Heading:
Author:
Title: MORE FUN COMICS No. 40
Place Published:
Publisher:DC [Indicia: Detective Comics Inc.]
Date Published: February, 1939
Description: CGC certified: Good (2.0): Restored (C-3). Grader's notes: "spine of cover completely split & re-attached with tape; light pieces out to cover; moderate cover tanning; pieces added spine C-3." Cream to off-white pages. Provenance: The DC UNIVERSE COLLECTION.

GPAnalysis: No Restored sales. Only three reported sales in any grade: a 0.5 (incomplete) sold for $101 in 2012; a 6.5 sold for $1300 in 2108; and a 9.4 (Edgar Church pedigree) sold for $5600 in 2014.

CGC Census: 6 graded copies (5 Universal, 1 Restored). Gerber Photo-Journal Guide Scarcity Index: 7 ("Scarce: 21-50 copies").

Credits: Cover: Creig Flessel. Scripts: Fred Schwab, Jim Chambers, Paul Gustavson, Jerry Siegel, Bob Kane, Sheldon Moldoff, Joe Donohoe, John Hampton, Bob Hersch, Bernard Baily. Art: Fred Schwab, Jim Chambers, Paul Gustavson, Bill Ely, Joe Shuster, Bob Jenney, Homer Fleming, Ed Winiarski, Bob Kane, Sheldon Moldoff, Joe Donohoe, John Hampton, Rusty Lehman, Tom Hickey, Bernard Baily.More About the Major: Creig Flessel's DC career bridged the Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson era and the Donenfeld-Leibowtz takeover. Comics Journal publisher Gary Groth tried to get Flessel to dish dirt on the Major, following the canard that the Major was a dubious character, but Flessel set the record straight:

GROTH: At some point Wheeler-Nicholson's company was taken over by Irwin Donenfeld and Jack Liebowitz. My impression of Wheeler-Nicholson was that he was somewhat of a charlatan hustler. Is that correct? [Note: Groth seems to have confused Harry Donenfeld with his son, Irwin, who co-owned DC starting in 1948, and worked as Editorial Director before becoming Executive Vice President.]

FLESSEL: Well, no. He was to be pitied, because he had a great idea but he didn't have the money. He didn't have the wherewithal and he was stubborn. They said, 'Look, we'll give you whatever amount of money plus a percentage,' I remember that, and he said, 'No. This is my idea.'

GROTH: Donenfeld was the printer.

FLESSEL: He was also American News Distribution. He had everything.

GROTH: And he was really intersted in buying Nicholson out.

FLESSEL: Well, sure. Jack Liebowitz was a gentleman about that. He knew business. He wanted to buy the idea. And, of course, the Major had a vision. I don't blame him. I might have done the same thing: 'This is my idea! I want to be in on the glory days.'"****************************************
The DC UNIVERSE COLLECTION comprises over 40,000 comic books, encompassing every single DC comic published for retail sale from 1934 to 2014. The collection was amassed by British music producer Ian Levine over the course of several decades, and it's been hailed as the single greatest collecting accomplishment in comic book history. This collection served as the basis for former DC Comics president Paul Levitz's monumental book 75 Years of DC Comics: The Art of Modern Mythmaking, published by Taschen in 2017. PBA is proud to present this epic collection in a series of themed sales, including The DC UNIVERSE COLLECTION Part 3: The GOLDEN AGE, coming this summer. To join the DC Universe Collection notifications list, contact pba@pbagalleries.com.

Enjoying PBA's DC Universe Collection: Pre-Hero, Ashcans and Oddities sale? A very small number of softcover and limited edition hardcover auction catalogues are available for purchase. The catalogues are fully illustrated, thoroughly researched, and make excellent reference works for DC diehards. To order a copy, or to inquire about consignment opportunities, contact Ivan Briggs, PBA's Director of Comics: ivan@pbagalleries.com.