Advice on Collecting Romance Comic Books

[stroszek]

I thought I'd call on the board's collective wisdom for a little advice. I am switching the focus of my collecting from super-heroes to a few other genres, including romance. A board search didn't turn up much aside from the excellent Matt Baker thread. I was also surprised at how little I found with a Google search for "collecting romance comics" and related searches. I found a few sites with long lists of books, but nothing sorted and nothing geared to collectors.

 

Are there any resources you would recommend for someone just getting into the genre? In the non-Baker category (he's a little beyond my wallet) what would be the top 25 or so romance books, key titles, etc. Any information and advice would be appreciated.

 

 

[comicjack]

Lb Cole romance covers are great and more affordable right now than Baker covers.Some board members have some wonderfull covers you can check out on the Lb Cole thread here in the gold forums and check the photo journals.a great resource.

[mrmyst]

Here's a fun way. Look thru the Photo-Journals and pick out what you want. Then...go after them.

[Moondog]

Michelle Nolan is an expert on Romance comics having collected them for 40 years. She wrote the definitive book on the genre, Love on the Racks. She's also very approachable and would be happy to give you any advice you need.

 

You can probably find her email address somewhere. I thought I had it but can't find it...

[mrmyst]

Michelle Nolan is an expert on Romance comics having collected them for 40 years. She wrote the definitive book on the genre, Love on the Racks. She's also very approachable and would be happy to give you any advice you need.

 

You can probably find her email address somewhere. I thought I had it but can't find it...

+1. I still dearly miss her articles in CBM.

[Doohickamabob]

When you say Top 25 romance books, do you mean by value, or quality of writing/art?

 

It's a shame a collector friend of mine is not on the CGC forums, because he's crazy about golden-age romance comics and could tell you a lot more than I could.

 

Here are some breakdowns by publisher:

 

Fox titles: My Story, My Life, My Past, My Secret Affair, My Love Affair, Strange Love, Women in Love, My Love Story, My True Love, My Confession, My Great Love, I Loved, Love Problems, Intimate confessions, My Desire, My Love Life, My Love Secret, My Secret Story, etc. These are not the highest quality, but they're quirky and have odd covers that are kinda funny 'n' collectible (and some you might never see come up for auction). As you can see, Fox did not hold back from titles that began with "My" or "I," and my theory is that they did this on purpose to dominate the center of the comics stand.

 

St. John (often with Matt Baker covers): Teen-Age Romances, Diary Secrets, Pictorial Romances, True Love Pictorial, Teen-Age Diary Secrets, Romantic Marriage, Cinderella Love, Teen-Age Temptations, etc. Some of the best romance comics here, esp. with Baker art.

 

Avon/Realistic: Realistic Romances, For a Night of Love (1-shot), Intimate Confessions, Sparkling Love, Romantic Love, etc. Lots of photo covers make these interesting, and the quality is pretty good.

 

ACG (American Comics Group): Romantic Adventures, more. I can't remember the titles but there are some good ACG romance titles.

 

Ziff-Davis: Cinderella Love (note: many titles later crossed over to St. John), Women in Love #nn, Perfect Love, Strange Confessions, etc. Not a lot of titles but the ones they did have are pretty good, often with cool painted or photo covers.

 

Quality: Love Letters, Flaming Love, Forbidden Love, Torchy (more comedy), Untamed Love. I'd list these as some of the rarest and most collectible after St. John. Lots of really cool photo covers, especially Forbidden Love.

 

Superior Comics: My Secret, others. I can't remember the titles but there are several. This publisher is like a Canadian version of Fox, often with really Baker-ish (or Kamen-ish) art on the covers.

 

EC Comics: Modern Love, A Moon, A Girl...Romance. These are the only EC romance titles but they're very good, and pretty tough to find, especially the latter of the two.

 

Timely/Marvel (more comedy than romance though): Nellie the Nurse, Millie the Model, Hedy De Vine, Tessie the Typist, Junior Miss, Lovers (Atlas), etc. Though Nellie, Millie etc. aren't "romance" they are really cute with lots of GGA etc., so they have a lot of appeal to romance fans. There are dozens of other titles such as Comedy, Joker, Gay, etc.

 

Star: (Various titles) My understanding is these are usually reprinted and repackaged material from the archives of Fox, which went belly up in 1949/50. The real draw is the original L.B. Cole covers, in his eye-catching poster-color style.

 

Other publishers: First Love (Harvey), First Romance (Harvey), Hi-School Romance (Harvey), Young Brides (Prize Comics), Brides Romances (Prize), Real Secrets (Ace), Romantic Hearts, Pictorial Love Stories, Love Journal, Bride's Secrets (Ajax), Daring Love (Gilmor), Darling Love, Romantic Confessions (Hillman), Cowgirl Romances (Fiction House), many more. This is not even close to a complete list, those are just some I had in a folder of romance covers I liked.

