Dear comics. How much do the most expensive comics cost? Batman # 1 - $ 530k

Despite the fact that the recent "boys" have already matured, their literary predilections have remained the same. But what has changed dramatically is the price of the issue.

In 1992, a big fan of comics and visionary collector actor Nicolas Cage acquired Action Comics No.1 for $ 82.5 thousand. He purchased the rare edition from executive director Comic Connects by Stephen Fisher. In 2000, the celebrity's apartment was robbed. Among the stolen items was this very magazine.

Since then, the hype has died down and the missing comic seems to have been forgotten. Exactly ten years. The Action Comics No.1 story resurfaced in 2012 when an anonymous seller requested $ 2.89 million for that very first issue. It is known that there are nine copies of Action Comics No.1 in the world (one was found walled up in the wall of a dilapidated house in Minnesota), eight of them belong to private collectors who do not plan to sell printing treasures in the near future.

Nicolas Cage was the first to respond to the sensational news, and for a year now he has been trying to prove that the very copy that was stolen from him was put up for sale.

What's so special about the old magazine?

First of all, it was this number of the popular American series that changed appearance comics.

Secondly, this is the first independent appearance of Superman in public and the story of his adventures in a separate publication authored by Jerome Siegel and Joe Schuster. There is no mention of Krypton in the magazine, it is only known that the alien child was sent to Earth by his father from "one distant planet" destroyed by cataclysms. He grows up in an orphanage, and at school he learns that he has super strength and super speed, can jump higher and farther than anyone (no hint of flying). With age, he chooses a name for himself - Clark Kent (formed by the merger of the names of two movie stars - Clark Gable and Kent Taylor), solves convoluted murders and saves the reporter Lois Lane from criminals. And all this on 13 pages!

The second most expensive comic book and popular Marvel character - Detective Comics 27 (1939), worth $ 2.57 million, has gone not far from the favorite. At one time, its cost was also only 10 cents. This is the first book in which (albeit as a minor character) Batman is mentioned, and the setting is Gothan City.

Rounding out the top three is Superman 1 for $ 715,000. Since Action Comics No.1, the protagonist has undergone several changes and transformations. The "re-release" of the first episode went brilliantly: Superman got a foster family, additional superpowers and many super enemies. This is the beginning of the story of the "man of steel" in a more familiar sense for us, which laid the foundation for the famous film character. Which added even more value to the rare edition during open sales in 2011.

While not all comic books are worth the money that collectors hope to bail out for them, some editions can really be worth a fortune. And what is most interesting, many owners are ready to give them up for next to nothing, unaware of the true cost. One lucky person was even lucky to find the first issue in the wall of his own house. Action comics in which Superman debuted. You might be interested in the article 10 Most Valuable Collectibles. In front of you 10 most expensive Marvel comics.

There are, of course, Captain America editions, which are even more expensive, but given the popularity of the X-Men, the first issue of the series dedicated to them has every chance to grow in price further. The idea of a comic book about a whole team of superheroes belonged to Stan Lee, who did not want to write another story of the formation of a separate character. " X-Men"First saw the light of day in September 1963 and presented to the public five mutants, who are now considered the main characters of the series:

Angel,
Of the beast
Cyclops,
Iceberg,
Wonder Girl (aka Jean Gray).

At the same time, readers met with Professor X and Magneto. The title of the series was explained in the monologue of Professor Xavier: the letter X (X) - in honor of the extra abilities of mutants, which are not endowed ordinary people... The cost of a copy of the first edition in good quality estimated at approximately $ 85,000.

9. Amazing Spider-Man # 1 - $ 110,000

The first release of Spider-Man, while falling short of the cost of some of the other Marvel comics, definitely deserves a spot on this list. After the first appearance in " Amazing Fantasy # 15 Spider-Man has his own comic book series by Stan Lee and art by Steve Ditko and Jack Kirby.

The first issue was published in March 1963 and in addition to Spider-Man himself and his acquaintance with the Fantastic Four, it introduced a supervillain nicknamed the Chameleon. Currently, the first issue of the famous series is estimated at $ 110,000.

« Red Raven”, Which went to press in August 1940, is notable for the fact that it is the only issue of the series printed under this title. Starting from the second issue, the series was printed under the title “ Human torch", And the Red Raven himself disappeared from the pages of comics right up to 1968 and again appeared before readers only in the forty-fourth issue" X-Men", Already in the role of a villain.

