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Different value for Canadian editions of Golden Age comics?
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24 posts in this topic

I don't know if this has been discussed before here, so I am starting a new topic.

 

What is the reason for Canadian versions of comics sometimes having a somewhat lower market value -- even though the comic's cover and content is the same?

 

I've seen this with a few different titles, such as Mad Comics, where the U.S. version will go for a high price, but the same exact Canadian issue in similar condition doesn't fetch nearly that price.

 

It would seem to me that the Canadian version would be even more rare than the U.S. version. Other than the difference in some of the ads, what is going on in terms of collectors' thoughts on the matter that would lead to a lower market value? (Is paper/printing quality affected?)

 

I'm not saying this has been true of all Canadian versions of U.S. comics, but I've noticed it for some.

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Canadian versions of E.C.s go for less primarily because they are printed on inferior stock. Doubt that applies to all other publishers, however.

The Superior EC reprints are on less glossy cover stock,but I find it thicker.

I know on the DC books a story is often missing.

Sometimes there are less pages,but no adds..even blank interior front and back covers.

There are Canadian editions by a company,Masters Comics I can't wrap my mind about yet..these are odd...seem exactly the same as American..but say Printed in Canada,and are by Masters.I have Dark Mysteries,The Beyond and a few Whiz and Captain Marvel titles as well as several oddball romance,western..

Edited by porcupine48
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Seems like a variation of the discussion about why UK editions of SA books typically sell for less. I guess the short answer is that in both cases, while the non-U.S. editions are scarcer, they are generally seen as less desirable by collectors.

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then there is the rare Canadian Timely annuals..

 

Didn't it take quite a while before it became clear that these were Canadian? Not that that realization has reduced their values, so far as I know.

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then there is the rare Canadian Timely annuals..

 

Didn't it take quite a while before it became clear that these were Canadian? Not that that realization has reduced their values, so far as I know.

 

No ads and black and white interiors meant it was likely that fandom would've picked up quite quickly on these books being Canadian...

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then there is the rare Canadian Timely annuals..

 

Didn't it take quite a while before it became clear that these were Canadian? Not that that realization has reduced their values, so far as I know.

 

No ads and black and white interiors meant it was likely that fandom would've picked up quite quickly on these books being Canadian...

 

You're probably right, but I have a half-recollection of it taking a while. Maybe because they were so scarce that few people had seen them and because it seemed odd that they would have been published only in Canada.

 

But more and more, I remember stuff that didn't actually happen! :D

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then there is the rare Canadian Timely annuals..

 

Didn't it take quite a while before it became clear that these were Canadian? Not that that realization has reduced their values, so far as I know.

I thought the MMC was always known as a Canadian book,but the Cap. took some time...or,I have them reversed?Seems i've always known the Marvel as Canadian only,but comic facts get jumbled haha.

The Canadian White Whiz Comics are interesting as they seem to bring higher dollars than the U.S. editions.They are different and oddball though.

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Then again, it does vary from book to book. With some books, like Cap 74, the Canadian edition is as sought after as the U.S. version. And then there's the rare Weird Suspenstories books from E.C. which command very high prices...

 

Canadian reprints with original series names can sell for more than the US comic they reprint. There is generally more interest in Canadian books with US content if they don't look like the US version.

 

A book like Cap 74 probably benefits from being an unusual version of a high demand book, but in general the Superior editions of superhero Timely books seem to have a following.

 

I'd say the least desirable are the DC and other editions from the late 40s/early 50s that have fewer pages than their US counterparts. As I recall some of the Prize publications fit this category as well.

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I've got a few EC's printed in Canada, and some of the same issues printed here. I understood that the Canadian publishing method involved using paper printing plates, vs metal ones here. Don't know for sure, of course, but I can tell you that there is a distinct difference at least with the interior pages. Those printed in Canada tend to have less contrast and color brilliance, and as mentioned, the paper stock seems to be of a lesser grade.

The one good thing, of course, is that the Canadian EC's are cheaper to buy... ;)

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then there is the rare Canadian Timely annuals..

 

Didn't it take quite a while before it became clear that these were Canadian? Not that that realization has reduced their values, so far as I know.

 

No ads and black and white interiors meant it was likely that fandom would've picked up quite quickly on these books being Canadian...

 

You're probably right, but I have a half-recollection of it taking a while. Maybe because they were so scarce that few people had seen them and because it seemed odd that they would have been published only in Canada.

 

But more and more, I remember stuff that didn't actually happen! :D

 

I think you're right, as I recall it also had to do with long repeated claims that folks remembered seeing them for sale in the NYC area. Canadian books also weren't on the radar of many collectors, and I'm not so sure the association between B/W interiors and Canadian editions would have been as obvious twenty or thirty years ago.

