Oldest and/or Rarest Comic Book of Your Collection

[McMurphy]

GOLLUM posted a great idea for a thread in the Books and Literature board, and I think it has a unique fitting for the Comic Book board, also.

What is your oldest or/and rarest comic book in your collection? If you scan and upload or find an online version to link to so the rest of us can see your example, that would be an added bonus.

The oldest I have currently in my keep is Tales to Astonish issue 69. It was published in July of 1965 by Marvel comics. The issue, like many issues of that series during that time, showcased the Incredible Hulk. There was a segment of time when the Incredible Hulk was canceled after only a very brief run, and Tales to Astonish was used as a way to regularly feature the Green Giant without his own series. The issue is divided up in two tales: "Trapped in the Lair of the Leader" (featuring the Hulk) and "Oh Wasp, Where is Thy Sting?" (featuring the Wasp and Giant Man).

A personal rarity for me, as an ex Hulk collector, was having issue #400 (volume 1, The Incredible Hulk, first printing, 1992), in which Hulk kills off The Leader (his longest running arch enemy), signed with certification by the writer Peter David.

[Note: I am lazy, and both scans featured below are ones I found online.]

[iansales]

Probably The Sacred & the Profane. It's not particularly old - it was published in 1987, in fact. But it's a signed and numbered edition, so I think it's rare.

[Ragnar]

2000AD #1 (unfortunately without the free Space Spinner) is probably the oldest.

Pride of place though goes to The Complete D.R. & Quinch signed by a certain Alan Moore.

[Duchessprozac]

My oldest is a copy of Iron Man 200 from November 1985. It's not really worth much but it has somehow managed to stay with me through over twenty years of turmoil where nearly everything else I owned has either been lost or stolen. However it did not escape my 6 year old hands and has several forms included scribbled in.

[Nesacat]

The oldest I have (and they are not very old at all) would be the Bozz Chronicles as well as Cloak & Dagger. Both from the mid 1980s and as far as I am aware, they are no longer being done. I wish they'd had a longer run though.

[GOLLUM]

HMMM...I think the oldest I have is the Watchmen series.

I do have the chance to pruchase some stuff from the 1930s like I did at WorldCon but I didn't take the chance then, darn it all!!

[Talysia]

I'm jealous - none of the graphic novels in my collection are either rare or old. Maybe I'll have to start collecting!

[aquamarine]

fun~ what is the name of the book

[Grimward]

A shame, really, that this thread wasn't more popular, McMurphy! I for one, however, will contribute. It's possible that I have a few older books amongst my comics, but none are similar condition to my Fantastic Four #6 (I also took the image from the web...for once I can say that mine's in slightly better condition)....had a chance to get my hands on some of the Carl Barks' Donald Duck books from the Golden Age a number of years ago, but couldn't pull it off.

As for rare, I have a number of comics autographed by either their author or illustrator which might qualify. For me, though, I translate "rare" as a book that was hard to find in good condition. This of course would apply to a growing number of the older books nowadays, but when I first started collecting (ie, there wasn't a www, and the internet was still mostly a military network) I could never find the two Marvel Conan books that featured Elric (Barry Windsor Smith's artwork...just phenomenal, btw), #14 and 15, in good condition. Finally did after looking for them for about 6 years. #14's image is included below, also from a web search (scan the real thing? Never!).