Bob Hope Comics Are No Laughing Matter for Collectors

The ‘Adventures of Bob Hope’ from DC Comics ran for nearly 20 years, ending in 1968.

The Adventures of Bob Hope #11,
(DC, 1951), CGC NM 9.4, $1,140.

Comedian and actor Bob Hope (1903–2003) may have ended his nearly 80-year career as something of a cliché, but long before that, he essentially invented modern stand-up comedy and became a Broadway star. He also had the highest-rated radio and television programs, entertained generations of military personnel with his popular USO tours, and commanded the movie box office for decades.

Hope was such a big star that he even headlined his own comic books. Published by DC Comics, The Adventures of Bob Hope was a mainstay for nearly 20 years, running from 1950 to 1968 and featuring 109 issues.

These comics are now avidly collected, and nearly 20 were offered during Heritage Auctions’ “Good Girl Art and Romance Comics Showcase Auction” Oct 3-5.

The top lot was The Adventures of Bob Hope #11 with a Palo Alto Collection Pedigree (DC, 1951), CGC NM 9.4, which sold for $1,140. The cover features a crowned Hope sitting on a throne and, as with most covers in the series, there are also pretty ladies, this time with one feeding him grapes while another fans him.

It’s a testimony to Hope’s popularity at the time that the comic book series lasted as long as it did, especially since his act was never for children. Though the younger crowd could get some laughs from Hope’s physical comedy in the Road movies he did with Bing Crosby, his humor was aimed at adults, who understood the significance of his raised eyebrow and suggestive smirk and got his double entendres.

The comic book stories depict a version of Hope’s screen persona, the hopeless ladies’ man, and many of the comics’ covers include mildly suggestive jokes (in that now-sexist ’50s way) that likely went over kids’ heads.

From left: The Adventures of Bob Hope #81 (DC, 1963) CGC VF/NM 9.0, $720;
The Adventures of Bob Hope #89, (DC, 1964), CGC NM 9.4, $528.
The Adventures of Bob Hope #62 (DC, 1960), CGC VF/NM 9.0, $480.

The first four issues had photo covers that were stills from Hope’s films. Each book during the 1950s included three separate stories, with the lead one featuring Hope in a misadventure similar to his film roles and secondary ones generally revolving around movie-related themes or characters.

By the 1960s, however, the comic book industry was rapidly changing. In response, new characters were added to the series. Issue #86 in 1964 introduced a talking dog, “The hilarious, happy-go-lucky, wise-cracking Harvard Harvard III, a li’l ol’ lovable hound dog,” that became a recurring character. A copy of this issue sold for $432.

Editors also attempted to add contemporary humor by introducing Hope’s honorary nephew, Tadwallader Jutefruce, in Issue #95 in 1965. When Jutefruce, a buttoned-up nerd, got angry, he transformed into the hippest superhero—the mop-topped, guitar-playing Super-Hip, who could fly and shapeshift.

Neither character was able to save the series, however. Hope also alienated younger audiences and comic book buyers with his political views, especially his support of the Vietnam War and his condescending comments on the women’s movement. With sales and Hope’s popularity dwindling, the series ended in 1968.

From left: The Adventures of Bob Hope #56 (DC, 1959), Condition: VG/FN, $124;
The Adventures of Bob Hope #77 (DC, 1962), CGC VF/NM 9.0, $336;
The Adventures of Bob Hope #86 (DC, 1964), VF+, $432.

None of that stops the comic books from being collected today, however. Other sales highlights include Issue #81 (DC, 1963), CGC VF/NM 9.0, which fetched $720; Issue #89, Savannah Pedigree (DC, 1964), CGC NM 9.4, which brought $528; and Issue #62 (DC, 1960), CGC VF/NM 9.0, which sold for $480.

Taking the Plunge

Collectors make a splash diving into history at Nation’s Attic annual summer spectacular.

Underwater exploration was just a fantasy until British brothers and inventors Charles and John Deane came along. After tinkering with the design of a smoke helmet they invented in 1823, they developed a diving helmet and successfully demonstrated it on a shipwreck six years later.

Improving the design further, British company Siebe Gorman became a world-renowned manufacturer of early diving helmets in the 1840s. The Royal Engineers recognized the potential of these helmets, and within a few years, the Royal Navy was taking them worldwide.

From there, an underwater industry was born of exploration and adventure, including pearl diving, treasure hunting, salvage, construction, repair, and oilfield diving.

A 1955 Northill air lung bronze
double-hose regulator, $3,000.

After becoming technically obsolete, these brass and copper diving helmets are avidly collected today as historical relics and for their cool aesthetics.

