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The edowens71 Comic Journal
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227 posts in this topic

Ed,

 

#1 :hi:

 

#2 This is seriously entertaining. I have delayed watching some shows catching up on this thread and have been totally enthralled. Highly anticipating the next episode. Please continue to the end!

 

#3 It is extremely educational. Have you considered teaching? :kidaround:

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The Internationals deserve their own group shot:

 

InternationalGroup.jpg

 

International Comics 1 has a clear impression burned into my pea brain. Right after Burrel Rowe bought the first large batch of Mile Highs from Chuck I visited his place to look at some comics. He had the Mile Highs piled in ten stacks, each about a foot high. On top of the first stack was International #1 so technically that was the first Church book I ever laid eyes one.

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Ed,

 

#1 :hi:

 

#2 This is seriously entertaining. I have delayed watching some shows catching up on this thread and have been totally enthralled. Highly anticipating the next episode. Please continue to the end!

 

#3 It is extremely educational. Have you considered teaching? :kidaround:

 

Phil! :o:headbang:

 

Thanks for stopping in the journal! Glad you're enjoying it :)

 

I must be doing something right here...getting a board post outta you takes some doing. :baiting::D

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International Comics 1 has a clear impression burned into my pea brain. Right after Burrel Rowe bought the first large batch of Mile Highs from Chuck I visited his place to look at some comics. He had the Mile Highs piled in ten stacks, each about a foot high. On top of the first stack was International #1 so technically that was the first Church book I ever laid eyes one.

 

:cloud9:

 

Any idea where that book is now? I've only ever seen two EC books identified as Church copies...and I have one of them. I read somewhere that Church bought most of the ECs he had secondhand...not original owner...but don't know whether that's true or not. Even still...wonder where they all are...did Burrel's handling of them result in losing track of the provenance?

 

While we're on the subject, here's my Church copy...the pickled freaks...unfortunately, it doesn't have Edgar's typical pencil codings on there...I wish it did:

 

css4_church_f.jpg

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International Comics 1 has a clear impression burned into my pea brain. Right after Burrel Rowe bought the first large batch of Mile Highs from Chuck I visited his place to look at some comics. He had the Mile Highs piled in ten stacks, each about a foot high. On top of the first stack was International #1 so technically that was the first Church book I ever laid eyes one.

 

:cloud9:

 

Any idea where that book is now? I've only ever seen two EC books identified as Church copies...and I have one of them. I read somewhere that Church bought most of the ECs he had secondhand...not original owner...but don't know whether that's true or not. Even still...wonder where they all are...did Burrel's handling of them result in losing track of the provenance?

 

My recollection is probably not complete, but I am certain that Burrel bought all of the ECs in the collection. Whether or not the runs were complete I don't know. I do know that Burrel integrated all of the Church books into his collection and he really never used the pedigree designation. If he had another copy that he thought was higher grade he kept that and sold the Church copy as if it was simply a high grade comic. Because of that there have been a lot of Church books spread out through the Houston area in collections with the owners having no idea. This was particularly true of the ECs. I remember buying a copy of Weird Fantasy 8 for about $75 way back in the late 70s. The book was perfect. And it had a distinctive date stamp. I later sold it. Looking back I am convinced it was the Mile High. I have no idea where it is now. I am pretty sure he sold the bulk of his EC collection to Steve Geppi around '81 or '82 along with the Planet run and others. I would love to be able to go back knowing what I know now. We just took it for granted that golden age comics were always going to be available in newsstand new condition.

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Been enjoying your EC journey Ed! Being a long time EC fan Addict my self it's fun to see some one else's addiction unfold. I once had a near complete EC collection (no giveaways). I was missing I think 3 or 4 books. Vault #12, Shock Illustrated #3 and a couple of the early funny titles. When the reprints started coming out, I kept the ones I liked the best and sold off the rest to buy stuff that I couldn't get in reprint form. I have very slowly been buying them back here and there.

 

Any interest in the Fan Addict send away stuff?

 

ecfanaddictkit_zps6xcewj5n.jpg

 

ecphotos_zpsnjhiaq2f.jpg

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Wow...been busy this last month...haven't had much chance to update the journal. :P A few things have happened in the collection...I'll throw a couple things out here shortly...

