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Price Variants and Beyond |
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Marvel Price Variants and Beyond
A number of new variants have surfaced since the first two articles appeared in CBM #51 and 55, as well as the answers to questions about other comics alleged to be price variants. But first I would like to clarify, and add to a couple of items from "The 30¢ Price Puzzle" in CBM #55. The Two June 1976 Marvels which exist only as 30¢ editions are Ka-Zar #16 an Inhumans #5, not #6 which is correct on the list but not in the text. Somehow I managed to omit listing two of my favorite Bronze Age Marvel Horror reprint tiles: Tomb Of Darkness and Weird Wonder Tales. And there is no significance to the colored price balloons: if the regular edition has color, so does the variant, giving it a peculiar look. The 30¢ variant edition of Amazing Spider-Man #155 has a faint "still only 25¢" which is visible behind the 30¢ price, just as it appears on regular editions. And as the result of collectors watchful eyes, 167 of the 185 possible Marvel price variants published between April and August 1976 are now known to exist!
The loss of 59 titles reveals the few variants as yet unseen. (Parenthesis) denote issues known to exist. Although the search for Marvel price variants published between June and October 1977 has been going on a little longer than the search for their 1976 predecessors, they have proven more challenging to find. The list of 184 comics and 52 titles may have 35¢ cover variations. As before, parentheses () denote issues known to exist. 23 of 184 possible 1977 Marvel 35¢ variants are now known to exist. Since CBM #55, the 30¢ variants have jumped from 24% to 90% confirmed, while the 35¢ variants addressed in CBM #51 have crept from just 6% to exactly 12.5%. Many are begining to understand that the 35¢ variants are much scarcer. Only single copies currently exist of known 35¢ variants, with the single high-profile exception of Star Wars #1. There are now several dozen 30¢ variants with 2 or more copies known to exist, and very likely all 184 of them exist. I believe all 184 of the 35¢ variants will eventually be proven to exist as well, making a grand total of 369 Bronze Age Marvel comics with variant cover prices. Some of the 30¢ variants which appear to be more common with at least 10 copies each known to exist, include The Eternals 1-2, Powerman #30, Super-Villian Team-Up #5 and merely 10 each are known to exist of the popular titles Amazing Spider Man #155-59 and X-men #98-99 (but not 100)... although superhero status alone doesn't necessarily mean a variant is easier to find. For example, a 30¢ variant of Iron Man #89 has still not surfaced. It is easier to understand why either of the 18 30¢ variants still unaccounted for are westerns...they probably didn't sell very well. Mighty Marvel Western met its end with issue #46, cover dated September 1976, the first month all Marvels went to 30¢ per copy, Just two months later, Ringo Kid bought the farm with issue #3o, cover dated November 1976. Two Gun-Kid gave up the ghost five months after that with issue #136, cover dated April 1977. the two remaining western titles, Kid Colt Outlaw #229 and Rawhide Kid #151 (May 1979). except for low-demand titles like Black Goliath, Conan, Howard the Duck, and a few others, dealers I have spoken with say the variants sell briskly and with no resistance at 4 x Guide. I have found the same to be true sometimes getting more that 4 x guide in grades above VG. There aren't that many varints changing hands because they are still largely unknown and people can't collect what they don't know about (and you can't sell what you don't have). The only collector hesitation I've seen to variant sales has been condition, because the average variant turns up in VG or so, explaining why high grade variants sell so quickly at multiples of Guide. With much effort I have accumulated 76 of the 30¢ variants for my own collection, and sold about 25 duplicates.
Here are some examples of realized 30¢ variant sale prices: Amazing Spider-Man #159 FN $50 (210% of 1998, or 21 x the regular edition); Eternals #1 NM - 30$ (133% of 1998 Guide, or 5+ x regular edition!), Fantastic Four #169 VG- 10$ (333% of 1998 Guide, or 13 x regular edition), #170 VG- 10$ (333% of 1998 Guide, or 13 times regular edition); Iron Man #85 FN $20 (272% of 1998 Guide, or 11 x regular edition), #88 FN $20 (272% of 1998 Guide or 11 x regular edition!); Marvel Tales #70 FN= $17 (340%of a998 GUide, or 14- x regular edition!); and X-men #99 VF + $260 (116% of 1998 Guide, or 5-x regular edition!)
