Created by Alfred Harvey and Warren Kremer, and published by Harvey Comics, Richie Rich Jr. is the world's richest child. He's so rich, his middle name is $, a dollar sign! In spite of his wealth, Richie is kind and so charitable that he earns the nickname the "poor little rich boy."
Published by Harvey Comics, Richie became Harvey's most popular character who went on to star in over 50 separate titles from 1953 to 1982. In addition, he starred in two animated series, appeared in several episodes of The Simpsons, had his own series on Netflix, and was portrayed by Macauley Culkin in two live-action feature film adaptations. Richie is firmly embedded in American pop culture.
Richie first appears in Little Dot #1 (1950).
Surprisingly, Richie Rich #1 doesn't actually have Richie's first appearance. He actually debuted seven years earlier in Little Dot #1 (September 1953). Although this Golden Age issue is exceptionally rare (only 42 blue labels on the CGC Census), a CGC 9.6 (the highest graded copy on the Census) actually sold earlier this year on Heritage Auctions for "only" $78,000.
This price actually seems like a steal when you consider that the following three factors: (1) this issue contains the first appearance of a major character (Richie); (2) the book is from the Golden Age; and (2) is the highest graded copy in existence.
There are only 174 blue label copies of Richie Rich #1 on the CGC Census.
Richie doesn't receive his own ongoing title until 1960 in Richie Rich #1. This Silver Age book is also pretty rare; there are only 174 Universal blue labels on the CGC Census. It's especially rare in such high grade; CGC has graded only five copies in higher condition than the 9.4 copy that PWCC has for sale.
It's not easy to price this issue since there's very little recent sales data; before July 2022, a recorded sale of 9.4 hadn't occurred in over 12 years. During the early 2000s, sales of 9.4s occurred several times, generally near the $10,000 price point. however, this exact same copy (#3833263001) sold just 14 months ago on eBay for $28,999. At this point, the comic bubble had popped and prices had been steadily decreasing across the market for nearly a year at this point, but hadn't hit bottom.
Most likely recognizing that we're in a bear market (a bear market for comics only and not the stock market, to be clear), the consignor who purchased this book in 2022 is clearly willing to take a significant loss on this consignment. Importantly, the asking price includes the 20% buyer's premium (or roughly $5,000 depending on the final sales price).
In addition, the consignor is accepting offers, so a buyer would likely be able to purchase the book for at least slightly less than the asking price.
What do you think a 9.4 blue label of Richie Rich #1 is worth? Please let our community know in the comments section below!
