Heroes Convention 2006 Report

[sterlingcomics]

Introduction

 

I originally planned not to go to the convention, but at the last minute decided to go. Today's events spanned over a meager three hours, but I had a good time nonetheless. The event didn't open to the public until around 11am...so there was no rush to get started early. I ended up going with the wife and kids, but luckily my wife agreed to watch the kids in the outter sanctum of the convention center while I went in. I had looked at the event layout at the web site the night before and scouted out vendors of interest, which would prove valuable in saving time as I didn't want to leave my wife alone with the kids for an extended period of time. Luckily, there was a Starbucks and plenty of escalators to keep everyone from getting too bored.

 

Prior to entering the hall, I first got the regular goodies, which included a guide to the convention, a poster containing the Marvel Zombies #1 cover, and a few other items. I proceeded down the escalators and into Hall C. The last time I went to the Heroes Convention was in 2002, and it seemed better organized this time around. First, there was the artist's alley, which is where I saw most of the activity later in the day before I left. The other half of the convention was all geared to comic vendors and such, which made the foot traffic more manageable.

 

So, first order of business was to quickly circle the camp and just take in the scene. I proceeded to one end of the wall and worked back. The first thing that I recognized is that there were a larger number of dealers with a good amount of CGC stock available. I'm not talking about a number of bling bling books, I'm talking about boxes of CGC books. One dealer, which primarily delt with Moderns, was almost exclusively CGC based. The prices were great too, starting at $7.95 and up. I continued up and down the rows, noting those that may be of interest for a follow up visit.

 

After turning the corner I saw something colorful catch my eye. I looked up and there was the CGC booth. Weird, I noted, as I had checked the exhibitor's list multiple times and didn't see CGC's name on the list. It would've been nice to submit some of my books there but no biggie. I introduced myself to Gemma and the rest of the gang behind the counter. Mind you I've been hounding Gemma on and off for the last few weeks as there has been a few problems getting books entered in the Registry...she was friendly and courteous, as always. After a few minutes of discussion I started a plan of attack on going to specific dealer booths.

 

Next post: The Dealers.

[HULKTOM]

I talked with the dealer who had the 7 dollar CGC books. And these were books that were 9.8 also, not some Hulk 299 in a 3.0 or something. They were all moderns but really good deals. As a dealer, it costs like 13 bucks a piece for grading. So I asked him why he was selling them for the price he had. He told me that he deals with his CGC books like Walmart, after Christmas, you have to clear the shelves. I looked at the hulks and the were mostly from the Hulk Grey series, multiple issues (included a 9.9) and about another dozen from the third series (48-77) Unfortunately, I had them all already. Very nice guy to talk to. Crazy Ed wanted $125.00 (plus a reader copy that was a VG at best) for a CGC 9.6 Hulk 340. He lowered it to $100 but I've seen it go for $70 tops at other auctions. I also noticed this with other CGC books from other dealers there. Some books, where I had gotten for $200, dealers were asking up to $100 more (they were willing to hagle but they weren't going to drop $100). Also, I'm not a dealer myself so, if it was my job to sell comics, I'm sure I would be the same way. Went by the CGC booth and dropped a couple off for reslabs. Gemma dyed her hair red. Best thing I got was the Bowen Hulk Statue. After that, I was pretty much done. BTW, Rosario Dawson is Hot!

[sterlingcomics]

The Dealers

 

As you guys know, I'm not an OA fan so the Artist Alley was pretty much ignored for the most part. I did walk through to see some of the sketches and such and they did look great--just not my thing.

 

As I perused the dealers the first go round, I immediately struck vendors off my visit list that met the following criteria:

• Dealer with little material
  
• Dealer that looked unorganized or unmarked or only had 50cent/$1 bin boxes

My reasoning is simple: I am a high grade collector, so I know the books I may want won't be found in the BINs. Secondly, I wasn't about to give myself a headache and go through random piles of comics to see if there was something there that I liked.

 

My first stop was Dale Roberts Comics (www.dalerobertscomics.com). His multi-booth set up was very professionally done. Although he was the only one working the booth at the time, he was very efficient in terms of answering any questions. Although his prices were a little high (whose isn't at cons), he had quite a few nice books along the DC horror line. I almost bit on a House of Mystery #217 that was centered perfectly but a ding in the corner made it a 9.2. He had three or so Our Army at War CGC 9.4 or better copies, but they were out priced for me. He said he was willing to negotiate, but I simply wasn't motivated enough to start that conversation. Very friendly guy though; I hope to do business with him at some point in the future.

