That Old Comic May Be Worth $100!!!

An ad from a DC comic, October 1975.

I suspect that these binders were similar to the binders that are still used to hold magazines today... the book is probably secured under a metal rod that is placed in the centerspread. It would keep the spine straight, but probably not do much to protect it from dust and oxidation.

Even 30 years ago there was a "value" mentality regarding collecting comic books.

Curt Swan's Superman

Here is a page of original comic art that I picked up recently. In my view, Curt Swan is the quintessential Superman artist of the Silver and Bronze Ages. I've wanted a Curt Swan Superman page for a while now, and I fell for this action-packed piece. The Last Son of Krypton is using his powers in every panel.

From Superman 348, page 16

It Had To Happen

As a visitor astutely noted, here is a Mark Felt (Deepthroat) forgery on eBay.

Predictably, it has all the red flags typically associated with fakes and scams of all kinds:

• Private bidder auction
• Hokey "From my grandfather's collection" story
• A slow, plodding signature with no "flow" is almost certainly a trace job. The seller explains it away as the "pen skipped," but it's pretty obvious the signature was slowly traced and probably even stopped mid-signature a few times.
• Sold "as-is." The seller gives the buyer one week to return item, but how many authentication services can turnaround an authentication within a week? And what are the chances the seller is EVER going to part with the cash once they get it in their hands? Answer: ZERO.

eBay truly is a hive of scum and villainy.

Ultimate Waste of Dead Trees

As I've written previously, I dumped Ultimate Spider-Man from my reading list well over a year ago. I had enough of the all style, no substance, hyper-extended storylines. A typical USM issue contained:

• 40% Peter and Mary Jane making silent goo-goo eyes at each other
• 20% Peter and Mary Jane engaged in "clumsy" romantic dialog that never goes anywhere
• 20% Needless establishing shots of neighborhoods and skylines
• 10% Aunt May worrying about Peter
• 10% Actual action or dialog that moves the plot forward

By trade I have been a professional copywriter, and I have written a number of motion picture scripts on spec. In all honesty, I think I could write a typical USM script on my lunch hour. No kidding, the dialog and narrative are THAT thin.

By my estimation, a typical 4 issue USM "story arc" could be easily captured -- with all the relevant story elements -- in ONE issue by Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, etc.

Now, I am considering dumping Ultimate FF, which really bothers me because I am such a devoted FF fan. The latest N Zone storyline by alleged wunderkind Warren Ellis almost pushed me over the brink.

I read Ultimate FF 18 in less than 3 minutes. There was a FOUR page sequence showing a space shuttle crash landing on the Las Vegas strip. Are we as readers supposed to be enthralled with the visuals of a shuttle landing on the strip FOR FOUR PAGES?!? To add insult to injury, there was not one word of dialog or narrative in this sequence.

Some of these writers are very talented guys, too bad however that they are not using their skills on these books.

The irony is that guys like Roy Thomas, Marv Wolfman and their contemporaries carefully crafted thoughtful stories with a beginning, middle and an end month after month for pennies relatively speaking.

Today's hotshot writers are "mailing it in" for big bucks, and the Ultimate lines are the most egregious example of this unwelcome trend.

(EDITOR'S NOTE: This blog entry contains more text than the next issue of USM.)

They Hit DEEP THROAT Powerball: W. Mark Felt Signed Book

As of this writing, this signed book is over $6,000 with 3 days to go!

Amazing.

10 days ago you couldn't have given this signed book away for the price of postage.

A Good Day at the Ol' Fishin' Hole

This has nothing to do with collecting, but I have to share...

The best catches of the year so far. A Northern Pike and Largemouth Bass, caught at Saratoga Lake this morning. They both lived to fight another day. Thanks to Dad for taking the pictures.