The 35 ¢ variants are so scarce that either no one has one to sell or is willing to sell, except for an occassional copy of Star Wars #1, which is bringing double 1998 Overstreet in all grades, despite the fact that the current Guide value is already 14 x that of the regular 30¢ copy! Three of the top 10 Bronze Age books listed in Overstreet are marvel Price variants, with Star Wars #1 35¢ cover in first place and X-men #98-99 30¢ covers in 7th and 8th places. I believe 35¢ cover Marvel variants will bring at least 10 x regular Guide when collectors eventually have a shot at them. The 30¢ cover Marvel variants are uncommon, but 35¢ cover Marvel variants are truly rare. Variant collectors fortunate enough to complete their runs can expect to accept less than perfect grades as well.
I would love to see a 25¢ Marvel cover variant of a 20¢ issue. The last five months before the books price changed from 20¢ to 25¢ are cover dated December 1973 through April 1974, and if Marvel used the same pattern, these are the variants. No Marvel price variants are known to exist outside of the 1976-1977 examples, except for the March 1980 Marvel Super Special #15, which is supposed to have a $1.50 cover, but is listed as scarce in Overstreet with a $2 cover because "the price was changed at [the] tail end of a 200,000 press run."
And what about Marvel 75¢ price variants like Thor #338, listed in Overstreet and mentioned at the end of my last article? Quite simply, they don't exist! I asked Doug Sulipa to check his stock of Thor #338 and he had several dozen 75¢ "variant" copies on hand, which turned out not to be "variants" at all, but Canadian editions! (DC Comics also has Canadian editions which can be mistaken for price variants. In the mid 1980's, for example, DC comics cost 75¢ in the US, and 95¢ in Canada, and the copies are otherwise identical.) Dell / Gold Key / Whitman price variants In my search for more variant comics, I spent some time researching the Dell / Gold Key / Whitman comics from the early 1960's through their final days in the early 1980's. Comic book publishers have historically raised the price of their entire comic line at almost the same time as their competitors. Dell / Gold Key / Whitman was somewhat of an exception to this rule. Here's a quick breakdown of Dell / Gold Key / Whitman dates of price changes. The 15¢ cover comics Dell published from 3/61 to 6/62 are all relatively uncommon because Dell's circulation took a big drop when potential buyers were confronted with 15¢ per copy in March 1961. With all the competition price lower, Dell's price increase meant you could only buy four Dell comics for the cost of five comics from another publisher, and that made a big difference to kids. DC Comics increased their price to 12¢ per copy with comics cover dated December 1961 through May 1969, and to 15¢ per copy from June 1969 through October 1971. Marvel mirrored DC's move when they increased their price to 12¢ per copy with comics cover dated February 1962 through July 1969, and to 15¢ per copy from August 1969 through October 1971. Dell restored the 12¢ cover price in July 1962 and sales improved although they did return to a 15¢ cover price in September 1968, nine months before DC took the plunge, and eleven months before Marvel followed. Surprisingly, Gold Key maintained a 15¢ cover price until April 1973, 18 months after DC and Marvel increased their comics to 20¢ per copy! Price variants (when they do exist) are apparently an indication that a publisher is trying to avoid a financial faux pas, like Dell's mistake in March 1961. Although Dell covers began threatening a price hike with the words "still only 12¢", with issues cover dated January through November 1964, they waited four more years to do it! Gold Key has some variants which have been noted over the years. Overstreet lists the "rare" Star Trek #2 and 3 variants with photo back covers, published 6/68 and 12/68 respectively. Magnus Robot Fighter, another well known Gold Key title, began its run in February 1963. Overstreet lists Magnus #22 (5/68) and #23 (8/68) and noted that "12¢ and 15¢ editions exist" I had