 

I then stopped by the Toon Tumblers booth and saw both Paul and arexcooke there manning the booth. I haven't seen arexcooke since the one day con in Charlotte a year or so ago, so we spent some time getting caught up in our collecting adventures. I took one look at the X-men tumbler dozen set and I was hooked. I told them that I would be back before I left.

 

I then stopped by Harley Yee's booth, as I was fairly certain if anyone would have some decent high grade stuff, Harley would have it. A quick survey of his set up indicated that he had brought a little of everything, from Gold Key to precode to silver/bronze age. I introduced myself and simpy asked if he had anything I would be interested in. He handed to me some nice VF/NM or better House of Mystery books but unfortunately none of which that was on my hit list. He also had a Weird War Tales #11 CGC 9.4 (which I already have) and some nice high grade CGC Weird Western Tales. He seemed to be busy prepping his booth as he simply went back to work without additional discussion. Before leaving I did check out his Gold Key inventory and saw some very nice raw Twilight Zone File Copies. There was quite a few that looked NM or NM+, but at $100+ per book it was way over my price point for that title.

 

I then went over to hang out at Heroes and Dragons...as usual Chris was talking up a storm; this time he was discussing with some others about some real estate deals. Again, I quickly surveyed his inventory and realized that I wasn't probably going to find anything on my list there in grade.

 

I had e-mailed Sal and indicated I would probably be at the con; he had suggested that he would be at the finecomics table at around 2pm or so...I casually walked by (the booth was busy) and didn't see he was there.

 

I remember PGX being on the list, but was perplexed why I haven't seen their table yet. I found their table and saw that in their very small booth they had Daniel and two other employees. I talked to them for a few minutes about the features of their product; I've always felt good about the quality of the case. We also talked about SCS...they in fact had a CGC case with SCS to show customers coming by. By chance Wes Hagen was also at the con and was in the PGX booth when I came up. I have been purchasing books from Wes on eBay for quite some time, so we spent a few minutes talking. Wes was amazed that I was about the 4th or 5th person who came up who not only bought books from but was also in search of high quality material.

 

I quickly surveyed other dealers but found that the situation was very similar: most books were in the VF/VF+ range (priced to NM- or worse) but unlike in 2002 I did see some nice VF/NM or better books; they simply were not on my buy list.

 

Next post: Interesting observations, my purchases, and conclusions

[Forbush-Man]

[sterlingcomics]

Interesting Observations

 

• I didn't notice a LOT of video dealers there, but the ones I did see seem to be pawning off fanboy material and not copyrighted material.
  
• I didn't see half naked women doing signing of their latest playboy shoot.
  
• I noticed fewer dealers with toy related merchandising.
  
• One vendor, whose advertisement is below, had a prototype of a plastic encasment of comics that allow for it to be displayed. Interestingly, they didn't have product to sell, only prototypes. I believe they were trying to gauge the market.

 

 

Last Post: Purchases and Opinion

[whomerjay]

Not sure we were at the same convention, but you probably ahve more of a trained eye. I was generally disappointed due to the numerous dealers hawking low grade raw GA at NM prices and some (Sci-Fi) at multiples of NM. Only a handful of truly nice GA CGC books, but I didn't have the energy to negotiate them back down to the stratosphere.

 

Perhaps there were some decent SA and BA there but I tune out after looking at what seems to be the same VG/F books 100 times.

 

Clearly the interest was in the $ boxes at this show. I saw almost no one handling wall books but at some tables saw agressive pulling from boxes.

 

A very indifferent guy was manning the Tomorrows Treasures booth. Had a lot of key desirable and not too shabby shape GA books but didn't seem interested in selling anything.

 

Some dealers with whom I enjoyed talking:

 

Boyd and his friend Ward of Black Cat comics. Boyd always has cool GA books. Low grade but some great sci-fi horror stuff.

 

Some guy named Paul from "Older than you comics" His claim was he actually had his books both graded and priced accurately (guide), which I had to admit was true and put him in a selct group of about 4 dealers there. Had some Avon Eeries and Fox and Fiction House that piqued my interest.

 

Met Dave Shankle for the first time. nice guy, had some VFish Planets that were raw that would have tempted me if slabbed.

 

 

By far the highlight of the show was hooking up wiht Arex (whom I met last Charlotte show) and meeting Sal, Dr. Banner, and Zonker (the NC crew) for the first time. Had a nice half hour chat, but could not join them for dinner as I had to head back home to Winston-Salem around 6:30.