 

Been enjoying your EC journey Ed! Being a long time EC fan Addict my self it's fun to see some one else's addiction unfold. I once had a near complete EC collection (no giveaways). I was missing I think 3 or 4 books. Vault #12, Shock Illustrated #3 and a couple of the early funny titles. When the reprints started coming out, I kept the ones I liked the best and sold off the rest to buy stuff that I couldn't get in reprint form. I have very slowly been buying them back here and there.

 

Any interest in the Fan Addict send away stuff?

 

Thanks Robot! Doesn't surprise me that you almost completed the quest, as well...jump back in here! :D

 

As for the Fan Addict stuff...it sure is neat. I'm not actively pursuing it, but wouldn't mind picking up a few things here and there...

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First, an update to my previously posted TFTC run...

 

A great boardie sold me my first EC River City pedigree...thanks boardie! (worship)

 

tftc28a_f.jpg

 

That one upgrades my old copy...although it's not much of a "grade" upgrade, I'm happy to replace a non-pedigree copy with a pedigree copy any time! Here's the under:

 

tftc28b_f.jpg

 

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Next, an update to the list of missings, which completes a title run!!!!! :banana:

 

Another great boardie decided he could let his War Against Crime #4 go...coincidentally, that's the one I was missing! :D Thanks, boardie!!!! (worship)

 

warcrime4_f.jpg

 

Down to 18 17 missings now:

 

Across the Seas in a War Torn World

Church that was Built with Bread

Dandy Comics #2

Dandy Comics #6

Haunt of Fear #8

KO Punch

Mad #28 "with very useful Income Tax Guide" variant

Mad #28 "with a late and utterly useless Income Tax Guide" variant

Out of the Past a Clue to the Future

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 1st printing (40-cent cover price)

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 3rd printing (50-cent cover price)

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 6th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 7th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 8th printing

Reddy Kilowatt 1B (Reddy Made Magic, 1956)

Reddy Kilowatt 2B (Light's Diamond Jubilee, 1954)

Reddy Kilowatt 3B (Space Kite, S. Calif. edition, 1956)

Tales of Terror Annual #2

Two-Fisted Tales Annual #1

Two-Fisted Tales Annual #2

War Against Crime #4 :news:

Wonders of Wire Rope

 

To celebrate, my next post will feature the now complete War Against Crime run, with the normal statistics, etc...

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"Like most crime comics of its era, War Against Crime’s cover loudly proclaimed that the sordid tales it contained were “real stories from police records!” These stories were primarily about gangsters and gunsels who eventually got caught by the long arm of the law. Women played prominent roles in most of the stories, although usually either as the criminal mastermind themselves, or as the “no-good dame” whose own greed led to the doom of the mobster that she got her claws into." -atomicavenue.com

 

War Against Crime lasted 11 issues. Although the title was faithful to its pure crime orientation for the first nine issues, Bill started introducing horror into issue #10 with the first appearance of the Vault-Keeper, and the first Vault of Horror stories. (note: this was the same thing Bill did in Crime Patrol with the Crypt-Keeper). The horror theme progressed in issue #11, after which Bill canned this title. The first issue of Vault of Horror picked up where this numbering left off, with issue #12.

 

I bought my first issue of this title (#11) in June 2013 in a board charity thread (I've since upgraded that issue), and as noted above, I just completed the run this month with issue #4...thanks to another boardie.

 

I'd love to find upgrades for nearly all of these...problem is, nice copies are tough to come by. Gaines only kept file copies of issues 10 and 11...all the earlier issues have low census numbers (generally less than 10 copies each...sometimes less than 5). The only pedigree copies I know of in the 1-9 run are Crippens.