intended to focus my initial search for Gold Key variants on all issues published between May and August 1968, because of the examples cited. Unfortunately except for Star TRek #s 2-3, and possibly other photo back cover variants, there are no Gold Key price vareants! I asked Doug Sulipa to check his inventory to answer a few questions, with decisive results. Doug had 12 copies of the 15¢ cover "variant" Magnus #22 and 15 copies of the the Magnus #23 15¢ price "variant", and one regular 12¢ edition. He also had 12 copies of a 15¢ cover "variant" of Mighty Samson #14 (5/68), and one regular 12¢ copy. Doug Sulipa lives in Canada. The Gold Key "price variant" that collectors have noted over the years are Canadian editions. Candian editions were produced right to the end (final issues had 75¢ covers), and released in bagged groups just like the US editions. After February 1981, Whitman comics' covers have no UPC codes, because they were sold in bags which had UPC codes on them! Two, three, four, six, and 10 packs are know to have been released. Later Whitman issues rank among the scarcest Disney comics. Gold Key didn't always coordinate their cover price increase like Marvel and DC did. Jungle Twins #10, with a 20¢ cover, and Scooby Doo #26, with a 25¢ cover, are both cover dated July 1974. Perhaps the most noteworthy variation of all is the only time the Gold Key / Whitman numbering system stepped out of sync, which happened between February and March of 1982. The eight digit numbers below the Gold Key symbol familiar to collectors can be translated to date the comic to the year and month of its publication. The last three digits indicate the year and month. Whitman comics were published between the months of February and March 1982 because of the numbers "113" which appear on the issues. Uncle Scrooge #193 ends with the numbers 202, #195 ends with the numbers 203. Some examples of "#113" comics are Bugs Bunny #234, Daffy Duck #140, Tweety and Sylvester #114, and Uncle Scrooge #194. The eight digit numbering system was disregarded after issues dated May 1982. Five digit numbers without the crucial dating were used from June 1982 until Whitman ceased publication. The only exception I found was Mickey Mouse #218, the last issue, which said on the inside "90027-208", which means the last issue was dated August 1982. Although Gold Key and Whitman editions are valued equally in Overstreet, I believe the Gold Key versions are more interesting not only because they are the first printings, but also because the Whitman copies delete the eight digit number under the Gold Key logo, making it impossible to date the book without opening it. It's not common knowledge to many DC Bronze Age collectors, but there are several known Whitman "variant" reprints of DC titles from 1978 with 40¢ covers....and some without a cover price, mainly because it wasn't needed. Whitman reprints were sold in bags, and the DC reprints are known to exist only in Superman and Batman titles. Examples of Action, Batman, Brave and Bold, Detective, Superboy, Superfriends, and Superman are all known to exist. (bagged groups of Whitman reprints were primarily sold in drugstores like Revco.) There is yet another group of reprints that were sold in bags, from 1977-78, and which are still today misunderstood and misidentified as regular copies. Overstreet mentions Star Wars as a Marvel reprint with "a large diamond with no date." Most Marvel popular titles and superhero comics like Amazing Spider Man, Iron Man, Micronauts, Thor, and others, including reprint titles like Marvel Super-Heroes and Marvel Tales, were reprinted and sold in bagged lots. Some have UPC codes, some don't. Some issues omit an issue's month, or the printing size of the issue number, which could vary month to month. The 30¢ and 35¢ covers are most easily recognized by the large diamond in the upper left corner surrounded by black. The later 35¢ reprints from 1978 also have an alteration of the Marvel strip at the top of the comic. Marvel Tales #97, are shown as examples, as well as a few others. I often see the Marvel reprints sold as regular copies. Some comics are variants simply because the publisher made a mistake. Marvel spotlight #1 (7/79) has a variant edition with no issue number on the cover. Some Marvel magazines from the early to mid 1970's were published with no issue numbers on the covers, so you have to open the books to identify them. Some examples are Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #1 and 2, Dracula Lives! 