Universal Monster Army

Here's a thread to discuss comic book collecting and post pics of your books from any genre. Let us know what comics you collect, your collecting style, old collecting stories from childhood and beyond, or anything else related to collecting comics.

And, by all means, post pics of your comic books and comic book related items!


My copy of Gorgo #1 from Charlton:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/1949/30628009897_187c542a0f_b.jpg)

I tried logging in with Internet Explorer instead of Chrome and apparently I can again post pics on UMA. Chrome flagged UMA as "Not Secure" but IE doesn't worry about it evidently. IE probably isn't as safe as Chrome but in UMA's case it isn't that concerning.

Hey, that's a nice copy! Where did you buy it? How long have you had it?

???

Quote from: Hepcat on April 24, 2020, 11:19:49 PM
Hey, that's a nice copy! Where did you buy it? How long have you had it?

???

I won an eBay auction for it around 5 or 6 years ago. As I remember I scored it pretty cheaply, less than $30 as I recall. It's in FN by Overstreet standards but with the loose grading running rampant with most sellers they would probably call it VF. CGC would probably grade it anywhere from 6.0 to 7.0 and PGX would call it gods-know-what...maybe 8.0 or even higher.  :laugh:

I hit the Gorgos and Kongas hard back around that time and finished both runs using eBay auctions. Got pretty lucky and got some good deals on 'em. I loved those two series as a kid and they became a priority for me as a collector, but for years at cons I only ever found a few low grade issues. eBay auctions really paid off after a few years of saved searches.

Quote from: horrorhunter on April 24, 2020, 11:31:45 PMI hit the Gorgos and Kongas hard back around that time and finished both runs using eBay auctions. Got pretty lucky and got some good deals on 'em. I loved those two series as a kid and they became a priority for me as a collector, but for years at cons I only ever found a few low grade issues. eBay auctions really paid off after a few years of saved searches.

Gorgos, Kongas, in fact any Charlton comics in high grade from before 1970 are extremely difficult to find, partially because Charltons were so cheaply printed. I stumbled across basically no nice Charltons in comic shops and comicons prior to 1990's - just the usual plethora of Marvel comics plus what I regarded as recent Bronze Age comics.

:(

Which issues of your Gorgo and Konga comics are in the best grade?

???

Quote from: Hepcat on April 25, 2020, 09:27:03 AM
Which issues of your Gorgo and Konga comics are in the best grade?

???

None are in high grade by strict Overstreet standards. Most are in mid-grade with a couple of the earlier issues being in the GOOD range. Some of the later ones are in the FN range or better. I upgraded all of the real beaters some time ago and I'm pleased with the runs as they stand. That said, if I pick up some lots in future I'll upgrade as opportunity presents itself, I'm just not paying high prices to take a G up to a FN.

I'm not a herd-runner concerning the current comic book collecting community. I don't spend an arm and a leg for comics and I don't mind having mid-grade issues. I won't pay extra for a book just because it's slabbed (I usually crack them out anyway). I don't pay the ridiculous price spreads for high grade books- for me a strictly graded VF is very close to being as desirable as a NM (or the mythical 10.0). I don't collect Modern comics, or many from pretty much the last 30 years. I just want to complete runs from the Bronze and earlier with complete mid-grade copies or better (FN-VF is the sweet spot). I don't get books slabbed to keep. I think giving big prices for slabbed Modern variants borders on the ridiculous. Also, I think this mania for pressing and cleaning to resubmit for a "grade bump" is folly. To me a 9.4 is just a desirable as a 9.8 and I think the price differences in the marketplace between the nit-picky upper grades are insanity. It just depends on the 3rd party grader's state of mind that day whether a comic gets assigned a 9.6 or 9.8 (and sometimes a 9.4), or if he actually damages the book by handling it and rifling through the pages to move on to the next book and soak the customer for the next 20 bucks or whatever.

I didn't mean to rant. I'm just on a different page than most current collectors. I watch You Tube comic book auctions for entertainment and find myself eye-rolling frequently. They do their thing and I do mine.

Hep, only the first paragraph is in response to your question. The rest is really just to make conversation about comic book collecting. It isn't intended to inflame an argument or dismiss other people's collecting styles. What's best for some just isn't for others.

Quote from: horrorhunter on April 25, 2020, 10:48:55 AMI'm not a herd-runner concerning the current comic book collecting community. I don't spend an arm and a leg for comics and I don't mind having mid-grade issues. I won't pay extra for a book just because it's slabbed (I usually crack them out anyway). I don't pay the ridiculous price spreads for high grade books- for me a strictly graded VF is very close to being as desirable as a NM (or the mythical 10.0). I don't collect Modern comics, or many from pretty much the last 30 years. I just want to complete runs from the Bronze and earlier with complete mid-grade copies or better (FN-VF is the sweet spot). I don't get books slabbed to keep. I think giving big prices for slabbed Modern variants borders on the ridiculous. Also, I think this mania for pressing and cleaning to resubmit for a "grade bump" is folly. To me a 9.4 is just a desirable as a 9.8 and I think the price differences in the marketplace between the nit-picky upper grades are insanity. It just depends on the 3rd party grader's state of mind that day whether a comic gets assigned a 9.6 or 9.8 (and sometimes a 9.4), or if he actually damages the book by handling it and rifling through the pages to move on to the next book and soak the customer for the next 20 bucks or whatever.

I didn't mean to rant. I'm just on a different page than most current collectors. I watch You Tube comic book auctions for entertainment and find myself eye-rolling frequently. They do their thing and I do mine.

I'm with you. What got me into collecting was simple nostalgia. I've always tended to go after the items that prompted the strongest feelings of nostalgia within my psyche, meaning those that I remember either having or wanting badly as a kid.

I buy what I really want when I can afford it. Then I put it on display or file it properly in a binder and just keep it indefinitely. I pay no attention to the "value" of what I've bought. My stuff isn't for sale. Collecting to me is not about prices/values. It's about the psychic benefit I get from my items. Call it a compulsion if you will, but I'd rather spend any spare time and money I might have accumulating more items than navel gazing, i.e. analyzing my motives.

Nor do I have any use or empathy with the current craze for slabbing comics, magazines and cards. I want them all raw the way I had them as a kid. Granted, I do want my comics and cards to be "new" looking, but my grading and aesthetic standards often differ from those of the grading companies. And I think it's insane to pay ten times the price for a 9.6 because it's the "best known" copy when a 9.2 looks just as good to an arms-length disinterested observer. I guess the comics in my collection range in condition from Fine/VF to NM.

Charltons though are particularly tough to find in nice grade. Taking into consideration scarcity, condition and the aesthetics of the cover, here in alphabetical order are the half dozen Charltons from my collection that I like the best:

2

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/03-06-201185625PM.jpg)

2

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=14407)

14

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Gorgo14.jpg)

15

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Gorgo15.jpg)

38

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/SpaceAdventures38.jpg)

77

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-06-201195241PM.jpg)

8)

Beautiful copies of those issues, Hep! Yes, Charltons are very difficult to find in high grade. Most of mine are in mid with a few in low and a handful in high.

Regarding grading, I've become very tolerant of mid-grade books in the last few years. When I was a kid I had a couple of pretty good stacks of comics that I read to death and enjoyed immensely. Some of my fondest memories of comics were those old stacks I would dive into for years and lose myself in the wonder of it all. Then, in 1975 I became a collector and started hunting back issues at conventions, flea markets, and used book stores, as well as buying new issues off-the-rack. Sadly, many of my older beat-up copies from childhood (many coverless) were gotten rid of. I've replaced many of the issues I had as a kid over the years, in addition to completing favorite titles. Most of the comics in my collection are actually in high grade because I bought so many new off-the-rack and sought out the best copies when buying from dealers back when everything was cheap. But, since back issue prices have gotten so ridiculously expensive I'm satisfied with mid-grade copies to fill runs. Flaws give comics character, they speak to the history of that copy and the enjoyment it's given people through it's life. And some flaws speak to the history of comics in general like subscription creases, arrival dates, distributors' paint over-spray, and store stamps. These days I value all of that.

I still strive for the best condition I can find, but I had rather spend $25 on a VF copy than $100 on a NM, and then use the $75 saved to buy 3 more VF issues (or 10 more VG/FN, or whatever). And I'm certainly not going to pay money for slabbing that could be used to buy more comics or other collectibles. That's just my choice. Most other current collectors have different ideas and that's okay for them.

With so few people actually posting on UMA anymore it's really difficult to stir up some conversation these days. I know a few other members collect comics. Maybe someone else will chime in with their style of collecting. If this topic draws much interest it could warrant a thread of it's own I guess, unless there's already a comic book collecting thread hidden in UMA somewhere.

I have collected comics since I was a kid. I grew up reading old Silver Age DC comics like Batman, Superman, Action Comics, Detective Comics, Justice League and Worlds Finest. Only a few had covers, and years later I found upgraded copies to collect. I had Neal Adams sign my favorite Batman and Superman issues from that time, along with a Tomb of Dracula #1 that I had as a spare. I started buying Tomb of Dracula in the early 80s so I was able to put together a great set cheaply, before #1 and #10 went up to $400 each.

Grade matters mainly for my favorite books AND if I can upgrade cheaply.

Looks like we have some comic book collecting conversation here. If Mike Scott would do the honors maybe we could persuade him to move the previous posts up to the Gorgo #1 post to a new thread I'm starting in General Discussion called Comic Book Collecting. That way we could discuss comic collecting in general as well as post comics of any genre from our collections. Hepcat would have a place to post his comic scans that were lost in "The Great Purge" (of which the less said the better  ;)).

Mike moved the posts for us to get things rolling with this new thread. Thanks, Mike!

Anyone interested in comic collecting please contribute as you wish. I look forward to some good discussion and cool pics.  8)

Quote from: horrorhunter on April 26, 2020, 12:25:46 PMAnd some flaws speak to the history of comics in general like subscription creases, arrival dates, distributors' paint over-spray, and store stamps. These days I value all of that.

I looked over my Charlton Konga, Gorgo, Captain Atom and Blue Beetle comics this evening and the only one that I could find with a date stamp was this one:

17

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/Gorgo17Bethlehem.jpg)

:)

Awesome news. I'll take some pics of some of my Tomb of Dracula issues and scan my Neal Adams signed #1. I got to meet Marv Wolfman, the man behind the Dracula issues #7 through 70 and got to get some signed stuff from him as well. He was an interesting fellow that had a fresh take on Dracula so I'm glad I got to tell him it was my favorite comic book series ever. Then, I put my foot in it telling him how I hated the way DC and Marvel would restart the continuity. I forgot that he wrote Crisis on Infinite Earths, the first DC reboot. Don't worry, he reminded me pretty quickly.

I also collected the Monster of Frankenstein but it didn't last long enough to really get going. My opinion is they ruined it when they brought him into the present day.

I'm very pleased to see a thread devoted to collecting! Since I'm not a fan of slabbed comics I haven't participated in other internet discussion groups which seem to be focused on those books. I started collecting in 1965 and have bought and sold  a great number of comics and original art over the years. I have large collections of Marvel, DC , ME, Fiction House and Charlton.  My favorite character is the western Ghost Rider  and am fortunate to own complete runs of Tim Holt, ME Ghost Rider , Best of the West,  and the pertinent issues of B-Bar-B Riders and Black Phantom.

Another niche I'm fascinated by are the comic books featuring underwater scenes or issues devoted to diving. I have complete runs of Sea Hunt, Frogmen, Frogman, Undersea Fighting Commandos, and a long box full horror, war and superhero books with related covers or stories.

The holy grails on my want list are Captain America Comics 26, and Exciting Comics 28, two books with Schomburg diving covers. A copy of the Cap book is listed on eBay right now but the cost is prohibitive. Another "impossible dream" is to find the original art ( or stats at least) of the unpublished ME Ghost Rider stories. Dick Ayers confirmed they were completed, but were never published as the Comics Code killed the book in the 50's. In speaking with Bill Black (AC Comics) on the subject he believes the art was destroyed years ago.

Two questions for fellow collectors: 1) How do you handle storage? I have a room full of comics and am running out of places to store new purchases. 2) Is there a comic convention devoted to comics? I gave up on San Deigo after 1993 when it was clear the convention had become a celebration of culture rather than just comics (anybody else remember the good ol days at the Cortez?) I'd really like to attend a convention where there are just rows and rows of long boxes awaiting!

Other things on my mind at the moment are the necessity of slabbed books due to unidentified restoration ( like Hulk 181 with a variety of "creative" additions of the  missing MVS) and the current rise of photocopied books produced because their content has fallen into public domain. Is that practice really a good thing ?

I've rambled long enough for one post,  but I was very happy to see this thread and am always eager to talk comics with other collectors.

RF

Quote from: Rex fury on April 27, 2020, 09:32:44 AM1) How do you handle storage? I have a room full of comics and am running out of places to store new purchases.

My "really good" comics are all in Bill Cole Arklites backed by Thin X-Tender boards or else Gerber Mylites backed by Half-Backs. I've not yet bagged and boarded my magazine collection in the same way though but that's my intention.

Here from a few years ago are pictures of me in front of my comic cabinet and the magazine cabinet beside it:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/HepcatComicsLazyBoy.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/HepcatCurioComics.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Hepcatcheckingcomics.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/ComicRoomCurioFilingCab.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/ComicRoom.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/ComicLeftFileCab.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/ComicsLeftSide.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/UpperLeftComics.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Lowerleftcomics-Copy.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/StyxComics.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/StxyComics2.jpg)

I've not yet Mylited my magazine collection though. I've run out of Mylites and Halfbacks and need to put in an order for several hundred comic ones and probably a thousand magazine ones. Hopefully that will be sufficient for at least another ten years.

The two lateral filing cabinets within which I keep my comics and magazine collection are made by Global. They're five high 42" wide cabinets that will hold more than 2750 comics at full capacity. The cost of each was over $1000 and I had to pay about $100 extra to get a flip top instead of a regular drawer at the bottom.

8)

Quote from: Hepcat on April 26, 2020, 09:01:15 PM
I looked over my Charlton Konga, Gorgo, Captain Atom and Blue Beetle comics this evening and the only one that I could find with a date stamp was this one:

17

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/Gorgo17Bethlehem.jpg)

:)

I love date stamps. For me they even add value to a book. Also, I appreciate arrival dates in ink, pencil, and grease pencil. But the stamp, when clearly present, is the best.

I thought of another printing error that is really cool- multiple covers. I have 5 or 6 double covers in my collection. I've heard of extra covers beyond just the double cover but I've never seen one. Also, I've never seen or heard of multiple covers on magazine size. One of my double covers is on a square-bound comic- Marvel's Fear #6. The extra cover isn't even attached to the book but fits so snugly it stays in place.

On a You Tube auction I saw the other day a double cover copy of a relatively inexpensive comic sold for around $160! They are scarce, but that price seems excessive to me. Of course the current values of most key issues seem excessive to me as well, but that's the market these days.

What are those magazine cabinets called, or where can you get them?

Quote from: Rex fury on April 27, 2020, 09:32:44 AM
Two questions for fellow collectors: 1) How do you handle storage? I have a room full of comics and am running out of places to store new purchases. 2) Is there a comic convention devoted to comics? I gave up on San Deigo after 1993 when it was clear the convention had become a celebration of culture rather than just comics (anybody else remember the good ol days at the Cortez?) I'd really like to attend a convention where there are just rows and rows of long boxes awaiting!

Other things on my mind at the moment are the necessity of slabbed books due to unidentified restoration ( like Hulk 181 with a variety of "creative" additions of the  missing MVS) and the current rise of photocopied books produced because their content has fallen into public domain. Is that practice really a good thing ?

Sounds like you have an excellent collection, Rex fury!

In response to your questions:

1) I use 1 mil Mylar bags for everything (Bill Cole Arklites) and books worth over $200-$300 get put inside a thick Mylar snug (still sealed in the Arklite). I think it's important to protect books from the air so I use tiny labels to seal the flaps. I also use backing boards that are acid-free throughout. At some point I'll be double-bagging all less expensive issues to save room, and the spines are better supported when double-bagged. Just make sure to use backing boards that are acid-free throughout (the cheaper backing boards with the acid-free buffer on one side won't protect the book in the back). I also have all of my magazines and digest-size books in the thin Mylar bags. I store my collection in acid-free boxes, and double stack the boxes on long tables 2 rows to each table.

2) I haven't been to a con in several years since I've been caring for my elderly mother. The last ones I regularly attended were various small toy shows and comic conventions in Knoxville TN, and the quarterly Atlanta Comic Convention (which was 90% comics and very little BS). I added a lot of good books to my collection over the years at that Atlanta con.

Re: slabbed books to detect resto: If I wanted an expensive book I couldn't inspect in person (every...damn...page), like from eBay, a slabbed copy would be preferable if you could trust the slabbers. CBCS is probably the best bet, CGC is still okay but their grading standards seem to have slipped a bit with the volume they do, and PGX has lost credibility with most collectors. I'm not a "slab guy" but at least you would have some indication of the resto or lack thereof. Of course if you trust the seller you ordered it from the point is moot.

Re: photocopied books: I see nothing wrong with it as long as it's represented correctly. I bought a $10 full size copy of the Eerie #1 ashcan because I didn't want to drop 2 grand for an original. As far as I'm concerned that completed my Eerie run because the only way I'll ever own an original Eerie #1 ashcan is if I trip over it cheaply from someone who didn't know what they had (fat chance since so few were made so Warren could secure legal ownership of the Eerie title name and piss off Myron Fass...who spitefully then named his company Eerie Publications).  :laugh:

The only TRUE comic con that is just about comics is Air Cap here in Wichita, KS. Zero media guests and plenty of Artists and Writers are there every year plus dealers that have comics.
https://www.aircapcomiccon.com/ (https://www.aircapcomiccon.com/)

Oafcon in Norman Ok comes in second. That con always has great Golden and Silver Age comics I never see elsewhere.

Quote from: Mike Scott on April 27, 2020, 12:20:29 PMWhat are those magazine cabinets called, or where can you get them?

They're called lateral filing cabinets. Mine are made by Global. They're available at Staples or any office supply store. They might have to order one to fit your specifications for height and colour. I had to custom order mine to get a flip top bottom section.

8)

Quote from: Hepcat on April 27, 2020, 12:51:31 PM
They're called lateral filing cabinets.

Thanks!  :)

I collect all kinds of comic books, from new to Platinum Age.  However, I think I'm going to forgo new titles except Action Comics, Detective Comics, Batman, and Superman, and concentrate more on Silver and Golden Age books.  The new stuff is just so...blah.

Quote from: Rex fury on April 27, 2020, 09:32:44 AM
Two questions for fellow collectors: 1) How do you handle storage? I have a room full of comics and am running out of places to store new purchases. 2) Is there a comic convention devoted to comics? I gave up on San Deigo after 1993 when it was clear the convention had become a celebration of culture rather than just comics (anybody else remember the good ol days at the Cortez?) I'd really like to attend a convention where there are just rows and rows of long boxes awaiting!

1) Bookshelves. I use standard backing boards and higher grade bags (Mylite 2). I go for the nicer bags mostly because they give a really nice gloss to the covers. I file them standing up on bookshelves, making sure to alternate the spines. This is less important on shelves, but I highly recommend it if you store them in boxes. Especially if you're not using backing boards. This helps prevent spine rolling.

2) In Michigan there's a smaller con called Great Lakes Comic-Con, which I really liked. It was mostly comics and comic vendors and I found some really good stuff at fair prices there.

I've been collecting off and on since I was a kid, but got serious when I started college. I even worked at a shop for about 6 years and that's what really opened my eyes to all the wondrous things out there. I collect a little of everything, but I've started to drop off on super hero stuff in recent years. I was just getting tired of recycled stories and nothing big ever happening, or books constantly getting cancelled and brought back.

Great comments and suggestions for storage options and the value of photocopied books. The one comic I've been considering in photocopied format is Startling Comics 49. Like many of us I love the Schomburg robot cover. I had an original copy, but parted with it several years ago. Unfortunately I wasn't impressed with the book's interior contents and didn't realize how much I'd miss  it. I get kind of a kick out of the fact that all the photocopied versions I've seen for sale are from the same single original copy-lol-

Anybody have a favorite golden age story?  Of all the choices out there I think mine is Young Allies 4. The story's villain is the Red Skull, Cap and the torch make guest appearances, while the kids ride their bikes to the scene of the crime! It's a mixture of superhero, kid gang , and horror genres. I really enjoy it.

Finally, thanks for the suggestions on comic conventions. I checked out the information on Oafcon and will try to get to Ok next fall assuming the con is happening .
RF

Here are scans of my first five issues of Marvel's Conan.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49829521948_47e76ab7d4_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49830056491_02b7f9e882_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49830059456_f7b99c434d_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49830062851_4fbdaacfab_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49829533868_46045cf2f0_b.jpg)

Conan is an excellent series which ran 275 issues, 12 Annuals, and 5 Giant-Size issues. I finally completed my run around 5 years ago after working on it since I started collecting in the 1975. Written by "Rascally" Roy "The Boy" Thomas adapted from and inspired by the great Robert E. Howard, drawn by Barry Smith (pre Windsor  ;D) and later "Big" John Buscema, the first decade of Marvel's Conan is a real joy for Sword & Sorcery Fans. It's generally accepted that Conan kicked off the Bronze Age of Comics, though there is the inevitable debate concerning this, however everyone at least agrees that Conan #1 is one of the books which started the Bronze Age in 1970. Conan's popularity also spawned the magazine Savage Sword Of Conan which ran 235 issues and 1 Annual, and was a big part of the mag Savage Tales, and a few issues of Marvel Treasury Edition. Later on other volumes of Conan were published including some good work by Dark Horse Comics.

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on April 28, 2020, 09:24:47 AMIn Michigan there's a smaller con called Great Lakes Comic-Con, which I really liked. It was mostly comics and comic vendors and I found some really good stuff at fair prices there.

I think the "Golden Age" of comicons may have been the early 1990's - at least in Toronto. In the 1980's the big shows in hotel convention halls didn't attract big-time dealers from the States and the selection of comics was generally limited to Silver Age Marvel and Bronze Age comics. As a collector of Silver Age DC and other less commonly found titles from the 1950's to the early 1960's, there were times when I ended up not buying anything for my collection. By the early 1990's though Harley Yee and Motor City Comics from Detroit were setting up at Toronto shows and I was finding lots of offerings to tempt me.

By early in the 21st century though the big Toronto comicon had rebranded itself as the Fan Expo and had gotten too big and unwieldy with the comic dealers "lost" in the crowd of booths offering everything and anything pop culture related. I now avoid the biggest shows and target only the smaller more specific comic shows.

:-\

I don't have a huge comic collection by any means, but one of my favorite sets is the Vault of Horror hardcover reprints from 1982. I got my copy several years after the fact, and it's still available, albeit at a much higher price than I paid:

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Vault-Horror-EC-Comics/dp/B002SRGO3A (https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Vault-Horror-EC-Comics/dp/B002SRGO3A)

Johnny Craig was my favorite artist of those guys, followed closely by Jack Davis!

Nice collections of Gorgo and Conan guys. In the Gorgo books I always enjoy Ditko's depiction of divers. While George Evans probably came the closest to drawing hard hat gear accurately (Piracy 7), Ditko had a way with underwater scenes that are just awesome to look at.
I'm a huge fan of Conan as well. I really enjoyed Barry Smith's run and early artwork. Unfortunately one of my least favorite memories is having Smith sign some early books for me. Apparently he isn't as fond of his early work and literally scribbled on a Conan 1 and an X-Men 53 that I'd ask him to sign. I was really disappointed ☹️. That being said, I still look for and enjoy his work from Silver/ Bronze Age Marvel and Gorblimy Press.
Anyone read the new Conan comic by a small publishing house (can't recall the company name)? I thought it was on par with the current Marvel output. I'm not a fan of having Conan in the Avengers, etc. The  smaller house did a great job of just adapting Howard.
I continue to enjoy this thread!
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on April 29, 2020, 10:18:49 AMI'm a huge fan of Conan as well. I really enjoyed Barry Smith's run and early artwork. Unfortunately one of my least favorite memories is having Smith sign some early books for me. Apparently he isn't as fond of his early work and literally scribbled on a Conan 1 and an X-Men 53 that I'd ask him to sign. I was really disappointed ☹️.

I'm not much into autographs anyway, but the last thing I'd ever get signed is a comic or magazine cover. I won't buy such a comic or magazine for my collection either.

:-\

Quote from: Doh! on April 28, 2020, 11:58:06 PM
I don't have a huge comic collection by any means, but one of my favorite sets is the Vault of Horror hardcover reprints from 1982. I got my copy several years after the fact, and it's still available, albeit at a much higher price than I paid:

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Vault-Horror-EC-Comics/dp/B002SRGO3A (https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Vault-Horror-EC-Comics/dp/B002SRGO3A)

Johnny Craig was my favorite artist of those guys, followed closely by Jack Davis!

Those slipcased EC hardcover reprints are great, Doh! Like you, I bought mine back in the day when they were much cheaper. I picked up the Vault Of Horror, Tales From The Crypt, and Haunt Of Fear sets and still treasure them. Wow, by that Amazon price I'm glad I didn't wait. Sheesh.

Here's some Johnny Craig goodness:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49834115687_87091f7718_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49834117602_136296a32c_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49833277323_28454ca756_b.jpg)

I only have 5 original ECs in my collection and I'm glad to have these 3 Vault Of Horror issues. Craig and Feldstein were great, but my favorites are Jack Davis and "Ghastly" Graham Ingels, and of course, the spectacular Frank Frazetta.

Quote from: Rex fury on April 29, 2020, 10:18:49 AM
I'm a huge fan of Conan as well. I really enjoyed Barry Smith's run and early artwork. Unfortunately one of my least favorite memories is having Smith sign some early books for me. Apparently he isn't as fond of his early work and literally scribbled on a Conan 1 and an X-Men 53 that I'd ask him to sign. I was really disappointed ☹️. That being said, I still look for and enjoy his work from Silver/ Bronze Age Marvel and Gorblimy Press.
Anyone read the new Conan comic by a small publishing house (can't recall the company name)? I thought it was on par with the current Marvel output. I'm not a fan of having Conan in the Avengers, etc. The  smaller house did a great job of just adapting Howard.
I continue to enjoy this thread!
RF

I have a few signed books but they are from back when the 1st page was signed instead of the cover the way they do now. A signed front cover I'm not really interested in, especially at the prices artists charge these days. I prefer Barry Smith's earlier work from the '70s to his later stuff.

I agree that Conan should stay in his own REH Hyborian Age with bloody violence, scantily clad wenches, evil magic, and monsters! Too much reimagining has been done over the past 40 years in comics and it's led to a lot of goofy storytelling. I haven't bought new comics in years, but some of the best more-recent ones I bought regularly were the Dark Horse Conan issues.

I don't really collect autographs, and the few singed things I own were signed and personalized in person (I realize that's a no-no for the hardcore collector... but I don't care). My favorite of these is Will Eisner's Comics and Sequential Art. I was at San Diego Comic-Con in the early 90s and caught him in the hallway. Got to chat with him for a minute or so, and when I asked him to sign my book he asked, "Would you like me to personalize it?" I jumped at the chance! And he didn't charge me a penny.

I get that autographs are a big business now, what with the kids flipping merchandise for a profit. But I miss the old days of keeping things as mementos.

Quote from: horrorhunter on April 27, 2020, 11:36:42 AMI love date stamps. For me they even add value to a book. Also, I appreciate arrival dates in ink, pencil, and grease pencil. But the stamp, when clearly present, is the best.

I have seven Adventures of the Fly issues with date stamps in my collection. Here are the scans:

6 Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Fly6.jpg)

7 Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-06-201172346PM.jpg)

8 Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-06-201172349PM.jpg)

12 Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182826PM.jpg)

14 Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182832PM.jpg)

15

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/01-08-2012122124AM.jpg)

16 Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/01-08-2012122128AM.jpg)

8)

This is my original off-the-rack copy of the America's Best TV Comics 1-shot.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49838158853_fa59aac0d9_b.jpg)

It was purchased OTR during the summer of 1967 by my 8 year old self. It survived the kid-wars of the '60s in rugged VG (4.0) condition. It's a Silver Age square-bound 25 cent cover price piece of my life that I wouldn't take anything for.

I regularly watched these cartoons, as well as reading Fantastic Four and Amazing Spider-Man quite frequently. For Christmas in '67 my parents bought the MPC King Kong Jungle Set for me, so that's yet another personal link to the comic.

This issue was published to promote the cartoons. It was packaged by Marvel in conjunction with ABC and distributed by Marvel's distributer. The cover art is either Kirby or Larry Lieber's work in Kirby's style. Inker may have been Sinnott or Giacoia. That small FF inset illo is legit Jack Kirby.

Great minds think alike! I just remembered and then purchased a new copy of ABTVC. It arrived in the mail today.  Oddly enough my copy has almost the same small corner cover bend as yours...

A fun book, although I'd like to know why Marvel used Spidey 42 in both this comic and as the small attachment to Esquire  magazine? 
RF

Here are pics of some of my Turok, Son Of Stone issues:

#1 (Four Color #596, 1954)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49839008847_c43de1ec5f_b.jpg)

#3 (Turok's first issue in his own title)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/397/32832356916_835bae4e6d_b.jpg)

#38
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49838169223_7c0fa8c86b_b.jpg)

#58
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49838171468_ccda1870f1_b.jpg)

Giant Size 1-shot
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49838715246_4d01a5b851_b.jpg)

French Version #4
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49839020907_e92f371e83_b.jpg)

I grew up a Monster Kid and a Dino Kid. I bought many Turoks back in the mid to late '60s as well as dino issues of Star Spangled War Stories and just about anything with a dinosaur on the cover. Those all got read to death but I never lost my love for dinosaur comics, especially Turok, so a few years ago I set about completing the run. I love those Dell/Gold Key painted covers. That #38 is my favorite issue along with the Giant Size 1. #58 is another favorite that I had an OTR copy of as a kid.

I have the complete run of 1-130, the Giant, and the Golden Digest issue. The first issue is only in G (2.0), but most of my early issues are in mid-grade with a few in low, and the later issues are in mid-high grade. I upgraded all of the real beaters as I went, so everything is at least in G now. That French #4 is the only foreign Turok I own.

The one with the aliens is cool!  :)  I like the way the scene on the cover of the Giant Size issue is lit by the fire!

I have six Tales of the Unexpected comics featuring Space Ranger and the delectable Myra with date stamps in my collection. Here are the scans:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/TalesoftheUnexpected51.jpg)

Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/TalesoftheUnexpected53.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/TalesoftheUnexpected58.jpg)

Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/TalesoftheUnexpected59.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/TalesoftheUnexpected60.jpg)

Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/TalesoftheUnexpected66.jpg)

8)

"You're fired, Cryll!"

Nice covers! Look like fun comics.

Quote from: Hepcat on May 02, 2020, 11:03:43 AM
I have six Tales of the Unexpected comics featuring Space Ranger and the delectable Myra with date stamps in my collection.

Beautiful copies and glorious date stamps!

I have heard more and more collectors in the last few years state their appreciation for date stamps. Many years ago an arrival date on the cover was treated as more of a defect (and still probably is for slabbers and their grades in the high "9s"), but for many nowadays a date stamp adds to the desirability of the copy. With certain abnormalities like multiple covers and Mark Jeweler inserts adding substantially to the market value of comics in the current marketplace I wouldn't be surprised to see copies with neat date stamps actually trading at a higher value.

Even defects such as store stamps, previous owners names written on or in the comic, distributor paint overspray, and *shudder* subscription creases seem to be gaining collector interest these days. I have examples of all of these in my collection and I appreciate them for their importance to the history of that particular issue and comics in general. Yeah, I know Overstreet lists a subscription crease as a defect commonly associated with a G/VG (3.0) copy, but I still kind of dig 'em.

Current collectors are finding interest in variant comics such as foreign editions, and reprints such as Whitman variants of Gold Key and Modern Comics variants of Charltons. I have several of each of these and they add variety and interest to the collection.

Regardless of what price guides say, out in the real world of the comic book marketplace at cons, flea markets, and comic shops, something unusual often sells at a premium. If enough collectors start paying more for certain things like double covers and Mark Jeweler inserts, then that raises the perceived values for those variations for everyone...prices go up.

Here are scans of a couple of my Mystery in Space comics with date stamps:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/MysteryinSpace56.jpg)

Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/15-10-201145715PM.jpg)

8)

I'm enjoying all the action and thrills in these colorful covers you've posted in reply.

I was never able to maintain such a collection as a boy. Mother would periodically destroy them
whenever I misbehaved. Precious few survived those sweeps >

(https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/800x600q90/923/vUvPun.jpg)

I also managed to find a good hiding place for this >

(https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/800x600q90/924/8u5o3D.jpg)

The front and back covers would crumble without the reinforcement of tape although the inside
pages are all perfectly intact.

(https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/800x600q90/922/cBleeq.jpg)

Who needs the inside though? The real drama is in that amazing cover spread!

(https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/800x600q90/924/B6gCk0.jpg)

Some of my early Fantastic Four issues:

30-32
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850863232_b2fc066961_b.jpg)

33-35
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850565671_897c631acb_b.jpg)

36-38
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850032538_a56d1f5d40_b.jpg)

I read the FF on and off as a kid, and it was one of my favorite Superhero titles. When I started buying back issues in 1975 I worked on Fantastic Four for a few years and completed the run from #30 up. I have a couple of earlier issues as well. I would still like to get the whole run but since it was announced that the FF are coming to the MCU the prices have risen substantially on early issues and keys, so I'll probably be content with what I have and only get the older issues if a good deal presents itself.

Issue 30 is the first Diablo, and 35 is the first Dragon Man. And, I believe #33 is the first Attuma who may make an appearance in the MCU as an antagonist for Namor, the Sub-Mariner (Subby is MCU bound as well). The first FF I ever bought as a 6 year old was a copy of #35. I read that thing until it was so beat it couldn't be called anything better than FR (1.0)  :laugh:. I wish I still had that old beater. Anyway, I bought the copy in the pic in the late '70s and it was great to look at it again, like seeing an old friend.

More Lee/Kirby goodness to come.  ;)

Quote from: horrorhunter on May 02, 2020, 01:32:43 PMI have heard more and more collectors in the last few years state their appreciation for date stamps. Many years ago an arrival date on the cover was treated as more of a defect (and still probably is for slabbers and their grades in the high "9s"), but for many nowadays a date stamp adds to the desirability of the copy.

In general I'm neutral to date stamps. I actually like the red ones indicative of Bethlehem copies though!

Quote from: horrorhunter on April 27, 2020, 11:36:42 AMI love date stamps. For me they even add value to a book. Also, I appreciate arrival dates in ink, pencil, and grease pencil.

I have a mildly negative predisposition to ink or grease pencil date stamps. One of the very few comics in the cabinet where I keep my really good comics that has a grease pencil date is this one:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-10-201171013PM.jpg)

It's in beautiful condition otherwise though! Moreover it's a very high nostalgia comic for me since I still very clearly remember the day in September 1963 when I spotted that issue on the magazine rack at Les' Variety on Wortley Road.

The one thing that puts me off about the cover these days is that as an adult I noticed that Mike Sekowsky habitually drew Wonder Woman with an enormous butt.

Quote from: horrorhunter on May 02, 2020, 01:32:43 PMEven defects such as store stamps, previous owners names written on or in the comic, distributor paint overspray, and *shudder* subscription creases seem to be gaining collector interest these days. I have examples of all of these in my collection and I appreciate them for their importance to the history of that particular issue and comics in general. Yeah, I know Overstreet lists a subscription crease as a defect commonly associated with a G/VG (3.0) copy, but I still kind of dig 'em.

Anyone who was as a kid subjected to the disappointment of receiving a comic in the mail that was folded in half still probably views subscription creases as a negative. That includes me. I was so knocked out by Aquaman 11 featuring the luscious Queen Mera after buying it at Ken's Variety:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-201170548PM.jpg)

That I "took advantage" of DC's subscription offer only to be somewhat miffed when issue #12 arrived in the mail a couple of weeks later folded in half. My present day copy has no such defect:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-201170552PM.jpg)

I had three or four copies of Detective Comics from late 1963 /early 1964 with subscription creases a couple of decades ago but I've replaced them. The only comic I still own with a subscription crease is Brave and the Bold 40 with a magnificent Joe Kubert cover:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/17-12-201123901PM.jpg)

i would dearly love to upgrade it but trying to find a Cave Carson Brave and the Bold issue from late 1961 in really nice condition is nigh impossible. The few collectors who own a high grade copy have no interest in putting it up for sale.

:(

Quote from: Sir Masksalot on May 03, 2020, 07:59:57 AMI was never able to maintain such a collection as a boy. Mother would periodically destroy them whenever I misbehaved.

That happened to many of us. My initial effort to actually collect superhero comics in mid-1962 foundered after two or three weeks after my older sister convinced my mother to throw out my "stack" of six or seven Superman, Batman, Justice League of America and Adventures of the Jaguar comics because they were sure to corrupt me.

Then in the fall of 1963 my sister (perhaps with the assistance of my mother) hid my hoard of thirty or so DC superhero comics inside the couch which put an end to my collecting until I discovered them three or so months later. As a result I didn't score copies of issues such as Flash 141-143, Justice League 24-26, Green Lantern 26-27 and Atom 10-11 off newsstands when they arrived.

:(

My parents weren't strict concerning comics and toys. They were very supportive of my interests and didn't throw any of my stuff away. We didn't have much money when I was a kid in the '60s but they were very generous with me and tried to buy things I wanted. They were good common sense folks and didn't spit "fire and brimstone" the way some people in my area (the Bible Belt) did. They taught me to take care of my stuff instead of savagely throwing it away. I'm very grateful for the civility and compassion they displayed toward me.

More of my Fantastic Four run:

39-41
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850873572_4cae804f86_b.jpg)

42-44
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850876662_fa79ee8010_b.jpg)

45-47
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850880272_72bb73d44e_b.jpg)

Issue 45 is the first Inhumans. Those guys & gals will be showing up in the MCU. Hopefully they will be done justice after the crappy TV series. Black Bolt, leader of the Inhumans, is part of the Illuminati along with Reed Richards, Namor, Iron Man, Dr. Strange, and Prof. Xavier of the X-Men.

Quote from: Rex fury on April 28, 2020, 09:37:33 AMAnybody have a favorite golden age story?  Of all the choices out there I think mine is Young Allies 4. The story's villain is the Red Skull, Cap and the torch make guest appearances, while the kids ride their bikes to the scene of the crime! It's a mixture of superhero, kid gang , and horror genres. I really enjoy it.

Truthfully I hate the genre of superhero war comics that Timely/Marvel published in the Golden Age. As if war was a "glorious fun adventure suitable for kids". (Yes DC did it too with Simon & Kirby's Boy Commandos but Timely published a lot more such comics.) The whole underlying idea of featuring kids in war comics is revolting.

:(

Quote from: Rex fury on April 29, 2020, 10:18:49 AMNice collections of Gorgo and Conan guys. In the Gorgo books I always enjoy Ditko's depiction of divers. While George Evans probably came the closest to drawing hard hat gear accurately (Piracy 7), Ditko had a way with underwater scenes that are just awesome to look at.

The depictions of underwater scenes and skin divers that I like the best are by Russ Heath. Eight of my favourite ten Sea Devils covers are pencilled by Russ Heath and given wash tone inks by Jack Adler. The other two, #11 and 13, are pencilled by Irv Novick and inked by Jack Adler. Here are the scans:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Showcase27.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Seadevils1.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Seadevils2.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/SeaDevils3.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/18-06-201155200PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/13-08-2011113248AM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/13-08-2011113254AM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-08-2012104708PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-08-2012104711PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-08-2012104714PM.jpg)

8)

Sea Devils looks like my kind of series. Bring on the sea monsters! "Octopus Man" is crazy cool.

I had no idea that my misfortune was a common thing, Hepcat. The only childhood comics I still have in
any significant quantity are Peanuts books by Schulz. Mine number in the dozens, both soft and hard
cover plus first editions and peperbacks. My crusading Mom must've considered them innocuous enough
to remain.

Of latter day editions, these currently occupy my library >

(https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/800x600q90/923/l4mFKE.jpg)

(https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/800x600q90/924/eNWUjl.jpg)

(https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/800x600q90/924/FxV35C.jpg)

I've had this volume since the '70s but definitely wouldn't want her as my girlfriend.
She got herself into more trouble than any dozen of us could ever get her out of >

(https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/800x600q90/923/W8EvPR.jpg)

Quote from: horrorhunter on May 03, 2020, 04:17:54 PM
Issue 45 is the first Inhumans. Those guys & gals will be showing up in the MCU. Hopefully they will be done justice after the crappy TV series. Black Bolt, leader of the Inhumans, is part of the Illuminati along with Reed Richards, Namor, Iron Man, Dr. Strange, and Prof. Xavier of the X-Men.

Awesome run! I'm a big Sub-Mariner fan, so early FF issues are drizzled into my collection as well. Those really early silver age issues are so bonkers and fun to read.

Quote from: Sir Masksalot on May 04, 2020, 07:36:43 AMI had no idea that my misfortune was a common thing, Hepcat. The only childhood comics I still have in any significant quantity are Peanuts books by Schulz. Mine number in the dozens, both soft and hard cover plus first editions and peperbacks. My crusading Mom must've considered them innocuous enough to remain.

Have you ever asked your mother what possessed her at the time? I have indeed asked my older sister.

???

Quote from: Hepcat on May 03, 2020, 10:17:39 PM
The depictions of underwater scenes and skin divers that I like the best are by Russ Heath.
Hep, I couldn't agree with you more that Russ Heath did a great job on the Sea Devils. That series, and The Challengers Of The Unknown are my two favorite Silver Age series from DC. Showcase 3 is another beautiful book. Thinking about the Sea Devils reminded me of the several stories that had the artist featured as a character in the story. Do you recall those or why that happened?

I tried to keep up with the recent auction for a page of Heath frogman art, but decided I needed a new dive computer more ( lol)!
RF

PS- in an earlier post I mentioned the Spidey comic attachment on Esquire magazine. That should have been EYE magazine. My bad.

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on May 04, 2020, 08:16:33 AM
Awesome run! I'm a big Sub-Mariner fan, so early FF issues are drizzled into my collection as well. Those really early silver age issues are so bonkers and fun to read.

Yeah, I grew up loving the FF. Stan Lee made Marvel successful by a combination of entertaining writing and making it seem like the readers were part of the family. Stan, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Roy Thomas, John Buscema, and others, created a story universe so enjoyable that it serves as inspiration for creators decades later, and has resulted in the Marvel Cinematic Universe taking the world by storm. I enjoy all comics from the '70s and before, but Silver/Bronze Marvel still ranks as high as any for me.

My copies of Fantastic Four #s 48-50 (the Galactus Trilogy):

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850046278_e8a5d45a19_b.jpg)

Issue 48 features the first Silver Surfer, and #49 is the first full Galactus appearance. These books have been highly sought after by collectors for years. Issues 48 and 49 have blown up in price in the last couple of years. Galactus is planned to be the next Big Bad in the MCU just as Thanos was in The Infinity Saga. Collectors seem to be scrambling to get their copies before prices get too ridiculous (which is driving prices to the ridiculous- funny how that works  :laugh:). I've always loved the Silver Surfer and I'm glad I bought these issues several years ago when they were affordable. Honestly, as much as I love this stuff, I just don't think I would own some of these books if I didn't already have them. I'm just not much into dropping hundreds or thousands of dollars per issue for comics. With most very expensive books I don't already own I'll probably make do with reprints. There are still lots of non-keys I need that will keep me busy buying for years at $5-$20 each.  ;)

Quote from: Rex fury on May 04, 2020, 09:50:52 AMHep, I couldn't agree with you more that Russ Heath did a great job on the Sea Devils. That series, and The Challengers Of The Unknown are my two favorite Silver Age series from DC. Showcase 3 is another beautiful book. Thinking about the Sea Devils reminded me of the several stories that had the artist featured as a character in the story. Do you recall those or why that happened?

You're thinking of issue #13-16 where the artists hired by the Sea Devils to illustrate their adventures appeared conversing with the Sea Devils. Here's the list:

13 - Joe Kubert, Gene Colan and Ross Andru with Mike Esposito
14 - Irv Novick
15 - Jack Abel
16 - Irv Novick

You see by early 1963 Russ Heath was getting too busy illustrating DC war comics and backing up Will Elder on Playboy's Little Annie Fanny strip on which he worked right from the Playboy Mansion in Chicago with free room, board and girls included. Heath could not fulfill all his obligations on the Sea Devils title as well so DC held a contest in the pages of Sea Devils to find a new regular artist for the title.

So who did DC end up choosing beginning with issue #16? Howard Purcell who was neither part of the contest nor nearly as good on the title as Joe Kubert, Gene Colan or Irv Novick who was the penciller on covers #11 and #13 above. Inexplicable.

:-\

Impressive collections! Keep the images coming.

Here's a (somewhat blurry) old scan of my Savage Tales #1 featuring the first appearance of Marvel's Man-Thing.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/1841/44102957081_d65e3f1dc4_b.jpg)

The cover is a painting by John Buscema, which was unusual since he was a mainstay as penciler for Marvel.

Savage Tales #1 was a 1-shot for awhile, then the series was continued a few months later and ran a dozen issues featuring mostly Conan and Ka-Zar stories. Neal Adams did some spectacular covers for the run. This issue set the tone for Marvel's excellent line of black & white magazines which ran through 1975 focusing on monster characters. Marvel's attempt to monopolize the magazine racks in the mid '70s squeezed out some of the competition (like the great Skywald monster mags), and ultimately caused an over-saturation which ended even the Marvel titles (distributed by Curtis). Warren survived to the early '80s, as well as Myron Fass' Eerie Pubs (killing Eerie Pubs off was like trying to punch out a giant rat barehanded...tough). Another mag spawned by Savage Tales, Marvel's own Savage Sword Of Conan, survived as well, and thrived to outlast them all to issue #235.

My House Of Secrets #92:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49857273177_ae8f25562f_b.jpg)

This issue is most significant for being the first appearance of Swamp Thing, but since I'm a huge Bernie Wrightson fan it's also very important for his artwork and his iconic cover modeled for by Weezy Jones (Louise Jones Simonson). Bernie was friends with Weezy and her husband at the time, Jeff Jones. They, and Bruce Jones and Mike Kaluta all hung out and worked on comics together in New York. It's just a cool snapshot of future comic book gods as relatively unknown youngsters scrounging out a living doing comics for DC and Marvel (and later Warren). If I had a Wayback Machine I would go back and hang out with those guys, and talk drawing and monsters with Bernie and the gang.

