Disney-Fox Deal A Financial Boon, Marvel Comics Collector Hopes
(WBBM Newsradio) -- Disney's acquisition of most of Fox's film and television production and distribution businesses has prompted an avid Near North Side comic collector to pack up a chunk of his collection and head for Florida.
Collector Dan Davis says Disney has had the Midas touch when turning Marvel comic heroes into big screen stars while Fox has been far less successful.
Now, he is in a rush to get a valuation, or grading, determining the quality (and value) of his "ungraded" Marvel Fantastic Four and Silver Surfer comics, expecting them to show a big increase under the Disney umbrella.
He has spent the past couple of days carefully wrapping the books, to avoid damage and has rented a TransferCar to minimize cost. He will begin driving Sunday to Sarasota, Fla., where the grading house CGC is located.
Davis says some comic books you could buy new with spare change decades ago could put your child through college today -- or let you retire. That's why the grading of comic books has become a must for serious collectors.
He says a copy of the 1939 comic book that was the first to feature Batman, although missing its cover, was worth $7,500 a decade ago and is worth close to $25,000 today. A high-quality copy of the same comic book is worth more than $1 million.
He says grading by an impartial third party helps eliminates arguments among collectors over a book's value.