The approximate cost of the rare first issue is $ 124,000. There is, however, an attempt by a comic book collector named Chuck Rozanski to sell a copy for half a million. His efforts were even included in the 2011 Comic-Con documentary.

The third edition of Captain America, authored by artist Jack Kirby, was published in May 1941. The plot of the comic is about the revenge of the Nazi villain Red Skull Bucky Barnes and Captain America. What makes this release special is that it is the first Marvel edition Stan Lee worked on..

Peru Lee owns a text story called “ Captain America foils the traitor's vengeful plans", In which, by the way, the superhero first uses the famous round shield as a boomerang. Those wishing to purchase the issue will have to fork out: the cost is estimated at $ 126,000.

Fantastic Four, released in 1961, was conceived as Marvel's answer to DC's mega-popular Justice League superhero series. Human Torch, Invisible Lady, Thing and Mister Fantastic gained their super powers after being exposed to radiation on board spaceship where they were on a research mission.

Children Silver Age comics, these superheroes have cemented Marvel as a competitor to DC. The cost of the first issue of the story about the legendary four hovers around $ 160,000.

The ninth installment of this series presents the first example of a crossover in the history of Marvel: the collision of heroes from different story series... Namor the Submariner and the Human Torch face off in an epic battle, the first round of which ends in a draw ... so readers will have to wait for more in the next episode.

The cover art for the issue was drawn by legendary comic book illustrator Bill Everett, “ father»Namor and Daredevil. It is his participation that the publication owes its high cost (although so far the maximum price that has ever been paid for it is $ 107,000).

The Incredible Hulk, the brainchild of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, debuted in the comic of the same name in May 1962. The alter-ego of the Hulk, an introverted physicist named Bruce Banner, in an attempt to save a boy who accidentally wandered into a test site, is hit by a radiation bomb.

As a result of severe radiation, he gains the ability to transform into the Hulk, a huge green monster, whose character entirely depends on the psychological state of Benner. Today, a copy of the edition will cost the collector about $ 228,000.

3. Amazing Fantasy # 15 - $ 405,000

« Amazing adult fantasy"- the name given to the anthology of comics published by Marvel in 1961-1962. It was here, in the final installment of the series, authored by Lee, Ditko and Kirby, that the now famous superhero Spider-Man first appeared.

In those days, Peter Parker was perceived as a rather non-standard hero: an ordinary neurotic teenager with completely everyday problems. Today, for the right to own the comic, which first introduced the world to Spider-Man, will have to shell out more than $ 400,000.

2. Captain America # 1 - $ 629,000

The cover, released in March 1941 of the comic strip, was truly topical: it depicts, no less, the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, receiving in the face from Captain America. Marvel was still called Timely Comics at the time, and artist Joe Simon worked on the release in addition to Jack Kirby.

Narrated a comic strip about how brave Steve Rogers, nicknamed Captain America, and his faithful friend Bucky Barnes are fighting the Nazis, catching spies and defending in every possible way home country... Those wishing to purchase the first issue of Captain America (it is worth noting that it is steadily growing in price) will have to spend about $ 629,000.

1. Marvel Comic # 1 - $ 859,000

Like the first one " Captain America", This comic was released back when the publishing house was called Timely Comics, back in 1939. Its heroes were Namor the Submariner, Ka-Zar the Great and the Human Torch (significantly different from the later version, which was included in the Fantastic Four), who first appeared before the public.

The first edition of eighty thousand copies was sold out almost instantly - like the second, ten times more than the first. The edition, which would have cost a dime in 1939, is now worth over $ 850,000.

Collecting comics is not easy. It is necessary to store individual publications in special packaging, protect from light and dust, and hope that their condition will eventually turn out to be good enough to bring the owner a profit. Plus, not all collectible editions end up becoming, in fact, collectible. Most remain in the boxes.

Comic book evaluations are generally the responsibility of CGC (Comics Guaranty LLC), the main independent comic book evaluator. The assessment is given on a ten-point scale, and a lot depends on it. As you can see from the list below, where the most expensive copies of famous comics are indicated, a few tenths - and the comic is already twice as expensive. Who knows, maybe the first issue of "Funny Pictures", lying around on the mezzanine of your grandmother, is worth something?

10) Incredible Hulk # 1, CGC score 9.2; Price $ 326,000

The Stan Lee and Jack Kirby comic, with the first appearance of the Hulk in 1962, has become one of the most coveted in recent years. There is only one copy in the world with a CGC rating higher than 9.2 and it was sold in August 2014. Almost immediately, in July, another copy was sold for $ 320,000. Within a few months, more than three hundred thousand for the comic with the first appearance of the radioactive monster was paid twice. After such a jump in price (the same copy was sold two times cheaper five years ago), other issues of the series, of different quality, appeared on the market.

