Marvel Comics #1 Pay Copy

[marvelguy]

This is supposed to be one of a kind, let alone a historic issue.

http://comics.ha.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=825&Lot_No=42219

[StlComics]

And it is up for sale............... AGAIN... :rolleyes:

[oxbladder]

Histric writing or not this book should never have graded out at a 9.0 VF/NM. Sure it is probably the best conditioned copy out there in many ways but it is written on and .... when I last checked ..... historical writing was not an excluded from the writing defects.

It is bad enough that they excluded stamps and light writing from the defect list in high grade after CGC came along now they make up one of a kind rules just so a publisher's scribbler can get the highest grade.

Pfft.

[stupidman]

And it is up for sale............... AGAIN... :rolleyes:


Look at the price JP wanted - LMAO!

http://members.aol.com/catmanstu/marvelpay.jpg

[fulltimer56]

That's OK, I think I can do without it!!

Linda

[StlComics]

Look at the price JP wanted - LMAO!

That wasn't the only book he wasa asking mad money for. He helped set a bunch of records buying stuff for unheard of prices, and then tried to resell it all for even more. If I remember right, he ended up being stuck with most of it, and went back to selling coins. :rolleyes:

[AceVentura]

That wasn't the only book he wasa asking mad money for. He helped set a bunch of records buying stuff for unheard of prices, and then tried to resell it all for even more. If I remember right, he ended up being stuck with most of it, and went back to selling coins. :rolleyes:

He and CGC created the problem for themselves with the Pay copy. They couldn't grade it more than 9.0 with all the writing on the cover. At 9.0 it was already drawing ENOUGH criticism from the hobby mucky-mucks. Pushing it to 9.2 would have been even more blatant a misnomer than gift-grading it 9.0.

Then JP bought two more Marvel #1s, which by "mere" coincidence, like all the books that Heritage ever resubmitted to CGC, jumped up in grade, also to 9.0 and one in 8.5. Now JP, through the courteosy of successful resubmission for higher grades from CGC had the three highest graded unrestored copies of Marvel #1 and the Pay copy LOST it's uniqueness as being the only 9.0.

With only ONE CGC 9.0 Marvel #1 in existance, the million dollar price tag may NOT have been so far fetched. With TWO of them in existance, and an 8.5 close behind, a million smackers as an asking price became ABSURD. Especially when anyone even remotely interested would take one look at what was in that 9.0 Pay copy slab!

Greed is good, but in that case, it wasn't.

It'll be that way also with AF#15. There's ONE 9.6 on the unrestored census. That was a JP book, insuring that there will never be another 9.6 bestowed on that issue unless JP goes on an AF#15 CGC 9.2 or 9.4 buying spree.

Some things in this hobby you can still count on. This is one of them, and 6 years ago, when I learned of whose submission the only Univeral 9.6 AF#15 was, and who was represented in attendance to formulate CGC before it started accepting submissions, I made the statement that there would never be another 9.6 blue. I was right.

[marvelguy]

Who is JP? That's all I know that it has been referred to.

[AceVentura]

Who is JP? That's all I know that it has been referred to.

Jay Parrino, JP_theMint, one of the "founding fathers" of CGC. Whenever God needs a quick loan, JP's the one that gets the call. :D

[UnlimitedRealities]

Histric writing or not this book should never have graded out at a 9.0 VF/NM. Sure it is probably the best conditioned copy out there in many ways but it is written on and .... when I last checked ..... historical writing was not an excluded from the writing defects.


I'm gonna have to disagree with you. I think publishers date stamps and pay notations are not only acceptable, but desirable. They are part of the history of the book, and, especially with pay copies, offer unique insight into that history.

A matter of taste, I guess.

[oxbladder]

It's alright I know people disagree with me on this quite often. I have oft said in the past this is one reason qualified grading is acceptable but, of course, I disagree with how qualified grading labels are. The label should have two grades one small one what the book is without the major defect and a larger grade of what the grade is with the defect.

The Marvel Comics #1 pay copy is the perfect scenario for qualified grading that way purists for grading can say they took into account the large amount of writing and considered it a defect while pleasing the people that say this nice Marvel Comics#1 scribbler is still a very nice book despite the writing.

With respect to the writing it is interesting and historical but for me it does not add value because it detracts from the overall aesthetic appeal of the book. I may be in the minority here but how this book is graded only causes problem and blurs borders and makes an already difficult process even harder. For years people have been whining and bitching about people's grading or how do you grade a really nice book with a major flaw (whether that flaw is historical or not). Qualified grading could have helped but instead of stating a lower grade "because" they chose to go with higher grade "but". It is semantics sure but five years ago one could not get away with saying higher grade "but" and now a raw seller trying higher grade "but" often becomes a topic of ridicule on various forums.

Whenever it comes down to clearing up grading grey areas I will always be a harda$$. Given the choice I would sooner buy the "clean" Marvel Comics #1 over the Pay Copy historical or not that writing just does not warrant a 9.0 regardless of how nice the book is structurally.

Note I am not opposed to people find more value in publisher markings and paying more for them I am opposed to being told they don't affect the grade. I admit that under that writing the Pay Copy is an amazing book. Clearly the market has decided that both the book and the writing warrant the high price ... a price much higher than the true 9.0. I think that if it was graded 8.0 it would still grab a higher price and 8.0 is a FAIR grade because in actuality the book under the writing is probably a 9.2-9.4. People are just too scared that they won't get alot of dollars if the grade is stated lower ... just like many people think disclosing all work done to a book will move it into a lower price bracket. The Pay Copy proves that thinking wrong because people pay a huge price for a book which is NOT a 9.0.