Most valuable ashcans? 0

[rabidwolf]

The most valuable golden age comics are common knowledge for virtually all golden age collectors, but what about those ashcans? 

[rabidwolf]

Anyone bidding on the 9.0 Superman Ashcan in the comicconnect auction.

Wondering where this will end up being it predates Superman 1.

For whatever reason having a hard time attaching the link 

[sfcityduck]

Mark ("Esquirecomics") Zaid and Gary ("Moondog") Colabuono are the authorities on ashcans.  

The list above is a bit out of date. 

Strangely, the demand for ashcan's is less than you'd think.  Probably because (1) they are not comic books but production/legal materials, (2) the interior contents only rarely have anything to do with the cover (notable exception is Fawcett Thrill and Flash), and (3) sometimes the cover has nothing to do with the title (many titles secured using Boy Commandos 1 cover art).  Having said that, I think they are super cool!

My GUESS as to the most valuable ashcans would be one of the following:

* Fawcett Thrill and Flash nn (1st App. of Capt. Marvel as Capt. Thunder);

* Wonder Woman 1 (1 only(?) with cover art from Sensation 1 and WW story from Sensation 2), 

* Double Action 1 (1 only, myth that turned out to be real);

* Federal Men nn. (1 only, earliest ashcan from 1936 and S&S).

My GUESS is that the value of the ashcans of Action 1 and Superman 1, at auction, would be less than Superboy, Superwoman, Supergirl and maybe even Superhombre because those are rarer than Superman ashcan.

[rabidwolf]

Thanks for the additional information. Interestingly I saw the Wonder Woman ashcan is being auctioned by ComicLink this month as well. 

Yeah the Flash 1 always interested me as it is the only ashcan I can think of that is the first true appearance of a major character before the actual comic came out. 

Edited August 7, 2018 by rabidwolf

[lou_fine]

8 hours ago, rabidwolf said:

For whatever reason having a hard time attaching the link 

Here you go:

https://www.comicconnect.com/bookDetail.php?id=772289

Wonder if it'll beat the $90K mark that this copy was able to get when it changed hands back in 2007?  

[telerites]

For anyone that hasn't seen Moondog's thread from 2011 when he posted all or most of his collection and the thread about the sale that lou mentions.

[sfcityduck]

Once again, I'm aghast at the misinformation auctioneers say to puff a book.  For the Superman 1, CC writes:

Quote

The Superman ashcan edition is arguably one of the most important comic books in existence, as it's the first time that the iconic Superman logo ever appeared on the cover of a comic. ... The logo was created by legendary DC Comics designer Ira Schnapp, who devised many, if not most, of the famous logos for DC comic books well into the 1960s. 

If you want to know why I'm aghast, read this great article on the Superman logo:

https://www.supermanhomepage.com/comics/comics.php?topic=articles/Superman-Word-Logo

The most obvious reason is that the logo on the ashcan was not the logo used on Superman 1 or the logo subsequently designed by Ira Schnapp that became the iconic logo in use for 50+ years.  So why is the auctioneer trying to sell this comic based on the logo?
 

[IngelsFan]

On 8/6/2018 at 4:30 PM, sfcityduck said:

Mark ("Esquirecomics") Zaid and Gary ("Moondog") Colabuono are the authorities on ashcans.  

The list above is a bit out of date. 

Strangely, the demand for ashcan's is less than you'd think.  Probably because (1) they are not comic books but production/legal materials, (2) the interior contents only rarely have anything to do with the cover (notable exception is Fawcett Thrill and Flash), and (3) sometimes the cover has nothing to do with the title (many titles secured using Boy Commandos 1 cover art).  Having said that, I think they are super cool!

My GUESS as to the most valuable ashcans would be one of the following:

* Fawcett Thrill and Flash nn (1st App. of Capt. Marvel as Capt. Thunder);

* Wonder Woman 1 (1 only(?) with cover art from Sensation 1 and WW story from Sensation 2), 

* Double Action 1 (1 only, myth that turned out to be real);

* Federal Men nn. (1 only, earliest ashcan from 1936 and S&S).

My GUESS is that the value of the ashcans of Action 1 and Superman 1, at auction, would be less than Superboy, Superwoman, Supergirl and maybe even Superhombre because those are rarer than Superman ashcan.

Federal Men? I’m not familiar with that one. Do you have a pic of it you can post? I love seeing the early (pre/non hero) ashcans.

[sfcityduck]

1 hour ago, IngelsFan said:

Federal Men? I’m not familiar with that one. Do you have a pic of it you can post? I love seeing the early (pre/non hero) ashcans.

