Million-dollar comics: first Superman, now Batman

On Monday, ComicConnect announced that it had sold the first Superman comic book, Action Comics No. 1, for a record-setting $1 million. That was the record -- until today, when the first Batman comic sold for $1,075,500. Sock! Bam! Pow!

Both comics marked the first appearance of each superhero, in Action Comics and Detective Comics, respectively. The popularity of both characters meant they each soon earned their own titles.

Although comic books were produced in mass quantities, in the 1930s -- and for a few decades later -- they were considered trash culture. They were read avidly by children who folded them, stuffed them in pockets, crumpled them under the sheets while reading with a flashlight.

The Superman comic, printed in 1938, and the Batman comic, from 1939, were not treated that way. Both were in pristine condition. 

Comic lovers now know to take care of their collections. The market has shot up since the 1960s. According to the Associated Press, the consignor who sold the Batman comic originally bought it for $100.

-- Carolyn Kellogg

Images: The Superman cover, left. Credit: Associated Press. Right, the Batman cover. Credit: DC Comics.

Comments

[mike]

I remember back in 1973 going to a Los Angeles Comic Convention .As soon as you walked in the door a gentlemen had about six Action #1's just laying out on the table in various conditions .As I remember one of them had a $2000.00 price tag on it .I also remember a mint Fantastic Four #1 for $110.00 at the Rose Bowl Swap Meet now its worth over $100,000.00 .They had it for about 2 years at various swap meets and nobody would pay the money .Sorry to say someone stole it from them .Comics are better than gold .I go to swap meets all the time and find real gold jewelry for nothing but old superhero comics is just unheard of .Everybody from the 1960's back gave them away in the paper recycle drives or they rotted out in the garage and got tossed .