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Jet Comics 1949 New York Star supplement is sub-mariner #28 with a different cover?
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11 posts in this topic

Hi folks, this is my first post of probably many as I've just come into some old comics.

I've searched the internet high and low trying to get information about this supplement from a newspaper called New York Star that only seemed to exist for two years. The main question I guess is, is this considered a marvel golden age comic. It seems to be Sub-mariner #28, except with a different cover and minus two ad pages which was released in Oct '48, this being Jan '49. It contains:

Three sub-mariner stories (a case of the king's ransom/kids! Kids! Kids!/crime makes the writer) and a Blonde Phantom story (the test of fear). The first panel of every story has a code, being SL-3323, 3522, 3382 and 3562. There is also a two page story titled 'Imagination' with the code SL-3125. On the front cover is art by Frank Frollo. 

Also included is a full page ad for a 25c beanie copter, a sub-mariner quiz page (3718), a page showing two half page ads, one being for a Simplex Portable Typewriter for $2.98 and a Juke box bank for $1.98, and a back page ad for the new York star newspaper. Every inside page is in colour.

So my questions are does this count as a marvel golden age, is it some kind of rare variant find, is it worth grading, does the SL stand for Stan Lee, anything you can tell me would be gratefully recieved. Also, if I was to grade it, is there such a thing as trimming the cover? It overhangs by about 4mm on the outer edge and doing so would drastically increase its presentation.

I have more comics with questions so this probably won't be my last post. Thanks in advance!

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Edited by SinocTheHodgeheg
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Welcome to the boards!

Let's see how much I can answer, I'm sure others will be able to chime in.  First of all, I was not able to locate your book at the Grand Comics Database, which suggests the book is not well documented at all.  So calling it a rare item is probably not wrong. 

From your description, my first guess is that it's a remaindered book with a new cover.  You mention two ads seem to be the only difference between this and the Sub-Mariner #28.  If those missing ads were on the cover (inside or out), that points towards it being remaindered.

Does the book have an indicia at the bottom of either the inside cover or the first page, or both?  That could help identify the book.

The one question I can answer definitively: do NOT trim the overhang.  Restoration like that would dramatically drop the value of the book in pretty much every case.

My best guess:  The Star, as a promotional item, bought a bunch of unsold comics, removed the original cover and put their own cover on them if the original wasn't already missing, and included them with the European edition of their paper to increase sales.  This could have been done either in the US before shipping the papers over, or if the issues were printed in Europe they could have bought some books sent over as ballast.

I couldn't even begin to guess at the value of the book; generally a good starting point for a remaindered book with a new cover like this is about 1/2 what a normal copy of the book would go for.  But the previously undocumented nature of this version could drive that up; I have no idea how much.

Hope this at least gives you a starting point!

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I'm not familiar with this book, but I found this on an British auction site:

https://www.andersonandgarland.com/auction/lot/1259-roly-poly-comics-etc/?lot=217164&so=0&st=&sto=0&au=326&ef=&et=&ic=False&sd=1&pp=10&pn=38&g=-1

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I wouldn't get excited about that realized price (£400) as it's likely because of that Three Ring Comics #3, a British edition of Pep 22 (1st appearance of Archie). (I'm too lazy to look, but I swear I remember @catrick339 selling a copy of that book recently)

I also found this, which has a book called 'Force Comics"-- the same type of supplement, with the same cheesy logo, from the same time period and the same cover artist.

https://comicvine.gamespot.com/forums/gen-discussion-1/time-travel-to-the-comic-racks-of-1948-1715634/?page=1

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Edited by stock_rotation
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1 hour ago, stock_rotation said:

Now I'm less sure about these being remaindered books, because this issue is one month earlier than the Jet Comics in the original post, and according to the GCD, the contents match Sub-Mariner #27.  So maybe they are specifically reprints (or simultaneous printings) of Sub-Mariner.

https://www.comics.org/issue/529440/

The New York Star went out of business in January of 1949; so it's possible that the issue you had had less distribution than the Force Comics issue.  The newspaper is mostly remembered (if at all) for being the first paper to feature Walt Kelly's Pogo as a comic strip.

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Thanks all for your replies. I'll try and answer some of the questions I can.

First, I will not be trimming the cover! On closer inspection on the cover, it is clearly the wrong size for the pages (please see photos). And on even closer inspection, there are two pairs of staples, a pair for the inside pages, and a pair attaching the cover. 

As for the indica, there is none.

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Edited by SinocTheHodgeheg
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The second set of staples make it almost certain that the interiors are remaindered; there's no reason for two sets if the cover was always with the book.  So the fact that there were two Sub-Mariner issues in order is probably just a fluke.

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On 7/20/2020 at 4:36 PM, stock_rotation said:

I'm not familiar with this book, but I found this on an British auction site:

https://www.andersonandgarland.com/auction/lot/1259-roly-poly-comics-etc/?lot=217164&so=0&st=&sto=0&au=326&ef=&et=&ic=False&sd=1&pp=10&pn=38&g=-1

201451-0-medium.thumb.jpg.e0643422b25649ce3354d2dccd98eb40.jpg

I wouldn't get excited about that realized price (£400) as it's likely because of that Three Ring Comics #3, a British edition of Pep 22 (1st appearance of Archie). (I'm too lazy to look, but I swear I remember @catrick339 selling a copy of that book recently)

I also found this, which has a book called 'Force Comics"-- the same type of supplement, with the same cheesy logo, from the same time period and the same cover artist.

https://comicvine.gamespot.com/forums/gen-discussion-1/time-travel-to-the-comic-racks-of-1948-1715634/?page=1

4808658-513485.jpg.09c99492217c96ee836366730c7757a0.jpg

There was a Three Ring Comics by Spotlight as well. Not sure what the exact connection is.

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