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NEW YORK (CNNMoney)
For comic book collectors, it's the Holy Grail.
A pristine copy of Action Comics #1 -- which introduced Superman for the first time -- sold on eBay (EBAY, Tech30) for $3,207,852, a record. When it originally hit newsstands in 1938, the comic sold for 10 cents.
While eBay did not disclose the winning bidder, Metropolis/ComicConnect, an online auctioneer, said that it is buying the comic.
"The idea of passing it by was not going to happen," said Stephen Fishler, CEO of Metropolis/ComicConnect.
Fishler explained that his company had previously held the record for selling the most expensive comic book ever: $2.16 million in 2011 for another high grade Action Comics #1.
The seller was Darren Adams, who runs Pristine Comics near Seattle. "I'm proud to have owned the most valuable comic book in the world," he said.
In a video on Pristine's website, Adams explained how the comic was bought at a newsstand in 1938 by a man from West Virginia who kept it in a cedar chest. The high-altitude location, and the cool, dry, dark environment kept the comic in nearly perfect condition.
The book was eventually discovered in the 1970s and sold to a prominent dealer, who resold it to Adams.
The Superman comic is graded a 9 on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest, according to comic book grading company Certified Guaranty.
According to the news release, a portion of the proceeds from the auction will be donated to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.
Reeve starred as the iconic Man of Steel is a series of movies before a horse-riding accident left him paralyzed in 1995. He started his foundation to promote research to help people with spinal-cord injuries. Reeve died in 2004.
EVERYTIME I READ ABOUT A COMIC BOOK BEING SOLD FI MILLION, I CRY A BUCKET OF TEARS
mi fada had a collection and a half…true we didn't know that it was a 'collection'…just had comic dat he had been buying since forever..original 1st edition…this was one way i learned to read….he had them all..even when i was in HS , he was still buying comics n would tell his frenz that I was the reason he was being seen buying them…Phantom was one of my favourites….and of course the usual, Superman, Batman, Tarzan etc , in addition to the Classic novels in comic bk form…burned thousands after mi mom's death…had i paid attention to those comic book stores ( since i had been living in the US) n gone in one to see what it was about..i would have known that we had a good investment n would have packed couple suitcases n brought them back with me …:sigh:
For comic book collectors, it's the Holy Grail.
A pristine copy of Action Comics #1 -- which introduced Superman for the first time -- sold on eBay (EBAY, Tech30) for $3,207,852, a record. When it originally hit newsstands in 1938, the comic sold for 10 cents.
While eBay did not disclose the winning bidder, Metropolis/ComicConnect, an online auctioneer, said that it is buying the comic.
"The idea of passing it by was not going to happen," said Stephen Fishler, CEO of Metropolis/ComicConnect.
Fishler explained that his company had previously held the record for selling the most expensive comic book ever: $2.16 million in 2011 for another high grade Action Comics #1.
The seller was Darren Adams, who runs Pristine Comics near Seattle. "I'm proud to have owned the most valuable comic book in the world," he said.
In a video on Pristine's website, Adams explained how the comic was bought at a newsstand in 1938 by a man from West Virginia who kept it in a cedar chest. The high-altitude location, and the cool, dry, dark environment kept the comic in nearly perfect condition.
The book was eventually discovered in the 1970s and sold to a prominent dealer, who resold it to Adams.
The Superman comic is graded a 9 on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest, according to comic book grading company Certified Guaranty.
According to the news release, a portion of the proceeds from the auction will be donated to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.
Reeve starred as the iconic Man of Steel is a series of movies before a horse-riding accident left him paralyzed in 1995. He started his foundation to promote research to help people with spinal-cord injuries. Reeve died in 2004.
EVERYTIME I READ ABOUT A COMIC BOOK BEING SOLD FI MILLION, I CRY A BUCKET OF TEARS
mi fada had a collection and a half…true we didn't know that it was a 'collection'…just had comic dat he had been buying since forever..original 1st edition…this was one way i learned to read….he had them all..even when i was in HS , he was still buying comics n would tell his frenz that I was the reason he was being seen buying them…Phantom was one of my favourites….and of course the usual, Superman, Batman, Tarzan etc , in addition to the Classic novels in comic bk form…burned thousands after mi mom's death…had i paid attention to those comic book stores ( since i had been living in the US) n gone in one to see what it was about..i would have known that we had a good investment n would have packed couple suitcases n brought them back with me …:sigh: