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Superman #1 in 7.5 Brings $250,000

Started by ultimatevenom,

37 posts in this topic

ultimatevenom

ultimatevenom

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FROM SCOOP

 

The second highest-graded, un-restored copy of Superman #1, which was certified by CGC at 7.5, has sold for a quarter of a million dollars in private transaction, Scoop has confirmed.

 

There are 44 copies of 1939's Superman #1 on the CGC Census. Only 14 of that number, however, have not had any restoration work done on them. An 8.0 is the only known un-restored copy graded higher.

 

6132_16261_2.jpg

 

Quite a nice book crazy.gif

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jimm94

jimm94

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Very nice. It's a good move on comgeek's part to publicize this sale shortly before the Batman # 1 9.0, JLA # 1 9.4, and Flash #105 9.4 are officially made available on Comiclink. It certainly helps establish a new benchmark of serious money for high-grade extant DC #1's.

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Forbush-Man

Forbush-Man

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Is there any way to tell the difference between the 1st, 2nd & 3rd printings of Superman #1 ?

 

That seems like a crazy price considering the grade, but it's not my money.

 

 

Ooh! That is a good question! 893scratchchin-thumb.gifpopcorn.gif

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Rip

Rip

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Yes, it has to do with an ad date inside the issue, I believe Pedigree man posted the article on the boards a while back 893scratchchin-thumb.gif

 

Edit here it is

 

 

The following article was written by David Bachman and appeared in the apa mailings APA-I #63 and Interlac #103. It is reproduced here without permission!

 

 

"Superman #1.1?

"When, in recent years, DC Comics went back to press for second printings of the better-selling issues of its top titles, the move was perceived by some as a departure from a supposedly iron-clad policy of producing only original editions of its newsstand comic books. However, I have recently discovered evidence suggesting that DC's practice of producing second printings of specific issues dates back much further than, I think, most readers had previously suspected. Indeed, the practice appears to date back at least as far as the 1939 version of Superman #1.

 

"I have recently been spending time with my microfiche copies of Golden Age comics and my microfiche viewer, all from MicroColor International. I have in mind a number of objectives as I read these old comics, not the least of which is the simple enjoyment of the stories and art. Another objective has been to get some sense of the publishing schedule of the early DC, and more specifically to determine the publishing month in which DC's early quarterly comics were published. (DC's monthly comics clearly present no problem in this regard. I recall from my earliest days of comic-book collecting that DC's bimonthly titles always listed two months in the indicia, and were scheduled by the former month; I assume that this practice was also followed in DC's earliest days. Since DC's earliest quarterly comics were dated by season, rather than month, I have always been slightly curious about the publishing month in which those comics were scheduled.) It was this second objective which led me to my discovery.

"Action Comics #13 carried a house ad for Superman #1, specifying its on-sale date as May 18th [1939]. This did not tell me whether Superman #1 should be included in the June cover-date publishing schedule, or the July schedule, since I did not know the on-sale date of the June or July issue of Action Comics. Superman #1, on its last interior page (not the inside back cover), bore a house ad for Action Comics #14. MicroColor's microfiche copy of Superman #1 advertised Action Comics #14 as being 'Now on Sale'. For some reason, I decided to compare the page with its reprints in Famous First Edition #C-61, and in Superman Archives Vol. 1. Both of those reprints said that Action Comics #14 would be 'On Sale June 2nd'.

 

"I noted the inconsistency without assigning much meaning to it. I had (and have) no doubt regarding the authenticity of MicroColor's microfiche copy, since it was simply photographed from an genuine Superman #1. I initially assumed that DC had made an error in reprinting that issue. But as I reflected on the matter, I came to a different conclusion. I decided that Superman #1 must have gone through at least two printings, and reasoned that if I could find non-reprint evidence of a Superman #1 advertising an on-sale date of June 2nd for Action Comics #14, my hypothesis could be proven. This led me to call some of you APA-I members (past and present) in search of that comic. My thanks to Rich Morrissey, Howard Keltner, and Randy Scott for your assistance in my research. It was Randy who first confirmed for me by telephone that he had microfilm confirmation of the 'On Sale June 2nd' version, and Howard who first sent me evidence by mail of that version in the form of a pre-MicroColor microfiche copy of Superman #1. Copies of both versions appear in this zine (albeit in negative, since the only decent fiche printer I could find was stuck on negative).

 

"The order of publication of these two versions can be deduced intuitively. The version announcing that Action Comics #14 would go 'On Sale June 2nd' was obviously published prior to publication of Action #14, while the version stating that Action #14 was 'Now on Sale' was obviously published concurrently with, or subsequent to, Action #14. Hence (and assuming there were not more than two printings!), the 'On Sale June 2nd' version is the first printing, and the 'Now on Sale' version is the second printing.

