Lowball bidder's 1938 Superman comic becomes million-dollar prize
In the early 1980s, a comic book fan with limited funds adopted a high-volume, low-bid strategy, scouring auction catalogs and making lowball offers. He won a copy of Action Comics No. 1 (1938), the Superman debut, for half its market value. Decades later, that copy has become a million-dollar prize, exemplifying the long game in comic collecting.
Key facts
- The collector began in the early 1980s.
- He used a high-volume, low-bid approach.
- He won Action Comics No. 1 via a lowball bid.
- The comic was worth half its value at the time.
- Action Comics No. 1 introduced Superman in 1938.
- The comic is considered the Holy Grail of collecting.
- The bid was made over the phone.
- The copy is now worth over a million dollars.
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