International interest recently spiked when a helmet believed to be from the dawn of American professional diving around the 1860s sold for a record-setting $54,000 in January at Nation’s Attic, the world’s largest dealer of authentic antique diving helmets based in Wichita, Kansas.

At its “Diving Into History Auction” on Aug. 10, Nation’s Attic sold other record-breaking helmets, including the top lot: a uniquely designed 1960s helium diving helmet that sold for $20,400 against an estimate of $7,000 to $12,000.

Rare Kirby Morgan signed helium diving
helmet, Yokohama, Japan, c.1966, $20,400.

Arguably one of the most visually impressive and historically important styles of diving helmets ever conceived, this model KMHeH-2, or a Kirby Morgan helium helmet, was made by Yokohama of Japan in 1966. Originally conceived and developed by Bob Kirby and Bev Morgan, this innovative helium helmet was designed for the rigors of extremely deep-water dives, mainly for oil exploration.

A c.1940s Italian Navy diving
helmet made by Galeazzi, $18,000.

Bidders also pushed two other helmets to record-setting prices: A circa 1940s Italian Navy diving helmet made by Galeazzi that brought $18,000, shattering its presale estimate of $6,500-$8,500, and a beautifully preserved Oceaneering fiberglass helmet made by Bob Ratcliffe in the 1970s that fetched $13,200, setting a new auction record for the type.

An Oceaneering fiberglass helmet
made by Bob Ratcliffe, 1970s, $13,200.

On average, the market for antique diving helmets has been in the $4,000 to $8,000 range, but the best-known diving helmets worldwide, the U.S. Navy Mark V, have commonly sold for $10,000 and more. Arguably the most iconic helmet design ever made, the Mark Vs. were used by the Navy from 1916 to 1984, and their timeless craftsmanship and history have made them one of the most coveted helmets among collectors worldwide. Bidders clamored after several offered in the auction, including the top seller: a Mark V made on June 6, 1944, commonly known as D-Day, that sold for $12,000. It was produced by the Diving Equipment & Salvage Company, one of the major manufacturers of these helmets.

US Navy Mark V diving helmet
made on D-Day, June 6, 1944, $12,000.

Another DESCO-made Mark V helmet from 1945 fetched $10,200, while a rare Miller Dunn Mark V helmet from 1944 sold for $9,900.

Diving helmet used in the salvage
of the oil tanker African Queen, $13,200

Other highlights include a diving helmet used in the dramatic salvage of the 590-foot-long oil tanker African Queen, which ran aground in a storm at Gull Shoal off Ocean City, Maryland, in December 1958. That historic helmet sold for $13,200. A rare A.J. Morse & Son mechanical trigger release knife from 1917 and a World War II-era non-magnetic US Navy knife brought $4,800 each.

Rare A.J. Morse & Son mechanical
trigger release knife, 1917, $4,800

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Collectors Hit the Jackpot!

Slot machines worth the gamble for fans at the Potter & Potter coin-op event

Mills 1 Cent Wizard Fortune Teller, c. 1926, coin slot,
push-button on side activates inner reel that displays
fortune, 13 1/2 in. by 6 in. by 18 1/2 in., $2,040.

Las Vegas may be the gambling capital of the U.S., but the symbol of Sin City, the slot machine, was born in San Francisco when German inventor Gustav Schultze created the first nickel slot in 1893. Schultze’s slot was a Horseshoes game that paid customers two nickels if the wheel landed on one of 10 horseshoes, a free drink if it landed on a joker and nothing for the remaining 14 out of 25 symbols.

In 1894, Schultze’s friend, Charles Fey, made his own version of Horseshoes and his breakthrough game, the 4-11-44 1895. Built in his basement from wood, the first 4-11-44 was installed in a local saloon, and thanks to an enthusiastic response, Fey built several more. By 1896, Fey was manufacturing slots full-time, including the Card Bell in 1898. This was the first slot machine to automatically pay winnings to customers and ushered in the modern era of slot machines, which grew exponentially from there.

Rare 5 Cent “Crack-A-Jack” countertop Jackpot Machine by Clawson
Machine Co. of New Jersey, c.1910, 12 1/2 in. by 24 in., $1,000.

These mechanical marvels, known as one-armed bandits, have grown into prized collectibles for their history and the retro fun they add to a game room, living room, or man cave with their flashing lights and ringing bells. Non-working machines also make cool decorative objects.

Collectors hit the jackpot when Potter & Potter Auctions offered plenty of antique and vintage slot machines at its “Coin-Op & Advertising” sale on Sept. 12, along with arcade games, vintage vending machines, trade stimulators, and all kinds of coin-operated machines.