 

Here are the stats for my best copies of the 11-issue run:

 

Acquisition source:

3 from other boardies (27%) (shout-outs to stevemmg and PACOLE :headbang: )

5 from eBay sellers (46%)

3 from a couple different online comic sellers (27%)

 

Raw vs. Graded:

10 have never been graded by any grading company (91%)

1 has been graded by CGC (9%)

 

Pedigree Copies - 0 total : :cry:

 

Grade distribution:

Mean grade 5.9; Median grade 5.5

 

WarCrime_Feb2016.jpg

 

The group shot:

 

warcrime_group.jpg

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Although I don't have any pedigree copies to spotlight in the War Against Crime run, I do have one oddity...a copy from the "IRS Collection" (issue #5). Interesting bit of history here...the only comic I have from this, um, "collection." If you're interested, you can read the following cert for the details of the situation. If I'm going to have any book from this criminal's collection, it's cool that it's an EC crime comic :headbang:

 

warcrime5_irs_cert.jpg

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I've got a half a dozen or so. (No EC's) I remember when they were offered for sale. One of the first "pedigree" collections if you will. Like all pedigrees it had a good story so I bought a few books that I would have bought any way.

 

Funny that this should pop up. Was going through my pedigree boxes this weekend. I have 3 magazine boxes and they were getting a little tight so I pulled these out and sorted them into the regular "circulation" of my collection.

 

Wonder what happened to the guy?

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Although I don't have any pedigree copies to spotlight in the War Against Crime run, I do have one oddity...a copy from the "IRS Collection" (issue #5). Interesting bit of history here...the only comic I have from this, um, "collection." If you're interested, you can read the following cert for the details of the situation. If I'm going to have any book from this criminal's collection, it's cool that it's an EC crime comic :headbang:

 

warcrime5_irs_cert.jpg

 

Just like big government to step on a man's dream! :cry:

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Couple more recent pickups chip away at the list....

 

Snagged this off ebay for $25'ish...it's tanned and taped, but fills the hole until I can find a nice copy..the 50-cent 3rd printing:

 

picstoriesbiblecompnt_3b_f.jpg

 

Recently got outbid at auction on a pretty nice copy of this next one...then I immediately went to Metro and bought this copy straight up to make myself feel better about losing the auction copy. Again, could use upgrading, but this one will do for now. Jack Davis :cloud9: :

 

twofistedannual2_f.jpg

 

 

Down to 17 15 missing EC publications (pre-1957):

 

Across the Seas in a War Torn World

Church that was Built with Bread

Dandy Comics #2

Dandy Comics #6

Haunt of Fear #8

KO Punch

Mad #28 "with very useful Income Tax Guide" variant

Mad #28 "with a late and utterly useless Income Tax Guide" variant

Out of the Past a Clue to the Future

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 1st printing (40-cent cover price)

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 3rd printing (50-cent cover price) :news:

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 6th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 7th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 8th printing

Reddy Kilowatt 1B (Reddy Made Magic, 1956)

Reddy Kilowatt 2B (Light's Diamond Jubilee, 1954)

Reddy Kilowatt 3B (Space Kite, S. Calif. edition, 1956)

Tales of Terror Annual #2

Two-Fisted Annual #1

Two-Fisted Annual #2 :news:

War Against Crime #4

Wonders of Wire Rope

Edited by edowens71
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Couple more recent pickups chip away at the list....

 

Snagged this off ebay for $25'ish...it's tanned and taped, but fills the hole until I can find a nice copy..the 50-cent 3rd printing:

 

picstoriesbiblecompnt_3_f.jpg

 

Recently got outbid at auction on a pretty nice copy of this next one...then I immediately went to Metro and bought this copy straight up to make myself feel better about losing the auction copy. Again, could use upgrading, but this one will do for now. Jack Davis :cloud9: :

 

twofistedannual2_f.jpg

 

 

Down to 17 15 missing EC publications (pre-1957):

 

Across the Seas in a War Torn World

Church that was Built with Bread

Dandy Comics #2

Dandy Comics #6

Haunt of Fear #8

KO Punch

Mad #28 "with very useful Income Tax Guide" variant

Mad #28 "with a late and utterly useless Income Tax Guide" variant

Out of the Past a Clue to the Future

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 1st printing (40-cent cover price)

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 3rd printing (50-cent cover price) :news:

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 6th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 7th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 8th printing

Reddy Kilowatt 1B (Reddy Made Magic, 1956)

Reddy Kilowatt 2B (Light's Diamond Jubilee, 1954)

Reddy Kilowatt 3B (Space Kite, S. Calif. edition, 1956)

Tales of Terror Annual #2

Two-Fisted Annual #1

Two-Fisted Annual #2 :news:

War Against Crime #4

Wonders of Wire Rope

 

Sometimes you just have to settle for a while. It is always better to have a filler than no copy at all. On stuff that is real rare you might not ever get a chance for a better one.

