Popular Post Hap Hazard Posted May 31, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted May 31, 2020 6 hours ago, rjpb said: As buttock mentions, this has long been a top-ranked classic cover of the genre. The grotesque image of the man's face and fingers rotting away from radium exposure has made it the most sought after Harvey horror book since at least the early 1990s. That doesn't mean you have to like it, I find plenty of "classic covers" to be overrated, in the PCH as well as other genres, but there are books with a decades long history of demand, and BCM #50 is one of them. There has been a recent elevation of many of the more run-of-the-mill covers that just a few years ago didn't get any special consideration, but thanks to a combination of GGA, skeletons, and creepy or odd settings, have become in demand. Perceived relative scarcity appears to play a role, though that can change when prices bring copies out of hiding. I'll admit to sometimes being perplexed as to why one cover with those collectible elements that make for an interesting, but not historically high demand cover, will sell for around a grand in 5.0 condition, and another for around $250, often from the same publisher. I'm not sure many of these more recent PCH classics will have the legs some of the old favorites have, though with mid-grade copies of many of the perennial classics covers routinely hitting the mid four figures, the newcomers may continue to look like bargains at only $1000 or so. BCM # 50 Purchased my copy in 1976. rjpb, vaultkeeper, waaaghboss and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayman Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 Plus Frazetta story and art is inside! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MusterMark Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 31 minutes ago, Sarg said: "Iconic" as a synonym for "great" is a recent fad, instigated by advertisers and PR firms, that's become a gross cliche. Nobody in the 1970s-2000 described the cover of any comic book as "iconic." The word "iconic" as applied to comics (and similar items) has the following components: exemplary, quintessential, representative, classical, supreme, important, historic. Each of these components requires a perspective and judgment based on the sufficient passage of time. So, for someone to have used the word "iconic" in the 1970s-2000 time frame would have (for the most part if not entirely) sounded absurd because there had not been sufficient passage of time (subjectively speaking) for the word to be used/applied. And now, there has, at least in my opinion, been sufficient passage of time (subjectively speaking). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post atomised Posted May 31, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted May 31, 2020 I just got this Spellbound in the current clink auction and they didn't give the book away. I just think this stuff will always be in demand, it's just cool. comicnoir, Black Bat, fifties and 4 others 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Bat Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 (edited) 14 hours ago, 956Ref said: Just to play devils advocate some of the counterarguments of why the books are not down is pointing to a few books that are "icons" or well known and saying "look its not down!" Also what makes a cover "iconic" other than the artist or pre-established community opinion. When a new collector finds their first favorite superhero, books with major events surrounding that hero or their arch-nemesis are keys and it is evident. They dont need to be told or influenced of that. With PCH I don't this directly translates, collector sees cool torture cover with art and drawings he likes so he purchases...decides he no wants to collect PCH, but asks where do I go after that one book? Collect the run? Collect the cover artist? Collect the Publisher? Most of the times they have no knowledge unless another PCH collector teachers or guides them. So then all new collectors get guided to the same books making them "hot or desirable". I didn't need anyone to tell me that after I started liking luke cage I needed to move on to Iron Fist...I naturally got there because of team up mags. The interest was organic and collecting driven by interest...There are not tons of collectors pushing those characters even less after the netflix iron fist show . Dude please, no one's pushing marvel characters? You're not being told or influenced? Superheroes? Luke Cage? Iron Fist? Team ups? Huh? Enough of this wildly_fanciful_statement. People collect PCH because it's wildly_fanciful_statement awesome. Period. The books are objects. Historic. Not just another wildly_fanciful_statement issue pulled from the zillions of books in the marvel team-up pile. You gotta want it, save or it and then actually find it. PCH feeds an entirely different appetite. If you aint got the hunger, then you aint gonna understand... Edited May 31, 2020 by Black Bat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fifties Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 15 hours ago, 956Ref said: Just to play devils advocate some of the counterarguments of why the books are not down is pointing to a few books that are "icons" or well known and saying "look its not down!" Also what makes a cover "iconic" other than the artist or pre-established community opinion. When a new collector finds their first favorite superhero, books with major events surrounding that hero or their arch-nemesis are keys and it is evident. They dont need to be told or influenced of that. With PCH I don't this directly translates, collector sees cool torture cover with art and drawings he likes so he purchases...decides he no wants to collect PCH, but asks where do I go after that one book? Collect the run? Collect the cover artist? Collect the Publisher? Most of the times they have no knowledge unless another PCH collector teachers or guides them. So then all new collectors get guided to the same books making them "hot or desirable". I didn't need anyone to tell me that after I started liking luke cage I needed to move on to Iron Fist...I naturally got there because of team up mags. The interest was organic and collecting driven by interest...There are not tons of collectors pushing those characters even less after the netflix iron fist show . I don't have a CLUE as to what you're talking about. This sub-forum is GOLDEN AGE, AKA '38 to '55 publication dates. I dunno who "Luke Cage" is, although there's an actor named Nickolas Cage, and Iron Fist? Well, there was a rock group called Iron