3-7, Monsters Unleashed #2-6, Tales of the Zombie # 2-6 and Vampire Tales #2,4, and 5. In addition to the two miscolored cover variants, Fantastic Four # 100 (5/71, Green Thing) and Sandman #1 (1971, pink cover). There is a variant New Gods #11 (11/72) with a missing DC logo and only parts of the left cover colored. Although the interior is identical to the US edition, Super Villian Team-up #9 shown with a 9p price is not a variant but a British editiion. British "weeklys" preceeded this format, featuring black and white reprints with new color covers and intro pages to splice American stories into a serial format. Many of the covers have that 1970's Marvel "feel" to them and are well worth collectiong. Reprinted material was mostly superhero from the 1960s to 1970'2. Titles sometimes formed strange combinations (e.g. "The Avengers and The Savage Sword of Conan.") NO PRICE...NO CONTENT
Sometimes it appears something "fell off" a comic's cover before it could be printed. The cover of Demon #15 (12/73 is obviously missing some dialogue, and the cover of GI Combat #175 (2/25) is missing the words "the very best" above the 25¢ price, a comment DC added along with 5¢ to the price, and the covers of some of their books in early 1975. Some comics have scenes on the cover which go beyond exaggeration and in fact reflect nothing of the book's contents...generally as the result of a missed deadline. Captain America #152 (8/72), Conan # 64 (7/76), Ghost Rider #10 (2/75, and Fantastic Four #180 (3/77 are all examples. Captain America #152 asks Marvel fans on the cover to vote on how they feel about bogus covers, and based on the other, later examples, it looks like they actually got positive feedback! Some publishers occcassionally managed to forget the cover price, and some examples include Beep Beep the Road Runner #8 (2-4/61) Cheyenne Kid #68 (9/68, Porky Pig #74 (1-2/61), and Walt Disney's Comics & Stories #244 (1/61). Looks like someone at Dell had their mind elsewhere in early 1961! SUPERHOMBRE?
Finally here's a puzzle that's 35 years old, the puzzle of the "variant" issue of Adventure Comics #304 (1/63). There is a symbol under the 12¢ price which I did not find on any other DC comic from January 1963, or on any DC comic published before or since, and which does not correspond to any anniversary or event which could explain its presence. The "Superman/Superhombre" symbol actually relates to a September 1944 ashcan, Superman/Superhombre #1, which has a 10¢ cover. Ashcans are the ultimate variants, and still unknown to the majority of comics fans
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Price Variants and Beyond |
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Marvel Price Variants and Beyond
A number of new variants have surfaced since the first two articles appeared in CBM #51 and 55, as well as the answers to questions about other comics alleged to be price variants. But first I would like to clarify, and add to a couple of items from "The 30¢ Price Puzzle" in CBM #55. The Two June 1976 Marvels which exist only as 30¢ editions are Ka-Zar #16 an Inhumans #5, not #6 which is correct on the list but not in the text. Somehow I managed to omit listing two of my favorite Bronze Age Marvel Horror reprint tiles: Tomb Of Darkness and Weird Wonder Tales. And there is no significance to the colored price balloons: if the regular edition has color, so does the variant, giving it a peculiar look. The 30¢ variant edition of Amazing Spider-Man #155 has a faint "still only 25¢" which is visible behind the 30¢ price, just as it appears on regular editions. And as the result of collectors watchful eyes, 167 of the 185 possible Marvel price variants published between April and August 1976 are now known to exist!
