MARVEL COMICS (1939) #1
CGC VF-: 7.5
(Stock Image)
SOLD ON: Wednesday, 08/15/2012 2:51 PM
$112,007
Sold For
1
Offers
PUBLISHER: Timely
COMMENTS: ow/white pgs
1st appearance of Sub-Mariner; 1st app. Human Torch; 1st Angel; 1st Marvel comic!! historic!! COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 10 (CBI)
Read Description ▼
1st appearance of Sub-Mariner; 1st app. Human Torch; 1st Angel; 1st Marvel comic!! historic!! COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 10 (CBI)
DESCRIPTION
ow/white pgs
1st appearance of Sub-Mariner; 1st app. Human Torch; 1st Angel; 1st Marvel comic!! historic!! COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 10 (CBI)
Marvel Comics #1 has earned its place in the publishing pantheon as the comic that spawned the Marvel Universe — making it one of the precious few Golden Age comics that became a cornerstone of the industry. This single comic matches Action Comics #1 as a vital pop-culture artifact with the first appearance of the Human Torch, along with the Sub-Mariner's own debut on the newsstands with an amazing origin story.
Timely publisher Martin Goodman had previously launched pulp titles including Marvel Science Stories. Superman’s arrival on newsstands in April 1938 inspired Goodman to get in on the superhero craze by the end of 1939. Marvel Comics #1, however, relied on outside writers from the pioneering content farm of Funnies, Inc. Those included artist Carl Burgos penning the first appearance of the Human Torch, along with the debut of the Sub-Mariner by writer/artist Bill Everett (salvaged from the never-released Motion Picture Funnies Weekly).
Marvel Comics #1 also brought in the character of Ka-Zar from his short-lived pulp origins, although this jungle lord is no relation to the future Marvel Comics hero. Other stories include the brutal antics of the crime-fighting Angel, plus more jungle action with diamond-hunters encountering “Jungle Terror” and a Western hero called the Masked Raider.
The comic was a huge success, selling an estimated 900,000 copies. The original print run dated October 1939 remains the rarest. Records show that Goodman initially printed approximately 80,000 copies, with those copies quickly selling out on the newsstands. The second printing would be for 800,000, changing the month to “Nov” as printed above a dark circle obscuring the original month of publication.
Marvel Comics #1 also established a different kind of comic storytelling. The contributions from Funnies, Inc. replaced the colorful genre pioneered by Jerry Sigel & Joe Shuster with a hauntingly aggressive take on crime-fighting. Both the original Human Torch and Sub-Mariner were introduced as unique anti-heroes capable of turning on mere mortals.
(Marvel Comics #1 would be the sole copy of the book under that title, with Timely changing the publication to Marvel Mystery Comics with the second issue. The company itself would become Atlas Comics in the 1950s, and finally adopt the Marvel name in 1961 while launching titles including Fantastic Four.)
Even as Timely brought in creative giants like Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, the company would license the Human Torch and Sub-Mariner before finally buying the rights to the characters in 1940. (That was just a year after Goodman had brought in his wife’s teenage cousin Stanley Lieber — later known as Stan Lee — to assist in the office.) Marvel Comics #1 has remained the scarcest of major Golden Age keys, with copies never failing to ignite a frenzy of attention when issues come to market.
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ComicConnect is proud of our longtime role in preserving the very few Marvel Comics #1 that have come up at auction over the years. Those include a 9.4 copy selling for a record-setting $1.26 million in 2019, with further records in 2022 as a 9.2 file copy sold for $2.4 million, and a 2.5 for $293,000. (Those three copies were all unrestored November printings. The CGC Census of July '24 shows 70 total CGC Copies of all printings, with only 39 copies listed as Unrestored.)
_______________________________________________
Eye appeal is an aspect of grading a vintage comic book that can't be overstated enough and this book has it in spades. Truly one of the nicest copies we have ever seen. The color saturation and brightness of this cover are obvious at first glance. The yellow in the Marvel Comics' logo make it practically jump off the cover like a spectacular 3D effect. It really is a stunning copy and one of the highest graded in the census.
Marvel Comics 1 was for a time a readily available Golden Age comic in the market. Not any more. For the last five years it has become increasingly difficult to find, especially in unrestored condition. Look at it from this perspective, in five years we have sold 20 copies of Action Comics 1 and this is the first time we are bringing an unrestored (and a restored copy, see other auction lot) copy to auction. Talk about rare!
Overstreet 2011 VF- 7.5 value = $117,000. CGC census 2 in 7.5, 3rd highest grade.
If you are a new customer planning to make a first-time purchase over $25,000, please contact us at 212.895.3999 or support@comicconnect.com so that we may approve your account for bidding. (This policy was instituted to protect consignors and bidders against bids from fraudulent accounts, and to ensure the integrity of the bidding process.).
