If you had any doubt about The Flash’s superiority, you now stand corrected: Showcase #4 brings almost $180K and Chicorel brings $600K+

May 26, 2009
Posted by Noah

I know I had waxed an awful lot on last week’s Comic Auction, especially about the Showcase #4 – featuring the single greatest super hero in the history of the known universe, and even those we don’t know about, the one and only Silver Age Flash, Barry Allen – and about the astounding Chicorel Collection, but as the results for the auction, across the board, shows, these were and are indeed amazingly good comic books. In fact, the Showcase #4 that I coveted so dearly is now the single most-expensive Silver Age book in history as a determined and erudite collector paid almost $180,000 for it, including the BP. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: That’s one big matzo ball.

As impressed as I was by the price for Showcase #4 – and as proud as I am to point to my lifelong love of The Flash – the true heart and soul of the auction was The Chicorel Collection, which realized more than $600,000 all told. It was an astounding thing to watch made even better by the presence of Ralph Chicorel and two of his sons who were in Dallas for the event. I sat behind them, and chatted with them throughout the first 70-odd lots of the auction and was impressed with the level-headedness of Ralph and his sons, both of whom clearly love their old man and were thrilled to be part of the event with him.

Ralph, for his part, was quite relaxed and sanguine. Here he was, almost 70 years after buying these comics off the stand and putting them away watching a frenzied buying public pay tens of thousands of dollars for his collection. He seemed well at ease with the proceedings and quite happy with the results. I know it was 70 years in the making, but as the first part of the auction concluded and I had to leave to go finish my daily work, I couldn’t help but clap Ralph on the shoulder and say:

“Not bad for an afternoon’s work, huh?”

Not bad at all, and it really couldn’t have happened to a nicer bunch of folks. For my part, this is one of the best things about being the Media and PR Liaison at this company. I get to witness these great auctions and spend the time with the consignor – in this case a man who has lived an excellent life so far, has a loving family and is able to watch the fruits of his labor come to auction and quantify them with great prices. It’s the cherry on top for Ralph, who was a successful businessman and a way more successful family man. Yes, the money is a sizable amount for the collection, but the obvious love and respect of his children – and their excitement at the event – made it way better. I’ve seen many times when hardcore collectors sell their stuff for big money but the family doesn’t care much, because they know nothing about the collection, or don’t care, or maybe have no close relatives to revel in the respective glory of the accomplishments.

There were plenty of records set in this auction, including the most ever for an Underground comic – Zap #1 at more than $13,000 – and for Modern Age – Wolvie #1 in 10.0 Gem went for more than $15,000, which is gratifying to see given how good a comic book it is – but before you decide yourself to dig out your 1980s comics and inundate Heritage with your own comics, the ones you are absolutely sure have to be 10.0s themselves, remember the Wolvie #1 is the exception to the rule, not the norm. Do us all a favor and dig out the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s and 1970s comics and inundate us with those. The chances are way better that they actually would have some value, and way better that Heritage would be willing to take a look. Store your ‘80s and 1990s comics away for another 60 years – like Ralph Chicorel did with his – then maybe we can talk.

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-Noah Fleisher

Chicorel Collection of Golden Age Comic Books today

May 21, 2009
Posted by Noah

As we speak I am preparing to go downstairs for the opening of this week’s comic auction, which starts with the amazing Golden Age comic book collection of one Ralph Chicorel. Perhaps you’ve read about it on our home page or comics page at http://www.ha.com/, or maybe you saw the nice story Jamie Stengle of the AP wrote about the trove and its amazing journey.

Ralph’s story is one of those one in a million, suitcase-of-money-falling-from-the-sky things that we all wish could happen to us. Basically it’s this: he collected the original Golden Age comics off the newsstand, kept them carefully and moved on with his life. In 1970 he sold half of the collection to raise money for a family move. He got about $3500, a tremendous sum for comics at the time. He didn’t have time to dig up the other half of the collection before the auction, moved, became a successful businessman and forgot about the books.

Almost 40 year later he dug up the trove and contacted Heritage. It’s expected the amazing collection will bring upwards of $500,000, and I believe it – I’ve seen these things and they are indeed, as Al Milgrom put it, “some of the mintiest books I’ve ever seen.” It helps a lot that Ralph and his family are here, at Heritage for the auction, and that he’s about as nice as you’d want someone with such tremendous foresight and good luck to be. I love this story, am glad to be on the periphery of it and am glad that I get to witness such a thing and see that the word gets out about this collection.

