Auctions: comic books July 1971

Air Pirates Funnies (1971) 1 CGC 9.8

Paper: Off white to white

Label #4535528019

Controversial parody discontinued due to Disney lawsuit. The Air Pirates were a group of cartoonists who created two issues of an underground comic called Air Pirates Funnies in 1971, leading to a famous lawsuit by The Walt Disney Company. Founded by Dan O'Neill, the group also included Shary Flenniken, Bobby London, Gary Hallgren, and Ted Richards. The collective shared a common interest in the styles of past masters of the comic strip: Flenniken emulated George McManus's Bringing Up Father in her Trots and Bonnie comics, London's strip Dirty Duck paid homage to the styles of E.C. Segar's Thimble Theater and George Herriman's Krazy Kat, and Richards' Dopin' Dan was similar to Mort Walker's Beetle Bailey. The original Air Pirates were a gang of Mickey Mouse antagonists of the 1930s; O'Neill regarded Mickey Mouse as a symbol of conformist hypocrisy in American culture, and therefore a ripe target for satire. The first issue of Air Pirates Funnies was dated July 1971, and the second issue dated August. Both were published under the Hell Comics imprint, and were distributed through Ron Turner's Last Gasp publishing company. The lead stories in both issues, created by O'Neill and Hallgren, focused on Walt Disney characters, most notably from Floyd Gottfredson's Mickey Mouse newspaper strip, with the Disney characters engaging in adult behaviors such as sex and drug consumption. O'Neill insisted it would dilute the parody to change the names of the characters, so his adventurous mouse character was called "Mickey" Cover price $0.50.

Amazing Adventures (1970 2nd Series) 7 CGC 8.0

Paper: Off white to white

Label #4735136001

Cover by Neal Adams. "An Evening's Wait For Death!", script by Gerry Conway, pencils by Neal Adams, inks by John Verpoorten; Mr. Dibbs recruits Black Bolt to bring down rat-shack tenements while the royal family heads out to San Francisco to see what's become of him. "The Sting of the Widow!", script by Gerry Conway, pencils by Don Heck, inks by Bill Everett; The Black Widow visits Avengers Mansion, then defeats the Astrologer; Goliath (Clint Barton) cameo. 36 pgs, full color. $0.15. Cover price $0.15.

Amazing Spider-Man (1963 1st Series) 98 CGC 8.0

Paper: Off white to white

Label #4498077013

Not approved by the Comics Code Authority. "The Goblin's Last Gasp!" Part 3 of 3. Script by Stan Lee. Pencils by Gil Kane. Inks by Frank Giacoia and Tony Mortellaro (backgrounds). Cover by Gil Kane and Frank Giacoia. The Green Goblin bursts into Peter and Harry's apartment ready to finish the web-slinger! But when Norman Osborn sees his comatose son, he quickly flees! Is Harry the goblin's primary weakness? A while later after trashing a trio of drug dealers, Spider-Man takes to the rooftops to find the goblin. And when he does, their final battle of the silver age commences! The Amazing Spider-Man vs. the Green Goblin! An outstanding three-part story! Cameo appearances by Gwen Stacy, J. Jonah Jameson, and Joe Robertson. (Notes: The Green Goblin returns in the classic Amazing Spider-Man 121. This issue was reprinted in Marvel Tales #79.) 36 pages. Cover price $0.15.

Daredevil (1964 1st Series) 78 CGC 6.5

Paper: Off white to white

Label #4314519019

Cover pencils by Herb Trimpe, inks by Frank Giacoia. First appearance of the Man-Bull in The Horns of the Bull!, script by Gerry Conway, pencils by Gene Colan, inks by Tom Palmer; DD saves a couple from becoming a mad doctor's experiment, but the doctor uses one of his cronies for the process, turning him into the Man-Bull; part 1 of Mr. Kline opus in DD, which crosses over with Iron Man #s 41-45 and Sub-Mariner #42. 36 pgs. Cover price $0.15. Cover price $0.15.

Fantastic Four (1961 1st Series) 112 CGC 7.5

Paper: White

Label #4215418010

"Battle of the Behemoths!" Guest-starring the Hulk. Script by Stan Lee. Pencils by John Buscema. Inks by Joe Sinnott. Cover by John Buscema and Frank Giacoia. One of the landmark FF issues of the bronze age! And an outstanding cover too! The Thing has been a one-man wrecking crew in tearing up the city over the past several hours! And Mr. Fantastic, the Human Torch, and New York's finest are helpless to stop him! But now...enter the Hulk! Wow! The Green Goliath and the blue-eyed idol of millions battle from cover to cover until only one man is left standing! It's clobberin' time! Cameo appearances by Agatha Harkness, Alicia Masters, Franklin, and J. Jonah Jameson. (Notes: This issue was reprinted in Hulk vs. Thing 1 (1999). The Hulk and the Thing previously fought one another in Fantastic Four (1st series) 25 and 26. The powerful pair battle again in Marvel Feature (1st series) 11 and one more time in Giant-Size Super-Stars 1.) 36 pages, full color. Cover price $0.15.

