Auctions: comic books 1953

3-D-Ell (1953) 1 VG 4.0

Staple rust. Cover oxidation.

Photo stories in 3-D featuring Rootie Kazootie: "Poochie To the Rescue," "The Polka Dot Treasure," and "Trouble At the Zoo." 36 Pages, 3D interior. Cover price $0.25.

Adventures into Darkness (1952) 8 FR 1.0

3" Spine split from bottom. Water saturation.

Contains Alex Toth art. In order of appearance: "Mark of Evil" art by Rocco "Rocke" Mastroserio; "Creepy Crossword Puzzle" activity page; "Death's Bridal Gown"; "The House That Jackdaw Built" art by Alex Toth, reprinted in Setting the Standard: Comics by Alex Toth 1952-1954 HC (2011 FB) #1-1ST; "The Fatal Strands"; and "The Twisted Hands" art by Alex Toth, reprinted in Setting the Standard: Comics by Alex Toth 1952-1954 HC (2011 FB) #1-1ST. "The Beast Wasn't Hungry: Stolen Diamonds Bring a Strange Reward in the Wilds of Africa!" illustrated text story by R. S. Fenton. 36 pages. Full color. Cover price $0.10.

Airboy Comics (1945-1953 Hillman) Vol. 10 #1 CGC 6.5

Paper: Off white

Label #4692677015

Cover by Ernest Schroeder. Stories and art by Bob Jenney and Ernest Schroeder. One of the more fanciful and influential of 1940s aviator heroes, Airboy fights evil with his radio-controlled plane "Birdie" and its plethora of experimental flying tech. Sometimes listed as Airboy Comics #108. No issue # on cover; Vol. 10, issue #1 in indicia. Airboy helps an aviation pioneer who's being blackmailed over a 30-year-old crash that might have been an accident or murder. In Scandinavia, The Heap helps a man try to save his village from a disastrous civil engineering scheme. The story of circus pioneer Hachaliah Bailey's first elephant. Airboy; The Heap; 10¢ a Look; The Spanish Stab; The Finger of Asia; Bits from the Blue; The Rabbit of the Baselines. 32 pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.10.

Battle (1951 Atlas) 18 CGC 4.0

Paper: Cream to off white

Label #4702617003

"Escape!" (art by Dick Ayers), the conclusion of the Hitler Chronicle in "The Beast at Bay" (art by Ayers), "The Black Hole!" (art by Miller), "Tank," and a two-page text story, "Corporal Charles Cassidy Captures Korea." Russ Heath cover. Cover price $0.10.

Battle (1951 Atlas) 20 GD/VG 3.0

Cover oxidation.

Pin Point Hill. Home Run text story. Who Cares About Charlie? The Great Betrayal, art by Dick Ayers. Those Who March, art by Vernon Henkel. 32 pgs. $0.10. Cover price $0.10.

Blackhawk (1944 1st Series) 71 GD/VG 3.0 (R)

Restored (see item notes)

RESTORATION: Color touch. Staple rust. Rust migration.

Cover pencils by Dick Dillin. Stories by Dick Wood, Paul Gustavson and unknown. Art by Dick Dillin, Paul Gustavson and Chuck Cuidera. Read about the origin of the Blackhawks in the super-story "The Man Who Could Defeat Blackhawk" with art by Dick Dillin and Chuck Cuidera. Blackhawk is also featured in: A flying saucer assault in "Lost Horizon of Terror" with art by Dillin and Cuidera; "The Red Tiger" by Dick Wood, Dillin and Cuidera; and 1-page text story "The Human Reptile," reprinted from Modern Comics (1945) #101. Plus: Chop Chop in an untitled back-up story by Paul Gustavson, reprinted from issue #39 (with a page cut and a panel re-lettered). 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.10.

Combat Casey (1952) 12 CGC 4.0 Restored

Restored: C1

Paper: Off white to white

Restoration includes: small amount of color touch on cover.

