BUY AND SELL COMICS FOR FUN AND PROFIT!

HISTORY OF COMICS – This is a brief history of the origin of comics. As usual there is debate as to the starting date of comics and the first comic that appeared. Some argue that European broadsheets of the sixteenth century were the predecessors of comics while others argue that satirical magazines of the 1780’s were the first cartoons. The magazines were the first to use dialogue balloons. There seems to be some agreement that the pages of the New York World contained the first appearance of a true comic. Hogan’s Alley by R.F. Outcault first appeared on May 5, 1895. It spawned the Yellow Kid which became the most popular fictional character of the time. Outcault is also the creator of Buster Brown. The early comic strips were all designed to be humorous. Books have been written on the history of cartoons and comic strips which you might find interesting and informative. I can personally remember going to the drug store on a Saturday night and buying a couple of comic books. This was after spending considerable time trying to pick the best one. Once home I would proceed to read them when I went to bed. It was a big event getting a new comic book. As I said earlier this is just a snippet of the origin of cartoons and comic strips. Many of the early comic strips began appearing in comic book form also.

BLONDIE – is an American comic strip that was created by cartoonist Chic Young. The launch date in newspapers was September 8, 1930 and Blondie has been published in newspapers since. The comic strip features a blonde and her sandwich loving husband, Dagwood. Chic Young drew Blondie until his death in 1973. At that time his son, Dean Young, took over creative control and has collaborated with a number of artists on Blondie. Blondie has remained popular, appearing in more than 2,000 newspapers in 47 countries. Since 2006 Blondie has additionally been available through email from King Features’ DailyINK service. To see more information select Dagwood and Blondie under THE STORY at the top of the page. 

BETTY BOOP – was a cartoon character originally created by Max Fleischer with the help of an animator named Grim Natwick. Betty Boop was also featured in comic strips and was a caricature of a Jazz Age flapper girl. Betty Boop was a caricature of Helen Kane who had risen to fame as “The Bopp-Oop-A-Doop Girl”. Betty Boop collectibles have become very popular. Much of the Betty Boop merchandise that is available is in her sexier form and in fact Betty Boop merchandise is very popular worldwide. To see more information select Betty Boop under THE STORY at the top of the page.  .  Click on all categories by the search box to search for clothing and accessories and more.

MARMADUKE – The Marmaduke comic strip has appeared in newspapers since 1954. From 1954 to 2015 it was drawn by Brad Anderson. The Marmaduke comic strip was created by Mr. Anderson with help from Phil Leeming until 1962. Dororthy Leeming helped from 1963 to 1969. Paul Anderson has helped on the Marmaduke comic strip since 2004. The fate of the Marmaduke strip is now in the hands of Brad’s son Paul and Marmaduke comic strips continue to be syndicated. To see more information select Marmaduke under THE STORY at the top of the page.

CLASSIFICATIONS – If you are just beginning to collect classic comic books you need to know the condition classifications that dealers and collectors use in rating comic books. Included in the information is the numerical ratings used within the classifications. This knowledge is very important in helping to determine the worth of a listing for example in E-Bay or at a Comic Con event. To see the classifications and their meaning click on the CLASSIFICATIONS link at the top of the page. Also it is essential that you know what age your comic book falls into so you can price your comic. You can see what age your comic falls into on the AGES link. Again if you are thinking about collecting comics with the thought of making money from them the information under classications is an absolute must read.

AGES – Comic books typically are classified into four major categories or ages. However you will find more categories on the internet but these are the recognized major four. You need to know what age your comic falls into in order to help determine the value of the book. Rare comics can be worth a lot of money. Do you have treasure in the attic? For a list of the ages and their description see ages at the top of the page or click on ages to the left.

COMIC RESTORATION – The restoration by professionals became legitimate in the 1970’s. It was mostly done by collectors that wanted their comic books to look as perfect as possible. At that time it was not done to increase profits. In the 80’s and 90’s restoration of comics became very popular and brought high prices regardless of the quality of work. One problem at that time was disclosure. People were buying comics they thought had not been restored but actually they had been. Restoration developed a bad image because of non-disclosure. In 2000 (CGC) came into being which did independent grading of comics. The restoration market has seen a decrease in the huge profits of previous years. Restoration is now not viewed as a money making opportunity but rather a preservation of comics for future generations. To see more on restoration and factors involved in grading restored comics click on restoration to the left or above.

STORAGE – There are best practices you need to be aware of to safely store comics so that they can be preserved. To see the best practices click on storage to the left or at the top in the selection bar.

COMIC CON EVENTS – We also have a link at the top of this page under EVENTS that will provide a list of upcoming Comic Con events. These events are very popular and are good to attend if you are just starting out collecting or have been collecting for a long time. Plus, these events are just plain fun to go to. Also visit your local comic store. They are great places to start collecting comic books whether for fun or profit.

If you have any comments or suggestions please contact us via email. You can click on the link at the top of the page. We would love to hear from you!