8)

Quote from: horrorhunter on April 30, 2020, 07:14:58 PMHere are pics of some of my Turok, Son Of Stone issues:

I grew up a Monster Kid and a Dino Kid. I bought many Turoks back in the mid to late '60s.... Those all got read to death but I never lost my love for dinosaur comics, especially Turok, so a few years ago I set about completing the run. I love those Dell/Gold Key painted covers.

I agree! Those Turok covers were magnificent.

Here are scans of my Dell Turok comics:

13

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Turok13.jpg)

18

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Turok18.jpg)

19

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Turok19.jpg)

26

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Turok26.jpg)

28

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/23-05-201182303PM.jpg)

29

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Turok29.jpg)

cl:)

Hep, thanks for the info on Russ Heath. I'd forgotten all about his Playboy exploits ( shows I'm really getting old) and didn't connect that with the rotating artist stories in Sea Devils.

Speaking of growing old I recently bought  copies of FF 129 & 130 from EBay. I thought they were issues I'd either missed, or sold at some point. Well turns out I had both- just stored them in another long box!

I can relate to losing great stuff to overpowering adults as a kid, too. My Second Grade teacher took a copy of a Famous Monsters magazine from me ( she thought it was inappropriate for school) and never gave it back, sigh....Another kid had brought a copy of the Woodstock album to play in his music class. The music teacher literally broke the record because he was offended by Jimmy Hendrix rendition of the Star  Spangled Banner! Good times in 1960's middle America...

Savage Tales 1 is a fun book, but kinda weird too. John Romita's  story comes to mind.

RF

Quote from: horrorhunter on April 30, 2020, 07:14:58 PMI bought many Turoks back in the
mid to late '60s as well as dino issues of Star Spangled War Stories....

Here are scans of a half-dozen of my earliest Star Spangled War Stories comics:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185603PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185606PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185612PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-06-201174943PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-06-201174957PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-06-201175002PM.jpg)'

Compared to DC superhero comics, pre-1964 DC war comics including Star Spangled War Stories are brutally difficult to find in higher grades.

8)

Quote from: Hepcat on May 05, 2020, 09:48:09 PM
Here are scans of a half-dozen of my earliest Star Spangled War Stories comics:

Very nice copies!

The "War That Time Forgot" issues of Star Spangled War Stories have gotten pricey in higher grade. I fondly remember my stash of the SSWS dino issues as a kid. They were read to death, some even coverless. I loved those comics and still do. I picked up a couple of inexpensive eBay lots in lower grade last year and it was great to read those again. I may try to complete the run in lower grade but, as much as having higher grade copies would be nice, the window closed on affordable higher grade ones long ago. I've become tolerant of mid-grade books, and even lower in some cases, especially if I had lower grade copies of those issues as a kid.

I've gradually decided I'm probably not going to sink big bucks into comics anymore. If I have to pay triple figures or more for even a low grade copy of something I'll just settle for a reprint or pass on it entirely. There are so many issues I still want that are affordable I'll focus on getting those and avoid the expensive keys. At some point I'd like to purchase one or more collections of older books and sell off what I don't need. That's how you can really add to your collection inexpensively, but you need a lot of cash and to be willing and able to "work" a lot of comics to make it pay off. That sounds like a cool job to supplement retirement to me (and build your collection without spending a fortune).

My copies of the first 12 issues of Marvel Spotlight:

1-3
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49862820333_008ce6c269_b.jpg)

4-6
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49863667432_aabaea82d7_b.jpg)

7-9
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49863669657_0551a171e9_b.jpg)

10-12
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49862827548_fb605536ca_b.jpg)

#2 is the first Werewolf By Night, #5 is the first Ghost Rider, and #12 is the first Son Of Satan. Issues 1 and 2 have Neal Adams covers. Lots of great Mike Ploog art on the Werewolf By Night and Ghost Rider issues. The 1st, 2nd, and 6th issues are my off-the-rack copies. Issue 2 is also one of the square-bound cover price transition issues when Marvel was experimenting with going to 25 cents and making the comics bigger, between the 15 cents and 20 cents cover prices. Every title had one or two issues of these big square-bound issues in the regular runs.

My first exposure to comics was probably in the comic section of the Saturday London Free Press in the late fifties. My family didn't have a TV yet so print media was very important to us. The first strips to capture my attention were probably the Mickey Mouse strip and the Uncle Remus and His Tales of Brer Rabbit strip. Here are a couple of examples of the latter:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Remus.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Remus_1.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

The strip actually began on 14 October 1945 and ran in various newspapers until 31 December 1972. Paul Murry was the initial penciller on the strip but handled the job only until 14 July 1946 at which point he went to work for Western Printing. He was the artist of record for the first Dell comic mag based on Song of the South and also worked on the General Mills Brer Rabbit premium booklets. Murry was succeeded by Dick Moores on the newspaper strip. By the time I encountered it the strip was being pencilled by Riley Thomson (1951-59), under whom Brer Rabbit acquired a less cutesy and more rascally look evident in the example immediately above. Bill Wright (1959-62), Chuck Fuson (1962) and John Ushler (1962-1972) followed on the strip.

I'm still a fan of the Uncle Remus characters after all these years and I have dozens of copies of the strip in my collection today. I also have several Golden books, records and cassettes devoted to the Tales of Uncle Remus plus these two Brer Rabbit comics:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/FourColor208.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/FourColor693.jpg)

Plus these three General Mills Brer Rabbit premium booklets:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/BrerRabbit.jpg)

Best of all is this custom stained glass window featuring Brer Fox and Flower from Bambi in the door beside my model cabinet leading from my collectibles room to the upstairs balcony:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/StainedGlassWindow.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/BrerRabbitstainedglass.jpg)

This is the original image on which the stained glass window is based:

(http://www.crf2.com/image.php?u=264&dateline=1107824593)

And hanging on the opposite wall from the stained glass window is the original art for the 1972 rerelease of the Song of the South movie poster which I acquired through a Hake's auction about thirteen years ago:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/BrerRabbitposter.jpg)

8)

Quote from: horrorhunter on May 06, 2020, 11:19:01 AM
My copies of the first 12 issues of Marvel Spotlight:

1-3
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49862820333_008ce6c269_b.jpg)

4-6
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49863667432_aabaea82d7_b.jpg)

7-9
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49863669657_0551a171e9_b.jpg)

10-12
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49862827548_fb605536ca_b.jpg)

#2 is the first Werewolf By Night, #5 is the first Ghost Rider, and #12 is the first Son Of Satan. Issues 1 and 2 have Neal Adams covers. Lots of great Mike Ploog art on the Werewolf By Night and Ghost Rider issues. The 1st, 2nd, and 6th issues are my off-the-rack copies. Issue 2 is also one of the square-bound cover price transition issues when Marvel was experimenting with going to 25 cents and making the comics bigger, between the 15 cents and 20 cents cover prices. Every title had one or two issues of these big square-bound issues in the regular runs.

Oh man those are beautiful Double H. You know I love horror comics. Especially the 70s runs. Great House of Secrets image you posted earlier too. First appearance of Swamp Thing. I'd love to get my hands on that book.

Quote from: geezer butler on May 07, 2020, 09:29:08 PM
Oh man those are beautiful Double H. You know I love horror comics. Especially the 70s runs. Great House of Secrets image you posted earlier too. First appearance of Swamp Thing. I'd love to get my hands on that book.

Thanks, geezer.

Join the party, dude. I know you have some killer monster comics that we would love to see posted. Help me represent the Bronze Age Horror.

Zombie Cool

More of my FFs:

51-53
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850886097_c6e8eeb929_b.jpg)


54-56
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850587756_e71d814641_b.jpg)


57-59
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49850890992_7b3b077b43_b.jpg)

Issue 52 is the 1st Black Panther. Fantastic Four hit some real high points in the issues 30s-60s. The storyline featuring Dr. Doom stealing the Surfer's Power Cosmic (pictured above) is especially good. The title also hit some high points in the 110s and 120s with exceptional artwork by John Buscema and Joe Sinnott (#112 "Hulk Vs. Thing" followed by the clash with the Overmind, for example). The blurb above the logo "The World's Greatest Comic Magazine!" wasn't just hype during many of the Silver Age and early Bronze Age issues IMO.

Another strip that was carried in the London Free Press in 1958-59 that I read avidly until 1968 when it was dropped was Dick Tracy. I seem to remember that it was actually on the front page of the Free Press comic section for a number of years.

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/dick_tracy_5.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

Harvey published Dick Tracy #25-145  between early 1950 and early 1961. I'm still a big Dick Tracy fan but sadly I have only a few Dick Tracy comics in my collection:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/31-05-2012110216PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/31-05-2012110219PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/31-05-2012110222PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/31-05-2012110225PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/31-05-2012110228PM.jpg)

Of course I hope to add several dozen more over time!

8)

Great collections of the FF and Dick Tracy. Just got home to find my order of the first three Loser stories from Our Fighting Forces and The Creeps 25 in the mail. That was the perfect way to end today as it is my birthday.😀

I believe that the Lone Ranger strip was also being carried in the Saturday London Free Press when I first started delving into the comic section in 1958(?). As a result the Lone Ranger remains among my very favourite cowboy characters.

Dell's Lone Ranger title featured magnificent painted covers from February 1951 to September 1957 in issues #32-111. I have nineteen of these in my collection. Here are scans of my ten earliest Lone Ranger comics:

41

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/LoneRanger41.jpg)

42

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/LoneRanger42.jpg)

43

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/LoneRanger43.jpg)

44

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-06-201175006PM.jpg)

48

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-06-201175009PM.jpg)

52

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-06-201175013PM.jpg)


58

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201173658PM.jpg)

61

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201173723PM.jpg)

72

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201173727PM.jpg)

76

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/25-08-201174228PM.jpg)

8)

I enjoy those Lone Rangers too. I have a few, the "Silver Anniversary"comic is probably my favorite.  Just bit the bullet and purchased a copy of Cap. 26. After discussing it here, an " affordable" copy popped up on EBay this morning. One holy grail down🤠
RF

Another comic strip from the Saturday London Free Press that I recall from my earliest comic reading years was the Katzenjammer Kids/Captain and the Kids comic strip.

(https://historydaily.org/content/109028/613977322c86debaf5174a0261bd25bb.jpg)

I still love the characters to this very day! Here are scans of my three Katzenjammer Kids comics:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/Katzenjammer23.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/KatzenjammerKids25.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/KatzenjammerKids27.jpg)

8)

Quote from: Hepcat on May 07, 2020, 02:22:46 PMThe first strips to capture my attention were probably the Mickey Mouse strip and the Uncle Remus and his Tales of Brer Rabbit strip.

The Mickey Mouse strip was always located at or near the very front of the Saturday London Free Press comic section just above the Uncle Remus strip.

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/mickeym01.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

To this point I've not gotten heavily into collecting Mickey Mouse comics and I have only one in my collection right now:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/15-07-201252811PM.jpg)

Quite simply with 18 Dell Four Color issues with Mickey Mouse as the title character going back to 1941 plus 84 Dell Mickey Mouse issues ending in 1962 I've always found embarking on the task of complete the run too daunting. I've got nearly half of the 14 Dell Goofy issues though!

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185628PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185631PM.jpg)

File copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185634PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185637PM.jpg)

File copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/12-07-2012110519PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/12-07-2012110522PM.jpg)

There are also 10 Dell Four Color Pluto issues I'd like to acquire for my collection.

8)

Ummm, how did that work, now?  ;D

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185637PM.jpg)

Another comic strip that was in the Saturday London Free Press from my first memories of its comic section was Pogo by Walt Kelly:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/PogoPage197_1.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

I loved the Pogo strip as a kid although many of the references went way over my head. For a time in the early 1960's there was a pig based on Nikita Khrushchev and a goat based on Fidel Castro guesting with the other critters from the swamp.

Dell published a couple Four Color Pogo comics in 1946-47 and then sixteen issues of Pogo Possum from late 1949 to early 1954. Pogo was such a popular character at the time that Dell wanted to up the price of the Pogo comic mag to $0.15. Walt Kelly was to his everlasting credit so adamantly opposed to the idea of such price gouging that Dell desisted.

Here's a scan of my copy of Pogo 14:

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201245036PM.jpg)

I'd eventually like to acquire all sixteen issues of Pogo Possum of course.

:)

Blondie by Chic Young was another comic strip that was present from my first memories of the Saturday London Free Press' comic section:

(https://newspapercomicstripsblog.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/blondie01.jpg)

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/00/c4/f2/00c4f2edafb1144b43ee9ffc14bab265.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/Dagwood-Sandwich8_zps7d7282fc.jpg)

Harvey published a whopping 148 issues of Blondie between 1950 and 1965, another whopping 140 issues of Dagwood between the same years, plus four Blondie & Dagwood Family Giants between 1963 and 1965:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Blondie_Comics_Vol_1_163_zpsvpbr3vai.jpg) (http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Dagwood_Comics_Vol_1_140_zpsqq3uzgci.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Blondie.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

Sadly I have exactly none of those issues in my collection currently even though they're not that pricey compared to superhero and many other kinds of comics. Someday, somehow I'd like to rectify that deficiency in my collection by getting a bunch in an auction lot.

:)

Another newspaper strip that influenced my taste in comics for life was the Li'l Abner strip which was not within my memory even carried in the London Free Press. Nonetheless I was aware of Li'l Abner somehow perhaps through either the Detroit Free Press or the Detroit News since we visited my uncle's family in Detroit once or twice per year when I was a kid. In any event I was certainly aware of his existence by the time the 1959 Li'l Abner movie came to London:

Li'l Abner Trailer (https://youtu.be/3aZ33oVnCvo)

I knew I was missing out on something really good not getting the strip in the London Free Press. 

Harvey published nine issues of Li'l Abner cover dated from December 1947 to February 1949. Here are scans of the two I have in my collection:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/17-05-201183605PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/17-05-201183610PM.jpg)

:)

I have some questions for the comic book collectors out there. I wanna see what others think.

Who can afford some of the prices out there for premium issues? I'm getting close to completing my Marvel 70s horror collection. I only need Werewolf by Night 32 and Tomb of Dracula 10.  All us monster/comic book nerds know the significance of those books.  Look up the prices on those books. If you can find a shoddy copy, you're still paying $300-$400.

So first of all, what's so significant about the first appearances of Blade and Moon Knight, respectively? I mean, as a monster nerd, I totally dig those characters, but let's me honest---we're not talking about first appearances of Captain American or Wolverine.

Second, again I ask who can afford to drop $700-$2500 on a single comic book? To be honest, I probably could afford that, but it wouldn't be responsible with our budget. And it's just the point. I understand supply and demand, and these are rare issues blah blah blah. I still think it's gouging.

Thanks for allowing me to rant.  >:(

Thoughts on buying expensive comics will most likely generate a different answer from every collector who broaches the subject. In the past year I picked up a WBN 32 and a golden age Cap. for  roughly the prices you mention.
First, in the case of WBN 32, the comic will never be truly rare. Anybody who makes that argument should probably glance at the number of copies available on EBay at any given time. Nostalgia influenced my decision to purchase a copy, not the number of 9.8 graded books in any given census. Sometimes scarcity is used to justify pricing. Again, that argument falls flat for any comic produced after roughly 1965. Is Conan 3 or Howard the Duck 1 truly scarce? To answer that question one has to have a little knowledge of how returnable comics were dealt with in the late 60's and early 70's.  Comic dealers from that time period had the ability to buy huge amounts of comics which had been returned by news dealers. The whole operation was somewhat shady, but the bottom line is that books like Conan 3 were not as available in those bulk lots, hence dealers ( who couldn't purchase it for pennies ) began listing it as scarce.
For a much more concise account of this practice may I recommend "Comic Book Wars" or other related histories. The bottom line on WBN 32 for me was that I wanted the book. I don't think it's " significance" influenced my purchase.

On the other hand, in the case of Captain America Comics 26, I justified spending the money because the comic is scarce. I've watched for copies of this book to come up for sale over the years and it's not like hunting for a copy of WBN. In the last few years, I've seen very few copies come up for sale with only one being listed well below 3000.00 dollars. Several years ago I was one of the minions who helped produce "The Photo Journal Guide To Comic Books" . At the time best efforts were made to determine the availability of most all golden age comics. Some issues just don't exist in the numbers that make them readily available for purchase. Being a diver, a Schomburg collector, and very much comic book nerd, Cap 26 was a book I really wanted to add to my collection. The house is paid for, the kids both have college funds and I'm able to pay my bills every month, so I don't feel irresponsible in making the purchase.
As with any collectible, it's only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. I'd encourage fellow collector s to buy what they truly desire and can reasonably afford regardless of the  significance or hype surrounding the item.
RF

The only way you get those Tomb of Dracula or Werewolf by Night issues cheap is if someone posts a bunch of issues as a lot and you catch someone napping with a Buy it Now. I understand why Blade might be a little more to buy, but Moon Knight? That is the main reason I don't even try to get a complete run of that series. I was lucky enough to pick up a complete run of Tomb of Dracula back in the 80s. I paid $8 for #1 and $6 for #10 back then. years later when I was bagging and boarding them I laughed when I looked at the prices paid.

Quote from: geezer butler on May 22, 2020, 07:42:57 PMI understand supply and demand, and these are rare issues blah blah blah.

I agree with Rex though. Those two issues aren't "rare". The reason the asking prices for those two issues are so high is because of the insanely high demand component of the supply-and-demand equation. And part of the demand is "speculative" demand meaning demand not motivated by aesthetics but arising from the belief that purchasing now will enable the purchaser to flip the comic for a higher price at some future date. Dealers/sellers encourage this kind of thinking of course.

But it's a bubble which will burst at some point. Not only are those issues not "rare" by Overstreet's traditional definition of 50-100 copies in existence (scarce defined as 100-1000 copies in existence), but they're not rare in any sense of the word. As Rex says, no comic published after 1965 can be termed "rare". In particular Bronze Age superhero and horror comics are common as spit. "Collectible" comics by the late sixties were being hoarded by the tens of thousands and can be found all over the place (albeit not necessarily at reasonable asking prices). In fact, I'm willing to say that anybody telling you that any post-1965 comic is "rare" is simply a shyster trying to justify his ridiculous asking price. If you don't believe me, just check Ebay to see how many of any such comic are listed for sale at any given time.

Even highly prized (high-priced) issues of Marvel superhero comics, e.g. Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man, from earlier in the sixties can very easily be found. Even if your local comic shop doesn't have a decent one for sale, rest assured that if you're willing to pay the price he knows where he can get you one with a quick phone call by next morning if not later the same day.

Interesting that just eighteen months ago or so a fellow on a comic forum posted pics of what he termed his "rarest" ten Marvel comics which all turned out to be superhero comics from the Silver Age. I replied that none of those comics was rare and that they were simply high-priced. I added that I would have been more impressed had he owned nice copies for example of Marvels such as Homer the Happy Ghost 4 or Millie the Model 54. He was offended.

As far as my own collecting is concerned, I'm willing to pay up for scarcity but I'm very reluctant to pay up for high demand. As a result I'm now beginning to wonder whether I'll ever be able and willing to add a Brave and the Bold 28, Showcase 22 or a Flash 123 to my collection all of which of course are far pricier than surrounding issues. And when it comes to sports cards, I've now resigned myself to not completing sets because I'm not willing to pay for high priced rookie or super star cards. I'd rather have 100 "commons".

:-\

Quote from: Rex fury on May 23, 2020, 09:25:25 AMFor a much more concise account of this practice may I recommend "Comic Book Wars" or other related histories.

To which exact publication are you referring?

???

Hep, I meant Howard Beerbohm's "Comic Book Store Wars"; sorry for the inaccurate title in my earlier post. I've read several accounts of the practice of buying lots of returned comics by early comic dealers. Chuck Rozanski was involved and maybe Howard Rogofsky. Sorry I can't recall all the sources, but I think "...Store Wars" was one of those.
RF

Great replies guys. I appreciate your insight. Excellent points about "rare" issues. I'm embarrassed that didn't occur to me. Sellers say "rare," but it's just advertising ploy.  You guys are totally right. That fact that you can buy up to 20 copies of Werewolf by Night 32 at any one time, shows you it's not that "rare."

Seems ebay and other online sellers are driving these prices. Maybe it will create a bubble. Back in the day, there's no way your local comic book shop would ask for these kinds of prices. They would know your average tom, dick, and harry ain't gonna walk in off the street and drop that kind of cash. 

I think some of these sellers are happy to overprice these issues, and if no one bites, that's ok. They're happy to sit on it and wait for it to go up even more. Also, I realize everyone's threshold for how they're willing to spend is different. In terms of higher end spending, I try to keep things in the $100-$300 range. Like i said, I can afford to go higher, but I just don't think it's financially responsible (just speaking for myself). We do all right here and have some savings. But I don't think we'd be doing well for long if I started dropping $500-$5,000 on every comic book I desire. 

Anyhow, thanks again. Great comments.

The bubble will burst at some point. As those of us that care about issues of Famous Monsters and Moon Knight pass away, demand will dwindle to a more realistic rate. Baseball Cards are about to that point, IMHO, and comics are about 20 years out from that.

Why do I say that? Price. Kids can't pay the prices to keep up with comics these days, and more and more kids don't care about comics. Why buy comics when there are three movies a year?

The kids of yesteryear are the main consumers today, buying what they couldn't get then. Paying obscene prices to do it. Without new fans to take their place, new issues will sell less and less and demand for back issues will fall.

Quote from: geezer butler on May 24, 2020, 06:23:52 PM
Great replies guys. I appreciate your insight. Excellent points about "rare" issues. I'm embarrassed that didn't occur to me. Sellers say "rare," but it's just advertising ploy.  You guys are totally right. That fact that you can buy up to 20 copies of Werewolf by Night 32 at any one time, shows you it's not that "rare."

Seems ebay and other online sellers are driving these prices. Maybe it will create a bubble. Back in the day, there's no way your local comic book shop would ask for these kinds of prices. They would know your average tom, dick, and harry ain't gonna walk in off the street and drop that kind of cash. 

I think some of these sellers are happy to overprice these issues, and if no one bites, that's ok. They're happy to sit on it and wait for it to go up even more. Also, I realize everyone's threshold for how they're willing to spend is different. In terms of higher end spending, I try to keep things in the $100-$300 range. Like i said, I can afford to go higher, but I just don't think it's financially responsible (just speaking for myself). We do all right here and have some savings. But I don't think we'd be doing well for long if I started dropping $500-$5,000 on every comic book I desire. 

Anyhow, thanks again. Great comments.

Quote from: John Pertwee on May 24, 2020, 06:38:42 PMWhy do I say that? Price. Kids can't pay the prices to keep up with comics these days, and more and more kids don't care about comics. Why buy comics when there are three movies a year?

The kids of yesteryear are the main consumers today, buying what they couldn't get then.

Moreover unlike the kids from say 1940-1980, present day kids don't seem to have the collecting/hoarding gene. Rarely can the words "Free inside!" be seen on cereal boxes or chip bags these days. Comic mags, baseball and other cards target the older collector. Neither comics nor cards are widely sold at corner stores these days and where they are sold the prices are not kid friendly.

:(

Fantagraphics just released a new book called "Comics Ad Men". It follows the rise of comic illustration as a means to sell products. Many golden age artists are featured as well as contemporary studios. Should anyone here have an interest in the work these artists did outside of comic books I recommend taking a look.
RF

Another newspaper strip that influenced my present day taste interest in comics was Milt Caniff's Terry and the Pirates strip. It was not within my memory carried in the London Free Press or any of the Toronto newspapers since I moved to Toronto in 1977. At some point about 25 years ago however I realized that the strip was very cool:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Terry_1.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Terry_2.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

Harvey published 23 issues of a Terry and the Pirates title beginning with #3 from early 1947 to early 1951. Here are scans of the three I have:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/17-05-201183614PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/17-05-201183618PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/17-05-201183622PM.jpg)

Incidentally, the first comic shop I ever patronized was Dragon Lady on Queen Street West in Toronto. I didn't learn until about fifteen years ago that the shop was named after a character from Terry and the Pirates:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Terry_8.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Terry_4.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_Terry_6.jpeg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

Too cool!

8)

The series starts with number 3 because the first two issues were titled The Boy Explorers. Simon and Kirby did one issue which was released to the newsstands and a second issue that was a b&w comic mailed only to subscribers. Terry and the Pirates 3 has a back up S&K Boy Explorers story and also features  the origin of Dragon Lady😀
RF

Quote from: Hepcat on May 10, 2020, 11:41:24 AMI believe that the The Lone Ranger strip was also being carried in the Saturday London Free Press when I first started delving into the comic section in 1958(?).

The strip that in 1961 or so replaced The Lone Ranger in the Saturday London Free Press was Tarzan. John Celardo who drew the strip from 1954-67 was the artist at the time:

(https://www.lambiek.net/artists/image/c/celardo_john/celardo_tarzan2.jpg)

Russ Manning took over in 1967 and did a fabulous job on the strip until 1979:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Tarzan_1.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

The publishing history of Tarzan comics includes these runs:

Dell 1-131 (February 1948 - August 1962)
Gold Key 132-206 (November 1962 - February 1972)
DC 207-258 (April 1972 - February 1977)

Issues #207-249 and 253 feature covers by Joe Kubert while issues #207-225 and 227-235 also have interior artwork by Joe Kubert.

(https://d2lzb5v10mb0lj.cloudfront.net/covers/600/29/29007.jpg)

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b3/21/89/b32189e80fdb59c48c5d49e96900d1cd.jpg)

Taking on the task of collecting all the Tarzan issues is far too daunting a task for me to consider. I've therefore limited myself to picking up the issues featuring Joe Kubert art. Here are scans of two of these:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-06-201182049PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-06-201182052PM.jpg)

8)

Another strip that I really enjoyed was Archie which the London Free Press only started carrying in 1965(?):

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Archie_2.gif)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Archie.jpg)

I've not collected any of the comic magazines featuring Archie Andrews and company though. Quite simply with runs numbering in the hundreds extending back into the 1940's collecting even a single title is far too daunting a prospect.

Pep Comics 1 (January 1940) - 411 (March 1987)
Laugh Comics 20 (Fall 1946) - 400 (April 1987)
Archie (Comics) 1 (Winter 1942-43) - 666 (July 2015)
(Archie's Pal) Jughead 1 (1949) - 352 (June 1987)
Archie's Girls Betty and Veronica 1 (1950) - 347 (April 1987)
Archie's Pals 'n' Gals 1 (1952) - 224 (September 1991)

Moreover in comparison to most other comics, Archies weren't collected and saved. Finding copies from before 1975 or so that haven't been read to death is nearly impossible.

:-\

So here's another reason to collect comics, aside from what they're worth. It's a rainy day up here in the great northwest. Not having much to do I went to my local antique mall which has a small comic book section- the closest thing to a comic book store within 70 miles of where I live. There, for less than a hundred bucks, I picked up a stack of really cool comics. I got several Dell Lone Rangers,  a few Lash Larues (I've never read this title before) , a Captain Marvel Presents The Terrible Five ( the story is worse than the tittle- lol) two Forbidden Worlds,  and a bunch of 70's Marvel Comics .

Once I arrived back at home I had a nice afternoon, returning to those days of "yester- year" with cowboys, superheroes and monsters. Not a bad day for comic collecting!
RF

You guys remember these over-sized, DC Marvel crossover, treasury editions? Great stories too.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49990601852_f82da52c82.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jauUhu)2020-06-10_12-12-09 (https://flic.kr/p/2jauUhu) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49989836433_734dea1c3a.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jaqYKB)2020-06-10_12-12-32 (https://flic.kr/p/2jaqYKB) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49990357616_d7e8512da5.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jatDFw)2020-06-10_12-12-02 (https://flic.kr/p/2jatDFw) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49990357171_91f36f16d5.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jatDxR)2020-06-10_12-11-51 (https://flic.kr/p/2jatDxR) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49990600132_9f1a856226.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jauTLQ)2020-06-10_12-11-30 (https://flic.kr/p/2jauTLQ) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49990600617_fdce16a8fd.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jauTVc)2020-06-10_12-11-41 (https://flic.kr/p/2jauTVc) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

You bet Geezer! Great stuff those old treasury editions. I've still got my signed copy of the first Spidey edition that Stan and John R. Autographed. My biggest regret with them is that I see people trying to pass off the DC editions as original comics. Oh well...
One of my favorite Marvel editions is Captain America's Bicentennial Battles. I really like the pages that Barry Smith inked over Kirby. Wish there was more of the two of them working together.

As an aside, is anyone wishing Howard the Duck would make a second run at the presidency? Get down America! Lol
RF

I had a few of those myself, including the one that reproduced Superman No. 1 (or was it Action No. 1?). When my dad saw it at the time he said, "Hmm. I had this as a kid." I jumped to feet and said, "WHERE IS IT NOW? CAN I SEE IT??" He replied that he probably read it, then either traded it or tossed it. And that, my friends, is why I'm not a millionaire today...

On a different note, I have some EC Comics repros, including the hardbound set of Vault of Horror that came out in the 80s. I also have a stray Crime SuspenStories hardcover so just lent it to a much younger co-worker whom has never even heard of EC. He seemed immediately hooked, so I encouraged him to invest in some newer reprints for himself. Amazon is loaded with them.

I picked this up for $3 yesterday. These were great.  :)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50021584712_b8e7db1401.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jdeGpJ)2020-06-18_11-07-45 (https://flic.kr/p/2jdeGpJ) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50018368831_45eac1d83d.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jcXdrv)2020-06-18_02-10-00 (https://flic.kr/p/2jcXdrv) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50017840868_c24edb8855.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jcUvuG)2020-06-18_02-09-51 (https://flic.kr/p/2jcUvuG) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50018629792_940b4ca79d.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jcYy1Q)2020-06-18_02-09-43 (https://flic.kr/p/2jcYy1Q) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50018368081_f51dc4dcac.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jcXddz)2020-06-18_02-09-33 (https://flic.kr/p/2jcXddz) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

Geezer, I'm pretty sure I had that exact issue as a kid!

Great find Geezer!
I love those old catalogs; I use to wait anxiously for the Marvelmania ones to arrive in the mail.
RF

Not I. I always chaffed to see Marvel, Marvel and more Marvel comics lining the walls of comic shops throghout the 1970's and 1980's. I'd look through every new Overstreet Price Guide and think "Yeah, I'd happily scoop up a run of Green Lantern, Flash, Mystery in Space, Challengers of the Unknown, Adventures of the Fly, etc. comics at that price but where are they?"

And as far as licensed toys were concerned back in the 1960's, finding anything outside Superman, Batman and Marvel characters was like pulling teeth.

:-\

Hep, I know you're  not a big Marvel fan and I get it, but I'd encourage you take a look at some of the Marvelmania stuff. They only lasted from '69 to '71, but at the time it was the only place you could see Ditko's unused Amazing Fantasy 15 cover, artist biographies, etc.  While only four of the eight posters Jack Kirby drew for the club were published at the time,  they still represent some excellent Kirby art. I had the best conversation with Marie Severin as she signed her biography sheet drawn for that purpose.

Speaking of odd character licensing, anybody out there have the Radio Comics character bendies  that came out....God knows when? I only saw the Fly and the Shield for sale one time back in the late 70's and I wish I'd bought them. While I've collected those comics, I'd love to know how many other kids actually followed those characters  and if there's other licensed Radio Comics merchandise?
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on June 19, 2020, 12:28:59 PMHep, I know you're  not a big Marvel fan and I get it, but I'd encourage you take a look at some of the Marvelmania stuff.

It's not the Marvel comics with which I have a problem. I'd love to add a bunch of 1960's Fantastic Four and Amazing Spider-Man comics to my collection. Price is of course the stumbling block.

Stan Lee did a lot of things right at Marvel in the 1960's. He had the knack for making it seem as if the reader was missing out on something if he wasn't picking up other Marvel comics as well as the one he was reading.

First of all the heroes were all based in New York City, a real life place with real life neighbourhoods, e.g. the Bowery, Yancy Street, etc. As a result, they were constantly X-over into each others' titles and you had to read more than one title if you wanted the complete picture of what was happening to your favourite hero. Stan Lee also left unresolved storylines dangling basically right from the start, e.g. the Thing or the Human Torch would walk out of the Fantastic Four in a fit of pique at the conclusion of a tale or the villain of the next Spider-Man tale would be looking in on the action in the last couple of pages of a Spider-Man story.

Stan Lee thus made it difficult to read just one Marvel comic.

Secondly, Marvel comics delivered more action than did DC's. While the competent man hero in DC comics typically thought his way out of perils and got the better of villains by outwitting them, Marvel comics offered slugfest after slugfest. Hero versus villain, hero against hero, whatever, page after page of slugging it out. And your typical eleven year old comic reader loved slugfests! Young boys are always wondering "Who would win a fight between...?"

Finally, Stan Lee made the young reader want to be part of it all. He addressed the reader directly in stories. He constantly mentioned by name other staff members at Marvel Comics right down to his personal secretary. Then there were the references to "Real Frantic Ones" and the opportunity to become a member of the Merry Marvel Marching Society. The young readers who wanted to be part of it all were thus successfully brought into the fold.

My problem is with the sub-sector of comic fans collectively known as Marvel zombies, i.e. the ones whose collecting interests revolve strictly around Marvel comics excluding all else. They're actually the ones who made it so difficult for me to find any non-Marvel titles in comic shops in the 1970s and 1980s. Comic shop owners very rationally stocked what fans demanded and since most comic fans were Marvel zombies, well Hepcat was out of luck.

Quote from: Rex fury on June 19, 2020, 12:28:59 PMSpeaking of odd character licensing, anybody out there have the Radio Comics character bendies  that came out....God knows when? I only saw the Fly and the Shield for sale one time back in the late 70's and I wish I'd bought them. While I've collected those comics, I'd love to know how many other kids actually followed those characters  and if there's other licensed Radio Comics merchandise?

There's very little Radio Comics merchandise, other than a Ben Cooper Fly costume:


(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Ben-Cooper-Flyman-Box_zpscofzkfu2.png)


And from my own collection this Transogram board game with a great theme and nifty graphics but that's annoyingly ill executed:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/MightyComicsSuperHeroesGame.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/SuperHeroesGame2.jpg)


Pictured on the box top are the Fly, Captain Flag, the Shield, Black Hood and Flygirl. They all look fine, but why was Captain Flag, who had a grand total of only one additional appearance in comics since Blue Ribbon Comics ceased publication in 1942, chosen instead of the Jaguar who not only had his own comic in the early sixties but had ongoing appearances in Pep and Laugh? And why was his name given an extra "g" on the character list at the bottom of the box? Worse yet, who were the Hood, Mr. Fox, Mr. Jag and Mr. Steel?

:o

Now Archie had characters named Black Hood, the Fox, the Jaguar and Steel Sterling but not the the Hood, Mr. Fox, Mr. Jag and Mr. Steel. The people at Transogram were very careless indeed when they brought this game to market.

>:(

Quote from: Hepcat on May 22, 2020, 01:09:50 PMAnother newspaper strip that influenced my taste in comics for life was the Li'l Abner strip which was not within my memory even carried in the London Free Press. Nonetheless I was aware of Li'l Abner somehow perhaps through either the Detroit Free Press or the Detroit News since we visited my uncle's family in Detroit once or twice per year when I was a kid. In any event I was certainly aware of his existence by the time the 1959 Li'l Abner movie came to London:

While I don't remember when and where I discovered the Li'l Abner or Terry and the Pirates strips, I clearly remember discovering the Scamp strip in the Weekend Toronto Star on a visit in 1961(?):

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/scamp1956(2).jpg)

The Scamp strip first appeared on 31 October 1955 with 15 January 1956 being the date of the first "Sunday" colour strip. It ran until 25 June 1988. Scamp was also the title feature of Dell Four Color Comics #703, 777, 806 and 833 in 1956 and 1957 before graduating to his own Dell title #5-16 which ran from May 1958 to February 1961 followed by Four Color 1204 later in 1961.

Sadly I still don't have a single issue of Scamp in my collection. I do have these three wild Chip 'n' Dale comics though:

25 File copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-08-201173518PM.jpg)

27

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-08-201173530PM.jpg)

29

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-08-201173534PM.jpg)

8)

Chip 'n' Dale. So cute.😊

Quote from: horrorhunter on April 28, 2020, 10:46:48 AM
Here are scans of my first five issues of Marvel's Conan.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49829521948_47e76ab7d4_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49830056491_02b7f9e882_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49830059456_f7b99c434d_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49830062851_4fbdaacfab_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49829533868_46045cf2f0_b.jpg)

Conan is an excellent series which ran 275 issues, 12 Annuals, and 5 Giant-Size issues. I finally completed my run around 5 years ago after working on it since I started collecting in the 1975. Written by "Rascally" Roy "The Boy" Thomas adapted from and inspired by the great Robert E. Howard, drawn by Barry Smith (pre Windsor  ;D) and later "Big" John Buscema, the first decade of Marvel's Conan is a real joy for Sword & Sorcery Fans. It's generally accepted that Conan kicked off the Bronze Age of Comics, though there is the inevitable debate concerning this, however everyone at least agrees that Conan #1 is one of the books which started the Bronze Age in 1970. Conan's popularity also spawned the magazine Savage Sword Of Conan which ran 235 issues and 1 Annual, and was a big part of the mag Savage Tales, and a few issues of Marvel Treasury Edition. Later on other volumes of Conan were published including some good work by Dark Horse Comics.

Nice!! I'm super jealous of this!!

Just grabbed my first Golden Age Wonder Woman books this week.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50066866696_1a02846c40_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jheMaA)Untitled (https://flic.kr/p/2jheMaA) by Joe Pav (https://www.flickr.com/photos/joe92580/), on Flickr
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50066309113_6698f5c863_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jhbVq6)Untitled (https://flic.kr/p/2jhbVq6) by Joe Pav (https://www.flickr.com/photos/joe92580/), on Flickr
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50066312648_c02d224f3d_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jhbWt3)Untitled (https://flic.kr/p/2jhbWt3) by Joe Pav (https://www.flickr.com/photos/joe92580/), on Flickr

Quote from: BigShadow on July 01, 2020, 06:44:15 PMJust grabbed my first Golden Age Wonder Woman books this week.

Cool! I didn't expect there to be any Golden Age Wonder Woman comic collectors on this forum!

8)

Perhaps the best place to start historically for a present day fan of Wonder Woman is with the two comics that detailed the origin of the Earth One Wonder Woman thus raising the curtain for Wonder Woman's adventures in the Silver Age. The two-part origin tale is unfortunately in reverse chronological order.

Wonder Woman 105 cover dated April 1959 explains how Wonder Woman received her powers as a tot:

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10337&t=1)

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10333&t=1)

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10338&t=1)

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10334&t=1)

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10336&t=1)

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10335&t=1)

Issue #105 thus also serves as the introduction of the Wonder Girl that was Wonder Woman as an early teen.

Wonder Woman 98 cover dated May 1958 recounts the tale of how Wonder Woman was selected to be the Amazons' emissary to the outside world thus launching her career as a super-heroine:

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10341&t=1)

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10340&t=1)

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10353&t=1)

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=10339&t=1)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/ww%2098c_zpsfgqhvzo0.jpg)

:)

I'm re-reading some of my fav early 80s, DC horror titles

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50067884881_1e6e2fe018.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jhjZQv)2020-07-02_03-59-57 (https://flic.kr/p/2jhjZQv) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50067429258_c8d4955838.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jhhEoW)2020-07-02_04-48-14 (https://flic.kr/p/2jhhEoW) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50067431928_7b2bfb00f1.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jhhFbY)2020-07-02_04-49-40 (https://flic.kr/p/2jhhFbY) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50070474736_ec09b1932a.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jhygHb)2020-07-02_09-25-55 (https://flic.kr/p/2jhygHb) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

I'm in the same frame of mind Geezer! The last two days I've been rereading Tomb of Dracula and recently read the Moore SwampThing run for probably the third time.
RF
PS- Congratulations to BigShadow on the Wonder Woman comics! Love the Golden Age  stuff😍

Quote from: Rex fury on July 02, 2020, 11:04:41 PM
PS- Congratulations to BigShadow on the Wonder Woman comics! Love the Golden Age  stuff😍

Thanks.  I've been making payments since last August, so it's nice to finally have them home.

I have a decent albeit far from complete collection of Wonder Woman comics beginning in 1960 and running through the Silver and Bronze Ages. Here are scans of a baker's dozen of my favourite Silver Age Wonder Woman covers from among the ones that I actually have in my collection:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/18-05-2011110436PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/22-05-201111549PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/22-05-201111556PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/26-05-201163238PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/26-05-201175006PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/26-05-201175014PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/31-05-201174104PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/31-05-201174107PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/31-05-201174124PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/16-06-2011101152PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/25-06-2011101057PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/25-06-2011101116PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/25-06-2011101122PM.jpg)

Lots of great monster and dinosaur covers in Silver Age Wonder Woman comics!

8)

I really like the Wonder Woman covers from the 60's and 70's, especially the sci-fi or horror themed ones. Issue #146 has a cool dinosaur cover...another of my favorite themes, next to gorillas.

The first actual comic magazines I ever encountered may have been when I was accompanying my father to the barber shop on Wharncliffe Road just south of Emery Street in 1957 or so. I don't remember the titles or characters specifically though they were probably some mix of "Superman", "Batman", "Donald Duck" and "Tom and Jerry" titles.

The first comic books I can remember reading in the spring of 1959 featured Felix's Nephews Inky & Dinky. They belonged to the older brother of my buddy Phil from across the street and were so beat up that they were without covers so I have no clue as to the actual issues. Phil and I both thought Dinky was a very cool name though!

Here are scans of the ones from my present day collection:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-07-201152115PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-07-201152118PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-07-201152122PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/30-10-2011104238PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/30-10-2011104244PM.jpg)

8)

I think I have a few Inky and Dinky comics that I picked up at a flea market a couple years ago for a few buck a piece.

Still working my way through 1980s DC horror books

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50158406277_a6cce4b6bf_k.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jqjWGe)2020-07-27_03-55-18 (https://flic.kr/p/2jqjWGe) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50157618453_178520f855_k.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jqfUv4)2020-07-27_03-56-17 (https://flic.kr/p/2jqfUv4) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50158529082_c125529ec8_k.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jqkzcy)2020-07-27_04-52-42 (https://flic.kr/p/2jqkzcy) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50157732608_f90e4f1bd1_k.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jqgurf)2020-07-27_04-50-06 (https://flic.kr/p/2jqgurf) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

Quote from: geezer butler on July 27, 2020, 09:58:37 PM
Still working my way through 1980s DC horror books

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50158406277_a6cce4b6bf_k.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2jqjWGe)2020-07-27_03-55-18 (https://flic.kr/p/2jqjWGe) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

Crisis on Infinite Earths is actually my stepping off point when it comes to DC comics. Every collector needs such a point. It's the road to madness and ruin otherwise.

;)

The Spectre was a favorite of mine during his run in Adventure Comics. The 80's incarnation was enjoyable for a while, but I felt the book lost its focus. I never cared for the stories where Jim Carigan wasn't the Spectre . There was a gimmick, glow in the dark cover during the 80's run that I remember thinking was kind of neat, although I'm really not a fan of that sort of thing. The recent digital edition of Ghosts had a fun Spectre story too!
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on July 28, 2020, 09:50:59 AMThe Spectre was a favorite of mine during his run in Adventure Comics.

That run with the Spectre as an avenging spirit in Adventure Comics featuring Jim Aparo artwork was fabulous! Here are scans of some of the great covers from my collection:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182738PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182806PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182809PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182813PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182816PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182820PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/22-07-2012110427PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/22-07-2012110438PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/22-07-2012110443PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/22-07-2012110446PM.jpg)

cl:)

The first comics I can recall buying were Cicero's Cat 1 and 2 in the summer of 1959. I bought them at Ken's Variety on Wharncliffe Road in London, Ontario and I still very clearly remember my father initially telling me to take #2 back because he thought I already had a copy!

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/CicerosCat1.jpg)

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/CicerosCat2.jpg)

Since Dell comics were still ten cents up until the issues that went on sale in December 1960, they were very popular and common on newsstands and places such as barber shops in those days. The Donald Duck titles including Uncle Scrooge seemed to be particularly popular and common at the time. Here are a couple of scans from my present day collection:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_Uncle_Scrooge_8.png)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/26-10-201175148PM.jpg)

8)

Uncle Scrooge and Donald Duck comics are some of my favorite reads.  And I'll read any comic strip featuring the Duck as well.

Tom and Jerry was another very commonly found Dell title in 1959-60. I don't remember buying any at the time but I have well over twenty these days. Here are scans from my collection of some issues that hit newsstands before the price was raised to $0.15 in December 1960:

182

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-2011105422PM.jpg)

185

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-2011105427PM.jpg)

186

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-2011105430PM.jpg)

187

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-2011105434PM.jpg)

188

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/04-12-201293524PM.jpg)

191

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/04-12-201293529PM.jpg)

192

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/04-12-201293534PM.jpg)

193

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/04-12-201293537PM.jpg)

195

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/04-12-201293541PM.jpg)

196

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-12-2012104215PM.jpg)

14

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182853PM.jpg)

15

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182856PM.jpg)

17

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182859PM.jpg)

19

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182903PM.jpg)

21

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Comics001/Mouse_zpsgx2macxm.jpg)

8)

Shari Lewis and Howdy Doody were characters who filled me with a sense of wonder when I first discovered comics in 1959-60. That's because they were popular kids' show characters who appeared on U.S. television stations that in London, Ontario required a good roof top TV antenna to access. Therefore only a very fortunate few kids got to see their shows and their unattainability imbued these characters with a magical aura in my impressionable young mind.

While Shari Lewis appeared in no comics, 38 issues of Howdy Doody were published by Dell with cover dates from January 1950 to September 1956. Howdy Doody was also the title feature of Four Color issues #761 and #811 with 1957 cover dates.

