Why are Golden Age Batmans so Plentiful?

[14 of spades]

i dunno - may seem like a silly question.

 

but they seem to be pretty easy to acquire - in any case - far more easier to acquire than many other early GA superhero books.

 

were there many more Batmans published? or is there some other reason that i'm unaware of?

[Kakapo]

I think that, much as Superman outsold Action Comics, Batman outsold Detective Comics (or at least the print runs were higher). Maybe that was for no other reason than name recognition, with little Jimmy being a Batman fan and wanting a comic, which one is Daddy going to buy him? Batman had been building a fanbase for a year before Bats #1 came out, so perhaps it's comparable to Amazing Spidey #1 being about 30-50% more common than Amazing Fantasy 15.

 

Is it possible that, as a quarterly book, Batman would have been printed in higher numbers than a monthly title almost by default? Perhaps they had to print enough to keep it on the newstands for more than a week or so?

 

You might argue that if people really enjoyed the books/character, they would have been looked after better, and more might have survived to see the rise of serious collecting. But that's just wild, unfounded speculation on my part.

[Norrin_Radd]

Q: Why are Golden Age Batmans so plentiful?

A: Because Batman is so cool. And very popular at the time of publication. It's the same thing with Superman. The titles where they got their start (Detective/Action) are scarcer because they were just being tried out. They got their own higher-circulation titles because of their popularity.

 

 

I, for one, am glad that even early Batman comics are relatively plentiful since I've decided to collect them. Although, they are still a little pricey compared to the SA/BA comics I collect.

[markseifert]

I've often wondered how fast you could put together a low to midgrade run of Supes #1-100 and Batman #1-100 if you were buying from ebay alone (presuming you had the means). Fairly quickly, I bet.

[seank]

I've often wondered how fast you could put together a low to midgrade run of Supes #1-100 and Batman #1-100 if you were buying from ebay alone (presuming you had the means). Fairly quickly, I bet.

 

High print runs and popularity of the character are why early Batmans are so plentiful. Putting together a 1-100 run is a cakewalk compared to putting together a 101-150 run.

[skybolt]

I've often wondered how fast you could put together a low to midgrade run of Supes #1-100 and Batman #1-100 if you were buying from ebay alone (presuming you had the means). Fairly quickly, I bet.

 

High print runs and popularity of the character are why early Batmans are so plentiful. Putting together a 1-100 run is a cakewalk compared to putting together a 101-150 run.

 

Which are tougher to obtain from the 101-150 run?

[ft88]

They are all tough but the 130 to 150 isn't too bad if VG is acceptible. Also from 1-100, I would say they start to get real tough at about issue 80 (plus or minus). If you insist on VF or better you may be waiting a long time.

 

Issue 100 of Superman seems to be 10x easier than Issue 100 of Batman but they are both more common than the surrounding issues.

[jimjum12]

Batman # 37 is a very interesting issue.It has one of my favorite covers of the run,

exceptional Jerry Robinson artwork,and a story in which Batman is exposed to GAMMA radiation ( no joke ).Highly recommended.GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus)

[JohnBull]

I've often wondered how fast you could put together a low to midgrade run of Supes #1-100 and Batman #1-100 if you were buying from ebay alone (presuming you had the means). Fairly quickly, I bet.

 

I've no idea about Batman, but I do buy Superman. The scarcest part is around the mid-50's, say issues 80 odd to 100 and odd. But in truth, if money were no object, I'm sure you could put the run together pretty quickly.

 

Low to mid grade Supes from the late GA/Atom Age/very Early SA, do sell well when compared to guide though. That is, ebay prices are pretty close to guide values, which for raw, non-key issues is quite unusual.

[Thegoldenage]

I agree. Batman and Superman are indeed common titles. I think both titles start to get tough around 70 and stay that way to 99 for Superman and 110 for Batman. Superman 100 is pretty common.

 

What I don't get is how Overstreet justifies the high prices of early Batmans. 1-15 are everywhere in low-mid grade, and some issues even in high grade, but the prices have stayed high and gone higher for years. There is no way these books sell for anywhere near guide. I track them on ebay and in auctions, and even in uber-expensive Heritage, they rarely make guide in less than 7.0.