Label #4702617004

Detective Comics (1937 1st Series) 194 CGC 6.5

Paper: White

Label #4727468019

Cover by Win Mortimer. Stories by Bill Woolfolk, Carmine Infantino, Jack Miller and unknown. Art by Bob Kane, Charles Paris, Sid Check, Moe Worthman, Leonard Starr, Howard Sherman and unknown. Don't miss Batman and Robin in "The Stolen Bank" by Bill Woolfolk, Bob Kane and Charles Paris. Plus: Pow-Wow Smith, Indian Lawman in "Return of the Killers!" with art by Leonard Starr; Robotman in "The Crime Collector" by Carmine Infantino, Jack Miller, Sid Check and Moe Worthman; and Impossible -- But True! tale "The Man in Ice!" (featuring Roy Raymond) with inks by Howard Sherman. Also: Quick Quiz activity half-pager by H.T. Elmo; Casey the Cop 1-pager by Henry Boltinoff; Jerry the Jitterbug 2-pager by Boltinoff; and 2-page text piece "Extinguishing the Firebugs" by Jack Miller (as John Marlowe). And: Superman says "People Are People!" in a 1-page public service announcement by Jack Schiff and Win Mortimer. 44 pages, full color. Cover price $0.10.

El Capitan Marvel (Mexican 1952 Editorial Novaro) 9 GD 2.0

Interior chew, does not affect art or story. Stamp.

Mexican Reprint Series. Reprints Cover and Material from Captain Marvel Adventures (1941-1953 Fawcett) #141. 7 1/4" X 10 1/4". 36 pages. Full color.

Fawcett's Funny Animals (1942-1956 Fawcett/Charlton) 78 GD- 1.8

2.5" Cumulative spine split through cover and wraps.

Funny-animal comics from Fawcett, featuring Hoppy the Bunny, Bobby Bantam and Kenny Kangaroo. Buzzy's flapjacks are too hard to be breakfast, but they make great pistol targets. Bobby Bantam's nephew Beep wants to go to the ball game, but Bobby doesn't have enough money for both of them to go. Kenny Kangaroo must improvise when his coal shovel is too wide to fit through the furnace doors. Bobby Bantam: Take Me Out to the Brawl Game!; Horse Sense; Buzzy Bee; Kenny Kangaroo; Champ the Chump of Chimps: I Know Best!; Teddy Bear and Skeezel the Weasel: Mailman Stay 'Way from My Door; Hoppy the Marvel Bunny: The Magic Lamp. 32 pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.10.

Frontline Combat (1951 EC) 10 VG- 3.5

Centerfold detached at one staple. Writing on interior pages. Oxidation.

Cover pencils by John Severin, inks by Bill Elder. "A Baby!", script by Harvey Kurtzman, art by Wally Wood; Young Ok-Dong is born at the end of World War II and is a small child when the Korean War begins and kills his entire family. "Geronimo!", script by Harvey Kurtzman, pencils by John Severin, inks by Bill Elder; Geronimo and his band of renegades make forays into Mexico, where the Mexicans fight against the intrusion, but not too successfully; And the Americans along the Arizona border wonder just what can stop the Apache outlaws; Finally, Geronimo tires of running and surrenders. "Bayonet Drill!", script and art by Harvey Kurtzman. "Napoleon!", script by Harvey Kurtzman, art by George Evans; Using superior tactics, French General Napoleon Bonaparte manages to defeat the Russian and Austrian forces in the Battle of Austerlitz, a victory that will change history for the next seven years. "Anzio!", script by Harvey Kurtzman, art by Jack Davis; The story of the invasion of Anzio during World War II. 36 pages, full color. Cover price $0.10.

Haunted Thrills (1952) 6 CGC 5.5

Paper: Cream to off white

Label #4734652002

Stories and art by Carl Burgos and others. Pre-Code horror comics from Ajax-Farrell and their anonymous talents. A ship is taken over by an army of ravenous rats. A zoo's latest acquisition is a minotaur, but it requires a very special diet: human youths. A female ventriloquist's dummy comes to life, and she's brought her friends with her, in a story with art by Human Torch creator Carl Burgos. Crawling Death; Pit of Horror; Monster Mill; Dearest, Deadest Dummy. 36 pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.10.