As for the comics themselves, I don’t know where to start, except to say that they are all amazing books. From the Marvel Comics #1 to the Marvel #9 to the Batman #4 and #7 to any number of awesome comics in between, it’s a real treat. The color on many of these is still magnificent, and the prices are relative bargains. There are the sexy ones, mentioned above, that will get the high five and six figure prices, but it is the books that are going to go for $2000-$5000 that will prove the true future boon to their erudite buyers.

Yes, these are the type of comic books that make even the most seasoned veterans of the industry – meaning the guys in the Heritage comics department – sit up and take notice, even betray a little excitement. Barry Sandoval, the Director of comics, put it best when he likened the finding of this collection to the Time machine fantasy of many a comic book geek. All they want is to go back in time and buy the comics off the stand, first issue, put it straight into an air-tight containment device, and bring them back in time to add to their collections. There doesn’t have to be any more destiny tampering than that.

Is it so much to ask? Just a couple teeny tiny comic books?

The good news is that, today, we get the chance to see what those time-pilfered comics would actually bring.

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-Noah Fleisher

Of great publicity, Martignette, Dr Pepper, Coins, Natural History. Or, How Heritage is planning on taking over the world…

May 15, 2009
Posted by Noah

There are so many things I would like to write about that come through the doors at Heritage, and so many potential things coming to auction that I can’t write about yet, but I can say this: The month of May has been a stellar one for humble little Heritage in terms of national and International PR. It’s actually the sort of extended run of coverage that adds up to an amazing string and a major boost for Heritage brand awareness. Forgive me if you can for using this soapbox to trumpet the achievement and the incredible hard work of HA staff across the board.

Consider this: Since the beginning of May, Heritage has been in the news – national or international – in one form or another, good, bad or indifferent, every day of the month, plus a few at the end of April. I would list all the links here to all the various stories, but that would be a list of more than 1100 hits, so just take my word for it.

It started with the auction of the 1804 $1 for $2.4 million at Central States at the end of last month. There was pre-auction coverage and post-auction coverage.

This was followed quickly by a Texas AP story on the much-debated Old Corner Drug Store ledger book with the “Dr. Peppers Pepsin Bitters” recipe in it, which set of a firestorm of coverage, interviews and speculation that spanned a full week of news cycles and ended up all over the world. It has to be noted that the ledger book failed to open at the minimum $25,000 bid in Wednesday’s Political & Americana Auction, which is no fun for us – though a private treaty sale is possibly in the works – but it did again get us another round of coverage in the national press.

On top of this, our Natural History Director David Herskowitz was interviews by Robert Siegel on NPR’s All Things Considered on Tuesday night, after an article appeared in the Chicago Tribune, and was mentioned again in the show’s letter section the next day. This was followed by an article in a La Brea, CA newspaper just yesterday, that looks like it could get some legs. The auction of a controversial 95% saber-tooth skull – absolutely, undisputedly authentic – is this weekend here at Heritage. This thing is a truly beautiful beast and an amazing piece of history.

Topping that off today is the lead spot in today’s New York Times Arts & Antiques Column, by Eve Kahn, about the upcoming auction of the awesome Martignette Collection of Illustrated Art. It’s a fantastic little bit about the man behind the collection – an eccentric, for sure, but on the side of good – and the collection itself. What more can you ask for?

Ed Jaster, Director of Illustration Art here, put it best in his quote about the amazing art in the collection: “The guys could flat out paint!”

Wonderfully put, indeed!

I also know, for a fact, that there will be another Heritage story coming out the AP wire next week about the imminent auction of the amazing Chicorel Collection in our May Comics Auction. It’s another fantastic human interest story and we are lucky enough to be the arbiters of its fruit. I’m hoping this one continues our amazing May run. I’m sure there a few things I’ve even missed.

Life at Heritage is often so busy we don’t get the chance to reflect on the accomplishments of the amazing staff here. When I look back at a month like May so far, it brings it all into focus and reminds me why we do what we do here, and why we love it so much.

Have a safe and happy weekend.

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-Noah Fleisher