[the blob]

this one sold for over guide:

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/CGC-3-5-BATMAN-50-Co...1QQcmdZViewItem

 

Batman 1 is everywhere?

 

The other stuff turns up, but occasionally they sell for about guide, so that's how OPG justifies it. Not looking at the avergae being around 75-80% of guide.

 

Sadly, I think you get a better % of guide for Poor - Fair copies of many of these books than for a solid VG to Fine/VF slab. I'm always amazed by the prices I get when I put up some beat to heck 1940s Batman or Superman reader.

[PovertyRow]

this one sold for over guide:

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/CGC-3-5-BATMAN-50-Co...1QQcmdZViewItem

 

Batman 1 is everywhere?

 

The other stuff turns up, but occasionally they sell for about guide, so that's how OPG justifies it. Not looking at the avergae being around 75-80% of guide.

 

Sadly, I think you get a better % of guide for Poor - Fair copies of many of these books than for a solid VG to Fine/VF slab. I'm always amazed by the prices I get when I put up some beat to heck 1940s Batman or Superman reader.

 

Can anyone make out what the notation is? Looks like HEAVY writing something somthing.

 

If Neatstuff is tryng to clean up their act they better start writing out the notations in their text. I have a 17" flat panel display and an excellent graphics card and dammed if I can make out what the notation says. The scan is JUST small enough to

[Forbush-Man]

this one sold for over guide:

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/CGC-3-5-BATMAN-50-Co...1QQcmdZViewItem

 

Batman 1 is everywhere?

 

The other stuff turns up, but occasionally they sell for about guide, so that's how OPG justifies it. Not looking at the avergae being around 75-80% of guide.

 

Sadly, I think you get a better % of guide for Poor - Fair copies of many of these books than for a solid VG to Fine/VF slab. I'm always amazed by the prices I get when I put up some beat to heck 1940s Batman or Superman reader.

 

Can anyone make out what the notation is? Looks like HEAVY writing something somthing.

 

If Neatstuff is tryng to clean up their act they better start writing out the notations in their text. I have a 17" flat panel display and an excellent graphics card and dammed if I can make out what the notation says. The scan is JUST small enough to

 

I have a 21" flat panel: My is bigger than yours!

[PovertyRow]

I have a 21" flat panel: My is bigger than yours!

 

I am somewhat surprised. I thought you would have had at LEAST a 24". After all, size is often a substitute for technique.

 

[Forbush-Man]

I have a 21" flat panel: My is bigger than yours!

 

I am somewhat surprised. I thought you would have had at LEAST a 24". After all, size is often a substitute for technique.

 

 

[PovertyRow]

I have a 21" flat panel: My is bigger than yours!

 

I am somewhat surprised. I thought you would have had at LEAST a 24". After all, size is often a substitute for technique.

 

 

 

Your graciousness is most appreciated, in the classic definition of "appreciate".

[Forbush-Man]

I have a 21" flat panel: My is bigger than yours!

 

I am somewhat surprised. I thought you would have had at LEAST a 24". After all, size is often a substitute for technique.

 

 

 

Your graciousness is most appreciated, in the classic definition of "appreciate".

 

[PovertyRow]

I have a 21" flat panel: My is bigger than yours!

 

I am somewhat surprised. I thought you would have had at LEAST a 24". After all, size is often a substitute for technique.

 

 

 

Your graciousness is most appreciated, in the classic definition of "appreciate".

 

 

Screw you hippie.

 

And with that, let's leave this topic to its worthy purpose.

 

I tend to agree that Batman was an amazingly popular character. As time went on I believe DC increased output of the books to accomodate demand (as with Superman). End result? The books are more common - but in lesser grade. Real HG copies are still - how to put it - less than common.

[nearmint]

Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that Batman started out as quarterly, then moved to 6 times a year, meaning each issue had a longer shelf life than any issue of Detective, which has always been monthly.

[PovertyRow]

Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that Batman started out as quarterly, then moved to 6 times a year, meaning each issue had a longer shelf life than any issue of Detective, which has always been monthly.

 

Yes, as Kakapo said, being a quartely may have had something to do with it. But still would mean an increased print run per issue to accomodate the demand.

 

It would be interesting to compare any known quarterly press run numbers to Batman.