Here are scans of my five File copies:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/31-05-201174159PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/31-05-201174202PM.jpg)

13

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/HowdyDoody13.jpg)

20

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/31-05-201174205PM.jpg)

31

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-201170537PM.jpg)

8)

Nice books Hep. You seem to have a great run of file copies in your comic collection. The only file copies I own are a run of Grim's Ghost stories. Just FYI- while Shari Lewis wasn't featured in comics per say, there was a nice run of Lambchop Weekly children's magazine. These are sometimes referred to as comics ( but you probably already knew that).
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on August 11, 2020, 04:31:33 PMJust FYI- while Shari Lewis wasn't featured in comics per say, there was a nice run of Lambchop Weekly children's magazine. These are sometimes referred to as comics ( but you probably already knew that).

Actually I did not! Thanks for the info. It seems that Shari Lewis' Lambchop Weekly was a U.K. publication.

:)

The cartoon character that for the same unattainability reason seemed the most magical to me in 1960-61 was Deputy Dawg. Fortunately I now have all seven comic magazines in which Deputy Dawg is the cover feature. The first five issues of New Terrytoons with 1960-61 cover dates:

1

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/DeputyDawg1.jpg)

2

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/NewTerrytoons2.jpg)

3

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/NewTerrytoons3.jpg)

4 File copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201244854PM.jpg)

5

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201244903PM.jpg)

Plus the two issues of Four Color Comics from 1961 and 1962 in which Deputy Dawg is the title feature character:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-2011105413PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-2011105418PM.jpg)

8)

Quote from: Hepcat on August 13, 2020, 12:20:53 PM
The cartoon character that for the same unattainability reason seemed the most magical to me in 1960-61 was Deputy Dawg. Fortunately I now have all seven comic magazines in which Deputy Dawg is the cover feature. The first five issues of New Terrytoons with 1960-61 cover dates:


2

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/NewTerrytoons2.jpg)

3




8)

I find it interesting that the character is called "Minute and a Half Man" on the comic book cover. The character was called "Hector Heathcote" in the series I watched as a child.

Interesting! Western Printing evidently picked up on the name of the first cartoon in which Hector Heathcote appeared and ran with that even though a second cartoon had already appeared several months before New Terrytoons 2 hit newsstands in late July 1960:

Quote from: WikipediaHector Heathcote is a Terrytoons animated cartoon character. Created by Eli Bauer and Ralph Bakshi, he first appeared in July 18, 1959 in The Minute and a Half Man.... Terrytoons created the character for television, but the cartoons also received theatrical distribution.

Hector is an 18-year-old orange-haired Colonial era patriot who turned up, often as an unsung hero, during various stages of American History. In later cartoons he was accompanied by his faithful red-and-yellow dog Winston who talked with a slight English accent. Heathcote was also antagonized by a big bully named Benedict who parodied the infamous American traitor Benedict Arnold.

The Hector Heathcote Show aired on NBC from October 5, 1963 to September 25, 1965. The series ran for two seasons, replacing The Shari Lewis Show. Additional cartoons in the program included Hashimoto-san, a Japanese mouse, and Silly Sidney the Elephant, a wacky pachyderm whose friends included Cleo the giraffe and Stanley, a cantankerous lion.

Hector was merchandised on lunch boxes, books and toys. Gold Key published him in comic book form, but only one issue (dated 1964)

Filmography

Terrytoons made 19 Hector Heathcote cartoons between 1959 and 1971, directed by Arthur Bartsch, Dave Tendlar, Connie Rasinski, Bill Tytla and Bob Kuwahara.

The Minute and a Half Man (July 1959)
The Famous Ride (April 1960)

:-\

Dell's advertising slogan since at least the formation of the Comics Code Authority in 1955 was "Dell comics are good comics!" And Dell comics really did provide good value to the young customer. All 36 pages including the exterior and interior cover pages of a Dell comic mag were devoted to panel comics with an ad on the back cover being an occasional exception. In comparison the Harvey comics from the late 1950's to 1961 through which I've flipped have around 10 1/2 pages of ads including 1 - 2 1/2 pages of house ads plus 1 1/2 - 2 pages of text features.

Nonetheless newsstand sales of Dell comics plummeted beginning in December 1960 when the price of Dell comics was raised from $0.10 to $0.15 despite the still reasonable value proposition.

Despite what was in retrospect the better value of Dell comics, before the age of nine or so the comics that I reached for most often (and purchased once in a blue moon) from the spinner rank were Harvey. Since most of the Dell funny animal characters were from cartoon shows, they seemed commonplace to me. Casper and the other Harvey characters just seemed more exotic to me. Even then I was drawn to spooks, witches and demons! Hot Stuff was a particular favourite of mine at the time:

(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/3e/Hot_Stuff_the_Little_Devil.png)

These days I'm really put off by the fact that the diaper Hot Stuff wears indicates that he's a baby so i have very few Hot Stuff comics in my collection.

My favourite Harvey character these days is Spooky because unlike Casper he's not a milquetoast and I really like his derby. Here are scans of a few of my older (defined as ten cent) Spooky comics:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-06-201125315PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-06-201125321PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-06-201125325PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-06-201125329PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-06-201125333PM.jpg)

I also really like Wendy since I know she grew up to be super hot:

(http://www.marveldirectory.com/pictures/individuals/s_1d/scarletwitch.jpg)

Here are scans of some of my older Wendy comics:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/25-06-2011101133PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/25-06-2011101129PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/25-06-2011101136PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/25-06-2011101139PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/25-06-2011101143PM.jpg)

I do keep an eye out for any older Casper comics which I'm willing to buy if they're cheap. Here are scans of a few from my collection:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/25-06-2011101146PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/25-06-2011101150PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/25-06-2011101154PM.jpg)

Richie Rich though turns my stomach. Nor can I abide the grotesquely fat Little Lotta or the diaper wearing Baby Huey characters.

cl:)

Though I was already familiar with Superman and Batman comics from the barber shop or wherever, the first superhero comics I distinctly remember reading were the Adventures of the Fly in early 1961. I remember reading them at Lamont & Perkins drugstore a block away on Wortley Road before they chased me out, at which point I'd head for Tyler & Zettel's pharmacy six or so blocks to the south on Wortley Road. I think the first issue of  the Adventures of the Fly that caught my eye was #12:

Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182826PM.jpg)

I believe these drug stores only stocked Archie, Dell and Classics Illustrated comics which is why the Fly was the first superhero to catch my attention.  The closest two variety stores/grocery stores from which I bought bubble gum cards and various penny candies didn't stock comics. The best selection of comics in the immediate neighbourhood was at Ken's Variety four blocks away but I usually didn't have to travel that far to spend what little money I had. Moreover what was the point of making the four block trek to Ken's to be tempted by comics I didn't have the money to buy?  Therefore I just don't remember seeing any of the DC superhero titles such as these that would have been on many newsstands/magazine racks at the time:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-07-201164222PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Showcase31.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/22-05-201111556PM.jpg)

But then Adventures of the Fly 13 turned out to be even more of an eye opener for me:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/06-08-201182829PM.jpg)

Because inside were these ads heralding the introduction of Fly Girl and the Jaguar!

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_Fly_Girl_ad.png)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_Jaguar_ad.png)

I also read through the Adventures of the Jaguar 1 when it first hit the newsstand at Lamont & Perkins or somewhere:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/31-05-201174146PM.jpg)

I was spellbound by this dashing new hero! The issue also included this tantalizing ad for the mysterious Fly Girl:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/24-04-201380317PM_zps0e246512.jpg)

Who would shortly make her debut appearance in Adventures of the Fly 14:

Bethlehem copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182832PM.jpg)

These comics left such a profound impact on my impressionable young mind that Fly, Fly Girl and Jaguar have remained among my very favourite comic book characters and superheroes to this very day! I now have nearly complete runs of both Adventures of the Fly and Adventures of the Jaguar in generally very nice condition including the first two issues of the Fly from 1959 which feature Joe Simon & Jack Kirby artwork.

Nonetheless these issues of the Adventures of the Fly and the Adventures of the Jaguar didn't yet prompt me to start up a collection of superhero comics. Quite simply at the age of nine I didn't have the money. A dime was a serious piece of currency in those days. A Canadian dime contained exactly 0.06 ounces of silver meaning that at the present moment's silver price of U.S.$27.52 per ounce it was worth U.S.$1.65 or Cdn.$2.16 in today's terms. Two packs of cards containing a total of eight cards and eight flat sections of bubble gum, a ten ounce bottle of pop including the two cent deposit, a full size chocolate bar, a good sized bag of chips or a two scoop ice cream cone could be had for a Canadian dime in those days. That's right, two scoops! Even a penny was a not insignificant bit of currency. A penny could get you a proper sized piece of Dubble Bubble or Bazooka gum:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/bazooka.jpg)

:)

I too have fond memories of the early Radio comics. I really thought the fly and fly girl were cool, especially the Kirby issue(s). The Double Life of Private Strong also found its way into my collection. Anyone read the first issue of their version of the Shadow?  The Shadow quickly became a standard superhero, but I think he's closer to the "real" Shadow in that first issue. Anyone have recollections of him?
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on August 28, 2020, 10:49:45 PMI too have fond memories of the early Radio comics. I really thought the fly and fly girl were cool, especially the Kirby issue(s).

Yes, Joe Simon & Jack Kirby were the creative team behind the inception and origin of the Fly.

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Fly%200_zps82dfzbyc.jpg)

Here are scans from my collection of the covers and some of the interior panels from the first two issues of the Adventures of the Fly on which Simon & Kirby worked:

1

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Fly1.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/24-01-201373051PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/24-01-201373103PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Fly%204A_zpsrxr8461z.jpg)

2

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Fly2.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/24-01-201373057PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/24-01-201373100PM.jpg)

8)

I found a great book about Jack Kirby called Kirby King of Comics by Mark Evanier. It is full of artwork, stories about Jack, and other goodies.

Quote from: John Pertwee on August 29, 2020, 11:20:47 AMI found a great book about Jack Kirby called Kirby King of Comics by Mark Evanier. It is full of artwork, stories about Jack, and other goodies.

(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81GC4v4QcXL.jpg)

Mark Evanier is perhaps Kirby's single most notorious fanboy. So yes, Evanier does indeed give Kirby the plaudits he deserves. Unfortunately, Evanier is also prone to over aggrandizing Kirby's accomplishments by giving Kirby more than his due of credit at the expense of co-creators such as Joe Simon, Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.

:(

We will never know who did what, but I sure am glad they all did what they did.

Quote from: Rex fury on August 28, 2020, 10:49:45 PMThe Double Life of Private Strong also found its way into my collection.

The Double Life of Private Strong 1 cover dated June 1959 was the issue in which the Shield, one of MLJ's Golden Age superheroes, was relaunched in a new incarnation as Lancelot Strong:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Shield_cover.jpg) (Not mine.)

The first thing to note here is the composition of the cover. The main Shield figure appears to have been drawn by Joe Simon but most of the rest of the cover seems to have been rendered by Jack Kirby.

The new Shield is shown in his full glory on the splash page:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_Shield_1.jpg)

His origin tale is actually stretched over four stories all pencilled by Jack Kirby and inked by Joe Simon:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Shield_splash.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Shield_3.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Shield_4.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Shield_5.jpg)

I was going to say that the Simon & Kirby artwork was once again a treat for the eyes, but I actually think it was their very best effort to this point!

The Shield, initially Roger Flemming, gains his powers as a result of his father, Dr. Malcolm Flemming, training him to use the untapped portions of the human brain thus making him a superhuman. But Communist spies kill Dr. Flemming and a farm couple, Mr. and Mrs. Strong, end up raising Roger. The new Shield's superhuman powers include great strength, the ability to fly, throw lightning bolts, run really rapidly and see in the dark.

The Fly was also introduced in this issue in a two page story:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Fly_1.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Fly_2.jpg)

The issue also included this nifty one pager starring the Fly's alter-ego Tommy Troy:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Fly_3.jpg)

The Double Life of Private Strong would last for only one more issue. Further appearances of this Lancelot Strong Shield in the Silver Age would be limited to two-pagers in Adventures of the Fly #1, 2 & 4 and guest team-ups with the Fly in Adventures of the Fly #8 & 9. Sad because this new Shield was a much more interesting character than the Golden Age Shield.

Here's a good background summary of the new Shield:

Shield - The Mighty Crusaders Network (http://www.mightycrusaders.net/shield-lancelot-strong/)

What's really sad though is the fact that I have neither issue of The Double Life of Private Strong.

:(

I agree that S&K were hitting on all cylinders during this period. Their Fighting American was a great satire of both Captain America and The Shield. Another fun comic that only lasted one ( newsstand release) issue was Boy Explorers. Stuntman was pretty cool too, but alas there just wasn't a strong enough market for any of this stuff at the time. More in line with monsters and science fiction, The Three Rocketeers and Race for the Moon also had some decent S&K work.
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on August 28, 2020, 10:49:45 PMI too have fond memories of the early Radio comics.... Anyone read the first issue of their version of the Shadow?  The Shadow quickly became a standard superhero, but I think he's closer to the "real" Shadow in that first issue.

I've not read any of the Radio Comics Shadow issues, but there definitely seems to have been a quantum change in the character between issues #1 and #2:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/shadow_1964_archie_comics_series_1_7ff3fd11f8ee86652b0913d5e1cbca1d.jpg) (Not mine.)

Quote from: Rex fury on August 31, 2020, 06:59:46 PMI agree that S&K were hitting on all cylinders during this period. Their Fighting American was a great satire of both Captain America and The Shield.

While I don't have any of the original issues published by Prize Comics, I have this Giant from 1966 that reprints some of the stories:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/18-09-2011112201PM.jpg)

:)

It's all great stuff. The 60's reprint is a fun sampling of stories. The entire run was collected and published hardbound by both Marvel (weird, I know) and more recently by the English Company that's doing lots of 50's comics reprints- their name slips my mind. Also, they're all on-line and can be read for free that way.
My personal favorite way to read them is through the original comics. There's nothing like opening and experiencing a golden age comic, smell and all! I'm not a fan of slabbing for this reason.
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on September 01, 2020, 02:15:02 PMIt's all great stuff.... My personal favorite way to read them is through the original comics. There's nothing like opening and experiencing a golden age comic, smell and all! I'm not a fan of slabbing for this reason.

Oh absolutely!

8)

The first DC superhero comic I can specifically remember reading was Green Lantern 11 in April of 1962 which George V. a buddy of mine on a farm outside of London had:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/GreenLantern11.jpg)


I still remember how it filled me with a sense of awe and wonder at the time. This Green Lantern character was leagues more interesting than staid old Superman and Batman!

Now I know for a fact that it prompted me to check out comics at the newsstand of Les' Variety since I clearly remember looking at these ads in the DC comics of the time:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Batman20ad_zpslmcvjoqr.jpg)

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v328/Osgood39/Time%20Capsule/Apr62Atom1ad.jpg)

(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v328/Osgood39/Time%20Capsule/Apr62miscad3.jpg)


I remember being captivated by the exotic Atom and Hawkman characters I was seeing for the first time. And I know for a fact that it was in the spring of 1962 that I first encountered that house ad for Atom 1 because when I saw basically the same ad reprinted for Atom 2 a couple of months later, I remember thinking that it was a pity I'd missed out on getting a copy of the Atom 1 with the cool Venus flytrap cover that I'd seen advertised earlier.

But if anything the house ads on the inside front and back covers impressed me even more strongly:


(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v328/Osgood39/Time%20Capsule/Apr62tomorrowsstarsad.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/DC%20House%20Ad%204_zpsl6wffoz0.jpg)


Wow, so cool and mysterious that Hawkman, and who were these Metal Men anyway? Since I very clearly remember knowing nothing about the Atom, Hawkman and Metal Men at the time, I must have viewed those ads for the first time in the spring of 1962.

The Tomorrow's Stars Appear Today ad is still one of my very favourite DC ads of all time despite, or perhaps precisely because, it was in B&W. But because these ads were so compelling, over the years I've periodically wondered why I didn't start looking for and buying some of the comics that must have been on other comic racks only a few blocks away. I mean how could I have resisted covers such as these?


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-06-201182045PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/15-11-201163202PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/BraveandBold42.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-06-201172321PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/16-06-2011101200PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201244944PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Comics001/002_zps4a47e4f0.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/17-03-201390019PM_zpsb661cae4.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/13-06-2011101349PM.jpg)


Well quite simply I didn't search through other newsstands for more superhero comics in the early spring of 1962. The explanation lies in another ad from DC comics that I very clearly remember seeing at the time:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/01-08-2012122118AM.jpg)


Wow! Baseball Coins! Just like the Shirriff/Salada Hockey Coins that had been so popular with young boys in Canada over the previous two winters.


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/1962_shirriff_potato_chips_coin_1_f6561aa9b8a73859b56f1db89f29c3a8.jpg)


Here are scans of a few of these coins from my present day set:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/29-07-201245438PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/29-07-201245409PM.jpg)


I wondered immediately though whether they'd just be offered in the States, but within a week or so I found out that they'd not only showed up in bags of Shirriff Potato Chips on local store shelves, but that Mike M. from just down the street already had some! Mike being over a year older than me was always into the cool stuff first it seemed. Well I had to start collecting the Shirriff Baseball Coins and I did, but I didn't get beyond four or five before Hostess Potato Chips and Jell-O launched their own competing promotion (well they weren't just going to stand idly by while Shirriff carved into their market share), an absolutely fabulous set of 200 Aircraft Wheels! Here are scans from my present day set:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/29-07-201245441PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/29-07-201245426PM.jpg)


But, but, but, I couldn't collect both! It cost a whole dime to get a bag of potato chips with one of these little treasures and my ability to accumulate these Coins/Wheels was severely limited by cash flow considerations. Since I was already collecting the 1962 Topps Baseball cards (mercifully limited that year to the first three series totalling 264 cards since O-Pee-Chee didn't seem very good at convincing retailers to order the higher numbered series once the end of spring approached):


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/15-07-201235808PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/15-07-201235815PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/15-07-201235819PM.jpg)


And eating Sugar Crisp cereal to collect the Canadian issue of the Post Baseball cards:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/03-12-201175016PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/021_zps17e336bd.jpg)


I had enough baseball related collectibles on my plate and therefore chose to collect the Aircraft Wheels thus contributing to the profits of the Hostess Potato Chip Company even though Shirriff made slightly better chips. (Mmmmmm, so delicious as well as nutritious whatever the brand!) Going with the Hostess turned out to be a wise decision since the Hostess/Jell-O Aircraft Wheels I accumulated that spring and summer are among the very few items that  somehow survived in my possession from my childhood to the present day.

But of course I didn't have enough disposable income to collect comics as well - until July anyway.

:(

July 1962 was the month when I actually bought my first superhero comics. I'd been greatly impressed to put it mildly by the copy of Justice League 8 which I'd read at a Lithuanian kids' summer camp near Mount Brydges just a few miles west of London.


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/21-08-201182441PM.jpg)

For Sale---the Justice League!

Editor:  Julius Schwartz
Writer:  Gardner Fox
Art:  Mike Sekowsky (pencils); Bernard Sachs (inks)


(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v328/Osgood39/Time%20Capsule/JLA8-1.jpg)


After getting back home, the Justice League issue that greeted me on the comic stand at Les' Variety on the corner was #14:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-07-201164237PM.jpg)


What a great cover! I was feverish with anxious anticipation as I bought it.  Over the next two weeks or so I bought these additional comics:


(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-07-201264827PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/detective-comics_zpsxzsdse4m.jpg)  (Not mine.)

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/18-05-2011110422PM.jpg)

8

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-08-201272554PM.jpg)


I may have bought a title featuring Superboy as well. Since I limited myself to perusing only the offerings at Les' and Lamont & Perkins Pharmacy right beside Les', I failed to come across any of these other really neat comics which would have been on the stands at the time:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Aquaman5.jpg)

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/BraveandBold43.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/13-06-2011105011PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/18-06-201155207PM.jpg)

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/StrangeAdventures144.jpg)

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/12-07-2012110429PM.jpg)

21

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-09-201294605PM.jpg)

1

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/09-05-201375755PM_zps9a137578.jpg)


Fantastic Four 7 would also have been on the stands at the time but I have no recollection of seeing any Marvel comics that month.

It was just as well that I didn't come across any more comics to buy since within three weeks my older sister convinced my mother to pitch my small collection out before I was hopelessly corrupted. Nonetheless I must have continued to peruse the superhero comics on the stands for another few weeks because I very clearly remember being captivated by this house ad for Superman 156:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/Superman1561962_zps1b420ed4.jpg)


Temporarily though I'd learned my lesson and resisted the urge to buy that or any other comic for the time being. Besides, the fabulous Topps Civil War News cards would hit variety store counters at about the same time as that Superman comic and they'd act to squeeze most every nickel and dime from my grubby fingers for weeks:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/e9340735-c1a4-4891-8edc-be844a58e6fb_zpsz3kecx83.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/CivilWarNewscards.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/24-01-201370516PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%202/24-01-201370520PM.jpg)


And of course my sister's efforts to save me from being corrupted by my comics failed. I was already addicted and my life has been one of comic mag degeneracy ever since.

;)

I've recently been picking up more silver age DC comics, which is sort of new for me. I found that I really enjoyed an "Angel and the Ape" #5 that I bought at a local antique market. Consequently I've been ordering the rest of the silver age run to complete the set. While my younger self didn't appreciate this stuff ( no capes or Kirby crackle) I've found it resonates with me in old age.

Another book I picked up was what I thought was a " Challengers of the Unknown" 23. Upon opening the comic bag the cover fell off to reveal a Strange Adventures ! This might sound distressing, but it was really kind of fun. The comic was obviously beat  when I bought it, so I wasn't expecting to run off and slab it anyways-lol

What's kind of cool about collecting this stuff is speculating how the Challengers cover ended up married to its cousin Strange?  There's also a stamp on the cover that reads:
"Models &Hobbies
2215 Claremont St Skyline"
The rest of the address has been rubbed off, so I'll never know where exactly this comic spent it's early days as a collectible.
Finally there's a second stamp that reads:
"Mickeys Comic Books
Sell for 2c-Buy for 1c"
It's  fun for me to ponder who this Mickey was and how successful his comic book enterprise might have been? That to me is part of collecting old comics- wondering where they've come from and how they ended up where I find them?
No slabs and 9.999s for me, just stories and speculation about unknowable journeys.

RF

A copy of Space Adventures belonging to the older brother of a buddy of mine featuring the powerful Captain Atom helped to keep my appetite for the pajama brigade alive despite the loss of my comics in August 1962. I clearly recall that we were engaged in an informal football game across several back yards that day so it must have been sometime in the fall of 1962. The memory of these pages featuring a character based upon Nikita Khrushchev never left me:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/24-04-201380256PM_zps7a5d29c1.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/24-04-201380303PM_zps49d45dbe.jpg)


Given the fact that the copy may have been completely coverless, I didn't know which issue it was and only determined that it was issue #40 about eight years ago:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Space_Adventures_40.jpg) (Not mine.)


Charlton had introduced Captain Atom in Space Adventures 33 cover dated March 1960. He went on to appear in Space Adventures #33-40 plus #42 cover dated October 1961. These early appearances of Captain Atom are brutally difficult to find in nice condition these days. I have only these two in my present day collection:


38

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/SpaceAdventures38.jpg)

39

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/SpaceAdventures39.jpg)


Charlton then brought Captain Atom back in Strange Suspense Stories 75 cover dated June 1965. The title was renamed Captain Atom with issue #78 and his appearances continued until issue #89 cover dated December 1967. I have all these later appearances. Here are scans of the first three:


75

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-06-201195124PM.jpg)

76

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-06-201195237PM.jpg)

77

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-06-201195241PM.jpg)


All of the Captain Atom covers and stories pictured above were illustrated by Steve Ditko.

:)

Beany and Cecil got their start as puppets in 1949 on the Time for Beany show that Bob Clampett produced for Paramount Pictures. From 1952 to 1955 Dell published seven Four Color Comics based on the Beany and Cecil puppet show:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/154745.jpg)


Bob Clampett then converted Beany and Cecil into cartoon characters in 1959. CFPL-TV in London carried the Beany and Cecil cartoons for a year or two including the 1962-63 season. I watched them with delight.


Beany and Cecil Intro (https://youtu.be/AIxgrG8CFBM)


Dell published five Beany and Cecil comics between 1962 and 1963. Sadly I have only two of these in my present day collection:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/07-06-201174522PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/07-06-201174525PM.jpg)


That's still two better than none of course, and I have the rest of my life to add more!

 8)

A certain day in late July 1963 proved pivotal in instilling a lifelong interest in comics within me. There was a convenience store called Ken's Variety at Wharncliffe Road and Elmwood Street in London four blocks from where we lived. It was right beside the Hyland Theatre which featured wonderful double bill kids' matinees on Saturdays for twenty cents! Ken's was a great store for kids stocking everything from penny candy to bubble gum cards, ice cream cones, bottles of pop from an ice water cooler, Krun-Chee Potato Chips, AMT car model kits and others, PEZ dispensers, CFL bobbing head dolls and Halloween masks. It was very much a destination place for me and I have fond memories of shopping for various treasures at Ken's to this very day. On one of my frequent visits to Ken's, I happened to check out the spinner rack and saw these comics in all their shiny glory:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-11-2011120703AM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Aquaman11.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182705PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/02-08-2012113332PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/16-06-2011101211PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-2011105159PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-05-201175014PM.jpg)


Now at the time I had set aside any comic buying for nearly a year because my heart had been broken late the previous summer when my older sister convinced my mother to throw out my small stack of comics because they were surely going to corrupt me for life. (She was right of course. They did.)  But there was no way I could resist the selection that was staring me in the face on the spinner rack that day. I had a pocket full of change and took the plunge back into four colour wonder. I bought the Aquaman, Flash and Justice League comics on the spot and returned a day or two later to buy the Atom and Wonder Woman ones. Within just over a week I'd bought them all.

In addition to the above comics, I picked up these among other DC superhero comics at Les' Variety (I think) just a block away from my house within a couple more weeks:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Adventure_Comics_312.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds) (Not mine.)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-08-2012113335PM.jpg)


So that was it, game, set and match. I was well and truly hooked again. In fact I was so specifically taken by the Aquaman issue with Queen Mera's introduction that I took advantage of DC's kind offer and sent in the money for a two year subscription to Aquaman. And no, I wasn't daft enough to clip the coupon.


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/DC_Subscription_Ad.jpg)

:)

One of the house ads that appeared in most of the comics I was buying in the summer of 1963 was this one:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_Flash_Annual_house_ad.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)


Well, yes! It went without saying that I absolutely, positively had to know the origins of the heroic Kid Flash and Elongated Man plus the dastardly villainous Mr. Element and Super Gorilla Grodd. 


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/08-10-201171307PM.jpg)


I also had not been able to find the current issue of Green Lantern at either Ken's or Les' Variety stores since every store didn't necessarily get even one copy of every comic and of course the one copy could have been swiftly snapped up by another kid.


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201245009PM.jpg)


I "scoured" a whopping total of three or four different variety stores in my neighbourhood plus another three or four outlets downtown trying to find these two comics without any luck. For whatever reason I didn't think to devote an afternoon to riding my bike around to the other eighteen or so variety stores and drug stores that stocked comics in the square mile or so of my school district.

In late August though we went on a family trip by train to far off Toronto to visit relatives and to take in the Canadian National Exhibition which was a mega fair even by the standards of American state fairs:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/CNE_1963.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/CNE_1963_b.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/CNE_1963_a.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)


To my dismay I didn't succeed in finding either the Flash Annual or the Green Lantern comic in Toronto although admittedly I only checked a couple of variety stores in the immediate High Park neighbourhood where our relatives lived. Oh well. C'est la vie. I have both comics in my present day collection anyway.

I did however pick up this nearly three month old gem that had been forgotten and was still on the spinner rack at one of the stores:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-12-201220235PM.jpg)


The other thing I very clearly remember from that train trip to Toronto was admiring one of the 1963 CFL coins that had been free inside a ten cent bag of either Krun-Chee or Humpty Dumpty Potato Chips that I'd managed to score at either the CN train station or from the vendor that came down the aisles inside the train itself with a metal basket of various goodies (including cigarettes, chips, chocolate bars and Jocko chocolate drink in cans). Here are some pictures of these coins from my present day collection:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/CFL20Coins3_zpsqophbr73.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/CFL20Coins4_zpsgzyclyiy.jpg)


I already had about five of these CFL coins and I wanted to collect both the CFL coins and the DC comics badly but my funds were very limited and I couldn't do both. The comics won out.

Nonetheless being a huge Canadian football fan I started pecking away at completing this 160 coin CFL set back in the early eighties. It took me until 2000 or so to get them all because the coins were made available in two series and the high numbers ended up being short printed. Worse yet, forty of the short prints seemed to be distributed only regionally so that only the Toronto Argonaut, Hamilton Tiger-Cat, Ottawa Rough Rider and Winnipeg Blue Bomber twenty player team sets were generally available in Ontario. As a further complexity, the coins available within Humpty Dumpty chips had bilingual English and French text on the back while the ones in Krun-Chee chips had English only text.

But I like the 1963 CFL coins so much that about ten years ago I decided to break my set up into two, one with unilingual English backs and one with bilingual backs so that I could keep on collecting these little treasures!


Unilingual

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Coins3_zps3zwpinnr.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Coins4_zpsbkh4gf5u.jpg)

Bilingual

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Coins1_zpstl9gwkdl.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Coins2_zpsvexlafos.jpg)

8)

Aquaman 12 hit my mail box early in September shortly after our return from Toronto.


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-201170552PM.jpg)


I was a bit miffed with it arriving folded in half down the middle though.  >:( I also clearly remember acquiring these comics off newsstands by mid-September:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/06-08-201182709PM.jpg)


I remember buying the #9 at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind newsstand at the Covent Garden Market building in downtown London and trekking home with it. The excitement at my house otherwise that day was the selecting of a dress for my sister's prom.


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-06-201172328PM.jpg)


This Flash cover just knocked me out when I first saw it on the bottom of the magazine stand at Les' Variety. Both the composition by legendary artist Carmine Infantino and the colours are fabulous. I didn't realize it at the time but Heat Wave would be the final villain to be inducted in what soon became known as the Flash's Rogues Gallery:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-10-201171013PM.jpg)


I also remember seeing this comic for the first time on the magazine stand at Les' Variety shortly thereafter. It was another in the series of wildly colourful eye-catching Justice League covers. Only as an adult though did I notice that Mike Sekowsky habitually drew Wonder Woman with a huge and not at all athletic looking butt.


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201245013PM.jpg)


Green Lantern, wow! Finally! And such a gorgeous cover by Gil Kane and Murphy Anderson. It remains one of my favourie comic covers of all time.


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185514PM.jpg)


Wow! The two members of the Justice League of America who sadly did not have their own title featured teaming up on the cover of a comic. I was feverish with excitement! Mike M. from down the street had been pressing me to collect Dinky Toys with him but I knew my quarters and dimes would have to be reserved for more DC superhero comics.


(https://groups.tapatalk-cdn.com/hotlinkimg/4bad7654a8840e903a22fc51a98e843032bbf2b3)


I first saw Wonder Woman 142 downtown at the News Depot which together with Ken's Variety was one of my go-to places for Krun-Chee Potato Chips which frequently had great coin premiuks free inside. But Wonder Tot?! What in hell was editor/writer Robert Kanigher thinking to introduce and then repeatedly feature such an execrable character? Kanigher must have been a soft-headed new father.  >:(

Plus a few more I clearly remember buying:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/15-01-2013102523PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/25-06-2012113332PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/18-09-2011112158PM.jpg)


Well that was it, game, set and match! By this time I was well and truly hooked on DC superhero comics. And now here I am today, still a huge comic fan!

;)

DC has an interesting take on the UM gang in the latest issue of Detective Comics:

https://www.cbr.com/batman-universal-monsters-calendar-man/ (https://www.cbr.com/batman-universal-monsters-calendar-man/)

RF

Here is one of my favorite comicbook series

(https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/marveldatabase/images/6/64/Tomb_of_Dracula_Vol_1_18.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/340?cb=20180228070718)

Quote from: Hepcat on September 23, 2020, 01:50:25 PMI didn't realize it at the time but Heat Wave would be the final villain to be inducted in what soon became known as the Flash's Rogues Gallery:

Speaking of the Flash's Rogues Gallery, here's a skit I wrote up a few years ago (although admittedly you have to be a Silver Age Flash fan to get it):


A gathering of Flash's Rogues Gallery in the dining room of the Central City Jail circa 1965:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Flash%20R_zpshbrtgsom.gif)


Weather Wizard: "You Piper are so pathetic. A whopping 32 issues four years and four months apart before you got a return appearance in The Flash!

Pied Piper: "Yeah, but I was in Justice League 14 in the interim though!"

Weather Wizard: "Fffffttttt!!!! You had nothing but a bit part so that hardly counts as a proper appearance. Worse yet you were just a lackey of Mister Memory, who himself turned out to be the mind wiped stooge of Professor Amos Fortune!"

Heat Wave: "Yeah, heeeee, heeee! Just the lackey of a mindless stooge!"

Pied Piper: "I'd be careful of breaching the subject of reappearances were I in your shoes, Wizard. I just looked through my collection of Flash comics and you didn't get a return engagement with the scarlet boy scout for a colossal 35 issues spanning four years and five months!"

Weather Wizard: "Did too! I had a whole story in Flash 130!"

Pied Piper: "Hah! You didn't even go up against the Flash though! You were beaten by a little kid and some two-bit superhero with stretching powers who wasn't even good enough to be a member of the Justice League."

Weather Wizard: "See! It was two against one!"

Pied Piper: "What did the Elongated Man have to stretch to put you down? His nose, his ear?"

Trickster: "Giggle! There's only one body part I want stretched."

Top: "Me I wouldn't need no secret potions either. That Sue babe of Dibny's could sure stretch it for me."

Weather Wizard: "I tell you, it wasn't fair! I was double teamed."

Pied Piper: "You couldn't even beat Aquaman or even Batman let alone the Flash. You're more pathetic than I could ever be."

Weather Wizard: "Am not!"

Heat Wave: "Well you're both beyond pathetic in my book."

Pied Piper: "Look who's talking! The johnny-come-lately who didn't even appear on the scene until I had three appearances under my belt!"

Captain Cold: "Yeah, the kids who were buying my first appearance in Showcase 8 in 1957 had all graduated to Playboy before hot head here arrived on the scene."

Weather Wizard: "Yeah, junior here wasn't even around when DC comics were still a dime."

Heat Wave: "You should talk! I still beat you onto a cover by five issues."

Weather Wizard: "Not true! I was there on the cover of #110. You just couldn't see me for the flood I was stirring up, that's all."

Captain Cold: "It was my appearance on the cover of The Flash 140 that made it an item on newsstands anyway."

Heat Wave: "Yeah sure, pops."

Captain Cold: "Speaking of which everybody knows I'm the greatest Flash villain of them all! I've been around since the Flash's second newsstand appearance way back in 1957 and I've plagued him ever since."

Mirror Master: "Well you got the plague part right anyway. I'm the one who got the first cover though, and it was for issue #105 the one that relaunched the series! None of you can come close to matching that."

Captain Cold: "Fffffttttt! You play with mirrors like a woman!"

Mirror Master: "Yeah well I still had two cover appearances under my belt before you got your first!"

Albert Desmond: "Can anybody tell me who I am today?"

Grodd: "All nonsense! Everybody knows that I'm the greatest Flash villain of them all!"

Mirror Master: "Hah! Your waistline may be the greatest, but you're nothing but a big hairy ape! You're so ugly that Julius didn't put you on a cover until your fifth appearance in issue #127."

Grodd: "Lies! I was on the cover of #115."

Mirror Master: "Doesn't count. You weren't your fat hairy self on that cover. Like I say, you were too ugly to get a cover yet."

Trickster: "Hey, who ate all the bananas?"

Abra Kadabra: "It was the overgrown ape again."

Top: "You're all pathetic. Except for the hairy ape and he doesn't count, all any of you losers ever did was rob banks and jewellery stores. I was going to blow up half the world in issue #122 until that meddlesome do-gooder interfered."

Trickster: "Could have, would have, should have!"

Top: "Huh?"

Trickster: "The world's all still here, isn't it? The point is you didn't get it done. The only thing you got done was a fast trip to the hoosegow."

Heat Wave: "Yeah! What a loser."

Albert Desmond: "But why am I here?"

Captain Boomerang: "It's elementary my dear Doctor. You've been a very nasty boy starting way back in your Showcase 13 and 14 appearances before the Flash even got his own title, so nasty in fact that most people haven't forgotten."

Weather Wizard: "Yeah, but despite his multiple IDs it took Desmond here a whopping 44 issues and six and a half years before he got himself onto a cover! Now that's really pathetic."

Professor Zoom: "Actually in defence of my sometime partner he was on the cover of the Flash Annual from the summer of 1963."

Pied Piper: "Annuals don't count though because they're just reprints. Everybody knows that."

Abra Kadabra: "I'm #1 though! My collection of The Flash ranks above any of yours in the CGC data base."

Heat Wave: "Huh? CGC? What's that?"

Abra Kadabra: "You wouldn't know. That's in the future. I've had the top ranked Flash collection at CGC since 6349."

Captain Boomerang: "Well that won't be for a few years anyway and I'll match my issues #117, 124 and 148 up against anybody's in the right here and now!"

Trickster: "Hmmmppphhfff! Nothing but your own appearances, if you can even call them that. Talk about pathetic. I don't know what's more pathetic, you or your comic collection."

Captain Boomerang: "Yeah well you've never done anything cooler than run across floating soap bubbles or ride around on a tricycle. Me though I sent Flash to the Moon and back!

Trickster: "Well why did you bring him back though?"

Heat Wave: "Yeah, that's what I'd like to know too. Why did you bring him back?"

Captain Boomerang: "Wasn't my fault.  I use boomerangs and they always come back."

Top: "Ffffttt!!!! A feeble excuse if I've ever heard one."

Professor Zoom: "Well I'm going to be badder than any of you saps, just you wait and see!"

Abra Kadabra: "Yeah, sure. What do you want from us? Applause?"

Professor Zoom: "Just wait I say. I'll show you the meaning of the word 'dastardly'!"

Top: "Is that true, Kadabra?"

Abra Kadabra: "Don't know. My comics are all sealed in plastic slabs so I haven't read any of them."

Captain Boomerang: "Huh?! But that doesn't make any sense. Why would you or anybody want comics you can't read?"

Abra Kadabra: "You'll have to wait 35 years before you understand."

Albert Desmond: "But I just wish I knew who I was this week."

Top: "Somebody here could certainly use some more electro-shock therapy."

Captain Boomerang: "Look who's talking. The failed half-a-world destroyer! Hey, who farted?"

Professor Zoom: "I think it was the hairy ape again."

Trickster: "Well that's my cue to run. Hey! Which one of you crooks stole my shoes?"

;)

Quote from: Rex fury on September 24, 2020, 10:09:23 AM
DC has an interesting take on the UM gang in the latest issue of Detective Comics:

https://www.cbr.com/batman-universal-monsters-calendar-man/ (https://www.cbr.com/batman-universal-monsters-calendar-man/)

RF

That's very cool. I know the Universal Monsters made an appearance in the recent Gotham City Monsters series. I meant to post some picture, but think I forgot.

Quote from: marsattacks666 on September 24, 2020, 01:54:00 PM
Here is one of my favorite comicbook series

(https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/marveldatabase/images/6/64/Tomb_of_Dracula_Vol_1_18.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/340?cb=20180228070718)

Oh hell yeah! The Marvel Godzilla run in the late 70s is my favorite comic book series, but TOD is right up there. Werewolf by Night too.

and btw, Hep your collection is unbelievable. Congrats and thanks for sharing. Honestly, I don't think I've ever met someone (in person or virtually) with such an impressive collection.

Quote from: geezer butler on September 24, 2020, 11:30:12 PM
Oh hell yeah! The Marvel Godzilla run in the late 70s is my favorite comic book series, but TOD is right up there. Werewolf by Night too.

🤘🏼

Tomb of Dracula is my favorite Comic book series. Once Gene and Marv took over the book, it really got going and lasted for 70 issues. I have every issue, and my extra copy of Number 1 is signed by Neal Adams. I have some extra issues signed by Gene and Marv as well. Meeting and Taking to Marv about the comic was the highlight of the weekend.
(https://i.postimg.cc/75fFMqPm/119992891-3621006717931303-6348327370167194628-o.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/75fFMqPm)

I remember the day I bought the comic that introduced me to Adam Strange particularly well. It was the day in October 1963 of the annual charity bazaar in the basement of St. Martin's church which was adjacent to my school. Included among the attractions were some designed to coax the nickels and pennies from kids' pockets such as a "fish" pond. I clearly remember standing in the outside entrance alcove at the side of the church admiring the copy of Mystery in Space 88 that I'd just purchased at Les' Variety:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/19-12-2011120838AM.jpg)


Up to that point Mystery in Space had not been among the titles I'd been buying because my focus at the time was on superheroes and I thought Adam Strange was one of those future spacemen like Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers, Space Ranger and Tommy Tomorrow. It was the cover blurb promising a Hawkman thriller that actually prompted me to buy the issue. Hawkman was a mysterious hero who I only knew from house ads such as these up to that point:


(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v328/Osgood39/Time%20Capsule/Apr62miscad3.jpg)


That issue of Mystery in Space 88 acted to make me a big fan of Adam Strange as well. Unfortunately Adam Strange stories illustrated by the old master Carmine Infantino continued to only issue #91. When Julius Schwartz took over the Batman editorial bailiwick from Jack Schiff in 1964, Infantino was assigned the artwork on Detective Comics and he had to give up illustrating Adam Strange stories.

Here are scans of a half dozen of my other favourite Mystery in Space covers featuring Adam Strange:

Dallas Srephens copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/MysteryinSpace64Dallas.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/18-05-2011110439PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/18-05-2011110442PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-08-201173432PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/15-11-201174838PM.jpg)


I love those covers featuring the delectable Alanna!


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/19-12-2011120842AM.jpg)


Mystery in Space issues featuring Adam Strange from 1959 to 1962 are much tougher to find than copies of even the The Flash let alone Justice League of America from the same years making it very difficult to complete a run of Adam Strange comics in nice condition.

:(

I also clearly remember being terribly excited when I found this issue of Green Lantern on the comic stand at Les' Variety in October:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_Green_Lantern_25.png)

But my comic collecting in 1963 came to another crashing halt when my sister convinced my mother to confiscate my comics and hide them from me. Don't ask me why. I've asked my sister several times over the decades what she was thinking but she doesn't have a good explanation either.

In any event I still have a very clear memory shortly thereafter of a dark dreary evening in October when I was being taken by my mother to see a new dentist on the other side of town. My parents wanted to support a young Latvian girl who had started up a practice on distant Oxford Street East. The bus that stopped a half block from our house should have enabled us to get there non-stop but for whatever reason - probably to shop at Kresge, Metropolitan or Woolworth - we had stopped at London's main downtown intersection. There on the magazine stand at the United Cigar Store on that corner was this Flash comic:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/13-08-2011113318AM.jpg)

I stared at the cover featuring the mysterious Top with longing but there was no point in buying it. Now of course I have a copy.

 :-\

I started reading silver age DC comics as a very young kid. There was a stack of comics, mostly coverless, down in the basement. I read them over and over again. I still have that stack, and the replacements I found over the years. Two of the comics that had covers were Neal Adams covers, and I got him to sign the better copies at Planet Comiccon a few years ago. Here are what those covers look like. I need to scan the ones I had signed.

(https://i.postimg.cc/1zbv1Jtg/6a9926ad188552ee8dace1197ffd7e90-800.jpg) (https://postimages.org/)

(https://i.postimg.cc/tgsBcLXQ/BATMAN-217-001.jpg) (https://postimages.org/)

While I resisted actually buying any more comics late in 1963 and early in 1964, I continued to peruse them on newsstands. These in particular left a lasting impression on my young psyche when I spotted them on the newsstand at the News Depot on Dundas Street in downtown London:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/03-06-201185523PM.jpg)


Wow and double wow! Aquaman, the king of the seas who can command fish, and the mysterious Hawkman, monarch of the skies who can converse with birds. What a perfect pairing! Incredibly exciting!


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/13-11-2011120647PM.jpg)


Ullllpppp! Shrunk and stripped of his superpowers? However will old Supes get out of this desperate predicament?


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/13-08-2011113321AM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/05-09-2011114049PM.jpg)


Oh man, what fantastic covers! Carmine Infantino was at his creative peak in 1963-64 on both Mystery in Space and The Flash covers.

The comics more so than any others that drew me back into actually buying again though were those of my favourite hero, Green Lantern. The first of these I may have discovered at the News Depot as well:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/GreenLantern26.jpg)


Eeeeek!!! Talk about being in dire straits!

I was compelled to attend supplementary Lithuanian language classes throughout my grade school years on Saturday afternoons at St. Peter's School on Richmond Street in downtown London. Across Richmond St. from St. Peter's was the Davis Variety which also boasted an old-fashioned honest-to-goodness lunch counter. It was the magazine stand at the back that interested me though and it was there that I first saw Green Lantern #28 & 29.


(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-06-2012114624PM.jpg)


Wow! The return of the Shark whom Green Lantern had somehow barely managed to overcome in issue #24.


(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/21-06-2012114247PM.jpg)


Gil Kane was at his creative peak in 1963-64 on both The Atom and Green Lantern covers.

I couldn't resist buying Green Lantern 28. When I discovered the stack of comics my mother and sister had concealed from me inside the couch a few weeks later, I was back to collecting DC superhero comics big time!

 8)

Anybody remember Marvel's  "The Supernaturals"  From 1998? I finally got around to reading it for the first time last night ( yes I know that's a little slow even for the large reading piles I accumulate 🥴). What caught my attention was the free mask giveaway inserted into the comics. Low and behold the issues I have contained three of the advertised five paper masks to be collected with the series. Since the series ran four issues, I guess the idea was that you would buy multiple copies to get the collection of masks. Ah, the great marketing ploys of comic companies....
Anyway, does anybody out there actually have all five masks? The three I have are Brother Voodoo, Satana, and WWBN. The werewolf one even looks kinda like a Perlin or Ploog illustration. What was the fourth regular mask? How does the "rare" Ghost Rider mask look? Did any 90's kid actually care about a paper mask- if so they must have been reincarnated from a 50's kid.
For me, I'd love to have another box of Nabico's monster cookies which are also advertised in the series! I
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on October 13, 2020, 10:36:32 AMAh, the great marketing ploys of comic companies....

The multiple covers and other marketing gimmicks introduced by comic publishers in the 1990's did wonders to turn pre-existing fans away from new comics. My own "stepping off" point was DC's "Crisis on Infinite Earths" from 1985-87.