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I was trying to find an example, but some Canadian comics were edited/censored. I seem to remember Lady Luck #89. The US version prominently features a handgun pointed at Lady Luck. The Canadian version removes the handgun from the cover entirely. I passed on a Canadian version a couple years ago and now wish I owned it for just that reason (or at least a scan). Anyone have a copy to show to help me prove my memory is not bad? I also remember the editing of other firearms on some covers (but not all), but cannot remember which ones.

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Apologies for the necrobump, but this thread was the only one pertinent to what I was looking to discuss about, and it was not locked from discussion.

I purchased a few copies of old Tom & Jerry Comics issues released by Dell from a seller, who had a mixture of American and Canadian versions. Some were explicitly specified as Canadian, some not. I thought there wouldn't be any difference either way, but it turns out I was wrong.

In hindsight, the Canadian issues, although they had the same covers, only had half the page count. So obviously, much less content. I assume that these Canadian versions were cut down by Dell to save on the costs of sending/licensing out comics to another country back in the day. Since Canadians would not have had easy and/or affordable access to the American versions, they would have believed that their local variants were complete and unadulterated, when in fact they were not. (I do not have any copies of the original American issues at this time to compare and see what the differences are within.)

Fortunately, the Canadian variants explicitly state "Canadian Edition" on their front covers, so there is no need to worry too much about getting the wrong version. However, I only noticed this pattern on the older Tom & Jerry Comics, not the newer ones. But that might be because ever since issue #88 in 1951, all Tom & Jerry Comics were shortened from 52 pages to 36 instead. It is possible that Dell had crunched the numbers and found this to be the ideal page count to produce without having to screw over specific markets.

Now, I'm going to have to purchase the American copies to replace these ones (which will serve as fillers for now), and then resell the Canadian copies once I do.

Hopefully this information is helpful to some people.

Edited by stormflora
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Yep, during the "52 page" era (which ran from 1944 to 1951) many/most Canadian editions of DC titles only had 36 pages.  Here are just two examples.  Can you see where the "A 52 PAGE MAGAZINE" blurb has been replaced with "PUBLISHED IN CANADA"?

Det-135b.thumb.jpg.9cbf9a5340c026cdb041cce9cbb1f89f.jpg Det-135CA.thumb.jpg.ffabeae82c1be984e6fd9df970256a3a.jpg

Det-140.thumb.jpg.1952226b7f9c0aeeb4e1f119d66667dc.jpg Det-140CA.thumb.jpg.05d7677773dff24d256a7734e587f7f1.jpg

Ace did exactly the same thing.  Here's just one example.  Note how the "FULL 52 PAGES" and "BIG CASH PRICES" blurbs on the Ace Magazines edition have been replaced with "ADVENTURES OF ORVILLE" and "Canada's Newest and Best Comics" on the Ace International / Trans-Canada News edition (with no other changes to the central cover image).

Andy-21.jpg.fa2bbe9707aca6a2b7b29739a995f53a.jpg  Andy-21CA.jpg.9285a91c826a70dedf24d992e325b0d8.jpg

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I think those last comparisons are great for providing an example as to a potential "why" for collectors not seeking them as actively (or paying as much).  Look at those cover inks.  The Canadian printing techniques are often not quite on par with the US counterpart books. Misaligned color plates, poorer inks, etc.  Of course, these same printing problems happen with US comics, but I personally don't see it as often as the Canadian comics.  I think "Fifties" post above (from 2017!!) is pretty much spot-on.  And in this current age of slabbing, the cover appearance is vital.  For me, I am happy to go seek out rarer versions of books at lower prices.  :bigsmile:

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On 11/19/2023 at 1:36 PM, Yorick said:

I think those last comparisons are great for providing an example as to a potential "why" for collectors not seeking them as actively (or paying as much).  Look at those cover inks.  The Canadian printing techniques are often not quite on par with the US counterpart books. Misaligned color plates, poorer inks, etc.  Of course, these same printing problems happen with US comics, but I personally don't see it as often as the Canadian comics.  I think "Fifties" post above (from 2017!!) is pretty much spot-on.  And in this current age of slabbing, the cover appearance is vital.  For me, I am happy to go seek out rarer versions of books at lower prices.  :bigsmile:

Honestly, I don't think that the printing quality can be faulted too much with Canadian editions, certainly not the occasional misalignment of color plates. There are just too many examples of out of register U.S. produced comics from the GA era to judge. Poorer quality inks? Perhaps, but without knowing the specifics of the brands or types of printers inks each press employed it's hard to gauge from a book to book color strike. If different color choices were employed in Canadian variants, that would certainly factor in to value fluctuations. If the dialogue changed in the stories, that would also be a consideration to evaluate.  Different ads in Canadian editions shouldn't be a factor in values, but certainly of interest due to the variation. The one element which definitely could and should account for how collectors gauge values is story content. Obviously a 52 page comic contains 16 more pages of story content than a 36 page comic. What would be interesting to see listed on the Canadian reissue's grading label is what's actually missing from the U.S. edition, but alas, that kind of information to my knowledge has never been noted.

My long-winded two cents (caffeine added!) :insane: 

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