 

Spent about $50 to get there, spent $10 on two GGA paperback trade-like books.

 

Oh well, off to the Forum Marketplace.

[sterlingcomics]

Here's some PGX material 1/2

 

[sterlingcomics]

Here's some PGX material 2/2

 

[sterlingcomics]

Not sure we were at the same convention, but you probably ahve more of a trained eye. I was generally disappointed due to the numerous dealers hawking low grade raw GA at NM prices and some (Sci-Fi) at multiples of NM.

 

Probably not the case. Like I said in the beginning, I didn't go to dealer's booths that looked low grade, and I wasn't hunting through the books...I simply asked "Show me the best copies you had" and on average they were VF+ to VF/NM. I used a different approach is all.

 

The few GA/precode books I did see looked beat up (as you had indicated). Also, I don't know if it was the lighting in there or not, but all of the books had a faded/"out in the sun too long" look.

 

I missed out on seeing Zonker, banner, and rahigh. For me (like you) the highlight was seeing some of the dealers and board members I haven't seen in a while (if ever).

[sterlingcomics]

Conclusions

 

IMHO, this show looked more balanced than my last Heroes Convention in 2002, and seemed to be firmly planted BACK into a comics/art show. That being said, it was difficult to find high grade material...let alone the price. To be honest I was looking for excuses NOT to buy as I had purchased the mother load from several board members in recent months and needed some recoup time.

 

In the end, I made NO comic purchase. I did swing back to Toon Tumblers and purchased a complete X-men glass set. I also purchased a Rocky/Bullwinkle glass as well (my wife REALLY WANTS a Sherman/Peabody glass). Lots of great compliments were being paid to these glasses while I was there; good job on those guys! If you counted in the fact that they discounted the set of glasses and gave me two Heroes Con Cap glasses, it essentially paid for my admission and three hours parking.

 

BTW, no sign of MH Chuck...anyone else see him?

 

I'll let this thread run this course with conversations/observations from other forum members.

 

[jonjesper]

I really need a set of those...here is hoping they will be at Chicago WW!

Good reports!

[whomerjay]

I simply asked "Show me the best copies you had" and on average they were VF+ to VF/NM. I used a different approach is all.

 

 

I ask this a few times every show. After a few proud presentations of F/VF books they think are NM, I stop.

 

I'm exaggerating, I'm sure there are a few dealers I could probably work with but I just don;t know them well enough.

 

I guess shows simply aren't for me as I want HG GA (i.e., 7.0 or better) and I won't buy a big ticket raw book. So I'm left considering a handful of CGC books, most of which have listed prices so high I won't try to counter.

[RickHigh]

I missed out on seeing Zonker, banner, and rahigh. For me (like you) the highlight was seeing some of the dealers and board members I haven't seen in a while (if ever).

 

Sterling,

 

I was looking for you at the show. Sorry I missed meeting you. It's funny that we live in the same city and have never met. Maybe you came by Chris Foss' booth when I was there, because he was talking real estate to me also.

 

I walked around a little with Arex, Banner and Sal, but got side-tracked somewhere along the line and couldn't get up with them again. Talked a little with Don Rosa. Nice guy. It's funny how much he reminds me of Scrooge.

 

Dale Roberts had some nice books and agreed to put a couple on hold for me, so I'll be sending him a check later this month (note to Mike: after we talked, I went back and picked up a couple of books from him!!!)

 

Spent most of my time (and all of my money) in Harley's booth. He really had some nice stuff. He was talking about how Heroes seems like a true comic book show. No celebrities, half-naked women and such; mostly just comics and comic related items. Anyway, he refused to let me leave his booth until I spent all my money with him. I picked up some nice books that I'll try and post later in the RIX COMIX thread.

 

I though it was a nice day at the con, because it wasn't too crowded, although there were plenty of people there. I think Saturday will be a mob.

 

I had bought a three day ticket, but am not sure I'll make it back for the other two days. All in all, it was a great day at Heroes!!

 

Rick

[comicartfan]

BTW, Rosario Dawson is Hot!

[HouseofComics.Com]

Sterling, I know you've solicited opinions on Harley's grading before so now that you've looked at his stuff I'm curious what you think now?

 

Marc

[ShoNuff-migration]

Here's some PGX material 2/2

 

The Label

A security hologram is placed on the back of the inner holder. This helps guarantee that no one could duplicate the inner holder.