9) Captain America Comics # 1, CGC score 9.2; Price $ 343,057

Continuation of the popular science top-10 series.

The comic that first appeared in The Incredible Hulk was sold in August 2014 on comicconnect.com for a record $ 326,000. This figure turned out to be twice the amount for which the same copy was sold the previous time. Moreover, a year later, another of the same comic was sold for 320,000, which clearly confirmed that there was no chance at the first sale. The condition of both copies was estimated at 9.2 points, but it is known for certain that there is another Incredible Hulk # 1, which is even better preserved.

The comic is best known for its famous cover scene where Captain America ruthlessly knocks out Hitler. By the way, it so happened that the issue was released in 1941, a year before Pearl Harbor. The item, estimated at 9.2 points, was sold to a private collector in 2011. Someone has another, more attractive one - 9.6 points.

This is the very first comic book published by today's industry giant. Most likely the price is understated, since the sale was carried out back in 2003 with an estimate of 9.0 points. If the owner thought to sell the copy today, he would have benefited much more thanks to inflation and the recent increase in interest in vintage comics. Not to mention the more highly rated copies (and they do exist).

First appearance of Iron Man on paper. It is curious that this copy, estimated at an incredible 9.6 points, was sold in 2012 - exactly at the time of the release of the first picture from the Avengers saga.

Here The Flash and Hawkman first appeared, and the first editions are always of particular value. The copy was sold in 2012 (score - 9.6), when The Flash did not have any significant popularity in broad sense... However, today with the release of the series, as well as the adaptation of the Justice League franchise, the cost of this comic could seriously increase.

The 50 cents at the end of the total is a clear indication of a live auction rather than an online auction. The deal was concluded in 2012, giving the publication a rating of 9.8 points. The best preserved copies simply do not exist. There is one more, but with the same rating. It should be noted that the 9.6-point edition was sold the year before for half the price indicated. In such cases, even a tenth point can be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

And here we already see exactly that very first appearance of Batman. True, a completely different fact is more interesting here: for this money they bought a copy, estimated only at 8.0 points. At the time of this transaction in 2010, the indicated value was the highest in the entire history of sales of such products. Needless to say, serious collectors have copies with grades above 9 points in their hands. Although over the past 20 years they have never been put up for auction. If someone suddenly decides to sell such a comic, then, without a doubt, it will be a new world record.

The debut of the familiar, the most popular Marvel superhero. No one doubted that this edition would be worth big money... However, even the experts were amazed at the amount that ComicConnect offered in 2011 for an edition with a rating of 9.6 points. Moreover, the last record for a comic book in the universe was "only" $ 300,000.

That's why he and Superman to be the first. The absolute record for today belongs to the publication in which a superhero from the planet Krypton first appears. A copy with a rating of 9.0 points was bought on Ebay (!) In 2014. This amount was more than a million higher than the previous record set by Nicolas Cage in 2011. Several collectors are known to own specimens with the same rating. In addition, it is rumored that some lucky one has Action Comics # 1, estimated at 9.2 points ...

Original material

Coming in the late 1930s, comics have gained immense popularity. Meeting your favorite superheroes marked golden age, and today some issues are estimated at hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars.

Superhero franchises are generating big income in the entertainment industry today. The Avengers (2012) grossed over $ 623 million, and The Dark Knight (2008) grossed over $ 533 million, making it one of the highest grossing films ever. Other films featuring Spider-Man, Iron Man, and Thor have had great success. All these franchise heroes started with regular comic books over 75 years ago.

10. Captain America Issue # 1 - $ 353k

This comic was introduced to the Captain of the Avengers in March 1941. The first issue reveals the origins of Captain America: High-ranking officials inject a young man with a serum that gives him super-strength and turns a teenager into a patriot who can replace an entire army in the fight against the Nazis.

Its main enemy is the Third Reich, and on the cover Captain stabs Hitler in the face... This issue of Jack Kirby and Joe Simon sold on August 9, 2011 at an auction for $ 353,000.

9. Fighting Comics # 7 - $ 405k

Combat Comics from creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster were released on April 18, 1938. They are considered the progenitors of modern comics, showing the traditional superhero for the first time in non-funny episodes. Part of the special value to Issue 7 (December 1938) was given by a pun that was never repeated: in this story, Superman wears yellow boots.