The loss of 59 titles reveals the few variants as yet unseen. (Parenthesis) denote issues known to exist. Although the search for Marvel price variants published between June and October 1977 has been going on a little longer than the search for their 1976 predecessors, they have proven more challenging to find. The list of 184 comics and 52 titles may have 35¢ cover variations. As before, parentheses () denote issues known to exist. 23 of 184 possible 1977 Marvel 35¢ variants are now known to exist. Since CBM #55, the 30¢ variants have jumped from 24% to 90% confirmed, while the 35¢ variants addressed in CBM #51 have crept from just 6% to exactly 12.5%. Many are begining to understand that the 35¢ variants are much scarcer. Only single copies currently exist of known 35¢ variants, with the single high-profile exception of Star Wars #1. There are now several dozen 30¢ variants with 2 or more copies known to exist, and very likely all 184 of them exist. I believe all 184 of the 35¢ variants will eventually be proven to exist as well, making a grand total of 369 Bronze Age Marvel comics with variant cover prices. Some of the 30¢ variants which appear to be more common with at least 10 copies each known to exist, include The Eternals 1-2, Powerman #30, Super-Villian Team-Up #5 and merely 10 each are known to exist of the popular titles Amazing Spider Man #155-59 and X-men #98-99 (but not 100)... although superhero status alone doesn't necessarily mean a variant is easier to find. For example, a 30¢ variant of Iron Man #89 has still not surfaced. It is easier to understand why either of the 18 30¢ variants still unaccounted for are westerns...they probably didn't sell very well. Mighty Marvel Western met its end with issue #46, cover dated September 1976, the first month all Marvels went to 30¢ per copy, Just two months later, Ringo Kid bought the farm with issue #3o, cover dated November 1976. Two Gun-Kid gave up the ghost five months after that with issue #136, cover dated April 1977. the two remaining western titles, Kid Colt Outlaw #229 and Rawhide Kid #151 (May 1979). except for low-demand titles like Black Goliath, Conan, Howard the Duck, and a few others, dealers I have spoken with say the variants sell briskly and with no resistance at 4 x Guide. I have found the same to be true sometimes getting more that 4 x guide in grades above VG. There aren't that many varints changing hands because they are still largely unknown and people can't collect what they don't know about (and you can't sell what you don't have). The only collector hesitation I've seen to variant sales has been condition, because the average variant turns up in VG or so, explaining why high grade variants sell so quickly at multiples of Guide. With much effort I have accumulated 76 of the 30¢ variants for my own collection, and sold about 25 duplicates.
Here are some examples of realized 30¢ variant sale prices: Amazing Spider-Man #159 FN $50 (210% of 1998, or 21 x the regular edition); Eternals #1 NM - 30$ (133% of 1998 Guide, or 5+ x regular edition!), Fantastic Four #169 VG- 10$ (333% of 1998 Guide, or 13 x regular edition), #170 VG- 10$ (333% of 1998 Guide, or 13 times regular edition); Iron Man #85 FN $20 (272% of 1998 Guide, or 11 x regular edition), #88 FN $20 (272% of 1998 Guide or 11 x regular edition!); Marvel Tales #70 FN= $17 (340%of a998 GUide, or 14- x regular edition!); and X-men #99 VF + $260 (116% of 1998 Guide, or 5-x regular edition!)
The 35 ¢ variants are so scarce that either no one has one to sell or is willing to sell, except for an occassional copy of Star Wars #1, which is bringing double 1998 Overstreet in all grades, despite the fact that the current Guide value is already 14 x that of the regular 30¢ copy! Three of the top 10 Bronze Age books listed in Overstreet are marvel Price variants, with Star Wars #1 35¢ cover in first place and X-men #98-99 30¢ covers in 7th and 8th places. I believe 35¢ cover Marvel variants will bring at least 10 x regular Guide when collectors eventually have a shot at them. The 30¢ cover Marvel variants are uncommon, but 35¢ cover Marvel variants are truly rare. Variant collectors fortunate enough to complete their runs can expect to accept less than perfect grades as well.
I would love to see a 25¢ Marvel cover variant of a 20¢ issue. The last five months before the books price changed from 20¢ to 25¢ are cover dated December 1973 through April 1974, and if Marvel used the same pattern, these are the variants. No Marvel price variants are known to exist outside of the 1976-1977 examples, except for the March 1980 Marvel Super Special #15, which is supposed to have a $1.50 cover, but is listed as scarce in Overstreet with a $2 cover because "the price was changed at [the] tail end of a 200,000 press run."