Quote from: Rex fury on October 13, 2020, 10:36:32 AMDid any 90's kid actually care about a paper mask- if so they must have been reincarnated from a 50's kid. For me, I'd love to have another box of Nabico's monster cookies which are also advertised in the series!

I'd love both! Masks though should be included with boxes of cereal and not comics.

:)

Quote from: Rex fury on October 13, 2020, 10:36:32 AM
Anybody remember Marvel's  "The Supernaturals"  From 1998? I finally got around to reading it for the first time last night ( yes I know that's a little slow even for the large reading piles I accumulate 🥴). What caught my attention was the free mask giveaway inserted into the comics. Low and behold the issues I have contained three of the advertised five paper masks to be collected with the series. Since the series ran four issues, I guess the idea was that you would buy multiple copies to get the collection of masks. Ah, the great marketing ploys of comic companies....
Anyway, does anybody out there actually have all five masks? The three I have are Brother Voodoo, Satana, and WWBN. The werewolf one even looks kinda like a Perlin or Ploog illustration. What was the fourth regular mask? How does the "rare" Ghost Rider mask look? Did any 90's kid actually care about a paper mask- if so they must have been reincarnated from a 50's kid.
For me, I'd love to have another box of Nabico's monster cookies which are also advertised in the series! I
RF

Oh yeah, fun series. You know me, I'm a big Marvel horror nerd. I have some of the masks too.

Hey Geezer, do you recall what the 4th mask was? Any recollections of the Ghost Rider mask? I'm with you on the marvel horror stuff. Also, I seem to remember a Toy Biz collection of the Marvel monsters being out in the 90's. Am I recalling that correctly?
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on October 13, 2020, 04:23:05 PM
Hey Geezer, do you recall what the 4th mask was? Any recollections of the Ghost Rider mask? I'm with you on the marvel horror stuff. Also, I seem to remember a Toy Biz collection of the Marvel monsters being out in the 90's. Am I recalling that correctly?
RF

I'll check later tonight when I'm in the monster room and let you know

Quote from: Rex fury on October 13, 2020, 04:23:05 PM
Hey Geezer, do you recall what the 4th mask was? Any recollections of the Ghost Rider mask? I'm with you on the marvel horror stuff. Also, I seem to remember a Toy Biz collection of the Marvel monsters being out in the 90's. Am I recalling that correctly?
RF

Hey, Rex

Haven't looked at these in a while, but just checked. I've got a Werewolf by Night mask, Brother Voodoo mask, and two Gargoyles. No Ghost Rider. I wonder if there was a Satana mask. Btw, i have the four issues but also have a fifth supernaturals comic book. Some kind of "special preview."  Also, yes I have a Legion of Monsters boxset from Toy Biz. Has drac, werewolf by night, Frankenstein's Monster, and Simon the zombie.

This is old photo. Several yrs back. Over two houses ago actually. So totally different monster room setup, but you can see what it looks like at least. 

(https://live.staticflickr.com/1712/25538837085_ff3ff60c77_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/EUMdvk)2016-03-05_06-12-46 (https://flic.kr/p/EUMdvk) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

Quote from: geezer butler on September 24, 2020, 11:30:12 PM
Oh hell yeah! The Marvel Godzilla run in the late 70s is my favorite comic book series, but TOD is right up there. Werewolf by Night too.

That's one of my favorite comic covers. I had the issue as a kid and bought a t-shirt with that same image a couple of years ago at a comic-con. I even wore it a couple of days ago.

Geezer, that's a great collection! Thanks for the info on the masks, I didn't know about the Gargoyle version. I have The Satana Mask in one of my comics. I didn't find it very impressive, but other folks may like it. Ah, the Ghost Rider Mask... seems he's always the most difficult to track down. I've spent years looking for the original ( western)  Ghost Rider mask that M. E. Advertised in their comics from the 1950's. I kinda doubt I'll put much energy into finding the 90's mask though.
I hope your current monster rooms are cool! At the moment most of my old toys, models, etc. are sitting in boxes in my garage from a move I made a couple of years back.
RF

Drawn To Comics is a Store to visit!
Just wanted to give a great big shout out to this comic store  which I visited today. I'm spending a little time in Phoenix Arizona this week and decided to go comic shopping. Initially I'd planed to go to All About Comics, a Store I'd visited before and enjoyed immensely. To my dismay I learned they've closed their brick and mortar operation. I happened upon a review for Drawn To Comics and decided to visit.
I was immediately impressed when the store's co-proprietor met me at the door and introduced herself. The place was well stocked with modern material, but I was after more esoteric comics ( Lash Larue anyone?). So, she introduced me to her husband who helped me search the appropriate long boxes. I found several cool comics ( including Lash Larue 70, and Black Magic 31) at a fair price.
Living where I do in the wilds of North Idaho it's a rare treat to find an awesome comic store and meet enthusiastic people who love the hobby as much as me. I highly recommend a visit to Drawn To Comics if you are in the Phoenix local.
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on October 28, 2020, 11:03:30 PM
Drawn To Comics is a Store to visit!
Just wanted to give a great big shout out to this comic store  which I visited today. I'm spending a little time in Phoenix Arizona this week and decided to go comic shopping. Initially I'd planed to go to All About Comics, a Store I'd visited before and enjoyed immensely. To my dismay I learned they've closed their brick and mortar operation. I happened upon a review for Drawn To Comics and decided to visit.
I was immediately impressed when the store's co-proprietor met me at the door and introduced herself. The place was well stocked with modern material, but I was after more esoteric comics ( Lash Larue anyone?). So, she introduced me to her husband who helped me search the appropriate long boxes. I found several cool comics ( including Lash Larue 70, and Black Magic 31) at a fair price.
Living where I do in the wilds of North Idaho it's a rare treat to find an awesome comic store and meet enthusiastic people who love the hobby as much as me. I highly recommend a visit to Drawn To Comics if you are in the Phoenix local.
RF

Thanks, I'll check that out next time i'm in town. We lived in AZ for a few yrs. For some reason I never heard of that place. Although, we spent our time on the other side of town. So I went to comic book shops in Mesa, Tempe, and Scottsdale for the most part. Anyhow, we still have friends in AZ, closer to Glendale actually. So next time i'm in the area, I'll hit that place for sure.

Quote from: geezer butler on May 22, 2020, 07:42:57 PM
I have some questions for the comic book collectors out there. I wanna see what others think.

Who can afford some of the prices out there for premium issues? I'm getting close to completing my Marvel 70s horror collection. I only need Werewolf by Night 32 and Tomb of Dracula 10.  All us monster/comic book nerds know the significance of those books.  Look up the prices on those books. If you can find a shoddy copy, you're still paying $300-$400.

So first of all, what's so significant about the first appearances of Blade and Moon Knight, respectively? I mean, as a monster nerd, I totally dig those characters, but let's me honest---we're not talking about first appearances of Captain American or Wolverine.

Second, again I ask who can afford to drop $700-$2500 on a single comic book? To be honest, I probably could afford that, but it wouldn't be responsible with our budget. And it's just the point. I understand supply and demand, and these are rare issues blah blah blah. I still think it's gouging.

Thanks for allowing me to rant.  >:(

Hey, GB. I decided to check out UMA after 6 months hiatus and I'm a little surprised to see this thread still rollin'. Anyway, I thought to respond to your post above.

I understand your frustration regarding the pricing on WBN #32 and TOD #10. As we know, the significance of those two issues is the popularity of Moon Knight and Blade, and the accepted importance of first appearances in today's comic book marketplace. Both issues are very plentiful but were considered more and more "demand-scarce" over the years which steadily drove up prices. As with many comics they were expensive before, but in this time of MCU hype with Dr. Strange, Multiverse Of Madness looming in the future threatening to loose the supernatural dark side of the Marvel Universe on the MCU (and TV show rumblings), the prices on those two books are getting more ridiculous all the time. If I didn't already have them I would be satisfied with reprints to fill those holes in the respective runs. No, I wouldn't spend hundreds of dollars for low-mid grade copies, nor thousands for high grade copies. I know it seems like price gouging but it's really just the free marketplace in action. A few people will pay those crazy prices so it doesn't matter if most of us can't, or won't. The books still command those values in the public mind and that's what sets fair market prices. Still, I agree with you, as much as I love both characters I think the books are way overpriced.

I check eBay periodically to get a gauge of current comic values and I've noticed a trend towards very low grade copies of key books for sale for much more than ever before. Books in FAIR and even POOR and incomplete are getting priced at near GOOD and sometimes even more. It's as if demand for any copy of certain books, regardless of condition, has risen to the point that sellers are placing previously unheard of prices on really crappy copies. Maybe those ultra low grade copies are selling at a premium because some collectors will pay a huge amount just to have a copy, ANY copy, of that issue in their collection. I find this very peculiar since for decades FAIR copies were valued at around 1/2 of GOOD, and a POOR copy would be considered virtually worthless unless it was a mega-key, and even then might just sell for a small percentage of what a GOOD copy would bring.

Getting back to your original post about pricing, I focus most on less expensive comics these days. I had much rather get several mid (or even low) grade issues I need to complete a run than one or two high grade issues. I go after what I like that isn't "hot" these days so I avoid the Marvel keys with the MCU stirring up the marketplace. Recently I've been getting good deals on books like DC War comics (SSWS #138-149, 1st Enemy Ace), Space Ghost #1 (Gold Key), and Hanna-Barbera Super TV Heroes #s 1-7 (complete run). Thankfully, I've completed most of the Bronze Horror titles by the big 2, as well as most monster mag titles, so now I'm working on Charlton and Gold Key Horror as well as titles like Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea (have #1-13, need 14-16). Also, I'm constantly on the hunt for different Monster and Halloween items when a good deal presents itself (toys, masks, posters, games, etc.). So, to sum up, my days of dropping big bucks on single comics have ground to a halt... too much other cool stuff out there that's very affordable.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 09, 2020, 03:55:42 PMI decided to check out UMA after 6 months hiatus and I'm a little surprised to see this thread still rollin'.

Still rollin'?! I'm only halfway through posting my multi-part epic on how I got into comics!

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 09, 2020, 03:55:42 PMI understand your frustration regarding the pricing on WBN #32 and TOD #10. As we know, the significance of those two issues is the popularity of Moon Knight and Blade, and the accepted importance of first appearances in today's comic book marketplace. Both issues are very plentiful but were considered more and more "demand-scarce" over the years which steadily drove up prices.

That's the primary reason why I've always opted to pursue comics other than Marvel. I hate paying for (someone else's) high demand.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 09, 2020, 03:55:42 PMAlso, I'm constantly on the hunt for different Monster and Halloween items when a good deal presents itself (toys, masks, posters, games, etc.). So, to sum up, my days of dropping big bucks on single comics have ground to a halt... too much other cool stuff out there that's very affordable.

Precisely. The escalation in the price for these high demand (primarily Marvel "key") comics has made toys and other collectibles look relatively affordable.

:-\

Finally! Years of hunting for these issues of Archie's Madhose. I have them in my possession. 👹🤘🏼

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/d1/22/c7/d122c796276be322e68f8792ffeb41fa.jpg)

(https://d1466nnw0ex81e.cloudfront.net/n_iv/600/773865.jpg)

Quote from: Hepcat on November 10, 2020, 10:41:00 AM
That's the primary reason why I've always opted to pursue comics other than Marvel. I hate paying for (someone else's) high demand.

I agree in general with this, but not specifically to exclude Marvel. I grew up reading Marvel comics in the mid '60s and have very fond memories of enjoying Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man, Thor, and Avengers issues from that period. One of the earliest comics I remember buying was Fantastic Four #35. I read that copy until it was literally in FAIR condition, even though the cover was still holding on. I enjoyed many other books back then too... Turok, Star Spangled War Stories (War That Time Forgot), Tomahawk, Metal Men, etc., but I liked Marvel Superhero books much better than DC. I have a few DC Superhero comics in my collection, mostly for Adams art (and a little Wrightson), but for me Marvel blew DC away when it came to Superheroes. Later on, in the early Bronze Age, the Marvel Monster titles hit and I loved those issues (still do), as well as many of the Marvel Superhero titles. So, no way I'm going to exclude Marvel from my collection. I'm just glad I picked up most of the ones I really want back when they were cheap.

These days I'd have to pass on some of the Marvel keys and settle for reprints, but I would still go after the run fillers if I didn't have them. To me the run fillers are undervalued while the keys are overvalued. My Werewolf By Night #32 is in VF/NM (9.0) condition, and my Tomb Of Dracula #10 is in FN+ (6.5) condition. I bought both of those books out of dealers long boxes back in the late '70s/early '80s for arounds $2 each. And, the reason I bought them was to complete the RUNS. I'm glad I was thorough back then and went after the runs because I would have to pass on them now.

The crazy thing is I don't think some of those keys will ever go down again the way the market used to fluctuate. The '90s crash made comic book back issues prices drop in general. I remember in late '90s buying my FF #48 for $75, and Special Marvel Edition #15 (1st Master Of Kung Fu in high grade) for $15. When the first Iron Man movie started the MCU in 2008 it changed the game for back issue pricing on certain books. Comic book collecting was more of a niche thing for decades, the MCU made it mainstream, along with some TV shows and big cons like San Diego, and You Tube, of course. The crazy prices are ingrained in the collective psyche, and every time there's hype about the next big MCU thing it increases demand and the prices keep getting crazier. Most already loved Marvel characters in general from the classic comics in the Silver and Bronze Ages, and most of the MCU movies are so good it just made so many people go nuts with such high demand for certain books. I don't see prices on older Marvel keys ever dropping. Newer books will still fluctuate, though. I know very little about books the last 20 years since I don't collect them and I think cover prices are ridiculous on current books, especially the WAY overvalued cover variants. I couldn't imagine dropping big bucks on new comics with so many legit older comics so undervalued. Anyway, I'm hanging on to my older books, keys and all. If I ever sold the keys I'd never get them back.

One thing that I keep in mind with the current market is the number of years that have passed on the stuff I took for granted as a kid. I've amassed and sold several collections of Marvel books over the years. Usually this was to pay for honeymoons or house investments. However sometimes I sold those books to raise money to buy books that were " older" at the time. For instance, I think I sold a Hulk 181 for ten bucks or less  around 1980 so I'd have enough money to buy a copy of Captain America Comics 75. I never dreamed I'd see the value of that Hulk issue overtake the value of the Cap. Likewise, I always took for granted that 60's and 70's comics were cheap and plentiful, easy to amass collections again and again. The other day I picked up a Women Outlaws (no #issue) for a reasonable price. Since it wasn't part of the regular run- I'm not even sure Fox published it- I did some research on it. It was published in 1948. It sort of jarred me to think the comic is over 70 years old!
In terms of age, just think what young collectors must consider 60's Marvels? For them Fifty years ago must seem like forever. I liken their purchases of this material  to me buying Timelys in the 1970's and 80's. I'm sort of rambling here, but my point is that perhaps some of the high prices we see on material that we were buying as kids would seem less crazy if we were those young collectors.  For those kids 80's and 90's stuff remains cheap and plentiful while 60's comics seem expensive . Thoughts?
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on November 10, 2020, 07:02:29 PM
In terms of age, just think what young collectors must consider 60's Marvels? For them Fifty years ago must seem like forever. I liken their purchases of this material  to me buying Timelys in the 1970's and 80's. I'm sort of rambling here, but my point is that perhaps some of the high prices we see on material that we were buying as kids would seem less crazy if we were those young collectors.  For those kids 80's and 90's stuff remains cheap and plentiful while 60's comics seem expensive . Thoughts?

Age does factor in, but I think a much larger factor is the ever increasing demand for key issues. There are still many Silver Age Marvels that can be bought in decent grade for less than $20, and some for less than $10. For example, I bought an eBay lot of over 300 War comics a couple of years ago for what turned out to be 92 cents each factoring in shipping cost, and there were several Sgt Fury issues in that lot from the early/mid '60s. It also contained many Silver Age DCs (love the SSWS and GI Combat titles). You can also find low/mid grade Silver Age Marvel Superhero books for $10-$20 pretty easily. But, seemingly any Silver Age key costs several times what the non-keys sell for in the same grade. And, as I mentioned in an above post, even ultra low grade keys seem to be selling for percentages that G and VG copies used to bring, or at least those seem to be the common asking prices on eBay. Of course more and more different issues are steadily becoming keys as more movies and TV shows feature more characters. So, over time, older books as a whole will climb in value. Just wait until the MCU and TV shows start featuring the Marvel supernatural characters from the Bronze Age- Moon Knight, Blade, Ghost Rider, Werewolf By Night, Dracula, Brother Voodoo, Man-Thing, Simon Garth, the Frankenstein Monster, etc. If those movies/shows are as good as the Avengers/Captain America/Iron Man movies then the crazy prices some of those Bronze Horror keys are selling for now will look like bargains.

Quote from: marsattacks666 on November 10, 2020, 02:46:39 PMFinally! Years of hunting for these issues of Archie's Madhose. I have them in my possession. 👹🤘🏼

Archie's Madhouse comics are boss!

8)

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 10, 2020, 09:30:40 PM
Age does factor in, but I think a much larger factor is the ever increasing demand for key issues. There are still many Silver Age Marvels that can be bought in decent grade for less than $20, and some for less than $10.

I second this. I was working in the comic book retail industry when the MCU and all that was taking off and gaining steam. It put more eyes on the products and we saw speculators returning to the comic game in droves. It didn't spike everything, mainly key issues and the surrounding issues at first. Then it started to affect whole runs, but not with that great of impact. I had actually noticed a dip in other titles because of this. While the Iron Man issues of Tales of Suspense and the subsequent Iron Man series were taking off, as a Sub-Mariner guy I was cleaning up on Tales to Astonish issues for $5-10 a piece in pretty nice shape, along with the Sub-Mariner solo series that followed.

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on November 11, 2020, 01:35:00 PM
While the Iron Man issues of Tales of Suspense and the subsequent Iron Man series were taking off, as a Sub-Mariner guy I was cleaning up on Tales to Astonish issues for $5-10 a piece in pretty nice shape, along with the Sub-Mariner solo series that followed.

I was always more of a Sub-Mariner guy as well. I finished the '70s Subby series decades ago. Never did finish the IM series, and since the MCU those prices got jacked up past the point of what I want to give for them. Now it looks like Namor is MCU bound and the prices for Sub-Mariner books are seeing steep increases so we're fortunate we grabbed those back in the day.

That brings up another point. I know people collect very differently, as some folks try to finish title runs or runs of certain storylines or artists, while other collectors are obsessive about certain characters and try to get every appearance (that they can afford anyway). I try to avoid really pricey back issues and concentrate my comic money on more affordable books that I like personally but might not be as popular. I intend to keep the books I have, only selling duplicates, and not overspend on books that sell for more than they are worth to me personally (like the aforementioned Iron Man issues, even though I have much of the run). What about you guys? Do you draw the line at certain price points and just not plan on getting that issue unless an unbelievably good deal presents itself, or do you budget and save and sell other things to get really expensive issues? Also, what price points give you pause, $100, $200, $500, $1K? For me it must be a book I want very badly to spend over $100 on a single comic, and $200 is just about a hard line for me anymore unless I'm getting a killer deal. I'm just curious how other collectors deal with the extreme prices in the market these days.

FYI- If you have slabs over 10 years old you may want to crack 'em out and take that micro chamber paper out and toss it. After so many years it fills up with contaminates and needs to be removed. You can type in the slab number on CGC's website to find out when it was slabbed. I don't think CBCS even uses micro chamber paper since they have an inner well using archival plastic.

I have an Incredible Hulk #102 (7.0) that I bought slabbed a couple of years ago and I checked the CGC website finding out it was slabbed in 2007, so I cracked that baby out and tossed the two pieces of micro chamber paper as soon as I saw Steve Borock (sp?) talking about this on a You Tube video. That was the only slab I had still so it was a pleasure get rid of that bulky thing and put the book in a 1 mil Mylar bag with acid-free backing board inside a Mylar Snug so it would fit in the acid free box with my other Hulk issues.

Here's another question. How do you guys store your comics? I use 1 mil Arklites (Mylar) from Bill Cole and double bag on each side of an acid-free board. For most books worth over $100 I bag them singly in the Arklite and put the bagged book in a Mylar Snug which has been trimmed at the top to easily fit inside comic boxes. I use acid-free corrugated boxes that hold a little over 100 comics each. This has probably been discussed before but I thought to ask it again so we can get several people answering in the same place. Hopefully, over time, a few people will chime in with their comic book storage methods.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 11, 2020, 02:27:58 PM
Do you draw the line at certain price points and just not plan on getting that issue unless an unbelievably good deal presents itself, or do you budget and save and sell other things to get really expensive issues? Also, what price points give you pause, $100, $200, $500, $1K? For me it must be a book I want very badly to spend over $100 on a single comic, and $200 is just about a hard line for me anymore unless I'm getting a killer deal. I'm just curious how other collectors deal with the extreme prices in the market these days.

I don't have a hard line, per se. I judge based on the book and situation. That being said, I don't think there's a book out there that I still want that would cost over $100 anyway. I got lucky in the sense that I was never really drawn to the big 'A' list characters. My big three would be Sub-Mariner, Adam Warlock and Nightwing, and I was lucky to get all the keys involving them that I wanted years ago and for reasonable prices. These days, I'm happy to pick up those super nice Epic Collections that Marvel is doing. When it comes to buying an expensive book, I just look at the price vs the use. Example: I could buy a low grade Fantastic Four #2 for $1,500 and carefully read it maybe a handful of times in my lifetime OR I could buy the Epic Collection for $40 and get full color reprints of the first 20 FF issues. Then the money I would have spent could be put toward something I'd get more use out of, say a nice blu-ray set or a run of comics.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 11, 2020, 02:49:02 PM
FYI- If you have slabs over 10 years old you may want to crack 'em out and take that micro chamber paper out and toss it. After so many years it fills up with contaminates and needs to be removed. You can type in the slab number on CGC's website to find out when it was slabbed. I don't think CBCS even uses micro chamber paper since they have an inner well using archival plastic.

That is really great information, HH. Thanks for that. I have a handful of slabbed books that I put in frames and have them on the wall. I'll likely pull them down and crack them open now if they're old enough.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 11, 2020, 02:49:02 PMHere's another question. How do you guys store your comics? I use 1 mil Arklites (Mylar) from Bill Cole and double bag on each side of an acid-free board. For most books worth over $100 I bag them singly in the Arklite and put the bagged book in a Mylar Snug which has been trimmed at the top to easily fit inside comic boxes. I use acid-free corrugated boxes that hold a little over 100 comics each. This has probably been discussed before but I thought to ask it again so we can get several people answering in the same place. Hopefully, over time, a few people will chime in with their comic book storage methods.

Admittedly, I'm not a gleaming example of how to properly store comics for archival purposes. I use standard, acid free boards and Mylite 2 bags for everything. I have everything stored spine out (alternating the spines to prevent rolling) on bookshelves. All my boxes are broken down and stored in the basement for any future moves. I have the handful that are slabbed on the wall and a full spinner rack of books with cool looking covers.

Do the Epic collections contain the letter pages and ads too? I'm curious as I've never purchased any of those volumes. While I agree that reprints are a great way to get the original stories, there's something to be said about owning the original issue. For me, the comic is a time capsule or a window back to a different generation. That's why I'll never buy a slabbed comic (with the possible exception of Hulk 181 because of the MVS issue). I want to read and experience the comic, not place it in " the morgue ", as folks use to refer to slabs when they first became a thing.
I do own the Golden Age Masterworks, the EC boxed sets, and several issues of Flashback. But, as I've mentioned before, I'm not overly fond of facsimile issues. Anyways, I know folks collect for a lot of different reasons and that's a great thing about the hobby.
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on November 11, 2020, 04:40:22 PM
Do the Epic collections contain the letter pages and ads too? I'm curious as I've never purchased any of those volumes.

Nope, just the covers and the stories.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 10, 2020, 04:53:32 PMI agree in general with this, but not specifically to exclude Marvel. I grew up reading Marvel comics in the mid '60s and have very fond memories of enjoying Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man, Thor, and Avengers issues from that period. One of the earliest comics I remember buying was Fantastic Four #35. I read that copy until it was literally in FAIR condition, even though the cover was still holding on.

I didn't say Marvel comics weren't good though. Due to Stan Lee's genius, they were very good indeed. I said only that Silver Age Marvel comics have always seemed expensive to me relative to their comparatively plentiful supply.

Eventually I'd like to acquire copies of some of the Marvel comics I remember reading or at least seeing as a kid, but unfortunately these include Fantastic Four 4 (Submariner intro) 7, 26 & 29, Amazing Spider-Man 7, 9, 11, 15, 20 & Annual 1 and Tales of Suspense 57 (Hawkeye intro) which are all cripplingly expensive.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 10, 2020, 04:53:32 PMWhen the first Iron Man movie started the MCU in 2008 it changed the game for back issue pricing on certain books. Comic book collecting was more of a niche thing for decades, the MCU made it mainstream, along with some TV shows and big cons like San Diego, and You Tube, of course. The crazy prices are ingrained in the collective psyche, and every time there's hype about the next big MCU thing it increases demand and the prices keep getting crazier. Most already loved Marvel characters in general from the classic comics in the Silver and Bronze Ages, and most of the MCU movies are so good it just made so many people go nuts with such high demand for certain books.

Keep in mind that much of the increase in demand for the comics that get big boosts from impending flicks is from the speculator/investor crowd. Meaning as they all jump on the bandwagon, price increases become a self-fulfilling prophecy. But this is a short term phenomenon. These speculators don't have the hardcore collector/enthusiast mentality and aren't putting the comic away to hold forever. What's going to happen when fresh demand starts to dry up and all the speculators head for the exit at the same time? The same thing that's happened in the case of all other speculative bubbles in the past methinks.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 10, 2020, 04:53:32 PMThe crazy thing is I don't think some of those keys will ever go down again the way the market used to fluctuate.... I don't see prices on older Marvel keys ever dropping.

Ever is a long time. What's going to happen to the price of many of those not uncommon Silver Age "key" issues when they're no longer the flavour du jour because the bloom has come off the hype generated by the latest hot movie? What's going to happen to the overall market for highly prized Silver Age superhero comics when more and more of the baby boomers who read these in the 1960's retire and start "estate planning", i.e. selling?

???

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 11, 2020, 02:49:02 PMHere's another question. How do you guys store your comics? This has probably been discussed before but I thought to ask it again so we can get several people answering in the same place. Hopefully, over time, a few people will chime in with their comic book storage methods.

My "really good" comics are all in Bill Cole Arklites backed by Thin X-Tender boards or else Gerber Mylites backed by Half-Backs. I've not yet bagged and boarded my magazine collection in the same way but that's my intention.

I keep my comics and magazines in two large lateral filing cabinets. Here from a few years ago are pictures of these cabinets:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/ComicRoom.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/ComicLeftFileCab.jpg)

:)

Quote from: Rex fury on November 10, 2020, 07:02:29 PMIn terms of age, just think what young collectors must consider 60's Marvels? For them Fifty years ago must seem like forever.

Up to the age of about 25, anything prior to my birth seemed like ancient history. I was bewildered at the age of thirteen in 1965 when I encountered a satire incorporating the usage of the word "Shazam" since I knew nothing of Captain Marvel at the time.  And I was equally bewildered by ABC's announcements in 1966 that they were "bringing back" the Green Hornet and Kato since I'd never heard of the characters.

I suspect that kids these days are much better informed concerning the pop culture that transpired prior to their birth because of the internet.

:-\

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 10, 2020, 09:30:40 PMBut, seemingly any Silver Age key costs several times what the non-keys sell for in the same grade.

To me a "key" is any comic I remember from my childhood days. That being said I'm as reluctant to pay the premium prices for what's defined as a "key" by the broad marketplace just as I am to pay up for "star" sports cards. In fact I'm even less tempted by comic keys for which I feel no nostalgia than I am by star sports cards because I've found that I remember gazing at star sports cards as a kid much more strongly than I remember gazing at the commons.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 11, 2020, 02:27:58 PMThat brings up another point. I know people collect very differently, as some folks try to finish title runs or runs of certain storylines or artists, while other collectors are obsessive about certain characters and try to get every appearance (that they can afford anyway).

I'm a completist. Therefore if I buy any comic in a run, that means I'm automatically collecting that entire run and have to try to complete it over time. That causes me to be reluctant to buy comics outside of the runs I'm already collecting.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 11, 2020, 02:27:58 PMWhat about you guys? Do you draw the line at certain price points and just not plan on getting that issue unless an unbelievably good deal presents itself, or do you budget and save and sell other things to get really expensive issues? Also, what price points give you pause, $100, $200, $500, $1K? For me it must be a book I want very badly to spend over $100 on a single comic, and $200 is just about a hard line for me anymore unless I'm getting a killer deal. I'm just curious how other collectors deal with the extreme prices in the market these days.

The most I ever paid for an individual issue was back in 2005 or so when I spent nearly $5000 on this copy of Flash 105:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Flash105front.jpg)


Sadly those free spending days seem to be long behind me. Anything over $1000 would give me serious pause these days.

:-\

Quote from: Hepcat on November 11, 2020, 10:47:46 PM
Ever is a long time. What's going to happen to the price of many of those not uncommon Silver Age "key" issues when they're no longer the flavour du jour because the bloom has come off the hype generated by the latest hot movie? What's going to happen to the overall market for highly prized Silver Age superhero comics when more and more of the baby boomers who read these in the 1960's retire and start "estate planning", i.e. selling?

I didn't mean "ever" in a literal sense. I was really referring to the next 20-30 years, which is about as far into the future that civilization can really count on anyway the way things are these days. Within this time frame I don't believe the main Marvel keys from the '60s, and some from the '70s, will drop in price. I think the value on those books is solid enough to make increases and hold ground until the next increase. I'm talking about books like Amazing Fantasy #15, Spider-Man #1, Fantastic Four #1, etc., and even books like Fantastic Four #48, 49 and Silver Surfer #1, 3, and 4. Also, Incredible Hulk #181 and Giant-Size X-men #1 from the '70s, as well as House Of Secrets #92 (DC), and even Werewolf By Night #32 and Tomb Of Dracula #10 if the MCU offerings deliver on Moon Knight and Blade. Books from the '80s onward will still fluctuate, the newer the book the more chance it might drop. Those over-valued cover variants from the last few years may be in bargain boxes later on alongside the cover variants from the '90s. The MCU will probably be influencing the market for the next 10-20 years or longer. I'm not expecting Marvel Silver Age keys (and some Bronze) to drop in value at all in the foreseeable future, just continue to get more unattainable for the average collector. I really hope I'm wrong about this since I'd like to eventually get a few more of these books.

By your comments it reads like you're somewhat bitter that you turned up your nose concerning Marvel comics past the time frame of being able to afford some of the ones you've decided you actually want to add to your collection. I have regrets, too, as many of us do, that I didn't buy more of these issues years ago. In my case I never looked down on Marvel comics, on the contrary I held them in high regard, but I was complacent enough to think most of them would still be affordable in the future, especially after the '90s market crash. At this point I'm just happy to have what I do, and thankful I didn't sell off my whole collection back in the '90s and early 2000s the way some people did. Those are the folks who have cause for serious regret.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 12, 2020, 01:12:46 PMBy your comments it reads like you're somewhat bitter that you turned up your nose concerning Marvel comics past the time frame of being able to afford some of the ones you've decided you actually want to add to your collection. I have regrets, too, as many of us do, that I didn't buy more of these issues years ago. In my case I never looked down on Marvel comics....

"Bitter" is far too strong a word. My only regret when it comes to my comic collecting efforts is that back in the 1979-2000 years I didn't put more of a concerted effort into tracking down really high grade copies of the comics I remember from 1960-65 instead of octopusing out into completing the latter part of these runs and into "secondary" titles. But when comics such as those earlyFlash, Green Lantern, Mystery in Space, Challengers of the Unknown, etc. were more affordable (according to the Overstreet Price Guide anyway), they couldn't be found. The owners simply weren't tempted to sell them at those prices. It's an economic adage that "High prices bring forth the quantity supplied."

With respect to the Marvels, there's really only a dozen or so imbued with enough nostalgia for me that I regret not buying them back in the day.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 12, 2020, 01:12:46 PMIn my case I never looked down on Marvel comics, on the contrary I held them in high regard, but I was complacent enough to think most of them would still be affordable in the future, especially after the '90s market crash.

I never said or even implied that I "looked down" on Marvels. I was merely annoyed to see Marvel comics (all at high prices of course) dominating the wall space at comic shops and conventions while I quite simply just couldn't find high grade copies of those early Flash, Green Lantern, Justice League, Adventures of the Fly, etc. comics at any price.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 12, 2020, 01:12:46 PMAt this point I'm just happy to have what I do, and thankful I didn't sell off my whole collection back in the '90s and early 2000s the way some people did. Those are the folks who have cause for serious regret.

Oh I agree! I've read many tales of regret from collectors who "cashed in" far too early and now have neither the comics nor the money. In fact it may have been right here on UMA that a poster mentioned that he turned over an expensive Marvel comic to his twenty year old son thinking that the son would cherish it for its aesthetic appeal and some day in the distant future benefit from the price it fetched. Well the son sold the comic immediately and took his girlfriend out to an expensive restaurant with the proceeds. So now both the comic and the money are gone.

:(

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on November 11, 2020, 03:22:58 PMAdmittedly, I'm not a gleaming example of how to properly store comics for archival purposes. I use standard, acid free boards and Mylite 2 bags for everything. I have everything stored spine out (alternating the spines to prevent rolling) on bookshelves.

Sounds like A+ grade storage practices to me!

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on November 11, 2020, 03:22:58 PMI have ... a full spinner rack of books with cool looking covers.

Hey! Spinner racks are wild cool. Show us some photos.

:)

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on November 11, 2020, 07:31:21 PM

Quote from: Rex fury on November 11, 2020, 04:40:22 PMDo the Epic collections contain the letter pages and ads too? I'm curious as I've never purchased any of those volumes. While I agree that reprints are a great way to get the original stories, there's something to be said about owning the original issue. For me, the comic is a time capsule or a window back to a different generation.

Nope, just the covers and the stories.

Which is the same as the DC Archive Editions which also don't contain any of the ancillary features such as letter columns or ads. That's unfortunate because the ancillary features were a big part of the fun proposition that comics delivered.

Quote from: Rex fury on November 11, 2020, 04:40:22 PMThat's why I'll never buy a slabbed comic (with the possible exception of Hulk 181 because of the MVS issue). I want to read and experience the comic, not place it in " the morgue ", as folks use to refer to slabs when they first became a thing.

I fully agree. Free all comics from their plastic prisons!

8)

Quote from: Hepcat on November 12, 2020, 04:47:15 PM
Nope, just the covers and the stories.

Which is the same as the DC Archive Editions which also don't contain any of the ancillary features such as letter columns or ads. That's unfortunate because the ancillary features were a big part of the fun proposition that comics delivered.

Yes, the ads, editorials, and letters sections, are very important for the overall comic book experience. That's why I favor buying original issues over reprints when possible, even just low grade reader copies if necessary. Another great thing is the smell of old newsprint while reading an original copy... it's like perfume which adds to the ambience of the whole experience. Very few smells are more enjoyable to long time comic book fans.

Quote from: Hepcat on November 12, 2020, 04:47:15 PM
I fully agree. Free all comics from their plastic prisons!

I'm certainly no slab guy either. I've only ever owned two slabbed comics and those are both cracked out. The only way I would buy a slabbed book is if I couldn't inspect the book in person and the price isn't jacked up for the slab. I would never submit a book for slabbing if it's one I plan to keep, and the only way I would submit at all is for a very high grade, high value book that I planned to sell, which hasn't happened yet and probably won't. In the current marketplace expensive high grade books bring more money when slabbed, and that's just a fact. If the 3rd party pro graders depended on people like me to stay in business they would quickly close down.

Here's a scan of my Sinister House Of Secret Love #1 (DC, 1971):

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50595721267_92b1b2933e_b.jpg)

This title ran for 4 issues and then changed to Secrets Of Sinister House which ran 14 more issues up to #18. It, and it's sister title, Dark Mansion Of Forbidden Love (which changed to Forbidden Tales Of Dark Mansion after 4 issues and went 15 total), were Gothic Romance/Horror titles inspired by the popularity of daytime monster-drama Dark Shadows. Artist Victor Kalin did a masterful job on the cover. Kalin was best known for paperback covers among other things. In trying to tap into the Gothic Romance market they seemingly enlisted the talents of artists known for such for some of the early covers. Apparently the Romance/Horror angle wasn't too successful since DC changed both titles to straight Horror after 4 issues of each. The covers on those early issues are quite beautiful though.

Here's a scan of the back cover featuring a spectacular ad for Aurora's Monster Scenes kits:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50594861048_5802f58ec6_b.jpg)

ededed

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 09, 2020, 03:55:42 PM
Hey, GB. I decided to check out UMA after 6 months hiatus and I'm a little surprised to see this thread still rollin'. Anyway, I thought to respond to your post above.

I understand your frustration regarding the pricing on WBN #32 and TOD #10. As we know, the significance of those two issues is the popularity of Moon Knight and Blade, and the accepted importance of first appearances in today's comic book marketplace. Both issues are very plentiful but were considered more and more "demand-scarce" over the years which steadily drove up prices. As with many comics they were expensive before, but in this time of MCU hype with Dr. Strange, Multiverse Of Madness looming in the future threatening to loose the supernatural dark side of the Marvel Universe on the MCU (and TV show rumblings), the prices on those two books are getting more ridiculous all the time. If I didn't already have them I would be satisfied with reprints to fill those holes in the respective runs. No, I wouldn't spend hundreds of dollars for low-mid grade copies, nor thousands for high grade copies. I know it seems like price gouging but it's really just the free marketplace in action. A few people will pay those crazy prices so it doesn't matter if most of us can't, or won't. The books still command those values in the public mind and that's what sets fair market prices. Still, I agree with you, as much as I love both characters I think the books are way overpriced.

I check eBay periodically to get a gauge of current comic values and I've noticed a trend towards very low grade copies of key books for sale for much more than ever before. Books in FAIR and even POOR and incomplete are getting priced at near GOOD and sometimes even more. It's as if demand for any copy of certain books, regardless of condition, has risen to the point that sellers are placing previously unheard of prices on really crappy copies. Maybe those ultra low grade copies are selling at a premium because some collectors will pay a huge amount just to have a copy, ANY copy, of that issue in their collection. I find this very peculiar since for decades FAIR copies were valued at around 1/2 of GOOD, and a POOR copy would be considered virtually worthless unless it was a mega-key, and even then might just sell for a small percentage of what a GOOD copy would bring.

Getting back to your original post about pricing, I focus most on less expensive comics these days. I had much rather get several mid (or even low) grade issues I need to complete a run than one or two high grade issues. I go after what I like that isn't "hot" these days so I avoid the Marvel keys with the MCU stirring up the marketplace. Recently I've been getting good deals on books like DC War comics (SSWS #138-149, 1st Enemy Ace), Space Ghost #1 (Gold Key), and Hanna-Barbera Super TV Heroes #s 1-7 (complete run). Thankfully, I've completed most of the Bronze Horror titles by the big 2, as well as most monster mag titles, so now I'm working on Charlton and Gold Key Horror as well as titles like Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea (have #1-13, need 14-16). Also, I'm constantly on the hunt for different Monster and Halloween items when a good deal presents itself (toys, masks, posters, games, etc.). So, to sum up, my days of dropping big bucks on single comics have ground to a halt... too much other cool stuff out there that's very affordable.

Thanks for your insight Double H, good to see you back in here!!

Quote from: geezer butler on November 14, 2020, 07:02:19 PM
Thanks for your insight Double H, good to see you back in here!!

Thanks, bro.

Sometimes we just need a break from social interaction when the real world gets too loud.

The first six issues of my Silver Surfer run:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50605732943_4ebfef6f00_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50605737733_53367a597c_b.jpg)

I bought Silver Surfer #s 9 and 12 off the spinner rack when I was a kid and have been a Surfer fan since. I finished the run in the late '70s and '80s. They were relatively expensive back then but now they're getting hard to afford, and issues 1, 3 (1st Mephisto), and 4 (classic Thor cover), are hitting crazy prices. My favorite issue is #12 with the Abomination which I upgraded recently from G/VG up to FN+. Hard to beat the John Buscema art on books from the late Silver and early Bronze Ages. I think Buscema equaled Kirby when it came to depicting superhero battles and action in general, and "Big" John's anatomy was better than the "King's" IMO. In the late '70s I used "Silver Surfer" as my CB handle when I went through that fad. I got tired of the CB thing pretty quick, but I'll always love the Surfer.

Nice run of the Surfer,  Horrorhunter. Loved the Sinister House cover too!
RF

Quote from: Rex fury on November 15, 2020, 05:56:53 PM
Nice run of the Surfer,  Horrorhunter. Loved the Sinister House cover too!
RF

Thanks, Rex fury.

Hopefully more people will post pics of their books for us to enjoy. Discussion is great but a little eye-candy never hurts.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 15, 2020, 03:24:31 PM
The first six issues of my Silver Surfer run:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50605732943_4ebfef6f00_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50605737733_53367a597c_b.jpg)

I bought Silver Surfer #s 9 and 12 off the spinner rack when I was a kid and have been a Surfer fan since. I finished the run in the late '70s and '80s. They were relatively expensive back then but now they're getting hard to afford, and issues 1, 3 (1st Mephisto), and 4 (classic Thor cover), are hitting crazy prices. My favorite issue is #12 with the Abomination which I upgraded recently from G/VG up to FN+. Hard to beat the John Buscema art on books from the late Silver and early Bronze Ages. I think Buscema equaled Kirby when it came to depicting superhero battles and action in general, and "Big" John's anatomy was better than the "King's" IMO. In the late '70s I used "Silver Surfer" as my CB handle when I went through that fad. I got tired of the CB thing pretty quick, but I'll always love the Surfer.

Awesomeness.

My Gold Key Space Ghost #1 (1-shot):

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50606473201_179738f5ee_b.jpg)

This copy is in VG (4.0) but I'm just glad to have a decent copy as expensive as this book has gotten. I believe that's the arrival date in ink at the top. It's the numbers 61220. Since this issue hit the spinner racks in December 1966 it looks like the seller who dated the book's arrival used the "6" to abbreviate for the year, and the 12 20 for December 20th. It's a little vague but things were pretty slipshod back then regarding comic book selling- it was a 12 cent disposable entertainment item so most folks didn't care, except the kids of course. Man, how things have changed. Also, it looks like someone later tried to rub out the inked date and aborted the effort when they realized the color on the comic was being affected. I love stuff like this. Some collectors just treat it as a defect, I treat it as history which adds to the character of that copy. I grew up watching the Hanna-Barbera Super Heroes in the late '60s with Space Ghost, Herculoids, and Mightor being my favorites, but I also liked Frankenstein Jr, Shazzan, Galaxy Trio, and the rest. Sure they're cheezy but to their fans that just adds to their charm. It's a piece of Monsterkid history we can enjoy till we expire.

Quote from: Hepcat on October 07, 2020, 12:14:40 PMWhile I resisted actually buying any more comics late in 1963 and early in 1964, I continued to peruse them on newsstands.

I couldn't resist buying Green Lantern 28 (in early 1964). When I discovered the stack of comics my mother and sister had concealed from me inside the couch a few weeks later, I was back to collecting DC superhero comics big time!

The Rocky and His Friends cartoon show was at the time being telecast after school at least a couple of times per week on my local station CFPL-TV. I watched it regularly and Rocky and Bullwinkle remain among my very favourite cartoon characters. 

While I never bought any of their comics as a kid, I collect them now. Here are scans of my comics featuring Rocky and Bullwinkle. First the Dells headlining Rocky:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-05-201174941PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-05-201174955PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/07-06-201174509PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/07-06-201174513PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/07-06-201174516PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/07-06-201174518PM.jpg)


Here now are two Dell comics in which Bullwinkle gets top billing:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/24-06-2012111933PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/24-06-2012111938PM.jpg)


And here are three Gold Keys:


1

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-10-201175110PM.jpg)

2

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-10-201175121PM.jpg)

3

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-10-201175116PM.jpg)

8)

Beware #1(1973) Marvel Comics Group


(https://d1466nnw0ex81e.cloudfront.net/n_iv/600/861207.jpg)

Quote from: Hepcat on November 16, 2020, 12:57:34 PM
The Rocky and His Friends cartoon show was at the time being telecast after school at least a couple of times per week on my local station CFPL-TV. I watched it regularly and Rocky and Bullwinkle remain among my very favourite cartoon characters. 

While I never bought any of their comics as a kid, I collect them now.

Great Rocky & Bullwinkle comics!

I bought this complete Adventures Of Rocky And Bullwinkle And Friends DVD box set from Amazon a few months ago. All 5 seasons are included w/many special features and it's a great value for the price, less than 50 bucks including the dreaded sales tax. You can see some of the episodes on You Tube but the ads drive you nuts. Better to just enjoy the shows on disc along with the special features.

(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71ECLT6otrL._SL600_.jpg)

(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81TEQfbHyJL._SL600_.jpg)

I still watch my favorite cartoons on Saturday mornings, only I watch them on DVD these days. Bullwinkle, Underdog, Jonny Quest, Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Herculoids, Milton The Monster, Thundarr The Barbarian, Groovy Goolies, King Kong Show, Space Ghost, Wacky Races, etc. Saturday morning cartoons will never die at my house.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 16, 2020, 02:58:06 PM
I bought this complete Adventures Of Rocky And Bullwinkle . . . less than 50 bucks

I bought the seasons, individually, when the first came out and I know I paid more than 10 bucks each!

Quote from: Mike Scott on November 16, 2020, 03:38:25 PM


I bought the seasons, individually, when the first came out and I know I paid more than 10 bucks each!

I bought the 1st season when it came out years ago and it seems like it was nearly as expensive as all 5 seasons in this set. For serious DVD collectors the older releases will probably have greater collectible value...so there's that. I'm more of a casual DVD collector. I just want to have the shows available to watch mainly, and a few special features are always welcome.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 16, 2020, 07:35:36 PM
I bought the 1st season when it came out years ago and it seems like it was nearly as expensive as all 5 seasons in this set.

