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A 15% BUYER'S PREMIUM WILL BE ADDED TO THIS ITEM AT CONCLUSION OF THE AUCTION
off white pgs; Publisher File Copy; Pay Copy (Publishers record of payments to artists noted on 7 pages and cover in pencil)
1st appearance of Sub-Mariner; 1st app. Human Torch; 1st Angel; 1st Marvel comic!! historic!! Comic Book Impact rating of 10 (CBI)
Pay Copy


Marvel Comics #1 has earned its place in the publishing pantheon as the comic that spawned the Marvel Universe — making it one of the precious few Golden Age comics that became a cornerstone of the industry. This single comic matches Action Comics #1 as a vital pop-culture artifact with the first appearance of the Human Torch, along with the Sub-Mariner's own debut on the newsstands with an amazing origin story.

Timely publisher Martin Goodman had previously launched pulp titles including Marvel Science Stories. Superman’s arrival on newsstands in April 1938 inspired Goodman to get in on the superhero craze by the end of 1939. Marvel Comics #1, however, relied on outside writers from the pioneering content farm of Funnies, Inc. Those included artist Carl Burgos penning the first appearance of the Human Torch, along with the debut of the Sub-Mariner by writer/artist Bill Everett (salvaged from the never-released Motion Picture Funnies Weekly).

Marvel Comics #1 also brought in the character of Ka-Zar from his short-lived pulp origins, although this jungle lord is no relation to the future Marvel Comics hero. Other stories include the brutal antics of the crime-fighting Angel, plus more jungle action with diamond-hunters encountering “Jungle Terror” and a Western hero called the Masked Raider.

The comic was a huge success, selling an estimated 900,000 copies. The original print run dated October 1939 remains the rarest. Records show that Goodman initially printed approximately 80,000 copies, with those copies quickly selling out on the newsstands. The second printing would be for 800,000, changing the month to “Nov” as printed above a dark circle obscuring the original month of publication.

Marvel Comics #1 also established a different kind of comic storytelling. The contributions from Funnies, Inc. replaced the colorful genre pioneered by Jerry Sigel & Joe Shuster with a hauntingly aggressive take on crime-fighting. Both the original Human Torch and Sub-Mariner were introduced as unique anti-heroes capable of turning on mere mortals.

(Marvel Comics #1 would be the sole copy of the book under that title, with Timely changing the publication to Marvel Mystery Comics with the second issue. The company itself would become Atlas Comics in the 1950s, and finally adopt the Marvel name in 1961 while launching titles including Fantastic Four.)

Even as Timely brought in creative giants like Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, the company would license the Human Torch and Sub-Mariner before finally buying the rights to the characters in 1940. (That was just a year after Goodman had brought in his wife’s teenage cousin Stanley Lieber — later known as Stan Lee — to assist in the office.) Marvel Comics #1 has remained the scarcest of major Golden Age keys, with copies never failing to ignite a frenzy of attention when issues come to market.
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ComicConnect is proud of our longtime role in preserving the very few Marvel Comics #1 that have come up at auction over the years. Those include a 9.4 copy selling for a record-setting $1.26 million in 2019, with further records in 2022 as a 9.2 file copy sold for $2.4 million, and a 2.5 for $293,000. (Those three copies were all unrestored November printings. The CGC Census of July '24 shows 70 total CGC Copies of all printings, with only 39 copies listed as Unrestored.)
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Marvel Comics #1, released in November 1939, is one of the most important, valuable, and rare comics of all time, and is the first-ever Timely/Marvel publication, a major cultural landmark. This copy earned a 9.2 CGC Universal Grade and has off-white pages. Any Golden Age key in this condition would be a major find, let alone one of such historic importance. The front cover is remarkably well preserved and clean, and the colors are undeniably crisp, perfectly highlighting the otherworldly appearance of the Human Torch as he closes in on his foe. This copy is over 80 years old and remains in an incredible, newsstand-fresh condition.

This Marvel Comics #1 is known as the “Pay Copy” because it is the original copy used by publisher Lloyd Jacquet to record payments to the artists that contributed to the book. Hand-written notations detailing reimbursement to legendary artist Frank Paul for his work on this iconic cover are evident on the title logo and illustration. Further records are also noted in pencil on Pg 7. The “Pay Copy,” is a record-breaking example of an already incredibly influential book. This remarkable publication was key to the genesis of Marvel Comics, a worldwide entertainment empire and cultural phenomenon that seems to be unstoppable in today’s media marketplace.

Overstreet Guide 2021 NM- (9.2) value = $775,000.

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