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So, a bit of progress here...well...technically speaking, at least :D

 

Haunt of Fear #8 has no business being on my list of missings. In principle, it shouldn't be a tough book...I've just had a devil of a time getting my hands on a decent copy.

 

Over the last several months, I've put in 4-figure bids in two different auctions for high grade copies, and lost both times. :frustrated:

 

A couple weeks ago, I saw the worst copy I'd ever seen sitting in an eBay listing, with a $10 minimum bid + $4 shipping. I figured what the heck. I put in the $10 minimum bid. No one else ever bid on it...it arrived today. Hole in my collection technically plugged... :sumo:

 

But...boy, I sure could use an upgrade. lol It's the worst condition book in my entire house...cover is detached, and it's been abused. But, it's complete, seemingly unrestored, and there's no rust. I'm calling it a GD- (1.8). For $14 all in, how can I lose? lol

 

(as an aside...as you will see, this is the "brown" variant. I'm not sure what's going on here...seems like half the copies I see are brown, and the other half are green. The GFC copies are green, so I think that's the "true" color. Not sure whether these brown versions are the result of different ink used in part of the print run, of if they used to be green, then turned to brown as some of the color faded out hm )

 

So, I'm technically marking this frickin' book off my missing list. But, for the love of all good things, someone please sell me an upgrade...a nice 8.0-8.5 will do just great :wishluck::D

 

hof8_f.jpg

hof8_r.jpg

 

Down to 15 14 missing EC publications (pre-1957):

 

Across the Seas in a War Torn World

Church that was Built with Bread

Dandy Comics #2

Dandy Comics #6

Haunt of Fear #8 :news:

KO Punch

Mad #28 "with very useful Income Tax Guide" variant

Mad #28 "with a late and utterly useless Income Tax Guide" variant

Out of the Past a Clue to the Future

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 1st printing (40-cent cover price)

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 3rd printing (50-cent cover price)

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 6th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 7th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 8th printing

Reddy Kilowatt 1B (Reddy Made Magic, 1956)

Reddy Kilowatt 2B (Light's Diamond Jubilee, 1954)

Reddy Kilowatt 3B (Space Kite, S. Calif. edition, 1956)

Tales of Terror Annual #2

Two-Fisted Annual #1

Two-Fisted Annual #2

War Against Crime #4

Wonders of Wire Rope

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Another one knocked off the list today...the 8th printing of Picture Stories from the Bible Complete Old Testament :banana:

 

It's not particularly unusual to see an 8th printing pop up on eBay (where I snagged this one)...but it is unusual to find one that looks this nice:

 

picstoriesbiblecot8_f.jpg

picstoriesbiblecot8_r.jpg

 

Down to 14 13 missing EC publications (pre-1957):

 

Across the Seas in a War Torn World

Church that was Built with Bread

Dandy Comics #2

Dandy Comics #6

Haunt of Fear #8

KO Punch

Mad #28 "with very useful Income Tax Guide" variant

Mad #28 "with a late and utterly useless Income Tax Guide" variant

Out of the Past a Clue to the Future

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 1st printing (40-cent cover price)

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete New Testament 3rd printing (50-cent cover price)

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 6th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 7th printing

Picture Stories From the Bible Complete Old Testament 8th printing :news:

Reddy Kilowatt 1B (Reddy Made Magic, 1956)

Reddy Kilowatt 2B (Light's Diamond Jubilee, 1954)

Reddy Kilowatt 3B (Space Kite, S. Calif. edition, 1956)

Tales of Terror Annual #2

Two-Fisted Annual #1

Two-Fisted Annual #2

War Against Crime #4

Wonders of Wire Rope

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