Watling 5 Cent Operators Bell slot machine,
bell on payout, 24 in. by 14 in. by 13 in., $3,250.

The top-selling slot machine was a 5-cent Operators Bell slot machine by the Watling Company of Chicago, which sold for $3,250. With an original internal mechanism and a contemporary metal chrome body, the machine rings a bell on the payout.

Jennings Sun Chief 25 Cent slot The Sands, c.1950s,
brass Sun Chief ornament and cowboy marquee 35 in. tall, $2,750.

Antique slot machines were produced in various fun styles and themes that reflect their specific eras, including carnivals, casinos, castles, cigarettes, the Wild West, and World Fairs.
Many manufacturers made slot machines worldwide, and Watling was one of the four major American companies whose machines are the most commonly available today. The others include Bally of Nevada, Jennings & Company, and Mills Novelty Company, both in Chicago.

Mills 25 Cent “Roman Head,” c.1910, 16 in. by 15 in. by 26 in., $1,680.

Slot machines made by Jennings and Mills were other big sellers bidders gambled on, including a Jennings Sun Chief 25 Cent The Sands, c. 1950s, with a light-up escalator bell, brass sun chief ornament on the front, and cowboy marquee on top, that sold for $2,750; a Mills 25 Cent “Roman Head” painted-metal machine, c. 1910, in a wooden cabinet on a wooden base that rang up $1,680; a Mills 5 Cent “Bonus Hightop” slot, c. 1937, with a painted cast aluminum cabinet on painted wooden base and “Bonus” jackpot feature that also fetched $1,680; and a Jennings 10 Cent Sun Chief chrome slot machine with a figural brass ornament and wood base that brought $1,560.

Red Art Deco Comet 10 Cent Slot Machine by Pace Mfg. Co.
of Chicago, 1936, 19 1/2 in. by 6 in. by 15 in., $1,080.

Authentic slot machines will have specific characteristics that collectors should look for: models made after World War II may have lighter-weight materials like aluminum, plastic, or wood; some slots were made from cast iron and are heavy; coin values of play range from nickels to quarters; and mechanical arms are traditionally attached on the right side.

Caille Bell Superior 10 Cent Slot Machine by Caille Bros.
of Detroit, c.1928, 25 in. by 14 in. by 14 in., $1,140.

For more results, visit the website here.

Photos courtesy of Potter & Potter Auctions.

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Come Fly with Me

French Jep tin windup “F.260” seaplane, goose lithograph, 19 in., $4,440.

Though toy airplanes are less commonly collected than other transportation toys, bidders worldwide were so enthusiastic about the two dozen offered at Milestone Auction’s Premier Schuco Toy Sale & More on Aug. 24 that they helped them soar thousands above their estimates.

The pre-World War II toy planes were part of the phenomenal legacy collection of lifelong toy enthusiast Winton “Wint” Johnson (1937-2022) of Minnesota. The 639 lots offered featured rare and desirable toys from around the world and one of the most complete German Schuco collections to come to market in years. In addition to airplanes, Johnson’s collection also included boats, cars, duck decoys, plush figures, prototypes, and more.

French tin-windup Hispano-Suiza “900” seaplane, all original, 19 in., $9,225.

Planes flew high at the sale, snagging five of the top 10 lots sold, including the top three, and consistently smashed pre-sale estimates. The auction star was a French tin windup Hispano-Suiza “900” seaplane that sold for $9,225 against an estimate of $400 to $600. All original, the plane is finished in red, yellow, and French blue and has lithographed windowpanes.

Early toy aircraft appeared in the 1900s and were made of frail tinplate—sheet steel laminated with tin, soldered together, and painted. Others had wire frame wings covered with cloth. Innovative toy makers eventually began attaching tinplate components with tabs and slots, and lithographed printing replaced hand painting.

Unusual tin bi-wing friction seaplane with 16 in. wingspan, $4,674.

Though toy makers used artistic license to make their products appealing to consumers, even fanciful toy airplanes mirrored reality. The earliest examples were based on famous prototypes, like those of American aviation pioneers Orville and Wilbur Wright and French aviator Louis Blériot.

Scarce, all-original Fleischmann tin windup pontoon seaplane, 17 1/2 in., $7,072.