John Wayne Adventure Comics (1949-1955 Toby Press) 24 GD+ 2.5

Cover oxidation. Water damage.

Art cover with small round John Wayne photo inset. Lionel trains ad. The Desert; John Wayne must lead a group through the desert. Red Flows the Amazon, art by Jack Sparling; John Wayne battles a gator. Ad for watches featuring Li Abner and Gene Autry. The Cowboys Saddle fact page. Incident In the North text story starring Wayne by Benton Rice. Death Climbs the Pyramid starring Wayne. Space Commander walkie talkies ad. 36 pgs. $0.10. Cover price $0.10.

Little Dot (1953 1st Series) 2 GD 2.0 (R)

Trimmed

RESTORATION. TRIMMED. Cover detached. 2" tear from top.

Stories and art by Steve Muffatti and others. Cover by Warren Kremer. One of the mainstays of Harvey's long-running kids' comics, Little Dot also features Richie Rich and Little Lotta. A dog follows Little Dot to school. Richie Rich's jerky cousin Reggie Van Dough makes his debut, in a story that also introduces Richie's pals Freckles and Peewee. Dot's latest crazy relative is Uncle Alp, who would rather scale twenty-story buildings than walk around the park. Plus an explanatory note "from" Dot, introducing her friends to the reader. Dog's Life; Richie Rich: Problem Child; Little Lotta; Uncle Alp. 32 pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.10.

Love Letters (1949 Quality) 29 GD/VG 3.0

3.5" Spine split in first wrap from top. Water damage.

Cover inks by Al Grenet. Stories by unknown. Art by Charles Sultan, Marion Sitton and unknown. Love letters and the revealing tales of the lovers who wrote them! In this issue: "I could see that Steve's remarks hurt Randy deeply but why if he loves me doesn't he stand up and fight back?" Read "My Kind of Man" with pencils by Charles Sultan. Plus: "Interrupted Honeymoon" with pencils by Marion Sitton; "Girl-in-Waiting," reprinted from Forbidden Love (1950) #3; 1-page text story "Ill-Fated Letter"; and "Induction Blues"! 32 pages, full color. Cover price $0.10.

Man's Magazine (1952-1976) Vol. 1 #6 GD

Water damage: Moderate. Staple rust: Slight.

Men's interest magazine focusing on adventure, hunting, and true crime articles, war stories and photos. 8 1/2-in. x 11-in. 82 pages. B&W. Cover price $0.25.

Mystery Tales (1952 Atlas) 8 FR/GD 1.5

5 1/2" Cumulative spine split. Cover detached. Centerfold is detached at one staple. Water spotting.

Cover art by Bill Everett. "The Madman!", script by Stan Lee, art by Tony DiPreta; A serious actor, portraying Hamlet, sees his star begin to lose some lustre when nepotism rears its head and the producer's cousin is made his understudy; The understudy proceeds to sabotage the actor to the point where he accidentally kills the actor's wife by mistake. "Danger - Quicksand!" text story. "A Killer in the Street," pencils by Paul Reinman , inks by Art Wallace; A police detective is obsessed with a serial killer whose victims are all young pretty women in red dresses; When his wife buys a red dress, he insists that she take it back and she reluctantly agrees; Working late on the case, he has no time to go home and they agree to meet downtown for dinner; He sees she's wearing the red dress after all and flies into a rage. "This House Is Haunted!", art by Ed Winiarski; Josiah Benson's son Adam inherits his dilapidated property where four squatters play poker; Adam gives them notice, to no avail, because they know the place is haunted and unrentable. "The Wooden Man"; Chick Black is a midget who looks like a wooden dummy; His modus operandi is to let people find him and take him in, whereupon he robs them, using his unique appearance and size to elude capture; On his latest heist, Chick shoots and kills a guard. 36 pgs., full color. Cover price $0.10.

Mystic (1951 Atlas) 18 0.3

Comic is complete other than being coverless.