And what about Marvel 75¢ price variants like Thor #338, listed in Overstreet and mentioned at the end of my last article? Quite simply, they don't exist! I asked Doug Sulipa to check his stock of Thor #338 and he had several dozen 75¢ "variant" copies on hand, which turned out not to be "variants" at all, but Canadian editions! (DC Comics also has Canadian editions which can be mistaken for price variants. In the mid 1980's, for example, DC comics cost 75¢ in the US, and 95¢ in Canada, and the copies are otherwise identical.) Dell / Gold Key / Whitman price variants In my search for more variant comics, I spent some time researching the Dell / Gold Key / Whitman comics from the early 1960's through their final days in the early 1980's. Comic book publishers have historically raised the price of their entire comic line at almost the same time as their competitors. Dell / Gold Key / Whitman was somewhat of an exception to this rule. Here's a quick breakdown of Dell / Gold Key / Whitman dates of price changes. The 15¢ cover comics Dell published from 3/61 to 6/62 are all relatively uncommon because Dell's circulation took a big drop when potential buyers were confronted with 15¢ per copy in March 1961. With all the competition price lower, Dell's price increase meant you could only buy four Dell comics for the cost of five comics from another publisher, and that made a big difference to kids. DC Comics increased their price to 12¢ per copy with comics cover dated December 1961 through May 1969, and to 15¢ per copy from June 1969 through October 1971. Marvel mirrored DC's move when they increased their price to 12¢ per copy with comics cover dated February 1962 through July 1969, and to 15¢ per copy from August 1969 through October 1971. Dell restored the 12¢ cover price in July 1962 and sales improved although they did return to a 15¢ cover price in September 1968, nine months before DC took the plunge, and eleven months before Marvel followed. Surprisingly, Gold Key maintained a 15¢ cover price until April 1973, 18 months after DC and Marvel increased their comics to 20¢ per copy! Price variants (when they do exist) are apparently an indication that a publisher is trying to avoid a financial faux pas, like Dell's mistake in March 1961. Although Dell covers began threatening a price hike with the words "still only 12¢", with issues cover dated January through November 1964, they waited four more years to do it! Gold Key has some variants which have been noted over the years. Overstreet lists the "rare" Star Trek #2 and 3 variants with photo back covers, published 6/68 and 12/68 respectively. Magnus Robot Fighter, another well known Gold Key title, began its run in February 1963. Overstreet lists Magnus #22 (5/68) and #23 (8/68) and noted that "12¢ and 15¢ editions exist" I had intended to focus my initial search for Gold Key variants on all issues published between May and August 1968, because of the examples cited. Unfortunately except for Star TRek #s 2-3, and possibly other photo back cover variants, there are no Gold Key price vareants! I asked Doug Sulipa to check his inventory to answer a few questions, with decisive results. Doug had 12 copies of the 15¢ cover "variant" Magnus #22 and 15 copies of the the Magnus #23 15¢ price "variant", and one regular 12¢ edition. He also had 12 copies of a 15¢ cover "variant" of Mighty Samson #14 (5/68), and one regular 12¢ copy. Doug Sulipa lives in Canada. The Gold Key "price variant" that collectors have noted over the years are Canadian editions. Candian editions were produced right to the end (final issues had 75¢ covers), and released in bagged groups just like the US editions. After February 1981, Whitman comics' covers have no UPC codes, because they were sold in bags which had UPC codes on them! Two, three, four, six, and 10 packs are know to have been released. Later Whitman issues rank among the scarcest Disney comics. Gold Key didn't always coordinate their cover price increase like Marvel and DC did. Jungle Twins #10, with a 20¢ cover, and Scooby Doo #26, with a 25¢ cover, are both cover dated July 1974. Perhaps the most noteworthy variation of all is the only time the Gold Key / Whitman numbering system stepped out of sync, which happened between February and March of 1982. The eight digit numbers below the Gold Key symbol familiar to collectors can be translated to date the comic to the year and month of its publication. The last three digits indicate the year and month. Whitman comics were published between the months of February and March 1982 because of the numbers "113" which appear on the issues. Uncle Scrooge #193 ends with the numbers 202, #195 ends with the numbers 203. Some examples of "#113" comics are Bugs Bunny #234, Daffy Duck #140, Tweety and Sylvester #114, and Uncle Scrooge #194. The eight digit numbering system was disregarded after issues dated May 1982. Five digit numbers without the crucial dating were used from June 1982 until Whitman ceased