And although he appears on the cover in a familiar way, this is only the second image of him in the history of comics, which increases the price of the publication. The 7th issue of Combat Comics sold for $ 405 thousand.

8. Amazing Fantasy # 15 - $ 442k

Comic Amazing fantasies, (originally titled "Amazing Adult Fantasies"), published by Marvel comics in 1961-1962, revived in 1995 and 2000. Many writers and artists had a hand in its creation, and as a result, the humorous format was replaced by a more intricate one, largely thanks to the twisted endings of the artist Steve Ditko and writer-editor Stan Lee.

7. Comics All-American # 16 - $ 497K

Series All-american comics became the flagship of the company All-American Publication, later merged with the other two into one Dc comics... From 1939 to 1948, 102 issues were published, featuring most of the main characters.

Issue # 16, July 1940, debuted one of DC's most illustrious characters. Green light created by writer Bill Finger and artist Martin Nodell. In 1946 National periodicals (DC Comics) bought All-American, and on demand Western comics changed the name and format to All-American Western.

6. Detective Comics # 1 - $ 529K

Detective comics released monthly Dc comics from March 1937, flourishing to this day. From the very first release, each episode consists of 10 stories in an exciting detective genre.

In addition to two regular heroes - Batman and Superman, new characters appear here: Robin (issue # 38), Penguin (# 58), Two-Face (# 66), Riddler (# 140), Batwoman (# 233) and many others.

5. Batman # 1 - $ 530k

In the spring of 1940 it received its own franchise, and its first edition was subsequently $ 1,000 more expensive than the debut of Detective Comics. I opened a comic strip with a story titled “ The Legend of Batman. Who is he and how did he appear". This issue includes stories “ Joker" and " Joker returns", And for the first time was presented" Robin, wonder boy».

Initially, Batman was released quarterly, then every two months, and subsequently began to delight his fans on a monthly basis. This is one of the grandest superhero franchises ever.... The image of Batman is found both in cartoons and in films performed by such actors as Lois Wilson, Robert Lowry, Adam West, Michael Keaton, Kevin Conroy, Val Kilmer, George Clooney, Christian Bale, and soon Ben Affleck.

4.Marvel Comics # 1 - $ 578K

First edition Marvel comics dated October 1939. Its symbols have become Ant-Man, Namor the Submariner and Angel... This project began in 1939 and was originally called Timely comics.

He owns the current superhero franchise in entertainment, including movies, transformer toys and one of the longest running comic book series. Walt disney company swallowed up Marvel Entertainment in 2009.

Circulation of the first issue Marvel comics in 80 thousand copies was completely sold out, ensuring no less popularity of the next edition.

3. Superman # 1 - $ 712,000

For the first time, this series is dedicated to one hero: Superman. Society was immediately fascinated by the man in the red cloak, which brought immense popularity to the first issue in June 1939. Although each publisher strove to create their own version of the hero, the most popular remained DC.

Some call this streak a rip-off since in fact, it repeats the story of Superman from 1-4 issues of Combat comics, adding only a few pages of new material. Also noteworthy is the drawing on the back of the cover.

2. Detective Comics # 27 - $ 2,220,000

Detective Comics is the longest running series in US history, and it really started at # 27. He introduced the world of billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne and his alter ego - Batman - a superhero who, instead of superpowers, relies on intelligence, fantastic gadgets and wit. The reader also meets his ally in the fight against crime - Commissioner Gordon.

The first story of the cycle titled " The Chemical Syndicate Case"It mixes the tough crime genre with the world-saving superheroes of the time, which fundamentally distinguishes Detective Comics from all previous ones. The Knight in the Mask was invented by writer Bill Finger and artist Bob Kane, and for many years various authors have tried to flesh out the multifaceted image of this endlessly intriguing character.

1. Fighting Comics # 1 - $ 3,207,852

It all started with this series. On June 30, 1938, the first issue of Combat Comics introduced Superman to the world and commemorated The golden age of comics... On August 24, 2014, one of 200 thousand copies in fairly good condition was sold at eBay for $ 3.2 million, becoming the most expensive comic book bestseller. Today there are only 50-100 of these issues left..

Darren Adams, owner Prestine Comics v Federal way, Washington, began trading at 99 cents. In less than two hours, the price soared above $ 1.5 million. His copy had " perfect white pages"and got 9 points? Certified Guaranty Company (CGC)... This episode bypassed another, which was won in 2011 by Superman superfan Nicolas Cage.

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