I know I didn't pay 50 bucks for one season!  ;D

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 16, 2020, 02:58:06 PMI still watch my favorite cartoons on Saturday mornings, only I watch them on DVD these days. Bullwinkle, Underdog, Jonny Quest, Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Herculoids, Milton The Monster, Thundarr The Barbarian, Groovy Goolies, King Kong Show, Space Ghost, Wacky Races, etc. Saturday morning cartoons will never die at my house.

Here are my top ten cartoon characters in rough order:

1. Uncle Remus' Brer Rabbit

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/FourColor693.jpg)

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/BrerRabbit.jpg)

2. Fox and the Crow

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/FoxCrow54.jpg)

3. Rocky and Bullwinkle

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/07-06-201174516PM.jpg)

4. MGM's Droopy, the Wolf and the Girl(Red)

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/28-12-2012100222PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/9e45a047-e815-4db7-ad23-a5ac5fd0691c_zps8m7ayrqc.png) (http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Droopy20Wolf_zps6tfa7vsb.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Droopy%20%20Girl_zps3bohrzzl.jpg) (http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Droopy%206_zps2albqqot.gif)

5. Deputy Dawg

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-2011105418PM.jpg)

6. Herman and Katnip

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/07-06-201174528PM.jpg)

7. Goofy

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-06-201185631PM.jpg)

8. Heckle and Jeckle

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201244912PM.jpg)

9. Felix the Cat

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/04-12-201293711PM.jpg)

10. Beany and Cecil

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/07-06-201174525PM.jpg)

8)

Quote from: Hepcat on November 17, 2020, 10:00:58 AM
5. Deputy Dawg

(https://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/11-08-2011105418PM.jpg)

I'm a big Deputy Dawg fan as well. Back in the '90s one Deputy Dawg cartoon ran daily as part of some kid's show hosted by a clown on a cable channel (might have been WGN). Anyway, I religiously taped that one DD cartoon every day and accumulated a tape full of them. Some years later I copied the tape to DVD and still enjoy watching those. Vincent van Gopher is my favorite DD character.  :laugh:

1-6 of my Tomb Of Dracula run:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50614726091_9ffbbe2b4d_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50613984023_43bc1450c6_b.jpg)

TOD is prime Bronze Age Horror. When I started collecting comics in 1975 I started buying many titles off the spinner racks when they first came out. Tomb Of Dracula was a favorite and the one I usually read first. Over the next few years I gradually bought the back issues and finished the 70 issue run in the 1980s. I remember buying that 1st issue from a dealer's long box at a small con for $5. It's a really nice copy and I'm glad to have it. The Neal Adams cover is very striking. Strangely, the reflection in the Mylar bag it's in almost looks like it says "$5"...weird. A ghost from the past.

(https://i.postimg.cc/g2DGp0CF/119992891-3621006717931303-6348327370167194628-o.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/75fFMqPm)
Tomb of Dracula is my favorite comic series. Some guy named Neal Adams scribbled all over my extra copy of #1

7-12 from my Surfer run:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50606482596_06a0919c25_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50606485396_0b932b548a_b.jpg)

Classic series. The writing is a little melodramatic, but that was just Stan making comic book history. When I read a couple of these as a kid it was pretty powerful stuff. And, even now, it's a fun read. The John Buscema art is literally awesome. Buscema's Abomination lives up to the term "monster" in spades, and his Mephisto is the coolest Devil you'll see in a comic book. Damn cool.  >:D

Want to read Charlton's Gorgo #s 1 and 2? Check out Monster Magazine World: https://monstermagazineworld.blogspot.com/?zx=d1a73d803e5b9e9b

Both issues are posted there with later issues coming soon.

(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sQgb3-81wbA/X7Hrx0yWPeI/AAAAAAABWRA/kAl4-fKA2DI3dYTxup2hPhNMIGOPOICaQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1386/GOR00136.jpg)

It's a good time to be a comic book fan...er, except for the high back issue prices.  :D

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 19, 2020, 01:00:00 PMWant to read Charlton's Gorgo #s 1 and 2?

(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sQgb3-81wbA/X7Hrx0yWPeI/AAAAAAABWRA/kAl4-fKA2DI3dYTxup2hPhNMIGOPOICaQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1386/GOR00136.jpg)

Gorgo rules! Here's a scan of my #2:

(https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/marvelmasterworksfansite/download/file.php?id=14407)

8)

7-12 of my TOD run:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50614840162_9ecbb3f77e_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50613988028_4b363718a0_b.jpg)

I haven't collected comics in about 30 years so I'm out of the loop regarding prices etc. I do have a sizeable collection though.
I have The Avengers #1 to #99 with #1 being in fair condition but most of the rest are in good or better condition. I was wondering what the realistic value would be for these 99 issues?Would anyone care to give me a ballpark estimate?

Quote from: Dr.Cyclops on November 21, 2020, 12:35:17 AM
I haven't collected comics in about 30 years so I'm out of the loop regarding prices etc. I do have a sizeable collection though.
I have The Avengers #1 to #99 with #1 being in fair condition but most of the rest are in good or better condition. I was wondering what the realistic value would be for these 99 issues?Would anyone care to give me a ballpark estimate?

Depending on the Grade, the first Appearances of characters and the first 20 issues will be the most desirable.
Looking at Ebay completed auctions might give you an idea of current value. You might even get a cheap Overstreet guide from last year on ebay. These don't jump much each year so it would be a close number at least.

If you are looking to sell them, don't take them to a comic shop.  I would sell them on ebay, 10 to 20 at a time, with a note saying you combine shipping and are selling all 99.

(https://i.postimg.cc/vB4km8Pr/127054475-3796997720332201-164820354031880274-o.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/34HnShQN)

I just got this Australian comic book, just because I love the cover.

Wow, cool cover! Which Doll Man stories does it reprint? I've purchased several Australian comics for their new cover art too, including a Black Mask and a Frogman comic. Years ago when I was in Sydney a comic store there introduced me to all sorts of repackage American material and new ( to me) stories as well. I had a copy of the Australia Spider-Man #1 in my hands, but failed to purchase it. Where did you purchase this issue, through online resources or there in the country? Once again, cool find!
RF

My friend has a shop and someone brought a bunch in. I just really liked the cover.

Reprint is from Doll Man (Quality Comics, 1941 series) #19 (November 1948)

Full info here
https://www.comics.org/issue/968647/ (https://www.comics.org/issue/968647/)

I received this Witching Hour #66 recently from an eBay seller.

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/paIAAOSwtMVfttaV/s-l1600.jpg)

Nothing remarkable here on the face of it. Just a run filler from the '70s in upper mid grade, probably FN+ or maybe FN/VF. The thing is though this is one of the final issues I needed to complete the run. It's been like pulling teeth to complete DC's Witching Hour. I've been hard at it for 3 or 4 years. I've been needing maybe half a dozen issues for what seems like 2 years. Now, with the purchase of this #66, I'm finally down to one issue to complete the run. It seems that on many titles there are shortages of certain issues in the marketplace, issues that would be unremarkable otherwise with no special artists work, no 1st appearances, no origins or deaths of important characters...just not that many copies floating around. The market seems to react to these shortages with most sellers jacking up prices due to so few eBay listings for that issue. Eventually a good deal will present itself on these short issues. You just have to be persistent and patient to finally grab one without paying through the nose.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 28, 2020, 12:37:03 PM
I received this Witching Hour #66 recently from an eBay seller.

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/paIAAOSwtMVfttaV/s-l1600.jpg)

Nothing remarkable here on the face of it. Just a run filler from the '70s in upper mid grade, probably FN+ or maybe FN/VF. The thing is though this is one of the final issues I needed to complete the run. It's been like pulling teeth to complete DC's Witching Hour. I've been hard at it for 3 or 4 years. I've been needing maybe half a dozen issues for what seems like 2 years. Now, with the purchase of this #66, I'm finally down to one issue to complete the run. It seems that on many titles there are shortages of certain issues in the marketplace, issues that would be unremarkable otherwise with no special artists work, no 1st appearances, no origins or deaths of important characters...just not that many copies floating around. The market seems to react to these shortages with most sellers jacking up prices due to so few eBay listings for that issue. Eventually a good deal will present itself on these short issues. You just have to be persistent and patient to finally grab one without paying through the nose.

I dig the Witching Hour comicbooks.

What issue are you missing?

Quote from: John Pertwee on November 28, 2020, 01:39:06 PM
What issue are you missing?

#28

I really enjoy the Witching Hour too and was able to complete a run a few years back. Best of luck on your hunt for #28.
RF

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 28, 2020, 03:45:46 PM
#28

I will check my stash.

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 28, 2020, 12:37:03 PMIt's been like pulling teeth to complete DC's Witching Hour. I've been hard at it for 3 or 4 years.

Try completing a run of The Fox and the Crow in nice grade instead. You'll be working at it for 30 to 40 years. Here are scans of my five oldest copies:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Comics001/Shock20001_zpsccd341ac.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/FoxCrow54.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/FoxCrow65.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/FoxCrow82.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/12-07-2011105344PM.jpg)

;)

Quote from: Hepcat on November 29, 2020, 01:28:28 AM
Try completing a run of The Fox and the Crow in nice grade instead. You'll be working at it for 30 to 40 years.

I'm to the point in my collecting that I'll enjoy what I have and add what I can afford as time goes on. Some expensive books and long running titles I know that realistically I'll never be able to add to my collection, there just isn't enough time or money. I'm trying to focus on favorite titles that I'm close to completing, and any Horror comics from the '70s and earlier that I don't already have.

When I first started collecting in the mid '70s I was very condition conscious since the high grade books weren't much more than lower grade books back then, but now with the prices for higher grade copies selling for multiples of what low and mid grade books sell for I've given up on chasing high grade older issues. A large percentage of my collection is in high grade, but that's mostly because I bought many of them new OTR back in the '70s-'90s and I bought many high grade back issues when they were inexpensive during my early collecting days. I'll still snatch up a high grade Silver or Bronze Age copy for a good price but those are scarce these days. And, I still try to get the best condition books I can for what I consider fair prices, but that usually means I'm buying books in the FN-VF range (Overstreet FN-VF, not what most eBay sellers call FN-VF...which is really a full grade or two less in most cases). And, yeah, I'll settle for books in Overstreet G-VG if the price is attractive and the defects aren't too off-putting.

At some point later I plan to deal collectibles on a small scale and buy collections to keep what I want and sell duplicates. When I begin that phase I'll hopefully be able to add several more nice books to my collection than I could otherwise, but that just depends on how lucky I get in my endeavor as a small time dealer. In any case I'm glad to have the collectibles I currently own and I'll continue to enjoy those for the rest of my life.

A Savage Tales #1 eBay listing that just ended:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/SAVAGE-TALES-1-6-0-1971-1ST-APPEARANCE-OF-MAN-THING-/303782036166?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc (https://www.ebay.com/itm/SAVAGE-TALES-1-6-0-1971-1ST-APPEARANCE-OF-MAN-THING-/303782036166?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/8UwAAOSww5hfvTUc/s-l1600.jpg)

This copy is in the FN range and sold for $332 at auction with 18 bids. This is a high demand book these days featuring the first appearance of Marvel's Man-Thing. It seems to sell for a little less than similar keys probably because it's a magazine sized book instead of a regular comic book size. Some current collectors seem to shun monster magazines and limit themselves to regular comic books, which somewhat lessens demand for the magazine sized issues.

I really appreciate the magazines and regard them as highly as regular comic books. I've probably put more expense and effort into my monster mags in the last 20 years than my regular comic book runs. My copy of Savage Tales #1 is in similar grade to this one and I paid $25 for it at a small comic con around 20 years ago. Another example of the way prices have soared on certain books in the last few years.

When I started collecting in 1975 I remember Savage Tales #1 being a pretty big book, not so much for the Man-Thing 1st appearance as for the early Conan (who was the hot character back then). It would be years before I finally scored my copy and I was very glad to finally get one. Not long ago I read an interview with Roy Thomas who mentioned how Savage Tales #1 bundles were literally cluttering up the Marvel offices and several had been put out in the hallway and were getting stepped on. Many of the Bullpen members were urged to take a bundle or two home with them just to get them out of the way. Worthless doormats to expensive highly sought after collectibles- the crazy world of the comic book marketplace.  :o

Savage Tales 1 is indeed an experience to read! As you mentioned, Manthing made his first appearance there and Conan's The Frost Giants Daughter is also a treat. I like the black and white version presented here better than the reprint in Conan 16. There's a couple other stories in the magazine ( one by John Romita) that to my knowledge have never been reprinted. It's a fun book, but I'm happy I got my copy for 19 bucks back in the day!
RF

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 01, 2020, 02:30:10 PM
Many of the Bullpen members were urged to take a bundle or two home with them just to get them out of the way.

So why aren't there a crap load of them around?

Quote from: Mike Scott on December 02, 2020, 03:57:44 PM
So why aren't there a crap load of them around?

I believe there were distribution problems due in part to the "Mature" rating on the cover. Monster magazine distribution in 1971 was pretty haphazard anyway, and since Marvel hadn't done many of them prior to this the print run on Savage Tales #1 was probably fairly low. It wasn't even an ongoing series at first, the 2nd issue came out much later, so it was like a 1-shot to test the market. Add in the fact that most of the ones returned to the Marvel offices were probably treated like trash, and that it's been 49 years, so you end up with not that many still around compared to later Marvel mags like Monsters Unleashed! or the common Warren issues.

When I started collecting in 1975 Savage Tales #1 was expensive and hard to find at cons, and I never saw a copy at a flea market or used book store. It would be years before I even saw a copy in person.

Quote from: Hepcat on October 07, 2020, 12:14:40 PMWhile I resisted actually buying any more comics late in 1963 and early in 1964, I continued to peruse them on newsstands.

I couldn't resist buying Green Lantern 28. When I discovered the stack of comics my mother and sister had concealed from me inside the couch a few weeks later, I was back to collecting DC superhero comics big time!

While actively buying whatever DC superhero comics I could find on the stands from mid-1963 until the latter months of 1964, I was also trading for whatever back issues of Justice League of America, Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Atom and Wonder Woman I could find. Since I regarded Superman and Batman as commonplace heroes, for trade I was using titles such as Adventure Comics, Superboy, Action Comics, Detective Comics and World's Finest Comics where Superman or Batman were the cover features.

I was quite successful in hunting down and trading for back issues of the Justice League of America including a copy of Brave and the Bold 28 (the intro issue) which unlike my other comics had a badly crumpled cover:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Brave_and_the_Bold_28.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds) (Not mine.)


Unlike most other kids I was determined to keep my comics in nice condition and would shout at any of my buddies not to fold the covers back when reading them because it wrecks them! Other Justice League of America issues for which I remember trading were these:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-07-201164222PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Justice_League_5.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds) (Not mine.)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/21-08-201182441PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201244933PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-10-201171007PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201244939PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201244944PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/10-06-201244947PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/02-07-201164237PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/10-06-201244951PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/14-06-2012114620PM.jpg)


I remember issues #4, 10, 11 and 12 being among the very first Justice League issues for which I traded. Issues #8 and 14 which had been pivotal in turning me into a DC superhero fan in the summer of 1962 were also among the ones I acquired through trade.

8)

Quote from: Hepcat on December 04, 2020, 03:17:06 PM
While actively buying whatever DC superhero comics I could find on the stands from mid-1963 until the latter months of 1964, I was also trading for whatever back issues of Justice League of America, Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Atom and Wonder Woman I could find. Since I regarded Superman and Batman as commonplace heroes, for trade I was using titles such as Adventure Comics, Superboy, Action Comics, Detective Comics and World's Finest Comics where Superman or Batman were the cover features.

We share the opinion that Superman and Batman were somewhat bland and uninteresting in the mid '60s. Batman was in that campy phase, and his Neal Adams days hadn't quite arrived, and the Superman titles featured some of the silliest stories in the history of comic books. That's the problem with a character who can do everything and overpowers all opposition. You have to resort to goofy plots just so something...anything, happens.

I liked a lot of DC titles when I was a kid, and still do, more-so than ever. But it was the other genre DC books I was most interested in, like Mystery (Horror), and War (especially War That Time Forgot stories in Star Spangled War Stories, and Haunted Tank stories in G. I. Combat). I also liked a lot of the offbeat heroes like Metal Men, Tomahawk, and Adam Strange in Strange Adventures, and of course the supernatural heroes like the Spectre, Phantom Stranger, and later Swamp Thing, but those were really just another spin on Horror with continuing characters instead of the more common anthology books. But, the DC mainstream superheroes just didn't appeal to me in general. I was, and still am, a Marvel guy when it comes to superheroes. Not a Marvel Zombie by any means, because my comic book/monster mag likes are many and varied. I'm also a big Charlton fan, as well as many Dell/Gold Key titles (Turok!), Tower (T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents), and monster mags in general, Warren, Skywald, Curtis (Marvel), Eerie Pubs, Stanley, and the short-lived Atlas-Seaboard titles.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 04, 2020, 10:31:26 PMI liked a lot of DC titles when I was a kid, and still do, more-so than ever. But it was the other genre DC books I was most interested in, like Mystery (Horror), and War (especially War That Time Forgot stories in Star Spangled War Stories, and Haunted Tank stories in G. I. Combat). I also liked a lot of the offbeat heroes like Metal Men, Tomahawk, and Adam Strange in Strange Adventures, and of course the supernatural heroes like the Spectre, Phantom Stranger, and later Swamp Thing, but those were really just another spin on Horror with continuing characters instead of the more common anthology books.

After getting a paper route in March of 1964 from which I earned the princely sum of $2.74 per week I started to buy all the DC titles I found on newsstands with the exception of Sugar and Spike, the romance and the war (though I bought Capt. Storm).

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 04, 2020, 10:31:26 PMBut, the DC mainstream superheroes just didn't appeal to me in general. I was, and still am, a Marvel guy when it comes to superheroes.

I enjoyed the Marvel comics I chanced to read, e.g. Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man, Avengers, X-Men, but the DC comics were a higher priority and I only had so much money for all my competing interests, i.e. comics, cards, model kits, so I didn't actually buy any Marvel comics as a kid.

:-\

Hey Hepcat, why Captain Storm? Just curious as I discovered Captain Storm later in life and really enjoyed the title. Other than Weird War I never really bought many DC war titles. Captain Storm led me to Star Spangled War Stories and the Unknown Soldier .
RF

The reason I bought Capt. Storm was that issue #1 hit newsstands in March 1964. I could therefore be in on the title from the ground floor unlike for DC's long-running Big Five war titles. Here are scans of the earliest Capt. Storm comics from my present day collection:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/CaptStorm2.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/CaptStorm4.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/CaptStorm6.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/26-05-201174725PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/26-05-201174759PM.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/26-05-201174804PM.jpg)


These days my tastes/priorities have changed and the DC war stories I like the best are those illustrated by either Joe Kubert (e.g. Sgt. Rock in Our Army at War and the Haunted Tank in G.I. Combat) or else Russ Heath.

:)

Incidentally, I think Irving Novick's artwork on the above covers is simply lousy. But Novick was doing some good artwork for Batman by mid-1968 and I really liked his artwork in The Flash when he took over as the regular artist with issue #200 in 1970.

8)

I had more limited success in tracking down and trading for older issues of The Flash in 1963-64. I did manage to acquire these earlier issues though:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Flash_112.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds) (Not mine.)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-07-201152135PM.jpg)

Northland copy

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/29-06-201172321PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-07-201152106PM.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/03-07-201152040PM.jpg)


I also very clearly remember the wonder I felt looking at this ad for Flash 128 but I never succeeded in tracking down a copy as a kid:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Flash_128_ad.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)


Here though is a scan of my present day copy:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_Flash_128(1).webp?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

:)

Quote from: Hepcat on December 05, 2020, 01:09:57 PM
I enjoyed the Marvel comics I chanced to read, e.g. Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man, Avengers, X-Men, but the DC comics were a higher priority and I only had so much money for all my competing interests, i.e. comics, cards, model kits, so I didn't actually buy any Marvel comics as a kid.

Our ages are a bit apart so I didn't start buying comics until 1963 at the age of 4. Being that young I just bought different comics here and there according to how the cover grabbed me. I was a big dinosaur fan early on which explains my infatuation with Turok and the War That Time Forgot issues of Star Spangled War Stories. If I had been older I might have leaned toward the more established DC Superheroes as you did. However, I'm pretty sure I would have still been a Marvel fan as well.

Not only were the early Marvels really fun with the interesting characters and art by Kirby and Ditko, but the way Stan Lee tied everything together in the early Marvel Universe with hero crossovers and, more importantly, hero vs. hero fights, made Marvel comics very entertaining. I think the most important thing Stan did to make Marvel popular was to make the readers feel like part of the Marvel family. He made sure the Marvel Bullpen members got proper credit on the splash page, and his Stan Lee's Soapbox is legendary for engaging the readership. When you wrote a letter to a DC comic you addressed the "Editor", but when you wrote to a Marvel comic you addressed "Smilin'"Stan, or "Rascally" Roy, or some other dude you got to know like a distant friend. That was probably Stan's biggest contribution, because most of the actual creating was by the artists (the Marvel Method of storytelling), especially Kirby. Stan was a good writer, but not great, I always thought Roy Thomas was the best writer Marvel had in the early days. Stan could sure hold it all together, though, and captain the ship.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 06, 2020, 02:47:46 PM...but the way Stan Lee tied everything together in the early Marvel Universe with hero crossovers and, more importantly, hero vs. hero fights, made Marvel comics very entertaining. I think the most important thing Stan did to make Marvel popular was to make the readers feel like part of the Marvel family. He made sure the Marvel Bullpen members got proper credit on the splash page, and his Stan Lee's Soapbox is legendary for engaging the readership. When you wrote a letter to a DC comic you addressed the "Editor", but when you wrote to a Marvel comic you addressed "Smilin'"Stan, or "Rascally" Roy, or some other dude you got to know like a distant friend. That was probably Stan's biggest contribution....

Absolutely! Those particular innovations by Stan Lee were the key elements in Marvel's success in capturing the hearts of young comic readers in the sixties.

:)

Quote from: horrorhunter on November 10, 2020, 04:53:32 PMI agree in general with this, but not specifically to exclude Marvel. I grew up reading Marvel comics in the mid '60s and have very fond memories of enjoying Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man, Thor, and Avengers issues from that period. One of the earliest comics I remember buying was Fantastic Four #35. I read that copy until it was literally in FAIR condition, even though the cover was still holding on. I enjoyed many other books back then too... Turok, Star Spangled War Stories (War That Time Forgot), Tomahawk, Metal Men, etc., but I liked Marvel Superhero books much better than DC. I have a few DC Superhero comics in my collection, mostly for Adams art (and a little Wrightson), but for me Marvel blew DC away when it came to Superheroes. Later on, in the early Bronze Age, the Marvel Monster titles hit and I loved those issues (still do), as well as many of the Marvel Superhero titles. So, no way I'm going to exclude Marvel from my collection. I'm just glad I picked up most of the ones I really want back when they were cheap.

These days I'd have to pass on some of the Marvel keys and settle for reprints, but I would still go after the run fillers if I didn't have them. To me the run fillers are undervalued while the keys are overvalued. My Werewolf By Night #32 is in VF/NM (9.0) condition, and my Tomb Of Dracula #10 is in FN  (6.5) condition.

I don't remember you ever mentioning liking the pre-hero Atlas/Marvel comics, e.g. Strange Tales, Amazing Adventures, Strange Worlds, Tales of Suspense and Tales to Astonish on which artists such as Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko and Joe Sinnott worked.

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Monster_montage.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

???

Quote from: Hepcat on December 06, 2020, 08:03:58 PM
I don't remember you ever mentioning liking the pre-hero Atlas/Marvel comics, e.g. Strange Tales, Amazing Adventures, Strange Worlds, Tales of Suspense and Tales to Astonish on which artists such as Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko and Joe Sinnott worked.

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Monster_montage.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

???

I like the pre-hero Atlas/Marvels very much. I just don't have many of them. Prices on those books have gotten ridiculous in the last few years in much the same way as Pre-Code Horror comics. If I were wealthy I'd have them all (well...I'm not sure even being wealthy would make that possible now, but I'd have as many as I could comfortably afford). With my limited resources these days I focus on my favorite titles from the Silver and Bronze Ages, mostly Horror, and mostly in mid grade up to VF copies. High grade copies are way overpriced currently IMO. I'm just glad I bought what issues I did back when they were affordable. I couldn't touch some of the books in my collection now if I didn't already have them. Now I just peck away at finishing runs from the '60s and '70s mostly. Prices in the comic book market have gotten ridiculous in general, and stratospheric on many older keys...especially Marvels. I enjoy the MCU, but damn, it sure boosted back issue prices on certain books out of the average collector's price range.

I do have most of the Marvel reprint titles from the early-mid '70s that reprinted the older material by Kirby and Ditko, like Where Monsters Dwell, Where Creatures Roam, Monsters On The Prowl, Creatures On The Loose, Beware, Tomb Of Darkness, etc. But, even those reprint issues have been getting expensive in the last few years. The window for getting older books at affordable prices keeps getting smaller every year. If this keeps up it will hard to afford most anything from the '70s and earlier within the next 10-20 years. And, the older books are pretty much all I care about anymore. I don't collect any comics from the last 20 years, and not much from the '80s/'90s. I want the stuff I grew up with and bought when I first started collecting. New comics have no value to me unless it's something I could resell to make a profit on. And, those limited variant covers are the biggest con in the marketplace. Anyone who is investing real money in that stuff is screwing up. They might make a few bucks on a quick flip, but as a long term investment those overpriced limited cover variants will tank big time. That's my opinion anyway.

I just picked up a copy of Chamber of Chills # 8
(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71TfyP9ZNiL._AC_SY500_.jpg)

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 06, 2020, 09:12:51 PMAnd, the older books are pretty much all I care about anymore.... I want the stuff I grew up with and bought when I first started collecting.

Indeed! Nostalgia for the items of my youth is my own key driving factor as well when it comes to collecting.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 06, 2020, 09:12:51 PMI don't collect any comics from the last 20 years, and not much from the '80s/'90s....  New comics have no value to me....

I have two "stepping of" points for DC comics that are closely related in time. The first is when DC comics broke the fifty cent barrier in price and went to $0.60 with comics that went on sale in July 1981. That dovetails very neatly with the date that Carmine Infantino returned to illustrating one of my very favourite long-running titles, The Flash. Infantino returned with issue #296 which hit the newsstands in January 1981 and I hated his take on The Flash upon his return.

The second even clearer demarcation line for capping my collection is DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths series which had cover dates from April 1985 to March 1986.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 06, 2020, 09:12:51 PMAnd, those limited variant covers are the biggest con in the marketplace.

I agree! Multiple variant covers are just a gimmick on the part of comic publishers to con more money out of hardcore fans/true believers.

::)

"Incidentally, I think Irving Novick's artwork on the above covers is simply lousy. But Novick was doing some good artwork for Batman by mid-1968 and I really liked his artwork in The Flash when he took over as the regular artist with issue #200 ...."

Hmm, I have to respectfully disagree with you about those Captain Storm covers. With the exception of issue 9, I think Novrik was producing artwork on par with many of the other DC staff artists at the time. Incidentally, a panel he drew for All American Men of War 89 (1962) was the basis for Roy Lichenstein's  painting "Whaam" in 1963. Another example of how  a comic draftsmen 's work was "borrowed " by Pop Artists in that time period.

Norvick had a long career in comics mostly jumping between bad advertising gigs and the comics publishers.  His early superhero work ( Pep, etc.) doesn't resemble his later war work, just as his later superhero work is different from that of the  DC war comics of the early 60's. I'm glad people appreciate an artist even as their styles change with age, assignments and time periods.

RF

When Superman died, the market was caught off guard. Speculators became the new normal. I was so pleased to see some of them take a bath on the Return of Superman. I know people that ordered 10 or 20 copies of each version, with the dreams of selling them immediately for hundreds of dollars. Now they are in .25 cent bins everywhere.
Unfortunately, some retailers never recovered from that either. When these bottom feeders realized these issues were so overprinted, they failed to buy what they ordered from the shops. A friend of mine was selling comics at the time and this drove him out of the new comic game completely. 

And many of those retailers bought a hundred or more extra copies for their own store's inventory. I too was very pleased to see the speculators take a bath on the Death of Superman scam (and on all the new me-too variant X-Men titles). Speculators at the time were also buying entire cases of newly issued baseball cards because all those cards from the fifties and sixties had appreciated so much in price (ignoring the detail that the surviving ones had gone up in price because the rest had been destroyed thus creating a shortage).This is precisely the kind of speculative frenzy (buying something not because you like it but because everybody "knows" that the price must go up) that's the dictionary definition of a bubble.

And these days I'm always bewildered by the mindset of the speculators piling into the comics with a tie to the hot new flick about to be released. I mean are they thinking that the demand for said comic will take another quantum leap upward from its already inflated level? That's why I'm completely unwilling to buy any comic whose price has been grotesquely boosted by movie hype.

Moreover excess demand can very quickly evaporate due to changing fashions/market tastes. What can't be increased over time is supply. That's why I keep saying that when it comes to collectibles, I'm willing to pay up for short supply. No way I'm willing to pay up for high demand though.

:-\

Quote from: John Pertwee on December 07, 2020, 03:14:51 PM
When Superman died, the market was caught off guard. Speculators became the new normal. I was so pleased to see some of them take a bath on the Return of Superman. I know people that ordered 10 or 20 copies of each version, with the dreams of selling them immediately for hundreds of dollars. Now they are in .25 cent bins everywhere.
Unfortunately, some retailers never recovered from that either. When these bottom feeders realized these issues were so overprinted, they failed to buy what they ordered from the shops. A friend of mine was selling comics at the time and this drove him out of the new comic game completely.

This and similar speculating debacles by "investors" who had never cared about comics until they thought they could make a buck were what led to the '90s comic book market crash. I remember people setting up at small cons in the Chattanooga area charging ridiculously high prices for certain Valiant issues and in some cases selling them at those prices. Then, the bottom dropped out when enough people couldn't move overprinted issues because most prospective buyers already had them (multiples in some cases). The overall mindset after the crash was that comics in general were overpriced which was a gross overreaction with the herd mentality. It was really the new comics (new in the '90s) that were overprinted to the extent that demand shrank to nil. The older books ('70s and older) still had the same amount of copies in the marketplace, which weren't that many compared to the great number of overprinted '90s issues. That was the time to buy your back issues because prices hit new lows. I bought several books in the '90s after the crash at real bargains, and I wish I had bought many more.

I mentioned Valiant comics above as an example of falsely inflated value for a time, but I meant no slight against the Valiant books themselves. I still have the early Valiant books having bought them when they first came out back in the '90s, and I hold those books in high regard. The Valiant Universe was fun back then with great stories. Titles like X-O Manowar, Magnus Robot Fighter, Rai, and Harbinger are great reads. They just got swallowed up in the speculating frenzy that caused the market crash, and many languished in quarter bins for years afterward. They were the same books that sold at one point for $20-$100 each, and seemingly overnight they could be bought for a fraction of those prices. Their values have rebounded somewhat in recent years but they can probably still be bought cheaper than their inflated '90s prices at their height. Just another example of the crazy comic market, and another warning not to overpay for the latest "hot" book. Great comics can still be bought at reasonable prices if you buy what you enjoy, and you don't chase keys and the books most other collectors are rabid for to brag about in their latest You Tube video.

Quote from: Hepcat on December 07, 2020, 06:25:14 PM
I'm willing to pay up for short supply. No way I'm willing to pay up for high demand though.

I agree with this to a point, but it's important to remember that demand is always going to dictate available supply. And, after years of certain issues (or any collectible for that matter) being difficult to obtain at going rates then the prices rise to what buyers will pay. It's what drives the increased prices on collectibles over time. Perceived value is real value.

Before the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide debuted in 1971 comics in general were cheap, even Golden Age books. But, with an annual price guide keeping up with values the upward surge began. Collectors became aware that certain books had a certain value so some buyers were willing to pay a little more to get books they really wanted to complete runs...and a little more...and so on, year after year. It was a snowball effect and here we are half a century later with the prices we have to deal with. And, for the last several years it's even more organized with eBay "Sold" prices instantly researchable by everyone. And, before that there were multiple price guides like Wizard magazine. So values for comics from the Golden Age are pretty well set in stone (in the public mind), and Silver Age books might fluctuate a little more but probably not the ones commonly thought of as keys. Bronze Age books fluctuate up and down somewhat and aren't as "value set" as older books, but they are much more "value set" than Modern books. The price fluctuation in general is in the upward direction much more-so than downward. That's just the underlying greed that drives any market.

Quote from: Rex fury on December 07, 2020, 03:11:13 PMIncidentally, a panel he(Irv Novick) drew for All American Men of War 89 (1962) was the basis for Roy Lichenstein's  painting "Whaam" in 1963. Another example of how  a comic draftsmen 's work was "borrowed " by Pop Artists in that time period.

Yes. Here it is:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Whaam_Sabre_Panel.jpg)


Now I like the fact that Roy Lichenstein's pop art creations were not only a tribute to comic art but brought much needed attention to comics as an art form in their own right. What burns my butt though is that Irv Novick and the other comic artists whose work Lichenstein plagiarized received not a cent in royalties or compensation of any sort.

>:(

Indeed! The issue of lost revenue for many comic artists is staggering. The treatment  of Siegel and Shuster at DC, Simon and Kirby at Timely , etc. make me cringe. While the industry has made some attempts to remedy this it's still pretty clear who the winners are in those old "work for hire" contracts. I encourage young aspiring comic creators to read this article for a dose of reality about the industry:

https://www.pipelinecomics.com/seriously-dont-be-a-comic-book-artist-just-dont/ (https://www.pipelinecomics.com/seriously-dont-be-a-comic-book-artist-just-dont/)

RF

https://www.google.com/amp/s/starloggers.com/2020/04/18/the-current-state-and-future-of-comic-books-part-i/amp/ (https://www.google.com/amp/s/starloggers.com/2020/04/18/the-current-state-and-future-of-comic-books-part-i/amp/)

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.screengeek.net/2020/06/26/captain-america-civil-war-cancel-culture/amp/ (https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.screengeek.net/2020/06/26/captain-america-civil-war-cancel-culture/amp/)

The comic book market is really two different markets: 1- New Comics, 2- Back Issues

Most collectors buy both new issues and back issues, but a few like myself are only interested in the back issues. There will always be a back issue market with millions of comics in existence. If new comics stopped being published it would force many comic shops to close, but the back issue market would still be there. I believe there will always be demand for back issues due to the popularity of the characters. These characters are ingrained in the psyche of the public, and this is constantly reinforced by the many movies and TV shows which will continue to be made. Also, it's likely some new comic book stories would continue to be published probably in the trade paperback format.

The comic book market will continue whether new issues are being published or not. The new issue market seems unsustainable as it stands, but we'll see if Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Image, and the other publishers finally give up at some point. I'm after the issues I still need from the Bronze Age and earlier (and a few from the '80s/'90s), so it wouldn't dampen my enjoyment of the hobby at all if new books stopped coming out.

Would anyone else care to discuss the future of the new comic book market, or the back issue market?

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 06, 2020, 09:12:51 PMI like the pre-hero Atlas/Marvels very much. I just don't have many of them. Prices on those books have gotten ridiculous in the last few years in much the same way as Pre-Code Horror comics.

Given the relative supply, do you really think the prices of pre-hero Marvels are "ridiculous" compared with the far more plentiful post-hero Marvels?

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 06, 2020, 09:12:51 PMIf I were wealthy I'd have them all (well...I'm not sure even being wealthy would make that possible now, but I'd have as many as I could comfortably afford).

I'm with you. I think the pre-hero Marvels are boss cool and I'd love to have an extensive collection of those issues. But what I like even more than the pre-hero Marvels is the pre-pre-hero Marvel/Atlas comics. I already have a few but eventually I'd like to acquire many more.

First of all I love the comics Atlas published in the forties based on the Terrytoon characters including Mighty Mouse, Gandy Goose, Sourpuss, Dinky Duck and Heckle & Jeckle:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/KrazyComics19.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/Terrytoons36.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/Terrytoons42.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Terry_Toons_50.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds) (Not mine.)

Here as well are scans from my collection of Atlas Jungle comics (including the cover artist where known):

Joe Maneely

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/JungleAction.jpg)

Syd Shores

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/LornatheJungleGirl.jpg)

The Lorna, the Jungle Girl title featured fabulous artwork with issue #6 being perhaps my very favourite:

Russ Heath

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Lorna.png?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds) (Not mine.)

Here as well are some scans of Atlas Westerns from my collection:

John Severin

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/KidColtOutlaw70.jpg)

Joe Maneely

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/KidColtOutlaw71.jpg)

Carl Burgos

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Comics001/Outlaw14_791872_zps95a3db3f.jpg)

Joe Maneely

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/OutlawKid.jpg)

The Atlas Westerns were also much grittier than those published by DC during the fifties. My very favourite may be Wyatt Earp 3:

Joe Maneely

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Wyatt_Earp_Vol_1_3.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds) (Not mine.)

Both the Atlas Western and the Atlas War comics were very nicely illustrated by some of my favourite artists from fifties including Joe Maneely, John Severin, Russ Heath and Bill Everett. Here's a scan of my only Atlas War comic:

Joe Maneely

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/CombatKelly.jpg)

Atlas continued to publish War comics that were gritty to beat hell even post-Comic Code. Two of my very favourites actually hit newsstands in 1959:

Jack Kirby

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Battle%2065_zpstdpca8au.jpg) (Not mine.)

Jack Kirby

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/General%20Album%203001/Battle%2068_zps9crnhgab.jpg) (Not mine.)

So I'll let Marvel Zombies go goo-goo over and pay ridiculous prices for relatively common comics such as Fantastic Four 1, Amazing Fantasy 15 and Avengers 1 & 4. I'm just happy that the much scarcer pre-pre-hero Marvels are still semi-affordable.

;)

Quote from: Hepcat on December 09, 2020, 03:07:04 PM
Given the relative supply, do you really think the prices of pre-hero Marvels are "ridiculous" compared with the far more plentiful post-hero Marvels?

Compared to what they commonly sold for decades ago the prices are ridiculous.

The supply of a collectible by itself doesn't matter regarding value. It's the demand that dictates value. Relative supply enters into it when the demand forces a scarcity of a given collectible in the marketplace. It doesn't matter how scarce something is if nobody wants it. That's why key Marvel Superhero issues sell for much more than similarly aged keys from other publishers. The popularity of the MCU has sent the demand for those books through the roof, and they are relatively plentiful in the marketplace. It's just that so many more people want them now the prices have gotten insanely expensive. I just make this work in my favor by buying books that mean a lot to me personally and I avoid buying the "hot" books now. I'm just glad I already have most of the issues that I want anyway, so I don't care what FF #48, or Captain America #100 trades for since I already have them.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 09, 2020, 03:30:42 PMThe supply of a collectible by itself doesn't matter regarding value. It's the demand that dictates value.

What?!!! Have you not even taken a beginner's course in Economics? Supply and demand are co-equal variables when it comes to price determination as the following chart from almost the first page of any Economics textbook shows:

(https://www.economicshelp.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/rise-in-supply-fall-demand-arrows-600x479.jpg)

In general supply is just as important a determinant of price as is demand.

When it comes to back issues of comics and other collectibles though, it's actually supply that's the constraining variable. Quite simply the supply of a given comic is very price inelastic. The quantity of the comic in existence doesn't react upward in response to price increases. In fact the supply of any comic trends inexorably downward as time passes. Demand for a comic though is very price elastic (the higher the price the lower the quantity demanded). Demand of course can and does fluctuate wildly in response to other factors (fashions, fads, etc.). Supply meanwhile remains unimpacted by any of the above.

Buyer beware therefore is the operative advice when the price of a collectible leaps up sharply in response to a surge in demand. Such surges in demand are all too often ephemeral.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 09, 2020, 03:30:42 PMIt doesn't matter how scarce something is if nobody wants it.

True. But let me then give you an example of the opposite extreme, i.e. when supply is limitless. Air is in tremendous demand. We all want it because we need it to survive even a couple of minutes. Yet the price of air is zero because the supply is effectively limitless.

If you go to zero demand, you will of course get a zero price. But similarly if you go to near limitless supply, you also get a price of zero.

cl:)

Quote from: Hepcat on December 09, 2020, 06:10:14 PM
What?!!! Have you not even taken a beginner's course in Economics?

I won't be engaging in a tedious Economics debate.

You seem to be aggravated that Marvel Superhero keys sell for much more than pre-hero Marvel/Atlas issues because the Superhero key issues are more plentiful. I was simply trying to make the point that demand s scarcity concerning comic book values. It doesn't matter much what an individual or small group thinks Marvel Superhero key issues should sell for. All that matters is what the buyers and sellers that collectively form the comic book marketplace think they should sell for, and those values are the product of decades of trading. Those fair market values fluctuate some, but are usually ever on the increase regarding older books. In other words you won't be finding a copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 in a quarter box.

I'm still not sure why you have this deep hatred of Marvel Superhero comics though. You seem to take offense when anything positive is mentioned about Marvel Superhero books and their popularity and current values. I understand that nobody likes everything and we are also defined by our dislikes as well as what we like. Tolerance for differing viewpoints, or the lack thereof, also defines us.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 09, 2020, 08:49:56 PMI won't be engaging in a tedious Economics debate.

But you yourself asked other posters to weigh in on the comic market!

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 08, 2020, 10:23:22 PMWould anyone else care to discuss the future of the new comic book market, or the back issue market?

If you want to discuss markets, well that's Economics.

Moreover I don't think Economics is tedious anyway. It's a combination of Mathematics and Psychology (essentially everyone wants to sell for a higher price and everyone wants to buy for a lower price). As such I think it's fascinating. In fact if I had to do it all again, I'd major in Economics at university.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 09, 2020, 08:49:56 PMI was simply trying to make the point that demand s scarcity concerning comic book values.

And my main point was that supply is the bedrock factor when it comes to collectibles. Quite simply while the quantity being offered can fluctuate somewhat, the total potential supply is still finite, very finite, for these items. Meanwhile demand is unstable. Theoretically there's no reason it can't drop to zero. It has happened in other areas of collectibles over the last few centuries including within the twentieth century, e.g. demand for old stamps was nowhere near as high in 2001 as it was in 1901.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 09, 2020, 08:49:56 PMYou seem to be aggravated that Marvel Superhero keys sell for much more than pre-hero Marvel/Atlas issues because the Superhero key issues are more plentiful.

Not so. I specifically said that I was very happy that pre-pre-hero Marvels sold for much less than hero Marvels:

Quote from: Hepcat on December 09, 2020, 03:07:04 PMSo I'll let Marvel Zombies go goo-goo over and pay ridiculous prices for relatively common comics such as Fantastic Four 1, Amazing Fantasy 15 and Avengers 1 & 4. I'm just happy that the much scarcer pre-pre-hero Marvels are still semi-affordable.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 09, 2020, 08:49:56 PMI'm still not sure why you have this deep hatred of Marvel Superhero comics though.

Not so. I've actually expressed my admiration for Marvel Superhero comics several times in this thread:

Quote from: Hepcat on November 11, 2020, 10:47:46 PMI didn't say Marvel comics weren't good though. Due to Stan Lee's genius, they were very good indeed. I said only that Silver Age Marvel comics have always seemed expensive to me relative to their comparatively plentiful supply.

Eventually I'd like to acquire copies of some of the Marvel comics I remember reading or at least seeing as a kid, but unfortunately these include Fantastic Four 4 (Submariner intro) 7, 26 & 29, Amazing Spider-Man 7, 9, 11, 15, 20 & Annual 1 and Tales of Suspense 57 (Hawkeye intro) which are all cripplingly expensive.

Quote from: Hepcat on December 05, 2020, 01:09:57 PMI enjoyed the Marvel comics I chanced to read, e.g. Fantastic Four, Amazing Spider-Man, Avengers, X-Men, but the DC comics were a higher priority and I only had so much money for all my competing interests, i.e. comics, cards, model kits, so I didn't actually buy any Marvel comics as a kid.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 09, 2020, 08:49:56 PMYou seem to take offense when anything positive is mentioned about Marvel Superhero books and their popularity and current values. I understand that nobody likes everything and we are also defined by our dislikes as well as what we like. Tolerance for differing viewpoints, or the lack thereof, also defines us.

Not so. I've actually said positive things about Marvel comics myself.

Moreover I can actually turn that statement of yours right around. I've never challenged you when you've expressed disinterest in any of the comics I really like. You though all too often become annoyed when I express more admiration for non-Marvel comics than for Marvel Superhero comics. It's as if we must all have the same pecking order for the comics that we like with Marvel Superhero comics being right on top. I don't understand why my preferences bother you.

:-\

On an entirely different note, anyone else interested in Horror Hounds new project documenting the history of horror movies adopted into comic books?
Here's a link about the project:

https://www.horrorhound.com/News/Details/326 (https://www.horrorhound.com/News/Details/326)

Also, the latest Alter Ego has an article on Harvey Janes. He was an author who worked for Fawcett publications and wrote the Mechanix Illustrated feature on The Creature From The Black Lagoon.

Good stuff😊
RF

Quote from: Hepcat on December 09, 2020, 11:37:13 PM
But you yourself asked other posters to weigh in on the comic market!

If you want to discuss markets, well that's Economics.

Moreover I don't think Economics is tedious anyway. It's a combination of Mathematics and Psychology (essentially everyone wants to sell for a higher price and everyone wants to buy for a lower price). As such I think it's fascinating. In fact if I had to do it all again, I'd major in Economics at university.

And my main point was that supply is the bedrock factor when it comes to collectibles. Quite simply while the quantity being offered can fluctuate somewhat, the total potential supply is still finite, very finite, for these items. Meanwhile demand is unstable. Theoretically there's no reason it can't drop to zero. It has happened in other areas of collectibles over the last few centuries including within the twentieth century, e.g. demand for old stamps was nowhere near as high in 2001 as it was in 1901.

Not so. I specifically said that I was very happy that pre-pre-hero Marvels sold for much less than hero Marvels:

Not so. I've actually expressed my admiration for Marvel Superhero comics several times in this thread:

Not so. I've actually said positive things about Marvel comics myself.

Moreover I can actually turn that statement of yours right around. I've never challenged you when you've expressed disinterest in any of the comics I really like. You though all too often become annoyed when I express more admiration for non-Marvel comics than for Marvel Superhero comics. It's as if we must all have the same pecking order for the comics that we like with Marvel Superhero comics being right on top. I don't understand why my preferences bother you.

:-\

Just to clarify, I don't put Marvel Superhero comics at the top of my "pecking order". I favor Horror comics and monster magazines over the other genres. But, I like and collect a variety of different comics and related items. If I mistook your comments as a hatred of Marvel Superhero books then I stand corrected. The point I was making about demand outweighing supply regarding comic book prices is a fact: it's proven by the very thing we were discussing before about pre-hero Marvels being less expensive and more scarce than the later Marvel Superhero issues, as well as too many other common examples to go over here.

If I had any idea that an invitation to discuss the comic book market would open up this onslaught of unpleasantness I would have never mentioned it.

Eventually it's best to just let a perceived difference of opinion go. That's what I'm doing now...letting it go.

Here a few comicbooks I picked up this week.
(https://d1466nnw0ex81e.cloudfront.net/n_iv/600/861207.jpg)

(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a0/Tales_from_the_Crypt_24.jpg/250px-Tales_from_the_Crypt_24.jpg)

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 10, 2020, 12:02:49 PMIf I had any idea that an invitation to discuss the comic book market would open up this onslaught of unpleasantness I would have never mentioned it.

I agree. I don't see any reason for unpleasantness when it comes to discussing comics or the present or future market for comics.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 08, 2020, 10:23:22 PMWould anyone else care to discuss the future of the new comic book market, or the back issue market?

On a general note, the market fundamentals are the same for any collectible. In order for a collectible to increase in price, an increase in demand or a decrease in supply must take place. For almost all 20th century collectibles that were initially marketed to kids such as cards, comics and toys, a near total destruction factor took place as said items were mauled through rough usage and then tossed into the garbage. This caused a slow and steady increase in the price of the items that survived as a core group of collectors (many of whom became more prosperous financially over time) competed for an ever dwindling supply. When the phenomenon of increasing prices for "old" kid stuff such as baseball cards and comic magazines began to be ever more widely reported in the press in the late sixties, this prompted not only hoarding but an actual increase in demand as speculators/investors were attracted into the market.

This phenomenon spiralled upward through the seventies and eighties. With all the publicity the circa 1910 American Tobacco Company Honus Wagner and the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle cards as well as Action Comics 1, Detective Comics 27, Fantastic Four 1and Amazing Fantasy 15 received, the thinking was that hoarding the latest hot card(much touted rookies) or comic(dead Superman, X-Whatever #1) would result in similar appreciation over the years. Speculators in the early nineties were buying whole cases of new card releases and hundreds of copies of the latest #1 comic. But of course hoarding by a hugely augmented number of buyers ensured that a surplus of items would prevail since the number of potential collectors is always finite. When speculators got frustrated and tried to unload, the "market" collapsed.

But card and comic companies were shrewd. By the mid-nineties these companies had taken to releasing and marketing "instant" collectibles to an eager marketplace. The card and comic companies started producing instant "scarcities" to continue tempting speculators/investors (who may already have been burned when they bought up/hoarded product that had been grossly overproduced). The card companies started producing serially numbered (and often signed) cards and the comic companies began producing "limited" variant covers for "special" issues. But!!! There are two tremendous differences between today and yesteryear back in say 1960:

1. There was only one card for each player in the 1960 Topps baseball card set with the exception of there being one extra card for the All-Star selections:

(https://stockx.imgix.net/products/collectibles/Ernie-Banks-1960-Topps-All-Star-560.jpg?fit=fill&bg=FFFFFF&w=700&h=500&auto=format,compress&q=90&dpr=2&trim=color&updated_at=1603481985)

So at most there were two cards for star players but the All-Star card wasn't the "real" thing. These days though in any given year there are perhaps dozens of different cards produced by various different companies for all the star players. And now these cards are all competing for the interest/dollars of collectors!

Similarly, in 1960 there was only one Green Lantern 1 published followed by a #2 and a #3 at two months intervals:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/GreenLantern1.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_GreenLantern2(2).jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/GreenLantern3.jpg)

So the present situation with respect to the availability of competing products in the marketplace is very different than that which prevailed sixty years ago. There's now no shortage of "substitute" products. There are many different Sid Crosbie cards from which collectors can choose even in any given year.

2. Basically none of the cards and comics bought these days are tossed out. This is key since it was the destruction factor that created today's shortage of supply when it comes to vintage collectibles. And that's why today's instant "scarce" collector's items haven't done well in the marketplace.

So what's in the cards (so to speak) for the comic market in the future?

Well for one thing the demographics look really bleak. Granted I thought that Golden Age comics would start to soften in price back in the nineties because the kids who had been buying them in the forties were at an age when many started doing some "estate planning", i.e. selling their collections before they died because they were afraid that their spouses and/or kids would just pitch the stuff or sell it for a song as "worthless" junk. Well I was wrong because it seems that almost all hardcore comic collectors back then were baby boomers drawn into collecting by Stan Lee's Marvel comics in the sixties or to a much lesser extent the offerings of Julius Schwartz and Mort Weisinger over at DC.

But these baby boomers are now at an age where they may be doing some estate planning. Not only does this mean that large quantities of older comics could now be supplied to the marketplace, the demand from these older boomers will be lost.

Granted, superhero movies have given a tremendous boost to the prices of certain "key" issues with Black Panther's origin in Fantastic Four 52 being the most notorious example. But!!! What's pushed up the price of these newfangled key issues is demand from speculators which is by nature short-term. These speculators buy only to sell at a profit (they hope). How many new collectors have been drawn into comics by these movies? Looking at history, the tremendously successful Batman TV series in the sixties did next to nothing to bring new long-term Batman collectors into the fold. In fact it seemed to turn off many existing Batman comic fans who didn't like the character being portrayed as a buffoon.Therefore I suspect that the movies turn very few present day kids into collectors.

Moreover with the emergence of dedicated comic shops, comics had largely disappeared from convenience store and drugstore newsstands by about 1985. The net result was that fewer and fewer kids grew up reading and buying comics and now the vast majority of new comics are bought by adult collectors. So who's coming along to replace these adult collectors as they get to estate planning age?

Finally I've also noted that young kids these days are all about nothing but video games and don't seem to have the collecting gene. That's why the words "Free inside!" and "Collect!" seem to have disappeared from cereal boxes, jelly dessert boxes, potato chip bags, etc. So while these kids may love the new superhero flicks, I suspect that few if any are being drawn into hardcore collecting, i.e. trying to complete runs by acquiring back issues.

So the question is who's going to replace ageing boomers in the comic collector marketplace? I can't see many kids evolving into collectors. This bodes very poorly for future comic prices.

Truthfully though I don't care. Why should I care about the "health" of the comic market? I'm not a dealer. I'm not into flipping items in my collection with a view to making a profit.

:-\

Quote from: marsattacks666 on December 10, 2020, 12:56:43 PM
Here a few comicbooks I picked up this week.
(https://d1466nnw0ex81e.cloudfront.net/n_iv/600/861207.jpg)

(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a0/Tales_from_the_Crypt_24.jpg/250px-Tales_from_the_Crypt_24.jpg)

Good books, mars.

Is the EC you bought an original or a reprint from the '90s?

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 10, 2020, 02:07:14 PM
Good books, mars.

Is the EC you bought an original or a reprint from the '90s?

Reprint from the 90s, H.H.

Quote from: Hepcat on December 10, 2020, 01:14:26 PM
So the question is who's going to replace ageing boomers in the comic collector marketplace? I can't see many kids evolving into collectors. This bodes very poorly for future comic prices.

Truthfully though I don't care. Why should I care about the "health" of the comic market? I'm not a dealer. I'm not into flipping items in my collection with a view to making a profit.

The back issue hobby will eventually fizzle out but I'm certain it will be around at least as long as I am. Beyond my lifespan I don't have a horse in that race. On the other hand I think the publication of new comics is likely to expire in a few short years, which doesn't affect me since I don't collect Modern comics.

I'm somewhat interested in the health of the back issue market because I plan to deal in collectibles as supplementary income at some point. I'll be maintaining my collection and only selling duplicates. Collecting is something I plan to enjoy even more after retirement with the extra time available. Hopefully I can make enough extra to keep adding to my collection and finish most of those runs. Also, buying collections is an excellent way to add needed issues to your own at a great price, and selling the books you don't want or already have.

Mainly I just like to discuss the comic book market because I think it's interesting and fun. Since the mid '70s when I first started collecting the values comics were bought and sold for have been a big part of the hobby. My favorite things about the hobby are reading the books, appreciating the art, and learning the history of favorite characters and the history of the hobby in general. The importance of the market is secondary to those aspects for me, but it's still part of the hobby.

Quote from: marsattacks666 on December 10, 2020, 02:22:37 PM
Reprint from the 90s, H.H.

Those EC reprints are great. I wish I had bought all of those when they first came out. I'm still working on finishing the reprint runs. I have a handful of original ECs but I pretty much gave up on being able to finish those original titles...too pricey.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 10, 2020, 02:46:37 PM
Those EC reprints are great. I wish I had bought all of those when they first came out. I'm still working on finishing the reprint runs. I have a handful of original ECs but I pretty much gave up on being able to finish those original titles...too pricey.

Definitely,  pricey.

Honestly.  I am glad these comicbooks were reprinted and offered in the early 90s. The original Tales from the Crypt, Haunt of Fear and Vault of Horror were expensive even in the 80s and 90s.

The focus of most of the early dedicated comic collectors in the fifties was completing runs of pre-code EC comics.

Here's a good TV clip on what comic collecting was like back in 1970:

Toronto Comic Shop (1970) (https://youtu.be/vJMDm1eUoEE)

:)

Very, very good observations with both Horrorhunter and Hepcat here,  with both supply and demand being the factors with collecting and prices.  The only thing I could add here is for Horrorhunter.  I liked what he mentioned about actually dealing with collectibles in the future after retirement, for supplemental income.  I have been an "on and off" actual dealer at Renningers close by here since about 1980,  but I have frequented the market and others in the same area since the mid 70's.  My last effort with a large booth at Renningers was after I retired in 2014.  I always liked the "hands on" approach with being there and actually meeting people that collected items,  but unfortunately quickly found out that the times for dealing like this had vastly changed.  Items that I saw actually sell on line for x amount of dollars were actually almost like a bad joke trying to sell in a place like Renningers or even in some of the many co-ops in the area.  People always praised my booth for actually being the best in the market with all the eye-appeal with it,  but it was really tough going trying to sell anything near current market value,  the times have changed that arena with rock-bottom bargain hunters and the like.   While there is nothing wrong with that mentality because we ALL like a bargain, it just didn't work out.  In my opinion the only people making any money were the owners of the building collecting the weekly rent from all the dealers there.  If I were set up for it I would opt to only sell on line, so many more people to see your items and a world of difference with selling something as long as you're honest and straightforward up front right from the start.

Quote from: skully on December 10, 2020, 07:27:59 PM
If I were set up for it I would opt to only sell on line, so many more people to see your items and a world of difference with selling something as long as you're honest and straightforward up front right from the start.

I plan to sell mostly online as well. Maybe I'll occasionally do a small con within easy driving distance mostly for the buying potential. I sold some collectibles on eBay a few years ago so I know the routine and how to present good listings. I also have good feedback built up.

Quote from: skully on December 10, 2020, 07:27:59 PM
I have been an "on and off" actual dealer at Renningers close by here since about 1980,  but I have frequented the market and others in the same area since the mid 70's.  My last effort with a large booth at Renningers was after I retired in 2014.  I always liked the "hands on" approach with being there and actually meeting people that collected items,  but unfortunately quickly found out that the times for dealing like this had vastly changed.  Items that I saw actually sell on line for x amount of dollars were actually almost like a bad joke trying to sell in a place like Renningers or even in some of the many co-ops in the area.  People always praised my booth for actually being the best in the market with all the eye-appeal with it,  but it was really tough going trying to sell anything near current market value,  the times have changed that arena with rock-bottom bargain hunters and the like.   While there is nothing wrong with that mentality because we ALL like a bargain, it just didn't work out.

I've noticed this change too. It seems that in the last few years in-person trading has been more of a buyer's market while online trading has been more of a seller's market. Even with the shipping cost and eBay fees/taxes collectibles seem to sell for top dollar on eBay and through dealer's websites, and it's tough to sell them for top dollar at cons, toy shows, and flea markets. A lot of buyers either have health issues, or family commitments, or work too many hours, or whatever, to go out to in-person selling venues. So, they will pay a premium to sit at home and shop online for their collectibles.

There aren't many conventions in my neck of the woods so even before I was forced to stay home all the time due to family commitments I shopped for collectibles the only way I could- online. At some point my situation will change and I can get back out there in the world and dig up good deals. I'm looking forward to it.

Horrorhunter,  agreed 100% here.  My problem was I remembered the Renningers Antique market with some of my earlier booth's when the market was really good, and you could actually sell there and make at least some money, I had quite the rude awakening with that last effort though,  I really spent some money with getting some real nice display cases, rug, shelves, lighting and everything else.  I made it as eye-appealing as I possibly could,  that part did pay off for me with bringing in a lot of people but it just turned into a nostalgia moment for most with people saying how they remembered this or that, or just long "gab" sessions with memories.  While I really did enjoy meeting the people, it wasn't paying the rent, or much less anything else.  I stuck it out for a year and a half,  and I'm told of people still asking about me up there.  I wish there were more shows in my area too,  because I always liked the thrill of the hunt atmosphere with collecting.  I really miss the absolutely terrific Atlantic City antique show that was held twice a year,  nothing could compare to the total vastness with actual miles in rows with all the different collectibles from dealers from all over the U.S. and other countries too,  it was a real workout to see the whole thing,  I usually went Saturday and Sunday to see it all.  It was just utterly amazing!!  Also, the great Allentown toy show has really seemed to go downhill also,  nothing like it used to be, along with the Macungie show here near my area.  I still frequent Renningers, along with all the co-ops near me,  but anything serious with a piece I might be looking for is usually now found online with some real stiff competition of late.  I fear these markets will be heading for yet another shut-down in the near future again.

Quote from: Hepcat on December 04, 2020, 03:17:06 PMWhile actively buying whatever DC superhero comics I could find on the stands from mid-1963 until the latter months of 1964, I was also trading for whatever back issues of Justice League of America, Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Atom and Wonder Woman I could find.

I was quite successful in hunting down and trading for back issues of the Justice League of America....

I had very little success in tracking down back issues of any of the above titles other than Justice League of America and The Flash. I managed to trade for only two issues of Green Lantern although one of those was Green Lantern 11 which had been pivotal in drawing me into the DC hero universe early in 1962:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/GreenLantern11.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/26-10-201175128PM.jpg)


I also recall gazing longingly at a house ad for Green Lantern 12 in one of the Justice League comics for which I'd traded but I never succeeded in tracking down a copy as a kid:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/(edited)_FLSH128(1962).jpg)


Here though is a scan of the one from my present day collection:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/GreenLantern12.jpg)


I also succeeded in trading for a copy of The Atom 1:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/02-06-201182045PM.jpg)


I was delighted to obtain that issue since I remembered having admired the house ad for The Atom 1 in the spring of 1962:


(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v328/Osgood39/Time%20Capsule/Apr62Atom1ad.jpg)

8)

Swamp Thing #s 1 & 2 from my collection:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50706913898_4d1285dacf_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50707652011_457e2647d6_b.jpg)

I bought those from Bob Overstreet during a visit to his home in 1976. #1 was $5, and #2 was $3, which were the "Mint" Guide prices back then. Neither are actually in mint of course, but they are nice copies. #1 is in the VF range and #2 is probably around NM. Overstreet used to hit all the newsstands and spinner racks in our area and buy up all the copies of anything he thought he could resell later at a profit. That was great for him, but not so great for kids who found those issues cleaned out when they went to buy them. Anyway, it was an okay visit and I picked up those two much wanted issues plus a Howard The Duck #1 (yep, he bought up all the HTD #1s as well  ::)). But, considering what those books sell for currently I'm certainly glad I bought them back then.

When I first started collecting in 1975 I quickly realized that Bernie Wrightson was/is my favorite artist. I was hunting down anything Wrightson, especially those first 10 issues of Swamp Thing (and HOS 92 which I bought a couple of years later). Some of the most fun I ever had collecting was going to used book stores, flea markets, and yard sales every weekend hunting back issues of Swamp Thing. Once in awhile I'd get lucky and find a Wrightson issue, then I would examine that thing for hours. The Redondo issues were good, but he had the impossible task of filling Wrightson's shoes. Another book I always hunted was the fanzine Badtime Stories by Wrightson. I remembered seeing the ads for Badtime Stories in the old Monster Times issues and I energetically hunted a copy every time I went to a con or anywhere comics might be found. I wouldn't actually see Badtime Stories until the early 2000s when I finally bought a copy from an eBay seller for $20. It's in FN and it's been a part of my collection since. That's still a hard book to find.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 08, 2020, 10:23:22 PM
The comic book market is really two different markets: 1- New Comics, 2- Back Issues

Most collectors buy both new issues and back issues, but a few like myself are only interested in the back issues. There will always be a back issue market with millions of comics in existence. If new comics stopped being published it would force many comic shops to close, but the back issue market would still be there. I believe there will always be demand for back issues due to the popularity of the characters. These characters are ingrained in the psyche of the public, and this is constantly reinforced by the many movies and TV shows which will continue to be made. Also, it's likely some new comic book stories would continue to be published probably in the trade paperback format.

The comic book market will continue whether new issues are being published or not. The new issue market seems unsustainable as it stands, but we'll see if Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Image, and the other publishers finally give up at some point. I'm after the issues I still need from the Bronze Age and earlier (and a few from the '80s/'90s), so it wouldn't dampen my enjoyment of the hobby at all if new books stopped coming out.

Would anyone else care to discuss the future of the new comic book market, or the back issue market?

Great discussion guys. I stopped collecting in my high school yrs. That continued throughout my college yrs and most of my 20s too. Just different place in life, plus didn't really have the cash or space. Once I became more secure in my profession, got married, and bought a house, I started collecting again. At first I went back and only bought back issues from the 70s and 80s, trying to complete the sets I left off many yrs ago. But the more you go into the comic shop, the more you see the newer stuff and eventually I became hooked. So i've been reading contemporary books too for the last ten years or so. I know the prices are insane ($5-$10 a book), but I like the stories, characters, and artwork. Some really cool horror stuff in that time. During their "New 52" run, DC put out Swamp Thing, Justice League Dark, Constantine, Phantom Stranger, Frankenstein, I Vampire, Resurrection Man, Demon Knights, and Dead Man among other horror titles. They don't compare to the classic versions, but I still thought it was fun to read those characters in new stories. Once in a while Marvel will put out mini-series runs for Morbius, Werewolf by Night, Man-Thing, and Legion of Monsters. I collect those too.

But anyhow, yeah it's tough for the shops. I talk to some of these owners. You have a few places that are like institutions. They've been around a long time, embedded in the community, and are destination places. These kind of shops will last. But some of the younger shops tell me they don't make any money selling new books. They make some $ selling trade books, but not the weekly releases. So to survive they're transitioning to selling more collectibles (i hate to tell some of you guys this, but it's the Funko stuff where they make money). They're also transitioning to the card game stuff. I don't really understand what that is or how it works, but the Magic cads and D & D kind of thing.

Either way, I hope some brick and mortar places survive.

I also remember being transfixed by this house ad for Sea Devils 2 that appeared in the issue of The Flash 124 for which I'd traded:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/RCO034_1583699212.JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)


While I never acquired a copy as a kid, I have one now:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Seadevils2.jpg)


In fact I like both the ad and the cover so much that back in about 2003 I had the ad custom printed for myself on the front of a T-shirt with the cover on the back!

8)

Quote from: Hepcat on December 12, 2020, 01:12:08 PM
I also remember being transfixed by this house ad for Sea Devils 2 that appeared in the issue of The Flash 124 for which I'd traded:


(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/RCO034_1583699212.JPG?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)


While I never acquired a copy as a kid, I have one now:


(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/Seadevils2.jpg)


In fact I like both the ad and the cover so much that back in about 2003 I had the ad custom printed for myself on the front of a T-shirt with the cover on the back!

8)

That's cool. I never had a custom T-shirt printed of a favorite comic book cover but I should have.

As a kid I enjoyed a few issues of Sea Devils. I also bought some Tomahawk and Metal Men issues, as well as any comic with a dinosaur on the cover. Ape covers were big too, but the dinos were what drew me the most. As I remember DC was huge with apes. I did buy a few issues of Batman and Wonder Woman back then, but I mostly liked the non-Superhero DCs the best.

DC produced many great gray-tone covers in the '60s. Those gray-tone covers are striking and eye-catching. I'd still go after more of those if I had more to spend these days.

My copies of Swamp Thing #s 3-5:

1st full Patchwork Man in #3:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50706916968_26bc7e66db_b.jpg)

Classic Wrightson werewolf in #4:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50706918678_e6b295cebc_b.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50707741182_e6e48c181e_b.jpg)

For years my early Swamp Thing issues were mid grade or worse (with the exception of #s 1 & 2 bought from Overstreet) and I finally decided to upgrade them in the '90s and early 2000s. Those issues mean a lot to me since they feature the classic Wrightson art. Initially I had copies bought from used book stores and flea markets in my early collecting days. My #8 could still use an upgrade (from FNish) but overall I'm good with them being mostly in the VF range or better.

I think Wrightson did better zombies than anyone else in comics history, even "Ghastly" Graham Ingels (and that's saying something). Wrightson also excelled in illustrating werewolves. Here's the awesome spectacle Wrightson wrought in ST #4. Feast your eyes:

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b2/8a/92/b28a92b6027ce17f880a203cccb41027.jpg)

Finally finished my Power Records Marvel Monsters Book and Record Sets with this Man-Thing eBay auction win.

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/hZ4AAOSwwlNfxVnH/s-l1600.jpg)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/oFUAAOSwo09fxVnK/s-l1600.jpg)

I already had the Dracula, Werewolf, and Frankenstein Monster sets, so this finishes the four. There are some Superhero and Planet Of The Apes sets, but I was mainly after the monsters. eBay sellers have been asking $30-$50 or more for these things the last few months so I just waited for an auction and picked this up for $13 and cheap shipping. It took a couple of years for a chance at a good deal, but being patient pays off sometimes. I'm not a big Buy-It-Now guy when it comes to stuff like this. BIN prices on eBay have gotten very expensive. I usually pass on BINs unless it's something I want that comes up infrequently or it's mistakenly priced too low.

Nice find! Are these original stories or reprints from comics? I have a Spider-Man version which, i think, is from the first Man-Wolf appearance. I've had it for years and never really looked at or listen to it, so I'm not sure about the content. I wish I'd picked up the record versions of the early Marvel stories back when I was collecting the comics that were issued with them. My only copy of JIM 83 comes from those sets.
RF

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 17, 2020, 02:29:26 PM
Finally finished my Power Records Marvel Monsters Book and Record Sets with this Man-Thing eBay auction win.

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/hZ4AAOSwwlNfxVnH/s-l1600.jpg)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/oFUAAOSwo09fxVnK/s-l1600.jpg)

I already had the Dracula, Werewolf, and Frankenstein Monster sets, so this finishes the four. There are some Superhero and Planet Of The Apes sets, but I was mainly after the monsters. eBay sellers have been asking $30-$50 or more for these things the last few months so I just waited for an auction and picked this up for $13 and cheap shipping. It took a couple of years for a chance at a good deal, but being patient pays off sometimes. I'm not a big Buy-It-Now guy when it comes to stuff like this. BIN prices on eBay have gotten very expensive. I usually pass on BINs unless it's something I want that comes up infrequently or it's mistakenly priced too low.

Great score, H.H.
Power Records are awesome. I collect Planet of the Apes.

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 17, 2020, 02:29:26 PM
Finally finished my Power Records Marvel Monsters Book and Record Sets with this Man-Thing eBay auction win.

eBay sellers have been asking $30-$50 or more for these things the last few months so I just waited for an auction and picked this up for $13 and cheap shipping. It took a couple of years for a chance at a good deal, but being patient pays off sometimes.

I bought a bunch of the superhero ones back in 1982-83 marked down to $3-$5 at Sam the Record Man in downtown Toronto. Here are a few photos of my Batman Book and Record Sets including some of the interior pages:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/BatmanSherlockLP.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/BatmanLP2.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/BatmanLPinside.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/BatmanLPInside2.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/BatmanLPInside3.jpg)

Here are a few photographs of my Superman Book and Record Set:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/SupermanLP.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/SupermanLPInside.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/SupermanLPInside2.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/SupermanLPInside4.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/SupermanLPInside3.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Supermanbackcover.jpg)

And here are pictures of my Wonder Woman LPs:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/WonderWomanLP.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/WonderWomanLPbackcover.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/WonderWomanLP2.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/WonderWomanLP3Inside.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/WonderWomanLP3Inside4.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/WonderWomanLP3Inside2.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/WonderWomanLP3Inside3.jpg)

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/WonderWomanLP3.jpg)

All of the above feature Neal Adams artwork.

8)

Quote from: Rex fury on December 17, 2020, 04:04:35 PM
Nice find! Are these original stories or reprints from comics? I have a Spider-Man version which, i think, is from the first Man-Wolf appearance. I've had it for years and never really looked at or listen to it, so I'm not sure about the content. I wish I'd picked up the record versions of the early Marvel stories back when I was collecting the comics that were issued with them. My only copy of JIM 83 comes from those sets.
RF

As far as I know they're reprints, but the pages are altered in some cases to change the story around. The Man-Thing Record Set I posted about is from Man-Thing #5. I haven't compared it with the original but I know some of the others were changed somewhat from the original artwork and dialogue.

Most of those old comic book records, and most old monster record albums, are on You Tube. So, it's easy to listen to them even if you can't play the record.

I'll have a look at YouTube. I'd love to hear the adaptations of the comics and would get a kick out of hearing Famous Monsters Speak again after a lot of years!
RF

Quote from: horrorhunter on December 17, 2020, 02:29:26 PM
Finally finished my Power Records Marvel Monsters Book and Record Sets with this Man-Thing eBay auction win.

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/hZ4AAOSwwlNfxVnH/s-l1600.jpg)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/oFUAAOSwo09fxVnK/s-l1600.jpg)

I already had the Dracula, Werewolf, and Frankenstein Monster sets, so this finishes the four. There are some Superhero and Planet Of The Apes sets, but I was mainly after the monsters. eBay sellers have been asking $30-$50 or more for these things the last few months so I just waited for an auction and picked this up for $13 and cheap shipping. It took a couple of years for a chance at a good deal, but being patient pays off sometimes. I'm not a big Buy-It-Now guy when it comes to stuff like this. BIN prices on eBay have gotten very expensive. I usually pass on BINs unless it's something I want that comes up infrequently or it's mistakenly priced too low.

That's bad ass double H. I have the Man-Thing and Frankenstein sets.

I found this cleaning out my grandparent's basement the other day. I vaguely remember having this as a child. I bet this record has been down there since the late 70s.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50735215006_6647299da1.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2kiieQj)2020-12-18_11-47-25 (https://flic.kr/p/2kiieQj) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50735215206_e5baab979a.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2kiieTL)2020-12-18_11-47-33 (https://flic.kr/p/2kiieTL) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

The Brave And The Bold #31 featuring Cave Carson Adventures Inside Earth is posted at Monster Magazine World: https://monstermagazineworld.blogspot.com/2020/12/the-adventures-of-cave-carson-brave-and_27.html

(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ObOCDu4hbFI/X-S9yUrG2zI/AAAAAAABXdA/AoRsbrnKLAMMZ-mhi5V4KpWyr-l9nzoFwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1759/Brave_and_the_Bold-031-01.jpg)

Every page is posted including ads, etc. Issues 32 and 33 also featuring Cave Carson are posted there as well. Cool glimpse into early Silver Age DC. Cave Carson must have been inspired by Verne's Journey To The Center Of The Earth and some of Burroughs' tales.

Quote from: geezer butler on December 19, 2020, 12:14:15 AM
I found this cleaning out my grandparent's basement the other day. I vaguely remember having this as a child. I bet this record has been down there since the late 70s.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50735215006_6647299da1.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2kiieQj)2020-12-18_11-47-25 (https://flic.kr/p/2kiieQj) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50735215206_e5baab979a.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2kiieTL)2020-12-18_11-47-33 (https://flic.kr/p/2kiieTL) by geezer2014 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/66203961(*at*)N06/), on Flickr

Power Record(s) are a fun listen.

So the snow is  falling and recent surgery is keeping me from my normal routine. What better day than today to work on my disorganized comic collection? I decided to tackle bagging and boarding my run of Spectacular Spider-Man. I'd forgotten how good some of those old issues were. This title had a nice infusion of horror as well as superhero storytelling. Anyone remember when the Vulture, posing as a funeral home director, attempted to cremate Spidey ? Or how about the introduction of Carrion by Frank Miller in issues 27 and 28? I really enjoyed revisiting the covers provided by Miller, Hannigan and Milgrom too.
While I don't really go in for alternative covers, I have to admit a certain fondness for the one on issue 240. It depicts Peter and a very pregnant Mary Jane. A Jack o lantern in the foreground sets the Halloween mood. It's subtle and powerful at the same time!
RF

Here's an eBay auction for Werewolf By Night #32 in lower-mid grade.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Werewolf-By-Night-32-1st-Appearance-of-Moon-Knight-HTF-KEY-Solid-VG/383870956223?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Werewolf-By-Night-32-1st-Appearance-of-Moon-Knight-HTF-KEY-Solid-VG/383870956223?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/bckAAOSwaFBf4jwl/s-l1600.jpg)

The book appears to be in the VG range, and the seller seems to be reputable. From the pictures it appears to be in VG (I don't know about the "+" the seller bumped it to. Sellers are fond of over-grading and they love to add the +, but the over-grading is usually much worse than this- usually by one or two whole grades. Maybe it really is VG+ (4.5), it's hard to split hairs on grading, especially going by pictures.)

As of this posting the high bid stands at $550.00 with 1 day and 5 hours to go, and it has 65 bids and 96 watchers.

I'm posting this as a point of conversation about the way prices have skyrocketed concerning back issues in general, and perceived key issues in particular. I'm curious as to what this lower-mid grade copy will bring at auction, and I thought to post it as sort of an example of what's happening in the marketplace regarding back issue prices. WBN #32 has been a sought after book for decades, but only recently have the selling prices for it hit such high levels. Now high grade copies sell for $2K-$3K or more, and even nicer mid-grade copies bring over a grand. Prices fluctuate on Bronze Age books more-so than older books, but when prices get this high and a book gets this desirable to the collecting community then it may be a long time before prices drop. As long as the economy stays fairly stable and civilization continues to persevere then these prices that seem ridiculously high compared to the past look to be a fixture of comic book collecting. Thankfully, so many comics were printed over the years the average collector can still find affordable books to enjoy. Some issues, though, are getting priced out of the average collector's budget.

I've always been a run collector as opposed to limiting myself to what other people chase. I grew up reading Bronze Age Horror comics from all companies and it's my collecting focus (along with some Silver Age). I collect a wide variety of comic book related things, but the Horror books from the '70s are my favorites (along with the monster magazines). Anyway, I completed my runs of most of those books back before all of these prices got out of control. In the '80s and '90s I completed titles like Tomb Of Dracula, Werewolf By Night, Ghost Rider, etc., back when books like WBN #32 and TOD #10 were still in dealers long boxes and they were close to the same prices as the issues around them- like a couple of bucks each (in the early '80s) in most cases. If I didn't already have those issues I would just do without them these days and settle for reprints. I'm glad to have them and I won't be selling my copies since they have personal value to me beyond the money, but if I didn't have them I would have to pass.

Any other opinions on these crazy (to some of us) prices in the current marketplace?

Quote from: Rex fury on December 07, 2020, 03:11:13 PM

Quote from: Hepcat on December 05, 2020, 04:44:45 PMIncidentally, I think Irving Novick's artwork on the above covers is simply lousy. But Novick was doing some good artwork for Batman by mid-1968 and I really liked his artwork in The Flash when he took over as the regular artist with issue #200 in 1970.

Hmm, I have to respectfully disagree with you about those Captain Storm covers. With the exception of issue 9, I think Novick was producing artwork on par with many of the other DC staff artists at the time. Incidentally, a panel he drew for All American Men of War 89 (1962) was the basis for Roy Lichenstein's  painting "Whaam" in 1963. Another example of how  a comic draftsmen 's work was "borrowed " by Pop Artists in that time period.

Novick had a long career in comics mostly jumping between bad advertising gigs and the comics publishers.  His early superhero work ( Pep, etc.) doesn't resemble his later war work, just as his later superhero work is different from that of the  DC war comics of the early 60's. I'm glad people appreciate an artist even as their styles change with age, assignments and time periods.

Here incidentally are a few panels of Irv Novick's Flash artwork that I really like:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Flash_2(1).jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/.highres/flash222_01_zps1e059a02.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/.highres/Flash118_zps3c801fab.jpg)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Flash(1).jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/.highres/Flash5_zps56ec4149.jpg)

:)

Quote from: Hepcat on January 06, 2021, 05:25:47 PM
Here incidentally are a few panels of Irv Novick's Flash artwork that I really like:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/General%20Album%203/.highres/flash222_01_zps1e059a02.jpg)

Dick Giordano did great work inking Neal Adams for DC back in the day. It looks like he added some polish to the page above.

I wonder if he also improved the first page you posted, though uncredited. Wasn't Giordano effectively "Art Director" at DC for a time? I'm not sure about his exact job title, but I seem to recall reading that he was in charge of the artists back then.

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 06, 2021, 04:32:40 PM
Here's an eBay auction for Werewolf By Night #32 in lower-mid grade.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Werewolf-By-Night-32-1st-Appearance-of-Moon-Knight-HTF-KEY-Solid-VG/383870956223?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Werewolf-By-Night-32-1st-Appearance-of-Moon-Knight-HTF-KEY-Solid-VG/383870956223?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/bckAAOSwaFBf4jwl/s-l1600.jpg)

The book appears to be in the VG range, and the seller seems to be reputable. From the pictures it appears to be in VG (I don't know about the "+" the seller bumped it to. Sellers are fond of over-grading and they love to add the +, but the over-grading is usually much worse than this- usually by one or two whole grades. Maybe it really is VG+ (4.5), it's hard to split hairs on grading, especially going by pictures.)

As of this posting the high bid stands at $550.00 with 1 day and 5 hours to go, and it has 65 bids and 96 watchers.

I'm posting this as a point of conversation about the way prices have skyrocketed concerning back issues in general, and perceived key issues in particular. I'm curious as to what this lower-mid grade copy will bring at auction, and I thought to post it as sort of an example of what's happening in the marketplace regarding back issue prices. WBN #32 has been a sought after book for decades, but only recently have the selling prices for it hit such high levels. Now high grade copies sell for $2K-$3K or more, and even nicer mid-grade copies bring over a grand. Prices fluctuate on Bronze Age books more-so than older books, but when prices get this high and a book gets this desirable to the collecting community then it may be a long time before prices drop. As long as the economy stays fairly stable and civilization continues to persevere then these prices that seem ridiculously high compared to the past look to be a fixture of comic book collecting. Thankfully, so many comics were printed over the years the average collector can still find affordable books to enjoy. Some issues, though, are getting priced out of the average collector's budget.

I've always been a run collector as opposed to limiting myself to what other people chase. I grew up reading Bronze Age Horror comics from all companies and it's my collecting focus (along with some Silver Age). I collect a wide variety of comic book related things, but the Horror books from the '70s are my favorites (along with the monster magazines). Anyway, I completed my runs of most of those books back before all of these prices got out of control. In the '80s and '90s I completed titles like Tomb Of Dracula, Werewolf By Night, Ghost Rider, etc., back when books like WBN #32 and TOD #10 were still in dealers long boxes and they were close to the same prices as the issues around them- like a couple of bucks each (in the early '80s) in most cases. If I didn't already have those issues I would just do without them these days and settle for reprints. I'm glad to have them and I won't be selling my copies since they have personal value to me beyond the money, but if I didn't have them I would have to pass.

Any other opinions on these crazy (to some of us) prices in the current marketplace?

Thanks for posting this Double H. Yeah, that's still out of my price range. To be honest, I actually can make such a purchase, I just don't comfortable. We're in a pretty good financial situation, not wealthy by any means, but we have good jobs, no kids, and are responsible with our finances. But I feel like if I purchased every $500 comic book I wanted, we wouldn't be in good financial situation much longer. So I usually draw line at $200-$300.

I'm not gonna lie, it bothers me not having that book in my collection. Maybe one day I'll stumble across a more affordable version. And other times you just get lucky---when my wife's uncle died  for example (that's the unfortunate part of this story, he was great guy actually) her aunt gave me his collection. Included in there was an Incredible Hulk 181 in excellent condition. So sometimes you do stumble into these kinds of high end issues.

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 06, 2021, 04:32:40 PM
Here's an eBay auction for Werewolf By Night #32 in lower-mid grade.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Werewolf-By-Night-32-1st-Appearance-of-Moon-Knight-HTF-KEY-Solid-VG/383870956223?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Werewolf-By-Night-32-1st-Appearance-of-Moon-Knight-HTF-KEY-Solid-VG/383870956223?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/bckAAOSwaFBf4jwl/s-l1600.jpg)

The book appears to be in the VG range, and the seller seems to be reputable. From the pictures it appears to be in VG (I don't know about the "+" the seller bumped it to. Sellers are fond of over-grading and they love to add the +, but the over-grading is usually much worse than this- usually by one or two whole grades. Maybe it really is VG+ (4.5), it's hard to split hairs on grading, especially going by pictures.)

As of this posting the high bid stands at $550.00 with 1 day and 5 hours to go, and it has 65 bids and 96 watchers.

The WBN #32 posted above ended at $716.65 with 73 bids. This copy was a real fight to claim because it was low enough in grade to be affordable. FN copies seem to sell in the $1200+ range these days, so a VG copy at this price is a much more affordable alternative for many collectors. I would just tap out on this book if I didn't have one. Even POOR copies ($300+) sell for more than I feel comfortable paying for a comic these days. Also, I don't understand giving hundreds of dollars for an incomplete comic book, or one that looks so wretched you're ashamed to display it. At that point it's reprint time as far as I'm concerned.

Here's a Werewolf By Night #33 (VG range, 2nd app. Moon Knight) that auctioned at the same time from the same seller:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Werewolf-By-Night-33-2nd-Appearance-of-Moon-Knight-Sharp-VG-Condition-/203226635336?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Werewolf-By-Night-33-2nd-Appearance-of-Moon-Knight-Sharp-VG-Condition-/203226635336?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/MigAAOSwbV9f4jzj/s-l1600.jpg)

It ended at 129.50 with 27 bids. I guess demand is trickling down to the 2nd appearance since Moon Knight's 1st appearance in #32 is getting out of reach. These prices still amaze me since for decades WBN #32 was casually affordable by anyone. It was always a cool book, and I've been a Moon  Knight fan from the beginning, but selling prices like this are still a little hard to get used to for me. Some of the market values for comics these days is like slipping into a parallel universe where a few things are shockingly different from the normal world.

Even Werewolf By Night #37 is getting expensive, and that's not even a real Moon Knight appearance in the context of that story. The "Moon Knight" in #37 is a magical creation by Belaric Marcosa.

This copy of Giant-Size X-Men #1 (1st app. New X-Men) sold at eBay auction for $9,100 with 25 bids.

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/zycAAOSw-Mtf64F7/s-l1600.jpg)

The X-Men characters, and mutants in general, are planned to show up in the MCU so demand has been driving prices up to new highs of late. This book has been desirable practically since it came out in 1975. The X-Men got very popular in the late '70s when the series resumed with #94 and stayed popular well into the '90s and beyond. For many years the X-Men were among Marvel's most popular characters, and they've been heating up again due to the MCU rumblings. Giant-Size X-Men #1 features the 1st appearance of main characters Storm, Colossus, and Nightcrawler. It's been a major key issue since the '70s, and is considered a grail by many collectors.

My own experiences with Giant-Size X-Men #1 started with a spinner rack in a local drug store in 1975 where I bought a copy OTR. I could tell the issue was special and I enjoyed reading it that afternoon. That was just before I started buying duplicates OTR for later resale (isn't that usually the case with mega books  ::)). Anyway, that original copy ended up being sold or traded a little later and I picked up a really nice copy in a trade around 1980. I still have that copy in my collection. It isn't an ultra high grade copy like the NM+ (9.6) posted above, but it is high grade, probably around VF/NM (9.0). I'm glad to have it, and it stays in my collection regardless of how valuable it gets, but if I didn't already have it there's no way I would attempt to buy a copy of this book. It's way out of my price range now. Fortunately, I still have all of my X-Men issues from #94 up and most of the Neal Adams issues (#56 through the mid 60s). Issues 94-101 are tough to afford these days too, and they just keep getting more expensive.

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 06, 2021, 10:51:22 PMWasn't Giordano effectively "Art Director" at DC for a time? I'm not sure about his exact job title, but I seem to recall reading that he was in charge of the artists back then.

Hmmmm. I dunno. I see only that Dick Giordano was hired by DC in April 1968 and made the editor of Aquaman, Teen Titans and Young Love. While he continued to do artwork for DC, he left the company's employ in 1971 to work with Neal Adams at Continuity Associates. But DC rehired Giordano in 1980 to be the editor of the Batman titles. He was then made DC's managing editor in 1981 and served as vice president and executive editor between 1983 and 1993.

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 06, 2021, 10:51:22 PMDick Giordano did great work inking Neal Adams for DC back in the day.

I agree!

Quote from: WikipediaComics historian Les Daniels observed that "The influential Adams style moved comics closer to illustration than cartooning, and he brought a menacing mood to Batman's adventures that was augmented by Dick Giordano's dark, brooding inks."

But his inks weren't always "dark and menacing":



Giordano's art had a very easy on the eye style which made his artwork very suitable for promotional material:













8)

Giordano worked for Charlton from 1952 until he joined DC in 1968. That's a pretty long stint.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Giordano (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Giordano)

"Beginning as a freelance artist at Charlton Comics in 1952, Giordano contributed artwork to dozens of the company's comics, including such Western titles as Annie Oakley, Billy the Kid, and Wyatt Earp, the war comic Fightin' Army, and scores of covers.[4][5]

Giordano's artwork from Charlton's Strange Suspense Stories was used as inspiration for artist Roy Lichtenstein's 1965/1966 Brushstroke series, including Brushstroke, Big Painting No. 6, Little Big Painting and Yellow and Green Brushstrokes.[6][7][8]

By the mid-1960s a Charlton veteran, Giordano rose to executive editor, succeeding Pat Masulli, by 1965.[9] As an editor, he made his first mark in the industry, overseeing Charlton's revamping of its few existing superheroes and having his artists and writers create new such characters for what he called the company's "Action Hero" line. Many of these artists included new talent Giordano brought on board, including Jim Aparo, Dennis O'Neil, and Steve Skeates.[9][10]"

I enjoyed some of the Charlton "Action Hero" books as a kid in the '60s. I bought a few issues of Peter Cannon...Thunderbolt and Judo Master off-the-rack.

Net pics of a couple of issues I had as a kid, and reclaimed copies of a few years ago:
(https://comicbookrealm.com/cover-scan/15b43728d22606d6870c0bce0d13f255/l/charlton-comics-judomaster-issue-94.jpg)

(http://comicbookrealm.com/cover-scan/f839f8e855486b52f72d40cbbd80b5fd/l/charlton-comics-thunderbolt-issue-54.jpg)

Charlton ended up contributing a large volume of great work for comics fans over the years. The main reason for this is because they left the creators alone to do their own work without the strict overseeing of the Big Two. The pay was much less than Marvel or DC offered but the freedom more than made up for that for guys like Steve Ditko. What we got in many cases was more personalized, almost fanzine-like, work by creative artists who could stretch their imaginations and do their own things. Charlton was also a great place for new artists to hone their craft. Guys like John Byrne, Mike Zeck, and Joe Staton, did good early work for Charlton.

I'm a big Charlton fan. I focus on their Horror titles and early Monster stuff like Gorgo and Konga, but I appreciate and collect all Charlton comics. Here's my favorite Charlton book- the Fantastic Giants 1-shot (#24) which was published in 1966 after Gorgo and Konga ran their course with issues 23 of both titles. I bought a copy OTR at the age of 7 and I currently have a FN copy purchased a few years ago. This is one of my favorite comics of all.

Here's a net pic (with an unsightly reading crease):
(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_KypEs8uC3b4/TS9iRhDRKzI/AAAAAAAABG0/u17EAeqxV1o/s1600/Fantastic-Giants-24-01.jpg)

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 09, 2021, 02:55:19 PMI'm a big Charlton fan. I focus on their Horror titles and early Monster stuff like Gorgo and Konga, but I appreciate and collect all Charlton comics.

So do I! I can't remember whether the first Charlton comic that caught my attention featured Gorgo or Captain Atom. Charlton had introduced Captain Atom very early in the Silver Age in Space Adventures 33 cover dated March 1960. He went on to appear in Space Adventures #33-40 plus #42 cover dated October 1961. These early appearances of Captain Atom are brutally difficult to find in nice condition these days. I have only these two in my present day collection:

38

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/SpaceAdventures38.jpg)

39

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/SpaceAdventures39.jpg)

I wish I had several more. Captain Atom and Gorgo remain my two favourite Charlton heroes to this very day. Blue Beetle would be third:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/.highres/03-06-201185622PM.jpg)

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 09, 2021, 02:55:19 PMHere's my favorite Charlton book- the Fantastic Giants 1-shot (#24) which was published in 1966 after Gorgo and Konga ran their course with issues 23 of both titles. I bought a copy OTR at the age of 7 and I currently have a FN copy purchased a few years ago. This is one of my favorite comics of all.

Here's a scan of my actual copy:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/FantasticGiants.jpg)

:)

I too bought this issue off the rack in 1966, I read Gorgo and Konga all the time.

Quote from: Hepcat on January 09, 2021, 04:47:03 PM
Here's a scan of my actual copy:

(http://i1101.photobucket.com/albums/g434/Balticprince/Comics/FantasticGiants.jpg)

:)

Man, that's a great copy!

My OTR copy from 1966 was read to death, but it held up pretty well for a long time. Until I was around 10 or so I was pretty rough on my comics and monster mags but I sure enjoyed them. Many ended up being coverless since I finally wore the covers right off. I lament not saving all the junk I as a kid and keeping it in excellent condition, but it's probably for the best that my toys and books were properly enjoyed as a kid should. I replaced most of it later as a collector anyway.