 

The Security hologram

A security hologram is placed on the back of the inner holder. This helps guarantee that no one could duplicate the inner holder.

 

[adamstrange]

Here's some PGX material 2/2

 

The Label

A security hologram is placed on the back of the inner holder. This helps guarantee that no one could duplicate the inner holder.

 

The Security hologram

A security hologram is placed on the back of the inner holder. This helps guarantee that no one could duplicate the inner holder.

 

 

The was no editor, however, to prevent the duplicate wording about the prevention of duplication.

[sterlingcomics]

Sterling, I know you've solicited opinions on Harley's grading before so now that you've looked at his stuff I'm curious what you think now?

 

Marc

 

To be honest, I didn't see a grade on his label...but based on the prices I'd say he was either on the money or one grade higher (ie saying it was NM and it was really NM-). Nothing beats being able to put the book in your hand. So, I'd say that his grading is good, but I would need a safety net.

 

Like I said, I probably would've purchased some of the HG GK Twilight Zones but I'm simply not paying $100 for a raw book when Heritage is selling them for much cheaper for certified copies.

[drbanner]

Dale Roberts had some nice books and agreed to put a couple on hold for me, so I'll be sending him a check later this month (note to Mike: after we talked, I went back and picked up a couple of books from him!!!)

[drbanner]

drbanner's Heroes Con report (my 15th Consecutive Heroes Con!)

 

Zonker and I headed down at the same time as the last two years, but with all the advance notice from Shelton about how much bigger the show was going to be this year, I was a little concerned about the line to get in. Until about 4-5 years ago, they had their ticket system totally out of whack and you would sometimes have to wait in line at least an hour just to get your ticket, then get in a different line to actually get in. The line to get in seemed much bigger this year, but we showed up at around 10:45, got our tickets, and were in the convention by around 11:10, no complaints so far!

 

A few random observations:

 

The convention floor was packed wall to wall with booths, but I'd say there was probably about the same number of vintage comic dealers as last year, but a whole lot more floorspace dedicated to guests (artists, writers, studios). A few sword dealers, card dealers, toy/game dealers, etc.,.

 

PGX was there, and while their booth was small it did look professional. When I stopped by, there were 3 employees wearing matching PGX-issued polos, they had examples of their graded books, submission forms, etc.,. There were lots of PGX slabbed books scattered throughout the dealer's stock as well, not as many as CGC, but more than I would have expected. CGC hasn't raised their submission fees in a good long while, have they?

 

Chuck R. was there...pouring over the dollar boxes, and he actually appeared to be working off a checklist? Dunno, maybe he was looking for moderns?

 

Arex and I stopped by and talked to Don Rosa for a while, not about his work, but about his collection! To paraphrase, Don indicated he was more than happy to sell his 9.6's and 9.8's to "investors", but was equally happy to sell his unslabbed books to "true collectors". We asked when he might sell his pre-1970 books, and it didn't sound like it would be any time soon as he had more of an emotional attachment to his earlier books.

 

I was hoping to be able to add a Trimpe or Buscema Hulk page to my fledgling Hulk OA collection, but nothing struck my fancy and there weren't many OA dealers (outside of the guests and their reps). However, one dealer had an amazing selection of vintage art...I pondered picking up the great Buscema splash page to Hulk 231, but refrained. He also had some early Kirby work (FF #3!), and several Adams and Wrightson pages from Detective, House of Mystery, Swamp Thing, etc.,. that were very, very cool. Too pricey for my tastes, but very neat to see.

 

Since Zonker and I were driving back to Raleigh after the show (3-hr drive), we headed up to the Pizza joint around 6:30 so we could hit the road before it got too late, and were joined shortly thereafter by Arex, Buttock (ask him about the IRS collection!), silverandbronze, stronguy, etc.,.. I met up with whomerjay and rahigh during the con, but they didn't join us for dinner. Sadly, I missed out on meeting Sterling so we'll have to try again next year. I did learn that my "longest known" forum member is actually Paul (silverandbronze), who was a participant on the Usenet comic message boards with me back in the pre-ebay days! More forum members filtered in after the show ended, and I apologize for having to leave and not introducing myself to everyone...sorry guys, maybe next year.

 

As with every show I go to, it only takes one or two dealers with one or two cool books to make it a successful show, and for me, a success it was!

 

Here are two nice GA Cole books I picked up from Dale Roberts:

 

I didn't go to the show looking for this book, but it came from a trusted dealer (infrequent forum member capt_comics) and was too nice to pass up!