Mystic #18 features a memorable Bill Everett horror cover for "The Russian Devil!" The cover depicts skeletal communist party official literally dragging the corpse of an unfortunate citizen from his grave. "Get up, Ivan!" shouts the commie, "You can't escape us by dying! We're not through with you yet!" Fortunately, this story was written by a red-blooded American comic creator so the commie villain comes to a bad--and eternal--end. In Old Baghdad; A woman brought to the city as a slave schemes to become the wife of the Sultan but she is unaware of the the custom of that country to throw the Sultan's wife to the lions when he dies. The Drowning Man, art by Carrabotta; A thief cast overboard mistakes the back of a whale for a raft. The Perfect Mold text story. Tom-Tom!; Natives skin a cruel plantation owner and use him for their drums. Charley's Crime, art by Jack Abel; A thief comes back as a ghost to rob a bank but the ghost of the guard he killed stops him. The Russian Devil; The communist overseer of a labor camp is glad when he is told by his doctor that he has not long to live because he has spent his whole life killing and is weary; Death wants an assistant however and refuses to allow him to rest in peace. 36 pgs. $0.10. Cover price $0.10.

Our Army at War (1952) 9 PR 0.5

Interior is complete. Full length spine split.

Cover art by Gene Colan. Undersea Raider, script by David Kahn, pencils by Gene Colan, inks by Joe Giella. Runaway Hero, script by Dave Wood, pencils by Jerry Grandenetti, inks by Bernard Sachs. Fatal Choice, script by Robert Bernstein, art by Eugene Hughes. Eyes of the Artillery, script by David Kahn, art by Bernie Krigstein. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.10.

Sensation Mystery (1952) 113 CGC 5.0

Paper: Off white to white

Label #4723170023

Cover pencils by Carmine Infantino, inks by John Giunta. The End of Death, script by Robert Kanigher, pencils by Jerry Grandenetti, inks by Frank Giacoia; A criminal tries to convince Johnny Peril that he is being haunted by Death himself. The Sea Girl!, pencils by Jim Mooney, inks by Bernard Sachs; Jim Spencer is marooned on an enchanted island; He lives in the company of an undine, a dryad and a sylph; Spencer falls in love with Celia, the mermaid. Lantern in the Rain!, script by Jack Miller, art by Irwin Hasen; Did the ghost of John Logan flash his ghostly signal lantern to stop Luke Brownell from crashing his train? The Man Who Sold His Soul article, script by Jack Miller, art by Raymond Perry; Account of a strange story happening in Lima, Peru, in 1715. Legacy of Horror!, pencils by Murphy Anderson, inks by Sy Barry; Ralph Edgerton inherits millions from a distant relative, but has to spend time in a haunted house. 36 pgs. $0.10. Cover price $0.10.

Shock Suspenstories (1952 EC) 9 CGC 4.5

Paper: Off white to white

Label #4700104002

Cover art by Albert B. Feldstein. The October Game, script by Ray Bradbury (original story) and Albert B. Feldstein (adaptation), art by Jack Kamen; A madman who hates his wife dismembers his daughter and passes around her body parts to children in a darkened cellar on Halloween. Came The Dawn!, script by Albert B. Feldstein, art by Wally Wood; A man thinks that the girl he has met in the woods may be a dangerous escaped lunatic because she matches the description, but his girlfriend ends up meeting a grim fate as the latest victim of the true escapee. Surgery! text story, script by Albert B. Feldstein, art by Marie Severin; In a Police Hospital room, criminal Bat Parker, seriously wounded in a gunfight with the Police, needs a gangrene-laden leg amputated before he dies. The Meddlers!, script by Albert B. Feldstein, art by Joe Orlando; The folk of a small town attempt to drive away a doctor who is attempting to create life in a test tube. Carrion Death!, script by Albert B. Feldstein, art by Reed Crandall (his first story for EC); A man handcuffed to policeman is trying to make his way through the desert on foot; He realizes that he has to separate himself from the body but has nothing sharp to cut off the dead man's hand with. One-page bio (with photo) of Ray Bradbury. 36 pgs. $0.10. Cover price $0.10.

