The Rules of the Game
Our budget for the month of July is $2,000. Here’s a reminder of the rules for our Golden Age comics collecting game:
1. We have a $2,000 budget and we have to stay within 5% of that budget. 2. We must select 5 Golden Age comics. 3. We must select comics across different genres – no loading up on funny animal, western, or romance. 4. No copies graded below 4.0 – we want some decent-looking comics. 5. There must have been a sale within the past few years – hard to gauge the prices if there haven’t been any sales; and, to make things more challenging, if the sale is more than a year old, we’re going to add 8% to the last known price for each year. So, if it sold prior to July 2022, we’ll add 8%; prior to July 2021, we’ll add another 8%, etc.
Those are the rules. Now, let’s play Golden Age Collecting on a Budget!
First – A Superhero Pick
We’re starting things off with a superhero pick this time around, and we’re going with The Fighting Yank #20 from 1947. Published by Nedor Publications, it’s got a great Alex Schomburg cover with our hero saving a damsel in distress from a fighting mad shark.
A 6.0 graded copy sold in February for $422. There are 33 graded copies, so it will take a bit of a hunt - but at that price it’s definitely worth it. We’re a tad bit over budget but we can find some bargains in other categories.
Total spent: $422
Second – A War Pick
Quality Comics is one of the more beloved publishers for Golden Age collectors. One of their top titles was Military Comics, a series that introduced the public to Blackhawk and the Blackhawk Squadron, characters who would later move to DC. There are so many great early issues to choose from.
We’re going to go with Military Comics #6, published in 1942. It has a brilliant red cover that will really stand out on our wall, and there’s great action taking place as well. A 6.5 graded copy sold in an October 2022 eBay auction for just $322. With only 14 graded copies, we have a serious search on our hands, though.
Total spent: $744
Third – A SciFi Pick
As a grand mimicker of whatever was selling at the time, Atlas Comics can sometimes get short shrift from collectors. However, there are some Atlas Comics with fantastic covers and interior art by some all-time greats. Take Spaceman #1, published in 1953, as an example. It has a beautiful black cover by Bill Everett and Carl Burgos and interior art by Joe Maneely and John Romita.
A 5.0 graded copy sold in a September 2020 Heritage auction for $336. We’ll add 8% for each year since, bringing us to $392. There are 32 graded copies, making for a minor hunt, but we can’t say no to a first issue with artwork by these giants.
Total spent: $1,136
Fourth – A Funny Animal Pick
We’re under budget so far, so let’s go big with Four Color #16 from the second series of that name. Why this issue? Well, it’s the first comic with a huge funny animal cartoon star in the title: Porky Pig. That essentially makes this 1941 comic Porky’s first issue. Like many Dell characters, Porky Pig got his start in Four Color before moving on to his own series.
A 7.0 graded copy sold in a December 2020 eBay auction for $410. Adding on our inflationary 8% brings us to $478. It’s a lot to pay and it’ll be a search with only 30 graded copies. But it’s Porky Pig’s first issue!
Total spent: $1,614
Fifth – A Western Pick
While everyone knows Joe Simon and Jack Kirby from their superhero creations, they were also early creators in other genres, including romance, crime, and westerns. One of their earliest Western comics was Boys’ Ranch, a series about three adolescent ranchers.
The series started with Boys’ Ranch #1, and from the start, it has been recognized as one of the duo’s most significant creations. Using single and double-paged spreads long before they were seen in the pages of Fantastic Four and Thor, Kirby created some of the best work of his career in this 1950 series published by Harvey.
A 7.0 graded copy of Boys’ Ranch #1 sold in a February 2021 eBay fixed price sale for $325. We’ll have to pay $379 here in 2023, and we’ll have to dig a little to find a copy, as there are only 29 graded copies. I think the effort and the price are well worth it for the first issue of this Simon and Kirby classic.
Total spent: $1,993
Analysis
We came in $7 under budget, which is fantastic for what we got. Let’s review: a Schomburg cover on a classic superhero comic in a 6.0 grade; an early Blackhawk issue from Quality in a 6.5 grade; the first issue of a sci-fi series with a veritable who’s who of Atlas artists in a 5.0 grade; Porky Pig’s first issue in a 7.0 grade; and the first issue in a beloved Simon & Kirby western series in a 7.0 grade.
That’s an amazing haul, and proof that there are plenty of great Golden Age comics out there to add to your collection if you look hard enough.
Which five Golden Age comics would you select with a $2,000 budget? Let us know below!