I have full runs of Gorgo and Konga now, including the related titles like Konga's Revenge. They're mostly in mid grade, but I'm happy to own them. I remember for years before eBay I hunted Gorgo and Konga issues everywhere I went that might have comics, and the few I found were always in very low grade. I upgraded those "beaters" later when I finished my runs. I probably won't try to upgrade to high grade copies of those since they're beastly difficult to find in high grade and would be hard to afford when they were finally located.

Quick question here for anybody.  Speaking here about comics and comic art,  there are 4 pieces on e-bay,  they've been there for a while.  Semi-big ticket items cost wise,  they are recreations of cover art by Matt Fox,  who did astounding work for Weird Tales cover art.  Early pieces like this are quite impossible to find, and if they were found,  you would need some serious financial funds.  But here's the catch,  these 4 pieces were done by a famous artist, and one that I like a lot,  Ken Kelly.  What are your thoughts with recreations of famous artists being recreated by a famous artist??  A lot of recreation covers bring big bucks in any Heritage auction now.

Quote from: skully on January 09, 2021, 10:16:57 PM
Quick question here for anybody.  Speaking here about comics and comic art,  there are 4 pieces on e-bay,  they've been there for a while.  Semi-big ticket items cost wise,  they are recreations of cover art by Matt Fox,  who did astounding work for Weird Tales cover art.  Early pieces like this are quite impossible to find, and if they were found,  you would need some serious financial funds.  But here's the catch,  these 4 pieces were done by a famous artist, and one that I like a lot,  Ken Kelly.  What are your thoughts with recreations of famous artists being recreated by a famous artist??  A lot of recreation covers bring big bucks in any Heritage auction now.

I would purchase recreations by an artist I like if the price was acceptable. Collectors routinely commission artists to do recreations of favorite covers. It's pretty common in the hobby these days. Ken Kelly is one of my favorites as well, and I would definitely buy his art if I could afford it. The guy is legendary for his Warren covers, and he's doing great covers now for Warrant Publishing. I have a few Warren cover posters hanging above my monster mag tables and two of them are of classic covers by Ken Kelly.

Hi Horrorhunter.  Here's an item # for one of the pieces, 124086311525.  If you check the sellers other items for sale, you can see the other 3 that Ken Kelly did.  They were done as a one time only.  The seller also has a few pieces recreated by Ken Kelly for some great Frazetta covers, but those are really expensive.  Also, any thoughts on pieces done by Hoffman?  Some of his pieces look really cool, and he has a Frazetta-like style to his pieces.  Also, price-wise, a bit more affordable, but some of his pieces are getting expensive.

Quote from: skully on January 10, 2021, 04:16:25 PM
Also, any thoughts on pieces done by Hoffman?  Some of his pieces look really cool, and he has a Frazetta-like style to his pieces.  Also, price-wise, a bit more affordable, but some of his pieces are getting expensive.

For recreations Hoffman is fine.

I have mixed feelings about Hoffman's work. In general I enjoy it. I like his new monster mag Eyrie, and I have a couple of his sketchbooks called Sorceress which are fun to look through, and here comes the but...his work is too derivative of Frazetta's. Wrightson and many others were influenced by Frazetta and it shows in their work (especially early Wrightson), but they also have their own style which shines through. As great as Frank Frazetta was, and his work is, there will never be another one like him. To ape his style so completely and still fall well short (as anyone would) leaves a bitter taste. It's like tribute bands. Some are very good, but they aren't and never will be the Beatles, just a bunch of guys who sound like them...kinda.

I picked up a few issues of Werewolf by Night when I was a kid in the 1970s based on the cover art alone. That's usually how I chose my comics. Looking at the link below which lists the comics that came out the same month as the Werewolf By Night #32 I can almost guarantee I didn't buy that comic that month. My funds were certainly limited but there was much cooler cover art on so many of the other titles out that month. Even the reprint titles would have appealed to me more as I was a new comic collector at that time and hadn't read any of the older stories. I'm not a fan of that Moon Knight cover and really never became a fan of Moon Knight at all. There were some real boss Werewolf By Night covers in the early years. If I had picked up that particular issue it would have been worn and torn and sold with the other 150 1970s comics I sold for about $100 on ebay two years ago. They were real low grade and some were mising the Marvel Stamps...lol

https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Category:1975,_August

The House of Mystery - DC HORROR Comics HISTORY micro-documentry (Pt.1)


https://youtu.be/ZYpnHEciMXE

Good article featuring DC Comics Horror Titles of the '70s:

https://mercurie.blogspot.com/2008/10/dc-comics-horror-titles-of-seventies.html

Good article featuring Marvel Bronze Age Horror Comics:

http://www.wymann.info/comics/007-SuperheroesFromTheCrypt.html (http://www.wymann.info/comics/007-SuperheroesFromTheCrypt.html)

I bought a reprint of Eerie Comics #1 (1947, Avon Periodicals), which was the first stand-alone Horror comic book, and is credited with starting the Horror comics genre.

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/QmYAAOSwBGJfz6fV/s-l1600.jpg)

I have a few pre-code Horror comics, but I never could afford to pursue that area of comic collecting to any great extent due to the prices. But, I decided to grab a nice reprint of the first Horror comic due to it's significance. The reprint is printed on heavy paper with glossy covers and is square-bound like a trade paperback, and 8 1/2" x 11". The entire 52 page comic (incl. covers) is reprinted, so you get all of the ads and the text story. It's a nice book and is sturdy enough to be stored on a bookshelf. It was $7 + shipping, and was sent bagged and boarded in a large envelope.

Here's the one copy of the original currently for sale on eBay:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Eerie-Comics-1-CGC-2-0-Avon-1947-1st-Horror-Comic-Key-Golden-K10-cm-clean/293284236059?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Eerie-Comics-1-CGC-2-0-Avon-1947-1st-Horror-Comic-Key-Golden-K10-cm-clean/293284236059?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/JCAAAOSwictdqWSy/s-l1600.jpg)

I prefer originals like most collectors, but a comic of this stature is out of my price range. When a low grade issue is over $4K it's time to settle for a reprint as far as I'm concerned. Much respect to anyone who has a copy of the original in their collection. For collectors like me who focus on Horror in their comic/magazine collections it doesn't get any more important than the comic that started it all.

For whatever reason I'm not compelled to the pre-code horror and crime genre that's so popular with many collectors.  Aesthetically they don't appeal to me though I'm drawn to certain specific artists such as Jack Davis and Lee Elias. I'm glad to leave their prices to others.

:-\

Quote from: Hepcat on January 16, 2021, 11:58:04 AM
For whatever reason I'm not compelled to the pre-code horror and crime genre that's so popular with many collectors.  Aesthetically they don't appeal to me though I'm drawn to certain specific artists such as Jack Davis and Lee Elias. I'm glad to leave their prices to others.

:-\

I focus on the Silver and Bronze Age books I grew up with. I do appreciate the Pre-code Horror books though. If I could afford them I would have more, especially work by Jack Davis, Graham Ingels, and many of the other great EC artists.

Some Bronze Age books have risen in price so rapidly that Horror comics from the '50s seem to be bargains by comparison. One can purchase several average EC issues for the price of one copy of Werewolf By Night #32 or House Of Secrets #92 in similar grade. In the '70s that was the reverse when you could find HOS #92 for cheap and WBN #32 in the quarter bin, and the average EC issue might cost $10-$20 or more.

It still amazes me how the market has changed on some of these books. I believe these price separations will continue to become more pronounced as the older non-key books slowly fall out of favor and the newer books become more popular. But, with more and more books becoming so-called "keys" due to upcoming movie/TV show character appearances it's hard to tell what will remain just a "run filler", or average non-key issue. I collect whole title runs so all of this key chasing has no effect on me...I buy them all.

Now that WandaVision dropped, people are buying Fantastic Four 94. Yet another "Key" book is born. As long as Marvel keeps pulling these characters into shows and movies there will be high demand for "Key" books. If Mephisto is the big bad in this season as some speculate, there will be yet another book pushed out of reach of casual readers.

Quote from: John Pertwee on January 17, 2021, 03:16:32 PM
If Mephisto is the big bad in this season as some speculate, there will be yet another book pushed out of reach of casual readers.

Silver Surfer #3 is already expensive, and, as you say, if Mephisto plays a big role in the MCU (including TV shows) then the cost will push it out of reach for many collectors.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50605732943_4ebfef6f00_b.jpg)

I finished my Surfer run many years ago when they were much more affordable. I remember in the late '70s we used to stop at a comic book store in Brunswick Ga. on the way back from Florida vacations and they had a complete run of Silver Surfer in high grade for $100. You could buy a nice FF #1 or Amazing Fantasy #15 for that back then, so the Silver Surfer issues weren't really cheap compared to other books even just a few years after they came out. SS #s 1, 3, & 4, were always relatively expensive as back issues. They're pricey now, and poised to become hard to afford for most when the Surfer shows up in the MCU. As much as I love some of these books I'll probably just tap out on the really expensive ones I don't already have. I never dreamed back issue prices would get this high this quick.  :o

Thought I'd check eBay for the helluvit, and asking prices for Silver Surfer #3 are already about twice what I thought they were:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Silver-Surfer-3-CGC-7-0-White-Pages-1968-Marvel-First-Mephisto/333844148452?hash=item4dbaa970e4:g:TPwAAOSwaFRf756h (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Silver-Surfer-3-CGC-7-0-White-Pages-1968-Marvel-First-Mephisto/333844148452?hash=item4dbaa970e4:g:TPwAAOSwaFRf756h)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/TPwAAOSwaFRf756h/s-l1600.jpg)

FN/VF (7.0), over a grand, 33 Watchers. And this seems to be fairly representative of most listings in higher mid grade. Wowzers.

Quote from: John Pertwee on January 17, 2021, 03:16:32 PMNow that WandaVision dropped, people are buying Fantastic Four 94. Yet another "Key" book is born. As long as Marvel keeps pulling these characters into shows and movies there will be high demand for "Key" books. If Mephisto is the big bad in this season as some speculate, there will be yet another book pushed out of reach of casual readers.

Did more collectors suddenly want these comics for their collection? I suspect that it was simply the case that speculators started to snap these comics up thus pushing their prices higher. But to whom are the speculators now going to sell? Ultimately the "value" of comics depends upon collectors' interest and if the collectors weren't interested previously at lower prices, why would they be interested now at more inflated prices?

The bubble will burst. I'll shed no tears for those left holding the bag.

:-\

Quote from: Hepcat on January 17, 2021, 11:45:59 PM
Did more collectors suddenly want these comics for their collection? I suspect that it was simply the case that speculators started to snap these comics up thus pushing their prices higher. But to whom are the speculators now going to sell? Ultimately the "value" of comics depends upon collectors' interest and if the collectors weren't interested previously at lower prices, why would they be interested now at more inflated prices?

The bubble will burst. I'll shed no tears for those left holding the bag.

:-\

The comic book community group-mind has decided the current pricing environment is real, so that makes it real. The market crash in the '90s was due to speculators over-buying overprinted books which became virtually worthless when someone decided to sell, everyone already had them...too many copies of them. That soured attitude spilled over to the back issue market and values dropped and stayed down for years. What's happening now is different from that. The popularity of certain characters is driving demand and values. It's the market at work. This "bubble" will probably last for a few years at least, and will affect values for the foreseeable future. I agree that collectors who need movies and TV show appearances to awaken their appreciation for long-time characters are fickle and don't seem to deserve the same respect that long-time collectors who grew up reading the books should be afforded, but that doesn't alter the fact that these collectors are spending the money and driving the market. Bragging rights for high demand books are more prevalent than ever with You Tube and other social media being where most people spend their lives now. Comic book collecting has changed much over the years. The old rules don't apply as much as they used to.

It wouldn't break my heart if the back issue market crashed so that I could finally buy the books I regret not buying over the years. This won't happen with the amount of money changing hands for comics these days. Looks like this is the new normal.

My friend needed money and sold his Tomb of Dracula 10 for $900 a few months ago. I admit, I am tempted to sell mine when the next movie drops. It is my favorite series and I hate to break up the set but I paid $5 for it in the 90s. I think it is time to cash in on #1 and 10.

Quote from: John Pertwee on January 18, 2021, 08:39:48 PM
My friend needed money and sold his Tomb of Dracula 10 for $900 a few months ago. I admit, I am tempted to sell mine when the next movie drops. It is my favorite series and I hate to break up the set but I paid $5 for it in the 90s. I think it is time to cash in on #1 and 10.

Why is issue 10 so pricey? Key issue?

Yes. First Appearance of Blade. It sells for more than Number 1 does now.

Quote from: John Pertwee on January 19, 2021, 06:56:41 AM
Yes. First Appearance of Blade. It sells for more than Number 1 does now.

Here's a mid grade copy (5.5) which sold recently for $618 with 23 bids. VF (8.0) copies are selling for around $1500.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Tomb-of-Dracula-10-CGC-5-5-WHITE-PAGES-1st-Appearance-Of-BLADE-1973-/114585396670?epid=85444589&hash=item1aadd265be%3Ag%3Ao4QAAOSwfw5f32Bf&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Tomb-of-Dracula-10-CGC-5-5-WHITE-PAGES-1st-Appearance-Of-BLADE-1973-/114585396670?epid=85444589&hash=item1aadd265be%3Ag%3Ao4QAAOSwfw5f32Bf&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/o4QAAOSwfw5f32Bf/s-l1600.jpg)

Cashing in is an option these days. I'll keep my run intact because I know if I sell key issues it would be difficult to get them back.

The MCU started with Iron Man (2008), and for the last decade prices have been steadily on the rise for key issues in particular, and related non-keys in general. The indirect effects of these never before seen prices is that all comic back issues have risen in price on the average over the last few years. Some genres are still in low demand, like Funny Animals, and prices are still relatively low on those. But, Super Hero, Horror, War, even Romance, have gotten steadily more expensive. And, in some cases prices have gotten so high as to be unrecognizable compared to a decade ago. There are always price fluctuations depending on the timing of trailers, movies, and such. But, when a comic increases in price four times and then later drops to half that it's still twice as expensive as it was when the increases started...then months or years later it goes through the same pricing cycle and ends up several times more expensive than before. If this keeps up more and more books will be out of reach of average collectors. The new normal.

With increasing rumblings of Ghost Rider showing up in the MCU, prices for Marvel Spotlight #5 are very high. Here's an eBay listing for a CGC (8.0) that sold recently for $1,930 with 28 bids.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/MARVEL-SPOTLIGHT-5-CGC-8-0-1st-Appearance-of-GHOST-RIDER-Johnny-Blaze-cover-/164640868409?hash=item26555c4839%3Ag%3AkckAAOSwRFlf%7EiTB&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/MARVEL-SPOTLIGHT-5-CGC-8-0-1st-Appearance-of-GHOST-RIDER-Johnny-Blaze-cover-/164640868409?hash=item26555c4839%3Ag%3AkckAAOSwRFlf%7EiTB&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/kckAAOSwRFlf~iTB/s-l1600.jpg)

When the Marvel supernatural characters show up later in the MCU many of these books will be unattainable for most collectors. It seems strange that so many collectors are now interested in books at much higher prices than they could be bought for before just because so many other collectors want a copy, but that seems to be one of the things driving the crazy prices...the dreaded FOMO (fear of missing out). There's a lot of competition on You Tube now with so many collectors showing off big books. Another thing driving the crazy prices is the crazy prices, more collectors think if they don't get a copy ASAP they won't be able to afford one later. Ironically, that attitude is one of the factors making them so hard to afford in the first place. That's the extreme state of the market now for really popular books. Many long time collectors are rewarded for having bought the books years ago for a fraction of what they cost now. Some of us bought them to complete title runs because we like the characters and enjoy reading the books. What a concept.

BTW, the Marvel Spotlight #5 posted above has to be one of the crappiest looking slabbed 8.0s I've seen. It looks like about a FN (6.0) by strict Overstreet grading. I know CGC has gotten more and more lax in their grading standards the last few years, but that looks like a PGX debacle. When I see that level of inaccurate grading it makes me happy I don't patronize 3rd party grading companies.

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 20, 2021, 08:44:56 PMIt seems strange that so many collectors are now interested in books at much higher prices than they could be bought for before just because so many other collectors want a copy, but that seems to be one of the things driving the crazy prices...the dreaded FOMO (fear of missing out).

Yes, that would be strange indeed. But I really don't think any/many more collectors are interested in adding said comic to their collections. The surge in demand is from investors/speculators/flippers all hoping to sell it to later buyers at higher prices. But without an increased number of collectors, where will these later buyers be found? 

:-\

Quote from: Hepcat on January 20, 2021, 10:26:21 PM
Yes, that would be strange indeed. But I really don't think any/many more collectors are interested in adding said comic to their collections. The surge in demand is from investors/speculators/flippers all hoping to sell it to later buyers at higher prices. But without an increased number of collectors, where will these later buyers be found? 

:-\

The lines between investors, speculators, flippers, dealers, and collectors, have become blurred over the years. Most members of the comic book collecting community that post videos on You Tube also speculate and flip, in addition to dealing and collecting. Whatever they're labelled as these days they're driving the market and the crazy prices. This has been going on for the last several years and it looks like at this point it's here to stay for awhile.

Also, over the last few years there has been a large increase in collectors (or flippers, speculators, ...whatever, anyway it's the people buying the books). This increase of interest in back issues is largely due to the popularity of movies and TV shows. The comic book market has changed in the last decade. I wish I had bought some of the books I want before these price increases became the new normal. I've had to tap out on some of these issues because they've exceeded my comfortable budget for buying collectibles. I'm just glad I already had most of the books I want. The thing to do now, for me anyway, is not give in to the temptation to cash in and thus not be able to replace the book(s) later.

Evidently, in this day of slabbing and crazy prices it's become a thing to slab single pages for resale.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Fantastic-Four-49-CGC-PG-1st-app-Galactus-magnet/254836656280?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Fantastic-Four-49-CGC-PG-1st-app-Galactus-magnet/254836656280?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/Tk8AAOSwGJJf3g-c/s-l1600.jpg)

And, if you spring for over hundred bucks (including shipping and tax) for the single page of the first appearance of Galactus they generously throw in a free fridge magnet. What's next, slabbing and offering for sale a panel or piece of a panel? I know Galactus is a big deal, and has been for decades... but a page?

I know parts of expensive books have legit value such as coverless books, covers, centerfolds, and even Marvel Value Stamps, but the goal there is to marry the parts and assemble the entire book. Who wants to show off a slabbed page? Maybe the page of the first appearance of a mega character like Superman, Batman, or Spider-Man...nah, I'd still pass unless it was really cheap...definitely less than this listing for the Galactus page. Am I a comic book curmudgeon, or does this strike anyone else as over-priced silliness?

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 23, 2021, 03:29:45 PMEvidently, in this day of slabbing and crazy prices it's become a thing to slab single pages for resale.

Am I a comic book curmudgeon, or does this strike anyone else as over-priced silliness?

I'm not sure whether you're a comic book curmudgeon, but I certainly am. And we're agreed that it's ridiculous over-priced silliness. A pox on everyone involved.

cl:)

WTF??

Unless you have the first page that Superman appeared on in Action Comics 1, of the equivalent page for any other popular hero, this is a waste of time and resources. There will never be a  market for these, but then again I said that about Pop figures and Beanie Babies so...

I've seen copies of the Incredible HULK 181 go for     exorbitant  mounts of money, in poor condition. Nothing surprises me in the collecting world.

Quote from: marsattacks666 on January 30, 2021, 10:21:30 AM
I've seen copies of the Incredible HULK 181 go for     exorbitant  mounts of money, in poor condition. Nothing surprises me in the collecting world.

Yep. It's like slipping into a parallel dimension where prices for collectibles went absolutely batsh!t crazy. I guess it's good for collectors who already have most of what they want with duplicates for resale, but for many of us it just means that for the foreseeable future there will be several collectibles well beyond our budget. Makes you even happier for what you do have, and more determined to hang onto it.

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 30, 2021, 07:29:18 PM...but for many of us it just means that for the foreseeable future there will be several collectibles well beyond our budget. Makes you even happier for what you do have, and more determined to hang onto it.

Truth.

:-\

More lunacy.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/FANTASTIC-FOUR-48-CGC-1-8-1966-1ST-APPEARANCE-OF-SILVER-SURFER-AND-GALACTUS-/254709928484?hash=item3b4de51224%3Ag%3AbcUAAOSwEj9fUvmO&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/FANTASTIC-FOUR-48-CGC-1-8-1966-1ST-APPEARANCE-OF-SILVER-SURFER-AND-GALACTUS-/254709928484?hash=item3b4de51224%3Ag%3AbcUAAOSwEj9fUvmO&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/bcUAAOSwEj9fUvmO/s-l1600.jpg)

This copy of FF#48 in CGC 1.8 sold for over $800 recently (figuring in shipping and tax). A few years ago you could get a nice looking FN (6.0) copy of this book for less than that. As discussed before, prices have gotten crazy for certain key books, but this trend of ultra low grade books selling for such high percentages of what mid grade copies bring is something that seems to be most prevalent in the last few years. 30-40 years ago it would be hard to get 1/2 GOOD (2.0) price out of a copy in this condition (and by Overstreet this book is in FAIR (1.0) condition with that big chunk out of the front cover. CGC likes to fudge up grades but even they were probably ashamed to go past 1.8 ). Nowadays, crap copies sell for about the same as legit GOOD copies do, or even more sometimes. I guess many current collectors just want an original in any condition, and don't mind paying through the nose to have one.

Before I would buy an original in very low grade for hundreds of dollars I'd just buy a cheap reprint and be done. These days I would be hard pressed to even buy a nice copy for hundreds of dollars, let alone something I wouldn't want to display. I'm glad I bought many of these books back when the prices for back issue comics were much more reasonable. I love the characters and having the original books, but I just wouldn't pay current prices for popular books. I know there are many collectors who will pay those high prices though. Check eBay for prices and the number of Watchers after some of those books. It's like a feeding frenzy in a pool of piranha.

I collect things and am a comic book fan, but would never want to pay such high prices for an older book, no matter how rare. They're so fragile, you're basically collecting a sealed object you won't be able to remove and enjoy at the risk of damaging it.

The only time I paid for an out-of-print book was some anniversary issue of Batman back in the 80s. I was at a small comic convention, and this kid (even back then I was older than he) was looking at it but balked at the $5 asking price (the original price was less than $3 as I recall). I was thinking to myself, "Make up your mind! If you don't buy it, I will." The kid then turns to me as asks my opinion: "Does this look worth 5 bucks to you?" I said, "Nah. That's way overpriced."

He put it back on the seller's table and walked away. I immediately bought it.

Quote from: Doh! on February 06, 2021, 09:41:50 PM
They're so fragile, you're basically collecting a sealed object you won't be able to remove and enjoy at the risk of damaging it.

I have hundreds of comics and mags from the '50s and '60s that aren't fragile at all. It depends on whether the paper is brittle or not. Older comics/mags with supple paper are safe to handle if you wash your hands to remove skin oil and hold the book so there's no stress on the cover or spine. I usually lay my books on the bagged backing board and carefully turn the pages to safely read 50-60 year old books. The "sealed object" stuff is for slabbed copies. What few I've owned slabbed (2) I've cracked out and put them with my other books in Mylar and acid-free backing boards. Slabbers want people to think it's not safe to handle older books so they can cash in on more sheeple, er...people. 3rd party graders love the herd mentality.

Never heard of slabbing comics before. This article was quite helpful:

https://comicspectrum.com/slabbing-comics

Collecting this way reminds me of that trend in the late 80s (or was it early 90s?) of collecting bagged comics. I believe you were never supposed to open them, so at that point, you're collecting bags! There could be copies of the Yellow Pages inside for all you know. Like when sellers on eBay sell unopened Hot Toys as "never been opened / still in shipper." How do they know if the product is in good shape? Breakage happens.

Quote from: Doh! on February 07, 2021, 04:27:47 AM
How do they know if the product is in good shape?

Yeah, good point. It's like buying a bottle of really old wine. It may have turned to feeble vinegar by the time you buy it for thousands of dollars.

Here's a framed photo from the House of Poe of an unidentified young fellow in the late spring of 1948 perusing the offerings at his local comic stand:

(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/g434/Balticprince/Freddie_2.jpg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds)

8)

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 06, 2021, 04:43:26 PM
More lunacy.

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/bcUAAOSwEj9fUvmO/s-l1600.jpg)

This copy of FF#48 in CGC 1.8 sold for over $800 recently (figuring in shipping and tax).

Quote from: marsattacks666 on January 30, 2021, 10:21:30 AMI've seen copies of the Incredible HULK 181 go for     exorbitant  mounts of money, in poor condition. Nothing surprises me in the collecting world.

What's truly mind-boggling beyond belief crazy is that these two comics together with the Tomb of Dracula 10 and Marvel Spotlight 5 mentioned just above are common as spit. The latter two even sport a cover price of 20 cents meaning that there are dealers who still have a stack of unsold copies from the 1970's. With a quick search a collector can at any time find hundreds of any of these comics offered for sale including many in the highest of grades. Even if you just visited your local comic shop, if the owner didn't have a copy hanging on the wall, he'd tell you that he could have a copy by the next day.

cl:)

Quote from: Doh! on February 06, 2021, 09:41:50 PMThey're so fragile, you're basically collecting a sealed object you won't be able to remove and enjoy at the risk of damaging it.

What's truly ironic is that the CGC label with the grade is printed on archival quality paper meaning it could stay pristine for centuries if not millennia. Pre-1990 or so comics though were printed on the cheapest pulp newsprint available. Therefore in 100 years the pages of those comics will have deteriorated/toned somewhat in even the best of storage conditions and those pristine CGC labels indicating white or off-white pages will be a lie since the pages could by then be well tanned.

In fact in 3000 or so years the comics (at least the inside pages) will have turned to dust but the label will still brightly and proudly proclaim a grade of 9.6. What will then be paramount to collectors will be the grade of the plastic slab confining the dust. This is already the case as I see that dealers are already describing the condition of the slab. The mind boggles....

::)

Quote from: Hepcat on February 08, 2021, 11:19:03 AM
What's truly mind-boggling beyond belief crazy is that these two comics together with the Tomb of Dracula 10 and Marvel Spotlight 5 mentioned just above are common as spit. The latter two even sport a cover price of 20 cents meaning that there are dealers who still have a stack of unsold copies from the 1970's. With a quick search a collector can at any time find hundreds of any of these comics offered for sale including many in the highest of grades. Even if you just visited your local comic shop, if the owner didn't have a copy hanging on the wall, he'd tell you that he could have a copy by the next day.

cl:)

Yes, Bronze Age and most Silver Age comics are common. Check eBay anytime and you will find several listings for the sought-after key issues. The way the market is now though some of the most desired and valuable comics are also common. The fact that there are many of them doesn't stop sellers (and buyers) from treating them as if they are prized treasures. As I stated before, demand s everything else regarding these high priced books.

A few years ago you probably could find hundreds of copies of the books you mention above without any problem, but now so many of them are locked away in private collections the "hundreds" might be more like "dozens" nowadays that could be quickly available, and that's just because the prices have gotten so high as to have drawn out the available copies for sale. The days are probably gone where many dealers commonly have "stacks" of books like Incredible Hulk #181, Werewolf By Night #32, Tomb Of Dracula #10, Marvel Spotlight #5, Fantastic Four #48, Silver Surfer #3, etc. Most dealers, even big dealers, have been cashing in on those books for years, and big stockpiles of them have probably been depleted and mostly ended up in private collections by now. There are so many copies of keys from the '60s and later still around that they are easily found for sale, but I doubt anyone could produce a box of 100 copies of Giant-Size X-Men #1 for bulk sale the way it was decades ago. The books have been cashed in on long enough that the available quantities are no longer in the hundreds or thousands, more like in the dozens, and those are quite expensive.

And I seriously doubt that most small comic shops could produce a copy of Fantastic Four #48, 49, 52, Silver Surfer #1, 3, 4, Marvel Spotlight #5, Ghost Rider #1 etc... the "next day" casually with a phone call. Big dealers probably could, but small comic shops may not have ever had most of those books on their wall. Those books now sell for hundreds (or sometimes thousands) of dollars and that's just beyond your average comic shop who struggles week to week to just keep the doors open.

Your mindset regarding the current comic book back issue market seems to reflect the way it was decades ago. Things have radically changed, especially in the last few years.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 09, 2021, 11:28:00 AMAnd I seriously doubt that most small comic shops could produce a copy of Fantastic Four #48, 49, 52, Silver Surfer #1, 3, 4, Marvel Spotlight #5, Ghost Rider #1 etc... the "next day" casually with a phone call. Big dealers probably could, but small comic shops may not have ever had most of those books on their wall. Those books now sell for hundreds (or sometimes thousands) of dollars and that's just beyond your average comic shop who struggles week to week to just keep the doors open.

The small shop owner would just phone the bigger guy he knows has a copy or three for sale "Hey, I got a sucker, errrrr customer, willing to pay full guide for the Slugman intro! Cut me in on the action and we got us a sale."

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 09, 2021, 11:28:00 AMAs I stated before, demand s everything else regarding these high priced books.

Keep in mind though that building an edifice on the vicissitudes of demand is a foolish undertaking because that's building on a foundation of shifting sand. Demand can quickly erode or even almost completely evaporate due to changing fads, e.g. latest "hot" movie. Check out what's happened to the stamp collecting hobby. The level of demand also changes as population demographics change. For example, the demand for tinplate toys is nowhere nearly as high now as it was 20-25 years ago.

Supply though is a far more reliable factor. If something just doesn't exist in quantity, it stays that way.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 09, 2021, 11:28:00 AMA few years ago you probably could find hundreds of copies of the books you mention above without any problem, but now so many of them are locked away in private collections the "hundreds" might be more like "dozens" nowadays that could be quickly available, and that's just because the prices have gotten so high as to have drawn out the available copies for sale.

You have it backward. It's an economic truism that high prices bring out the quantity supplied to the market. Check the Supply and Demand chart in your Economics textbook. A high price acts to coax comics out of collections and forgotten boxes into basements and out into the marketplace to be sold.

Don't believe me? Check out how many offerings for Fantastic Four 1 you can find with a quick internet search, and then compare that number with the quantity of other Marvel comics from the same month, e.g. Gunsmoke Western 67, Kid Colt Outlaw 101, Kathy 13, Love Romances 96, Patsy Walker 97, etc you can find for sale. Those latter comics either don't exist because they were never hoarded or are deeply buried in forgotten stacks because prices aren't high enough to coax offerings onto the market.

;)

Quote from: Hepcat on February 09, 2021, 12:16:27 PM
Keep in mind though that building an edifice on the vicissitudes of demand is a foolish undertaking because that's building on a foundation of shifting sand. Demand can quickly erode or even almost completely evaporate due to changing fads, e.g. latest "hot" movie. Check out what's happened to the stamp collecting hobby. The level of demand also changes as population demographics change. For example, the demand for tinplate toys is nowhere nearly as high now as it was 20-25 years ago.

Supply though is a far more reliable factor. If something just doesn't exist in quantity, it stays that way.

You seem to suggest that just because something is common then it should never have as much value as something that is less common. That argument is disproved by the facts concerning the value of Silver and Bronze Age key issues. The books in question really are selling for prices much higher than more scarce issues. It's a fact. It isn't a "price bubble". It's been going on for years and prices continue to increase. You can use all of the multisyllable "smoke and mirrors" phrasing you want to argue a counterpoint, but it's still a fact that many common back issues are selling for MUCH more than far scarcer issues.

Two things are driving you to attempt to turn this into a debate (which it isn't, I'm just reporting what's happening regarding back issue values).

1) You have never been interested in collecting Marvel comics in general, and specifically you have mentioned your disdain for Bronze Age Marvel comics. You are a DC guy along with an interest in certain other companies' offerings like Charlton. It seems to rub you the wrong way that so many people are interested in key Marvel comics that their values have outstripped books that you value a lot more. I know you'll say you don't care how much something sells for, but it still seems to bug you that comics you turn up your nose at are valued so highly by so many.

2) You are obsessive in proving a point that you have adopted for whatever reason. I don't know if you're a lawyer professionally, but you treat casual message board conversation as if you're battling in a court of law.

It doesn't matter what your opinion is about supply and demand affecting comic book back issue prices, just like it doesn't matter what my opinion is... or anyone's for that matter. More common books sell for more than more scarce books in some cases just because more people want them. That higher demand has driven prices up over the years, and that process has accelerated in the last few years due to more exposure through movies and TV shows.

I know you'll come back with detailed arguments trying to disproved everything I've stated here. Facts are still facts no matter how unpleasant they are for certain people. You can argue with yourself, I have other things to do... anything at this point.

So here's a couple of questions for you fellow comic book enthusiasts:
1) I recently picked up "Ghost Breakers" 1&2. After reading them I'm still a little perplexed as to whom This title may have been aimed at back in the day? Jeff Neff could easily be the grandfather of Scooby doo's Mystery Incorporated, working so hard to prove the ghosts were really just crooks in silly get ups. Then the comic offers dyi magic tricks as an additional feature. Published in 1948, was Street and Smith aiming at the Crime book followers? Horror comic buyers? Maybe ( since there were only two issues) they were attempting to follow Martin Goodman's approach to publish something of everything and see what sells? I'd love to hear somebody else's take on these comics and their place in history.

2) I'm hesitant to ask this as I'm more interested in comic book collecting  than comic book pricing, but what's up with Graphic Fantasy #1? I saw the recent Image  solicitation for a reprint of the book and decided to see what eBay was selling the original for. To my surprise there weren't any originals for sale! Is the hype true that since there were only two hundred copies printed it's worth a bunch of cash? I realize it's the first appearance of Savage Dragon, but it's not even close to Erik's best ( or even better) work. As requested in #1 above, what your take on this book?

Ps- I promise you will not see me listing Ghost Breakers as the prototype for Scooby Doo on some eBay page, nor will I list my Graphic Fantasy #1 ( 190/200 signed by Larson and the gang) for 1 Million dollars , maybe 500,000 but definitely not a million- lol
RF

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 09, 2021, 01:44:39 PMMore common books sell for more than more scarce books in some cases just because more people want them. That higher demand has driven prices up over the years, and that process has accelerated in the last few years due to more exposure through movies and TV shows.

I agree with this 100%. During my time working at the shop we ran into this a lot. Age and scarcity are a nice guideline but not a hard rule. At the end of the day it's the demand that drives the prices/value. We couldn't give away 12 cent Harvey comics, simply because our customer base wasn't interested. However, we would sell loads of 90s comics that had huge print runs for well above cover price.

Quote from: Rex fury on February 09, 2021, 05:50:45 PM
So here's a couple of questions for you fellow comic book enthusiasts:
1) I recently picked up "Ghost Breakers" 1&2.

2) I'm hesitant to ask this as I'm more interested in comic book collecting  than comic book pricing, but what's up with Graphic Fantasy #1? I saw the recent Image  solicitation for a reprint of the book and decided to see what eBay was selling the original for. To my surprise there weren't any originals for sale! Is the hype true that since there were only two hundred copies printed it's worth a bunch of cash? I realize it's the first appearance of Savage Dragon, but it's not even close to Erik's best ( or even better) work. As requested in #1 above, what your take on this book?

I can't speak to your first question, as I'm not familiar with those books. But...

Graphic Fantasy #1 did have an EXTREMELY low print run. Depending on who you believe that number is either 200 or 300. Adding to the rarity of it is that this was a self published 'zine. You can't get much more punk and scarce than that! To answer your question, no, the fact that only 200-300 copies were printed doesn't mean it's worth a bunch of cash by itself. This book is the product of a perfect storm. Self-published with an extremely low print run + the character becoming wildly popular in the 90s + the character still being relevant = $$$ in this case.

Also, there's absolutely nothing wrong with knowing the value of your comics. I don't particularly care to know the value of my collection, but it is good to have a reference point just in case you ever need that info.

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 20, 2021, 08:44:56 PMI don't know if you're a lawyer professionally, but you treat casual message board conversation as if you're battling in a court of law.

I'm not a lawyer.

My background academically is in philosophy, mathematics, economics and business. I worked as an investment analyst for my first seven years after graduation. That may explain my analytical bent.

I then spent 35 years as a stock broker - which is why I'm not shy about making price predictions when the topic is breached. It's what we do.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 09, 2021, 11:28:00 AMYour mindset regarding the current comic book back issue market seems to reflect the way it was decades ago. Things have radically changed, especially in the last few years.

But I don't believe that the underlying factors behind old comics exchanging hands at multiples of their cover prices have changed. The factors remain as follows:

1) There has to be collecting interest.

2) A destruction factor must have taken place to create scarcity in relation to the number of collectors.

Note that I referenced collectors specifically though. Investors/speculators cannot by themselves continue to build a price pyramid to the sky without a corresponding increase in the number of interested collectors.

Quote from: horrorhunter on January 20, 2021, 08:44:56 PMIt seems strange that so many collectors are now interested in books at much higher prices than they could be bought for before just because so many other collectors want a copy, but that seems to be one of the things driving the crazy prices...the dreaded FOMO (fear of missing out).... Another thing driving the crazy prices is the crazy prices, more collectors think if they don't get a copy ASAP they won't be able to afford one later. Ironically, that attitude is one of the factors making them so hard to afford in the first place.

The phenomena you've described are all classic indicators of a speculative price bubble primed to pop.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 09, 2021, 01:44:39 PMYou seem to suggest that just because something is common then it should never have as much value as something that is less common. That argument is disproved by the facts concerning the value of Silver and Bronze Age key issues. The books in question really are selling for prices much higher than more scarce issues. It's a fact. It isn't a "price bubble". It's been going on for years and prices continue to increase. You can use all of the multisyllable "smoke and mirrors" phrasing you want to argue a counterpoint, but it's still a fact that many common back issues are selling for MUCH more than far scarcer issues.

More common books sell for more than more scarce books in some cases just because more people want them. That higher demand has driven prices up over the years, and that process has accelerated in the last few years due to more exposure through movies and TV shows.

Facts are still facts no matter how unpleasant they are for certain people.

Nowhere have I disputed the facts with respect to the prices that currently prevail. Nowhere have I disputed what "is". Where we disagree is how things will be in the future.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 09, 2021, 11:28:00 AM...I'm just reporting what's happening regarding back issue values.

What's the point of "reporting" what's happened without a prediction of what will happen? What's happened is very widely known. What's important is what will happen.

And that's where we disagree. Despite your own categorization of the prices of the movie-hyped comics as "crazy", you've concluded that crazy is the "new normal". But when a stockbroker (or any arms length observer for that matter) thinks current prices are crazy, he stays well away because he believes they'll collapse. And that's my prediction. I think the price bubble will burst because I don't think the increase in prices has been underpinned by an actual increase in the number of collectors.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 09, 2021, 01:44:39 PMTwo things are driving you to attempt to turn this into a debate (which it isn't).

1) You have never been interested in collecting Marvel comics in general, and specifically you have mentioned your disdain for Bronze Age Marvel comics. You are a DC guy along with an interest in certain other companies' offerings like Charlton. It seems to rub you the wrong way that so many people are interested in key Marvel comics that their values have outstripped books that you value a lot more. I know you'll say you don't care how much something sells for, but it still seems to bug you that comics you turn up your nose at are valued so highly by so many.

2) You are obsessive in proving a point that you have adopted for whatever reason. I don't know if you're a lawyer professionally, but you treat casual message board conversation as if you're battling in a court of law.

All beside the point and irrelevant to the discussion. Worse yet questioning my preferences/values/motives and posting style borders on a personal attack.

Consider. In this thread my posts have consisted of relating my collecting memories and celebrating the comics I love the most. I've not breached the subject of the current market for comics. I'm not the one who's made post-after-post about the crazy prices being fetched by certain comics these days. That's been you. Yet when I've posted in agreement, it's annoyed you. Is that because I'm not a "Marvel guy" and have little interest in Bronze Age comics? Does that mean that you think I have no right to an opinion concerning the pricing of Bronze Age Marvel comics? Had John Pertwee or Buzzybean posted the same opinions as mine, would you have been equally affronted?

Moreover say what you will about my posting style, but at least I confine my remarks to the specific subject of discussion without resorting to personal comments.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 09, 2021, 01:44:39 PMYou have never been interested in collecting Marvel comics in general, and specifically you have mentioned your disdain for Bronze Age Marvel comics. You are a DC guy along with an interest in certain other companies' offerings like Charlton. It seems to rub you the wrong way that so many people are interested in key Marvel comics that their values have outstripped books that you value a lot more.... but it still seems to bug you that comics you turn up your nose at are valued so highly by so many.

By the same token I can say that my disinterest in Bronze Age Marvel comics seems to rub you the wrong way. Quite simply why did you bring up the subject anyway? If it didn't bug you, you wouldn't have raised the point since it's completely irrelevant to the topic under discussion.

;)

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on February 10, 2021, 02:46:37 PM
Age and scarcity are a nice guideline but not a hard rule. At the end of the day it's the demand that drives the prices/value. We couldn't give away 12 cent Harvey comics, simply because our customer base wasn't interested. However, we would sell loads of 90s comics that had huge print runs for well above cover price.

Correct.

Let's zero in on that...

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on February 10, 2021, 02:46:37 PM
At the end of the day it's the demand that drives the prices/value.

This is the point I was making all along, which was constantly challenged with tons of BS and very little real thought. At least someone realizes when the obvious is mentioned.

No comic book is so common as to override demand regarding value. Comics aren't air, or water, or food, or any of the silly arguing points previously mentioned in this thread. Demand is the most important factor that drives value. If nobody wants something it doesn't matter how rare it is, or even if it's unique. It's the popular comics that get more valuable simply because more people want them. Simple.

Much like Sam Emerson from The Lost Boys, I'm not that into horror comics. I don't know why, but that's just how it is. That being said, the covers to some of these are awesome. I picked up Ghosts #9 on a whim because I loved the cover. In a perfect world DC would publish some nice hardcovers that collect the covers from their horror books.

(https://i.postimg.cc/hPVJCNSP/Ghosts-9.png)

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on February 12, 2021, 11:39:38 AM
Much like Sam Emerson from The Lost Boys, I'm not that into horror comics. I don't know why, but that's just how it is. That being said, the covers to some of these are awesome.

Horror comics covers are a treasure trove of beauty ranging from the somber and moody to outrageous savagery.

The Bernie Wrightson covers alone are a wealth of otherworldly gorgeous awesomeness. Here are net pics of a few faves:

(https://i.pinimg.com/736x/c4/42/76/c442762c171d20889e1aef1349a42834--bernie-wrightson-comic-covers.jpg)

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b5/28/a8/b528a837a44c4e15014267b935f23542.jpg)

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/53/db/92/53db92d3ec8646c7e1389201b72f78a8.jpg)

(http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fYkQ4dsodzk/VhMig9o9HlI/AAAAAAAANl8/LYZMi9Zw33g/s1600/HOM256-00.jpg)

(https://i.pinimg.com/736x/9d/99/49/9d9949dffd40255690fb3bb8e0f80d51.jpg)

Early in my collecting I identified Wrightson as my favorite artist. Initially I collected only his covers of titles like House Of Mystery and House Of Secrets, but in the last few years I've finished my runs of the non-Wrightson covers as well in my attempt to collect all Bronze Age Horror/Monster comics/mags (and as many of the earlier ones as I could find and afford). Wrightson remains my favorite though I highly value the work of many other artists who have worked in the Horror genre.

LOVE me some Bernie Wrightson! Have you ever seen his Frankenstein book?

https://bloody-disgusting.com/news/3597790/late-bernie-wrightsons-original-frankenstein-art-marvel-cover-just-sold-1-million/

Quote from: Doh! on February 12, 2021, 08:31:54 PM
LOVE me some Bernie Wrightson! Have you ever seen his Frankenstein book?

https://bloody-disgusting.com/news/3597790/late-bernie-wrightsons-original-frankenstein-art-marvel-cover-just-sold-1-million/ (https://bloody-disgusting.com/news/3597790/late-bernie-wrightsons-original-frankenstein-art-marvel-cover-just-sold-1-million/)

Yes. I still have my original copy of Frankenstein bought when it first came out. It's some of Wrightson's best work.

Another great Wrightson book is Berni Wrightson, A Look Back. Here's an eBay listing for the signed, limited, slipcased edition first published in 1979:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/A-Look-Back-Berni-Wrightson-signed-and-numbered-204-of-250-copies-/252928419935 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/A-Look-Back-Berni-Wrightson-signed-and-numbered-204-of-250-copies-/252928419935)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/geYAAOSwjL5ZEYa4/s-l500.jpg)

It was reprinted in 1991. I pre-ordered one of the slipcased editions like the one in the eBay listing back in 1978 and it was delayed a year. I still have it and it's one of my favorite items in my collection. I also received a free signed, limited print called Don't Look Back. It's been framed on my wall for the past 40 years.

Here's a net pic of the image area of Don't Look Back:

(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-W-h28hIvobE/UdenfalaRaI/AAAAAAAAjAg/k-1_HO3FZzg/s1600/lf+(40).jpg)

More Wrightson goodness:

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/5a/d8/f4/5ad8f4e7f554b1c1d2df8acba134724f.jpg)

This is a (B&W) net pic of the centerfold of the oversized "Treasury" House Of Mystery issue from the '70s (Limited Collectors' Edition C-23, cover by Joe Orlando originally from House Of Mystery #174).

(https://d1466nnw0ex81e.cloudfront.net/n_iv/600/5430704.jpg)

Around 1977 I bought a coverless copy of that book at a local flea market for a quarter, mainly for that centerfold. It's in color and features Cain and Gregory. I had it tacked to the wall for awhile and several years ago I put it in a poster frame. It's just newsprint, of course, so after all those years in the light it has a nice brown patina. It's still one of my favorite things to look at. I'm a big House Of Mystery fan mainly due to the great Wrightson art and early Adams covers. I finished my HOM run of 174-321 a couple of years ago. That took decades. Anyway, I bought a nice copy of the HOM "Treasury" a few years back. I don't know what ever happened to the coverless copy bought over 40 years ago, but my centerfold from that copy is still on my wall and gets appreciated every day.

Quote from: Mike...In 3-D! on February 12, 2021, 11:39:38 AM
Much like Sam Emerson from The Lost Boys, I'm not that into horror comics. I don't know why, but that's just how it is. That being said, the covers to some of these are awesome. I picked up Ghosts #9 on a whim because I loved the cover. In a perfect world DC would publish some nice hardcovers that collect the covers from their horror books.

