ComicLink is gearing up for the Summer Featured Auction which will be one of their biggest comic book related auctions of the year. The auction, beginning in August, already has a number of stellar comic books and original art pieces consigned, and many more are coming in. Interested sellers that would like to be a part of this auction can get in touch with ComicLink as soon as possible to reserve placement, as auction slots tend to fill up quickly for some items. Sellers may contact ComicLink by emailing buysell@comiclink.com or by calling (617) 517-0062 (option 1) to speak with Josh Nathanson, Douglas Gillock, Jason Crosby, Jon Signorelli, or Ross Kearney. ComicLink will also be accepting auction consignments at booth 1100 at Comic-Con in San Diego on July 20-23, 2017.    

ComicLink expressed their excitement to be offering the original Frank Frazetta oil painting for the Tales From the Crypt #1 Ballantine Book (1964), which is one of the earliest – if not the earliest – horror-themed oil paintings by the great Frazetta. “Nine years after Bill Gaines was forced to shelve EC Comics’ horror, crime, and sci-fi titles due to creative restrictions enforced by the Comics Code Authority, Ballantine reprinted a number of the original tales in five volumes published between 1964 and 1966: Tales from the Crypt (1964), The Vault of Horror (1965), Tales of the Incredible (1965), The Autumn People (1965), and Tomorrow Midnight (1966). Frazetta, who had worked briefly for EC in the 1950s, painted the covers for the entire series. Note the ‘Frank Frazetta’ on the tombstone, rather than his usual ‘Frazetta’ signature – is it the only time he signed differently? The oils on this prime era piece is pure Frazetta genius, right down to the ground around the hands, which give off a phosphorescent glow,” Nathanson said.

Another important original art piece in the Summer Featured Auction is the Neal Adams cover for Justice League of America #92 (1971) featuring Adams’ epic depiction of Solomon Grundy raising a defeated Superman over his head, having taken out the rest of the Justice League and the Justice Society. This is Adams’ only Solomon Grundy cover from his peak era and it’s an incredible piece. With Grundy looking very likely to appear on the hit show Gotham starting in a few months, the swamp monster is poised to skyrocket in popularity among a new generation of fans really soon.

One of the original art highlights of this auction is the historic cover for Uncanny X-Men #266, featuring the first appearance of Gambit, drawn by the extraordinary Andy Kubert. “This is one of the most significant Modern Era covers ever to come onto the auction market! Gambit was a shining star from the beginning of his career as an X-Man and he may just go supernova once the planned Gambit film franchise with Channing Tatum finally gets off the ground. Fox has just announced several dates for upcoming unnamed films, and speculation is that one of those will be Gambit. Though the Gambit movie has been in the works for awhile, keep in mind the Deadpool movie took years to get off the ground, and we all know how huge that was when it hit,” ComicLink founder and President Josh Nathanson said.

Speaking of extra special original art offerings, be sure to check out this complete Graham Ingels Tales From the Crypt story. This 7-page EC classic comes from Tales From the Crypt #46 (1955), the final issue of the historic run. The story, “Tatter Up!” is one of the more memorable stories narrated by the Old Witch in EC’s most famous horror title. As one of Ingels’ last stories before his EC career was cut short by the censorship of the Comics Code Authority, it shows the original master of the macabre at the full bloom of his talents, showcasing why he’s still considered to be one of the greatest horror comic book artists ever by many fans.

In addition to the major original art highlights mentioned above, other original art highlights from the Summer Focused Auction include Art Adams Avengers Classic #7 cover, Murphy Anderson Showcase #56 Doctor Fate battle page, Chuck Austen Miracleman #7 page 1 from the all-time classic Alan Moore series, Mark Bagley Hulk #9 cover featuring Hulk vs. Kitty Pryde, Hal Foster Prince Valiant Sunday pages, Ron Frenz Amazing Spider-Man #257 featuring black costumed Spider-Man vs. Puma plus Mary Jane, Phil Jimenez Secret Invasion: Who Do You Trust? #1 cover featuring the Avengers, X-Men, and Agents of Atlas, Dan Jurgens Batman #359 page featuring the origin of Killer Croc from just his second full appearance, Dale Keown Spider-Gwen #1 cover, the cover for Future Imperfect #1 featuring the return of the future version of the Hulk known as the Maestro, and a page from the landmark Incredible Hulk #377, and Greg Land Marvel 75th Anniversary Magazine cover featuring loads of heroes.