Tales from the Crypt (1950 E.C. Comics) 34 CGC 8.0

Paper: Cream to off white

Label #1108110002

Cover by Jack Davis. "Mirror, Mirror, On the Wall!", script by Al Feldstein, art by Jack Davis; A first person narrative where a man fashions a monster together out of artificial parts ala Frankenstein and transfers your brain into it. "Oil's Well That Ends Well!", script by Al Feldstein, art by George Evans; Two swindlers run a racket where they visit a small town and convince them there is oil present and get them to issue stock in order to come up with the check to begin drilling. "Love Story" text story. "Attacks of Horror!", script by Al Feldstein, art by Jack Kamen; This grim fairy tale tells the story of king Moneymad's tax scheme. "There Was an Old Woman!", script by Ray Bradbury (original story) and Albert B. Feldstein (adaptation), art by Graham Ingels (as Ghastly); The employees of a mortuary are haunted by the spirit of an old woman who refuses to leave until they return her body to her. 36 pgs., full color. $0.10. Cover price $0.10.

Tales from the Crypt (1950 E.C. Comics) 36 CGC 6.0

Paper: Cream to off white

Label #0230490018

Cover by Jack Davis. EC Artist of the Month article about George Evans (with photo) by Al Feldstein. "Fare Tonight, Followed By Increasing Clottyness...", script by Al Feldstein, art by Jack Davis; A cab driver has a dream that he is pursued by a Dr. Mueller into a basement filled with vampire-occupied caskets. "Curiosity Killed...", script by Al Feldstein, art by George Evans; A woman is convinced that her friend down the hall has been murdered by her husband and that he is disposing of her remains bit by bit via carrier pigeon to a local kennel. "Tight Squeeze" text story. "How Green Was My Alley," script by Al Feldstein, art by Jack Kamen; A bigamist is decapitated by his two athletic wives when they find they've been deceived; The golfer putts with his eyes and the bowler uses his severed head. "The Handler," script by Ray Bradbury and Albert B. Feldstein (adaptation), art by Graham Ingels (as Ghastly); A mortician avenges himself against perceived slights upon the closed-casket victims of his parlor by violating their bodies until a corpse who isn't quite dead yet overhears his gruesome doings and begs the dead to rise from their graves and stop this horrid man. 36 pgs., full color. $0.10. Cover price $0.10.

Tales from the Crypt (1950 E.C. Comics) 37 CGC 5.0

Paper: Off white to white

Label #1198364005

Cover by Jack Davis. "Dead Right!", script by Al Feldstein, art by Jack Davis; A doctor rigs up an elaborate hoax to convince his heart specialist friend that his theory of awareness immediately after death could be true by pretending to poison him but really only administering an anesthetic. "Pleasant Screams!", script by Al Feldstein, art by Joe Orlando; A high school teacher narrates his experiences as the main character in the dream of a sadistic student. "Solid" text story. "Strop! You're Killing Me!", script by Al Feldstein, art by Bill Elder; When Clem retires as Fire Chief, that leaves old Dan Harper on the job.....until the Mayor appoints a younger man as Chief, and, from the beginning, Dan and Chief Miller never see eye-to-eye about anything. "The Rover Boys!", script by Bill Gaines (co-plot) and Albert B. Feldstein (co-plot, script), art by Graham Ingels; A doctor gets his revenge on the five members of the medical board who revoked his license to practice medicine by transferring their brains into the bodies of dogs, and using their reasoning abilities to make money as a novelty act. 36 pgs., full color. $0.10. Cover price $0.10.

Tales of Terror Annual (1951) 1953 CGC 3.5

Paper: Off white to white

Slab: Chipped/broken bracket

Contains: Tales from the Crypt #31, Shock SuspenStories #3, Crime SuspenStories #12 & Vault of Horror 27

Label #4700104001

Feldstei bondage/torture cover, issue #3. Ingels, Wood, and Kamen art. Horror, Crime, and shock books that appeared around 1952. Each E.C. Annual contains four complete books that did not sell on the stands which were rebound in the annual format, minus the covers, and sold from the E.C. Office and on the stands in key cities. The contents of each annual may vary in the same year. Cover price $0.25.

