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All-Negro Comics #1 (All-Negro Comics, 1947) CGC VF- 7.5 Cream to off-white pages
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Started by SC22,

66 posts in this topic

MrBedrock

MrBedrock

Posted
Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, pemart1966 said:
15 hours ago, Sqeggs said:

One of a number of reasons why this book flopped (and the advertised second issue was never published).  In fact, I think most of the copies around may be file copies and the book may have made it to few, if any, newsstands. 

You make an interesting observation.  I can't recall if I've ever seen a ratty copy of this book (i.e. one that looked as if it was bought off of the news stand and well read).  I've seen them with poor page quality but not ratty.

This book was put out by All-Negro Comics Inc located at 1310 Spruce St in Philadelphia.  According to the editor's narrative inside the front cover "Every brush stroke and pen line in the drawings on these pages are by Negro artists."  So this was a very esoteric book in price, production and most likely distribution.  Also, it probably explains the 7 copies that were found in Philadelphia.

Surely this book, if it was distributed, could not have had very wide distribution.  North East coast at best?  Philadelphia only?  Thoughts anyone?

Even if it did make news stands sales were obviously very poor given the content, price and the fact that there were no subsequent issues.

I had one come in the store with a random collection of '40s comics. I am reasonably certain that all of the books in the collection were bought off the stands in Texas. 30 or so books, various publishers, most in the vg to vf range with a couple having loose covers. The All Negro graded a 6.5.

Edited by MrBedrock
telerites

telerites

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, MrBedrock said:

I had one come in the store with a random collection of '40s comics. I am reasonably certain that all of the books in the collection were bought off the stands in Texas. 30 or so books, various publishers, most in the vg to vf range with a couple having loose covers. The All Negro graded a 6.5.

Wow - that's cool, RE.  When was this, recently?

MrBedrock

MrBedrock

Posted
Posted
35 minutes ago, telerites said:

Wow - that's cool, RE.  When was this, recently?

Two and a half to three years ago.

telerites

telerites

Posted
Posted
3 minutes ago, MrBedrock said:

Two and a half to three years ago.

Thanks Richard.  I still wonder how many treasures are stowed away and will eventually turn up at some point.  Always fun to see.

pemart1966

pemart1966

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, MrBedrock said:

I had one come in the store with a random collection of '40s comics. I am reasonably certain that all of the books in the collection were bought off the stands in Texas. 30 or so books, various publishers, most in the vg to vf range with a couple having loose covers. The All Negro graded a 6.5.

Interesting - thanks for sharing that story.

Readcomix

Readcomix

Posted
Posted
8 hours ago, pemart1966 said:

You make an interesting observation.  I can't recall if I've ever seen a ratty copy of this book (i.e. one that looked as if it was bought off of the news stand and well read).  I've seen them with poor page quality but not ratty.

This book was put out by All-Negro Comics Inc located at 1310 Spruce St in Philadelphia.  According to the editor's narrative inside the front cover "Every brush stroke and pen line in the drawings on these pages are by Negro artists."  So this was a very esoteric book in price, production and most likely distribution.  Also, it probably explains the 7 copies that were found in Philadelphia.

Surely this book, if it was distributed, could not have had very wide distribution.  North East coast at best?  Philadelphia only?  Thoughts anyone?

Even if it did make news stands sales were obviously very poor given the content, price and the fact that there were no subsequent issues.

This makes sense. Consider Dell's experience putting out Lobo almost 20 years later, in 1965. Supposedly they printed about 200,000 copies of Lobo #1 and were receiving whole cases back from distributors refusing to distribute it. Actual sales from the few who did totaled about 10-15,000, the story goes. Not hard to imagine a similar experience in 1947.

I Have seen one really ratty copy offered; I recall it went on eBay a couple years ago maybe. $500 opening bid, and one bid took it, IIRC. I really wanted it but remember thinking from pix and description that it was just too deteriorated for a book I wanted to handle and keep for a good while. 

pemart1966

pemart1966

Posted
Posted (edited)

Did some further digging and here's an excerpt from Wikipedia on "All-Negro Comics":  

"Evans attempted to publish a second issue but was unable to purchase the newsprint required. Many believe he was blocked from doing so by prejudiced distributors, as well as from competing, white-owned publishers (such as Parents Magazine Press and Fawcett Comics) which began producing their own black-themed titles.[3]

The Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, a standard reference, considers the single issue "rare" and notes, "Seldom found in fine or mint condition; many copies have brown pages."[9]

Contents[edit]

Time magazine in 1947 called All-Negro Comics "the first to be drawn by Negro artists and peopled entirely by Negro characters." In describing lead feature "Ace Harlem", it said, "The villains were a couple of zoot-suited, jive-talking Negro muggers, whose presence in anyone else's comics might have brought up complaints of racial 'distortion.' Since it was all in the family, Evans thought no Negro readers would mind."[4] The protagonist of "Ace Harlem," was an African-American police detective; the characters in the "Lion Man and Bubba" feature were meant to inspire black people's pride in their African heritage.[1]"

As well, here's an interesting article on Orrin Evans and All-Negro Comics...which shows a REALLY ratty copy...

http://www.tomchristopher.com/comics3/orrin-c-evans-and-the-story-of-all-negro-comics/

Edited by pemart1966
jhm

jhm

Posted
Posted
22 hours ago, Sqeggs said:

Yeah, you just don't know with books like this because the number of buyers once you get into five figures is pretty small.  And there are two other 7.5s out there (assuming the three entries on the census represent different copies and not resubs that failed to get a grade bounce), so presumably that's two potential buyers who won't be bidding on this copy.