Gary and Mark did an article on ashcans for one of the Price Guides.  The below low quality image is from the Grand Comic Database, which has this to say about it:

Quote

Ashcan comic produced to secure trademark of title and logo. Only known copy in DC Comics archives. Contents contain 16 pages from New Comics (DC, 1935 series) #2 and 3. Cover and indicia verified by Steve Korte, DC librarian in 2013. Data and title information for DC ashcans from Gary Colabuono, used with his permission.

[rabidwolf]

54 minutes ago, sfcityduck said:

Gary and Mark did an article on ashcans for one of the Price Guides.  The below low quality image is from the Grand Comic Database, which has this to say about it:

That’s pretty cool

[rabidwolf]

Well the Wonder Woman ashcan sold for just over $57,000 on Comiclink.

will the Superman ashcan on Commiconnect top that tomorrow? 

[rabidwolf]

$83,000 for the Superman

[Chicago Boy]

Whoa. Not my bag but cool piece 

[Moondog]

Here's a list off the top of my head of the last known sales:

Superman Ashcan $90,000 (changed hands this week for $83,000).

Wonder Woman $57,668 (changed hands in 2003 for $17,250)

Action Comics $50,000

Double Action 1 / Double Action 2 (the pair sold for $80,000 last year)

Fawcett Thrill 1 $41,040

Action Funnies $21,000

World's Best $21,000

Fawcett Flash 1 $20,000

Superboy $16,250

Supergirl $16,250

All-Star $15,600

DC Flash $11,500

 

[BarristerBaker]

34 minutes ago, Moondog said:

Here's a list off the top of my head of the last known sales:

Superman Ashcan $90,000 (changed hands this week for $83,000).

Wonder Woman $57,668 (changed hands in 2003 for $17,250)

Action Comics $50,000

Double Action 1 / Double Action 2 (the pair sold for $80,000 last year)

Fawcett Thrill 1 $41,040

Action Funnies $21,000

World's Best $21,000

Fawcett Flash 1 $20,000

Superboy $16,250

Supergirl $16,250

All-Star $15,600

DC Flash $11,500

 

DC Flash ~$20K in May on Heritage. Long a grail of mine, as a Flash collector. 

[bpc3qh]

The 9.6 Nickel ashcan is currently listed on eBay, with the seller listing two other ashcans--any chance they're genuine?

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Nickel-Comics-1-Ashcan-Fawcett-1940-CGC-NM-9-6-WP/122319965161?_trkparms=aid%3D888007%26algo%3DDISC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D52935%26meid%3D7427061106bc41caa3acea0453a868f8%26pid%3D100009%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D2%26sd%3D351936730319%26itm%3D122319965161&_trksid=p2047675.c100009.m1982&autorefresh=true

Edited September 3, 2018 by bpc3qh

[rabidwolf]

2 hours ago, Moondog said:

Here's a list off the top of my head of the last known sales:

Superman Ashcan $90,000 (changed hands this week for $83,000).

Wonder Woman $57,668 (changed hands in 2003 for $17,250)

Action Comics $50,000

Double Action 1 / Double Action 2 (the pair sold for $80,000 last year)

Fawcett Thrill 1 $41,040

Action Funnies $21,000

World's Best $21,000

Fawcett Flash 1 $20,000

Superboy $16,250

Supergirl $16,250

All-Star $15,600

DC Flash $11,500

 

Moondog any chance you have the grades on these. I remember the Thrill was a 9.0 and the Fawcett Flash was a 4.5 as I was following both. The others I don’t know. I was hoping to get the Flash as it was a lower grade copy and hoped it would end under 15k but got out of my range. The 9.4 Fawcett Flash went for around 27k about 4 or 5 years ago which seems like a steal now. Thanks. 

Edited September 3, 2018 by rabidwolf

[Peter G]

21 hours ago, Moondog said:

Here's a list off the top of my head of the last known sales:

Superman Ashcan $90,000 (changed hands this week for $83,000).

Wonder Woman $57,668 (changed hands in 2003 for $17,250)

Action Comics $50,000

Double Action 1 / Double Action 2 (the pair sold for $80,000 last year)

Fawcett Thrill 1 $41,040

Action Funnies $21,000

World's Best $21,000

Fawcett Flash 1 $20,000

Superboy $16,250

Supergirl $16,250

All-Star $15,600

DC Flash $11,500

 

I think I remember when that Superman Ashcan sold for 90k. That must have been 2004 I think. Talk about a lousy investment. 

[batman_fan]

I have never seen photos of the interiors for the ashcans.  Anyone have photos?

[Moondog]

On 9/2/2018 at 9:15 PM, BarristerBaker said:

DC Flash ~$20K in May on Heritage. Long a grail of mine, as a Flash collector. 

Right.  I saw that and forgot.  Solid book and price.