Rick Leonardi Amazing Spider-Man #254 page featuring early black costumed Spider-Man vs. Jack-o-Lantern, Todd McFarlane Wolverine #6 back cover featuring the only maskless Logan cover art by Todd from his prime era, Tony Moore The Walking Dead #2 page featuring Rick Grimes from extremely early in the landmark saga, George Pérez Marvel Tales #261 cover featuring Spider-Man vs. the Hobgoblin, Stephen Platt Prophet #9 cover, John Romita Amazing Spider-Man #68 page featuring Spidey in action plus the Kingpin, John Romita Jr. Daredevil The Man Without Fear #1 cover from the landmark 1993 miniseries with inks by Al Williamson, also the Romita Jr. cover for Incredible Hulk #609 featuring Hulk and Captain America and an early Romita Jr. page from Amazing Spider-Man #243 page, Bill Sienkiewicz New Mutants #30 page from his landmark run, and Michael Turner Wizard Millennium cover featuring Supergirl are also offered.

A significant comic book being offered in the Summer Featured Auction comes from the newly coined John G. Fantucchio Pedigree. It’s the first appearance of the Teen Titans in Brave and the Bold #54 CGC 9.8 which is the single highest graded. “Underscoring how rare this example is, in the 17 years since CGC started grading, this is the first time this Silver Age key has ever been awarded the Near Mint/Mint 9.8 grade,” Nathanson said. “The Titans has been one of DC’s top franchises for decades. It’s recently been announced that a live action Titans TV series will be one of the centerpieces of DC’s new, subscription digital TV service that will launch next year, in 2018. We expect the bidding to be very fierce for this single highest graded key, but that is because it will have enormous growth potential.”

Looking forward to the Justice League movie opening on November 17? Perhaps now is the perfect time to add some stunning high grade examples from the Silver Age Justice League of America run to your collection. “There are many stellar examples up for auction in the Summer Featured Auction with the majority coming from the John G. Fantucchio Pedigree, most of which feature bright bold colors and white pages,” Nathanson said.  

Highlights include Justice League of America #1 CGC 7.5 Fantucchio, #7 CBCS 9.6 (single highest graded), #21 (first JLA/JSA team-up) CBCS 9.2, #41 (first Key) CGC 9.8 Fantucchio (highest graded, one of two), #48 (80-page Giant, classic Batman cover) CGC 9.8 Fantucchio (highest graded, one of two), #50 CGC 9.8 Fantucchio, #52 CGC 9.4 Fantucchio, #53 CGC 9.8 Fantucchio (highest graded, one of five), #63 CGC 9.8 Fantucchio (highest graded, one of three), #64 (first Red Tornado) CGC 9.8 Fantucchio, #67 (Giant, classic Adams cover) CGC 9.6 Fantucchio, #75 (Black Canary joins, gains sonic powers and begins relationship with Green Arrow) Fantucchio (highest graded, one of two), #76 (Giant) CGC 9.6 Fantucchio, #81 (Adams cover) CGC 9.8 Fantucchio (highest, one of three), #90 CGC 9.8 Fantucchio, and #98 (Adams cover) CGC 9.8 Fantucchio (highest, one of four).

There are numerous exceptional comic books already consigned to the Summer Featured Auction which starts in August and much more is on the way. Some of the early consignments include Amazing Spider-Man #1 (second Spider-Man, first Jameson) CGC 8.0, #10 (first Enforcers) CBCS 9.4, #14 (first Green Goblin) CBCS 9.0, #16 (first Daredevil crossover) CGC 9.8, #29 (second Scorpion) CGC 9.6 Pacific Coast pedigree, #39 (first Romita art, Goblin revealed as Norman Osborn) CGC 9.6, #45 (Lizard cover) CGC 9.8, #47 (Kraven cover) CGC 9.8, #61 (first Gwen Stacy cover) CGC 9.8, #100 (Anniversary issue) CGC 9.8, #101 (first Morbius) CGC 9.8, #122 (death of Green Goblin) CGC 9.8, #129 (first Punisher) CGC 9.8, Annual #2 (Doctor Strange crossover) CGC 9.6, Avengers #16 (line-up change issue with classic Kirby Cap cover) CGC 9.4, #27 CGC 9.8 (highest graded, one of four), #58 (origin of Vision) CGC 9.8, and #83 (first Valkyrie and Lady Liberators) CGC 9.8, Annual #2 (old vs. new Avengers cover/story) CGC 9.8, Annual #5 (Spider-Man cover) CGC 9.8 (highest graded, one of four), and Batman #11 (classic first Joker cover in Batman title) CGC 7.5, #208 (Giant) CGC 9.8 (single highest graded), #234 (first Modern Two-Face by Adams) CGC 9.8, #237 (classic “Night of the Reaper” by Adams) CGC 9.8, #244 (classic Batman vs. Ras Al Ghul cover by Adams) CGC 9.8, and #251 (classic Joker cover/story by Adams) CGC 9.8.