 

Really rare and valuable: Negro Romance, Daring Love #1, Diary Secrets (Giant Comics Edition), Strange Love #nn, Teen-Age Romances #8? 9? (the one with the "hold di ck" cover), Reform School Girl!, Burning Romances (Fox, 132 pages), All Great Confession Magazine (Fox, 132 pages), Throbbing Love #nn (Fox). I put "Negro Romance" first because it almost never shows up for auction, and when it does it goes for amazingly high prices. The other are mostly just some titles

that I have on my wantlist but am pretty sure I'll never get.

[BitterOldMan]

I collect Matt Baker and Bill Ward romance comics. Both were purchased within the last year.

 

Two of the most valuable covers by Matt Baker.

 

 

 

In my photobucket library by Bill Ward.

 

[Scrooge]

Michelle Nolan is an expert on Romance comics having collected them for 40 years. She wrote the definitive book on the genre, Love on the Racks. She's also very approachable and would be happy to give you any advice you need.

 

You can probably find her email address somewhere. I thought I had it but can't find it...

 

Moondog is 100% correct. You will not find any better book for what you are asking than Michelle's Love on the Racks.

 

 

Amazon Linky

 

It's not cheap but well worth it for the wealth of information therein. Michelle canvasses all publishers across all periods (that is, the book goes beyond the GA). She gives an overview of the titles and their publishing history as well as an analysis of the stories and drills down to some specific examples. No better way to know what you would like to collect. Beware that Michelle is old school so the focus will be on content, not cover.

 

The book is so full of information, it's almost overload at times so I'd suggest to read about one publisher then go check out the covers BUT most importantly the credits. Nothing is worse than buying an issue of Love Letters and finding that Ward had a story in the previous issue and not in this one. You can also try and chase themes in stories across titles. With the GCD and other resources, it's easier than it's ever been.

[stroszek]

Just a few hours and already some fantastic information. Thanks to everyone for recommending the Michelle Nolan book. I had already ordered Agonizing Love and had the S&K book, but didn't know about the Nolan. Thanks also for that great list, Doohickamabob. Obviously the first decision is to pick a small area or company to start with and see what I like best. I suppose for many of these runs you have to wait forever for high grade copies of even the "filler" issues to show up, so targeting mid-grades will probably keep me saner.

 

And I'll definitely sit down with the Photjournals and see what grabs my eye.

 

Man, those Baker covers are awesome, but that's for after I win the lottery.

 

 

 

 

[143ksk]

My favorite romance books to collect are the St. John/Baker titles, earlyYoung Love and Young Romance (with Simon and Kirby art) and the Timely/Atlas titles.

 

Here are a few covers I like:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[EC ed]

EC Comics: Modern Love, A Moon, A Girl...Romance. These are the only EC romance titles but they're very good, and pretty tough to find, especially the latter of the two.

 

Don't forget 'Saddle Romances'.... (thumbs u

[Scrooge]

Thanks also for that great list, Doohickamabob.

 

Yes, I found it a great synthesis as well to the exception of the Atlas segment:

 

"Timely/Marvel (more comedy than romance though): Nellie the Nurse, Millie the Model, Hedy De Vine, Tessie the Typist, Junior Miss, Lovers (Atlas), etc. Though Nellie, Millie etc. aren't "romance" they are really cute with lots of GGA etc., so they have a lot of appeal to romance fans. There are dozens of other titles such as Comedy, Joker, Gay, etc."

 

The comment is missing the true Romance titles of the '50's Atlas put out. Though by no means superior to contemporary competition, they are not worse either and let's you see some known artists stretch their pencils in this genre. Heck, check out the Love Romances 143 posted.

 

Another publisher that could also be broken out (and listed; it's missing) is Standard with neat books and stories. :thumbsup: Have fun.

[adamstrange]

Standard with neat books and stories.

Alex Toth's art for Standard is anything but "standard."

[BitterOldMan]

The great Frank Frazetta drew five classic eight-page stories in Personal Love 24, 25, 27, 28, and 32 from Eastern Color Printing Company.

 

Many older public domain comics are available on the digital comic museum.

[Arkadin]

The great Frank Frazetta drew five classic eight-page stories in Personal Love 24, 25, 27, 28, and 32 from Eastern Color Printing Company.

 

Many older public domain comics are available on the digital comic museum.

 

Personally, I love those Frazetta stories. They are insanely beautiful. The comics' version of a Douglas Sirk film - soap opera elevated to art.

[Doohickamabob]

EC Comics: Modern Love, A Moon, A Girl...Romance. These are the only EC romance titles but they're very good, and pretty tough to find, especially the latter of the two.

Don't forget 'Saddle Romances'.... (thumbs u

Hey, you're right! Dang I *knew* that and forgot it! Primarily because I never got my paws on a copy.

[Doohickamabob]

Thanks also for that great list, Doohickamabob.

