An original print of the comic book that introduced Superman sold at auction this week for a record $6 million.
The sale took place on Thursday, kicking off a four-day rare comic book auction organized by Texas-based Heritage Auction. Auction house described The rare find, Action Comics #1, published in June 1938, is recognized as one of the world's finest copies of the prized issue.
As is customary with most auction houses, Heritage did not disclose the seller or buyer.
The $6 million sale exceeds the previous record for Superman #1 Sold Especially in 2022 for $5.3 million.
“Thursday was a historic day for a historic comic book, and we expected no less,” said Heritage Vice President Barry Sandoval. Tell Barons. “The first session of this four-day event will exceed $15 million – and we haven't touched the comic art that begins on Friday, with several pieces of interest emerging. There may still be more history to be made.”
Million-dollar sales of original superhero comic books have become more common in recent history, with a copy of the first issue of Captain America taking over Selling for $3.1 million in 2022and Marvel's first ever comic Sold for $1.2 million in 2019. In 2021, Heritage also auctioned off a high-quality copy of Batman #1 for $2.2 million.
Devoted superhero fans consider Action Comics #1 to be one of the rarest and most influential comics ever printed — and one that launched perhaps the most iconic superhero into popular culture.
In it, a newborn baby is placed in a space capsule by his father who then determines the ship's destination for Earth. Just moments after the child is launched into space, his home planet of Krypton violently explodes, killing all its inhabitants. The baby capsule landed on the ground and was noticed by the car driver who was driving.
The early story that later brought us Clark Kent and Superman enjoyed huge popularity between 1938 and 1956, a time frame that comic book experts refer to as the Golden Age.
“If it weren't for Superman and Action Comics #1, who knows if there would be a golden age of comics — or if the medium would become what it is today,” Sandoval said in a statement Thursday before the sale.
Superman has been the central character in thousands of other comic books, as well as television shows, merchandise, animated series, and films. Actors George Reeves, Christopher Reeve, Dean Cain, Henry Cavill, and Tyler Hoechlin have portrayed the Man of Steel either on television or in film. David Corenswet is set on Takes Superman's cape in James Gunn's upcoming film “Superman Legacy” in 2025.
Only 200,000 copies of Action Comics #1 were printed in 1938 and there are probably only 100 of them in existence today. According to To Certified Guaranty, a Florida-based comic book grading service. Of the remaining 100 copies, 78 are in good enough condition to be sold or auctioned, according to CGC.
. “Professional creator. Lifelong thinker. Reader. Beer buff. Troublemaker. Evil problem solver.”