Black Terror #7 (Schomburg cover) CGC 8.5 (one of the top two graded overall and others from this title), Brave and the Bold #54 (first Teen Titans) CCG 9.8 (single highest graded), Captain America #100 (first issue, classic Kirby cover) CGC 9.8, Crime SuspenStories #1 (classic EC title) CGC 8.0, Daring Comics #9 (Schomburg Timely cover) CGC 7.5 (one of top four graded overall), #11 CGC 7.5, Detective Comics #6 (rare 1937) CGC 6.5, #67 (first Penguin cover) CGC 7.0, and #359 (first Batgirl/Barbara Gordon) CGC 9.2, Doctor Strange #169 (first issue) CGC 9.8, Fantastic Comics #4 (Lou Fine cover) CGC 8.5 (one of top three graded overall), Fantastic Four #44 (first Gorgon) CGC 9.8, #45 (first Inhumans) CGC 9.2, #46 (first full Black Bolt) CGC 9.6, and #58 (Doctor Doom cover) CGC 9.8 (highest graded, one of four), Flash #139 (first Reverse Flash) CGC 9.0, and Ghost Rider v1950 #1 (origin of Ghost Rider) CGC 9.0 CVA Exceptional are in the auction.

Hawkman #4 (first Zatanna) CGC 9.4, House of Secrets #92 (first Swamp Thing) CGC 9.6, Incredible Hulk #1 (first Hulk and origin) CGC 6.0 and #181 (first full Wolverine) CBCS 9.4, Incredible Science Fiction #33 (last EC color comic, classic Wood cover) CGC 9.6 Gaines File (highest graded, one of three), Iron Man #55 (first Thanos and Drax) CGC 9.8, MAD #25 CGC 9.8 (highest graded, one of two), Man Comics #1 (1949 Atlas) CGC 8.0 (single highest graded), Marvel Mystery Comics #24 (Schomburg cover) CGC 9.2, #29 (classic Schomburg torture cover) CGC 8.0, #58 (Schomburg WWII cover) CGC 9.0 (highest graded, one of two), #66 (Schomburg’s last Japanese war cover) CGC 8.5 (one of the top five graded overall), and #71 (Schomburg cover) CGC 9.4, Marvel Spotlight #5 (first Johnny Blaze Ghost Rider) CGC 9.2, and Miracleman #15 (epic battle and “Death” of Kid Miracleman) CGC 9.9 (highest graded, one of two) will be offered.

Additional highlights are Nelvana #nn (the “Action Comics #1” of Canadian Whites) CGC 5.0, Phantom Lady #17 (Baker cover) CGC 7.0, Sensation Comics #95 (classic Steve “unmasking” Wonder Woman cover) CBCS 7.0 (one of the top three graded overall), Silver Surfer #1 (origin of Surfer) CGC 9.6, Sub-Mariner Comics #1 (classic Schomburg cover) CGC 7.5R, Superboy #68 (first Bizarro, rare in higher grades) CGC 8.0, Superman #17 (classic Superman vs. Hitler and Hirohito cover) CGC 8.0 and #45 (Lois as Superwoman story) CGC 9.4, Teen Titans #1 CGC 9.2, Tomb of Dracula #10 (first Blade) CGC 9.8 Signature Series (highest graded, one of two), Weird Fantasy #17 CGC 9.4 Gaines File, Weird Science #10 Gaines File CGC 9.4, #17 CGC 9.4, #21 CGC 9.4, and #22 CGC 9.4, Wonderworld Comics #6 CGC 8.0 (one of top two graded overall), and X-Men #8 (first Unus) CGC 9.6 and #64 (first Sunfire) CGC 9.8.

The firm is also taking consignments for the September Focused Auction (a preview will post soon). Interested sellers are encouraged to get in touch as soon as possible to reserve placement, as auction slots tend to fill up quickly for some items. Sellers may contact ComicLink by emailing buysell@comiclink.com or by calling (617) 517-0062 (option 1) to speak with Josh Nathanson, Douglas Gillock, Jason Crosby, Jon Signorelli, or Ross Kearney.

In addition to auctioning items for consignors, ComicLink is also always accepting new sellers for the ComicLink exchange marketplaces, brokering private placement deals, and buying outright. So, it pays to get in touch no matter your selling preference, and ComicLink always looks forward to hearing from potential sellers.