Voodoo (1952 Ajax/Farrell) 5 CGC 6.5

Paper: Off white to white

Label #2039114001

Ajax-Farrell's horror series Voodoo managed to stand out in the crowded field of pre-Code horror comics by dint of its sheer weirdness. Three men spend the night in a haunted lighthouse. A wife's hatred of her husband's undertaking job drives her murderously insane. A woman poisons her lover's wife, resulting in madness and revenge from the beyond the grave. Corpses of the Jury; Death Light?; Man-Killer; Ghoul for a Day; The Spiteful Spirit. 36 pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.10.

Wanted Comics (1947 Orbit / Toytown) 52 CGC 4.0 Buscema Collection

Paper: Off white

From The Collection of John Buscema.

Label #4703913001

Cover by John Buscema. Stories and art by John Buscema, Mort Leav, Harry Anderson, Rafael Astarita, and Bill Woolfolk. Bloody pre-Code crime comics, in imitation of Crime Does Not Pay - including a top-hatted, otherworldly narrator. The twist is that the publisher offers wanted posters (and rewards) for real-life criminals. A temple cult has a strange connection to a band of masked killers, in a story with some atmospheric (and violent) art by Harry Anderson. Gangsters hijack trucks carrying valuable silk shipments. The Great Unsolved Mysteries contest invites readers to ponder an elderly woman poisoned before she could change her will, in an early story (and cover) by future Marvel and Conan legend John Buscema. Payment In Blood; Cult of the Killers; Great Unsolved Mysteries: Murder for Aunt Martha; Wanted: Ralph Jackson; Hot Silk. 32 pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.10.

Weird Fantasy (1951 E.C. Comics 2nd Series) 18 PR 0.5

Interior is complete. Extensive accumulation of defects.

Cover pencils by Al Williamson, inks by Al Feldstein. "Counter-Clockwise," script by Bill Gaines (co-plot) and Al Feldstein (co-plot, script), pencils by John Severin, inks by Bill Elder; Ron's father is dismayed when he learns that his son wants to secure at a job at the Rocket-Port...not just to service rockets, but to fly them; He cautions his son that pilots must retire at age 26, but while they talk, Ron's Dad sights a space ship that is not of earthly origin; Together they go to the landing sight, armed with a blaster; When a weird alien being alights from the ship, they kill it and report to the authorities. "Zero Hour," script by Ray Bradbury and Albert B. Feldstein (adaptation), art by Jack Kamen; Mrs. Morris, at first, thinks nothing of her daughter and a friend playing their game of "invasion"; But when Mink starts telling of a Martian named Drill, who is the fore-runner of a Martian invasion of Earth, and Mary discovers that kids of her friends in other parts of the country are playing the same game, she wonders if this is for real. "The Ashtray" text story. "Homesick!", script by Al Feldstein, art by Al Williamson (signed) and Roy Krenkel (on technological details); David Todd and Lynn Ardsley plot her husband's murder, while David and Lawrence are on a mission to Mars to investigate the planet's landscape and possible life forms. "Judgment Day!", script by Al Feldstein, art by Joe Orlando; Tarlton, the Earthman, has landed on the planet Cybrinia, home to mechanical life; He is to judge whether or not Cybrinia will be allowed to "partake of the wonders of Earth." 36 pages, full color. Cover price $0.10.

World's Finest Comics (1941) 64 GD 2.0

Cover detached at one staple (taped). 2" cumulative spine split.

Cover art by Winslow Mortimer. The Death of Lois Lane starring Superman, script by William Woolfolk, pencils by Al Plastino. The One-Armed Archer starring Green Arrow, script by Dave Wood, art by George Papp. Spy Train starring King Faraday, script by Robert Kanigher, pencils by Carmine Infantino, inks by Sy Barry; King Faraday, on the trail of a killer, rides the Orient Express, where he meets a movie starlet and a camera-happy tourist. The Wyoming Kid's Pal, script by Gardner Fox, pencils by Howard Sherman. Bruce Wayne... Amateur Detective starring Batman, pencils by Dick Sprang, inks by Charles Paris. 68 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.15.