Bidders’ Spidey-Senses Tingling with Sale of Rare Spider-Man No. 1

Superheroes continue to have collectors trapped in their web of popularity. A beautifully clean copy of Amazing Spider-Man #1 (Marvel, 1963) – one of only five of its issue grade known to exist – set off a bidding war at Hake’s July 25-26 auction of pop culture memorabilia, climbing to a staggering final price of $520,380.

The comic, a CGC-graded 9.6 issue, had been displayed at Comic-Con in San Diego prior to the sale and attracted considerable interest from fans, a good indicator of what was to come.

“Collectors knew what made the book special. It came from the John B Goodrich collection, had desirable white pages, and was one of only three at that grade level to reach the auction marketplace in more than a decade,” said Hake’s president, Alex Winter. “Eight months prior to our sale, a CGC 9.6 Spider-Man #1, which had off-white as opposed to white pages, sold for $336,000. Everyone in the comic book world was aware that our July auction was a buying opportunity not to be missed, so the result did not surprise us. Now the winning bidder owns one of the world’s top copies of one of the most important books in the Marvel universe.”

Spidey’s origin is retold in the issue, which also features the work of two Silver Age stalwarts, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, who collaborated for the cover, with Ditko providing the story art.

 

The Amazing Spider-Man #1 (Marvel, 1963)

Photo: Hake’s

Supervillain Sets World Record Price

Supervillain sets world record. While the Mego toy company is known for its superhero action figures, one of its villains stole the spotlight. An 8-inch action figure of Spider-Man’s antagonist Green Goblin recently sold for $76,700 at Hake’s Auctions, setting a record for any Mego toy. This figure is part of Mego’s World’s Greatest Super Heroes line, which began in 1972 with figures of four characters from DC Comics. The figures were 8 inches tall with posable bodies. The line quickly expanded to include more characters, including Marvel heroes. Marvel copyrighted the Green Goblin in 1975 and Mego issued the figure in 1977. Because it was soon discontinued, Mego Green Goblin figures are hard to find. The example Hake’s sold is still packaged in its blister card, making it even more desirable.