I wouldn’t call myself a huge Star Wars fan (I’m more of a Trekkie) but although I haven’t seen the latest movie, yet, I did watch all of “Mandalorian” and really enjoyed it. However, two of my daughters-in-law are big fans and since one had a birthday right after Christmas, I was looking for something along those lines.
As it turned out, I saw a chance to score a unique gift as Racine’s Auction in Rising Sun. They were offering a ginormous collection of Star Wars related items the Saturday between Christmas and her birthday. Naturally, there were loads and loads of the toys. However, you name it, and it was there – mugs, key rings, statues, posters, pins, comics (no #1, but a copy of #42, the first Boba Fett, and #107, the last issue, were in the stack), trading cards, jewelry, and, and, ready for this… a framed Yoda painted on black velvet!
Now, I wasn’t expecting this to end up on their living room wall, but it would be a neat “gag” gift worth coughing up maybe 15 bucks for. Right?
It was a dark and stormy morning that day, my friends, but the auction house was full of eager buyers. Who knew that so many people who wore Ravens attire were also Star Wars devotees? The comic books went for way more than I thought they were worth, especially considering condition. The 1977 mugs and trading card boxes brought more than the asking prices on eBay. But there was no “guide” for that painting. Now, years ago, I bought a painting of two snarling, salivating Dobermans on black velvet at a flea market for ten dollars and gave it to my mother-in-law as a joke (she loved it) and have see many an Elvis over the years, but never a Yoda.
Typical of live auctions without an online opening bid, the auctioneer started high then dropped his asking price down to five dollars. Yours truly raised his card. I panicked as others joined the fray, but common sense finally prevailed and I lowered my arm when it hit $35. It sold for $110, not counting the buyer’s premium! Dejected, I went home empty-handed. If you happen to find yours stuck in the back of a closet at home, I’m still willing to buy it for 15 bucks.
Auctions haven’t yielded much in the way of new inventory for the shop, but I have bought a number of decent collections recently. One couple came in with a large plastic tote and went home with a handsome amount of cash. They had called ahead and said they had a bunch of comics from the 60’s and I was salivating like those Dobermans when they showed up. Sitting right on top was a nice copy of Fantastic Four # 48 and the Hulk prototype from Journey Into Mystery. They told me to take my time and just take them home to inspect. As it turned out, there wasn’t a single other Marvel super-hero in the bunch, Still, the DC issues and a copy of Doctor Solar #1 made it interesting. They accepted my first offer as it was “found money” – they discovered these comics hidden in the back of a staircase in a house they bought!
A former member who hadn’t been in for years stopped by one day to say that he had decided to get rid of his comics. He just wanted them gone and was even thinking of putting them in a dumpster. NOOOO! I told him that even though I didn’t really want more bulk, I’d stop by and make an offer. They can’t be destroyed. Turns out he had 14 long boxes stacked 3 by 3 like a Jenga tower in a hallway. Flipping through a box, I didn’t see anything particularly great other than their shape. It was a mish-mosh of stuff. Thinking that it was just a lot of bulk, and work, I asked him what he wanted for them. Again, he said he just wanted them gone as he had made the decision to let go of them. He had traveled across country and back with them and it was time. I told him that I could get boxes of bulk at auctions for about $30 per box and asked if he would consider $500. He said, “no, how about $100?” Huh? I had never someone counter with LESS than my offer! He said that he knew I thought I was taking advantage of him but he just wanted them out of the house. He even stated that there were some significant issues in there such as a Killing Joke first printing and a Hulk 340. Ah, yeah, I definitely would be taking advantage and I had to practically twist his arm for him to take $300. Without going through the remaining 13 boxes, I couldn’t go wrong. He helped me load them in the car and I started to process them when I got home. To my surprise, the vast majority of the boxes were not like that first one, but actually in alpha-numeric order with several nice long runs as well as dozens and dozens of mini-sets. Yep, those two issues mentioned above were there and have been sold already, as has a run of The Boys and the biggest surprise, a beautiful copy of Amazing Spider-Man # 300 .
Keep checking the showcases as we’ve moved quite a few keys through the door lately – 3 copies of FF 48, two copies of Giant Size X-Men #1, an X-Men #94, two copies of Conan #1, a copy of the 30 cents variant to Marvel Spotlight # 28 (1st Moon Knight solo issue – a book I had never had before and another copy just came in!), Captain America 100. Oh, and two that never made it into the showcase before I sold them – a lower grade (3.0?) copy of X-Men #1 and a coverless Amazing Fantasy 15! I’m pretty sure I sold them for way too low – the X-Men #1 sold on eBay literally in less than one minute!
Back to those remaining comics in that 14 box group. They joined the ever-growing mountain of boxes I have at home and I decided that I would just create sets where I could and make the rest “dollar books” when I did the Ocean City Comic Con. This was held December 14th in the huge convention center. The guys at PLB Comics promote it and do a fantastic job! The lay-out consisted of about 250 or so 8’ by 10’ booths in addition to panel rooms, the Batmobile, the Tardis, and other attractions. Like most of the advertised comic cons nowadays, the number of dealers selling just comics was dwarfed by the number of toy, craft, and cosplay-related tables. The crowd reflected that, though. Still, the show was a lot of fun and I managed to move a little over 3 long boxes of comics, selling them at a buck a book. I didn’t have single comic for more than a dollar. Looking for a bargain? Be sure to attend the First State Comic Con at the Millcreek Fire-Hall (March 1st) as I’ll have about 50 long boxes there with all the comics priced at just a buck a book.
The stacks of comics in the showcases were getting too tall, so I thinned out some of them and put in a box on top. I’ll throw more in there and the short boxes on top of the bins as new material arrives.
By the way, the Super Bowl is in less than a month and we’re prepared again this year. In each of the 100 manilla envelopes at the shop is a comic valued (by me) at anywhere from $20 - $50 plus one of the 100 different Super Bowl squares. If you happen to get one that represents the “ones” digit of the score at the end of any of the first three quarters, you get your choice of $100 worth of ANY (no restrictions!) green-tagged items in the shop – that includes anything in the bins or boxes or showcases. Match the final score and you get $200 worth. And, as happened last year, one combo can occur more than once in the game. Buy yourself one and enjoy the game. Better yet, buy one for everyone in your family! Ya can’t lose – only $10 an envelope and you get that comic regardless!
If possible, our clientele might get a little bit nerdier. The Delaware chapter of MENSA did a write-up on the shop’s founder in its newsletter this month and, naturally, Captain Blue Hen Comics was mentioned, as well as contact info and our logo. We already have the smartest customers in the state!
Shameless plug time: In the market to buy or sell a house? In the market to do a mortgage refi? In the market to have a custom home built? Call my son, Paul, at STITIK-FOSTER Real Estate (302) 383-7998 and he can help you with any of it!
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