Yes, I found it a great synthesis as well to the exception of the Atlas segment:

 

"Timely/Marvel (more comedy than romance though): Nellie the Nurse, Millie the Model, Hedy De Vine, Tessie the Typist, Junior Miss, Lovers (Atlas), etc. Though Nellie, Millie etc. aren't "romance" they are really cute with lots of GGA etc., so they have a lot of appeal to romance fans. There are dozens of other titles such as Comedy, Joker, Gay, etc."

 

The comment is missing the true Romance titles of the '50's Atlas put out. Though by no means superior to contemporary competition, they are not worse either and let's you see some known artists stretch their pencils in this genre. Heck, check out the Love Romances 143 posted.

I suspected I was missing some important stuff and thanks for filling in the gaps.

[keever]

Excellent summary Doohickamabob. Avon/Realistic also produced Campus Romances and some paired "one-shots" (according to the Registry Avon One-Shots set type) in addition to the For a Night of Love which you listed: Betty and her Steady, Going Steady with Betty, Complete Romance, and Women to Love which came into high demand (still is) 20+ years ago even though it is a reprint of Complete Romance.

[BB-Gun]

When you say Top 25 romance books, do you mean by value, or quality of writing/art?

 

It's a shame a collector friend of mine is not on the CGC forums, because he's crazy about golden-age romance comics and could tell you a lot more than I could.

 

Here are some breakdowns by publisher:

 

Fox titles: My Story, My Life, My Past, My Secret Affair, My Love Affair, Strange Love, Women in Love, My Love Story, My True Love, My Confession, My Great Love, I Loved, Love Problems, Intimate confessions, My Desire, My Love Life, My Love Secret, My Secret Story, etc. These are not the highest quality, but they're quirky and have odd covers that are kinda funny 'n' collectible (and some you might never see come up for auction). As you can see, Fox did not hold back from titles that began with "My" or "I," and my theory is that they did this on purpose to dominate the center of the comics stand.

 

St. John (often with Matt Baker covers): Teen-Age Romances, Diary Secrets, Pictorial Romances, True Love Pictorial, Teen-Age Diary Secrets, Romantic Marriage, Cinderella Love, Teen-Age Temptations, etc. Some of the best romance comics here, esp. with Baker art.

 

Avon/Realistic: Realistic Romances, For a Night of Love (1-shot), Intimate Confessions, Sparkling Love, Romantic Love, etc. Lots of photo covers make these interesting, and the quality is pretty good.

 

ACG (American Comics Group): Romantic Adventures, more. I can't remember the titles but there are some good ACG romance titles.

 

Ziff-Davis: Cinderella Love (note: many titles later crossed over to St. John), Women in Love #nn, Perfect Love, Strange Confessions, etc. Not a lot of titles but the ones they did have are pretty good, often with cool painted or photo covers.

 

Quality: Love Letters, Flaming Love, Forbidden Love, Torchy (more comedy), Untamed Love. I'd list these as some of the rarest and most collectible after St. John. Lots of really cool photo covers, especially Forbidden Love.

 

Superior Comics: My Secret, others. I can't remember the titles but there are several. This publisher is like a Canadian version of Fox, often with really Baker-ish (or Kamen-ish) art on the covers.

 

EC Comics: Modern Love, A Moon, A Girl...Romance. These are the only EC romance titles but they're very good, and pretty tough to find, especially the latter of the two.

 

Timely/Marvel (more comedy than romance though): Nellie the Nurse, Millie the Model, Hedy De Vine, Tessie the Typist, Junior Miss, Lovers (Atlas), etc. Though Nellie, Millie etc. aren't "romance" they are really cute with lots of GGA etc., so they have a lot of appeal to romance fans. There are dozens of other titles such as Comedy, Joker, Gay, etc.

 

Star: (Various titles) My understanding is these are usually reprinted and repackaged material from the archives of Fox, which went belly up in 1949/50. The real draw is the original L.B. Cole covers, in his eye-catching poster-color style.

 

Other publishers: First Love (Harvey), First Romance (Harvey), Hi-School Romance (Harvey), Young Brides (Prize Comics), Brides Romances (Prize), Real Secrets (Ace), Romantic Hearts, Pictorial Love Stories, Love Journal, Bride's Secrets (Ajax), Daring Love (Gilmor), Darling Love, Romantic Confessions (Hillman), Cowgirl Romances (Fiction House), many more. This is not even close to a complete list, those are just some I had in a folder of romance covers I liked.

 

Really rare and valuable: Negro Romance, Daring Love #1, Diary Secrets (Giant Comics Edition), Strange Love #nn, Teen-Age Romances #8? 9? (the one with the "hold di ck" cover), Reform School Girl!, Burning Romances (Fox, 132 pages), All Great Confession Magazine (Fox, 132 pages), Throbbing Love #nn (Fox). I put "Negro Romance" first because it almost never shows up for auction, and when it does it goes for amazingly high prices. The other are mostly just some titles

that I have on my wantlist but am pretty sure I'll never get.

 

I like the covers on some of the Fox romance comics.

Don't forget Dear Beatrice Fairfax

and Dear Lonely Hearts.

[BB-Gun]

High School Romance by Powell is pretty good.