 

"There are other anomalies surrounding this first Superman issue, although these may be widely known. Superman #1 was not, in fact, Superman #1. It bore no number and no date (except a copy-right date), either on the cover, or in the indicia. More significantly, it bore no notice of second-class mail permit in its indicia, an item that must be carried by any publication that will be published periodically and sent to subscribers via second-class mail. The house ad in Action Comics #13 referred to it as 'a big complete Superman book' rather than as a new title. And the house ad for Superman #2 in Action Comics #17 stated, 'Your overwhelming approval of the first magazine has prompted us to publish this second one....' Cumulatively, these items convince me that the publication we refer to as Superman #1 was actually intended to be a one-shot publication. Its 'overwhelming' success, then, apparently prompted two reactions by its publisher: (1) publication of a second printing, and (2) a decision to initiate a new quarterly title featuring only Superman stories.

 

"I am very interested in learning whether this has previously been known in fan circles. None of the people I talked with had ever heard that Superman #1 went through two printings. If this information is not new to any of you, please let me know."

 

 

Mr. Bachman also provides this tidbit of info:

 

Soon after I published this information in APA-I, I received a package from Robert Klein. The package contained photocopies of writings of [former DC attorney] Michael Uslan .... I learned from Mr. Klein's package that there were three, not merely two, printings of Superman #1. I never did find a way to determine whether any particular copy of #1 was a first, second, or third printing. I think the most supportable statement we can make is that a copy with "Now on Sale" is definitely NOT a first printing, and that a copy with "On Sale June 2nd" is definitely NOT a third printing.

 

Alan

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Aman619

Aman619

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apparently even with all the copies of all 3 printings, Superman #1 is actually considered scarce in this grade and better. There were a few threads back then where all tried remembering whether there was a nice HG Supe 1 in any of the Pedigree collections. Turned out that only the MH/Church had one.... and that was it. And - - the MH has color touch even tho it got a generous 8.0 blue label. SO this copy is considered "by those who know" to be the second best copy even tho its really a ratty looking 2nd best copy of the 4th most valuable comic book. Its a much bettrer buy at strict guide.... but who'd gonna let it go for that?

 

good timing for the Bat 1 on Comiclink is right!! Should make 250K for the 9.0 a given...

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tth2

tth2

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Very nice. It's a good move on comgeek's part to publicize this sale shortly before the Batman # 1 9.0, JLA # 1 9.4, and Flash #105 9.4 are officially made available on Comiclink. It certainly helps establish a new benchmark of serious money for high-grade extant DC #1's.

 

I was thinking the same thing. 893scratchchin-thumb.gif

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rjpb

rjpb

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From the Audit Bureau of Circulation (thanks to Russ Maheras of the Grand Comics Database), regarding Superman #1:

#1 FIRST PRINT 500,000

#1 2ND PRINT 250,000

#1 3RD PRINT 150,000

TOTAL 900,000

 

While this would indicate that 2nd & 3rd printings should be rarer than 1st printings, they are still later printings and as such should, by traditional collecting standards, be worth less, if they can be determined.

 

As Rip's post seems to indicate, it is possible to determine that some copies are not 1st printings. If I were to spend $250,000 on a Superman #1 (which , we should remember, is mostly a reprint book containing the Superman stories from Action #1-#4), I would sure want to know whether or not it might be a later printing!

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PovertyRow

PovertyRow

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From the Audit Bureau of Circulation (thanks to Russ Maheras of the Grand Comics Database), regarding Superman #1:

#1 FIRST PRINT 500,000

#1 2ND PRINT 250,000

#1 3RD PRINT 150,000

TOTAL 900,000

 

While this would indicate that 2nd & 3rd printings should be rarer than 1st printings, they are still later printings and as such should, by traditional collecting standards, be worth less, if they can be determined.

 

As Rip's post seems to indicate, it is possible to determine that some copies are not 1st printings. If I were to spend $250,000 on a Superman #1 (which , we should remember, is mostly a reprint book containing the Superman stories from Action #1-#4), I would sure want to know whether or not it might be a later printing!

 

Interesting stuff there! Any indicatros of when the subsequent printings were released?

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tth2

tth2

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As Rip's post seems to indicate, it is possible to determine that some copies are not 1st printings. If I were to spend $250,000 on a Superman #1 (which , we should remember, is mostly a reprint book containing the Superman stories from Action #1-#4), I would sure want to know whether or not it might be a later printing!

 

I`d think CGC would note on the label if it were a 2nd or 3rd print.

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