Designs changed with the times. Some aircraft in the 1920s were clunky, but the cast iron and pressed steel replicas from that decade were elegant and simple; 1930s models were streamlined.
New pre-war tin airplanes and other toys appeared on the market from Germany and Japan. Two German planes rounded out the top three lots: a scarce, all-original tin windup pontoon seaplane by Fleischmann landed at $7,072 (against a presale estimate of $2,000-$3,000), and a tin windup flapping wing seaplane with professionally added pontoons brought $6,600 ($300-$500 estimate).

Tin windup flapping wing seaplane with professionally added pontoons, 13 in., $6,600.

By the 1930s, toy companies produced a variety of planes in all sizes. Nearly all of them were equipped with key-wound spring motors that let them travel on a smooth surface or in a circle when suspended from the ceiling. Some examples featured battery-operated navigation lights.

Some of the companies that produced tin toy planes popular with collectors were Alps Shoji, Arnold, Bandai, Gunthermann, Joustra, Lehmann, Marklin, Marx, Masudaya, Mettoy, Momoya, Rico, Schuco, Tipp Co, and Yonezawa.

Japanese tin windup Zero seaplane, original condition, with a photocopy of original Japanese-language box art, 13 in., $3,698.

Other top sellers were an unusual Japanese tin bi-wing friction seaplane with the distinctive green and red shades typical of Japanese toys of the 1930s, which commanded $4,674 ($300-$500 estimate); an all-original cream, red, and black Gunthermann lithographed tin windup “1212” airplane with a set of added float pontoons that fetched $2,952 ($600- $800 estimate); and another Japanese rarity: a tin windup Zero seaplane in all-original condition and accompanied by a photocopy of the toy’s original Japanese-language box art that sold for $3,698—more than seven times the high estimate.

Original Gunthermann lithographed tin windup “1212” airplane, 20 in., $2,952

For more auction results, visit the Milestone Auctions website.

All photos are courtesy of Milestone Auctions.

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At the Head of Their Class

Maddy Gordon’s collection of lady head vases charm at Strawser Auction event.

Inarco lady head vase E-1904, 1964, 6 3/4 in., $300

Small ceramic beauties with beguiling personalities, lady head vases are popular mid-century pieces that “head hunters” have fun collecting today. With their glamorous style, these vases add charming kitsch to bookcases, shelves, tables, and any other space they grace.

Left: Lady head vase, 5 1/2 in. h, $500.
Right: Relpo lady head vase, K1678, 9 1/2 in., $225.

One super collector and renowned expert on these lovely ladies was the late Maddy Gordon, who acquired over 3,000. On July 22, Strawser Auction Group offered more than 200 of Gordon’s spectacular vases in the first in a series of sales of her collection planned over the next several years.

Gordon, who died in 2022 at the age of 81, founded the influential Head Hunters Newsletter and organized the annual Head Vase Conventions in Kissimmee, Florida, for many years. She was also a big fan of America’s first head vase creator, Betty Lou Nichols, and authored the book Head Vases, Etc., The Artistry of Betty Lou Nichols.

Royal Crown Japan lady head
vase, 3477, 7 in. h, $1,500.

Gordon’s extensive collection features head vases in many different styles produced by companies such as Lefton, Inarco, Napco, Relpo, Royal Crown, and others. The top lot was a seven-inch-high lady head vase by the English company Royal Crown, made in Japan, number 3477 that sold for $1,500. The pretty lady is wearing a bonnet, has a green bow on one side of her neck, and has a perfectly manicured hand framing one side of her face.

Head vases have roots in 19th-century Europe, but the vases Americans are most familiar with started being produced in the 1930s as marketing pieces for florist companies to sell more small bouquets. It’s estimated that more than 10,000 head vases in a multitude of styles and forms were made until the 1970s, when the demand for them dwindled, and most companies stopped production.

Lady head vases exude elegance with their mid-century fashions, perfectly coiffed hairdos, big, lush eyelashes, and ruby lips. They are sometimes adorned with pearl necklaces, earrings, other jewelry, a fashionable hat or gloves—and sometimes all three accessories.

Left: Napco lady head vase with green glass hat, 6 in. h, $950.
Right: Napco lady head vase with blue glass hat, 6 in. h, $1,100.

Vases with hats are desirable to collectors, and the other top-selling pieces in the auction all have them. They were made by Napco. They include a vase with a blue glass hat that sold for $1,100, one with a green glass hat that fetched $950, a vase with a light blue glass hat, 2P1938, that sold for $900, and one with a pink glass hat, 2P1938, that brought $900.

While some people limit their collections to beautiful ladies, Gordon was attracted to the whole universe of head vases, which includes animals, babies and children, brides, clowns, Madonnas, nurses, and characters like Uncle Sam. Some pieces are also not vases at all but ashtrays, lamps, and lipstick holders.