Fantastic Four (1961 1st Series) 112 FN/VF 7.0

"Battle of the Behemoths!" Guest-starring the Hulk. Script by Stan Lee. Pencils by John Buscema. Inks by Joe Sinnott. Cover by John Buscema and Frank Giacoia. One of the landmark FF issues of the bronze age! And an outstanding cover too! The Thing has been a one-man wrecking crew in tearing up the city over the past several hours! And Mr. Fantastic, the Human Torch, and New York's finest are helpless to stop him! But now...enter the Hulk! Wow! The Green Goliath and the blue-eyed idol of millions battle from cover to cover until only one man is left standing! It's clobberin' time! Cameo appearances by Agatha Harkness, Alicia Masters, Franklin, and J. Jonah Jameson. (Notes: This issue was reprinted in Hulk vs. Thing 1 (1999). The Hulk and the Thing previously fought one another in Fantastic Four (1st series) 25 and 26. The powerful pair battle again in Marvel Feature (1st series) 11 and one more time in Giant-Size Super-Stars 1.) 36 pages, full color. Cover price $0.15.

Fantastic Four (1961 1st Series) 112 CGC 5.5

Paper: Off white to white

Label #4731121011

"Battle of the Behemoths!" Guest-starring the Hulk. Script by Stan Lee. Pencils by John Buscema. Inks by Joe Sinnott. Cover by John Buscema and Frank Giacoia. One of the landmark FF issues of the bronze age! And an outstanding cover too! The Thing has been a one-man wrecking crew in tearing up the city over the past several hours! And Mr. Fantastic, the Human Torch, and New York's finest are helpless to stop him! But now...enter the Hulk! Wow! The Green Goliath and the blue-eyed idol of millions battle from cover to cover until only one man is left standing! It's clobberin' time! Cameo appearances by Agatha Harkness, Alicia Masters, Franklin, and J. Jonah Jameson. (Notes: This issue was reprinted in Hulk vs. Thing 1 (1999). The Hulk and the Thing previously fought one another in Fantastic Four (1st series) 25 and 26. The powerful pair battle again in Marvel Feature (1st series) 11 and one more time in Giant-Size Super-Stars 1.) 36 pages, full color. Cover price $0.15.

House of Secrets (1956 1st Series) 92 CGC 9.2

Paper: Off white to white

Label #2008946001

Cover art by Bernie Wrightson. "Swamp Thing," script by Len Wein, art by Berni Wrightson; Sometime in the last century, Alex Olsen and Damien Ridge had been best friends; However, they both vied for the affections of a woman named Linda. Linda eventually married Alex and Damien had to endure his heartache in the form of the supportive friend; But his desire for Linda overrode the bonds of friendship and he conspired to eliminate Alex; He sabotaged the equipment in Alex's lab causing an explosion that killed him; Keeping the knowledge hidden from Linda, Damien buried Alex's body in the swamp; Damien eventually married the widow Olsen and they lived together in an old Victorian plantation house; But Linda never recovered from Alex's death; As months passed, Damien began to suspect that Linda might soon learn the truth, so he prepared to kill her; But Alex had been resurrected as a swamp thing and broke into the house and killed Damien. "After I Die!", script by Jack Kirby and Mark Evanier, art by Bill Draut; A wealthy man named Maxwell James is obsessed with what happens after death; his obsession only grows stronger when he arrives at his wife's deathbed, and realizes that she sees something utterly horrifying in her final moments. "It's Better to Give," script by Mary Skrenes (as "Virgil North"), pencils by Alan Weiss, inks by Tony DeZuniga; A homeless man encounters a crying baby warlock in the town dump who is upset that he has broken his balloon. "Trick or Treat" two-page story, art by Dick Dillin. 36 Pages, Full Color. Cover price $0.15.

Tales of Voodoo (1968) Vol. 4 #4 CGC 8.0

Paper: Off white to white

Label #4657835010

Photo cover features Boris Karloff as The Mummy. Stories and art by Carl Burgos, Torre Repiso, Ezra Jackson, Torre Repiso and Hector Castellon. Legendary publisher Eerie's fondly remembered tales of horror and the macabre, many "reanimated" from classic pre-Code horror comics with new art. After a disfiguring auto accident, a man is pursued by a monstrous weathervane. A woman buys a love potion from a witch to steal her sister's boyfriend, but it turns out the witch had a better idea. A monstrous spirit warns mountain climbers scaling Mt. Everest to turn back. Painted cover by Johnny Bruck is reprinted from Germany's Perry Rhodan. A Thing of Horror; The Witch of Doom; Curse of the Sword; The Frozen Mummies; Swamp Monsters; Terror in the Attic; Zombie For a Day. 8 1/2-in. x 11-in. 48 pages, B&W. Mature readers. Cover price $0.50.

Thor (1962 Marvel 1st Series Journey Into Mystery) 190 VF- 7.5

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Cover pencils by John Buscema, inks by Frank Giacoia. "And So, To Die!", script by Stan Lee, pencils by John Buscema, inks by Joe Sinnott; Thor has been forced to accept Hela's gift of death and he prepares to receive her touch; While in Asgard, Balder sleeps a troubled sleep with thought of the oath of loyalty he has sworn to Karnilla; However, he finds these dreams are not just that, Karnilla herself has appeared before him to warn him that Thor's end is near; Rousing from his bed Balder rushes to Odin to tell him of what transpires; Karnilla appears and shows Odin an image of what is happening on Earth; Witnessing it for himself Odin refuses to allow his favored son to die. 36 pgs., full color. $0.15. Cover price $0.15.