We realize many of you would like to bid on this auction lot, so for this listing, ComicConnect.com offers a 6 month, interest free, time payment plan with a 20% non-refundable deposit paid by check, money order or wire transfer.
1st appearance of Sub-Mariner; 1st app. Human Torch; 1st Angel; 1st Marvel comic!! historic!! COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 10 (CBI)
Marvel Comics #1 has earned its place in the publishing pantheon as the comic that spawned the Marvel Universe — making it one of the precious few Golden Age comics that became a cornerstone of the industry. This single comic matches Action Comics #1 as a vital pop-culture artifact with the first appearance of the Human Torch, along with the Sub-Mariner's own debut on the newsstands with an amazing origin story.
Timely publisher Martin Goodman had previously launched pulp titles including Marvel Science Stories. Superman’s arrival on newsstands in April 1938 inspired Goodman to get in on the superhero craze by the end of 1939. Marvel Comics #1, however, relied on outside writers from the pioneering content farm of Funnies, Inc. Those included artist Carl Burgos penning the first appearance of the Human Torch, along with the debut of the Sub-Mariner by writer/artist Bill Everett (salvaged from the never-released Motion Picture Funnies Weekly).
Marvel Comics #1 also brought in the character of Ka-Zar from his short-lived pulp origins, although this jungle lord is no relation to the future Marvel Comics hero. Other stories include the brutal antics of the crime-fighting Angel, plus more jungle action with diamond-hunters encountering “Jungle Terror” and a Western hero called the Masked Raider.
The comic was a huge success, selling an estimated 900,000 copies. The original print run dated October 1939 remains the rarest. Records show that Goodman initially printed approximately 80,000 copies, with those copies quickly selling out on the newsstands. The second printing would be for 800,000, changing the month to “Nov” as printed above a dark circle obscuring the original month of publication.
Marvel Comics #1 also established a different kind of comic storytelling. The contributions from Funnies, Inc. replaced the colorful genre pioneered by Jerry Sigel & Joe Shuster with a hauntingly aggressive take on crime-fighting. Both the original Human Torch and Sub-Mariner were introduced as unique anti-heroes capable of turning on mere mortals.
(Marvel Comics #1 would be the sole copy of the book under that title, with Timely changing the publication to Marvel Mystery Comics with the second issue. The company itself would become Atlas Comics in the 1950s, and finally adopt the Marvel name in 1961 while launching titles including Fantastic Four.)
Even as Timely brought in creative giants like Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, the company would license the Human Torch and Sub-Mariner before finally buying the rights to the characters in 1940. (That was just a year after Goodman had brought in his wife’s teenage cousin Stanley Lieber — later known as Stan Lee — to assist in the office.) Marvel Comics #1 has remained the scarcest of major Golden Age keys, with copies never failing to ignite a frenzy of attention when issues come to market.
____________________________________________________
ComicConnect is proud of our longtime role in preserving the very few Marvel Comics #1 that have come up at auction over the years. Those include a 9.4 copy selling for a record-setting $1.26 million in 2019, with further records in 2022 as a 9.2 file copy sold for $2.4 million, and a 2.5 for $293,000. (Those three copies were all unrestored November printings. The CGC Census of July '24 shows 70 total CGC Copies of all printings, with only 39 copies listed as Unrestored.)
_______________________________________________
Eye appeal is an aspect of grading a vintage comic book that can't be overstated enough and this book has it in spades. Truly one of the nicest copies we have ever seen. The color saturation and brightness of this cover are obvious at first glance. The yellow in the Marvel Comics' logo make it practically jump off the cover like a spectacular 3D effect. It really is a stunning copy and one of the highest graded in the census.
Marvel Comics 1 was for a time a readily available Golden Age comic in the market. Not any more. For the last five years it has become increasingly difficult to find, especially in unrestored condition. Look at it from this perspective, in five years we have sold 20 copies of Action Comics 1 and this is the first time we are bringing an unrestored (and a restored copy, see other auction lot) copy to auction. Talk about rare!
Overstreet 2011 VF- 7.5 value = $117,000. CGC census 2 in 7.5, 3rd highest grade.
If you are a new customer planning to make a first-time purchase over $25,000, please contact us at 212.895.3999 or support@comicconnect.com so that we may approve your account for bidding. (This policy was instituted to protect consignors and bidders against bids from fraudulent accounts, and to ensure the integrity of the bidding process.).
We realize many of you would like to bid on this auction lot, so for this listing, ComicConnect.com offers a 6 month, interest free, time payment plan with a 20% non-refundable deposit paid by check, money order or wire transfer.