Still, it just takes two determined bidders to send it to the moon.

It looks like the three 7.5 copies are unique if you look at the images:

2002 Sale: https://comics.ha.com/itm/golden-age-1938-1955-/all-negro-comics-1-d-copy-pedigree-all-negro-comics-1947-vf-75-off-white-pages-the-epitome-of-esotericity-this-one/a/805-5133.s

2009 Sale: http://www.comicconnect.com/bookDetail.php?id=296286

Sqeggs

Sqeggs

Posted
Posted
15 hours ago, pemart1966 said:

Did some further digging and here's an excerpt from Wikipedia on "All-Negro Comics":  

"Evans attempted to publish a second issue but was unable to purchase the newsprint required. Many believe he was blocked from doing so by prejudiced distributors, as well as from competing, white-owned publishers (such as Parents Magazine Press and Fawcett Comics) which began producing their own black-themed titles.[3]

The Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, a standard reference, considers the single issue "rare" and notes, "Seldom found in fine or mint condition; many copies have brown pages."[9]

Contents[edit]

Time magazine in 1947 called All-Negro Comics "the first to be drawn by Negro artists and peopled entirely by Negro characters." In describing lead feature "Ace Harlem", it said, "The villains were a couple of zoot-suited, jive-talking Negro muggers, whose presence in anyone else's comics might have brought up complaints of racial 'distortion.' Since it was all in the family, Evans thought no Negro readers would mind."[4] The protagonist of "Ace Harlem," was an African-American police detective; the characters in the "Lion Man and Bubba" feature were meant to inspire black people's pride in their African heritage.[1]"

As well, here's an interesting article on Orrin Evans and All-Negro Comics...which shows a REALLY ratty copy...

http://www.tomchristopher.com/comics3/orrin-c-evans-and-the-story-of-all-negro-comics/

Great information.  Kudos to Tom Christopher for having researched Orrin Evans.  In his overview of blacks in mainstream comics he omitted the Brothers of the Spear backup stories, which began running in Tarzan in 1951.

Sqeggs

Sqeggs

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, jhm said:

It looks like the three 7.5 copies are unique if you look at the images:

2002 Sale: https://comics.ha.com/itm/golden-age-1938-1955-/all-negro-comics-1-d-copy-pedigree-all-negro-comics-1947-vf-75-off-white-pages-the-epitome-of-esotericity-this-one/a/805-5133.s

2009 Sale: http://www.comicconnect.com/bookDetail.php?id=296286

Good point.  The fact that one of the copies is a Crippen is a further indication that the book did have some newsstand circulation.

batman_fan

batman_fan

Posted
Posted
23 hours ago, MrBedrock said:

I had one come in the store with a random collection of '40s comics. I am reasonably certain that all of the books in the collection were bought off the stands in Texas. 30 or so books, various publishers, most in the vg to vf range with a couple having loose covers. The All Negro graded a 6.5.

That is great info to put into the archives.  It is cool to get a view of what books made it to the public versus those that never did.

Sqeggs

Sqeggs

Posted
Posted
23 hours ago, jhm said:

A little more digging... I believe this 7.5 copy used to be this 6.5 copy that sold in 2014:

https://comics.ha.com/itm/golden-age-1938-1955-/all-negro-comics-1-all-negro-comics-1947-cgc-fn-65-cream-to-off-white-pages/a/7087-91238.s

How would they "clean" the area to the bottom left of the red star at the top of the book?

Or are the distinct similarities purely coincidence?

They sure look like the same book, although there seems to be a loss of ink in a number of the red areas in the title logo of the 6.5 copy.  Hard to see how cleaning and pressing the book could have gotten rid of them, unless they were actually smudges or scuffs on the case. hm

Tri-Color Brian

Tri-Color Brian

Posted
Posted (edited)

It's just as well that they never did a second issue.  The stories and art in #1 are absolute garbage.  Try reading it...:whatthe:  The only thing this book has going for it is the cover...which is great...

Edited by Tri-ColorBrian
comicjack

comicjack

Posted
Posted
9 minutes ago, Tri-ColorBrian said:

It's just as well that they never did a second issue.  The stories and art in #1 are absolute garbage.  Try reading it...:whatthe:  The only thing this book has going for it is the cover...which is great...

Like a Suspense 3 all about the cover :smile:

Bomber-Bob

Bomber-Bob

Posted
Posted
On 11/12/2017 at 10:40 AM, jhm said:

A little more digging... I believe this 7.5 copy used to be this 6.5 copy that sold in 2014:

https://comics.ha.com/itm/golden-age-1938-1955-/all-negro-comics-1-all-negro-comics-1947-cgc-fn-65-cream-to-off-white-pages/a/7087-91238.s

How would they "clean" the area to the bottom left of the red star at the top of the book?

Or are the distinct similarities purely coincidence?

I think it is the same book and the I think the area you are talking about was either on the case or the inner well.  Depending on environmental conditions, I have seen the inner well get 'spotty' like this. Hard to see the difference in appearance to justify a full grade bump from 6.5 grade to 7.5 though.  

comicjack

comicjack

Posted
Posted
17 minutes ago, Tri-ColorBrian said:

Yep, and i think that's all most of us care about...huh?hm

Yes yes and yes :banana:

batman_fan

batman_fan

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Tri-ColorBrian said:

It's just as well that they never did a second issue.  The stories and art in #1 are absolute garbage.  Try reading it...:whatthe:  The only thing this book has going for it is the cover...which is great...

I will probably get blasted for this but I have never liked the cover. Just too simplistic. 

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