(https://i.postimg.cc/hPVJCNSP/Ghosts-9.png)

I also enjoy the covers featured on Ghosts and other DC mystery books. The Skeleton at the wheel motif on Ghosts 9 is really cool. Similar images have been used on the original Pirates of the Caribbean poster and a book of supernatural sea stories, but I can't recall too many other horror comics that use this imagery. That image and covers featuring skeletons in wrecks and row boats always remind me of a weird story associated with the wreck of the steamship Valencia off Vancouver Island. While the wreck is a well documented real life tragedy, a story circulated for years that a life boat full of skeletal victims from the wreck was spotted in a sea cave along the north coast!  While there's no collaborative evidence of this tale, there is a piece of a lifeboat from the wreck on display at the Vancouver Maritime Museum.
At any rate I really enjoy the comic images depicting supernatural sea stories.
RF

Here's a couple of net pics of the Marvel Legends Monster Set (Toy Biz, 2006):

(https://s3.amazonaws.com/collector-actionfigures.com/AF-371585_cfe89cae-aa62-11de-9f19-001ee5d7ff66_00.jpg)

(https://s3.amazonaws.com/collector-actionfigures.com/AF-371585_cfe89cae-aa62-11de-9f19-001ee5d7ff66_04.jpg)

I quit buying Toy Biz Marvel figures in the '90s because much of my basement storage space is still taken up by them, but I shopped around for one of these Monsters boxed sets and got one for a good deal a few years back. I'm a big Bronze Age Horror fan so this action figure set is worth digging up for me. They seem to sell for around $150-$200 currently, but can be found cheaper sometimes with patience. I noticed the loose figures and poster book sell for some decent coin these days. I guess a lot of collectors like to display the loose figures with their comics. If anyone has been wanting a set of these it might be a good time to pick one up before the Marvel Monsters are introduced into the MCU. After that anything Marvel Monster concerning the '70s characters will probably get more pricey.

As an aside I was watching a couple of comics recently that sold for surprising amounts even though I've gotten conditioned to the current pricing environment (or so I thought):

I was watching a copy of Amazing Spider-Man #124 (1st Man Wolf) on an eBay auction and what it sold for blew right by what I was planning to bid. It was a fairly nice mid grade copy, probably around a FN/VF (7.0) and ended up selling for over $130. I've never owned that book, and all along it was a very minor key and could be had a few years ago for probably 20 bucks for a decent mid grade copy, so I thought to pick up a copy since I have nearly all of the Marvel Monster books. I'll still keep my radar out for one but I may just tap out on it for what it sells for now.

I was flabbergasted at what a CGC (5.0) Silver Surfer #3 (1st Mephisto) sold for in a You Tube auction last night. It ended up selling for $760. At one point I was going to thin out my Superhero collection and sell my entire run of Silver Surfer for the current market value at the time which was around $500. I feel very fortunate that never happened. Be careful what you sell because it may be gone forever depending on how your financial future goes.

More and more books are getting priced out of what most collectors can comfortably afford. For decades it was generally accepted that if you sold some of your books, even expensive books, that you could buy them back at some point for not that much more. The longer you waited the more you would have to pay to buy them back, but in general they would only increase by a percentage, not by multiples of what they were selling for. That state of affairs doesn't seem to hold true anymore. Anything I really want to keep is staying in my collection. I sold a few Superhero books about 15 years ago and now it would be painfully expensive to buy them back. I'm not making that mistake again. Anything I sell going forward will be duplicates or something I'm certain I won't want in the future.

That is such a great set. I bought it for $40 when it came out. I foolishly took that comic apart and used the pages to decorate our comic shop.

This is pretty unbelievable...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv (https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv/s-l1600.jpg)

Currently up to $214.50 with 48 Bids (8 hours + to go) and 67 Watchers, but clearly pictured is the Fantasy Masterpieces REPRINT of Silver Surfer #3. The Seller is either a dumb crook or clueless, and the Bidders are bidding big bucks on a $10 reprint. The winner is the loser in this mess. Get educated before you drop serious money.  ::)

Somebody is in for a rude awakening, and it isn't the seller. Is it misleading? A bit. But not enough to get Ebay to refund the money.

Quote from: John Pertwee on February 15, 2021, 03:45:44 PM
Somebody is in for a rude awakening, and it isn't the seller. Is it misleading? A bit. But not enough to get Ebay to refund the money.

Yep. To beat it all the title "Fantasy Masterpieces" is prominent on the cover. I don't understand how anyone could throw that kind of money at something they obviously haven't researched. The Seller is either a poor con man or doesn't understand what he's selling. The Bidders obviously don't understand what they're trying to buy. Interesting as an unfortunate spectacle, it's like watching a multiple car pileup unfold.

I have noticed some silly prices on the Surfer reprints lately, but nothing like that auction posted above.

Here's a recent sale of the real deal.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Silver-Surfer-3-CGC-7-0-White-Pages-First-1st-appearance-Mephisto-Marvel-1968-/284178658612?hash=item422a5e3534%3Ag%3Af7YAAOSw1XpgHPIZ&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Silver-Surfer-3-CGC-7-0-White-Pages-First-1st-appearance-Mephisto-Marvel-1968-/284178658612?hash=item422a5e3534%3Ag%3Af7YAAOSw1XpgHPIZ&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/f7YAAOSw1XpgHPIZ/s-l1600.jpg)

Over $1500 for a CGC (7.0) with 27 bids. The prices just keep climbing on this book.

This reprint sold for $375

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 15, 2021, 11:05:08 AM
This is pretty unbelievable...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv (https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv/s-l1600.jpg)

Currently up to $214.50 with 48 Bids (8 hours + to go) and 67 Watchers, but clearly pictured is the Fantasy Masterpieces REPRINT of Silver Surfer #3. The Seller is either a dumb crook or clueless, and the Bidders are bidding big bucks on a $10 reprint. The winner is the loser in this mess. Get educated before you drop serious money.  ::)

Quote from: John Pertwee on February 15, 2021, 03:45:44 PM
Somebody is in for a rude awakening, and it isn't the seller. Is it misleading? A bit. But not enough to get Ebay to refund the money.

Quote from: John Pertwee on February 15, 2021, 08:57:05 PM
This reprint sold for $375

Rude awakening definitely forthcoming.

I bought the 14 issue run of that Fantasy Masterpieces reprint series 3 or 4 years ago in lower and mid grade just to have the option to read the Surfer stories without handling my originals too much. I remember getting them for a dollar or two each. The later issues also have early Warlock reprints so it's a cool series, just never has been very valuable. I still read my more expensive comics sometimes because nothing compares to reading the originals with all of the ads, letters, and editorial content...and that old newsprint smell is magic for older comic collectors. Still, I don't like to handle them too much, especially the square-bound issues. You have to be extra careful not to stress the spine because the square-bounds (like SS #s 1-7) tend to split at the corners more easily as the paper ages. It's nice to have cheap reprints to read casually and still enjoy the classic stories. The big books that reprint the original stories like Marvel Masterworks and Essentials are great for that too.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 13, 2021, 09:24:44 PM
Here's a couple of net pics of the Marvel Legends Monster Set (Toy Biz, 2006):

(https://s3.amazonaws.com/collector-actionfigures.com/AF-371585_cfe89cae-aa62-11de-9f19-001ee5d7ff66_00.jpg)

(https://s3.amazonaws.com/collector-actionfigures.com/AF-371585_cfe89cae-aa62-11de-9f19-001ee5d7ff66_04.jpg)

I quit buying Toy Biz Marvel figures in the '90s because much of my basement storage space is still taken up by them, but I shopped around for one of these Monsters boxed sets and got one for a good deal a few years back. I'm a big Bronze Age Horror fan so this action figure set is worth digging up for me. They seem to sell for around $150-$200 currently, but can be found cheaper sometimes with patience. I noticed the loose figures and poster book sell for some decent coin these days. I guess a lot of collectors like to display the loose figures with their comics. If anyone has been wanting a set of these it might be a good time to pick one up before the Marvel Monsters are introduced into the MCU. After that anything Marvel Monster concerning the '70s characters will probably get more pricey.

Great set and great pics Double H! You know we have that in common. I'm huge fan of 70s and 80s horror comic books, but especially the Marvel horror characters (although If I had to pick one favorite it's prob Swamp Thing). Anyhow, I have that set too. I picked one up for $50 at a local comic-con, prob 10 yrs ago or so. That was one of the first big purchases I made when I decided to get back into collecting.

Quote from: geezer butler on February 15, 2021, 10:04:08 PM
Great set and great pics Double H! You know we have that in common. I'm huge fan of 70s and 80s horror comic books, but especially the Marvel horror characters (although If I had to pick one favorite it's prob Swamp Thing). Anyhow, I have that set too. I picked one up for $50 at a local comic-con, prob 10 yrs ago or so. That was one of the first big purchases I made when I decided to get back into collecting.

Very cool, geezer.

Yeah, man, I love all of those '70s Monster books- DC, Charlton, Gold Key, magazines, fanzines, but the Marvel Monsters are up near the top for me. And, I'm with you on Swamp Thing too, because of the Wrightson involvement and the character is great as well. I remember getting that Marvel Legends Monster Set for around $70 four or five years back, and I was patient to wait on the deal. When those characters hit the MCU it will be tough to afford the original books or any of the side stuff having to do with them. Thankfully, old Monster Marvelites like us picked most of that stuff up a long time ago.  ;)

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 15, 2021, 04:13:03 PM
The Seller is either a poor con man or doesn't understand what he's selling.

He's a crook. I wrote to tell him it was a reprint. His reply . . "Fu ck off!"

And that's the problem with this hobby. People get taken by hype and unscrupulous sellers. Back when I was involved with selling I'd get questions about how much Batman: A Death in the Family was going to be worth, or (worse yet) how much Valiants Turok 1 would rise in value. I believe it was Don and Maggie Thompson who wrote the article "Too Many Turks", so at least some people were sounding the alarm back then. Modern reprints are usually pretty easy for novices to spot, but not always. I've seen folks take the covers off DCs oversized reprints and claim they were original.  At least Flashback reprinted material in black and white, so there an obvious difference. With much of the Golden Age material now free of copyright, reprints have become common fair.. I guess the saying "buyer beware" is more true than ever. I was recently in a shop that had a copy of Captain America Comics 19 for sale . The pages were original but the cover was a facsimile. For all appearances it was being passed off as the real deal. 😦
RF

Quote from: Mike Scott on February 16, 2021, 12:53:35 AM
He's a crook. I wrote to tell him it was a reprint. His reply . . "Fu ck off!"

Figures.

New collectors get caught up in the hype and throw money at books without researching them. The buyer is learning the hard way. Here's hoping karma is real and the scumbag seller gets his.

I keep seeing more and more single pages listed on eBay.  ???

https://www.ebay.com/itm/CPA-5-0-Giant-Size-X-Men-1-SINGLE-PAGE/184653489973?hash=item2afe34a735:g:ecEAAOSws2dgH0NM (https://www.ebay.com/itm/CPA-5-0-Giant-Size-X-Men-1-SINGLE-PAGE/184653489973?hash=item2afe34a735:g:ecEAAOSws2dgH0NM)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/ecEAAOSws2dgH0NM/s-l1600.jpg)

50 bucks for a single page? I know it's from Giant-Size X-Men #1 which is selling for $1500 in low grade now, and 2 or 3 times that in mid grade, but this still strikes me as very silly. 40 years ago you could buy a nice copy of GSXM for 50 bucks, and if someone said that in 40 years someone would be selling a page for that they would be laughed at. It looks like it's graded and certified. GSXM pages are listed heavily on eBay. It's like someone took a POOR copy and broke it down into single pages to sell. Weird. That's an area of collecting that I'll stay well clear of.

I Googled CPA and nothing came up for grading comic pages. Probably someone throwing some BS around trying to score a quick buck.  ::)

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 15, 2021, 11:05:08 AM
This is pretty unbelievable...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv (https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv/s-l1600.jpg)

Currently up to $214.50 with 48 Bids (8 hours + to go) and 67 Watchers, but clearly pictured is the Fantasy Masterpieces REPRINT of Silver Surfer #3. The Seller is either a dumb crook or clueless, and the Bidders are bidding big bucks on a $10 reprint. The winner is the loser in this mess. Get educated before you drop serious money.  ::)

Quote from: John Pertwee on February 15, 2021, 08:57:05 PM
This reprint sold for $375

It looks like this book was Relisted "or one like it" according to eBay.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5-Reprint-Rare/203281070969?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5-Reprint-Rare/203281070969?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649)

Notice it's now identified as "Reprint" in the Listing Title. I found the old listing that sold for $375 and it was identified as "Sold" instead of "Ended" by eBay, so it looks like the buyer (victim) got stuck with the sale, and maybe eBay stepped in to enforce the new listing be identified as "Reprint"? The best way to not get burned is just to learn about what you're buying before you buy it. You can't count on getting bailed out of being victimized by a con. Anyway, if these postings about this crook's listing(s) have anything to do with fouling up his attempts to steal from the ignorant then so much the better. It's doubtful since not a lot of people peruse UMA anymore, especially regarding comic books, but it is possible. 

C:)

CGC Horror Story Proves Grades Mean Nothing

https://youtu.be/dmJ63VJX5VI

The first line above is the video title.

Personally, I don't think they mean "nothing", but I do think the actual grade could vary by up to two grade numbers or possibly more in some instances, and that just covers errors made in the actual grading process (which isn't transparent BTW). Add in the possibility that the grade may have dropped over time by the book having moved around slightly in the case or simple paper deterioration, and the actual grade of the book could vary greatly from the grade number on the slab. Also, the Micro Chamber paper that CGC used inside the book becomes destructive to the paper after a decade or so and has to be removed which means cracking out the book and destroying the slab.

I'll enjoy my books unhindered by the efforts of 3rd party grading companies, and use the chunk of money I would have paid them to add more to my collection.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 17, 2021, 02:47:52 PMPersonally, I don't think they mean "nothing", but I do think the actual grade could vary by up to two grade numbers or possibly more in some instances, and that just covers errors made in the actual grading process (which isn't transparent BTW).

When I worked at the shop we would send books in all the time. On a couple of occasions we got a book back that was graded a full number/number and a half below what we thought. We carefully inspected book before sending them out to ensure we were only sending quality stuff in. One time, the big boss was so baffled by the grade he cracked it open and re-submitted it with our next batch. It came back a full grade number higher than it did the first time.

CGC is/was great from a seller's perspective, because for the most part fans treated those grades like gospel.

Here's a CGC (8.0) Marvel Spotlight #5 that I posted 3 pages back. I'm posting it again as an example of CGC grading inaccuracy.

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/kckAAOSwRFlf~iTB/s-l1600.jpg)

Anyone familiar with Overstreet grading guidelines would hardly characterize this copy as VF. It looks more like a FN (6.0) copy to me. Granted, the black cover shows imperfections more easily, but that just more clearly points out the grade range this copy should fall into. It's my understanding that CGC charges a percentage of a book's current fair market value to grade more expensive comics, so it's in their best interest to grade it higher and charge more. Couple that with their grading system that is never disclosed and having no transparency whatsoever and it's obvious the plethora of opportunities that present themselves to profitably fudge the grade at the expense of consistency and integrity.

I haven't dealt with CGC directly but from what I've picked up through the last few years watching YT videos and examining CGC grading examples in eBay listing pictures it seems that CGC has steadily been getting more lax with their grading standards. They seemingly were more strict years ago, even close to Overstreet standards, and they've loosened up more and more as time went on. Who knows how many more thousands of dollars they've made by fudging a grade here or there, more and more as time progressed.

BTW, a VF (8.0) comic usually sells for 2-3 times what a FN (6.0) comic does in the current market for expensive keys like the Marvel Spotlight #5 posted above. That one sold for 2 grand. A couple of grade points means a big difference in money for the grading company, the seller, and the buyer. I've noticed huge differences in BIN prices for the same books in the same grade on eBay. My Comic Shop listed several copies of House Of Secrets #92 in CGC (6.0) over the last few months. One was $2,500, another was around half that, another was around 2/3 that, you get the idea. They all had a "6.0" on the slab but the dealer knew the detailed photos would show the books to be quite different in appearance. The slabbed grade number is at best just a guideline, not the absolute accurate grade of that copy. I wouldn't want to risk losing hundreds of dollars in value dealing with all that chaos.

The only way I would buy an expensive book these days is if I could examine it in person and go over every page thoroughly to check for completeness, restoration, and probable grade using Overstreet standards. I wouldn't drop over a couple hundred dollars on a book without doing this. I guess my ultra conservative approach doesn't fit into the chaotic state of the market these days. That's okay, though, since I already have most of the books I want. I'd hate to start out collecting in this meat-grinder collecting environment nowadays. New collectors are taken advantage of routinely by unscrupulous sellers and 3rd party grading companies.

One reason you see price fluctuations on books sold through My Comic Shop is that some are sold on consignment. I've dealt with them for many years and have been happy with their services for non slabbed books ( I collect the comics not plastic slabs). The comics Ive purchased from them have been fairly graded. Granted I've only been collecting since 1965, but I think I have a pretty good eye when judging a grade.
RF

My Comic Shop grades fairly accurately, and probably as close to Overstreet as any big dealer. I don't deal with them much because I can beat their prices by shopping around and being patient. They are a good alternative if you don't mind spending top dollar to finish a run quick. Yeah, they do consignments which accounts for some price fluctuation, but they also vary their prices on slabbed comics due to way the books present. Most sellers vary prices due to the appearance of the books as well as the grade number on the slab owing to grading inconsistencies and occasionally post-slabbing drops in grade (sometimes the book is loose in the well and incurs minor damage, or the slab is damaged and it affects the book, or the paper deteriorates because the slabbed book wasn't stored properly).

I usually avoid buying slabbed books because they are more expensive than unslabbed books (I don't use the silly buzz-term "raw"). I'm not opposed to buying a slabbed book if it's the same price as an unslabbed book but that usually isn't the case. As soon as I buy it I crack it out unless I'm going to resell it. I don't keep slabs in my collection. They take up a lot of extra space and that's problematic when you have thousands of books. Plastic slabs have no place in my collection. I just want the books.

Looks like the buyer found out it was a reprint and canceled the deal on that Silver Surfer. Seller is now selling it as a reprint.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5-Reprint-Rare/203281070969?hash=item2f547efb79:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv (https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5-Reprint-Rare/203281070969?hash=item2f547efb79:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv)

I've sent books to CGC many years ago and was disappointed with a couple of the grades as I thought the books would have graded higher. I do believe it's a big scam but it seems the scam has become the standard.

Right now, slabbed books sell for more because the "grade" isn't up for debate. It doesn't matter if the book grades at an 8 but is really a 7 or lower. That number is all that matters to most speculators. People are buying Silver Surfer 3 and Amazing Spiderman Annual 16 right now because of WandaVision. As much as a laugh at these people buying at the height of speculation, I know those prices won't drop any time soon.

Quote from: Buzzybean on February 22, 2021, 12:03:11 AM
...the scam has become the standard.

Sadly, yes. Most of the videos I see from members of the You Tube Comic Book Community feature collectors who seemingly feel like their books aren't validated until they get slabbed. The books are exactly the same as before, but those people can't wait to line the pockets of professional grading companies (usually CGC) so they can show off that slab and somehow feel like their comic is suddenly legitimized.  ::)

Quote from: John Pertwee on February 22, 2021, 10:17:45 AM
Right now, slabbed books sell for more because the "grade" isn't up for debate. It doesn't matter if the book grades at an 8 but is really a 7 or lower. That number is all that matters to most speculators.

The slabbed grade isn't up for debate to comic collecting sheeple, but if you don't run with the unquestioning herd the slab grade number gets heavily scrutinized. I understand what you're referring to though. Many collectors these days seem to feel there is a need for 3rd party pro grading no matter how sloppy, expensive, and slow, that service is. I'm still astounded at the way slabbing has taken over the hobby in two decades. No doubt so many people buying from eBay sellers and other online sources have only reinforced the slabbers' grip on the hobby. It does make books more sellable to collectors who can't examine them in person before buying. Then you have the sort who think their book isn't legit to brag about unless it's slabbed. Professional grading companies have made ridiculous amounts of money taking advantage of this situation, with no end in sight. It's become ingrained deeply into the hobby for so many collectors. They can't wait to submit a stack of books and throw a wad of money at graders who are probably laughing all the way to the bank.

Quote from: John Pertwee on February 22, 2021, 10:17:45 AM
People are buying Silver Surfer 3 and Amazing Spiderman Annual 16 right now because of WandaVision. As much as a laugh at these people buying at the height of speculation, I know those prices won't drop any time soon.

That's the weird part, the market doesn't correct the way it did for decades. Comics started being collected in the '60s, and heavily collected in the '70s. Even back then there were price spikes on books that would settle back down in time. Generally the newer the book the quicker it would cool off. Comics overall would rise in value well ahead of inflation, but it was a gradual rise. Now we're seeing certain books go up by multiples instead of percentage points, and though some have dropped back down they mostly stay much more expensive than before they spiked... then the next round of increases happen, and you're left with prices 5-10 times what they were on some books just 10-20 years ago. I started collecting in 1975 and for 35 years a collector could sell off some of his books and buy them back in 5 years without spending an obscene amount of money. Generally speaking, that doesn't apply anymore. Now, you could sell a key book like FF48 in mid grade for a grand and think you made out like a bandit, but if you want that book back in a few years you might have to spend 5 grand to get it. As this situation shakes down it looks like some books will be out of reach for most collectors, more and more of them as time goes on. There is no telling when these crazy price increases will finally end. The current market environment will probably persist for the next decade at least.

The latest lunacy is the ridiculous prices paid for Marvel trading cards from the '90s. Here's one YT vid (of many):

https://youtu.be/Qn0EckCynRs

Professional card grading company PSA seems to be the main reason for this exploding recently. Certain Marvel cards in PSA 10 started selling for stupid money and a lot of people started paying high prices for sealed boxes of the cards to submit to PSA hoping for high grades to flip. Chaos and hype ensues.  ::)

I have complete sets of all of these Marvel sets in binders in my basement, including the holograms and other chase cards. I put them directly into the binder 9 pocket sleeves when I bought them so many probably are very high grade. I plan to keep them and enjoy them just as I have for the last 3 decades. This crazy market situation is entertaining to keep up with though.

It seems like more and more areas of collecting are being affected by this madness of ridiculously high prices being paid for professionally graded (slabbed) high grade collectibles. Where will it end...who knows? I'm just sitting on the sidelines enjoying my collection watching the lunacy unfold.  ;)

I posted this here instead of in the trading card thread because the comic book characters are driving this latest mania.

I now look at the comic book community as a bubble. Buying and selling is now a game of hot potato. Buying high now is likely to end in tears for people that hold onto them thinking it is a retirement fund. Eventually that bubble will burst and people will be left holding the bag on some "high dollar" investments that have suddenly dropped below what they paid for them.

Most ten to twenty year old kids today don't care about comic books. Without a healthy wave of new customers, the hobby will decline.

I find it annoying and somewhat depressing that so many comic collectors today are so focused on slabs, grades, prices, investment potential, modern cover variants/ratios, that they seem to have lost the true enjoyment of collecting and reading comics. Now it's more about the hype and media appearances and MONEY than just following the characters and talking to other fans about the actual stories and art. At least by hanging onto my collection I can revisit my favorite characters' adventures anytime I wish, and read the books. Collecting was a lot of fun back in the '70s and '80s. My stuff let's me ride the Wayback Machine at will.

Quote from: John Pertwee on February 22, 2021, 10:17:45 AM
Right now, slabbed books sell for more because the "grade" isn't up for debate. It doesn't matter if the book grades at an 8 but is really a 7 or lower. That number is all that matters to most speculators. People are buying Silver Surfer 3 and Amazing Spiderman Annual 16 right now because of WandaVision. As much as a laugh at these people buying at the height of speculation, I know those prices won't drop any time soon.

What's the connection to Wanda Vision And ASM Ann #16?" I'm sure I have that in my files somewhere.

I was watching YT videos last night until 2am discussing the 1990 Marvel card set. Last year I sold my 1996 Marvel Masterpieces Boris & Julie set for $950 when I found out it was sought after. It was never a favorite set of mine. I always preferred their art in some of the other sets that were made back then. At the time I recall checking the value on the other 1990s card sets I have and they weren't doing diddly. I'd be more than happy to sell these except for the Jusko and Hildebrandts sets which I love.

I believe the current pricing environment for the comic book market is here to stay for awhile, but this Marvel trading card thing is so goofy and out of left field I seriously doubt if those high prices have staying power. The thing is that even if card prices retreat by a large amount it just depends on how high they blew up in the first place as to the landing spot when the smoke clears. If something increases to 4X then drops by half it still ends up double the amount it was to begin with...which is pretty much the situation with certain high demand comics nowadays, and it just keeps happening with the anticipation of the next big thing in the MCU.

Another thing is the snowball effect of higher prices catching the eye of big money investors who hype the stuff and blow it up even more. It's getting tougher all the time for normal collectors to simply fill runs, or even get a near-full run since more and more issues are becoming "keys" as more movies and TV shows plumb the depths of comic book history for story ideas and name recognition. Also, as first appearances of popular characters exceed the budget of most collectors they turn to second and third appearances, origin issues, classic covers, etc., and then that drives up demand and prices on those books.

My favorite thing about comics is reading and collecting the books for the stories and art but I have to admit it's entertaining to see the market in motion these days. It's like watching a cosmic superhero battle...things blowing up all over the place.

Quote from: Buzzybean on February 22, 2021, 09:25:30 PM
What's the connection to Wanda Vision And ASM Ann #16?" I'm sure I have that in my files somewhere.

First Monica Rambeau.

Another book going nuts now is Marvel's Star Wars #68 because of The Mandalorian.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1983-Marvel-Comics-STAR-WARS-68-CGC-9-4-NM-Boba-Fett-Mandalorian-NO-RESERVE-/193896610973?hash=item2d25237c9d%3Ag%3A6T0AAOSwE4tgLHCx&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/1983-Marvel-Comics-STAR-WARS-68-CGC-9-4-NM-Boba-Fett-Mandalorian-NO-RESERVE-/193896610973?hash=item2d25237c9d%3Ag%3A6T0AAOSwE4tgLHCx&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/6T0AAOSwE4tgLHCx/s-l1600.jpg)

The good thing about being a run collector from years back is that I already have most of these newly christened keys and they were purchased decades ago for very little. I have ASM Annual #16 and Star Wars #68 in high grade and bought them both OTR for cover price when they came out. They went into bags and boards immediately after carefully reading and over 20 years ago I put all of my books in Mylar bags and acid-free boards and boxes.

Even before I started collecting I was reading comics from 1963 at the age of four. The early purchases as a small child didn't fare so well but many of the books I bought OTR around 1970 and up survive in my collection to this day. Some of my OTR books I still have are Marvel Spotlight #2 in the FN range and Werewolf By Night #1 in the VF range. I have a high grade WBN #32 that I bought out of some dealer's long box for around 2 bucks, and a FN+ TOD #10 purchased for about the same. Also a high grade GSXM #1 that I picked up in a trade around 1981 for about $50 worth of stuff. The best way to beat the ridiculous prices nowadays is just to already have it from years back when it was cheap, though I realize that's only the case for long time collectors who managed to hold on to their books through the years (which isn't easy, life gets in the way). I just wish I had bought all of the books I wanted back when they were dirt cheap, and held on to what few I sold through the years. Still, after it's all shaken down through the years I can't complain. You hear terrible stories of people with big valuable collections who sold everything back in the '90s and early 2000s for a pittance compared to what they could get now. Those folks have serious reason to lament.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 23, 2021, 07:02:05 PM
First Monica Rambeau.

Ok, I wasn't aware Monica Rambeau appears in WandaVison. I always thought she was too powerful of a character...lol

I think I have that Fett book!

Black Panther books are pricey now. Here's an eBay listing for Jungle Action #6 (1st Killmonger).

https://www.ebay.com/itm/JUNGLE-ACTION-6-CBCS-6-5-FN-WHITE-Pages-1st-Appearance-KILMONGER/274691016173?hash=item3ff4dc45ed:g:qF4AAOSw7YRgMWOi (https://www.ebay.com/itm/JUNGLE-ACTION-6-CBCS-6-5-FN-WHITE-Pages-1st-Appearance-KILMONGER/274691016173?hash=item3ff4dc45ed:g:qF4AAOSw7YRgMWOi)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/qF4AAOSw7YRgMWOi/s-l1600.jpg)

$600+ for a CBCS (6.5) with Make Offer. The real reason I thought to post this is because of what I saw on a You Tube auction recently. A copy of Jungle Action #6 in CGC (7.0) sold for $900. Man, some of those guys get carried away in those YT auctions and pay out the rear for key books sometimes. I still need a few issues of Jungle Action to complete the run but I'm avoiding anything that's generally perceived as "hot" in the current market environment. If the prices drop to something acceptable in the next few years I'll pick them up, but if not I'll do without them. I gave up on getting "everything" a long time ago. It's a futile endeavor.

Here's a Fantastic Four #52 (1st Black Panther) in CGC (4.0) that sold for close to $800 w/shipping & tax a couple of days ago.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/FANTASTIC-FOUR-52-CGC-4-0-1st-Appearance-of-the-Black-Panther/254872724611?hash=item3b57992483:g:Y1kAAOSwUwRgLzPB (https://www.ebay.com/itm/FANTASTIC-FOUR-52-CGC-4-0-1st-Appearance-of-the-Black-Panther/254872724611?hash=item3b57992483:g:Y1kAAOSwUwRgLzPB)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/Y1kAAOSwUwRgLzPB/s-l1600.jpg)

I have a similar copy in my collection, but if I didn't have it I wouldn't pay that kind of money for it. Some people might think I should sell in that situation but I really regret selling some of my books a few years back and I'm just not doing it. If I sell keys in this pricing environment I may never get them back. I'm in a bit of a holding pattern these days regarding my comics. Later on when my situation changes I plan to deal in comics and other collectibles on a small scale and I'll be buying collections and selling duplicates while adding to my collection at much cheaper prices. Paying full retail for expensive comics these days is something I'll avoid. On the other hand just hanging on to expensive comics is probably a good move, especially if the books have meaning in your personal collection. If you do decide to sell them later I think the prices will continue to trend up for older established books (Silver Age and some Bronze keys). It appears that we're well past the "pricing bubble" theory in the current market. I hope I'm wrong and the bottom drops out of the back issue market. If that happens I'll buy up the books I want immediately at bargain prices. At this point though I don't see it happening.

Those prices are crazy.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 22, 2021, 06:59:17 PM
I find it annoying and somewhat depressing that so many comic collectors today are so focused on slabs, grades, prices, investment potential, modern cover variants/ratios, that they seem to have lost the true enjoyment of collecting and reading comics. Now it's more about the hype and media appearances and MONEY than just following the characters and talking to other fans about the actual stories and art. At least by hanging onto my collection I can revisit my favorite characters' adventures anytime I wish, and read the books. Collecting was a lot of fun back in the '70s and '80s. My stuff let's me ride the Wayback Machine at will.

Well said Double H.

Pics of some eBay lots I won recently of Silver and Bronze Age Charlton Horror comics:

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/ux8AAOSw4uBgIXBY/s-l1600.jpg)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/MhQAAOSwjs1gIWXf/s-l1600.jpg)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/UdMAAOSwwnlgIsMT/s-l500.jpg)

The Ghostly Tales issues are full of Ditko art. Charlton artists and writers were paid much less than Marvel and DC paid but had much more creative freedom owing to little editorial supervision. Those old Charltons remind me of fanzines of the time (though rated G for the most part). Charlton comics featured some really good art by guys like Steve Ditko, Joe Staton, John Byrne, Mike Zeck, and many more who were either already fan favorites or would go on to become such.

These books ended up costing me around $3 each and average around VG (4.0). I needed most of these for my runs so this was a good deal for me. I've been buying eBay lots of books like these for awhile and I'm starting to accumulate a good amount of duplicates that will go into my inventory to sell when I decide to do that later on. Buying books this way is one of the most inexpensive ways to fill runs nowadays. With the crazy price spreads on different grades these days I'm good with mid grade copies at $3 each as opposed to high grade copies at $15-$20 each (especially the way sellers routinely over-grade, you pay out the butt for a so-called NM copy and it shows up in VF or less). If you buy mid grade Charltons on BINs you end up paying $5-$10 each, so I like to wait for auction lots to come up. The demand for these books has risen in the last few years, though, so it's tough to get them for a buck each the way you could 10 years ago. Even very low grade Silver and Bronze books in POOR and FAIR conditions seem to sell for at least $1 each now on eBay, even coverless copies.

I'm still pecking away at those Silver and Bronze Age Horror/Monster books. I have most of the really expensive stuff bought years ago when everything was relatively cheap, like Marvel, DC, Warrens and other monster mags. But, I still need much of the Charlton, Dell/Gold Key, and other secondary companies' books. So many Horror comics were produced in the '60s, and especially the '70s, I'll be at it for a few more years and probably still not get all of it. It's fun trying though. I like Superhero, War, and some of the other genres of comics, but Horror is where my heart is.

Congratulations on your purchase! Charlton turned out some really fun comics in their time. It was refreshing to have a publisher outside of New York. From their plant in Derby, they could pretty much do everything- produce, print and distribute. It was a shame when the flood wrecked much of this facility. I think the record for worlds longest cover dialogue has to be held by The Many Ghosts of Doctor Graves #1! Of their horror comics Haunted was always a favorite of mine, due largely to Ditko's  ghostly host. Charlton was a great alternative to the big two ( Marvel and DC) long before Eclipse, Dark Horse, American Comics etc joined the market.

Outside of Charlton, Dell published some fun licensed UM books and Ghost and Grim's Ghost Stories are also great runs.

RF

After watching Wandavision last night, I went on to check the prices paid for this book and had a good laugh.

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 15, 2021, 04:13:03 PM
Yep. To beat it all the title "Fantasy Masterpieces" is prominent on the cover. I don't understand how anyone could throw that kind of money at something they obviously haven't researched. The Seller is either a poor con man or doesn't understand what he's selling. The Bidders obviously don't understand what they're trying to buy. Interesting as an unfortunate spectacle, it's like watching a multiple car pileup unfold.

I have noticed some silly prices on the Surfer reprints lately, but nothing like that auction posted above.

Here's a recent sale of the real deal.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Silver-Surfer-3-CGC-7-0-White-Pages-First-1st-appearance-Mephisto-Marvel-1968-/284178658612?hash=item422a5e3534%3Ag%3Af7YAAOSw1XpgHPIZ&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Silver-Surfer-3-CGC-7-0-White-Pages-First-1st-appearance-Mephisto-Marvel-1968-/284178658612?hash=item422a5e3534%3Ag%3Af7YAAOSw1XpgHPIZ&nma=true&si=ukEZmjEG65byrAISQlk25gnSMJ8%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/f7YAAOSw1XpgHPIZ/s-l1600.jpg)

Over $1500 for a CGC (7.0) with 27 bids. The prices just keep climbing on this book.

That is a fantastic set-up for your collection Hepcat!  Storage drawers that pull out for easy browsing! Aaaannnnddd a comfy chair! I am green w/envy.

Thank you! My comic room has been a delight to me for many years.

:)

Here's an interesting piece on which comic book is truly the most valuable book in existence. While the recent sale of Action number 1 set a record, the author entertains the idea that copies from the Allentown or Edgar Church ( Mile High) collections might, if they are ever offered for sale, be more valuable.

https://www.cbr.com/action-comics-detective-comics-most-valuable-comic-book/ (https://www.cbr.com/action-comics-detective-comics-most-valuable-comic-book/)

RF

Wow! It doesn't seem like that long ago that ACTION #1 was a half million dollar comic!

Quote from: Mike Scott on April 14, 2021, 12:13:23 PM
Wow! It doesn't seem like that long ago that ACTION #1 was a half million dollar comic!

I remember seeing ads in magazines and comic books selling it for a grand.

Quote from: John Pertwee on April 14, 2021, 07:51:07 PM
I remember seeing ads in magazines and comic books selling it for a grand.

That would have been a good while ago, though.  :)

When I was a lad, I had one of those oversized reprints of either Superman No. 1 or Action and left it on the couch. When my dad got home from work that night, he saw it and said, "Hey! I read this as a kid!"

I got very excited and asked him if he still had it. His response? "I dunno, I was a kid. I probably tossed it or gave it away after I read it." He was 10 in 1938.

Just grabbed these today:

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51146501415_a8640be930_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2kVDbXi)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51146501405_f307708811_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2kVDbX8)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51146179104_bd8bc1946c_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2kVBx9d)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51145619788_60961cb9ce_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2kVyESQ)

Those are awesome covers!

Dell did some fun comics. I collected their Ghost title because it was affordable and fun. I love the ending to the Creature story and how it leaves so many possibilities open. Too bad they didn't continue or that Dave Cockrum never got his Creature comic idea produced.
RF

Just returned from a visit to Boise, Idaho where I checked out a couple of stores there. I wanted to visit Kings Comics Castle, because it's listed as the city's oldest comic store. Unfortunately it's an appointment only business and the owner and I couldn't agree on a time that would work for both of us. Has anyone else been there? I'm curious what I missed out on.

We did visit Captain Comics where I found a decent buy on a Challengers of the Unknown 13. The store had a mixed supply of older comics, but you have to search through printed lists and request a clerk to bring out each issue that might be of interest. I found this process  a little laborious and that limited what I viewed and ultimately what I purchased.

Anyone else visited the city's shops or conventions?

RF

Since there's been nothing new posted to this thread in a while I thought I'd post some random thoughts about my recent collecting adventures.

HOS 92 still eludes me! I watch the  various eBay auctions come and go, but I'm reluctant to drop a grand or so for this comic. I don't buy slabbed books and the "raw" books are usually pretty beat up and still commanding 7- 9 hundred bucks ....

Lately, I've had great luck filling in DC runs of Witching Hour,  House of Mystery and other ( non- key) Books. I'm picking them up on average at 2.00 a copy. I use to think that was pricey for these books, but I forget how old they're becoming- me too for that matter.- Charlton books have been available and priced about the same.

I've found renewed interest in the Master of Kung Fu comics. Not because of the movie, but because of Moench' s writing and the Glulacy artwork. Zeck and even Jim Craig did some great work on these old books and it's fun to see them aping Jim Steranko.

Last, but certainly no least, I recently came across two old Robert Bell comic bags. They've yellowed with age and are not suitable for use, but I found myself sticking the bags into a modern comic sleeve! If you told 13 year old me I'd be "collecting" old comic bags in my 60's I'd have laughed you out of the room.  Maybe soon, some one will be sticking me into a preservative container. Until that time I'll continue to be fascinated with all things comic!
I remain,
Rex Fury

Quote from: Rex fury on November 07, 2021, 08:09:56 PM

HOS 92 still eludes me! I watch the  various eBay auctions come and go, but I'm reluctant to drop a grand or so for this comic. I don't buy slabbed books and the "raw" books are usually pretty beat up and still commanding 7- 9 hundred bucks ....

Lately, I've had great luck filling in DC runs of Witching Hour,  House of Mystery and other ( non- key) Books. I'm picking them up on average at 2.00 a copy. I use to think that was pricey for these books, but I forget how old they're becoming- me too for that matter.- Charlton books have been available and priced about the same.

Thankfully I picked up a NM H.O.S. 92 about 8 years ago before the book blew up.  I think I paid $40 for it. 
I've also been filling in most of my DC horror runs at anywhere from $2-25 a book, depending on the individual title worth and condition.  Most of my Charlton horror stuff has been $2-4 a book.  Most of the Gold Key horror and sci-fi I've been finding is really cool, but prices are all over the place.

Quote from: BigShadow on November 07, 2021, 08:49:30 PMThankfully I picked up a NM H.O.S. 92 about 8 years ago.... I think I paid $40 for it.

Tough to believe that any kind of dealer or semi informed person would have sold a House of Secrets 92 for $40 in 2013. I remember seeing it at comic cons for $400+ back in 2000 or so.

???

Quote from: horrorhunter on February 15, 2021, 11:05:08 AM
This is pretty unbelievable...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv (https://www.ebay.com/itm/silver-surfer-3-8-5/203273382532?hash=item2f5409aa84:g:mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv)

(https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/mqEAAOSwFsxgIdtv/s-l1600.jpg)

Currently up to $214.50 with 48 Bids (8 hours + to go) and 67 Watchers, but clearly pictured is the Fantasy Masterpieces REPRINT of Silver Surfer #3. The Seller is either a dumb crook or clueless, and the Bidders are bidding big bucks on a $10 reprint. The winner is the loser in this mess. Get educated before you drop serious money.  ::)

You know I feel no sympathy whatsoever for whoever bought/buys any such a reprint at a silly price. Quite simply a Silver Surfer fan or hardcore comic collector would see and know the difference at a glance. The bidders for this reprint are the dilettantes, the fast buck artists interested only in slabbing and flipping the comic for a big profit. As they say, the easiest people to scam are other scam artists. I actually really like seeing these fast buck artists get burned.

;)

Quote from: Rex fury on February 16, 2021, 10:21:19 AMI believe it was Don and Maggie Thompson who wrote the article "Too Many Turks", so at least some people were sounding the alarm back then.

I can't find that article online. Do you remember where and when it was published?

???

Hey Hep, I'm very glad to see someone posting on this thread again! I love to talk all things comics with fellow collectors. The article I referenced was from The Comic Buyers Guide, around the time Valiant released Turok 1. When I moved I cleaned out my collection of the CBG so I can't pinpoint the exact week for you ( the guide was still a newspaper at the time).

I'll occasionally read Shadowman when new projects show up on line. Other than that I don't follow the newer material from Valiant.

I'm currently enjoying the TV comics Dell released in the 60's ( I read Flipper just last night), and some of the old Christmas stories from various publishers. Anything in particular that your reading?

RF

Quote from: Rex fury on December 22, 2022, 10:39:04 AMThe article I referenced was from The Comic Buyers Guide, around the time Valiant released Turok 1. When I moved I cleaned out my collection of the CBG so I can't pinpoint the exact week for you ( the guide was still a newspaper at the time).

:o

Oh no! Comics Buyer's Guide was such a treasure trove of nostalgia/historical information! I wish I'd subscribed when I first became aware of Comics Buyer's Guide in the days when it was still a newspaper:

(https://www.comichron.com/pix/faq/cbg/cbg547.jpg)

Here's an excellent history of the Comics Buyer's Guide:

Comics Buyer's Guide: A Look Back - Comichron (https://www.comichron.com/faq/comicsbuyersguidehistory.html)

I also now wish that when I started to dabble in comic mags again back in 1972 during my university years I'd got back in full tilt. I got discouraged when I attended a con that was set up at the University of Western Ontario in late 1972/early 1973(?) but didn't quickly see any of the comics I'd treasured from ten or so years earlier. Even then Bronze Age Marvel offerings were predominant at dealers' tables.

Interesting how I'm now getting nostalgic not just about items from my formative years but about my early collecting years as an adult beginning in 1978-79 as well.

:-\

I'm currently going through the original Amazing Spider-Man run (things really start to pick up when Peter graduates high school), but the relentless onslaught of 60s slang can be a bit much.

I also just started the original Marv Wolfman/George Perez New Teen Titans. When I worked at the comic shop I had a bunch of customers speak very highly of it, but it hasn't quite grabbed me yet.

Yeah, I understand. I also find it difficult to read more than a couple of comics at a time in the Marvel Masterworks or DC Archives formats.

:-\

I hope your having fun rereading those old Spideys. My first memory of Marvel comics comes from Amazing Spider-Man 25. That's the story that hooked me on the company. I really enjoyed Steve Ditko's artwork and Stan lee's scripting seemed fresh and fun.

What about the "college " issues are you enjoying? The new look from Romita, or the progression of the characters?  Maybe something else?

RF

Quote from: Rex fury on December 31, 2022, 10:48:17 AM
What about the "college " issues are you enjoying? The new look from Romita, or the progression of the characters?  Maybe something else?

RF

All of the above. I liked Ditko's art, but I've always loved Romita's. The progression of the characters is probably the biggest for me. The melodramatic nature of Betty and Pete's relationship was driving me nuts. It seemed like every issue had an instance where a minor misunderstanding set off a giant "I knew he/she didn't love me" spiel. Gwen and MJ finally in the picture and Betty being engaged to Ned Leeds have settled that down.

As a kid romantic melodrama and character development in general was the last thing in which I was interested. It's adults who enthuse about those elements in comics.

:-\

I have just a few comics, mainly the Fantastic Four. I've got #'s 3, 12, 20, 50. Planning on getting #4 soon. Also have Iron Man #1, Spider-Man #3, #65 Journey into Mystery #89, Captain America #111 (signed by Steranko), Incredible Hulk #105 (my personal favorite), and a golden age Sub-Mariner (forget the issue# on that), Archie comics #3. I sold Spider-Man #50, Sub-Mariner #1, Batman #4 for a nice profit, which I used to buy some of the ones I mentioned here. It's not my main source of collecting, but I definitely enjoy what I've got.

JP

Quote from: Wolfman on January 02, 2023, 03:58:38 PM
I have just a few comics, mainly the Fantastic Four. I've got #'s 3, 12, 20, 50. Planning on getting #4 soon. Also have Iron Man #1, Spider-Man #3, #65 Journey into Mystery #89, Captain America #111 (signed by Steranko), Incredible Hulk #105 (my personal favorite), and a golden age Sub-Mariner (forget the issue# on that), Archie comics #3. I sold Spider-Man #50, Sub-Mariner #1, Batman #4 for a nice profit, which I used to buy some of the ones I mentioned here. It's not my main source of collecting, but I definitely enjoy what I've got.

JP

As long as you like what you're buying, any collection is a good one.

I got a couple of surprises in a western comic collection I just purchased.  The collection sold for roughly 100.00 dollars and was a mixed bag of titles and publishers. My first treat was that two of the comics were Timely's and both had Black Rider stories in them. I'm a big fan of the character and thought it was a neat coincidence!

Next I opened a Lash Larue  number 2 and found a copy of the real Lash Larue's obituary tucked inside the comic. Many of the issues in the collection had the initials P.N. written on their covers along with a month and day date (alas not a year, but most of the collection dates from '49). Larue passed in 1996, and I have to wonder if P.N. was a big fan who held on to issue 2 all those years in between?

Anyhow, that's why I collect comics; you never know what you'll find tucked away in them!

RF