]

...... yeah....he doubled his investment with that 1 day show..... what a fantastic thing to have happen to you. I think I'd rather find the Mile High collection than win the Lottery. GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

Yeah, I might agree with you. It would certainly be a whole lot more fun. My problem is that I am a hopeless collector. There would be so many that would just have to keep...

 

There has been so many people that have given Chuck a bad rap over this. I think it is just sour grapes. Under the circumstances, I doubt there are too many of us that would have done the same thing in a heartbeat. I'd be willing to bet that if he hadn't those books wouldn't exist today.

 

I also heard someone tell me in disparaging terms that he didn't have the money so he had to borrow it. I certainly didn't know any of my 21 year old "hippy" friends who had that kind of scratch at the time either. Chuck was and is a pretty smart guy to come up with the idea to get that dough together.

[Robot Man]

And finally another cool flea market score. A 1950's wooden Dell comics store rack. One of several old comic racks I've turned up over the years. I switch it up all the time. I just had it full of Christmas comics. My non-collection friends always find it fun.

Bob

Someone just put one of those Dell racks up on ebay, albeit in much worse shape than yours and probably at a much higher price ($1,200), but I'm sure it will sell. And before my mention of eBay sets off the usual whines complaining about the site, I want to say that there are still incredible deals and finds to be made on eBay. I just picked up this rack on eBay ... for cheap:

Wow! Awesome rack! I've never seen one like that. Very easy to date. I actually prefer the folding racks like that. They take up a lot less room if not in use. Funny thing, my Dell rack is complete as pictured. But, about a year later, I found another one of the blue panels with wording on it at an antique show all by it's self. I bought it and put it at the bottom so now mine has 3 blue panels. I recently picked up a cool 1950's Little Golden Book wire hanging rack. Only one I've ever seen. I will try and shoot a photo and post it later.

Little Golden Books .....post 'em if ya got 'em I just got back from the Williamsburg Film Festival that has a focus on old vintage movies with a focus on westerns. My comic dealer buddy there has a friend / partner who usually brings LGB's but didn't this year. He'll usually have real nice first print examples. GOD BLESS...-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

I don't collect LGB's myself. I have a bunch of them buried in a box in the garage but I like the rack and think it is pretty scarce.

[sfcityduck]

And finally another cool flea market score. A 1950's wooden Dell comics store rack. One of several old comic racks I've turned up over the years. I switch it up all the time. I just had it full of Christmas comics. My non-collection friends always find it fun.

Bob

Someone just put one of those Dell racks up on ebay, albeit in much worse shape than yours and probably at a much higher price ($1,200), but I'm sure it will sell. And before my mention of eBay sets off the usual whines complaining about the site, I want to say that there are still incredible deals and finds to be made on eBay. I just picked up this rack on eBay ... for cheap:

Wow! Awesome rack! I've never seen one like that. Very easy to date. I actually prefer the folding racks like that. They take up a lot less room if not in use. Funny thing, my Dell rack is complete as pictured. But, about a year later, I found another one of the blue panels with wording on it at an antique show all by it's self. I bought it and put it at the bottom so now mine has 3 blue panels. I recently picked up a cool 1950's Little Golden Book wire hanging rack. Only one I've ever seen. I will try and shoot a photo and post it later.

I think we're on the same page on the dating, between February 1966 – August 1967, when DC used the checkerboard on comics. That's one reason I'm really happy to have this rack: I was born in 1966. I always hated the blank bottom on the Dell wood racks so I'm really looking forward to your picture!

[jimjum12]

...... yeah....he doubled his investment with that 1 day show..... what a fantastic thing to have happen to you. I think I'd rather find the Mile High collection than win the Lottery. GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

Yeah, I might agree with you. It would certainly be a whole lot more fun. My problem is that I am a hopeless collector. There would be so many that would just have to keep...

 

There has been so many people that have given Chuck a bad rap over this. I think it is just sour grapes. Under the circumstances, I doubt there are too many of us that would have done the same thing in a heartbeat. I'd be willing to bet that if he hadn't those books wouldn't exist today.

 

I also heard someone tell me in disparaging terms that he didn't have the money so he had to borrow it. I certainly didn't know any of my 21 year old "hippy" friends who had that kind of scratch at the time either. Chuck was and is a pretty smart guy to come up with the idea to get that dough together.

 

..... not only did he put it together, he put it together quick. I was wrong about the Tec 71..... it was 60 bucks...... but for the budget conscious there was always the Detective 168 in NM+ for 15 dollars..... or the entire Cowgirl Romance run @ $114 in NM+....... and if Chuck had the forsight to bring more Atlas..... YOU would likely be the owner of the NM copy of Menace 1 for $ 15....GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

Edited March 7, 2015 by jimjum12

[MrBedrock]

Chuck was and is a pretty smart guy to come up with the idea to get that dough together.

 

..... not only did he put it together, he put it together quick.

Here's how that thought process went... "I'll call Burrel Rowe!"

Boom...quick cash (thumbs u

[Sqeggs]

Chuck was and is a pretty smart guy to come up with the idea to get that dough together.

 

..... not only did he put it together, he put it together quick.

Here's how that thought process went... "I'll call Burrel Rowe!"

Boom...quick cash (thumbs u

 

Today we would just call Mr Bedrock!

[Robot Man]

Chuck was and is a pretty smart guy to come up with the idea to get that dough together.

 

..... not only did he put it together, he put it together quick.

Here's how that thought process went... "I'll call Burrel Rowe!"

Boom...quick cash (thumbs u

 

Got his phone number? I need some dough...

[Robot Man]

Here is my Little Golden Book wall rack. Sorry it isn't full of books but I'm too lazy to dig 'em out of the garage. I believe it is from the late 1950's. It has slots for 10 books. I've got to put it to good use one of these days...

 

[MrBedrock]

Chuck was and is a pretty smart guy to come up with the idea to get that dough together.

 

..... not only did he put it together, he put it together quick.

Here's how that thought process went... "I'll call Burrel Rowe!"

Boom...quick cash (thumbs u

 

Got his phone number? I need some dough...

I do, but he is now out of comics. He is the guy that loaned Chuck the money...$2000...to buy the collection. He was the first to get to pick books. Glorious stacks of books. I saw Burrel's stacks probably a few weeks before you saw Chuck at the show. Fried my thirteen year old peanut brain more than any drugs ever could.

[Robot Man]

Can you imagine being Burrell Rowe and being the first one on the Church collection with an under guide discount? I believe he took all the EC's, a lot of Fiction House and Fawcetts. Probably some other misc stuff.

 

It's kind of funny that in the early years the bigger buyers, Carters, John McLaughlin, Verzyl, Redbeard went for quantity not quality. I know I did. I just couldn't get enough of them. For years, the collection was fairly intact because of Chuck's aggressive pricing. The dentist really had the forsight to buy the big ones.

 

Now my question to you... If you were Burrell, what would you take first? (Not knowing what you know now of course). Me, I would have definately grabbed all the EC's first. After that, all the pre-code horror I could then if I had any money left over a few Caps. What would you have taken back then?