publication. The only exception I found was Mickey Mouse #218, the last issue, which said on the inside "90027-208", which means the last issue was dated August 1982. Although Gold Key and Whitman editions are valued equally in Overstreet, I believe the Gold Key versions are more interesting not only because they are the first printings, but also because the Whitman copies delete the eight digit number under the Gold Key logo, making it impossible to date the book without opening it. It's not common knowledge to many DC Bronze Age collectors, but there are several known Whitman "variant" reprints of DC titles from 1978 with 40¢ covers....and some without a cover price, mainly because it wasn't needed. Whitman reprints were sold in bags, and the DC reprints are known to exist only in Superman and Batman titles. Examples of Action, Batman, Brave and Bold, Detective, Superboy, Superfriends, and Superman are all known to exist. (bagged groups of Whitman reprints were primarily sold in drugstores like Revco.) There is yet another group of reprints that were sold in bags, from 1977-78, and which are still today misunderstood and misidentified as regular copies. Overstreet mentions Star Wars as a Marvel reprint with "a large diamond with no date." Most Marvel popular titles and superhero comics like Amazing Spider Man, Iron Man, Micronauts, Thor, and others, including reprint titles like Marvel Super-Heroes and Marvel Tales, were reprinted and sold in bagged lots. Some have UPC codes, some don't. Some issues omit an issue's month, or the printing size of the issue number, which could vary month to month. The 30¢ and 35¢ covers are most easily recognized by the large diamond in the upper left corner surrounded by black. The later 35¢ reprints from 1978 also have an alteration of the Marvel strip at the top of the comic. Marvel Tales #97, are shown as examples, as well as a few others. I often see the Marvel reprints sold as regular copies. Some comics are variants simply because the publisher made a mistake. Marvel spotlight #1 (7/79) has a variant edition with no issue number on the cover. Some Marvel magazines from the early to mid 1970's were published with no issue numbers on the covers, so you have to open the books to identify them. Some examples are Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #1 and 2, Dracula Lives! 3-7, Monsters Unleashed #2-6, Tales of the Zombie # 2-6 and Vampire Tales #2,4, and 5. In addition to the two miscolored cover variants, Fantastic Four # 100 (5/71, Green Thing) and Sandman #1 (1971, pink cover). There is a variant New Gods #11 (11/72) with a missing DC logo and only parts of the left cover colored. Although the interior is identical to the US edition, Super Villian Team-up #9 shown with a 9p price is not a variant but a British editiion. British "weeklys" preceeded this format, featuring black and white reprints with new color covers and intro pages to splice American stories into a serial format. Many of the covers have that 1970's Marvel "feel" to them and are well worth collectiong. Reprinted material was mostly superhero from the 1960s to 1970'2. Titles sometimes formed strange combinations (e.g. "The Avengers and The Savage Sword of Conan.") NO PRICE...NO CONTENT
Sometimes it appears something "fell off" a comic's cover before it could be printed. The cover of Demon #15 (12/73 is obviously missing some dialogue, and the cover of GI Combat #175 (2/25) is missing the words "the very best" above the 25¢ price, a comment DC added along with 5¢ to the price, and the covers of some of their books in early 1975. Some comics have scenes on the cover which go beyond exaggeration and in fact reflect nothing of the book's contents...generally as the result of a missed deadline. Captain America #152 (8/72), Conan # 64 (7/76), Ghost Rider #10 (2/75, and Fantastic Four #180 (3/77 are all examples. Captain America #152 asks Marvel fans on the cover to vote on how they feel about bogus covers, and based on the other, later examples, it looks like they actually got positive feedback! Some publishers occcassionally managed to forget the cover price, and some examples include Beep Beep the Road Runner #8 (2-4/61) Cheyenne Kid #68 (9/68, Porky Pig #74 (1-2/61), and Walt Disney's Comics & Stories #244 (1/61). Looks like someone at Dell had their mind elsewhere in early 1961! SUPERHOMBRE?
Finally here's a puzzle that's 35 years old, the puzzle of the "variant" issue of Adventure Comics #304 (1/63). There is a symbol under the 12¢ price which I did not find on any other DC comic from January 1963, or on any DC comic published before or since, and which does not correspond to any anniversary or event which could explain its presence. The "Superman/Superhombre" symbol actually relates to a September 1944 ashcan, Superman/Superhombre #1, which has a 10¢ cover. Ashcans are the ultimate variants, and still unknown to the majority of comics fans
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