Butterfly. That's about as close as I can get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimbo_7071 Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 (edited) 8 hours ago, Jayman said: You obviously don’t have to like every book others do but when you say things like this, well, if you can’t see why this would be a desirable book, then I can’t explain it to you. It has some interesting elements on the periphery, but I don't think the central figure is particularly well drawn...not Cole's best effort. (The pecs look especially odd.) I like the cover but not enough to pay what it's going for these days. Edited May 31, 2020 by jimbo_7071 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjpb Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 Cole was cranking out the covers in the early 1950s, and I find a lot of his Star stuff to look rushed and compositionally messy compared to his late 1940s covers. There are great covers from the Star era as well, but some are lacking for sure. I wouldn't put BB 112 as one of his best, but it's far from the worst either. jimbo_7071 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayman Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 3 hours ago, jimbo_7071 said: It has some interesting elements on the periphery, but I don't think the central figure is particularly well drawn...not Cole's best effort. (The pecs look especially odd.) I like the cover but not enough to pay what it's going for these days. That’s fair as I said, no one has to like them all. But give Cole some extra credit for his coloring choice on this one too! Can’t ignore that aspect! This cover would have popped off the newsstand back in the day. waaaghboss 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan. Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 Maybe the title of this thread should be renamed to, "What I collect rules and what you collect sucks." goldust40 and The-Collector 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimbo_7071 Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 1 hour ago, rjpb said: Cole was cranking out the covers in the early 1950s, and I find a lot of his Star stuff to look rushed and compositionally messy compared to his late 1940s covers. There are great covers from the Star era as well, but some are lacking for sure. I wouldn't put BB 112 as one of his best, but it's far from the worst either. Well put. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Man Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 6 hours ago, jimbo_7071 said: It has some interesting elements on the periphery, but I don't think the central figure is particularly well drawn...not Cole's best effort. (The pecs look especially odd.) I like the cover but not enough to pay what it's going for these days. I have never thought much of LB Cole as an artist. Years ago I had the opportunity of seeing several on his line drawn OA covers. I wasn’t really impressed. What he did excell at was his use of composition and color. Very unique. Hard not to recognize his printed work and appreciate it. aardvark88 and jimbo_7071 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buttock Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 13 minutes ago, Robot Man said: I have never thought much of LB Cole as an artist. Years ago I had the opportunity of seeing several on his line drawn OA covers. I wasn’t really impressed. What he did excell at was his use of composition and color. Very unique. Hard not to recognize his printed work and appreciate it. I agree entirely. Just doesn't do it for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Man Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 1 minute ago, buttock said: I agree entirely. Just doesn't do it for me. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I love Cole. I own most of his “classic” work and much of his not so classic stuff. His covers are for the most part, WAY better than the art and stories contained inside. Thusly, I have always bough a lot less of these books than I have books with better content. (I actually open and read my books)... jimjum12 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Hap Hazard Posted May 31, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted May 31, 2020 5 hours ago, rjpb said: Cole was cranking out the covers in the early 1950s, and I find a lot of his Star stuff to look rushed and compositionally messy compared to his late 1940s covers. There are great covers from the Star era as well, but some are lacking for sure. I wouldn't put BB 112 as one of his best, but it's far from the worst either. Like 114 better Jayman, IngelsFan, rjpb and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayman Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 50 minutes ago, Hap Hazard said: Like 114 better Agree. My personal favorite from the BBWT mini run! IngelsFan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
telerites Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 1 hour ago, Hap Hazard said: Like 114 better That was the last one I acquired to finish the run. I agree as far as the straight horror covers in the run. I think the sci-fi covers as a whole were better works than his horror run on these. I am big Cole fan (some of which stems from meeting him and how kind he was) but there are some covers like Richard @rjpb mentioned that are lacking and to me messier. Even though I do not collect them I like Cole's sports covers from the era. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Man Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 I'm pretty partial to these... waaaghboss 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjpb Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 2 hours ago, Hap Hazard said: Like 114 better Definitely among his best horror covers. I also like that the text block (pervasive on Star books) isn't boxed and blends in with the background Jayman 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tri-Color Brian Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 (edited) 15 hours ago, fifties said: I don't have a CLUE as to what you're talking about. This sub-forum is GOLDEN AGE, AKA '38 to '55 publication dates. I dunno who "Luke Cage" is, although there's an actor named Nickolas Cage, and Iron Fist? Well, there was a rock group called Iron Butterfly. That's about as close as I can get. Fifties, you are soooooo out of it...but i bet you can quote Leave It To Beaver episodes real good... "You're looking radiant today, Mrs. Cleaver"... Edited May 31, 2020 by Tri-ColorBrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
