MARVEL COMICS (1939) #1
G/VG: 3.0
(Stock Image)
SOLD ON: Thursday, 03/21/2013 1:31 PM
$18,000
Sold For
21
Bids
PUBLISHER: Timely
COMMENTS: cream/ow pgs; October Copy - Proof copy with blank inside covers!
1st appearance of Sub-Mariner; 1st app. Human Torch; 1st Angel; 1st Marvel comic!! historic!! COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 10 (CBI)
File Copy
Read Description ▼
1st appearance of Sub-Mariner; 1st app. Human Torch; 1st Angel; 1st Marvel comic!! historic!! COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 10 (CBI)
File Copy
DESCRIPTION
cream/ow pgs; October Copy - Proof copy with blank inside covers!
1st appearance of Sub-Mariner; 1st app. Human Torch; 1st Angel; 1st Marvel comic!! historic!! COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 10 (CBI)
File Copy
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.)
_______________________________________________
The image you are looking at is a rare piece of comic book history. This Marvel 1 is a Lloyd Jacquet Publisher's Proof Copy. The interiors of the front and back cover are completely blank which denote it as being from a hand-cut pre-publication proof sheet and making this comic truly unique.
Adding to the value and rarity of this Publisher Proof Copy of Marvel Comics 1 is the fact that it is also the extremely rare 1st printing October version. When Marvel Comics 1 was originally printed there were approximately 90,000 October copies made. They sold out rather quickly and a 2nd print run was ordered. Instead of making a new cover, a black circle was placed over Oct. and Nov. was printed above it. There were approximately 800,000 copies of the 2nd printing November version made..
We first viewed this book over 15 years ago right after it was removed from a Lloyd Jacquet Publisher's bound volume. We were blown away by it then and we are still blown away by it now. We are extremely proud to offer this copy of Marvel Comics 1. This Proof Copy has in pencil an X" at the top of the page of the Sub-Mariner and Angel stories.
It should be noted that the highest graded copy of Marvel Comics 1, the Pay Copy, also originating from Jacquet's offices, was a November copy.
Overstreet Guide 2012 GD/VG (3.0) value = $32,250
If you are a new customer planning to make a first-time purchase over $25,000, please contact us at 1.888.779.7377 or 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).
1st appearance of Sub-Mariner; 1st app. Human Torch; 1st Angel; 1st Marvel comic!! historic!! COMIC BOOK IMPACT rating of 10 (CBI)
File Copy
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.)
_______________________________________________
The image you are looking at is a rare piece of comic book history. This Marvel 1 is a Lloyd Jacquet Publisher's Proof Copy. The interiors of the front and back cover are completely blank which denote it as being from a hand-cut pre-publication proof sheet and making this comic truly unique.
Adding to the value and rarity of this Publisher Proof Copy of Marvel Comics 1 is the fact that it is also the extremely rare 1st printing October version. When Marvel Comics 1 was originally printed there were approximately 90,000 October copies made. They sold out rather quickly and a 2nd print run was ordered. Instead of making a new cover, a black circle was placed over Oct. and Nov. was printed above it. There were approximately 800,000 copies of the 2nd printing November version made..
We first viewed this book over 15 years ago right after it was removed from a Lloyd Jacquet Publisher's bound volume. We were blown away by it then and we are still blown away by it now. We are extremely proud to offer this copy of Marvel Comics 1. This Proof Copy has in pencil an X" at the top of the page of the Sub-Mariner and Angel stories.
It should be noted that the highest graded copy of Marvel Comics 1, the Pay Copy, also originating from Jacquet's offices, was a November copy.
Overstreet Guide 2012 GD/VG (3.0) value = $32,250
If you are a new customer planning to make a first-time purchase over $25,000, please contact us at 1.888.779.7377 or 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).