Left: Napco lady head vase with green glass hat, 6 in. h, $950.
Right: Royal Crown Les Girls lady head vase #3664, 5-1/2 in. h, $800.

Other hot lots included a Royal Crown Les Girls head vase, 3664, with a hat and earrings, that sold for $800, a Relco lady head vase with a hat and necklace that fetched $600, a Reis lady wall pocket that sold for $300, a red-headed Lefton lady ashtray/match holder that brought $275, an Uncle Sam head vase that also sold for $225, and a Picasso-esque glass head vase by Italian artist Walter Furlan that fetched $170.

For more results, visit the Strawser Auction Group website. Photos courtesy of Strawser Auction Group.

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Small Wonder is a Success at Auction

A small sugar bowl, bought at an estate sale for less than $50, is a sweet success at auction.

A small and important sugar bowl that was recently discovered after it was bought as part of a box lot at an estate sale for less than $50 commanded the highest price of the more than 2,200 lots of 18th and 19th century Americana, ceramics, glass, lighting, silver, and textiles offered at Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates four-day sale June 19-22.

Salt-glazed decorated stoneware sugar bowl by
Andrew Coffman, 5 1/2 in. h overall, $34,800.

The salt-glazed decorated stoneware sugar bowl, 5 1/2 inches tall, garnered $34,800. Estimated between $10,000-$20,000, the bowl descended in a family that acquired it from notable Virginia potter Andrew Coffman (1795-1853) and is one of just three signed examples known. It had been part of the box lot bought for just $46.

Chippendale walnut bottle case/cellaret, two-piece construction, hinged
lid, c. 1795, 43 1/2 in. h, 33 1/2 in. by 18 1/2 in. top, $23,370.

The bowl was sold on the fourth day when many of the auction’s highest prices were achieved. Other antiques bidders pushed to big results included a Chippendale walnut bottle case or cellaret that sold for $22,800; a Federal inlaid mahogany valuables box, c. 1795, that fetched $20,400; an 1856 folk art oil-on-canvas portrait by John James Trumbull that brought $15,600: a carved and painted folk art bird tree in the Pennsylvania-German style by Frank Finney and featuring 24 different birds that sold for $14,760; and a carved, inlaid walnut desk and bookcase, attributed to John Shearer,c. 1800, that sold for $14,400.

Left: Oil-on-canvas portrait of Mary C. Barnes by John James Trumbull Arnold, dated 1856, 36 in. by 24 1/4 in., $15,600.
Right: Carved and painted folk art bird tree by Frank Finney, featuring 24 different birds, 21st century, 23 in. h, $14,760.

Bidders were also enthusiastic about the Americana and folk art treasures offered from the Katherine “Kitty Sue” Pease collection that included a variety of carvings, fraktur-related drawings, carousel items, rare needlework, furniture, scrimshaw, canes and walking sticks, and much more.

American folk art carved and painted tobacco/cigar
store trade figure, 81 in. h, 24 in. w, $19,200.

The top lot of Pease’s collection was an American folk art carved and painted tobacco/cigar store trade figure from the late 19th century with an eagle headdress and wolf-skin robe that sold for $19,200. Another cigar store trade figure brought $6,875. These figures, popular symbols of the tobacco trade in the 19th and early 20th centuries, are valued by collectors for their striking visual appeal and the considerable skill of their carvers.

Pennsylvania Schwenkfelder folk art fraktur-style drawing,
watercolor on paper, c. 1845, 10 in. by 14 1/2 in., $18,000.

Other top-selling Pease items included an important Pennsylvania folk art fraktur-style watercolor-on-paper drawing featuring a row of townhouses under a garland of stylized flowers, strawberries, and a pair of distelfinks/lovebirds that fetched $18,000; an American or British carved nautical figurehead of a beautiful woman with stylized Classical attire that sold for $15,300; an American School portrait of a black cat from the late 19th or early 20th century that brought $12,300; and a couple of carved and painted carousel goats from the late 19th or early 20th century: one that sold for $4,200 and one for $3,750.

American folk art carved and painted carousel goat, attributed
to the shop of Gustav Dentzel, 59 in. h, 60 in. l, $4,200.

Carved carousel animals are some of the most whimsical and sought-after pieces of American folk art, and goats are desirable. Both are attributed to the Pennsylvania shop of Gustav Dentzel, considered America’s first carver of these starting in 1867. The appeal of carousel animals extends far beyond being fanciful art pieces; collectors are also drawn to them for the merry-go-round of nostalgia and memories they create.

Auction results for days one, two, three, and four can be viewed on the website.

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